Mark 14:22-25
“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.” Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, and they all drank from it. “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many,” he said to them. “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.””
Mark 14:22-25 NIV
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.
It was instituted with blessing and giving of thanks, to be a memorial of Christ's death.
We tell the world that the hope is in Christ and Christ alone. And when we come to this table we come to celebrate the reason that is so.
That His body was given for us, that His blood was shed for us, and that this meal takes us up into this glorious gift of Christ's death for us.
There is an intimacy to meals that we sometimes forget in this fast-food age. But if you think hard you can probably remember a dinner, shared most likely with family or close friends, when time seemed, at least for a little while, to stop.
The food, the wine, the conversation, and the company all seemed to add up to a whole greater than the sum of its parts. I think this meal was like that.
Jesus gathered with His disciples, those who left home and kin to follow him, for a final meal, and yet more than a final meal. It was a final sharing of Himself, all that he was, did, and ever hoped for with his beloved friends.
It is a giving of Himself in the fullest sense possible, in this private and intimate setting before He gives Himself painfully and publicly to the world.
It is easy when contemplating this scene, whether told in the Gospels or depicted in numerous paintings across the centuries to feel the smallest bit of longing, perhaps even of envy.
What must it have been like, we may wonder, to be that close to Jesus, to have His gaze upon you and know of His abiding regard for you?
And yet I think that we are invited not just to watch this meal but to share in it. Jesus offers Himself also to us in the bread and wine of communion, as the Last Supper of the Gospels is transformed into the Lord’s Supper of Christian worship.
The meal when we remember His suffering and death, yes, but also His resurrection and triumph. We live in the dawn light of this promise, knowing that whenever we gather His Spirit is with us and whenever we partake of this meal Jesus gives Himself to us all over again.
There is an intimacy to meals. In this meal in particular God invites us to come to the Table so that God in Christ may draw near and, indeed, enter into us. Take, this is my body, drink, this is my blood.
So we celebrate the Holy Supper. It is ancient and it is utterly contemporary. It blesses the poorest and it crushes the proudest. It represents love and wrath, tenderness and force.
What darkness we would be in unless the Son of God had made the meaning of His terrible dying clear to us, yet we can live without light. We could live without warmth. We could live without friends. We could live without sleep, but we could not live without Jesus, and there is now no need.
When we participate in the Lord's Supper like the early followers of Jesus did, we do so to remember Him and to commit to keep alive his ministry to the world as we pledge to be his body. We must never take this meal for granted or take it lightly!!!
Father thank You for this day and leaving us a reminder of Jesus sacrifice, His life-giving grace, and our responsibility to keep His memory and ministry alive as His body, the church. Lord pour out Your abundant blessings over my friend and family today. Lord help us to slow down and savor the everyday meals of our lives that we may remember their capacity to bear the sacred, and nurture in us the faith to believe that in the Holy Meal offered to us we receive your real presence in bread, wine, and our very lives. Lord thank You for Your wisdom in giving Yourself to us in the common gifts of bread and wine. For calling us into the company of others. Lord continue to sustain us with mercy, forgiveness, courage, and hope. Lord use my friend to share the Gospel to others today. Daddy we love You amen. Be a blessing. Love ya !
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