Introduction
When we come to communion, we
normally read the verses about the bread and the cup in isolation. Today we’ll
read these verses in the context of the passages around them, and hopefully
bring some more light to bear on the significance of all this! These incidents
from Mark 14 all happened in the last week of Jesus’ earthly life. Naturally,
with a crucifixion pending, there would be many tensions in the group! But
Jesus’ main intention here, was to bring his disciples together around an
increasing understanding of what God was trying to achieve.
It seems to me, that we, in
today’s church, would also gather for worship, communion and teaching, so that
we, too, better understand what God is doing around us (and how God is calling
us to be part of this). We would have to concede that there is often
differences within church communities about what we should be doing, and
tensions can arise out of this. Yet, when Jesus shares the bread and the cup
with his disciples, and as we share the bread and the cup with each other,
there is inherent here a higher vision – a grand Kingdom vision … one that
leads all the way to the great eternal banquet. This is about the priority of
discipleship and mission.
Jesus used the bread and the
wine at the table … as symbols of the meaning of his upcoming sacrificial
death. From this very meal we get the shape and form for our communion service.
It was Paul, who first taught (in 1st Corinthians 11), that we
should commemorate this event by participating in something that resembled the
original. Paul included the words of Jesus, in connection with taking the bread
and the cup, “Do this in remembrance of me”, and also, “For as often as you eat
this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes”.
It is clear that from the
very beginning of the early church, even well before Paul wrote that letter,
they were already doing exactly that. Within their homes, early Christians
would meet together for fellowship around food – with worship, prayer, singing, teaching, sharing and encouragement, and at the same time, remembering Jesus' death
and resurrection through the bread and cup.
Preparations
Jesus wanted to host an
intimate meal with his disciples before the events of the week took over
(leading to his death on the cross). Jesus wanted to spend some special time
with those who had become his close friends before they would be separated. And
Jesus wanted to advance their acceptance of what was happening around them,
while also challenging their misgivings and misunderstandings. That this was a
very special occasion, with high objectives, is seen in the careful
preparations.
We might see in verses 12 to
16, some careful pre-planning, or maybe just how the Holy Spirit will open
doors when you are following what Jesus says and working within God’s will.
Either way, for this ‘last supper’ … the right place is available at the right
time for the right reason, and the further necessary arrangements are made.
Yet, there is still tension in the air! Jesus’ great hope, is that in sharing
the particular elements of bread and wine, and giving them certain meaning, he
can help his disciples take the Gospel forward.
This is a bit like the
perfectly planned dinner party that we might arrange. All the right
arrangements and hospitality is in place. Yet when the guests start arriving,
we soon witness the personality clashes and some relational tensions, because
after all we are human beings. The hosts then spend the rest of the evening
trying to keep the peace and harmony, even trying to manipulate who is left
talking to who.
In the case of the meal Jesus
has arranged, the big elephant in the room is the presence of a traitor – one
who will betray Jesus to the Romans and the Jewish authorities who wish to
bring Jesus’ demise. And then, there is the rest of the “twelve”, who would
still prefer to intervene to stop Jesus’ death, and in doing so … have an
unrealistic view of their own bravery. Honest conversations with Jesus’
disciples have become difficult, because they refuse to accept what Jesus is
telling them about God’s plans.
Telling the Story
It’s interesting that the
true story of what happened that night is told at all!! You would think that
the disciples would want some of this embarrassing stuff covered up and hidden
in the cupboard and hopefully forgotten. In the face of their perceived
bravery, Jesus accurately predicted their desertion! Yet, this was a real part
of their journey of discovery and faith, and they would, in hindsight, come to
understand how instructive it would be for future generations.
Jesus wanted to deal with the
tensions, but they were resistant to him. Out of all the uncertainty and fear
around this, Peter even denied knowing Jesus three times. Yet, Peter was so
repentant, forgiven and transformed, that he had no problem with these incidents
being passed on with complete honesty. So, when the first Gospel, the Gospel of
Mark, was put together in written form and distributed, there was a very honest
memory of what actually happened – warts and all. It’s actually as we come to
the bread and cup with full honesty, that we receive the most blessing. [And this is why we have to delve deeply into Good Friday ... to make the most of Resurrection Sunday.]
What is there to learn from
Jesus taking the bread and the wine and sharing them around the table that
night … in the face of such disquiet?! In the case of the first and second
century readers of this Gospel text, what was there to learn? Far from pointing
fingers in disgust at Peter and the others, any new followers of Jesus would
recognise, that under the persecution they experienced, it could easily be them
… if they were not vigilant … who would be the next ones to deny and betray
Jesus.
These ‘believers’ would enter
into this text, and with the first disciples say, “Surely not I – surely you
don’t mean me … do you”!? They would understand that under certain
circumstances, it could actually be them! They would likely feel “distress”
around this, like the original disciples did. They could also see themselves as
confident and brave as Peter and the others were, but then note how quickly and
easily they disowned Jesus and fled. Because of the honest telling of these
traditions, we too can well and truly find a place in the Gospel text … where
we might be challenged.
Sharing the Meal
This was around the time of
the Passover, where people of the Jewish nation would celebrate their liberation
from slavery in Egypt. However, Jesus was about to reinterpret the whole notion
of liberation, freedom and salvation. Jesus was about to show how God’s intent
for the salvation, of, not just the people of Israel, but indeed, of, the whole
world, will now centre around Jesus himself. The sacrifice (of his life) that
Jesus will soon make, will change absolutely everything!
His disciples had NOT
understood any of this up until now, and would continue to struggle with all
this, until after Jesus’ resurrection and the coming of the Holy Spirit. Yet
Jesus would still strive to share with them the depth of what they had become
involved in! Why? Why was Jesus at such pains to get them to understand what
God was up to? Because they were the ones … who were called … and would have
the role of representing and passing on this message of salvation.
Jesus wanted to have this
last meal together, with high hopes for intimate fellowship and togetherness …
as expressed in verse 20 with the act of each one dipping their bread into a
common dish of sauce. But there was a lot of confused minds around the table …
they were ‘on the edge’ concerning any talk about Jesus’ death. It is
interesting to consider, that these particular disciples … at first glance …
seem unsuitable for the task ahead – they didn’t even have enough
self-awareness to understand their own shortcomings. Yet Jesus didn’t think so
– he chose them! And we know that eventually they had remarkable success.
With one exception of course.
Jesus also chose Judas – there just must have been something exceptional in him
that attracted Jesus to call him; but unfortunately the character flaws in
Judas were just too great for even Jesus to fix, and Judas fell away
disastrously toward betrayal. This reminds us the potential that God can
recognise within each one of us, but at the same time our responsibility to
respond to God in a proper fashion (lest we be lost)!
As we read in verse 21, Jesus
was on an inevitable path to the cross, but there was NO lack of responsibility
on any of those who caused this, including Judas. However, in the segment of
the narrative we have read from Mark’s version of events, Judas is not even
mentioned. Why not? Perhaps Mark’s readers were not to jump on Judas’ back too
quickly, without first thinking about themselves. What would they have done?
How would they have reacted? After all, in the midst of such dramatic change,
human beings often tend to react in negative and defensive ways. Judas had his
chance, he had his options; he made a bad choice – what will we choose?!
Jesus had come with all the
promise of a ‘Messiah’ – which meant for most … the defeat of the Roman empire
and the restoration of Israel’s self-determination. Such was the general
expectation of a ‘Messiah’ – probably the result of a self-serving misreading
of the Hebrew Scriptures. However, God had acted for the people of Israel in
the past, but had their hearts ever fully changed as a nation?
Their own prophets would
often claim that the answer was ‘No’! What was required, was NOT a military
campaign, but rather a spiritual revolution. Yet, the established
power-brokers, were NOT prepared for the status-quo to be upset, especially if
that meant they would lose their privileged position. They were quite pleased
with their large book of little laws, that kept the lowly people in their
place. We have often seen how the Pharisees etc were NOT AT ALL happy with
Jesus turning the microscope on their own inner life.
This was the context behind
Jesus’ bold attempts at change. And even his closest disciples, who had spent
three years with Jesus, couldn’t contemplate the thought that ultimate change
was going to require Jesus’ death: the real ‘Messiah’ would need to be a
suffering servant. God’s prior disappointment … would now lead to the highest
expression of mercy ever seen!
For the real problem to be
addressed was sin … right at the depth of people’s being, that would require a
path to be forged towards forgiveness – if lives particularly, and the world in
general, was ever going to be put right. Here was the path to salvation for all
those who understood their culpability and need. Still, the original disciples,
hearing what Jesus said about his broken body and poured out blood, couldn’t
yet really find their way onto the same page with Jesus. They still saw Jesus’
death as an unnecessary intrusion into their lives – something to be avoided.
So, this passage serves to
ask people of all generations where they sit! Today this passage asks us
where we sit!! Can we get past other expectations and reservations, to just
admit that Jesus is dying for us? The disciples should NOT have disbelieved
Jesus. But they did! Looking at verses 12 to 16 again, this is the second time
that Jesus had sent the disciples off with instructions … that had worked out
exactly as Jesus had said they would (the other being Palm Sunday). Verse 16
says that the disciples, “found everything as [Jesus] had told
them”! The clear lesson for us all is – when Jesus speaks, just believe in him!
All the remarkable and
miraculous experiences the disciples have had with Jesus, and still they can
doubt him! It seems that even when Jesus mentioned his impending resurrection
(at verse 28), this made NO impact! Jesus here was seeking to bring comforting
reassurances, that despite his death, he would NOT leave them alone, but rather
re-gather and lead them again. Yet this just went straight past the disciples …
as if it wasn’t even said! Sometimes our ears are well and truly closed; maybe
our eyes too! No wonder the first disciples were susceptible to doubting
themselves on the one hand, and being over-confident on the other. They hadn’t
yet learned to fully believe and trust in Jesus!
True Discipleship
As we have said, Jesus wanted
to have this intimate dinner with his disciples, but the room was full of
tension. Ultimately this tension surrounds the matter of true discipleship.
Following Jesus would never be about our convenience or comfort.
Following Jesus would not be about addressing our whims and preferences.
Rather, following Jesus would be about a sacrificial serving ministry in
the world. If we come to the bread and the cup for other reasons, we will
likely, in the end, fall away, become a deserter, and in the worst case
scenario … betray Jesus altogether.
I addressed this possibility last week from Hebrews 6, where we saw that the worst cases of
rejecting Jesus having once embraced him, in effect suggested that his
sacrifice was worthless. Judas, who dipped his bread in the same sauce bowl as
Jesus and the others (v 20), tragically destroyed his possibilities of intimate
relationship with God. So, when Jesus invites us to a meal, this special meal
of bread and wine, symbolising real sacrifice, he wants us to be wholly on the
same page with him.
Jesus wants the tension to
pass, and true intimacy of relationship to develop. Jesus wants us to take note
of the misunderstandings on that first occasion, and come to a place of
complete faith. So, this is where self-examination comes in! “Surely not I”!
How can we act to avoid betrayal or desertion? We never should take any of this
lightly! The cross is both … because of us … and for us!! What causes us
tension around the cross? Do we fear the change that Jesus is seeking to bring
to our lives?
Judas wanted to control
Jesus; Peter and the others wanted to define Jesus’ mission according to their
own thinking!! Are we too comfortable in the old life? Do we think we have
already given up enough (or done enough)? When we sing out loud about our love
for Jesus, is this real (or something of a pretence)? Do we fear the unknown
future of following Jesus come what may? Would it be okay if we could just
measure and control the work of God’s Spirit in and around us (rather than this
being open-ended)? We need to move our thinking … from fear and self TO
faith and service!
In a way we have to work
against our brain’s natural inclination to avoid change. Our brain is wired to
pick up threats and negative possibilities … more so than the positive. Our
brain is tuned to minimise threat, and thereby avoid change, as much as
possible. The older we get, the more we default to a preference for the
familiar (what we are used to) as against anything more unknown (or uncertain).
To counteract this, we need the Holy Spirit’s help. The Gospel says, that to be
a disciple, we need to move our thinking … from fear and self TO faith and
service!
This is how it happens … we
accept the invitation to a meal where sinners find redemption.
Jesus took a loaf of bread
and broke it – offering the plate of broken pieces around the group. {First,
Jesus had “blessed” this bread, signifying tremendous spiritual significance.
This special broken bread was NOT about stomachs, but rather about our souls.}
This bread now broken, represented his body to be broken because of the
brokenness of humanity. In taking a piece from the broken loaf, we can identify
with this brokenness, that we indeed have been broken, and that as Jesus
identifies himself with that brokenness, and takes that brokenness upon
himself, we can be healed. We take our piece of bread, humbly acknowledging our
part (and our responsibility) in the fact that we are broken, and we receive
forgiveness for that neglect. We do this, not just on our own, but together, in
solidarity with one another, as we have all been in the same boat; and because
what Jesus has done, is for all the world.
Jesus took a cup of wine and
shared it around. {First, he had given “thanks”. We could wonder what Jesus
gave “thanks” for!? I would think that such ‘thanksgiving’ might have been
about God’s long-term [eternal] loving consideration of all those he had
created – such that he sought to form covenants of mutual relationships with
people of all generations.} This cup … would be “poured out for many”. This
cup, then, would symbolise the new ultimate covenant of grace, where we
wouldn’t have to strive against any religious ‘law’ to be good enough, but
rather, just … embrace Jesus. No more guilt nor shame, rather just
fruitfulness. If we could just say ‘yes’ to following Jesus, we would be
included in this covenant of grace, such that we wouldn’t have to worry what
the future might hold – we just simply trust God.
Conclusion
Despite the tensions and
disappointments of that last supper together, this meal forms the basis of our
communion together in the church. We are together because of our collective
foundation in Jesus, the sacrificial service that he brought to all of us, and
our combined mission to share this level of service with the community around
us. For, as Easter in totality teaches us – the cross is far from the end, in
fact it’s the beginning of the new beginning.
What the original disciples
didn’t understand at the time, in their fear, they came to understand with
power over coming weeks: that Jesus would be raised up, and go ahead of them to
Galilee, to re-establish his leadership of their number, and make their lives
count in extraordinary ways. In the power of the resurrection and God’s Spirit,
the eleven remaining disciples, plus a new one, plus many committed women, plus
loads of other converts to the cause (including the apostle Paul), will now
turn the world upside down. They have now come to fully understand and commit
to what Jesus was always teaching them, and what has now been laid out for us
in God’s Word. They believed, and we can believe!
So, we are invited to this
tremendous meal week by week, the ultimate feast of the Kingdom. In true
discipleship, we no longer have to wonder whether we would betray or desert
Jesus, let alone pretend we can cope with severe challenges in our own
strength. We just humbly accept the bread, and joyfully drink of the cup –
having been served them … personally … by Jesus. The body that has been broken
… is being reunited … as the people of God become the ‘Body of Christ’ – the
gathered church – still diverse, and gifted in different ways; but unified in
purpose ... just like the community of God – Father, Son and Spirit. Amen.
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