THE LORD S SUPPER (Matt 26:26-30)

Transcription

1 THE LORD S SUPPER (Matt 26:26-30) Read Song # 189, When I Survey The Wondrous Cross A. This morning I d like for us to contemplate the L.S.; there will be no visual aids they were not required 1. A moment ago we discerned the body & blood of our Savior Jesus Christ. 2. And it has been observed by Christians on the 1 st day of the week since its inception into the kingdom of Jesus Christ. [Why did Jesus set up His memorial during the Passover? By the way, Jesus, being divine, had the right to establish a new form of worship while carrying out the lawful form man does not have that right or authority. But why during the Passover?] 2. But let s take a few minutes to consider the full significance of this memorial, which places the Lord s death on display before our minds & before the world til He come (1 Cor 11:26). B. Did you know it is called the L.S. only once in Scripture (1 Cor 11:20)? 1. It was instituted by Jesus just before His death & during His last observance of the Jewish Passover with His disciples. I. THE PASSOVER FEAST A. The Jewish Passover served as a type, shadow or figure of the TRUE Passover God had planned for His spiritual kingdom to come (Heb 10:1). B. But on their final night in Egypt, the Hebrew s were commanded to prepare the Passover feast, & while they were doing that - they could hear the cries of the dying & grieving Egyptians. 1

2 1. The Hebrews were to apply the blood of the Passover lamb to the lintels & doorposts of their homes; this would serve to protect them from the outpouring of God s wrath on the Egyptians. Exo 12:26-27 (Moses) And it shall be, when your children say to you, What do you mean by this service? 27 that you shall say, It is the Passover sacrifice of the LORD, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt when He struck the Egyptians & delivered our households. So the people bowed their heads & worshiped. D. But God was never entirely satisfied by the Passover feast; He never intended it to be a perpetual observance. 1. It was a ceremonial observance for an earthly nation. 2. Because the blood of animals had no power to accomplish His ultimate plan (Heb 9:22; 10:4). C. The Passover feast: 3. The Passover could only atone (make amends or reparation) for sins prospectively. 1. Commemorated a deliverance from a terrible & fierce oppressor. 4. It pointed to the TRUE Passover, Jesus Christ, who was sacrificed for us (1 Cor 5:7). 2. The Lamb s blood was a symbol of protection from God s wrath against sin. 3. The blood was also a means of dedicating God s covenant with Israel. a. His sacrifice delivers us from a far more powerful & potentially devastating enemy than Egypt Satan & the power of sin (Heb 2:14-15). 2

3 b. His blood was not just a symbol of protection from God s wrath against sin; His blood actually provides the remission of sins (Matt 26:28; Eph 1:7; Col 1:141 Pet 1:18-19; 2:24; 3:18; Heb 9:23-28). c. His blood dedicated a new covenant by which we can be forgiven of our sins, serve God with a clear conscience & look forward to His promise of eternal life in heaven (Heb 9:11-22; 10:11-18). Heb 9:13-15 For if the blood of bulls & goats & the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, 14 how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? 15 And for this reason He is the Mediator of the new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance. 5. The Passover was merely observed until God had prepared something better to replace it. Heb 10:4-7 For it is not possible that the blood of bulls & goats could take away sins. 5 Therefore, when He [Christ] came into the world, He said: Sacrifice & offering You did not desire, But a body You have prepared for Me. {Psa 40:6-8 Sacrifice & offering You did not desire; My ears You have opened [To take away deafness; To pierce with an awl, symbolizing ownership].} 6 In burnt offerings & sacrifices for sin You had no pleasure. 7 Then I said, Behold, I have come--in the volume of the book it is written of Me--To do Your will, O God. 6. Jesus Christ, the Servant of God, came to be that body prepared to do the bidding of God. E. Why couldn t God have used a perfect animal to atone for our sins against Him? 1. Because the punishment had to be equal to the crime. 2. The crime was against God, & man only had an earthly sacrifice so there was an imbalance. 3. Man could not even offer himself or his first born child for his sins (Mic 6:6-8). 3

4 4. And since God is just (Rom 3:26), He provided man a heavenly (divine) sacrifice (3:24-25). Rom 3:24-26 being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, 26 to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just & the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. [God provided for Himself a body that was prepared to replace the Passover lamb (Phil 2:6-8; Jn 1:14; 2 Cor 5:21; Heb 5:8-9; 1 Pet 2:22).] 3. And he soon heard the rejoicing in heaven as the blood of Christ was offered in the presence of God for us (Heb 9:23-28). 4. And then he was devastated to learn that people like you & I can come before the throne of God with boldness (Heb 4:16) to make our requests & to petition Him for the forgiveness of our sins. B. God set up three memorials to the body He prepared (the body of Jesus Christ): 4 II. THE PASSOVER REPLACEMENT A. Satan tried every trick in the book to corrupt the body of that perfect sacrifice (Heb 4:15). 1. When Jesus was crucified, Satan undoubtedly believed that he had won a great victory. 2. But he soon saw, with his own spiritual eyes, that body raised from the dead. 1. First day assembly: to remind us of the day of His resurrection (Acts 20:7; Mk 16:2, 9; Lk 24:1). 2. Baptism: to remind us that His death, burial & resurrection enables us to begin a new life when we obey from the heart that form of doctrine (Rom 6:3-4, 17; 1 Cor 12:13; Gal 3:26-27). 3. Lord s Supper: to remind us of the suffering He had to endure for our sakes.

5 [We tend to forget unpleasant events. Therefore, God, in order to sustain the importance of what He had done through Jesus, gave us a purposeful weekly reminder of the unpleasantness yet the beauty of what Jesus had done for all who would ever live (1 Cor 11:23-29). 1. The disciples were arguing about who would be the greatest in the kingdom. 2. And Jesus did two things to bring their hearts back to where they belonged. III. EXAMINE YOURSELF He picked up a child & told them to be humble, because they would not rule over each other, but the greatest of them would be like the youngest servant in the house (Mt 18:1-5; Mk 9:33-37; Lk 9:46-48; 22:24-27). 1 Cor 11:27-29 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body & blood of the Lord. 28 But let a man examine himself, & so let him eat of the bread & drink of the cup. 29 For he who eats & drinks in an unworthy manner eats & drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord s body. He washed their feet & instructed them to do likewise (Jn 13). CLOSING A. When you observed the L.S. a few minutes ago: A. When you take the L.S., what do you think about? Where is your heart? What are your motives? 1. To hurry through a service as quickly as possible. 1. Did you put away pride & false pretense; did you confess your sins & deficiencies to God? 2. Did you give thanks for the occasion that allows you to bring your mind back to what is truly important? 3. Did you discern the suffering body of Christ our Lord? We sometime pray, Father, help us to partake of these emblems in a manner that is well pleasing in Thy sight. B. Do you remember what was going on just before Jesus instituted His memorial? In saying those words we need to emphasize the word US & think ME, because discerning the body of Christ is something EACH ONE OF US MUST BE PREPARED TO DO! 5