To understand the significance of the Last Supper, particularly Jesus' request for His disciples to remember Him, and to apply this understanding in our daily lives by reflecting God's love and sacrifice.
Good morning, family! Today, we're diving into a powerful and poignant moment in biblical history - the last supper Jesus shared with His disciples. It's a scene filled with deep symbolism and profound truths that continue to echo down through the centuries to our own lives today.
Opening Scripture Reading – We're going to be focusing on Luke 22:8, which reads, 'Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, 'Go and prepare the Passover meal, so we may eat it.''' Now, the Passover meal wasn't just any old dinner - it was a ritual meal, rich with symbolism, that reminded the Jewish people of God's deliverance from slavery in Egypt. Theologian Andrew Murray once wrote, 'Our love to God is measured by our everyday fellowship with others and the love it displays.' This fellowship was embodied at its fullest during the Passover meal.
The Passover feast, as described in the book of Exodus, is a significant event in Jewish history. It commemorates the liberation of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, a pivotal moment that marked their transition from a life of oppression to a journey towards the promised land. The feast is a ritual meal, rich with symbolism, that serves as a powerful reminder of God's deliverance and faithfulness.
A. The Passover feast was a celebration of God's power and mercy, a testament to His ability to deliver His people from the most dire of circumstances. The feast was a time for the Jewish people to remember and give thanks for God's intervention in their history. It was a time to reflect on the miracles that God performed, the plagues He sent to Egypt, and the protection He provided for His people.
B. The feast was also a time of fellowship and community. It is a time for families to come together, to share a meal, and to pass on the traditions and stories of their faith. The Passover meal is a communal event, a time for the Jewish people to come together as a community, to remember their shared history, and to strengthen their collective identity.
C. The Passover feast is also deeply symbolic. The unleavened bread, the bitter herbs, the roasted lamb - each element of the meal carries a specific meaning and serves as a tangible reminder of the Israelites' experience in Egypt. The unleavened bread, for example, symbolizes the haste with which the Israelites had to leave Egypt, with no time to wait for the bread to rise. The bitter herbs represent the harshness of their life in slavery, while the roasted lamb is a reminder of the sacrificial lamb whose blood was used to mark the doors of the Israelites, signaling the angel of death to pass over their homes.
D. In the context of the last supper, the Passover feast takes on an even deeper significance. Jesus, knowing that His time was near, chose to celebrate this feast with His disciples. He used the elements of the meal to symbolize His impending sacrifice - the bread representing His body, the wine His blood. In doing so, He transformed the Passover feast from a celebration of physical deliverance to a symbol of spiritual salvation.
The request of Jesus to remember Him is a call to His disciples, and by extension to all of us, to keep His memory and His teachings alive in our hearts and minds ... View this full PRO sermon free with PRO
Sermon Central
