Throughout the passage of human history, every culture has developed different ways to remember special and precious events that are important to us. At the present time here in the United States, we do things such as collecting old photos, wearing retro clothing, organizing reunions, conducting award ceremonies, holding vigils, erecting monuments, even composing songs. But what do we do to recall and honor one of the greatest events that has ever taken place? And how do we appropriately render the reverence to this event that is so worthy of such distinction?
Jesus held a remembrance celebration of this event in an upper room in the city of Jerusalem over 2,000 years ago. And amazingly, this was before the event even took place! And what was that event? The death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Himself, the Son of the Living God. And this coming event was commemorated as follows: “For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, that the Lord Jesus the same night in which He was betrayed took bread: And when He had given thanks, He brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is My body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of Me. After the same manner also He took the cup, when He had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in My blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of Me. For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till He come.” (1 Corinthians 11: 23-25)
Today as we commemorate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, the aforementioned inspiring scriptures written by the Apostle Paul to the Corinthian church serve as a recap of the Last Supper and the importance of regularly joining in this solemn but joyous ceremony which we know as the Holy Communion, the Supper or the Eucharist. It is an incredibly powerful, moving and sacred event (the breaking of bread and drinking of the cup in Jesus’ name) in which we not only give honor and glory to Christ for His sacrifice on the cross, but also show our appreciation for the priceless privilege of receiving the spiritual blessings that come as a result of our participation.
This Communion is often done at special events or on holidays but is appropriate on any day, at any time. Why? Let me give you 2 reasons: #1 - “I will bless the LORD at all times: His praise shall continually be in my mouth.” (Psalm 34: 1) #2 - “Sing unto the LORD, all the earth; shew forth from day to day His salvation. Declare His glory among the heathen; His marvelous works among all nations. For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised: He also is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the people are idols: but the LORD made the heavens. Glory and honour are in His presence; strength and gladness are in His place. Give unto the LORD, ye kindreds of the people, give unto the LORD glory and strength. Give unto the LORD the glory due unto His name: bring an offering, and come before Him: worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.” (1 Chronicles 16: 23-29)
It is no wonder that we so anxiously await the time we can all assemble together again to worship the Lord. “O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt His name together.” (Psalm 34: 3) And though we would much rather share this beloved spiritual meal in each other’s physical presence, make no mistake, it is something you can do alone in the privacy of your own home and still be spiritually joined with all other believers throughout the world. But we do not take this lightly or frivolously. We want to be clean and living holy because of how sacred it is. "Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body." (1 Corinthians 11: 27-29) Remember that in everything you do, may the Lord be glorified in it. "Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God." (1 Corinthians 10: 31)
And though we normally associate this celebration with other holiday happenings during the time called Easter, in reality it is not linked to traditional Easter festivities but rather related to the biblical prophetic feast of Passover which is described in Leviticus 23. In fact, the Last Supper itself as chronicled in Matthew 26, Mark 14, Luke 22 and John 13, was Jesus and His disciples celebrating the Passover feast by partaking in the Passover meal the day before His crucifixion.
So what is the Passover? Passover is one of 7 major prophetic feasts that God instituted to memorialize the spectacular events surrounding the deliverance of the nation of Israel from their captivity in Egypt during the time of Moses. As described in the Book of Exodus you will recall the cruelty and stubbornness of Pharaoh which resulted in 10 horrible plagues that besieged Egypt. Those plagues were as follows: bodies of water turned to blood, hordes of frogs, torturous lice, swarms of flies, grievous livestock disease, festering skin sores, thunder and fiery hail, voracious locusts, soul-chilling darkness and the death of all firstborn. The devastating 10th plague, which occurred just prior to the infamous drowning of Pharaoh’s army in the Red Sea, was a prophetic declaration of the sacrifice of Christ which was to transpire some 1,300 years later. This event was at the time, an example, a metaphor or a parable explaining a glorious hidden but coming mystery.
Prior to the start of this 10th plague, God’s chosen people were directed to kill an unblemished, guiltless lamb and put its blood on the door posts and the lintel of their houses. It was the slaughter of the innocent to atone for the wrongs and pay for the redemption of those who were unable to save themselves. Sounds like Christ, doesn’t it? That’s because it was a direct reference to what Jesus would do. God then declared, “For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD. And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the LORD throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance forever.” (Exodus 12: 12-14)
Since then and up to the present time, the Jewish nation has faithfully celebrated this historic event of how their ancestors emerged from Egyptian captivity by a miracle from God. But we as Christians see it as much more. We know that all of the marvelous occurrences depicted in the Old Testament, known as the Law, were sign posts pointing all of mankind to Jesus. “But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe. But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.” (Galatians 3: 22-26)
The Bible is not only a book of information, but a book of prophecy as well. And the recognition of Jesus as the fulfillment of the Passover was declared by John the Baptist when he said, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” (John 1: 29) To go even further, the fulfillment of the first 3 feasts, Passover, Unleavened Bread and First Fruits which occur in a cluster, symbolize the death, burial and resurrection of Christ, in that order. Even the Apostle Paul referred to Jesus being the fulfillment of the prophetic feasts when he said, “Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” (1 Corinthians 5: 7-8)
Back to the scripture in 1 Corinthians 11, we are told to share the Supper with each other in remembrance of Jesus’ sacrifice in order to “shew” the Lord’s death till He come. The word “shew” means to preach, proclaim, advocate or report. In other words, we are letting it be known that Jesus, the King of kings and Lord of lords, is the Son of God and Savior of the world. But we are also remembering that He came to earth as a human and experienced everything humans experience on our behalf and was subject to all of its carnal conditions. When He was thirsty, He wanted a drink (John 19: 28). When He went without food, He was hungry (Matthew 4: 2). When He was sad or moved, He wept (John 11: 32-35). When faced with the prospect of physical torture, He was apprehensive (Mark 14: 34-36). And when He suffered on the cross in our place, He was not shielded from any of the pain. He was emotionally abused by His own disciples who deserted Him, and psychologically terrorized by those who wrongfully had placed Him under arrest. He felt every cruel slap and punch to His face and body. He was hurt badly by the sting of the sharp thorns that penetrated His head as they beat Him over the skull with a stick. He endured the horror of a savage whipping which ripped the flesh from His back and spilled His precious blood. He fully experienced the unbearable agony of having spikes mercilessly driven through His hands and feet. And finally, He was ruthlessly left to hang and suffer the excruciation of a slow suffocation as His tormentors watched in amusement. Isaiah 53: 5 says it all …..”But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon Him and with His stripes we are healed.”
Even though the thought of the savagery He endured is literally unbearable for us, we must remember that He is the One Who actually had to endure it. Nonetheless, our Lord doesn’t want us to torment ourselves over the extreme amount of suffering He did for us which only He was qualified to do and only He was worthy of. It is beyond our capability to fully comprehend the limits of His torment. But we must try to genuinely understand and sincerely appreciate what He went through, being acutely aware of the magnitude of His martyrdom and eternally grateful for Him being sent as the loving offer of life from God the Father.
Consequently, after Jesus finished the mission God sent Him to accomplish, and the glory of God filled the tomb where His lifeless body lay, and the grave had no authority or ability to hold Him any longer, He triumphantly and spectacularly rose from the dead with all power having conquered sin and death, and now majestically sits on the right hand of God making intercession for us all. So no matter what you call it, Easter, Pascha, Resurrection Day, or Passover, we now know what the real origin of this blessed day is and what it is truly all about. The opportunity to focus exclusively on the death, burial and resurrection of Christ and to remember, pronounce and experience the love of Almighty God which knows no bounds, covers all sin and is found only in Jesus the Messiah. HE’S ALIVE! HE HAS RISEN! HE HAS ASCENDED! HE IS OUR ADVOCATE! HE SHALL RETURN!
And so, dear ones, every day is a great day to commune with God the Father through Jesus the Son and to give thanks for being covered by the incomparable healing and protective power of His blood. “This is the LORD's doing; it is marvellous in our eyes. This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. (Psalm 118: 23-24) So celebrate the resurrection of Christ with great joy and enthusiasm because Jesus said, “Herein is My Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be My disciples. As the Father hath loved Me, so have I loved you: continue ye in My love. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in My love; even as I have kept My Father's commandments, and abide in His love. These things have I spoken unto you, that My joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full. This is My commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are My friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of My Father I have made known unto you. Ye have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in My name, He may give it you. These things I command you, that ye love one another.” (John 15: 8-17)
And when you do, do this in remembrance of Me.
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