Synoptic Gospels 3: Shepherd and King (7)
Pray Psalm 23.4, 5.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
Sing Psalm 23.4, 5.
(The Gift of Love: Though I May Speak with Bravest Fire)
The LORD is ever by my side; His rod and staff with me abide.
A table rich for me He spreads; with oil my LORD anoints my head.
Read Matthew 26.26-30; Mark 14.22-26; Luke 22.14-23; meditate on Mark 14.22-26 .
Preparation
1. Why did the bread symbolize?
2. What did the cup symbolize?
Meditation
Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper as a way of memorializing His death for our sins until He comes again. But the Supper is more than just a memorial. It is a time of feeding—spiritually—on the body and blood of Jesus, such that our soul can be refreshed and renewed.
As Jesus served this meal to the disciples on the night before His crucifixion, so He continues to serve His disciples now and throughout the ages. Paul described the Lord’s Supper as a “participation” or “fellowship” or “communion” with Him (1 Cor. 10.16). There is a mystery here because we cannot explain how this works. How is Jesus spiritually present in these elements? And how does His Presence bring refreshment and renewal to our soul? We cannot understand this mystery.
We believe it is so, however, because Jesus said as much. He might have said that the bread and cup represent His body and blood. But He did not. He said in each case, this is. That it was not His material body is clear because He was still in that body serving them. Thus, He must have intended some other way of His being present in these elements, and the only other way to understand this is spiritually. Jesus meets us in this sacrament in a heightened way, spiritually, such that His Presence can be more real and affirming to us than at other times.
So we cannot completely explain what happens as we take the Lord’s Supper. But we can experience this as a participation with Jesus if, as we take the elements, we call on the Lord to make Himself known to us and to refresh our souls by these sanctified elements. He served the disciples with Himself in that upper room, and in a wondrous way He continues serving and nourishing our souls to this day.
Treasure Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
On 17 July 1924 my dad was born. However, his dad incorrectly filled out the birth certificate information, rendering him born on the 18th. Suffice it to say, we celebrated both days, per my dad’s gleeful instruction.
My dad died eighteen years ago, and yet each July 17th and 18th those of us who love him, remember him dutifully on both days.
Jesus planned this new sacrament to be celebrated on Passover.
Admittedly, I enjoy all the remembering attached to holidays, and the specialness of each one—Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, Birthdays—thinking always about the Lord Jesus, and His impact upon all those happy days.
The LORD’s Supper is indeed more than a Memorial, as has been pointed out.
It is a time to place an earthly item in our mouths, representing a heavenly mystery.
Jesus, filling us with Himself through the bread and cup. It is an outward sign of an inward activity.
But the thing I dwell on most are Jesus’ words to His disciples:
“With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer…” (Lk. 22.15).
“This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me” (Lk. 22.19).
“This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you” (Lk. 22.20).
“But behold, the hand of My betrayer is with Me on the table.
And truly the Son of Man goes as it has been determined
but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed!” (Lk. 22.21, 22)
Paul spoke of the LORD’s Supper thus:
“For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes. Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep” (1 Cor. 11.26-30).
Or as the KJV states: “eateth and drinketh damnation to himself.”
It is a sacrament not to be taken lightly.
Could it be that overuse leads to the prevalence of misuse?
Passover is a solemn celebration consisting of the death of a lamb, and its consumption, along with unleavened bread, and bitter herbs (Ex. 12.1-11).
The LORD’s Supper is remembering the death of God’s holy, beloved Son.
Celebrating the Lamb of God—Jesus the sacrificial Lamb—with the consumption of bread and wine memorializing Him; and somehow thereby being mysteriously filled with Him.
Jesus—the One Who suffered—Himself, put this solemn celebration into effect. “Remember Me.”
We fastidiously and carefully remember our loved ones; their lives, their deaths, their sometimes-multiple birthdays.
If we do so for them; oughtn’t we to do moreso for the One Who died for us?
“Be wise…be instructed…serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and you perish in the way, when His wrath is kindled but a little.
Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him” (Ps. 2.10-12).
Reflection
1. How do you prepare for taking the Lord’s Supper?
2. As you are taking the Supper, what’s going through your mind? How would you describe the disposition of your heart?
3. What does Jesus’ sacrifice teach you about being a servant to others?
The Lord’s supper is food for the soul, therefore a very little of that which is for the body, as much as will serve for a sign, is enough. It was instituted by the example and the practice of our Master, to remain in force till his second coming. Matthew Henry (1662-1714), Commentary on Mark 14.22-26
Pray Psalm 23.1-4, 6.
Call on the Lord to shepherd and guide you throughout this day, and to lead you to where you can serve others in His Name
Sing Psalm 23.1-4, 6.
(The Gift of Love: Though I May Speak with Bravest Fire)
Because the LORD my Shepherd is I shall not want, for I am His!
He makes me lie in pastures green, He leads by waters cool, serene.
My soul He quickens and will bless; He leads in paths of righteousness.
Though I may walk in death’s dark vale, I shall not fear—He will not fail!
Goodness and mercy, full and free, shall ever after follow me,
and in the house of God, my LORD, shall I abide forevermore!
T. M. and Susie Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
Other columns of interest this week: Our Read Moore podcast is concentrating on praying the psalms to seek revival—why we should and what we might expect. Do you ever wonder about what God’s will for you is? Patrick—echoing Paul—makes it clear, as you can see in last week’s Crosfigell. Our current ReVision series, “Pray for Your Church”, teaches us how to pray for the ministries of our church, beginning with worship. And new in our bookstore, our book, The Ongoing Work of Christ shows us how the book of Acts provides a template and footprint for all who take up the work of building Jesus’ Church.
And please prayerfully consider supporting The Fellowship of Ailbe with your prayers and gifts. You can contribute online, via PayPal or Anedot, or by sending a gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, P. O. Box 8213, Essex, VT 05451.
Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.
