His Cup At The Gathering Series

The Echoes of Easter Pt 1

"His Cup at the Gathering"

Luke 22:14-30

Luke 22:14 And when the hour was come, he sat down, and the twelve apostles with him. 15 And he said unto them, With desire I have desired to eat this passover with you before I suffer: 16 For I say unto you, I will not any more eat thereof, until it be fulfilled in the kingdom of God. 17 And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves: 18 For I say unto you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine, until the kingdom of God shall come. 19 And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. 20 Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you. 21 But, behold, the hand of him that betrayeth me is with me on the table. 22 And truly the Son of man goeth, as it was determined: but woe unto that man by whom he is betrayed! 23 And they began to enquire among themselves, which of them it was that should do this thing. 24 And there was also a strife among them, which of them should be accounted the greatest. 25 And he said unto them, The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and they that exercise authority upon them are called benefactors. 26 But ye shall not be so: but he that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that doth serve. 27 For whether is greater, he that sitteth at meat, or he that serveth? is not he that sitteth at meat? but I am among you as he that serveth. 28 Ye are they which have continued with me in my temptations. 29 And I appoint unto you a kingdom, as my Father hath appointed unto me; 30 That ye may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

Introduction: Over the next 7 weeks we will be examining the pre and post resurrection events surrounding the last days of Jesus Christ on earth. The title of this series is, "The Echoes of Easter," and I am praying that the Lord would use these messages to bless you and your family. If you would like to do some background Scripture reading then I would encourage and challenge you to read through Luke chapters 22-24 once per week over the next seven weeks and make plans to be present for the entire series. To use a common metaphor, the Scriptures are a spiritual banquet but you must come to the "table" to eat! Our message begins with the phrase, "And when the hour was come..." Question: What does this mean? Exodus 12:6 And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening. The hour spoken of by the Lord is about 6 PM which would have been the time for the Pascal Lamb to be sacrificed. But there was another reference to the time in the mind of the Lord. If you recall from reading the NT, Jesus mentioned on several occasions that His hour was not yet come. Listen as I read this sequence of verses from John's Gospel...

John 7:30 Then they sought to take him: but no man laid hands on him, because his hour was not yet come. John 8:20 These words spake Jesus in the treasury, as he taught in the temple: and no man laid hands on him; for his hour was not yet come. John 12:27 Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour. John 13:1 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 loved them unto the end.

This Passover scene is set against the backdrop of His coming arrest, trial, punishment and death. The "his hour" was set by God the Father in eternity past for He was "a lamb slain from the foundation of the world," and now that hour has arrived. That's where we begin this series entitled, "The Echoes of Easter."

I. The Entreaty of the Savior

a. The people

In verses 7-13 we read that the Lord has instructed Peter and John to "go and prepare us the passover, that we may eat."