In the name of Christ Jesus, dear fellow redeemed people of God,

"The Lord's Supper" belongs to the Lord. It is his. He instituted it. He established it as a sacrament. We are not at liberty to change it in any way. This evening let us carefully study the very Word of God as...

{7} Then came the day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed.

This was a very important day for the Jews. On this day, the Passover lamb was sacrificed. The background and instructions for this festival were recorded in Exodus chapter 12. In keeping with God's law, Jesus and his disciples would celebrate the Passover too, remembering in faith how God delivered his Old Testament people from slavery in Egypt. Yet, this was a night of transition, because this Passover feast would soon give way to a celebration of the New Testament sacrament that we call "the Lord's Supper."

{8-13} Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, "Go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover." {9} "Where do you want us to prepare for it?" they asked. {10} He replied, "As you enter the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him to the house that he enters, {11} and say to the owner of the house, 'The Teacher asks: Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?' {12} He will show you a large upper room, all furnished. Make preparations there." {13} They left and found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover.

Once again, we see Jesus demonstrating his divine omniscience, his knowledge of all things. As true God, Jesus knew what would happen. He was in control. This must have fortified the faith of his disciples. How exciting it must have been for Peter and John to experience this, when everything turned out just as Jesus said it would!

May we follow what our Savior says, even when it doesn't seem to make sense to us. When he says that faith comes from hearing the message, may we believe that, and not turn to human wisdom. When he says that he will make everything turn out for our good, may we trust God and know that he never lies. And as we review the doctrine of the Lord's Supper this evening, may we believe our Lord's words, and not human reason. "Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding" (Pr 3:5).

Peter and John made the preparations for a celebration of the Passover. Once they had found the house and reserved the room, they would have had much work to do. Most likely, they would have gone to the Temple in the afternoon to obtain the Passover lamb. Perhaps they visited local shops to obtain unleavened bread, bitter herbs, and wine. After some effort, everything was prepared for the Passover meal.

{14} When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table.

Jesus and the apostles "reclined" at this last supper. Artists might depict the Last Supper with Jesus and the apostles sitting, but they clearly followed the custom of the day and "reclined" (probably on the left arm).

{15-18} And he said to them, "I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. {16} For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God." {17} After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, "Take this and divide it among you. {18} For I tell you I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes."

Jesus was eagerly looking forward to this. He wanted to eat this Passover; it would be his last. Soon he would "suffer." Jesus knew that his time of suffering was near. Once again, Jesus warns the disciples. He would not eat such a feast again until he could enjoy the feast in heavenly glory.

The Passover was a remembrance of how God had delivered the Old Testament people from slavery in Egypt. In heaven, we will celebrate our Savior's redemption and praise him for delivering us from slavery to sin. In Scripture, heaven is often depicted as a magnificent feast of celebration and joy. Jesus draws such a picture here. The "fruit of the vine" was Passover wine, simple grape wine that might have been diluted with water. Lacking refrigerators and freezers, they would not have had grape juice for this festival.

From the other accounts we learn that our Savior also washed his disciples' feet and identified his betrayer. After that, Judas left immediately. It was night. Finally, Jesus instituted the Lord's Supper.

{19} And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me."

The bread available at this Passover Feast would have been unleavened bread, bread without yeast. Perhaps you can picture saltine crackers without the salt. Our Lord took this yeast-free bread, and gave thanks. Jesus again offered a prayer of thanks and consecrated this bread for the Lord's Supper. In this way, our Lord set this bread apart for use in the sacrament. Jesus broke the bread to distribute some of it to each of the disciples.

Then he spoke the words of institution: "This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me." Here, "is" means "is." With the bread, the disciples were receiving, invisibly, the body of Christ. We call this the real presence, because in the Lord's Supper, the body of Christ is really present with the bread. 1 Corinthians chapter 10 explains that the bread is in "communion with" Jesus body (1 Cor 10:16). That's why we call it "Holy Communion."

We cannot understand this completely. Yet, that should not trouble us. We cannot understand how Jesus can be with every one of us all the time either. Yet that is also true. Jesus can do whatever he wants to do. We simply believe that what he says is true. The bread is in communion with Jesus body. So, when we receive the bread we are also receiving the body of Christ in some way that we cannot understand.

We know that Christ wants his disciples to keep on doing this because he said, "Do this," or keep on doing this, "in remembrance of me," or in memory of me. Sufficient instruction must take place before someone can receive the Lord's Supper. You cannot remember something you do not know. You cannot remember someone you never heard of. And you cannot partake of the Lord's Supper unless you receive proper instruction.

The Lord offers baptism freely to all, but the Lord's Supper has some limitations. Jesus did not cast this Sacrament out to the crowds. He gave it only to the eleven disciples who had followed him for three years. Scripture says that communicants must be prepared and ready, they must know what they are receiving and recognize the body and blood of the Lord, or they will eat and drink God's judgment on themselves. May we be properly prepared to receive the Sacrament, and may no one fall under God's judgment.

{20} In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.

We know from Matthew and Mark that Jesus said, "This is my blood." With the wine we receive the very blood of Jesus Christ. Here we learn that Jesus also said, "This cup is the new covenant." Jesus said both. The words in Matthew and Mark emphasize the real presence, while the words in Luke emphasize the forgiveness of sins. Yet, Christ said it both ways, and they are in agreement.

We read about the new covenant in our Old Testament lesson for this evening (Jer 31). The new covenant is God's one-sided, solemn promise to forgive our sins. This was God's promise: "I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more." God promised to forgive our sins and forget them. This is the new covenant. So, the new covenant is the forgiveness of sins.

This is really a last will and testament. Just as a will is put into effect when someone dies, so this new testament was put into effect by the shed blood and sacrifice of Jesus our Savior. In the Lord's Supper, Christ offers the forgiveness of sins he won on the cross. So, when he instituted the Lord's Supper, Jesus was saying, "This wine is my blood, poured out for you for the forgiveness of your sins."

Dear communicants, this is "for you." The Lord's Supper offers individual, personal assurance of forgiveness. Every communicant personally receives the true body and blood of Christ with the bread and wine. Personally, we hear that our sins are forgiven.

In a sermon, we announce the gospel in a general way to any and all. Jesus lived a perfect life for you and died on the cross for all of your sins. He paid for every sin, and so I can say, "You are forgiven" to all of you. May all of you believe that. But, in the Lord's Supper the gospel is announced personally to each individual communicant.

The Bible tells us more about the Lord's Supper in other places, but here we see Jesus instituting his supper. May we remember that it is his, and yet it is for us. May we be faithful stewards of this blessed sacrament. Amen.