We are reading the last days of Jesus’ life on earth. The chief priests and the elders of the Jewish people have been plotting to arrest Jesus secretly and kill him. However, they do not want to do this during the Passover to prevent an uproar from happening. But an opportunity has presented itself to them. One of Jesus’ disciples, Judas Iscariot, has gone to these religious leaders and asked them how much he could get from them if he would betray Jesus to them. They offer Judas 30 pieces of silver. The paragraph ends by telling the reader that now Judas is now seeking an opportunity to betray Jesus.
Preparing The Lamb (Matthew 26:17-25)
Matthew 26:17 tells us that it is the first day of Unleavened Bread. The Feast of Unleavened Bread was a feast prescribed by God to Moses to give to the people of Israel.
Then Moses said to the people, “Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the LORD brought you out from this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten.” (Exodus 13:3 ESV)
The reason for the feast was to remember how God set his people free from slavery by a strong hand. This annual feast was to remember the power of God to release his people and give them liberation. This seven day memorial was to be kicked off with the Passover feast. This is why we read the disciples asking Jesus about making preparations for the Passover meal in verse 17. What I want us to see and what Matthew is wanting us to see as the backdrop for the events we are reading is the Passover meal and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Remembering God’s strong delivering hand in the exodus is what the people were to be thinking about and celebrating at this time. What Matthew has also done in this gospel is told us that he has sped the account to the last day of Jesus’ life. Passover is about to start. The leaven (any rising agent in dough) was to be removed from their homes.
When we look at Matthew 26:18 we see that Jesus has already made preparations for the Passover. Jesus is ready for the Passover. Jesus is ready for this memorial. He tells his disciples to go into the city and find this certain man. But notice what they are to tell this certain man with whom Jesus has made preparations. “My time is near. I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples.” Notice Jesus does not merely say that they are coming. He does not merely say to have the Passover ready because he and his disciples are coming. Jesus also says that this is it. My time has come. His time is near. His time is now. The Passover Lamb is prepared for what is about to happen to him this very night.
Now it is evening and I want us to think about what this meal is supposed to be about. This meal is supposed to be a celebration of God’s deliverance of his people. This meal is to remember how they were slaves and God powerfully brought them out of slavery. But notice what Jesus says while he is eating with his twelve disciples. “Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me” (Matthew 26:21). Please imagine this. Jesus is telling them that his time is near. Jesus told them that he would be handed over and crucified at the Passover (Matthew 26:2). Now Jesus says that one of you twelve is the reason why. Jesus just dropped shocking news on them. One of you is the betrayer. One of you will put these events into motion. One of you is handing me over.
So the disciples were very sorrowful when they heard these words. You can easily imagine what is happening in the minds of the disciples. You can imagine them looking around at each other and speculating in their hearts who they think would do such a thing. Yet I want you to notice the denials that happen. In verse 22 we see that each disciple asks, “Is it I, Lord?” By asking this, they are saying to Jesus that they would never do such a thing. Please notice that each disciple said this, even Judas. But notice that when Judas said it, Jesus confirmed it. Look at verse 25. Jesus tells him, “You have said so.” Jesus tells him that he knows what he is doing. So he has offered a warning of woe in verse 24. The death of Christ is what was written about him. This is God’s eternal plan. But woe to the man that has betrayed him. Jesus is trying penetrate Judas’ heart. But Judas’ will is set and he will betray Jesus.
Preparing the Memorial (Matthew 26:26-29)
So it is the weight of this betrayal and the backdrop of the celebration of their freedom from slavery in the Passover meal that Jesus prepares a memorial for himself. In verse 26 Jesus takes bread. Since it is the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, then we know that this bread would have been unleavened bread. This is why when we partake of this memorial we use unleavened bread. Jesus takes this bread, gives thanks, broke it, and gave it to his disciples. Friends, this is also why we offer a prayer of thanksgiving before we take the bread during the memorial. Please understand that we do not need to ask God to bless the bread. I don’t even know what that would mean. To bless something in the scriptures is to offer a prayer of praise and thanksgiving. So we are praising God and thanking God when we have the bread and are ready to eat.
Notice what Jesus tells his disciples to do. He tells them to take the bread and eat it. “This is my body.” Now in the Passover meal, the bread represented the bread of affliction according to Deuteronomy 16:3. The bread reminded the people of their suffering while in Egyptian slavery. Jesus takes this bread and now says, “This is my body.” Now the bread will not represent your suffering. Now the bread will represent Jesus’ suffering. When we take the bread we are remembering the body of Jesus that was given for us. We are remembering the horrors of what Jesus must endure. We are remembering that he will go through mocking and scourging. We are remembering the crown of thorns pressed into his head. We are remembering the nails that were driven through his hands and feet. We are remembering Jesus being lifted up and crucified. We are remembering his suffering and affliction. Jesus is telling us to never forget what he did. Jesus knows our problem of forgetfulness. We forget even important events in our lives. So Jesus tells us that we need to remember him. We need to remember his body in the bread and all that he went through. He gave up his body for us.
But Jesus was not done with this memorial that he was establishing for his disciples. Jesus then took a cup. We know from verse 29 that the cup contained the fruit of the vine. This is another way of saying the juice that comes from a grape. So this is why we have grape juice in the cup because the cup would have contained the fruit of the vine. Jesus takes the cup and Jesus gives thanks again. So again it is important for us that when we take the cup we also give a prayer of praise and thanksgiving just as we did before we took the bread. I want to emphasize that these two prayers need to center on Jesus. This is not the time for prayers about us. We have other prayers in our worship for that. These two prayers are giving praising and thanks to God for Jesus’ sacrifice.
When Jesus finished praying, he took the cup and gave it to his disciples, telling them to drink it. Notice what he says about the cup. Jesus says to drink it, “for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28). Notice that Jesus did not say that the cup represents his body. Rather, the cup represents Jesus’ blood of the covenant. Now we have spent our Sunday evenings diving deep into the meaning of the blood of the covenant. I cannot give a full recap of what are four lessons on this subject. But I want to summarize the meaning of the cup like this. The cup represents the effect of Jesus’ sacrifice. Jesus said to remember his body when we take the bread. Then Jesus said to remember the covenant established through his death when we take the cup. Notice that Jesus speaks to the effect of the blood of the covenant in verse 28. Jesus’ blood to establish this covenant was poured out for the forgiveness of sins.
Now I want us to think about the tension that the Lord’s Supper has on our hearts each Lord’s day. Think about how sometimes we can be so sorrowful because we are focusing on the body. We think about all that Jesus experienced for us. We think about the shame and suffering that came through the cross. But then sometimes we spend our time thinking about what the cross means for us. We have been set free from our sins because of this covenant established through Christ’s blood. We have been forgiven through this covenant given through Jesus’ death. We have been brought into a relationship with our Father because Jesus gave his life so that we can have a new covenant that draws us close to him.
Friends, here is what I want us to see in summary. The Passover had a tension in its celebration. They remembered their bread of affliction but how God rescued them with a powerful hand. Jesus has the same tension in the room as he institutes the Lord’s Supper. It was the time of the Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread which was to be a celebration. But at the same time he has announced to the table that one of his own disciples would betray him, causing all the disciples to be deeply sorrowful. Now we come to the table. First, we take the bread and we offer a prayer of thanksgiving for the body of Jesus. As we think about the body of Jesus we are moved to sorrow and grief. We think about the suffering. We think about the shame. We think about the rejection and betrayal. We think about the pain. We center our minds firmly on the cross of Jesus and it brings our hearts low. But then we come back to the table and we are given a cup. But Jesus says now he wants us to remember the covenant that was established through his blood. Friends, there is nothing sorrowful when we think of the covenant. We move from sorrow to joy as we remember how we have been delivered from our slavery to sin by God’s mighty hand. Through this covenant we have been forgiven and reconciled. Through this covenant we have hope. Through this covenant we have life. Through this covenant we can be with our Lord for all eternity. In the cup we are remembering what Jesus accomplished for us through his death and we celebrate and praise God that his lovingkindness made this possible for sinners like us. Let us now come to the table and take the bread and take the cup with these concepts in our hearts and minds.
Preparing the Victory (Matthew 26:29)
As we conclude our lesson I want to come back to one very subtle but important point that Jesus makes in verse 29. Jesus did not want this memorial to be like the memorial of a fallen hero. Jesus does not say that he is going to die and you need to remember me after I die. No, look carefully at verse 29. Jesus says that there is a day when he will drink this cup new with you in his Father’s kingdom. Jesus is looking forward to a messianic banquet that he will enjoy with all of his disciples. Here is the point: Jesus will not stay dead! You are not remembering a fallen hero. You are remembering a risen hero! You are remembering the one who has the power to lay down his life and take it back up again! He did not merely die so that you can have eternal life. No, he died and rose from the dead so that you will die to your old life and rise to a new life so that you can have eternal life with Jesus. We will be with Jesus again. The bread makes us sorrowful and the cup makes us rejoice. The death of Jesus makes us sorrowful and the resurrection makes us rejoice. Our death makes us sorrowful but because of Jesus we will be raised and in this we rejoice.