Sunday
School Lessons
Commentary by Walter Albritton
April 13
Jesus Gives the Passover Rich, New Meaning
Mark 14:1-25
Key Verse: This is my blood of the new testament, which is
shed for many.
–
Mark
This spring we have
watched our Coalition Forces destroy Iraqi Regime-oriented sites in and around
The scriptures teach us
that God also plans well and can work his plan to perfection. During the last
days before his crucifixion, Jesus executed a careful plan to celebrate the feast
of the Passover in secrecy with his disciples. Security was necessary because
the religious leaders were determined to kill him.
Jesus’ plan unfolds
like a John Grisham novel. Peter and John are sent to prepare the room for the
supper. The location is unknown even to them.
They will learn the
location by finding and following a man carrying a jar of water on his head.
Such a man would be easy to spot since only women, not men, would carry a
pitcher of water on their heads. The man would lead the two disciples to the
home with the large upper room.
Our Lord’s
instructions were followed by Peter and John, who found everything just as
Jesus had said it would be. They probably wished that Andrew and James had come
with them for preparing the meal required a lot of hard work.
The Passover lamb had
to be roasted. Unleavened bread (without yeast) had to be baked. In addition
there must be secured a bowl of salt water (to remind them of the
When evening came, the
meal was ready when Jesus and the other disciples arrived on schedule. As they
sat down and began to eat, what Jesus shared saddened their hearts. Bluntly,
Jesus announced that one of them would betray him. One by one, the twelve asked
the sobering question, “Is it I?”
Since none of the
disciples tried to stop Judas from betraying Jesus, we may assume that they did
not understand Judas was the traitor. Apparently, they were not listening or
paying attention when Jesus intimated that the betrayer was Judas.
What follows is what
the church calls the “institution of the Lord’s Supper.” Jesus takes the bread,
and after giving thanks, he gives it to them, saying “Take, eat; this is my
body.”
Later he takes the
cup, and again giving thanks, he passes the cup among them, saying, “This is my
blood of the new testament, which is shed for many.”
With these words,
Jesus gave rich, new meaning to the traditional Passover meal. On that historic
night, a new covenant superseded the old covenant. The new covenant signaled
the arrival of the Kingdom, which offered a new relationship between God and
his people.
That night, the people
of God began shifting from the old Passover meal to the new Lord’s Supper.
Jesus was the new Lamb of God; henceforth no other lambs would need to be
slain. Since then, for 2000 years, the followers of Christ have celebrated this
meal in obedience to his command, “Do this in remembrance of me.”
As Christians, we have
our differences about what Holy Communion means, and the rudiments of serving
it. However, it remains, without question, the central worship experience of
Christendom.
We agree that in the
celebration of the Last Supper the living Christ becomes present. He is the
Host of the meal, and all of us lay and clergy alike, are blessed by this sweet
communion with our Lord. We delight in singing, “He is here, hallelujah!”
Dramatic, and
wonderful, experiences often occur in this holy sacrament. It stirs the soul to
hear, as you take the bread and the cup, the solemn words, “Jesus died for
you.”
As a pastor, many
times I have had someone kneeling at the altar to look into my eyes, their own
eyes filled with tears, and say words like those that Catherine spoke one day,
“Please ask the Lord to heal my broken heart.”
I am confident that
the living Christ has indeed healed many broken, grieving hearts during Holy
Communion. He is ready to graciously meet all our needs when, accepting his
invitation, we meet him at his table. + + + +