The Last Supper, A Última Ceia

1. LESSON 11
June 14, 2015
The Last Supper
Golden Text
Get rid of the old yeast, so that you may be a new unleavened
batch—as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been
sacrificed. (I Co 5.7)
Useful Practice
The Passover commemorated the liberation from Egypt. The Lord's
Supper celebrates deliverance from sin.
Scripture Reading
Luke 22: 7-20
7 - Then came the day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover
lamb had to be sacrificed.
8 - Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and make preparations for
us to eat the Passover.”
9 - “Where do you want us to prepare for it?” they asked.
10 - He replied, “As you enter the city, a man carrying a jar of water will
meet you. Follow him to the house that he enters,
11- and say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is the
guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’
12- He will show you a large room upstairs, all furnished. Make
preparations there.”
13 - They left and found things just as Jesus had told them. So they
prepared the Passover.
14 - When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table.
15- And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover
with you before I suffer.
16 - For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the
kingdom of God.”

2. 17 - After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide
it among you.
18- For I tell you I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until the
kingdom of God comes.”
19 - And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them,
saying,“This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”
20 - In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup
is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.
General Objective
To explain how the Lord's Supper was instituted by an ordinance.
Specific Objectives
I – To analyze the historical background of Jesus’ Last Supper.
II – To expose the dynamics of the preparation, celebration and the
replacement of the Passover by the celebration of the Lord's Supper.
III - To list the two elements of the Last Supper.
Introduction
Undoubtedly, the Passover was one of the most important festivals of
Judaism, and its celebration was full of symbolic value. Its ritual was
methodical and meticulous, because it marked one of the most
important moments in the history of God's people in the Old Covenant -
the liberation from the bondage of Egypt! Its annual celebration
mobilized the entire Jewish nation.
When he instituted the Lord's Supper, on the occasion of the last
Passover celebration, Jesus had these facts in mind. Knowing that the
Passover was only one type of which he was the antitype (or a figure of
which he was the fulfillment), He showed joy and satisfaction to be able
to celebrate it in the company of his disciples. Just a few hours later, the
Son of Man would be setting his people free, no longer from human
captivity, but from the bondage of sin!
I - HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF THE LAST SUPPER
1. The institution of the Jewish Passover. The Passover festival was

3. one of the celebrations that took place in spring. The word derives from
the Hebrew verb Pasah, meaning "go over". This festival has its origin in
the days before the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt, as told in
Exodus 12. Until then, Pharaoh was reluctant to let the Israelite people
go as the Lord had commanded. The consequence of this obstinacy of
the Egyptian ruler was God’s judgment that came as a great slaughter in
Egyptian homes. Only the first-born of Egyptian families would be
affected because the Hebrews were protected by the blood of the
Passover lamb (Exodus 12:13). The blood of the lamb was a type of the
blood of Christ, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world
(John 1:29; 1 Cor 5:7).
2. The ritual of the Jewish Passover. The Jewish Passover followed a
detailed ritual (Deut 16:1-4). However, according to Exodus 12: 3-12,
preparations would begin on the tenth day of the month when a lamb, or
a goat were to be chosen for each family. If the household was too small
for a whole lamb, they could then share one with their nearest neighbor.
The lamb, which would be kept until the fourteenth day, was to be a one-
year-old male without defect. At the end of the fourteenth day it was
slaughtered. The blood was put on the sides and tops of the doorframes
of the Jewish houses. The lamb was to be eaten roasted over the fire,
along with bread made without yeast and bitter herbs. What was left of it
had to be burned. Those celebrating the Passover were to have their
cloak tucked into their belt, their sandals on their feet and their staff in
their hand. It was the Lord's Passover.
II - THE CELEBRATION OF THE LAST SUPPER
1. The preparation. In answering the question by the disciples about
where the preparations for the Passover would take place, Jesus sends
them to a man carrying a jar of water (Luke 22:10). Luke makes it clear
that Christ, as the son of God and empowered by the Holy Spirit, had
prior knowledge of the facts. Biblical expositor Anthony Lee Ash
observes that the man carrying the jar of water would be easily noticed
because it was a woman's job. The hosts used to offer their houses
during the feastival, in exchange for animal skins and cooking utensils.
The Passover preparation would include the search for yeast in the
house and the preparation of the various elements of the meal.
2. The celebration and the replacement. Jesus was aware that his
death on the cross was near and that He was the Lamb of God of which
the Passover lamb was just a type (John 1:29). Surely, thousands of
lambs were sacrificed in Jerusalem on that date, but only Jesus was the

4. "Lamb of God who would take away the sin of the world" (John 1:29). If
the Jewish Passover marked the liberation from the suffering from
Egyptian bondage, now Jesus, by his suffering, would set humanity free
from the slavery of sin. Peter and John make the preparations required
as regards the last Passover (Luke 22.7-20) and it is during the
celebration of the last Passover that Jesus institutes the Lord's Supper
(Luke 22:19,20). In the context of the New Covenant the Lord's Supper
replaced the Jewish Passover (1 Corinthians 11: 20,23).
III - THE ELEMENTS OF THE LAST SUPPER
1. The wine. The third Gospel refers to the use of the cup twice, the first
one before mentioning the bread (Luke 22: 17-20). But this reversal of
the order of the elements does not change the meaning of the Supper at
all. In this regard, the Christian liturgy follows the model of other
evangelists and of Paul, in which the use of the wine is preceded by the
bread (Mk 14:22-26; Matthew 26: 26-30; 1 Corinthians 11;23-25).
After taking the cup, Jesus said, "This cup is the new covenant in my
blood, which is poured out for you" (Luke 22:20). The meaning of this
text is that the wine is symbolic of the New Covenant which was sealed
with the blood of Jesus, the Lamb of God (Ex 12: 6,7,13 ...).
2. The bread. After taking the bread, giving thanks and breaking it,
Jesus said: "This is my body which is given for you; do this in
remembrance of me "(Lk 22:19). Jesus uses the phrase "this is my
body" in a metaphorical sense, just as He said: "I am the door" (john
10:9). The bread was a symbol of the body of Jesus, as the wine was of
his blood. The word "offered" is translated as the Greek verb didomi,
which also has the sense of “deliver”. This same verb is used in in the
texts of Isaiah 53:6,10,12, where there is a clear reference to a sacrifice
(cf. Ex 30:14; Lv 22:14). The body of Jesus would be offered vicariously
for sinners.
CONCLUSION
To participate in the Lord's Supper is a privilege in which every
Christian should rejoice. It is not about an empty ritual, but a celebration
full of meaning, because it points to the sacrifice of Calvary. The Supper
commemorates the victory of Christ, the Lamb of God, over sin and its
consequences.
When we participate in the Supper, we must maintain an attitude of
eternal gratitude to the Lord for having given us life when we found

5. ourselves dead in our wrongdoings. Just as ancient Jews should not
celebrate it with yeast in their homes, we should not celebrate the
Supper with the old yeast of sin either. Let us celebrate the Supper with
the unleavened bread of sincerity.