1 THE CUP Mark 14:32-36 Most often when Jesus spoke of the Passover Meal or what is known most often by us today Holy Communion He spoke of the bread and the cup. Jesus does not speak of the plate and the cup nor even of the bread and the wine, but the bread and the cup. Why? Because of the rich symbolism of the cup! At the Jewish Passover four separate cups were drunk, each with its own particular meaning. THE CUP OF DIVINE WRATH The first of these is the cup of divine wrath. The phrase appears voer and over again in the the Old Testament. the cup of His wrath (Isa 51:17) The cup of God s judgment Divine wrath upon the world s sin (Isa 51:22). Cup of Divine Judgment, especially against the wicked nations (Jer 25:15-28). Israel is to drink the cup of wrath the cup of ruin and desolation, the cup large and deep because of her grievous sins (Eze 23:33). In only one book of the New Testament does it appear, in the book of Revelation. Here those who receive the mark of the beast on his forehead or on the hand will drink the cup of God s wrath: If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead or on the hand, he, too, will drink of the wine of God s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of His wrath (Rev 14:9-10). In chapter 16 the same happens to Babylon the Great (v.19). Paul points out to the Christians in Rome: The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all godlessness and wickedness... (Ro 1:18). Christ s gospel is one of moral earnestness. The cup of salvation is not for those who want to remain in their sins. Jesus warned the Pharisees that the cup must be clean on the inside as well as on the outside. Paul warned the Corinthians that they might drink judgment unto themselves. We dare not take the cup in smiling complacency or devious hypocrisy!
2 Jesus accepted the fact that He must drink the cup alone and fulfill salvation history. The cup was the wrath of God upon the world s sin (Isa 51:22), the horror of the cross. This was the act of entering into the depth-encounter between God and hostile humanity that placed upon Him the iniquity of us all (Isa 53:4-6). He would taste death for everyone (Heb 2:9). The first prayer was surrender, As You will. The second and the third were supplications, Your will be done. The prayer incorporates the petition of The Lord s Prayer in the words, Thy will be done... and according to the letter to the Hebrews, His prayer was heard (Heb 5:7). This faith enabled Jesus to say, The cup which My Father has given Me, shall I not drink it? (Jn 18:11) Interesting isn t it that He who did not spare His own Son but delivered Him up for us all (Ro 8:32) did spare you and me. THE CUP OF SORROW The second cup of which we may drink is the cup of sorrow. Jesus went out from the upper room where He celebrated the Passover Meal and went into the Garden of Gethsemane. There, in apprehension of His tragic end, He poured out His soul unto God, Abba, Father, everything is possible for You. Take this cup from Me. Yet not what I will, but what You will (Mk 14:36). Jesus accepted the cup of sorrow from God s hand. But He did not want to drink that cup any more than we crave suffering and trial. The answer to His prayer came not in the removal of the cup, but in the strength to drink it. What seemed at the moment to be a terrible evil could work out for good. Jesus predicts His sorrow and death (Mk 8:31-37). Peter objects to Jesus sufferings and so Jesus rebukes Peter for minding the things of men, that is, trying to bypass suffering and death (Mk 8:33). In fact, Jesus accuses Peter to be a conduit of Satan when he does that (Mk 8:33). Jesus rebuke to Peter is a rebuke to any follower of Jesus who tries to bypass suffering and sorrow that may accompany discipleship. Such suffering and sorrow refers to 1. Physical death 2. Death to sin, Satan, self and the world Self-denial Again, Jesus predicts His betrayal and death (Mk 9:31). Here the disciples did not understand and were afraid to ask. Afraid, probably, because of Jesus rebuke to Peter earlier when he tried to dissuade Jesus from going to the cross.
Jesus predicts His sorrow and death (Mk 10:32-45). When James and John, His followers, expressed their hunger of position and power, Jesus asks them, Are you able to drink the cup that I drink? He went on and told them that He could not promise them position and power, but He did promise them the cup of sorrow and death--the cup of sharing in the fellowship of His suffering. When the cup of sorrow is passed to us, it is easy to confuse it with the cup of divine wrath. Feeling that the suffering is undeserved, we rebel at the apparent injustice. We have no satisfactory explanation of the distribution of sorrow, but this we know, that it is not a demonstration of God s anger. The world s great sufferers have included the world s greatest saints. 3 THE CUP OF FELLOWSHIP The third cup is the cup of fellowship. We drink together as a symbol of fellowship. We have abolished the common drinking cup in the interest of sanitation, but we must maintain the common cup of fellowship at all costs. As the disciples of Jesus drank together, their communion was more closely knit. As they drank in similar fashion after His death, they maintained fellowship with Him. Paul could speak of the cup as a communion of the blood of Christ (1 Co 10:16-17). It brought His followers into blood fellowship with Him; thus they became one body in Him. Jesus warned about those at Corinth who drank both the cup of demons and the cup of Christ (1 Co 10:21), that is, believers at Corinth who apparently continued to eat and drink at pagan idol feasts. Our modern equivalents are those things that divide us from Christ and each other such as the demons of fear and worry, hatred and greed, jealousy and prejudice, envy and malice, etc., for His cup pledges a bond of love. Cup of Thanksgiving Eucharist (1 Co 10:14-21 *v.16) Cup of the Lord (1 Co 10:21). Cup of Demons (1 Co 10:21). The Corinthians tried to combine the two cups (2 Co 6:14-18). This is impossible since light and darkness cancel each other out. THE CUP OF BLESSING The fourth and final cup is the cup of blessing. It is true that in our worship we pronounce words of blessing over the cup, but it is God alone who can make of it a true cup of blessing. It is His blessing we seek; His mercy we must find.
4 At the Jewish Passover one of the cups was a cup of blessing. The ancient pastoral festival was interpreted as a remembrance of God s merciful deliverance of the Israelites from their slavery in Egypt. There had followed a covenant sealed in blood between Jehovah and His people. At the Christian supper they repeated these words, This cup is the new covenant in My blood. Here lay the blessing, the new covenant of God s gracious will for mankind. Jesus passes a cup of blessing. It is not for one race but for all people. It commemorates not the giving of the law, but the giving of a life. The giving of that life is a symbol of the gracious mercy of God toward all who repent. The cup is the cup of His blessing freely given to you. After supper Jesus took the cup saying, This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of Me (1 Co 11:25). The Cup of Blessing is the Cup of Remembrance as we remember the deliverance of God s people from slavery in Egypt (1 Co 11:25). The Cup of Blessing assures us of security, pleasant places and delightful inheritance (Ps 16:5-6). The psalmist stated, You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows (Ps 23:5). The Cup of Blessing overflows, that is, God s goodness is to follow me until I m ushered into His eternal presence. BENEDICTION When Jesus took the cup, He gave thanks. If it is God s cup, whatever it contains, we may drink it with thanksgiving. As you give thanks, may you go in peace. The search for the Holy Grail is one of the great legends of the world. As we leave this table, may it be in remembrance that the true Grail is not a golden chalice, but a cup shared with needy humanity. With that conviction, may you go in peace. The Bitter Cup Death and the curse were in our cup; O Christ! Twas full for Thee! But Thou has drained the last dark drop, Tis empty now for me.
5 That bitter cup, Love drank it up, Now blessing s draught for me. --A. R. Cousin (1869)