The Upper Room
Luke 22:14-23
One of the last things Jesus did with His inner circle was to institute the Lord's Supper. Jesus made a choice that would change the destiny of mankind forever! The choice Jesus made has will force us to make a choice concerning Him.
SLIDE #1
Introduction
• Here we are, on the cusp of Easter.
• The message for today takes place hours before the events of what we call Easter unfold.
• The week had been busy, it began with Jesus’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem the previous Sunday, but on Friday, the ministry of Jesus would seemingly come to an end with His crucifixion; until Sunday, which we will talk about next week.
• The events we will examine together take place on Thursday evening, just hours before the arrest of Jesus at about 1 am on Friday, which would lead to the six trials before His crucifixion that would take place around 9 am on Friday.
• For the unsuspecting disciples, this was going to be a joyful evening sharing the Passover with their leader Jesus.
• Life was good for these men. They were following Jesus; they were able to spend time with Jesus.
• Sure, Jesus talked about this fatalistic death stuff before, but these men just kind of ignored it, because as a man, if you ignore something, that something does not happen.
• These men received a lot more than they bargained for before the night was through.
• I think we all have an idea of getting a lot more than we bargained for with this virus that we are all trying to avoid catching.
• This evening was an eventful one, as well as a confusing one for those in the Upper Room.
• During this evening, the Apostles would have their feet washed by Jesus.
• They would find out one of them was going to betray Jesus, they were going to be warned about some of the things that were about to happen, and they were going to be a part of a new celebration that Jesus would establish with them.
• Let’s open the Word to Luke 22; we will be in verses 14-23. We will begin with verses 14-18.
• As we examine our text today, we will see that one of the last things Jesus did with His inner circle was to institute the Lord’s Supper. Jesus made a choice that would change the destiny of humanity forever!
• The choice Jesus made will force us to make a choice concerning Him.
SLIDE#2
Bible Verse
Luke 22:14-18 (CSB)
14When the hour came, he reclined at the table, and the apostles with him.
15Then he said to them, “I have fervently desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.
16For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.”
17Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks, he said, “Take this and share it among yourselves.
18For I tell you, from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”
SLIDE #3
1. I. A chosen promise.
Explanation
• They were reclining around the table, getting ready to eat the Passover meal with Jesus.
• The Passover meal was supposed to be eaten in Jerusalem after sunset and finished before midnight.
• The disciples and Jesus took their places on the reclining couches around the table.
• During such an important meal as the Passover, everyone would recline at the table, symbolizing the freedom the people had gained after the very first Passover and their subsequent release from slavery in Egypt. (Life Application Commentary, Luke)
• The Passover had been celebrated since that fateful night in Eygpt when the angel of death passed over the homes whose doorposts were covered by the blood of the lamb.
• Jesus tells the disciples that He fervently desires to eat this Passover with them.
• Jesus knows what ts about to happen to Him, yet he sees this a critical time in His ministry.
• If you knew you only had hours to live, what is it that you would see as important enough to do during those final hours of life?
• Jesus once again tells the disciples that He is about to suffer, yet we do not hear the disciples asking Jesus how He is going to suffer; they seem to brush that statement under the table.
• This evening would be special to Jesus for many reasons, but the chief reason would that because of the choice He made to follow through with God’s will, Jesus would be able to fulfill a promise to ALL of His followers.
• Jesus will take the most sacred meal in Judaism, a meal that reminded the Jewish people of God’s greatest act of redemption to date for them and changes it to represent the greatest act of redemption ever, the redemption of all of humanity!
• Jesu says that He will not eat this meal again until it is fulfilled in the Kingdom of God! Jesus repeats this thought in both verses 16 and 18!
• Jesus anticipates the coming messianic banquet to which the Passover feast always pointed.
• By Jesus using the phrase, “FERVENTLY DESIRED”, He is attaching a great deal of significance to this event.
• The chosen PROMISE is that one day when the end of the age comes when Jesus returns, we will be together at the banquet table with Jesus!
SLIDE #4
Bible Verse
1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 (CSB)
16For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the archangel’s voice, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
17Then we who are still alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.
18Therefore encourage one another with these words.
Explanation
• This PROMISE hinges on His decision to follow the will of the Father!
• Let’s be real for a minute. People die every day. Projects tell us that up to 240,000 people could die from this wretched virus that has jumped on our world and nation.
• We have people dying of cancer, heart disease, among many other numerous causes of death.
• Family, one day we will all be gone, every one of us watching today will die unless the Lord returns first, 100% guaranteed.
• What promise are you building your life upon now? What are you banking on for eternity?
• I know some think that we die and that is it. That would be the worst Greek Tragedy EVER!
• Some think they can make their own way; well, good luck with that. You have NOTHING, which to base your hope.
• Jesus is going to deliver on a CHOSEN PROMISE, a promise sealed with His very blood!
• Let’s turn to verses 19-20
SLIDE #5
Bible Verse
Luke 22:19-20 (CSB)
19And he took bread, gave thanks, broke it, gave it to them, and said, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”
20In the same way he also took the cup after supper and said, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.
SLIDE #6
2. II. A chosen sacrifice.
Explanation
• For hundreds of years, the Jews were celebrating the Passover.
• During all of those celebrations, they slaughtered and innocent lamb. The blood of the lamb on the doorpost caused the angel of death to Passover the Jews in Egypt, therefore delivering them from death.
• When Jesus took the bread, He blessed it, just as He did when He fed the 5,000. When He blessed it, he broke it, and He gave it to the disciples.
• Now for added punch, when you read Luke’s version, he does not include the washing of the disciples’ feet by Jesus, we find this in the Gospel of John 13:1-30.
• Jesus showed them that even though He was God, He was not above serving them. Jesus took on the role of the lowest servant in the house when He washed the feet of those disciples.
• Now Jesus takes this servanthood a step deeper. When He tells the disciples THIS IS MY BODY GIVEN FOR YOU, Jesus is telling them that the bread He is giving them represents His imminent death on the cross.
• When the disciples eat his bread, they will be affirming their trust in the effects of Jesus’ death on the cross.
• Jesus’ body is being given by God for these apostles and all who follow Jesus.
• There is an implied view of the effect of Jesus’ death here. Jesus dies as a sacrifice on behalf of others, just as the lamb was sacrificed at the time of the tenth plague to preserve the life of the oldest son. (College Press Commentary, Luke)
• Jesus then instructs His disciples to do this in REMEMBRANCE OF ME!
• This language shows the disciples that what Jesus is doing is something new. The Passover is no longer about a lamb and blood on doorposts, and Egypt, it is about Jesus, dying on a cross.
• It is about Jesus being the lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world!
• To seal the deal, Jesus took the cup and said the cup was the New Covenant in His blood, which is poured out for you!
• This language echos that of Exodus 24:8 in which the blood to the sacrificial animals seals the Mosaic covenant between man and God.
SLIDE #7
Bible Verse
Jeremiah 31:31 (CSB)
31“Look, the days are coming” ?—?this is the Lord ’s declaration?—?“when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.
Explanation
• This is the New Covenant of which, Jeremiah references in Jeremiah 31:31!
SLIDE #8
Bible Verse
Luke 22:21-23 (CSB)
21But look, the hand of the one betraying me is at the table with me.
22For the Son of Man will go away as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom he is betrayed!”
23So they began to argue among themselves which of them it could be who was going to do it.
SLIDE #9
3. III. A chosen betrayal.
Explanation
• Now we get to the rough part.
• Jesus was with His inner circle; He was with His disciples, the men, except for one, that would be the key people of spreading the Gospel once Jesus was dead, and resurrected.
• How many of you get emails that use the word BOMBSHELL in them. I get them ALL of the time to the point where I look at the word as a CHICKEN LITTLE; the sky is falling trap.
• Jesus drops a REAL bombshell on His group; one of them is going to betray Him.
• Now, I need to let you know something about the chronology of Luke in this passage.
• Follow me. This will make this whole passage look a bit different. Also, realize that each of the Gospel writers are writing to different audiences
• This gets nerdy and fun.
• Luke 22:14-16, the reclining at the table takes place first.
• Then John 13:1-30 happens next, the washing of the disciple’s feet, which the other gospel writers do not write about.
• Then THIS PASSAGE, Luke 21-23 takes place, where Jesus calls tells us that one of His disciples will betray Him.
• Next, Luke 21:34-38 happens where the disciples argue over who was going to be the greatest, Peter’s denial was predicted, then Jesus warned them of trouble.
• THEN the Luke 22:17-20 happened, where Jesus institutes the Lord’s Supper. When the Lord’s Supper is instituted, Judas had left the room to go get the soldiers to complete His betrayal of Jesus.
• Judas chose to betray Jesus, and His choice was a personal choice that had personal ramifications for him.
• Luke 22:22 shows us that Judas made a choice. Judas cannot blame anyone but himself.
• Peter ended up denying Jesus three times, the other disciples ran and hid; they all deserted Jesus from fear of being ut on the cross themselves.
• What was the difference between those folks and Judas, the others were sorry, and they repented, Judas just felt sorry for himself?
• Jesus would have forgiven Judas as he did the others.
Conclusion
• Jesus offers you a promise. If you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior and are baptized onto Him, He will offer you forgiveness and salvation.
• Judas betrayed Jesus in a very overt way.
• Each day we need to decide if we are going to betray Jesus overtly by outright rejection of Him or covertly by following Him in word, but not in heart.
• Jesus loved you enough to die on the cross for you. Jesus will forgive all of your sins and He WANTS you to be in His family!
• We all have a choice to make, what will yours be?
