Luke 22:7 – 13, 7Then came the day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. 8Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover.” 9“Where do you want us to prepare for it?” they asked. 10He replied, “As you enter the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him to the house that he enters, 11and say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ 12He will show you a large upper room, all furnished. Make preparations there.” 13They left and found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover.
This passage describes how Jesus had carefully made arrangements for the Last Supper. The disciples did not know it was going to be their final Supper with Him on this earth. But Jesus knew, and you can read some of His most intimate teaching at the Supper in John 13-17.
The disciples prepared to celebrate the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread, just as they had all of their lives. It was a time of remembrance.
The main purpose of the feasts was to remember great events in Israel’s history. And the greatest event of all was when God broke through time and history in a dramatic way to help the Israelites gain their freedom from the oppressive bonds of servitude to the Egyptians.
Religiously and historically the Passover was the most important of all the Jewish religious feasts. Not only did it commemorate the Exodus, but also, by God’s redemptive act, the establishment of Israel as a nation.
The Passover and the Feast of Unleavened bread really formed one great festival. The Passover was celebrated on the 14th of the first month of the religious year. The seven day Feast of Unleavened Bread began the next day.
These feasts were set aside every year so that, in gratitude for what God did, the Jewish people would never forget God’s deliverance.
Remembering was—and still is—a major characteristic of Jewish religious observances. Even today, thousands of years later, the Exodus is still very personal to religious Jews.
To them the Exodus is not ancient history. It was not just some ancient ancestors who participated in the Exodus, the crossing of the Red Sea, wandering in the desert, or crossing the Jordan into the Promised Land.
To religious Jews, all those historical events are personal. They are personally engaged in those events remembering God’s deliverance and guidance.
As they observe the religious festivals, every generation of Jews becomes aware of their heritage and—above all else—aware of the God who brought them out of bondage to the Promised Land.
To give you an idea of how important remembering is even today among Israelites—every army officer takes an oath of allegiance on Masada, the Dead Sea fortress where 960 Jewish zealots committed suicide rather than being taken captive by the Romans
The message is, Remember heroic service! Remember it is better to die than to be taken captive! Likewise, the museum of the Holocaust has a similar message: Remember the six million Jews who lost their lives under Hitler’s regime! Remember, and be certain it never happens again!
And the message of the Passover was remember what great things God did in making us a nation. It was a time for remembering.
The Passover meal commemorates the Exodus—Jewish redemption from slavery. More specifically, how the angel of death passed-over the homes of Israelites who had put the blood of the sacrificial lamb on their door posts during the final plague.
Jesus had perfect timing. With the meaning of the Passover in mind, it was at this supper, a supper of remembrance, that Jesus gave His followers—then and now—a new reason to remember. Jesus, Himself, was going to be the sacrificial lamb for all time.
Matthew 26:26 – 28, 26While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.” 27Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. 28This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.
Through Jesus Christ, God established a new covenant with His people. Who are God’s people? Believers—you and I who have accepted Jesus as our Savior, both Jews and Gentiles.
The forgiveness that Jesus provides through the sacrifice of Himself on the cross goes far beyond the old sacrificial system of the Jews. It is a new covenant that doesn’t need the old sacrifices because what Jesus did was once and for all.
In this new covenant we know the depth of God’s love and the length to which He went to assure us of His love and His desire to have a personal relationship with us.
Though they did not know it, as the disciples ate the Passover meal, the cross overshadowed everything else. In just a few hours Jesus’ beaten and bleeding body would hang on a cruel instrument of torture, a Roman cross.
They didn’t know what He meant by, 28This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. At that moment the disciples did not understand. But following the resurrection God’s amazing grace became clear.
One of the most beautiful pictures we know of Jesus is that of Him as a servant. After walking the dusty roads of Palestine, a guest had his feet washed upon entering a home.
This considerate gesture was usually done by a household servant. But Jesus assumed the servant’s role during the Passover meal when He tied a towel around His waist and washed the feet of His disciples (John 13:1-17).
We all know this story well. You can read it in John 13:1-17. Remember, Peter resisted, thinking it was beneath Jesus, and himself, to stoop to the level of a servant and wash feet.
But Jesus made it clear that it was necessary…
When He had dried the last foot He said, John 13:12 – 15, 12“Do you understand what I have done for you?” 13“You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. 14Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. 15I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.
The example Jesus demonstrated was not that we go around washing each other’s feet. Jesus wants His followers to have the constant attitude of service to others.
We fulfill the law of Christ by loving not just our fellow Christians, but also our neighbors. The example Jesus set is of service. This is what true love does. It serves others.
Someone once suggested that if we were issued a Christian uniform of the faith, it would include a towel to go around the waist. The towel would serve as a reminder of Jesus humbling Himself as a servant, and of our need to do the same.
This was the most difficult. We also need to remember that during that last supper Jesus announced to His disciples that one of them would betray Him.
Matthew 26:21-22, 21And while they were eating, he said, “I tell you the truth, one of you will betray me.” 22They were very sad and began to say to him one after the other, “Surely not I, Lord?”
Jesus’ announcement was met by shock and sadness. Immediately the disciples began to ask, Surely not I, Lord?”
Each of us probably think that we would never betray our Lord. But by word, attitude, deed, or omission, we, too, are capable of betraying Christ. We need to search our souls prayerfully.
Is it I who has forgotten to be appreciative of what Christ has done for me? Is it I who forgets to accept Christ’s offer of forgiveness. Is it I who thinks I can do it all by myself without accepting Christ’s help and empowerment?
Is it I who has betrayed my Christ by not surrendering to His Lordship? The simple fact is, some of you have accepted Him as your Savior, but you have never allowed Him to be absolute Lord of your life. That is a betrayal of Jesus and His cross.
The Lord’s Supper certainly is a most appropriate time to remember: * Remember that only Jesus is the way of salvation * Remember that Jesus calls me to be a servant * Remember that I need to search my soul to discover whether denial, or even betrayal, be found there * Remember that through faith I can have the certainty of fellowship and eternal life with Jesus Christ.
Ask for Jesus’ forgiveness for any way you think you have betrayed Him. Thank Him for His forgiveness. Thank Him that the Lord’s Supper is for sinners saved by His grace.
As the Lord’s Supper servers come, stand with me for the responsive reading:
Pastor: Jesus and His friends gathered in an upper room for a
fellowship meal.
People: We have gathered here for a fellowship meal with family, friends,
and the Spirit of Christ.
Pastor: The meal was a time to remember God’s deliverance in the Exodus.
People: We come together to remember what Christ’s giving Himself has done
for us.
Pastor: It was also a time for the disciples to examine their motives and
actions to question if betrayal would come from them.
People: May this be a time when each of us shall closely examine our
attitude towards Christ to see if betrayal, in word or deed, has been our sin.
Pastor: Jesus told His disciples of a new agreement that would be instituted
between God and His people.
People: May we live in the knowledge of this new covenant that gives us the
opportunity for a deeper understanding of God’s love for us and of His desire to
forgive and redeem us.
Pastor: At the supper, Jesus wrapped Himself with a towel and washed His
disciple’s feet.
People: We accept the fact that we express our love for Jesus as we love and
serve others.
Pastor: Jesus said, “Do this in remembrance of me.”
People: In remembrance of Him—His life, death and resurrection—we commit
ourselves anew to Him, His work and His gospel. Amen.
THE LORD’S SUPPER: Serve the Bread, Serve the Juice
Hymn of Departure: