Luke 22:14-20

Luke 22:14-20 When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.” After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among you. For I tell you I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.

The elements of the Passover foreshadow what is fulfilled in the kingdom of God. We eat the bread, for we will be and are the body of Christ. We drink the wine for we know his blood, his life, will be and is our life. We take the elements to remember him and his work here on Earth, but we also take the elements to remember who and what we are and will be for eternity. When we receive him as Savior, we become new creatures, (all things become new) born again after due season from the loins of the Creator, Jesus Christ. The Passover represents deliverance, deliverance from the bondage of sin and DEATH. We are no longer bound to the physical conditions of this world, the traditions and customs of man, for we have been made new. Jesus had eagerly looked forward to eating this Passover with his disciples because He knew He would soon fulfill the Passover in the kingdom of Heaven. His ministry, his word, and his life would satisfy the wrath of God and release men from the curse of sin, making them children of God, co-heirs with Christ. He is the Passover Lamb; His sacrifice delivers men from the Passover angel of death by placing his blood on the portals of heaven and upon everyone who trusts in his name. We are hidden WITH CHRIST IN GOD, welcomed into the house of the Lord.

By participating in this ceremony, we celebrate being part of his body, his life, his purpose. As the apostle Paul said, Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf. (1 Corinthians 10:16-17) Therefore, we are not to take communion unworthily with anger, unresolved conflict with another, or as a meal to fill our stomachs. As Paul goes on to state, For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself. (1 Corinthians 11:27-29) If we rightly discern the body of Christ and his blood, we will partake with clean hearts of thanksgiving and joy as we recall Christ's death and resurrection and our place and role in his body.

Christ used the bread and the wine as symbols of himself and his divine appointment on the cross. He left his followers with clear instructions to take communion in remembrance of him. Many sermons are preached on the meaning of communion: how it should be administered and taken and the dangers of abusing this commemorative meal. Perhaps each of us has different ideas on some of the details, but we can agree on the essentials. Christ broke bread and drank wine with his chosen ones to make sure they understood the meaning of what lay ahead, the meaning of Calvary and a new covenant with God through Christ's broken body and his shed blood. I often weep when I take communion. I weep in thankfulness at the enormity of the price God paid in allowing his dear Son to go to the cross, and I weep in joy that through Christ's willing sacrifice, I am saved from sin, set free from my earthly chains, and made a member of his body. Today, as you remember his death, celebrate your own deliverance, your own freedom from sin, and allow the Holy Spirit to fill your heart with peace and joy because you are God's child, born in sin but adopted into his family through Christ our Lord. As you rejoice, think of those who do not know or have not accepted God's plan and pray He will use you to reach the lost in Christ's name.