The Last Supper
April 3, 2023 | Greg Lanham
About the author: Greg and his wife Chris have been members of ZPC for over 25 years. Their daughters, Paige and Carley, live together in Sandy Springs, Georgia. Greg is a Deputy Chief with the Whitestown Fire Department. They are blessed by the lifelong friends they have made at ZPC and are excited about the direction that Jesus is taking our church.
Mark 14:12-26
The Last Supper
12 On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, when it was customary to sacrifice the Passover lamb, Jesus’ disciples asked him, “Where do you want us to go and make preparations for you to eat the Passover?”
13 So he sent two of his disciples, telling them, “Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him. 14 Say to the owner of the house he enters, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is my guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ 15 He will show you a large room upstairs, furnished and ready. Make preparations for us there.”
16 The disciples left, went into the city and found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover.
17 When evening came, Jesus arrived with the Twelve. 18 While they were reclining at the table eating, he said, “Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me—one who is eating with me.”
19 They were saddened, and one by one they said to him, “Surely you don’t mean me?”
20 “It is one of the Twelve,” he replied, “one who dips bread into the bowl with me. 21 The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born.”
22 While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take it; this is my body.”
23 Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, and they all drank from it.
24 “This is my blood of the[c] covenant, which is poured out for many,” he said to them. 25 “Truly I tell you, I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”
26 When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
Devotional
What a blessing it is to get to write this devotional. Even though it gets me out of my comfort zone, it has given me the chance to study scripture about Jesus and the “Last Supper.” With what looks like a short piece of scripture, Mark documents many important points in Jesus’s last few hours of life. On my first read through, Jesus breaking the bread and pouring the wine jump out to me as the focus point. (Mark 14:22-24) But, not so fast. I would like to look at some other deep, meaningful points that can very easily get overlooked.
Mark starts off by reminding us that it is the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, and it was customary to sacrifice the Passover lamb. As you may remember Passover, also called Pesach, is a major Jewish holiday that celebrates the Biblical story of the Israelites escape from slavery in Egypt. This is a holiday that is very planned out. From the number of glasses of wine, the type of food that is eaten, the words that are spoken, to the songs sung, it is very scripted. Jesus sends two disciples out to secure a room that is “finished and ready,” meaning all the menu items will be there waiting on them, pillows on the floor to lay on, and low tables to dine on. So, when Jesus and the 12 arrive everything would be prepared just as every Passover had been every year of these men’s lives.
This is where a good friend of mine, would encourage me to “put myself” in the room to try and picture what that dinner would have looked like. How these men would have felt having another Passover meal with the Savior. By putting myself in the room, it helps make these men real to me. I try to feel what they are feeling, smell what they are smelling, and experience what they are experiencing. This brings scripture to life for me.
When I read what Jesus says to them next, (Mark 14:18) While they were reclining at the table eating, he said, “Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me—one who is eating with me.” I think about what I might have said. Would I have reacted how they reacted? I imagine that all but one of them, Judas, was surprised, hurt, and maybe even angry. I would have been. To think, three years earlier I dropped everything, left my family and traveled all around spreading the Good News only to be accused of being a trader. I probably would have started scanning the room thinking about who I thought the trader was. Going over In my head, the past three years and judging how dedicated and supportive each person was. I probably would have tried to get Jesus off by himself so I could tell him who I thought the trader was. Surely, he would need my help. But that is not what these men do. They seem to have such high regard for each other, that they immediately rule the others out and say, “Surely you don’t mean me?” As if it can’t be anyone else, all that is left is me. Then Jesus again confirms that it is one of the 12 that “dips bread into the bowl with me,” and then he does something beautiful. He gives Judas a final chance to change his mind. Even with the statement “The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him “Jesus says, “But woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born.” Trying one last time to warn Judas to turn back from his plan to betray him. Jesus knows what is coming…torture and death…but he still loves Judas and isn’t willing to give up on him. Reading that reminds me that Jesus will never give up on me and loved Judas as much as he loved Mary, Mark, Peter, and us all.
“And when they had sung a hymn they went to the Mount of Olives.” (Mark 14:26) I don’t often think of Jesus singing, but he did. He lifted his voice in adoration and worship to God the Father. It makes me smile just thinking about it. Again, when I put myself in the room, I find myself worshiping God, eyes closed and hands raised, standing next to the Son of God. How beautiful that would be. The Passover meal always ended by singing Psalms 116-118. With the words from Psalms 118 being the last words before he left for the Mount of Olives. Here are some verses from that Psalm.
“The Lord’s right hand has done mighty things!
16 The Lord’s right hand is lifted high;
the Lord’s right hand has done mighty things!”
17 I will not die but live,
and will proclaim what the Lord has done.
22 The stone the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone;
23 the Lord has done this,
and it is marvelous in our eyes.
24 The Lord has done it this very day;
let us rejoice today and be glad.
26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
From the house of the Lord we bless you.[b]
27 The Lord is God,
and he has made his light shine on us.
With boughs in hand, join in the festal procession
up[c] to the horns of the altar.
28 You are my God, and I will praise you;
you are my God, and I will exalt you.
29 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his love endures forever.
I’m sure those words gave Jesus strength to endure what came next.
In closing, let us not forget that Jesus became the “New Covenant” by sacrificing his life for our sins. In Exodus 10 we read about a lamb without blemish to be sacrificed so that when God would see the blood on the door God would pass over the house. Salvation through substitution. The Old Testament lamb for the Israelite’s first born, and now Jesus died for all of us. I think John the Baptist said it best when he said “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” John 1:29
I pray that you have an Easter full of hope and love knowing that Jesus died and rose from the grave for you, and that he loves you and will never give up on you.
Easter Blessings,
Greg Lanham