Maundy Thursday Luke 22:7-20 Christ’s Earnest Desire

There is an Old covenant that the people of Israel have with God. Starting in Exodus chapter 19 we read, “You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel." So Moses came and called the elders of the people and set before them all these words that the Lord had commanded him. All the people answered together and said, "All that the Lord has spoken we will do."

God gave them the commandments and ratified that covenant with blood. Moses sprinkled half of the blood on the Altar of God and then he sprinkled the other half on the people.  The blood brought them into a legally binding contract. The covenant was sealed when Moses and the elders ascended Mount Sinai where they ate and drank a sacred meal in the presence of God

The problem was that while God is able to keep His promise, the people of Israel could not keep theirs. But you really have to admire the people of Israel.  They promised to obey everything that God had said. In this day and age You hear people treating the Bible as if it were an ancient document that is out of touch with the reality of everyday life. Our culture doesn’t recognize homosexuality as a sin, so we do not have to regard that portion of scripture. And what's wrong about sex outside of marriage? Of course even the TV soaps show the consequences of living such shallow lives.” And in addition to that, there are those inconvenient second and third commandments. We can't be expected to obey them or so the thinking goes.

The world has better things to do than to set aside an entire day for the Lord. Surely the people of Israel who had seen so many miracles, including the Passover had more reason to believe and obey than we.

 So we can understand how they were so quick to respond, “Everything the Lord has said we will do.” But in chapter 24, we read about them building and worshipping a golden calf, and cavorting with other peoples spouses when Moses was so long in returning. We cannot fault the children of Israel for picking and choosing which commandments they wanted to obey, and which ones they would ignore.  We are certainly no better at keeping the commandments than they were.

And yet the Israelites and the world today still believe that if they at least try to keep some of God’s Laws they will be fine. Unfortunately for them, God does not work that way.  Those who want to live under the Old Covenant have to obey all of His commandments. Fortunately, God has made a new covenant not only with Israel but with all mankind. 

In tonight’s Gospel lessen we see that Jesus came to fulfill that old promise. In fact, The Old Testament Passover points to Jesus as the Passover Lamb. The Passover was celebrated every year as a constant remembrance and proclamation of the Israelites being led out Egyptian bondage. But it was more than just a simple remembrance.  It was acted out in a meal, where the sacrificial Lamb was eaten along with bitter herbs. Unleavened bread was eaten along with wine. Even though they were now living in the promised land, it was in effect a way to connect with the people who had suffered in bondage, first in Egypt and then for a while in their journey through the wilderness.

And yet, the Passover was much more than just a remembrance. The Passover pointed to the Lamb of God who would take away the sins of the world. He would be the suffering servant that Isaiah had spoken about who would lead God’s people out of slavery to sin and into the eternal Promised Land. This very night, Jesus would become that Passover Lamb. And He was anxious for it to happen.

    And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.”  Since we could not keep the Old Covenant, Jesus made a new one and He did this willingly and with a determined excitement. Saint Paul described His resolve this way, “Looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:2 (ESV)  When Jesus shared a meal with His disciples, He looked forward to giving them a new covenant, a covenant He would seal with His own body and blood.

And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, "Take this, and divide it among yourselves. For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes." And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me." And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, "This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.

With these words, Jesus established a new covenant and also gave His last will and testament. After this Passover, there would be no need to celebrate the old one because Christ had become our Passover.  The Passover now became the Lord’s Passover. His body and blood would now be offered continually through His Supper and all who would believe in Him would 'pass over' from death to life in Him.

To accept the cup and to eat the bread is to drink His blood and eat His body. Remembering Him in this way is to actively accept Jesus’ suffering and death as the atoning sacrifice for your sins. To refuse to recognize Christ’s body and blood in His Supper is to invite condemnation as Saint Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians (11&12).

But Christ’s Supper done in remembrance of Him also points to something greater. His supper anticipates that final day when Jesus will feast anew with His disciples after the kingdom of God has come in all its fullness; when we will sit and eat on the heavenly Mount Sinai with Him for all eternity.  Even so, those who now feast at the table of the Lord receive the benefits earned by His crucified body and shed blood.  With His body and blood you also receive deliverance from divine wrath, freedom from the bondage of evil and safe passage to the heavenly Promised Land.

The vital question is whether it is God who remembers us for Christ’s sake or we who remember God because of His grace in Christ. Certainly both are true, but God is the one who first remembers His promises in Christ and who prompts our response of remembering in faith.   Even when we fail to live up to God’s promises, God remembers us for Christ’s sake as He bestows His gifts on us.

Yet it is also true that the disciples are called by Jesus to celebrate the supper in remembrance of Him. The call to remembrance at the Last supper recalls God’s covenant promises from creation through the Passover, through His Supper and forward to His final coming.

So we remember Jesus Christ’s work of salvation not only with our minds and with our hearts, but also with our actions.  Again Saint Paul says, “Because of Him, we love one another, not only in word, but in deed and in truth.”

The Last Supper of Jesus and subsequent celebrations of the Lord’s Supper are different from all other meals, for Jesus gives His body with the bread and His blood with the wine. The miraculous provision of these gifts in the Supper bestows forgiveness of sins and new life with God, based on Christ’s death. 

The Passover meal has been replaced with His Supper by which He establishes a new family that will celebrate this meal in remembrance of His death and resurrection and in anticipation of His return.  The Last Supper is the culmination of Jesus’ fellowship with His disciples which continues now and forever.  Indeed, it is the most important meal of all God’s children. Its greatest significance lies in what it bestows: the real presence of Christ, His very body and blood, offered up in death on a cross and now given with the bread and wine for the forgiveness of sins and life eternal.

“May the almighty and merciful God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, by His Holy Spirit, accomplish this in us.”  Amen.