Let’s Have a Meal

Luke 22:14-20

¹⁴ When the hour came, He reclined at the table, and the apostles with Him. ¹⁵ And He said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer;¹⁶ for I say to you, I shall not eat it again until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” 

Today we want to examine the reasons why communion also known as “the Lord’s Supper” is extremely importantin our lives as believers.  In our passage in Luke, Jesus expresses His earnest desireto eat the Passover with His disciples one last time before He is crucified.  This became known as the Lord’s Supper.

So that we fully get the picture, we will briefly talk about what was the Passover.

When the Israelites were enslavedto Egypt, God had raised up Moses to deliver them from the hands of their oppressors.  The night beforetheir deliverance, they were to each take a lamb, one per household, slaughterit, put the blood of the lambupon the two doorpost of their house and they were to both roastand eatthe remaining portion of the Lamb.  None was to be left in the morning, whatever they could not eat was to be burned with fire.

Those who had obeyedand had put the blood on the outside of their homes as they were instructed, were sparedfrom the10^thand most deadlyplague that the Lord had unleashed on the Egyptians.  This plague consisted of the Lord’s angel goingthrough their midst and killingthe firstborn of both man and beast in the land of Egypt.

If the blood was foundon the door, then the angel would “Passover” that particular home and move on to the next.   When this plague was accomplished, Israel was freed from their oppressorsand they were allowed to go and worship the Lordand venture out to the promised land.

The Passover was a foreshadowingof the “The Lord’s Supper.”  As a shadow precedesa person the Passover preceded “The Lord’s Supper.” The Lord’s Supper has several resemblances to the Passover.

1. Like the Passover, The Lord’s supper involves eatingand drinkingsomething physicalwhich carries a deeper spiritual
2. Like the Passover, the Lord’s Supper involves a pure and spotless lambbeing slain. Jesusis known as the lamb of Godbecause He walked this earth in flesh and bloodand He was pure and spotless.  He too would be slain and become the perfect sacrificeto take away the sins of the world.  Jesuswould eat the Passoverwith His disciples to illustrate to them what would happento His bodyfor their benefit.
3. Like the Passover, we need the blood of the lamb to coverour sins.There is nothing else that will spare usfrom the judgement of God other than the Blood of Jesus.  His blood is the elementin the binding covenantbetween God and man.

Why blood?

Hebrews 9:22 And almost all things are cleansed with blood, according to the Law, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.

4. Like the Passover, The Lord’s supper points to our individual responsibilityto partake of it, as we partake of it we are united with Himin His suffering.

Now that we know the why, how do we celebrate the Lord’s supper. 

 ¹⁷ And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He said, “Take this and share it among yourselves; ¹⁸ for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vinefrom now on until the kingdom of God comes.” ¹⁹ And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body, which is being given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” ²⁰ And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup, which is poured out for you, is the new covenant in My blood.

There are a couple of things that we should take notice of. 

The Lord’s supper is to be done by believersand in remembranceof what Jesus did.   “Take this and share it among yourselves;” Unbelievers are welcomed to watchas this is a public act of worship, but they should refrain from taking it until they are saved.  Lest they bring upon themselves damnation. 

The Lord’s supper should be taken in a worthy manner.  No one should take “The Lord’s Supper” in a carelessor casualway.  You should not take it simply as a snackor to put food in your belly.  But it should be taken in remembranceof what Jesus did for you. 

The Apostle Paul reproved those in Corinth who were not taking “The Lord’s Supper” in a serious manner. 

1 Corinthians 11:27-31

²⁷ Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy way, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. ²⁸ But a person must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup. ²⁹ For the one who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not properly recognize the body. ³⁰ For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number are asleep. ³¹ But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged. 

Hopefully you feel the weightof these verses.  Those who take it in an unworthy manner:

1. Guilty of the Bodyand guilty of the blood of the Lord. Meaning you’re just as guilty as those who crucified Jesusto the cross.  They took lightlythat He was the king of the Jews, they mocked Himand put a crownof thorns on Him and a purple robe.  They took lightlythat He was the Son ofGod.  They sneered things like “if you are the Son of Godthen pull yourself off of the cross.”

Don’t take lightly the workof the cross.  Don’t ever cheapen the sacrificethat Jesusmade for your sins.  Salvation may be God’s free giftto you but it cost Him everything.

2. By taking the Lord’s supper in an unworthy manner says that you bring uponyourself judgement. And then he names those judgements.  Weak, sick, fallen asleep(died)

The proper responseis not to avoid “The Lord’s supper” all together, but to take it in remembranceof what He did.  Direct your mind to Jesusand to the eventssurrounding him during Easter weekend.

Those who eat and drink in a worthy manner, not physically but spiritually, by faiththey are nourishedwith benefits.  When you eat and drink, your faith should reach out embrace all that Christhas accomplished for you.   Embrace it take it all in.Peace, joy, hope, freedom,security, guidance, victory.

The promises of God are yes in Christ Jesus.  Looking back at vs 19 of Luke 22

¹⁹ And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body, which is being given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” ²⁰ And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup, which is poured out for you, is the new covenant in My blood.

The last supper originatedwith Jesus.  It is called a Supperbecause it is spiritually satisfying.  Each ofthe gospelsdescribes Jesus giving thanksor blessing the breadand the cup, and givingthem to his disciples saying that the bread is his bodyand the cup is the bloodof the covenant, or the new covenant in his blood. 

John puts it in a real graphic way

John 6:53 

⁵³So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves. ⁵⁴ The one who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. ⁵⁵ For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. ⁵⁶ The one who eats My flesh and drinks My blood remains in Me, and I in him. 

While this scripture is hard to accept, verse 63 gives us the heart of what Jesus is saying.

⁶³ It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh provides no benefit; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit, and are life. 

Meaning this, they did not literally eat Jesus’ flesh, they ate bread.  They did not literally drink His bloodthey drank from the fruit of the vine.  But as we eatthe physicalbread, and drinkof the physical cup, it should remind us of the physical brutality that Jesusendured for us.  At the same time as we acceptwhat He has done for usin the physical, then that becomes life to us in the Spirit. It is the breadof life.  We are sustainedand nourishedthrough the cross of Jesus Christ.

The bread that was broken symbolizes his bodythat was broken.  The fruit of the vinesymbolizes His bloodthat was poured out, it is a picture of covenant.  The bread is just said to be “some breadnot really describing what kind of bread we are to partake of.  The drink is said to be the fruit of the vine.  Whatever is most honoring. 

When the Lord’s supper is mentionedin the gospels we learn there is an emphasison the covenantthat God has made with His people.

It was an agreementconfirmed by His blood.

A blood covenantrequired both partiesinvolved to walk the path betweenthe slaughtered animals so to say, “May this be done to me if I do not keep my oath.” That is exactly what happened with Abrahamin Genesis 15. 

When God established His covenant with Abraham, He promised Abraham heirs as numerousas the stars, He promised him land, and blessings.  This covenant was a blood covenantbecause the Lord had required Abraham to bring certain animalsas a sacrifice.  The sacrifices were then split in halvesand according to custom the two entering the covenantwould pass through the middle of these halves.   However, we find that Abraham fell into a deep sleepas the sun went down and God alone walked through those halvessealing the covenant by Himself. 

To give us the picture that we do not have what it takesto bring about our own salvation.  God providesthe sacrifice, His only Son, the pure and spotlesslamb toredeemmankind from their sins.   Because mandoes not have the abilityor the means to do it himself.

The agreement is between Godand man. In this covenantthere is nothing that we provide Him, He has provided all the elements necessary for the covenant.  The agreement simply requires us to believe, He has done the rest.  He has provided the sacrifice, He has been faithful to fulfillHis part of the agreement even when we are not able to fulfill our part, and it is He that will bringabout our eternal life.

The element that seals the agreement is the blood of Christ. Only the blood of Christ could suffice as He alone walked in flesh and blood and did not sin.  He was the pure and spotless lambwho would take away the sins of the world.

Just as with every covenant there is an exchange.  What is the exchange that happens in this agreement?

• He was despisedand rejectedso that we can be accepted by God.
• His body was beatenso that we can be made whole.
• He took lashesupon His back so that we can be healed
• He was unjustly condemnedso that we can have freedomthrough Christ and be free fromcondemnation
• He took upon himself the penalty of sinto make us the righteousness of God
• He was crushedso that we can be forgiven.

Christ purchasedfor us, all the blessingswhich we could ever experience. As we eatat the physical levelwe feastat the spiritual levelbecause of what He boughtwhen He was physicallyput on the cross.

Because the Lord’ Supper is sacredand because it cost Him dearly, don’t come to the Lord’s table in a carelessway.  Discernwhat is going on.  Don’t make lightof this. This representsthe body of the Lord.  Remember that some have become weak, illand have even diedbecause they have taken it in an unworthymanner.  But “if we judged ourselves truly” then we will not be judged.

Those who eat and drink in a worthy manner partake of Christ’s body and blood, not physically, but spiritually, in that, by faith, they are nourished with the benefits He obtained through His death, and thus grow in grace.                 -John Piper

You need the blood of the lambto coveryour sins in order to escapethe judgement of God. You need the blood of the lambto experience an abundant lifenow in this present lifeand even more soin the life to come.  Jesus’ bloodis the element that sealsthe covenantthat God madewith you in regards to eternal life.  As believers we have an individual responsibility to rememberwhat the Lord has done for us by partakingof the Lord’s superin a worthy manner.