Wine and Blood

What does the Lord’s Supper mean, and why does it matter?

The last few weeks, we’ve taken a few moments during each worship service, discussing why we do what we do. Why do we have the Call to Worship and God’s Greeting first? Why do we sing? Why do we profess our faith? These are rituals, things we do regularly because we believe they have value. But if we don’t understand them, they easily seem to become meaningless.

One of the most central rituals that has defined the Church for two thousand years is the Lord’s Supper, which we celebrated this morning. God gives this sacrament to us as something that we can see and touch and taste, that points to Jesus. In a way, the sacraments are kind of like a wedding ring: A wedding ring is a physical object that reminds us that we are united with our spouse. The sacraments are physical things that remind us of our relationship with God, that we belong to Him, and of our call to live in light of this relationship.

Over the past years, I have found that celebrating the Lord’s Supper has become more meaningful as I’ve come to understand it better. And it’s something through which God can strengthen our faith.

So today, we’re asking why we do what we did this morning. Why does the Lord’s Supper really matter?

Gathered and Going: Discipleship and Mission in Matthew

This summer, we’ve been talking about discipleship and mission in Matthew: What does it mean to be called to follow Jesus, and to be sent out by Him to tell others about Him.

When I was younger, my brother, sister and I loved playing outside in the woods. But then came dinnertime. My mother used to call us in with an old cowbell she had (I’d kind of like to know if anyone else does that, or if that was just our family!). We would hear it, and come on in to gather around the dinner table. In a way, that’s like what Jesus is doing here, and what happens whenever we celebrate the Lord’s Supper. We’re reminded that we are gathered to the dinner table by Jesus, and what He’s provided for us. And like food allows us to stay alive physically, what Jesus has done gives life to all those who come to His dinner table.

As we try to understand what’s going on here in Matthew, you may find it helpful to follow along in the Bible, as well as the outline for notes in your bulletin. 

This passage in Matthew (we’ll be focusing especially on verses 26-30) and what it symbolizes of Jesus death is, we could imagine, like the peak of a mountain. It will be our focus today. As we look at it, imagine we’ve made our “base camp” here on the peak: Jesus having dinner with His disciples. But the mountain also has foothills in the Old Testament, other spots below the peak that help reveal its geology, why it’s there. So this passage is our base camp, and we’ll take three day hikes to other passages that help us understand what it’s all about. In a way, it’s like detective work—finding out what’s going on behind the scenes of this story in Matthew. Through this, we hope to get a better sense of why we celebrate the Lord’s Supper, and what it means.

Some of these passages seem pretty strange. But of course, God’s way of working doesn’t always match our expectations. We come up with Superman to save people; God comes up with the cross. So we shouldn’t reject something in Scripture just because it sounds strange.

Base Camp: Matthew 26:17-19 (the Lord’s Supper is closely connected with Passover)

As we begin at our base camp in Matthew, right away in verse 17 we hear about the Passover. This goes back to Exodus, so this is our first “day hike” we’ll take into the Old Testament.

Day Hike #1: Exodus 12 (The Passover celebrated God’s deliverance of Israel from Egypt, and the lamb’s blood allowed the family to live)

The Passover began when the Israelites were in Egypt, and goes along with the tenth plague on the Egyptians. Each family was told to take a lamb or young goat, and keep it for a few days. Then on the same night as the plague in which God killed the firstborn of Egypt, the Israelites were told to slaughter the lamb or goat and put some of its blood on their doorposts, while they ate the rest. This blood would be a protection so that none of the Israelites would be killed—but it cost a life for their lives to be saved. Then finally the Israelites would be freed from slavery in Egypt.

The Passover, then, commemorated God’s deliverance of Israel.

This all helps us understand a bit more of that “mountain peak” of Jesus’ Passover dinner with His disciples. But with Jesus things are now focused on Him. He is the lamb. We can read in 1 Corinthians 5:7 that, “...Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.”[1] So He is the one whose blood keeps us safe.

God had provided the lamb for the Israelite people, and even more, God provides Christ as the perfect Lamb of God. The Israelites had to have blood on their doorposts; we have the blood of Christ. The Egyptians died on that night. And if Christ’s sacrifice is not accepted, ours by faith, then we will also die. Now, as a symbol of His sacrifice and the need to receive it by faith, we have the Lord’s Supper.

Base Camp: Matthew 26:20-25 (Betrayal)

As we return to base camp—our passage in Matthew—we come to the part about who would betray Jesus. We’ll be focusing on the verses after this, but let’s look at this part for a minute.

It’s hard to say what Judas’ betrayal means for us. I’m not sure what it means to betray Jesus as opposed to deserting Him like all the disciples, or denying Him like Peter. But what we do know is a couple things.

First, even though Judas probably was trying to secretly betray Jesus, Jesus knew what would happen all along. He wasn’t surprised. But this reminds us that Jesus wasn’t just in the wrong place at the wrong time and got killed—He willingly gave up His life as a sacrifice, as our Passover lamb.

Second, we might wonder what Judas’ betrayal has to do with us. The disciples were worried that they might be the betrayers. Do we betray Jesus when we sin? I don’t know the answer to this, but we can be confident of one thing. There is forgiveness for all who come to Christ and receive Him as He is: Our Lord, our Savior, who gave up His life for us. This meal is for all who will come. We have all sinned. And no matter what, we know that there is always forgiveness when we repent.

But we have to also remember that we are called to examine ourselves before we receive the Lord’s Supper. Are we living at odds with others, with major divisions and sinning against each other and not seeking reparation? Are we living in sin and don’t care about it? Then we shouldn’t come until we desire mercy.

But remember: Jesus knew that all the disciples would desert Him at the moment when it mattered the most, and even so He told them “Drink from it, all of you.” That’s amazing. They weren’t worthy, and that’s all the more reason they need to come to find forgiveness.

Base Camp: Matthew 26:26-28 (bread and wine, body and blood)

We’re still at base camp in Matthew, and let’s look at what happens here next.

“While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, ‘Take and eat; this is my body.’ Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.’”

Day Hike #2: Leviticus 17:10-12 (with John 6:35, 40, 53-58)

Pretty strange. If we were there we’d probably be wondering what was going on. Eat Jesus’ body and drink His blood? It sounds cannibalistic. There must be something going on behind the scenes here.

So this takes us on another excursion, a hike back into Leviticus this time.

Earlier, we read the passage from Leviticus 17. Again, it seems strange, but let’s look at how it might help us understand Jesus’ words to His disciples. In this passage, we see that the Israelites were told never to eat blood, because “the life of a creature is in the blood.” We know that blood carries oxygen through the body, and is vital for life. And then we see that God gave it for one particular purpose: Atonement. Removing our sins to we are at one with God. Forgiveness so that we are back in right relationship with Him.

The sacrifices throughout the Old Testament are a reminder of the price of sin. Jesus connected (wrongful) anger with murder, and so in that sense we are all guilty of bloodshed. And that would cost us our lives. But God gives animal sacrifices, and the blood involved, to point the Israelites towards the ultimate sacrifice on our behalf: Jesus. He is the fulfillment of all those “foothills,” all the animal sacrifices in the Old Testament.

In Hebrews 10, we read, “Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when this priest [Jesus] had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God.” (Hebrews 10:11-12)

But something else is also relevant—another destination on this day-hike. In John 6, Jesus says in verse 53: “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. ⁵⁴ Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. ⁵⁵ For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. ⁵⁶ Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him. ⁵⁷ Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me.” This was hard for the people around Jesus to accept to. But we see more of what He means by eating and drinking in what He said earlier. In verse 35 He said, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.” Then in verse 40 He says, “For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.” Believing in Jesus, coming to Him, looking to Him is something of what it means to eat and drink.

When we eat something we take it into ourselves. It’s not just something we set on a bookshelf that gathers dust; it goes inside us and gives us life. And faith in Jesus is more scandalous than just wearing a bracelet or a having a fish on our car. It means dying to ourselves, receiving Christ’s life.

So the image of eating is connected closely with believing. If we don’t eat food we will die physically; and if we don’t come to Jesus we will die eternally.

Jesus offers His body and blood, symbolized in the bread and wine, to His disciples and to us. We come to Him, believe Him, take in His sacrifice and His life He gave for us. So to eat His flesh and drink His blood means to truly believe in Him, receive the life He gives us so deeply that it completely defines who we are. Jesus’ blood is for our life.

What we are seeing here, in Jesus’ words about his body and blood, is that Jesus is giving Himself as a willing sacrifice so that through His blood, His sacrifice received in faith, we receive His life and become more and more like Him. 

This seems strange, but there are some pretty close analogies in our own lives. One of my professors had a recurrence of Leukemia a few months ago, and ended up having a full bone marrow transplant. He received life from someone else donation. And even something like blood transfusion, or dialysis. But instead of just cleaning the blood, we get a whole new life from Christ’s blood, and His life becomes ours.

So Jesus is the true blood donor, for all of us who are fatally wounded, dead apart from His gift of blood. His life given for us. That’s grace.

Base Camp: Matthew 26:28 (“...for many for the forgiveness of sins.”)

Let’s go back to base camp again for a moment before our last “day hike.” In Matthew 26:28, we see that Jesus died “for many for the forgiveness of sins.” This takes us back to another passage in the Old Testament: Jeremiah 31.

Day Hike #3: Jeremiah 31:31-34 (A new covenant and new way of living, forgiveness)

In verse 31, God says that He will make a new covenant with Israel. Soon after we read,

“I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts.

I will be their God, and they will be my people.

  No longer will a man teach his neighbor,

or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’

because they will all know me,

from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the Lord.

“For I will forgive their wickedness

and will remember their sins no more.” (Jer. 31:33b-34)

So all of this that Jesus is doing is for our forgiveness, so that we can live as God calls us to, obeying Him and living as we were always meant to.

Forgiveness is something we all need: The “worst” sinners don’t need it any more than those who have sinned the “least,” and those who have sinned the least don’t need it any less than the “worst” sinners. We all stand in utter need of forgiveness and new life. And this comes in Jesus, believing in Him.

Base Camp: Matthew 26:29 (“family reunion” [Tyndale])

For one last time, let’s go back to our base camp in Matthew. Jesus finishes by saying, “I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it anew with you in my Father’s kingdom.”

Earlier this week, a friend observed that this is like looking forward to Christmas. There will be a huge “family reunion” to look forward to, with Jesus and God our Father! (see Tyndale, 370, Is. 25:6) Death and the cross is not the end. Our old selves must die, but we receive new life and identity in Him. And we are invited to this dinner table of the Lord’s Supper, with the knowledge that there will be a much bigger feast waiting for us ultimately, with God as the host.

Everyone must come...Will we?

Remember, Jesus gives Himself for us. We just need to receive Him, believe. It’s like Christmas—we need to open the gifts we receive and surrender our lives to the giver. And one thing I think is amazing is how God gives us these physical signs and symbols of bread and wine. It’s sometimes hard to believe that Jesus’ death is really for us: We doubt, we feel apathetic, feel forgotten, wonder if we’re too bad to be forgiven, or feel that we don’t need as much grace as some others. But God gives us these things we can touch and smell and taste to remind us that Christ’s sacrifice is really, actually for each of us.

We are told to examine ourselves. If we don’t care about our sin, or don’t feel we need forgiveness, then we shouldn’t come. But if we recognize our sin and don’t like what we see, and see our need for forgiveness, we are all are invited, no matter what sins we have committed. The Lord’s Supper is the great leveler—there’s no difference here. We just need to come.

One time when I was taking a break from a local pick-up soccer game, I was sitting by the field watching as others continued to play. Also watching were a mother and her toddler son. He was toddling around by the field, and despite his mother's repeated warnings, he wandered close to the sideline and ultimately was knocked down by a stray soccer ball. Though shaken and in tears, he wasn't hurt.

My first thought was along the lines of “That’s what he gets for not listening!” But then I realized that I’m not too different, in wandering from God.

But the toddler didn’t just sit and cry. He ran back to his mother, who took him in her arms.

“Gathered and Going:” Will we come and eat?

At the Lord’s Supper, no matter how far we’ve wandered, we’re invited back by our God. In Christ, His arms are open.

But we should never wait to come to Him if we have not yet. J.C. Ryle observed that at the cross, “one of the thieves” crucified beside Jesus “was saved so that no sinner might despair, but only one, that no sinner might presume.” Neither we nor others can wait to come to Jesus—we never know when Christ may return or we may die, and lose our chance. But we also know that when we come, we will find forgiveness. This should move us to a sense of urgency in sharing the gospel with others.

And remember, even though Peter denied Jesus on the same night as he ate this meal with Him, Jesus still restored Him, gathered him back to Himself.

And we are gathered, invited to this table together—can you hear the dinner bell, the call of God in Scripture?—with the hope of the future banquet with our Savior God as the host. This is for each of us as personally, in as much a way as we each ourselves eat the bread and drink the wine, as we truly believe in Jesus. But it not just about us individually and our friendship with Jesus. This is a great family dinner, where we are gathered as part of the Church across the world and throughout history. From the 1^st century to the 21^st century, from North Korea to Sudan to those sitting beside you today. We have been made part of this family by being drawn to Jesus and believing in Him—symbolized by the bread and wine. He is our blood donor, who gives us forgiveness and new life.

Look around you, to your right and left, behind you. These are the people God has gathered to Himself in Jesus Christ, through His body and blood. This is your family—all who believe in Jesus, receiving life in Him. That’s a glimpse of why we celebrate the Lord’s Supper.

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[1] 1 Cor. 5:7b, in a discussion of rebuking and separating the one who claims to be a Christian but is living in unrepentant sin—like yeast separated during Passover