The Last Supper-The Centrality Of Fellowship (1/12) Series

Introduction

Slide 1 (title): I am excited about this new 12 part series of messages we begin today. The thoughts to develop it were sown when I received a message from a friend during the Lenten Season on the Liturgical calendar. He mentioned an important aspect from one of the 14 Stations of the Cross. I looked into it, intrigued, and then began to study them more closely. I have been to Israel several times and have seen hundreds of Roman Catholic and Orthodox Christians literally reenacting the Stations also called the “Way of the Cross”.

Each Sunday for the next 12 weeks we will tailor messages using the same format as we will today. The Title of my message this morning: The Last Supper – The centrality of Fellowship. (Sermon 1 of 12). The Key People: Jesus and his closest friends, the Disciples. The Key Teaching: FELLOWSHIP/FRIENDSHIP/MEALS. The Key Scriptures: Matthew 26:17-30. We will unpack the events leading to and surrounding the Last Supper. We will then extrapolate the teachings and principles and close with a practical application we can all take way as we strive to apply principles to make us more like Jesus and less like ourselves.

Let’s dive in to the passage as I read from the New Living Translation: Slide 2 (a): “17 On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, ‘Where do you want us to make preparations for you to eat the Passover?’ 18 He replied, ‘Go into the city to a certain man and tell him, The Teacher says: My appointed time is near. I am going to celebrate the Passover with my disciples at your house.’ 19 So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them and prepared the Passover. 20 When evening came, Jesus was reclining at the table with the Twelve. … Slide 3 (b): 26 While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, ‘Take and eat; this is my body.’ 27 Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you. 28 This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29 I tell you, I will not drink from this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.’ 30 When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.”

The centrality of fellowship and relationships Slide 4 (sub-title)

We refer to this meal as The Last Supper. Many people imagine a scene created by Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci, housed in a Convent in Milan, Italy. It is one of the world’s most recognizable paintings. He began painting the famous mural in the year 1495, commissioned by his patron, the Duke of Milan. The painting represents the scene of the Last Supper of Jesus with his Apostles. However, it bears no resemblance to the facts. It is a westernized rendering of a scene from Europe in the Middle Ages and has little or nothing to do with what really took place in Jerusalem and a Middle Eastern culture.

More important than trying to recapture the correct and perfect setting, and no two Christian denominations will agree, is to confirm the fact that meals with friends are embedded in every culture, in every age and in every country of the world. We are relational beings, created for fellowship with one another, and nothing brings that out more than our love for food around a common table with our friends. Breaking bread with His beloved Disciples was the last thing Jesus did voluntarily. After that meal he was betrayed and everything else, until He was nailed to the cross, was imposed on Him by force.

Like each and every one of us Jesus loved to hang out, to eat and to share life with family and friends. Fellowship was central to His ministry. Much of His time revolved around food and fellowship. Covid-19, or the Coronavirus, has struck at one of the vital and indispensable aspects of our humanity: our interconnectedness, interdependence, our mutuality, our love for relaxation and refreshment, and our God-ordained relationships. Jesus the man was all about relationships. He created a family ambience among His disciples. He loved festivals, weddings and celebrations, of which Jewish culture, like Mediterranean cultures, are full of. Everything served as a pretext for eating and drinking, laughing and loving life. He not only celebrated the Last Supper with His Disciples, He left us the meal to be celebrated and enjoyed as a lasting ordinance for the Church for all time. The Last supper is more than a ceremony. The lessons and meanings it conceals are too many to unpack today and that is not my purpose. What I want to highlight is the fact that this meal is a reminder, to this day, that we are one, we need each other, we are connected, and we need to enjoy times of food and fellowship as friends and family around a common table. Jesus considered this time with His closest friends, before going to the cross, as vital.