THE FINAL PASSOVER: THE FAITHFUL SERVANT
SERIES: JESUS, SAVIOR OF THE LOST
by Ron Ritchie
Whenever I hear the term Passover, I am reminded of an evening several years
ago when Kathy and Ed Woodhall and Anne Marie and I were invited to the
home of a Jewish friend to celebrate the Passover meal. We were seated with
his immediate family, which included his wife, a young son, and his mother.
During the meal this man began to tell the Passover story, but it soon became
apparent that he really did not know it well. Finally in a moment of silence
I asked whether I could share how Christians look at the Passover and its
spiritual symbolism. The family all agreed to this, so for the next half-hour,
with the help of my wife and the Woodhalls, I shared the wonderful news
of the Passover.
We shared that not only was the Passover the story of how God redeemed Israel
out of bondage in Egypt, but the Passover lamb foreshadowed God's final
Passover Lamb and suffering Servant God whom he would one day send to this
world, as prophesied in Isaiah 53, to be sacrificed so that his blood could
be used to cover the sin of humanity. All who placed their faith in him
would be saved not from the bondage of Egypt but from the bondage of sin
and guilt, and delivered into the kingdom of God---a kingdom of life, joy,
peace, and love. I told this Jewish family that one of their own prophets,
John the Baptist, said of Jesus, "Behold, the Lamb of God who takes
away the sin of the world!" (John 1:29), proclaiming him the Messiah.
There was another silence. Then our friend's mother looked at me and said
loudly, "So why aren't you our Rabbi?" She was saying that although
this Jewish family had much tradition, they had little truth.
As we open God's word to Luke 22:1-38, we want to grow in the knowledge
of the truth that is revealed in God's final Passover Lamb and faithful
Servant. Then we want to ask God to apply that truth to our daily lives
so we reflect our appreciation for our Lord's death, and so we have his
servant's heart among the people we associate with in this world.
I. Satan's Plot to Kill the "Lamb of God" Luke 22:1-6
Now, back in Luke 21:37-38 we are given a summary of our Lord's last three
days in the temple area, from Palm Sunday through Wednesday:
Now during the day He was teaching in the temple, but at evening
He would go out and spend the night on the mount that is called Olivet.
And all the people would get up early in the morning to come to Him in the
temple to listen to Him.
In Matthew 26:2 Jesus had said to his disciples on the last Tuesday of his
life on earth: "You know that after two days the Passover is coming,
and the Son of Man is to be delivered up for crucifixion." The great
Roman peace had enabled the Jews throughout the whole empire to come to
Jerusalem each year to celebrate the Passover, followed by the seven-day
Feast of Unleavened Bread. Jesus and his disciples joined 2,700,000 other
Jews and began to make preparation for the celebration of the Passover on
Thursday.
Let's consider for a moment the history of the Passover as recorded in Exodus
5-12. The Passover had its beginning around 1450 BC when God asked Moses
to deliver his covenant people from four hundred years of Egyptian bondage.
Moses came face-to-face with a hard-hearted Pharaoh whose heart became even
harder as God delivered one after another of nine plagues on Egypt.
Finally the Lord told Moses that the tenth plague would move Pharaoh's heart
to set the Jews free. In Exodus 11:4 the Lord said, "About midnight
I am going out into the midst of Egypt, and all the first-born in the land
of Egypt shall die..." In Exodus 12 the Lord instructed the people
of Israel to take a one-year-old unblemished lamb for each household, and
after they killed it, they were to take some of its blood and put it on
the two doorposts and on the lintel of the house. Then without breaking
any bones (foreshadowing how none of Jesus' bones would be broken when he
was slain; see John 19:31-33), they were to eat all of the flesh that same
night with unleavened bread, which was a symbol of life without sin.
"'And the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live;
and when I see the blood I will pass over you, and no plague will befall
you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt. Now this day will be
a memorial to you, and you shall celebrate it as a feast to the LORD; throughout
your generations you are to celebrate it as a permanent ordinance. Seven
days you shall eat unleavened bread...' Then Moses called for all the elders
of Israel, and said to them, 'Go and take for yourselves lambs according
to your families, and slay the Passover lamb.'" (Exodus 12:13-15, 21.)
An innocent, unblemished lamb died so that the first-born child of each
Jewish family could live. Yet the slaying of the Passover lamb was only
symbolic and preparatory as the nation awaited the final "Lamb of God
who [would take] away the sin of the world." (John 1:29; see also Isaiah
53:7.)
Now let's look at Luke 22:1-6, where we immediately see evil lurking behind
the curtains of history. Satan had a plot to kill the Lamb of God:
Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which is called the Passover,
was approaching. And the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how
they might put Him to death; for they were afraid of the people.
And Satan entered into Judas who was called Iscariot, belonging to the number
of the twelve. And he went away and discussed with the chief priests and
officers how he might betray Him to them. And they were glad, and agreed
to give him money. And he consented, and began seeking a good opportunity
to betray Him to them apart from the multitude.
This is the third time in the account of just two days' events that Luke
tells us the religious community was determined to kill Jesus. Among many
charges they wanted to bring against him was blaspheming God in claiming
to be the Messiah (see Luke 19:47; 20:19; 22:2).
But it was not just the religious leaders who wanted to kill Jesus, for
as we can see, behind this murderous attitude in them was the one Jesus
spoke of to the Pharisees in John 8:44: "You are of your father the
devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer
from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no
truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature; for
he is a liar, and the father of lies." As Satan tempted Eve to doubt
God, Cain to murder his brother, Job to lose his faith, Israel to go into
idolatry, King Saul to seek after mediums, and Jesus to worship him, so
he now moved in on our Lord's disciples and eventually was able to pick
off Judas.
How was Satan able to do that? Well, Judas was ready for him. Our hearts
were created to be ruled, and if they are not ruled by God they will be
ruled by something or someone else. The gospels show us that this man's
heart was ruled first by the world. He had hungered for a political kingdom
and had followed Jesus until those dreams were shattered on Palm Sunday.
Sometime in the following three days he had gone to the chief priests and
betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver (see Matthew 26:14-16). Then
he was ruled by the flesh. He was selfish, coveted money, and eventually
became a thief (John 12:6). And finally he became ruled by the devil.
Jesus had understood the heart and motives of Judas when he told his disciples
on an earlier occasion: "Did I myself not choose you, the twelve, and
yet one of you is a devil?" (John 6:70.) Judas, having freely allowed
the world and the flesh to rule his life, thus placed himself in a position
where he was willing to deny Jesus as his Messiah, and so his heart was
open to be ruled by another: "...and Satan entered into Judas."
If we allow ourselves to be ruled by the world and the flesh, then we are
open to being ruled by the devil as well. All of us must come to a place
where we decide who will rule our hearts: the world, the flesh, the devil,
all three---or the Lord Jesus Christ. Any of the former will result only
in death. But allowing Jesus Christ to rule our hearts will result in life.
So behind the curtains of history stood Satan using evil men from the Jewish
religious community and Judas from the ranks of Jesus' own disciples to
have God's Passover Lamb killed. But God was leading his beloved Lamb toward
a death on a cross in order to counter Satan's plot, open the door of redemption
to all who would place their faith in him as their Messiah, and establish
his kingdom on earth.
II. God's Plan to Sacrifice His Passover Lamb Luke 22:7-13
Then came the first day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb had
to be sacrificed. And He sent Peter and John, saying, "Go and prepare
the Passover for us, that we may eat it." And they said to Him, "Where
do You want us to prepare it?" And He said to them, "Behold, when
you have entered the city, a man will meet you carrying a pitcher of water;
follow him into the house that he enters. And you shall say to the owner
of the house, 'The Teacher says to you, "Where is the guest room in
which I may eat the Passover with My disciples?"' And he will show
you a large, furnished, upper room; prepare it there." And they departed
and found everything just as He had told them; and they prepared the Passover.
Leviticus 23:5-6 says, "In the first month [April], on the fourteenth
day of the month at twilight is the LORD's Passover. Then on the fifteenth
day of the same month there is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the LORD;
for seven days you shall eat unleavened bread." Just as God had an
exact time for the slaying of the Passover Lamb in the wilderness, so he
had an exact time for the slaying of his final Passover Lamb. In Matthew
26:18 Jesus said, "My time is at hand; I am to keep the Passover...."
Peter would write to the Christians in Turkey some thirty years later that
God's unblemished Lamb had planned to be sacrificed for the sin of the world
before its foundation (see 1 Peter 1:18-20).
It is clear that Jesus had made some arrangements for the upper room several
days earlier, just as he had with the donkey colt on Palm Sunday. He did
this privately, knowing the human and spiritual forces out to destroy him.
When the timing was perfect, the Lord sent Peter and John to the temple
to get the Passover Lamb, where it was slain between 3:00 and 5:00 PM and
its blood given to the priest to be placed on the great altar as an offering
to God. Jesus had given them one clue to help them find the upper room as
they carried the lamb between them on a pole through the city streets, among
the hundreds of thousands of other tourists in the city doing the same thing.
They were told to look for a man---not a woman---carrying a pitcher of water
on his head, which would have been a very unusual sight. Then they were
to follow him to the house with the upper room. They were to say, "The
Teacher says, 'My time is at hand: I am to keep the Passover at your house
with My disciples" (Matthew 26:18). "And they...found everything
just as He had told them; and they prepared the Passover" (Luke 22:13).
Once they arrived they would have built a fire and arranged to roast the
lamb before twilight. They would have set the table, then along with every
Jewish household in Jerusalem, they would have waited for sunset and the
sound of the silver trumpets from the temple as a signal to begin the Passover.
Now verses 14-23 show us the willingness of the Lamb of God to be sacrificed:
And when the hour had come He reclined at the table, and the
apostles with Him. And He said to them, "I have earnestly desired to
eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for I say to you, I shall never
again eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God." And when
He had taken a cup and given thanks, He said, "Take this and share
it among yourselves; for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of
the vine from now on until the kingdom of God comes." And when He had
taken some bread and 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 in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying,
"This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood.
But behold, the hand of the one betraying Me is with Me on the table. For
indeed, the Son of Man is going as it has been determined; but woe to that
man by whom He is betrayed!" And they began to discuss among themselves
which one of them it might be who was going to do this thing.
The Lord and his disciples entered the house on Thursday evening after sundown,
went upstairs, and reclined on couches around the table. Outside the upper
room were our Lord's enemies plotting to kill him. Inside the upper room
were apostles who would within hours respectively betray, deny, and forsake
him. He had told his disciples on many occasions that he would have to suffer
for the sins of humanity, and yet with a heart of love he could look at
his honored guest on his left, Judas, and these other other eleven men and
say, "I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before
I suffer...." His mother Mary had related to him how Simeon the high
priest had prophesied over him on the eighth day of his life, "Behold,
this Child is appointed for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and for
a sign to be opposed...." (Luke 2:34). He had known from the prophet
Isaiah that he would be "like a lamb that is led to slaughter"
(53:7) and that he would become the suffering Servant who would justify
many (53:11). He knew that unless his enemies as well as his disciples were
placed under the blood of the slain Lamb, they would never be redeemed from
their bondage to sin.
Jesus then went on to say, "...I shall never again eat it until it
is fulfilled in the kingdom of God." Our Lord was not just looking
at the cross. He also knew that all who placed their faith in him as their
Savior would not only experience the joy of having him set up his kingdom
in their hearts, but would actually dine with him in his earthly kingdom
one day.
Then according to John 13:4-5 the Messiah became the servant of all who
were present, including Judas. Our Lord "...rose from supper, and laid
aside His garments, and taking a towel, He girded himself about. Then He
poured water into the basin, and began to wash the disciples' feet..."
This was a hygienic and social necessity in those times, but Jesus used
it as a symbol of daily cleansing from sin. Now, in the Middle East the
traditional roles of master and servant are well-defined; for a master to
serve his own servants was unheard of. Yet Jesus enacted this dramatic reversal
in washing the feet of his servants as an example for all future disciples
with servant's hearts to follow in washing one another's feet daily. That
is, he wanted his disciples to love one another in the same way he loved
them, to serve one another in gently and consistently, "forgiving each
other just as God in Christ also has forgiven you." (Ephesians 4:32).
Jesus also gave us a vivid picture of the reality: "...although He
existed in the form of God, [He] did not regard equality with God a thing
to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and
being made in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man,
He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death
on a cross." (Philippians 2:6-8.)
The final Passover meal became the first Lord's Supper. In a traditional
Passover meal, once everyone was in place around the table on couches, the
host would lift the first cup of wine, the Wine of Sanctification (Kiddush),
setting this Passover meal apart from all other meals. He would offer a
prayer of thanksgiving, and all would drink the wine. As another prayer
was offered, each person would wash their hands. Then each would take some
parsley and dip it in salt water. The parsley stood for the hyssop the Jews
used to put the blood on the door posts, and the salt water symbolized the
bitter tears of the Jews while they were in Egypt. Then the roasted lamb,
unleavened bread, and bitter herbs would be placed on the table. The host
would take the unleavened bread and break it, handing some to each person
to remind the family of God's daily provision.
The host would lift the second cup of wine, the Cup of Explaining or Proclaiming
(Haggadah). Everyone would wash their hands again and then sing the praise
Psalms 113-114, followed by another benediction. The host would offer a
sop of lamb and unleavened bread dipped in bitter herbs to each person in
turn. Then all would eat freely and once again wash their hands.
It was in this part of the supper that the betrayal of Judas fits best (according
to John 13), rather than after the supper as recorded in Luke 22:21-23.
Jesus said out of a heart of love and warning in the presence of Judas,
"I know the ones I have chosen; but it is that the Scripture may be
fulfilled, 'He who eats My bread has lifted up his heel against Me'"
(John 13:18; Psalm 41:9). Then Jesus said, "For indeed, the Son of
Man is going as it has been determined; but woe to that man by whom He is
betrayed!" The disciples wanted to know who it was, so Jesus said,
"'That is the one for whom I shall dip the morsel and give it to him.'
So when He had dipped the morsel, He took and gave it to Judas." (John
13:26.) "And Judas, who was betraying Him, answered and said, 'Surely
it is not I, Rabbi?' He said to him, 'You have said it yourself.'"
(Matthew 26:25.) "Satan entered into him...Jesus therefore said to
him, 'What you do, do quickly'...And so after receiving the morsel he went
out immediately; and it was night." (John 13:27, 30.) But Judas' sin
of betrayal would only serve the plan of God, which would defeat the power
of Satan over humanity.
Some of the lamb would now be eaten, the hands washed again, and the remainder
of the unleavened bread eaten. Then in a normal home situation the youngest
child would ask, "Father, what makes this day different from all other
days, and why is this being done?" And in a most wonderfully teachable
moment the father would have the opportunity to tell the children the history
of God's dealings with Israel up to the night of Passover.
Now, at this point in the Passover meal Jesus changed the meaning of the
bread. Earlier in his ministry he had told his disciples, "I am the
living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats of this bread,
he shall live forever; and the bread also which I shall give for the life
of the world is My flesh" (John 6:51). And now "... [having] taken
some bread and 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.'"
(Luke 22:19.) In this setting our Lord brought new meaning to the unleavened
bread. He said that the unleavened bread, which originally symbolized the
absence of sin, was a symbol of his sinless life that was about to be broken
on their behalf as spoken of in Isaiah 53:5: "But He was pierced through
for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities...and by His scourging
we are healed."
Next the host would lift the third cup of wine, the Cup of Redemption (Padah).
(According to Exodus 6:6-7, God had said to Moses, "...I will bring
you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you
from their bondage, I will also redeem you with an outstretched arm and
with great judgments." God had done this by the blood of the Passover
lamb, which the believers placed by faith on the doorposts of their homes.)
They would sing Psalm 115-118 and eat all the lamb.
With this cup of wine they were supposed to thank God for redeeming them
from Egypt, but here the Lord also changed the meaning of the wine: "...in
the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, 'This cup which
is poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood.'" It was the
shedding of his blood that would provide personal salvation for everyone
who believed in him. And Jesus opened up the Scriptures by bringing in the
new covenant. Every Jew knew that the new covenant was a promise of God
to Israel as recorded in Jeremiah 31:31, 33-34: "'Behold, days are
coming,' declares the LORD, 'when I will make a new covenant with the house
of Israel and with the house of Judah...this is the covenant which I will
make with the house of Israel after those days,' declares the LORD, 'I will
put My law within them, and on their heart I will write it; and I will be
their God, and they shall be My people. And they shall not teach again,
each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, "Know the Lord,"
for they shall all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,'
declares the LORD, 'for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will
remember no more.'"
Our Lord was telling his disciples that the promises of the new covenant
that had been offered to Israel would indeed be fulfilled one day when his
kingdom came to earth. But he was also telling them that even as Israel
rejected him as their Messiah at that time, the promises of the new covenant
were at that moment spiritually fulfilled for all Jews and Gentiles alike
who accepted him as their Lord and Redeemer---the members of his new church.
It was a covenant in which salvation was offered to all based on faith and
not works. This new covenant, better in quality than the old covenant written
on stone (see Hebrews 8), was not new in time but renewed.
However, without the shedding of the blood of Jesus on the cross for the
sin of mankind, we could never experience the blessings of this new covenant.
By the shedding of the Messiah's blood, he would provide personal redemption
for those in the bondage of sin and darkness and deliver them into the kingdom
of life and love, if they but placed their faith in him, the Lamb of God.
Jesus had said earlier in his ministry, "Truly, truly, I say to you,
unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man, and drink His blood, you have
no life in yourselves. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal
life...He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me; and I in him."
(John 6:53-56).
David Roper wrote in his book The New Covenant in the Old Testament:
"The new covenant...was...a restatement of the basic eternal
arrangement for maintaining a living, loving relationship between God and
man...As we cast our lot with him and lay hold of his life, he will increasingly
bestow on us his power for obedience and his forgiveness for weakness and
failure."
Finally, the host would lift the fourth cup. They would take this cup of
wine as they sang Psalm 136, thanking God for his goodness to Israel in
smiting the Egyptians in their first-born and redeeming Israel out of their
midst. Now, in the context of Luke 22, Israel was once again in bondage,
this time to Rome, and they were looking forward to the establishment of
the Messiah's kingdom and the defeat of Rome. This fourth cup may be the
one the Lord refused to drink until the restoration of the kingdom of God.
"And [having taken] a cup [it may have been either the first or the
fourth cup] and given thanks, he said, "Take this and share it among
yourselves; for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine
from now on until the kingdom of God comes."
So now Jesus, the final Passover Lamb, was making preparation to lay down
his life as a ransom for many. He was the Lamb spoken of in Isaiah 53:7:
Like a lamb that is led to slaughter,
And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers,
So He did not open His mouth.
Later Peter wrote to the suffering church in Turkey, "...knowing that
you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold...but with
precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ"
(1 Peter 1:18, 19). John tells us in Revelation 5:9-14 that after our Lord's
death, resurrection, and Ascension to the right hand of the Father, the
four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the resurrected
Lamb and sang a new song, saying, "Worthy art Thou to take the book,
and to break its seals; for Thou wast slain, and didst purchase for God
with Thy blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. And
Thou hast made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will
reign upon the earth." Then thousands of angels will join the four
living creatures and the twenty-four elders, and they will sing, "Worthy
is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might
and honor and glory and blessing." Then every created thing in heaven,
on earth, under the earth, and in the sea will join in and sing, "To
Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory
and dominion forever and ever." We will be in that choir praising God,
because we are going to fully understand our salvation and the price that
was paid!
Satan's plot to kill the Lamb of God would fail, while God's plan of salvation
would succeed because the innocent Lamb was willing to be sacrificed on
our behalf. But before the Lamb of God endured the cross, having become
an example of a servant, he prepared his apostles for ministry. Look at
Luke 22:24-30:
And there arose also a dispute among them as to which one of
them was regarded to be greatest. And He said to them, "The kings of
the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who have authority over them are
called 'Benefactors.' But not so with you, but let him who is the greatest
among you become as the youngest, and the leader as the servant. For who
is greater, the one who reclines at the table, or the one who serves? Is
it not the one who reclines at the table? But I am among you as the one
who serves. And you are those who have stood by Me in My trials; and just
as My Father has granted Me a kingdom, I grant you that you may eat and
drink at My table in My kingdom, and you will sit on thrones judging the
twelve tribes of Israel."
He reminded his apostles of the call to servant leadership. The issue of
who was greatest among them was a theme that seemed to crop up from time
to time, whenever the disciples were talking about the future kingdom. But
in Mark 9:35 our Lord said, "If anyone wants to be first, he shall
be last of all, and servant of all." In Luke 9:47-48 our Lord then
placed a child in front of them and said, "Whoever receives this child
in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me;
for he who is least among you, this is the one who is great." And in
Mark 10:35-45 James and John came to Jesus just a few weeks before the cross
and asked him if they could sit at his right and his left when he set up
his kingdom. Then Jesus told his disciples, "...even the Son of Man
did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for
many."
Jesus warned the disciples that they were acting like the kings of the Gentiles,
who, though called Benefactors, were cruel and demanding masters. He went
on to point out that the key to true greatness is servanthood toward all,
servant leadership as demonstrated in his lifestyle and then in his example
of washing their feet. (Our new deacons are learning this valuable lesson,
and it is a joy to watch their servant's hearts praying and seeking to serve
so many of you in the name and power of our risen Lord.)
Jesus also gave his servants hope for the future. "And you are those
who have stood by Me in My trials; and just as My Father has granted Me
a kingdom, I grant you that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom,
and you will sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel." As
our Lord looked beyond the cross and his death, burial, resurrection, Ascension,
and return to earth immediately after the great tribulation, he saw himself
setting up his long-promised kingdom on earth, from which he would rule
the world and Israel in perfect righteousness and justice. And because his
Father had granted him that kingdom, he was free to offer his faithful eleven
disciples fellowship as well as authority over the restored nation of Israel
(see also Matthew 19:28). So he wanted them to stop arguing about who was
going to be the greatest, because it was foolishness; everyone would have
their proper place at the proper time.
In verses 31-34 Jesus warned his servants about spiritual warfare and its
benefits:
"Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to
sift you like wheat; but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not
fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers."
And he said to Him, "Lord, with You I am ready to go both to prison
and to death!" And He said, "I say to you, Peter, the cock will
not crow today until you have denied three times that you know Me."
In John 13:33-36 our Lord told the disciples that where he was going the
disciples could not come. But he said, "A new commandment I give to
you [in light of your dispute], that you love one another, even as I have
loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that
you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." (13:34-35.)
It was at this point that Peter told Jesus that he was willing to follow
Jesus wherever he was going, even to the point of laying down his life for
Jesus.
Jesus then drew back the curtain of spiritual reality and shared with Peter
and all the disciples that Satan, who had already entered Judas, had appeared
before him and demanded that he have the right to attack them all. Jesus
refused to allow the evil one to destroy them, but without asking the disciples
he did give Satan permission to shake them up with the hope that their pride
would be turned to humility. Peter didn't know how weak his flesh was. He
needed to be sifted like wheat so the Lord could get rid of his pride and
replace it with humility. (When you read 1 and 2 Peter, written thirty years
later, you find a humble shepherd and servant. It just took thirty years!)
The Lord had already prayed to his heavenly Father that they would be protected,
that their faith would not fail during the difficult days ahead, and that
they would even be able to use their experiences of denying and forsaking
Jesus to encourage and strengthen their brothers.
Finally, he prepared his disciples' hearts for a future as criminals in
verses 35-38:
And He said to them, "When I sent you out without purse
and bag and sandals, you did not lack anything, did you?" And they
said, "No, nothing." And He said to them, "But now, let him
who has a purse take it along, likewise also a bag, and let him who has
no sword sell his robe and buy one. For I tell you, that this which is written
must be fulfilled in Me, 'And He was numbered with transgressors'; for that
which refers to Me has its fulfillment." And they said, "Lord,
look, here are two swords." And He said to them, "It is enough."
Our Lord then reminded his disciples that in the past when they had ministered
with him and for him he had said, "Take nothing for your journey, neither
a staff, nor a bag, nor bread, nor money, and do not even have two tunics
[coats] apiece" (Luke 9:3). When the Lord had sent out the seventy
disciples to preach the kingdom of God, he had told them the same thing
(see Luke 10:4). But now that he was about to leave them, he said, "Make
sure you have all of the above plus a sword. For I tell you that this which
is written must be fulfilled in Me, 'And he was classed among criminals'''
(Isaiah 53:12). He would be crucified between two criminals because he was
considered a criminal himself by the Jewish and Roman authorities, and all
who followed him would be considered criminals, too. They would be chased
all over the face of the earth, and some would even die. So they would need
those provisions so that they could travel about easily as they kept one
step ahead of the police.
"And they said, 'Lord, look, here are two swords.'" These were
the ceremonial swords they had used to cut up the Passover lamb. "And
he said to them, 'It is enough,'" 'I don't want you to become a small
army to depend on me or yourselves, but only to understand that you will
need to begin to live your lives again like ordinary people in a fallen
world.'
As we look back over this passage, our hearts should be filled with joy
and thankfulness that God sent his beloved Son to this earth. The final
Passover Lamb and faithful Servant was willing to have his body broken and
his blood shed on the cross for our sin, so that all who believed in him
would be given eternal life. Not only are we then given a new Lord, a new
life, and a new covenant; but we are also given a new calling to be his
servants and follow his leading into a fallen world in our generation so
that others might hear the good news that our risen Lord and Savior "has
come to seek and to save that which was lost" (Luke 19:10).
Catalog No. 4275
Luke 22:1-38
60th Message
Ron Ritchie
July 12, 1992
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