Scripture: Luke 22:7-20
Then came the day of Unleavened Bread, on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. So Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and prepare the Passover meal for us that we may eat it.” They asked him, “Where do you want us to make preparations for it?” “Listen,” he said to them, “when you have entered the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you; follow him into the house he enters and say to the owner of the house, ‘The teacher asks you, “Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?”’ He will show you a large room upstairs, already furnished. Make preparations for us there.” So they went and found everything as he had told them; and they prepared the Passover meal.
When the hour came, he took his place at the table, and the apostles with him. He said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for I tell you, I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks he said, “Take this and divide it among yourselves; for I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” Then he took a loaf of bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” And he did the same with the cup after supper, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.
Scripture: John 13:1, 31-35
Now before the festival of the Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart from this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.
[Jesus said,] I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
Meditation
We know that the most beautiful things can happen around a table.
We know that the most treacherous things can happen around a table.
Tables are where we come when we know we are welcome.
Tables are where we are required to be,
even though we suspect we might not be welcome at all.
Tables can be places where we let down our hair, metaphorically speaking,
and maybe after a nibble or two, a sip or two, start to say what is real.
Tables can be places where we are guarded, watchful, suspicious,
because we don’t feel safe in that company.
Tonight, we come to Jesus’ table, the table of the Christ.
Many things were going on at that table, first of which was the seder.
The seder in Jesus’ time was much like the seder of today.
The ritual handwashing.
The presence on the table of the four ritual cups of wine, unleavened bread, bitter herbs (representing the bitterness of enslavement), charoset (a mixture of fruits and nuts, representing the mortar the Israelites used when they built the great sphynxes and tombs for the Pharaoh.
The questions asked by the youngest child, answered by the host (traditionally, the father of the family). These questions open the door to the telling of the whole story of the Exodus, the miraculous and divinely guided escape of all the Hebrews from enslavement.
At some point during the seder, the host would lift a glass of wine, and say,
Baruch atah Adonai eluheinu, melech ha-olam, asher ase pri hagfan:
Blessed are you, Lord, God of all creation, who has given us the fruit of the vine.
And at another point, the host would lift the unleavened bread, saying,
Baruch atah Adonai eluheinu, melech ha-olam, asher ase lecham man ha-aretz;
Blessed are you, Lord, God of all creation, who has given us bread from the earth.
Luke’s gospel tells us that Jesus and his friends were at table for this Passover meal. So much tradition that faithful Jews have carried forward to this day.
But many other things were going on at that table.
The beloved disciple was there, leaning against Jesus.
Peter, the rock, was there, asking questions, giving defensive answers.
Judas was there, waiting for the moment when he would leave, and lead the soldiers to Jesus, so that they could arrest him.
There were many things going on at that table.
Jesus, in addition to the blessings over the wine and bread, said something very odd. When he broke the bread, he said it was his body, given to his friends.
When he blessed and shared the cup, he said that it initiated a new covenant with God. In other gospels, he said it was his blood.
What did Jesus’ friends make of this? What could he possibly mean? They ate the bread; it was bread. They drank the wine. It was wine.
And yet, it was more than bread. It was more than wine.
Christians throughout history have struggled to understand exactly what those words meant to Jesus, and therefore, what they should mean to us. I grew up with the Catholic understanding that Jesus was speaking literally, and my best friend grew up with the understanding that the meal was “just” a memorial, no big deal. I believe neither of these extremes captures the truth of what Jesus’ words mean.
We call the bread “the bread of life” and the cup, “the cup of salvation.” And Jesus tells us that the bread is his life, and the cup is his life, too. Jesus gives his life for us, but he also gives it to us. In eating the bread and drinking from the cup, we are taking in the nourishment that Jesus has promised us in himself.
We call the Lord’s Supper by various names, and each highlights a different aspect of what we believe about the meal. “The Lord’s Supper” reminds us of this very night—the night on which Jesus gave us this sacrament, and commanded that we should do it—eat and drink and experience his presence with us. The “Eucharist” is a word that simply means “Thanksgiving,” and so this sacrament is one of gratitude for God’s grace. And “Holy Communion” reminds us that, at the table, not only do we experience the self-giving love of God in Christ; we also experience our oneness in the body of Christ. The sacrament binds us together with one another, brings us closer, as we share this simple and powerful meal together.
These things and more were going on at that table, that night in Jerusalem. Jesus gave himself to those he loved. He gave us the bread and cup as a vehicle for our experiencing that gift throughout the ages. Jesus embodied God’s grace in our midst, and at the table, we give thanks for that precious gift. Jesus was always about bringing people together, and at the table, he does just that. He reminds us that we are not flying solo, but are part of one body, his body.
The most beautful and amazing things can happen around a table.
At this table, we are given nourishment for the work Jesus calls us to do.
At this table, we are flooded with thanksgiving for all the goodness of God.
At this table, we are united with one another, and with Jesus’ followers throughout the world.
At this table, we meet the living Christ.
Thanks be to God. Amen.