Matthew – God’s Purposes
As we continue on with Matthew’s account of the last days, and now just hours, before the beatings and final torture of the cross, Jesus sits down with his disciples as head of the family over the traditional, Jewish, Passover meal with the Twelve. The story of God protection and provision and rescue is recalled and told as is the tradition. Jesus now explains what He is about to do and knows who is going to betray him to begin the process.
What is not in the traditional story is, “This is my body” as he blesses the bread, tears it into pieces and serves EVERY disciple, including the on he knew would betray Him. “This is My blood”, He would tell them as He took The Cup, blessed it and had every one drink from it. “My blood”, poured out as a sacrifice to forgive the sins of many. EVERY one drank from the cup. There is so much symbolism here, as we know the rest of the story of our salvation provided by Jesus, the perfect sacrificial Lamb of God, colliding with the fulfillment of tradition and prophecy.
What do we pass on to our kids and their kids? Do we recant the story of our salvation as tenaciously and carefully as those who celebrate the Passover?
Then they sang a hymn and followed Jesus to the Mount of Olives. Jesus will fall on his face to pray that The Cup be taken from Him but still willing to follow what His Father has sent Him to do, “Not my will, but Yours”…We are beyond grateful that Jesus followed the will of God, Our Father. Our prayer, as we walk with Jesus and follow His teaching, must be the same…”Not my will, but Yours”.
Matthew 26, NLT
The Last Supper
17 On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Where do you want us to prepare the Passover meal for you?”
18 “As you go into the city,” he told them, “you will see a certain man. Tell him, ‘The Teacher says: My time has come, and I will eat the Passover meal with my disciples at your house.’” 19 So the disciples did as Jesus told them and prepared the Passover meal there.
20 When it was evening, Jesus sat down at the table with the Twelve. 21 While they were eating, he said, “I tell you the truth, one of you will betray me.”
22 Greatly distressed, each one asked in turn, “Am I the one, Lord?”
23 He replied, “One of you who has just eaten from this bowl with me will betray me. 24 For the Son of Man must die, as the Scriptures declared long ago. But how terrible it will be for the one who betrays him. It would be far better for that man if he had never been born!”
25 Judas, the one who would betray him, also asked, “Rabbi, am I the one?”
And Jesus told him, “You have said it.”
26 As they were eating, Jesus took some bread and blessed it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, “Take this and eat it, for this is my body.”
27 And he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. He gave it to them and said, “Each of you drink from it, 28 for this is my blood, which confirms the covenant between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice to forgive the sins of many. 29 Mark my words—I will not drink wine again until the day I drink it new with you in my Father’s Kingdom.”
30 Then they sang a hymn and went out to the Mount of Olives.
Dear Lord,
Thank you. Thank you for going to hell, defeating death and back again for all of us. Thank you for paying for my sins. Thank you for restoring my relationship with God, our Father. Thank you for Your Holy Spirit who guides, directs, comforts and challenges us daily to love like you love and to serve like you serve…without conditions. This IS amazing grace.
In Jesus Name, Amen
