David Bahn – Reflections

Luke 22:7-30

Then came the day of Unleavened Bread, on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. ⁸ So Jesus^[a] sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat it.” ⁹ They said to him, “Where will you have us prepare it?” ¹⁰ He said to them, “Behold, when you have entered the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him into the house that he enters ¹¹ and tell the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says to you, Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ ¹² And he will show you a large upper room furnished; prepare it there.” ¹³ And they went and found it just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover.

Institution of the Lord’s Supper

¹⁴ And when the hour came, he reclined at table, and the apostles with him. ¹⁵ And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. ¹⁶ For I tell you I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” ¹⁷ And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, “Take this, and divide it among yourselves. ¹⁸ For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” ¹⁹ 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.”²⁰ And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood. ²¹ But behold, the hand of him who betrays me is with me on the table. ²² For the Son of Man goes as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom he is betrayed!” ²³ And they began to question one another, which of them it could be who was going to do this.

Who Is the Greatest?

²⁴ A dispute also arose among them, as to which of them was to be regarded as the greatest. ²⁵ And he said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those in authority over them are called benefactors. ²⁶ But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves.²⁷ For who is the greater, one who reclines at table or one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at table? But I am among you as the one who serves.

²⁸ “You are those who have stayed with me in my trials, ²⁹ and I assign to you, as my Father assigned to me, a kingdom, ³⁰ that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

Jesus sends Peter and John to prepare the Passover meal. They do as he says and find it just as he had told them, so they prepare the Passover meal. This would amount to lamb, unleavened bread, wine, bitter herb (horseradish), parsley, salt water, and charoset (a mixture of apples and nuts). Each of these foods had symbolic meanings relating to the experience of the Jews as slaves before Moses led them out of Egypt. This was a remembrance of the great Old Testament deliverance, and a highlight of the Jewish experience.

Jesus will transform this meal into a remarkable New Covenant experience as he points to the bread and wine, declaring it to be his body and blood that they are eating and drinking, and stating that they are to do this in remembrance of him. But as soon as he institutes this meal, he tells the disciples that one of them would betray him, and their attention is turned from remembering Jesus, and how this celebration is really all about him, to questioning each other about who would do such a terrible thing.

As if that is not enough, the discussion turns into an argument between these closest followers of Jesus (!) as to who is the greatest. Questions about who is the worst give way to arguments about who is worst! Sigh.

How is this possible? Such turns and twists of sinful behavior shouldn’t surprise us. We live in the midst of that each day. We who have been redeemed and called to a life of humility and service worry about things as petty as getting cut off in traffic, or someone cutting in front of us in the lunch line. We who have been called to take up our cross and follow Jesus fret when we don’t get our way about where we go to lunch. Sigh.

The more remarkable thing, however, is that we who so regularly get things so totally wrong are promised an eternity of glory in the presence of the Lord of all creation! And in the case of the apostles, Jesus promises that they will sit at the table with Jesus and on thrones and judge the twelve tribes of Israel! This is beyond remarkable: a group of petty, argumentative, posturing, and fretting men are destined to a glory that they cannot even imagine.

This is the profound testimony to God’s grace, and clear evidence that we cannot earn our way into God’s favor. He grants is kingdom to any who will follow Jesus. Most often that following has to do with repentance and faith. Sometimes it has to do with obedience. It always has to do with the grace and mercy of God who sent his Son as the One who has served all of humanity by giving his life as a ransom for many. Thank you Jesus!