Let us turn to God's Word again
in that portion of scripture that we read Luke chapter 22
and I read for our text from verse 14 to verse 20 I want us to consider today,
being the first Lord's Day of the month, something of the Lord's
Supper. We come, of course, this evening
to observe that holy ordinance of the Lord and here in Luke's
accounts we read of the institution the manner in which Christ himself
instituted this Holy Supper. Reading then in Luke chapter
22 at verse 14, And when the hour was come, he sat down and
the twelve apostles with him, and he said unto them, With desire
I have desire to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For
I say unto you, I will not any more eat thereof until it be
fulfilled in the kingdom of God. And he took the cup, and gave
thanks, and said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves.
For I say unto you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine
until the kingdom of God shall come. And he took bread, and
gave thanks, and break it, and gave unto them, saying, This
is my body, which is given for you, this do in remembrance of
me. Likewise also the cup after supper,
saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for
you. the institution then of the Lord's
Supper and we see quite clearly what is here set before us is
principally the death, the dying of the Lord Jesus Christ. Here
in verse 15, He said unto them with desire, I have desire to
eat this Passover with you before I suffer. And how significant
is this word, or these words, before I suffer. We are to understand that suffering
in an absolute sense. In the words of the Apostles
Crete, He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead and
buried. And the third day he rose again
from the dead. The sufferings of the Lord Jesus. And what do we see? We see quite
clearly that these sufferings were all foreordained by God. They were all predetermined in
the great purpose of God. We have this word at the beginning
of verse 14, when the hour was come. Both the hour of His birth and
also the hour of His dying were those that were predetermined
by God Himself. We know from the language of
the preacher in Ecclesiastes that there is a time to every
purpose under heaven, a time to be born and a time to die. That is true of all. I know that
is certainly true with regards to this man, the man Christ Jesus. Concerning the very hour of his
birth we are told by the Apostle in Galatians chapter 4 that it
was when the fullness of the time was come that God sent forth
his son made of a woman made under the law to redeem them.
that were under the law, the fullness of the time, the very
hour of His appearance, the great mystery of godliness, God's manifest
in the flesh, that was clearly ordained of God. And as with
His coming, as with His birth, so also with regards to His dying. There were those occasions when
the Jews would have killed him, that's what they desired, but
they could not kill him. Both in John chapter 7 at verse
30, again in John chapter 8 and verse 20, we're told, his hour
was not yet come. Though they would stone him to
death, they could not lift a finger upon him. But then, there in
Luke chapter 9 and verse 51, we read that when the time was
come, when the time was come, that he should be received up,
he steadfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem. Oh, he comes as that one who
is determined to fulfill all the goodwill and pleasure of
God. Here he says in verse 16, I will
not any more eat thereof until it be fulfilled in the kingdom
of God. It is the fulfillment of that
work that the Father had given him to do that he is so concerned
about. Look at what he says here at
verse 22, Truly the Son of Man goeth as it was determined. Who was He to determine these
things? It was the sovereign will of
God. Christ is coming then as that
One who will do all the good will of God and accomplish all
that work that the Father has given Him to do. Remember the
language that we have in John, in John chapter 4 He says to
the use my meat is to do the will of Him that sent me and
to finish His work And now, even when he comes to the observance
of this last Passover feast that he enjoys with his disciples,
we see something of the careful preparation that he has made
on this occasion. We read it there at verse 7 and
the following verses. Obviously, some preparation had
gone beforehand. when he sends Peter and John
he tells them quite specifically verse 10 He said unto them, Behold,
when ye are entered into the city, there shall a man meet
you, bearing a pitcher of water. Follow him into the house where
he entereth in, and ye shall say unto the good man of the
house, The Master saith unto thee, Where is the guest chamber
where I shall eat the Passover with my disciples? And he shall
show you a large upper room furnished there make red. Oh, the Lord
is so very conscious of that business that he is occupied
with and there is all this thorough preparation even as he comes
to observe this the last Passover before he suffers. And in this
is not the Lord Jesus Christ to us a great pattern. As I said at the beginning, we
come to the first Lord's Day of this month of December. We
anticipate tonight that we observe this Holy Supper of the Lord.
Christ makes preparation. Are we those also who see the
importance of that preparation to prepare ourselves as we would
come to the Holy Supper? The language of the Apostle reminds
us of the necessity of that. a man examine himself says Paul
let a man examine himself and so let him eat of that bread
and drink of that cup or do we examine ourselves before God
it's interesting to observe something of the order of the observance
of holy communion in the book of common prayer no we don't
we don't employ the book of common prayer we are non-conformist
We don't have any liturgy as such and yet we recognize that
there is much that is profitable there in what is principally
Archbishop Cranmer's prayer book. And I was looking only this morning
at the order and the first scripture that is to be read according
to the order as we find it there in that book is the reading by
the Minister of the Ten Commandments. And it's the first scripture
that is read if that order is followed. Now, of course, we
live in a day where the established Church of England is very much
an indisciplined church, and I suppose so very few would even
trouble themselves now to even attend to that service that is
laid out in the Book of Common Prayer. But it was Cranmer, Archbishop
Cranmer, the reformer, who recognized the importance of the reading
of the law of God. Why? Because of self-examination. Or when we look at ourselves
and examine ourselves in the light of God's commandments,
what is the ministration of the law? It reminds us of what we
are, the sinners. We are not those who are obedient.
to the commandments of God, we are those who are the transgressors
by the law is the knowledge of sin, so as we examine ourselves
as we come to the Lord's Supper we see that we are sinners but
thank God that all that the Lord Jesus Christ did was for sinners
that's not to disqualify us when we recognize that we're coming
even yet as those who have sinned. Remember that incident in the
course of the ministry of John Duncan? That's God's divine Rabbi
Duncan. We're told on one occasion when
he was there conducting the service of the Lord's Supper he observed
that there was some aged saint, some dear woman and she held
back and he got up out of his chair and took the elements to
her personally and put them in her hand and told her not to
be so fearful and to remember that all that Christ did was
for sinners. It's all for sinners. Oh yes,
we're to examine ourselves. The Lord makes careful preparation. He is ever conscious that he
is about the business of his Father, all that God had foreordained. And so the Lord is so thorough
in His preparations and we are to be those friends, I say, who
would learn of Him. This dying of the Lord Jesus
Christ, then, it is what God Himself had predetermined and
ordained from all eternity. And what does the Lord say here
in this 15th verse? With desire I have desired to
eat this Passover with you before I suffer," he says. But consider here how in the
ordinance we're reminded of the detail of his sufferings. How
the Lord is really changing what was previously the Passover feast
into this Holy Supper. Here is the context back in verse
7. Then came the day of unleavened
bread, when the Passover must be killed. It is this Feast of
the Passover. And the Lord changes that Feast
into what we now call the Lord's Supper. Here in verses 19 and
20, He took bread and gave thanks, and break it, and gave unto them,
saying, This is my body which is given for you, this do in
remembrance of me. Likewise also the cup after supper,
saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood which is shed for
you. Now, the night of the Passover
was a night to be much remembered, much remembered in Israel. But
what is the Lord saying? He is instituting that, that
He is a remembrance of Himself and a remembrance of His own
sufferings. He is the fulfilment, you see.
The fulfilment of the Passover. For even Christ, our Passover,
is sacrificed for us, says Paul. The Passover is a type. The Lord Jesus Christ is the
anti-type. He's the fulfillment of it. And
again, this 15th verse is so interesting. Because we have
these two words Passover and Suffer. And really it's the same word.
We have the noun. Passover, then we have that same
word in its verbal form, I suffer. Passover, the word is Pascha. Suffer, the verb is Pascha. We speak of the Paschal Lamb.
The Passover is that that is actually derived from the verb
to suffer. Well, it's speaking to us quite
clearly then of the Lord Jesus Christ. And here we see the remarkable
detail that is contained in what we have back in Exodus chapter
12, the institution of the Passover. Remember how that Passover lamp
was purposed and predetermined In Exodus chapter 12 and verse
3 we are told how they were to make choice of the lamb on the
tenth day of the month. On the tenth day of the month
they chose a lamb for each household amongst the Hebrews. But that
lamb that was chosen was not to be sacrificed until the 14th
day of that same month, verse 6. And there is significance in
that. I know it's only a matter of four days, but here is a lamb,
it's chosen, it's the one that is to be offered as the sacrifice,
the paschal lamb, but it's not till four days later that the
animal is slain. And it sets before us Christ.
Christ's death also, that that is predetermined, but not just
by a few days, but that that has been foreordained from all
eternity. Or remember the language that
we find in Peter's first epistle, Christ, he says, a Lamb who verily
was foreordained before the foundation of the world. Again, John in
the book of the Revelation, there in Revelation 13, 8 speaks of
the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Here is an important
detail then with regards to the Lord Jesus Christ. These are
those things that God himself has ordained from all eternity
and Christ has now come to accomplish these things and he speaks he speaks so clearly
here of that that God as determined as we said here in verse 22 truly
the Son of Man goeth as it was determined it was determined as I say by
God again right in verse 37 he says this that
is written yet must yet be accomplished in me and he was reckoned among
the transgressors for the things concerning me have an end what
is the end? it is that that God himself has
appointed this detail is not unimportant
All that comes to pass in the life, the experience of the Lord
Jesus is what God had ordained and what God himself had revealed
in the Old Testament Scriptures. But then furthermore when we
think of the detail in going back to that Passover lamb that
we read of in Exodus chapter 12 remember how the animal was
to be perfect in all its parts. There in verse 5 of Exodus 12,
your lamb shall be without blemish. There was to be nothing imperfect
in that lamb. This was the case time and again
with regards to the sacrifices that the children of Israel were
to make under the Levitical law. We see it, for example, in the
22nd chapter of Leviticus, verse 22, blind, or broken, or maimed,
or having a wound, that is a tumor, or scurvy, or scabbed. You shall
not offer these unto the Lord, nor make an offering by fire
of them upon the altar unto the Lord. Again, verse 24, "...Ye
shall not offer unto the Lord that which is bruised, or crushed,
or broken, or cuts, neither shall ye make any offering thereof
in your land. Neither from a stranger's hand
shall ye offer the bread of your God of any of these, because
their corruption is in them, and blemishes be in them. They
shall not be accepted for you." whatever animal they bring and
certainly with regards to the Passover lamb it is to be a good
sound animal the best of the flock really why? because it's a type of the Lord
Jesus Christ and again Peter speaks of him as of a lamb without
blemish and without spot well this is the purpose of God you
see And how important is all this detail? Even when we consider
all the sufferings of the Lord Jesus, He has to endure a mock
trial before the Roman governor, the magistrate, who has the right
to condemn a man to death, the legal authority. The Lord must
come before Pontius, he must suffer that trial which is but
a mock trial and even then the governor has to recognize that
this is an innocent man. He says as much, those significant
words in John 19 verse 4, Behold, I bring him forth to you, that
ye may know that I find no fault in him, he says. Always, human
judge can find nothing of faults, he's not worthy of death, he's
an innocent man. And yet this is all part and
parcel of those dreadful sufferings. Previous even to Pontius Pilate
uttering those remarkable words, we see him as one who is ridiculed
by the soldiers. There in the opening part of
John 19 Now Pilate took Jesus and scourged
him, and the soldiers plaited a crown of thorns and put it
on his head, and they put on him a purple robe and said, Hail,
King of the Jews, and they smote him with their hands. Oh, they
ridiculed him, although Pilate has to acknowledge, I bring him
forth to you that ye may know I find no fault in him. But he's
mocked and ridiculed there by the soldiers. And even when he
comes before the Jewish council, they also pour scorn upon him. Here at the end of the chapter,
verse 63, the men that held Jesus mocked him and smote him. When
they blindfolded him, they struck him on the face and asked him,
saying, Prophesy, who is that smote thee, and many other things
blasphemously spake they against him." This is before the Jewish
council. How he is treated so cruelly in all his terrible sufferings. This man who was holy, harmless,
undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens. He is the sinless one. All we
see it, I say, in that wonderful type that we have with regards
to the Paschal Lamb. That's a creature that was to
be a perfect creature, a healthy creature, but to be sacrificed,
and sacrificed, of course, as a substitute, when the destroying
angel comes over Egypt. comes to destroy all the firstborn
of the Egyptians, all the firstborn in the house of Pharaoh, even
to the least person in all of his kingdom. But the angel passes
over the houses of the Hebrews. Why? Because they are sheltering
under that blood of sacrifice. The Lamb has been offered up
in place of the firstborn. And the Lord Jesus in all of
his sufferings, of course, is dying as a substitute. And it's because he is sinless
himself that he is able, therefore, to bear the sins of others. He
dies as that one who is a substitute. Look at what he says here, in
verse 19, This is my body, which is given for you, that substitution. And again in verse 20, My blood
which is shed for you. Oh, it is the great truth of
substitutionary atonement that is set before us here at the Lord's Supper when
we come to observe this holy ordinance of the Lord. It declares
to us that great doctrine Paul writing to the Romans can
say we also join God through our Lord Jesus Christ by whom
we have now received the atonement ought to be those who know what
it is to receive that atonement to know by that gracious testimony
of the Holy Spirit that we have a lot in all that the Lord Jesus
Christ has done when we come to observe that Holy Supper of
the Lord we see then that what he said
before us so clearly is the death, the dying of the Lord Jesus,
his sufferings and his sufferings as a substitute in the place
of his people but besides observing here the significance of the
supper in terms of the death of Christ. In the second place,
let me say something this morning with regards to the Lord's desire. What remarkable words these are
when He says at verse 15, with desire, I have
desires to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. What do we see? Well, we see
the deep affection of the Lord Jesus Christ in the uttering
of such words as that. All the Lord's affection and
surely those who come to observe His supper must also know something
of affection. It is a love feast. It is a love
feast. And he says later how that he
will not again partake at this feast until the
kingdom of God shall come. It anticipates the great marriage
supper of the Lamb at the end of time, that that he's spoken
of in the book of the Revelation. When a couple marry, there is
a love feast. only just a few weeks ago we
were most of us invited to that happy occasion of the wedding
of Anna and Joe and after the ceremony we gathered for the
wedding breakfast and so we partook of food together it was a celebration
and the Lord's Supper is a great celebration of that love that
Christ has for his church and that love that the church has
for the Lord Jesus Christ, just as we were celebrating the love
of a young couple who had just made solemn vows and promises
one to the other in the presence of God, an expression of their
love for each other. The Lord's Supper then, it's
a love feast and here we see the great love of the Lord Jesus
Christ with desire I have desired. What an expression this is. It's
a Hebraism. And it really expresses something
of the intensity of the Lord's desire. In the margin here in
the pulpit Bible, we have this alternative reading. I have heartily
desired. I have heartily desired to eat
this Passover with you. Now, we see these Hebraisms in
other parts of Scripture. In Isaiah chapter 6, for example,
where we read of the prophet's call and commission to be God's
servant, God's prophet, and he is told there, in verse 9, go
and tell these people, Hear ye indeed! Now the margin there
tells us that the Hebrew is literally this, go and tell these people,
hearing ye hear. There's a repetition, to show
the intensity, just as we have it here in our text, with desire
I have desired. There it says, in hearing ye
hear. Or Malachi chapter 3 and verse
6 is another Hebraism. They that fear the Lord spake
often one to another and the Lord hearkened and heard. The
repetition, hearkening, hearing. All of this is so indicative
of the great intensity of the Lord's desire. The greatness of His love. for
those whom he is coming to celebrate this last Passover with. All know the prophetic ministry
of the Lord Jesus Christ was finished. He had been present
amongst the people, he'd been with his disciples as that one
who was a great teacher come from God. the fulfillment of
the office of the prophet in the Old Testament declaring the
word of God that was all done and in a sense we can say that
the Passover marks the start of his priestly work because
he is not only present as a prophet to teach the people he is also
present as a priest to make a sacrifice and this is the turning point
when we come to the Passover. And that seems to be indicated
in what we have back in Matthew's Gospel, there at the beginning
of Matthew chapter 26. It came to pass when Jesus had
finished all these sayings He said unto his disciples, you
know that after two days is the feast of the Passover and the
Son of Man is betrayed to be crucified. He's finished all these sayings.
He's coming to the end now of his ministry as a preacher, as
a prophet, as a teacher. He's about to be betrayed. is
going to be crucified, that is priestly work. We have it not
only there in Matthew 26, but we see it also
in the way in which John's gospel is laid out for us. Remember the opening words of
chapter 17, where we have Christ's prayer, His great high priestly
prayer, we say. He's praying as a priest. But
what does it say in the opening words? These words spake Jesus
and lifted up his eyes to heaven. He has been speaking previously
to his disciples in those great chapters 14, 15 and 60, what
we call the valedictory discourses, his final discourses with his
disciples. these words by Jesus he's finished
speaking to them he lifts up his eyes to heaven and now he
begins to address his father in that great high priestly prayer
and then subsequent to that he will go forward not only a praying
priest but also a sacrificing priest he'll go forward and He'll offer himself as that great
sacrifice for sin. In John's account again, I was
struck recently with what happens there
in the garden in chapter 18. After Christ's high priestly
prayer, We are told how he goes with his disciples over the brook
Cedron and he goes into the garden of Gethsemane. Judas, the betrayer,
knew the place and that Christ would often times be there and
he comes together with a great multitude, a band of men and
officers from the chief priests and Pharisees and he says Jesus,
therefore, knowing all things that should come upon him, went
forth and said unto them, Whom seek you? And it was just those
two words that struck me. He went forth. He presents himself. They don't have to come and seek
him. He comes to them. He went forth. Oh, he is about
to die. and you know it's remarkable
really he declares himself to be Jehovah the Great I am and
when he utters those words on three occasions in the subsequent
verses we're told how they went backward and fell to the ground
they cannot lay a finger upon he comes forth he comes forth
and it is this observance of the Lord's Supper that marks
this significant change in the course of the Lord's life, in
the course of His ministry. No more now there to preach,
but now we see Him as that One who is the Great High Priest.
But not only the priest, He is the sacrifice, He is the Lamb,
slain from the foundation of the world. The Lamb of God that
taketh away the sin of the world. And all of this, why? Because
of that great love that he has towards his people. Oh, he loves
God. He loves to do the Father's goodwill
and pleasure. He must be about his Father's
business. But he also loves all those whom the Father has given
to him in the eternal covenant. And again in John those words
at the beginning of chapter 13 now before the feast of the Passover
when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart
out of this world unto the Father having loved his own which were
in the world he loves them unto the end having loved his own
which were in the world he loves them unto the end all the things
concerning me have an end and what an end it was why he must
make that great sacrifice for sins all with desire he says
with desire I have desire to eat this Passover with you before
I suffer the deep affection of the Lord Jesus Christ the greatness
of his love and what of us we examine ourselves do we love
the Lord? do we love the Lord? If ye be risen with Christ, Paul
says, set your affections on things above, not on things on
the earth. Our affections are to be set
upon things that are in heaven, where Christ is, at the right
hand of God. Oh, are we those who can say
that that's where we desire our affections to run. We love the
Lord. We love the Lord more than we
love anything else. And that's why we want to observe that Holy
Supper of the Lord. We want to engage in that Blessed
Love Feast. We want to show something of
our deep affection for Him. We want to remember Him. Was
the Passover a night much to be remembered? What a privilege
it is if we are those who can sit at that table of the Lord
and remember Him. this is what he desires you see
as he says here in the words of institution this do in remembrance
of me or the Lord's affection but what of our affection as
we look to ourselves but then also here we we see something
of the Lord's appetite the Lord's appetite but also our own appetite
He says, with desire, have I desired to eat this Passover, to eat
this Passover with you before I suffer. Or what was his meat? We've already referred to that
scripture back in John chapter 4. My meat, my meat is to do
the will of Him that sent me and to finish His work. Oh, there's
the Lord's appetite. He has such a hunger for God,
for the Word of God, for the ways of God, for the commandments
of God. This is the only thing that will
satisfy Him. To do all the Father's business,
to accomplish all that great work that He has undertaken in
the Eternal Covenant. Oh, He has strong affections
but he also has a very real appetite. I like the comment of dear old
John Trapp, his quaint commentary on the New Testament. John Trapp
says how much more should we come with strong affections and
lusty appetites to the Holy Supper. But it's not just the Holy Supper.
How we should come with strong affections and lusty appetites
to the Word of God when we come regularly under the ministry
of the Word? Do we have an appetite? Are we those who are hungering
and thirsting? That's the blessed man, the words
of the Lord Jesus in the Beatitudes, blessed are they which do hunger
and thirst after righteousness, he says. for they shall be filled. When we come together in this
fashion, Lord's Day by Lord's Day or on a Thursday evening,
do we have an appetite? We're hungry. Or we want something
for our souls. Maybe today, you see, we anticipate
leaving this place and we go and we enjoy a hearty meal. And
we enjoy that. We feed our bodies. But do we
have that desire to feed our souls? And now are we to feed
our souls, or are we to be fed on the Lord Jesus Christ? I cannot
but turn time and again to those remarkable words in John. It's interesting, John does not
give us an account of the institution of the Lord's Supper. We find
in the three synoptic gospels, in Matthew, Mark, and Luke, in
each of them an account of how Christ instituted the Lord's
Supper. But we look in vain for such an account in John's Gospel. But what we do find in John,
of course, is that remarkable 6th chapter. And what does the
Lord say? Verse 53, Verily, verily, all
he prefixes his teaching with that double verily, I say unto
you, except ye eat the flesh of the Son of Man, and drink
His blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth My flesh, and
drinketh My blood, hath eternal life. And I will raise him up
at the last day, for My flesh is meat indeed, and My blood
is drink indeed. He that eateth My flesh, and
drinketh My blood, dwelleth in Me, and I in him. As the Living Father hath sent
Me, and I live by the Father, So he that eateth myrrh, even
he shall live by myrrh. Who are we those who do desire
to feed our souls upon the Lord Jesus? And we feed upon the Lord
Jesus not only when we come to that blessed supper of the Lord,
but when we come to the Word of God. Is it meat and drink
to us? Remember again the significance
of the Passover back in the Old Testament, the great time. There in verse 8 we're told with
bitter herbs. With bitter herbs they shall
eat it. What are the bitter herbs? Again, Let me just refer you to the
remark that Matthew Henry makes here concerning the bitter herbs. He says we must feed upon Christ
with sorrow and brokenness of heart in remembrance of sin. That's the bitter herb. When
we remember our sin, when we remember the Lord, when we remember
the Lord in his sufferings, surely we must remember our sin. What
was the cause of all his suffering? It was because of the sin of
his people. He came to die as their substitute.
Or do we feel sin to be such a bitter thing? And yet, All
that bitter thing that sin is to us, gives such a relish to
Christ, makes Christ so sweet. This is the man who receives
sinners. This is the man who eateth with sinners. All the
wisdom that we find in the book of Proverbs, when Solomon says
to the hungry soul, every bitter thing is sweet. Are we hungry
souls? Can we say, oh, the bitter thing
of our sin? It's awful, and yet it makes
the Gospel so sweet, so precious. And what were they to do there
in the Old Testament at the Passover? They were to eat all of it. They
were to eat all of it. Nothing was to remain. And surely
we should be those who desire to feed on the whole Christ,
of Him, i.e. in Christ Jesus, says Paul, who
of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification,
and redemption, that as it is written, He that glorieth, let
him glory in the Lord. Oh, are we those who glory in
the Lord is our all, is in all, is all that we desire. He has
desire. Oh, but we also have a desire,
a strong affection. a lusty appetite with those who
want to be fed upon the Lord Jesus Christ, upon His person,
upon His work, upon His blood, upon His righteousness. We want
to be those who do indeed remember Him. Our affections fly to Him. Oh, the Lord be pleased to so
stir up our hearts that we might be those who do indeed know what
it is to lead with Him. and to eat His flesh and to drink
His blood and to find all our satisfaction only in Him. May the Lord bless His Word to
us. Amen.