City Life Starter

By Megan Meier

The Word 

“²³ For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, ²⁴ and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, ‘This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.’ ²⁵ In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.’ ²⁶ For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.”

1 Corinthians 11:23-26

Reflection

Why do we celebrate the Lord’s Supper at every church service? Let’s look at the origins…

The Lord’s Supper (or Communion or Eucharist) originated as Jesus’ last Passover meal (referred to as the Last Supper) (Mark 14:12-24). It’s no coincidence Jesus set the first Lord’s Supper and a new Covenant during His final Passover. But when was the very first Passover? God declared the first Passover when the Hebrews were living in slavery to the Egyptians, and despite all the plagues sent by God through Moses, Pharaoh still refused to free His people. At last, God was about to send the most dreadful, most horrendous plague of all, so heart-wrenching that after the fact, the Hebrews were not only set free, but were begged to leave as fast as they could (Exodus 12:1-14, 31-33). To protect the Hebrews from the plague, God gave them certain instructions. A perfect lamb was to be in their household for two weeks, enough time for the kids (and even adults) to bond with it, then be killed and roasted whole over a fire and eaten (to make the point there is a price to pay for sin). The lamb’s blood was to be painted on the doorways of the house so the Lord will pass over that house, for that night, the firstborn son of every household without the lamb’s blood would die. From then on, the Jews celebrate Passover every year to remind them of the covenant between them and God. 

Unfortunately, the Israelites broke their end of the Covenant. But God promised that there would be a new Covenant:

“³¹ “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah…”

Jeremiah 31:31 (ESV)

About 1,300 years after the first Passover, Jesus celebrated His final Passover and His final peaceful moments with His disciples. He declared they remember Him and the new covenant. What is this new covenant? It is the broken covenant between humans and God restored.

“⁸ but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Romans 5:8 (ESV)

^“5 But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.”

Isaiah 53:5 (ESV)

There are many parallels between Passover, the Last Supper, and Good Friday (the most important Passover that ever happened). Jesus referred to Himself as the bread of life (John 6:35), Christ-followers eat from Him, like before the Fall, Adam and Eve were to eat from the Tree of Life (mind-blown!) (Genesis 2:9). We were slaves to sin, but Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God (John 1:29) willingly shed His blood and died to free us from death. 

Application

The Lord’s Supper is a sacrament and a celebration, a time to remember the sacrifice and the price of our forgiveness, and of the restoration of the covenant between us and God. If you explore the Old Testament, you’ll see the Israelites forgot their end of the covenant too often. So every Sunday, we are reminded of our need for Jesus Christ and of the restored covenant while taking part in the Lord’s Supper. 

By the way, Good Friday and Easter are just around the corner. But don’t wait until Holy Week to prepare your heart, start today. 

Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus, thank You for being the Sacrifice, thank You for Your blood saving me from death. Help me to live for You and You alone. In Your Name I pray, amen.