Mark 14:12-16

Mark 14:12-16  On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, when it was customary to sacrifice the Passover lamb, Jesus’ disciples asked him, “Where do you want us to go and make preparations for you to eat the Passover?”  So he sent two of his disciples, telling them, “Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you.  Follow him.  Say to the owner of the house he enters, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is my guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’  He will show you a large upper room, furnished and ready.  Make preparations for us there.”  The disciples left, went into the city and found things just as Jesus had told them.  So they prepared the Passover. 

Jesus prophetically knew there was a place in the city already clean enough to celebrate the Passover.  He sent his disciples ahead to acquire that room, and his disciples and He celebrated the Passover Feast there.  There they drank the wine, they ate the unleavened bread, they consumed the lamb.  This room had to be spotless, so clean that not even one crumb of leavened bread could be there.  Leavened bread has yeast in it.  Yeast in the Bible metaphorically depicted sin.  No sin could be in the environment of the Passover celebration.  So it is with us, we literally celebrate the Passover in our upper room, our souls.  Our souls have been cleansed by the blood of the Lamb.  In our upper rooms, we have been made so holy that the Almighty God can interact with us, commune with us.  Yes, God has made us spotless with the blood of the Lamb and because of that, our celebration of the Passover is now a continuous one.  We sing songs of glory to the Highest, praise the name of the Lord God Almighty.  We sing songs of his delivering us from the bondage of Egypt.  We sing songs about the life He has given us.  Our praises flow freely to him, for we are no longer in slavery to sin.  The songs and praises are a continuous sacrifice to the Lord; they are a sweet smelling incense to his nostrils.  

I am sure Jesus told those who were feasting in the upper room, "Eat up, eat the lamb that was broken for you, drink the wine, partake of the bread, for God has redeemed his forsaken, has shown his favor on the lost, has delivered the broken and downhearted from their sins, has healed the blind.  My disciples, drink the wine of rejoicing because all who have placed the blood over the doorposts of their houses were delivered."  However, I am sure Jesus was thinking about THE LAMB OF GOD'S SACRIFICE,  about his day of atonement.  As Christians we partake of communion often to remember the day THE LAMB WAS BROKEN FOR US, WHO SHED HIS BLOOD FOR US.  We partake figuratively, but Jesus said in the spirit we partake literally.  Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.  Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.  For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink.  Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him.  (John 6:53-56)  Christ's sacrifice was real: we partake of him in reality in heaven where we experience life eternal, not figuratively.  His body was broken for us, his blood was shed for us.  At the table in heaven, we do partake of that reality.  We are made whole through that reality.  Our feast is continuous.  Right now his blood constantly cleanses and cleanses again, putting us in right standing with God the Father.  We are continuously healed in spirit and body.  The Lamb has been sacrificed and his sacrifice was complete.  Come to the altar.  Come to the table.  Partake.