Matthew 26
And when your children say to you, ‘What do you mean by this service?’ you shall say, ‘It is the sacrifice of the Lord's Passover, for he passed over the houses of the people of Israel in Egypt, when he struck the Egyptians but spared our houses.’” And the people bowed their heads and worshiped. Exodus 12:26-27
Dear Christian,
We have come to the final days and even hours of Jesus' life on earth. In this chapter, we see that Jesus has concluded the Olivet Discourse and that He is preparing His inner circle for what is about to take place. Here is another fair warning today that this will be another one of our longer studies as this chapter alone has 72 verses to get through.
During ice breakers at the beginning of high school or college classes, the question often came up, If you knew you were going to die tomorrow, then what would you do today? Of course, everyone had a few things they would check off of their bucket list! But what I find fascinating is how our culture handles this now. A movie recently came out on Netflix titled Don't Look Up. It's about a group of scientists who have discovered that a meteor is on a collision course with Earth and if someone doesn't do something to stop it, then it will be a cataclysmic event ending all life on the planet. The story is meant to be a commentary on our culture's ridiculously short attention span, the shifting of focus from one catastrophe to the next in the course of one news cycle, and the corruption of institutional bureaucracy that seems completely inept or disinterested in the people it is supposed to serve! If you care to watch the movie you can skip the rest of this paragraph and come back to it later be warned that it does have explicit content and its inclusion as an example here is by no means a recommendation. Predictably no one does anything to stop the catastrophe, and as the world ends the scientists gather with their loved ones to share one last supper. Now that sounds oddly familiar now, doesn't it? Only in the case of Don't Look Up, there is no Messiah, there is no Savior, there is no hope. The people who survive are rich and insufferable and they do it by sacrificing most of the planet to save their own skin. That is an excellent picture of the attitude and expectations of most people in our culture today... in a culture that seems to have accepted the post-modern ideology that "God is dead if He/She ever lived in the first place." In this chapter, we indeed address the fact that God the Son did live and did die. It is a story of intense agony and unfathomable grace. As Christians, we can rejoice that the story does not end on the cross or in the grave!
The question I want you to keep in mind today is, If you knew you were going to die tomorrow or that that was finally the date of Christ's return, then what would you do today? While you consider that we're going to answer the question, What did Christ do with the final days/hours before his death?
Christ the Sacrificial Lamb
When Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples, “You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.” Matthew 26:1-2
Jesus has predicted His death and the brutal nature of it now several times as His ministry drew closer to Jerusalem in Matthew's account. We've seen the disciples' responses to this prediction as they expected the Messiah to come as an avenger to free them from Rome and set up His eternal Kingdom on Earth. They had not yet understood that Jesus had come to set them free from a far greater enemy that would enslave them all their lives whether or not Rome remained. Their true enemy was sin and death, without Christ these remain our enemy today.
Over a thousand years before these events, the Bible records the Israelites' enslavement under another tyrannical country: Egypt. More importantly, it records the salvation of Israel and their freedom from Egypt. Nine plagues had been brought upon Egypt by God through Moses with the command to let God's people go. Nine times, Pharoah had defied God and refused. On the eve of the final plague, God instituted a new memorial for His people and the means for their salvation: the sacrifice of the Passover lamb and the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers' houses, a lamb for a household. And if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his nearest neighbor shall take according to the number of persons; according to what each can eat you shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats, and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs at twilight. “Then they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it. Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted, its head with its legs and its inner parts. And you shall let none of it remain until the morning; anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. In this manner you shall eat it: with your belt fastened, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. And you shall eat it in haste. It is the Lord's Passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the Lord. The blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt. Exodus 12:3-13
The final plague would destroy the firstborn sons of Egypt even the firstborn of their cattle. Yet the Israelites would be passed over by the Destroyer if they obediently sacrificed an unblemished lamb and placed its blood upon their doorpost. Now the Firstborn of God has come to be the Final Lamb whose blood will pay the price and become the redemption covering for all who would accept His sacrifice on their behalf.
Before Jesus had warned those He healed not to tell anyone what He had done for them because His time had not yet come and when other religious leaders in other towns had plotted against Him, their plans were disrupted because His time had not yet come. Even now the religious leaders who plotted against Him wanted to wait until after the Passover to go through with their plan, but there would be no waiting because God had set the date and Christ's time had come.
Then the chief priests and the elders of the people gathered in the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, and plotted together in order to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him. But they said, “Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar among the people.” Matthew 26:3-5
Meanwhile, in Bethany, a town two miles outside of Jerusalem, Jesus and His disciples dine in the house of a man known as Simon the Leper. We can infer that Jesus at some point before this dinner healed Simon because Simon would not have had a house for anyone to dine in, much less Jesus and His disciples if he still carried the highly virulent and stigmatized disease. Those with leprosy were cast out of society in Jesus' day as it would have made anyone unclean who touched them or used anything that they had touched. To catch the disease meant to exist as a sort of living death. Throughout scripture, the disease is often used as an illustration of sin and its effect on the soul of a person. How interesting then that this is how Jesus' host is introduced.
Christ the Anointed One
Now when Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, a woman came up to him with an alabaster flask of very expensive ointment, and she poured it on his head as he reclined at table. And when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste? For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor.” But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a beautiful thing to me. For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me. In pouring this ointment on my body, she has done it to prepare me for burial. Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.” Matthew 26:6-13
In Matthew's account, you may have noticed that Simon is not the focus of the story but rather the woman who anointed Jesus with expensive oil and the disciples' reaction to this. In fact, at the very center of the story is why Jesus says the woman has done this for Him: she is preparing Him for burial. It is a beautiful act of bittersweet grief, worship, and understanding. The oil that the woman anointed Jesus with would have been very expensive and likely cost almost a whole year's worth of wages.
As I was studying this part of the chapter I began looking at its parallel passages in the other Gospel accounts. They are well worth studying, but without a careful eye and informed instruction, they could cause some confusion. Pastor Mike Winger gives a great two-part series on Mark 14:1-11 which I would highly recommend you check out if you're interested. I'll link Part 1 here and Part 2 here. The reason I mention this is because Mark's account clarifies, that the disciple Judas Iscariot, who we're going to hear more about in a minute was particularly upset about this woman's extravagant action and listening to the final few minutes of Pastor Mike's second sermon, I had an epiphany of somewhere else in Scripture this exact attitude is mirrored and the symbolism stunned me.
Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, “I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord.” And again, she bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a worker of the ground. In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground, and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell. The Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it.” Cain spoke to Abel his brother. And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him. Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” He said, “I do not know; am I my brother's keeper?” And the Lord said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground. And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. Genesis 4:1-11
The woman in Bethany brings a priceless container of oil that she pours out in worship and adoration of Jesus in preparation for His predicted death and burial specifically. Abel brings the firstborn lamb of his flock. Both bring the best of what they have to offer the Lord.
Cain brings some of the produce he has harvested from the land, but it's clear it wasn't the first fruit and it certainly wasn't the best. The disciples, especially Judas, are furious that the woman poured out the expensive oil because the money could have gone to the poor a.k.a. Judas' secret personal purse. In other words, Judas intended that money for his own desires and never for the poor but he wanted the appearance of righteousness by voicing his complaint about the woman's supposed waste.
God has regard for Abel's sacrifice but has no regard for Cain's. Jesus commends the woman's actions but rebukes his disciples for placing people above God and even deeper for placing their own self-perceived piety above true worship.
Now God warns Cain that sin is crouching at his door and that he must rule over it or it will conquer him. Sin is also crouching at the door for the disciples, especially Judas as we will see their response to the plot to kill Jesus and to its consequences.
Finally, we won't get to this until the next chapter but I think it's worth pointing out here. In Genesis, Cain kills Abel and his brother's blood cries out to God from the ground. Cain himself tries to deny his involvement in his brother's murder and accuses God of being unjust when he is rightly judged for this crime.
Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, “What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?” And they paid him thirty pieces of silver. And from that moment he sought an opportunity to betray him. Matthew 26:14-16
Judas betrays Jesus, leading to Jesus' death but when confronted with his sin, Judas is deeply ashamed. He is so ashamed that he takes his own life and the religious leaders purchase the field. According to Scripture, it is called the Field of Blood. Unlike Abel, Jesus does not remain in the grave, instead, He rises conquering over sin and death becoming a ransom for those who will accept His sacrifice on their behalf!
Mining the riches of the meaning in this one moment could probably take hours but I wanted to highlight a couple of other symbolic things Pastor Mike pointed out. The first is how the woman broke the alabaster jar before pouring the oil over Jesus' head. He noted that the jar could represent Jesus' body broken for us and His blood poured out on our behalf. More than that though is the interesting note that High Priests and Kings were traditionally anointed in this way and as we know Christ is our High Priest interceding for us day and night before the throne of the Father and he is also our King. One more thing before we move on to the next section, Jesus' last statement is an incredible prophecy that if we blink we most likely miss. Jesus had certainly made waves in His own nation and had a notable following, but none of His contemporaries would have reasonably expected that His teaching would spread to the ends of the earth! Yet Jesus tells them that the Gospel will be proclaimed in the whole world and that wherever it is proclaimed this woman's act of love and worship will be remembered! And here we are over two thousand years later remembering her and proclaiming the Gospel to all nations!
Christ's New Covenant
Now on the first day of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Where will you have us prepare for you to eat the Passover?” He said, “Go into the city to a certain man and say to him, ‘The Teacher says, My time is at hand. I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples.’” And the disciples did as Jesus had directed them, and they prepared the Passover. Matthew 26:17-19
This is the second time this week that Jesus sends His disciples into the city ahead of him to an unnamed and unknown man's house, with the expectation that what is needed will be provided. The first time is when Jesus sends them for the foal of a donkey which He will ride into the city for the Triumphal entry. This time it is only for a room to share one last Passover meal with His disciples.
When it was evening, he reclined at table with the twelve. And as they were eating, he said, “Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me.” And they were very sorrowful and began to say to him one after another, “Is it I, Lord?” He answered, “He who has dipped his hand in the dish with me will betray me. The Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born.” Judas, who would betray him, answered, “Is it I, Rabbi?” He said to him, “You have said so.” Matthew 26:20-25
Jesus had told them that He would be handed over to the religious leaders and the Romans to be crucified, but this is the first time that He reveals that it will be one of them who hands Him over. Judas had already made his deal with the religious leaders at this point. Can you imagine how uncomfortable it would be to be eating dinner with a few of your best friends in the whole world if one of them suddenly announces that he knows one of the people at the table with you all has cheated on him with their girlfriend? Now imagine how uncomfortable you would be if you knew the person who had cheated was you! What I find most interesting about this scene is that Jesus declares that what is about to happen must happen, it has been the purpose of His life on earth. However, that doesn't take any of the responsibility away from the people involved including Judas. Judas is not being manipulated by some trick of fate or God's plan for his life and the universe, no! Judas is solely responsible for his own choices and actions.
John's account of this moment adds even more detail when one of the disciples asks Jesus who specifically is going to betray Him yet all of them miss the sign that happens right before their eyes indicating that Judas is the traitor.
Jesus answered, “It is he to whom I will give this morsel of bread when I have dipped it.” So when he had dipped the morsel, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. Then after he had taken the morsel, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.” Now no one at the table knew why he said this to him. Some thought that, because Judas had the moneybag, Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the feast,” or that he should give something to the poor. So, after receiving the morsel of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night. John 13:26-30
Remember how we began this post with an introduction to the Passover instituted by God as a reminder of His Covenant with His people Isreal. This Memorial was to be celebrated by God's people only, strangers would only be permitted to participate in the feast if they and all their young men were willing to be circumcised before participation. Essentially they had to enter into the Covenant relationship themselves before taking part in the feast celebrating God's deliverance. Also, remember that the centerpiece of this feast was the sacrificial lamb whose blood was shed to cover the doorposts and keep away the Destroyer thus causing Him to Passover the homes of God's people whom He was redeeming for Himself out of Egypt.
Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.” Matthew 26:26-29
As the Jews celebrate Passover as a memorial to God's deliverance from Egypt, we as Christians are to take part in this memorial meal to commemorate God's deliverance from our enslavement to sin. The covenant is no longer in the blood of thousands of lambs sacrificed each year in the temple but in the blood of Jesus Christ.
We don't have time to go over transubstantiation today, but as you read this chapter I want you to be very honest with yourself about whether it seems like Jesus is literally or spiritually turning the bread and wine into flesh and blood or whether it seems more reasonable that he is giving His followers one more illustration or parable of what it means to enter into the New Covenant He is about to establish by His own death and resurrection.
Once again it is the Sacrificial Lamb that is the centerpiece of the meal. The perfect unblemished Lamb of God whose life would be ended but not one bone broken. The Lamb whose blood would be shed to be painted on the doorposts of our hearts that at the Day of Judgment the Destroyer would pass us over because Christ's sacrifice paid the final penalty for our sin!
Christ the Abandoned Shepherd
Now we may not think that we would betray Jesus for something as crass and simple as greed as Judas did. However, I think we can all relate to what Jesus warns His disciples their response will be next.
And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. Then Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.” Peter answered him, “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away.” Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” Peter said to him, “Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you!” And all the disciples said the same. Matthew 26:30-35
At the end of the meal, Jesus had told them that He would not share that meal with them again until they would partake of it in His Father's Kingdom. Here He reminds them again that He will be raised up and where to meet Him when it is time. The disciples, however, are much more caught up in the immediate crisis that Jesus has predicted His own betrayal, arrest, suffering, and death. They are terrified even though they put on a good face here proclaiming as we probably all hope we would that even if they have to die, they will not deny Christ! Oh, how our pride blinds us! Had not Jesus just told them that everything will take place according to the Scriptures? Now He quotes specifically from the prophet Zechariah.
“Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, against the man who stands next to me,” declares the Lord of hosts. “Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered; I will turn my hand against the little ones. Zecharaiah 13:7
We will see how this prophecy is fulfilled in only a few short hours after Jesus warns them of what is to come.
Christ Prays
Do you remember a few chapters ago when the mother of the two of the disciples asks whether her sons will be seated on Christ's right hand and left hand in his kingdom? Jesus answers, "Can you drink my cup?" and He tells them that they don't know what they are asking for. Jesus' prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane is probably one of the most humanizing moments of His life's account. He knows what is going to happen next and how horrifically painful it is going to be, yet He knows He has to go through with it because there is no other way to redeem humanity!
The answer to that question we asked way back at the beginning of this post: What did Christ do with the final hours before His death? Is this, He spent it with those He was closest to in this world, preparing them for His departure, and then He prayed.
Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, “Sit here, while I go over there and pray.” And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.” And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” Matthew 26:36-39
Even Jesus did not want to drink from the cup of God's wrath that was about to be poured out on Him. Yet look at His astounding attitude here submitting to God's will above His own. How many times have looked at a difficult task or situation we're expected to walk through and prayed only, "God deliver me?!" There is nothing wrong with that to be clear, but we ought to follow the example that Jesus set for us acknowledging that if it is God's will for us to walk through that trial then we're going to trust Him anyway!
Meanwhile, the disciples Jesus brought to watch and pray with Him can't seem to keep their eyes open...
And he came to the disciples and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter, “So, could you not watch with me one hour? Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.” And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. So, leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same words again. Then he came to the disciples and said to them, “Sleep and take your rest later on. See, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.” Matthew 26:40-46
After all of their boisterous claims that they'll follow Jesus faithfully even into death, the three men closest to Jesus cannot keep their eyes open to pray with Him in the most distressing hours of His life before His arrest. Before we cast too much judgment on the sleepy disciples it's helpful to know in the timeline that this is hours after dinner nearing midnight or just after midnight when Judas arrives to complete his betrayal. As many of you will realize as you get older, even waiting for the exciting 12 am chime of the New Year gets harder and harder as you age much less waiting when something sad or stressful is taking place. As Jesus says, "The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." However, that is not to excuse their lack of wakefulness either or our own lack of alertness as we await Christ's return after all we have what the disciples did not at that time: the help of the Holy Spirit dwelling inside of us!
The Betrayal of Christ
While he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a great crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the elders of the people. Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man; seize him.” And he came up to Jesus at once and said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” And he kissed him. Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you came to do.” Then they came up and laid hands on Jesus and seized him. And behold, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his ear. Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its place. For all who take the sword will perish by the sword. Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve legions of angels? But how then should the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must be so?” At that hour Jesus said to the crowds, “Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs to capture me? Day after day I sat in the temple teaching, and you did not seize me. But all this has taken place that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples left him and fled. Matthew 26:47-56
Jesus rebukes both the disciple who defends Him by swinging his sword and striking one of the high priest's servants and the men who have come out in the middle of the night with swords and clubs to capture Him. Many have used Jesus' first rebuke as an argument for why Christians should be pacifists but I would agree with Bible Reference that that is reading far too much into this one moment, "Jesus doesn't tell him to throw the sword away just to put it back in its sheath." Jesus rightly points out that if it was against His will for these men to arrest Him then He would be more than able to defend Himself! He also points out to the mob that has come to arrest Him that they have had plenty of opportunities to arrest Him and put Him on trial, but for the sake of the fulfillment of all the Law and the Prophets, all these things must happen exactly this way. See here that Jesus' warning to His disciples is fulfilled, right at this moment all of them but Peter, as we'll see in a moment, leave Him and flee for their lives.
Christ's Trial Before the Religious Leaders
Then those who had seized Jesus led him to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders had gathered. And Peter was following him at a distance, as far as the courtyard of the high priest, and going inside he sat with the guards to see the end. Now the chief priests and the whole council were seeking false testimony against Jesus that they might put him to death, but they found none, though many false witnesses came forward. At last two came forward and said, “This man said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to rebuild it in three days.’” And the high priest stood up and said, “Have you no answer to make? What is it that these men testify against you?” But Jesus remained silent. And the high priest said to him, “I adjure you by the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.” Jesus said to him, “You have said so. But I tell you, from now on you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.” Then the high priest tore his robes and said, “He has uttered blasphemy. What further witnesses do we need? You have now heard his blasphemy. What is your judgment?” They answered, “He deserves death.” Then they spit in his face and struck him. And some slapped him, saying, “Prophesy to us, you Christ! Who is it that struck you?” Matthew 26:57-68
The first part of Jesus' final answer to the high priest struck me, He says, "You have said so." The last time Jesus gave this answer was in response to Judas when he asked if he was the one who would betray Jesus. This was a question Judas already knew the answer to and the implication here is that the high priest, though he would never accept the truth, he knew that Jesus is the Christ! It is based on this answer that I've heard many modern apologists remark that you can either believe that Jesus was a liar, a mad man or He is who He said he is. You don't have the option of believing that Jesus the man did not exist because we have too much secular historical evidence backing up the Biblical account especially surrounding His death and even His resurrection.
The long night of agony is just beginning for Jesus, but Peter is about to realize the truth of Jesus' warning to him only hours earlier.
Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard. And a servant girl came up to him and said, “You also were with Jesus the Galilean.” But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you mean.” And when he went out to the entrance, another servant girl saw him, and she said to the bystanders, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.” And again he denied it with an oath: “I do not know the man.” After a little while the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Certainly you too are one of them, for your accent betrays you.” Then he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know the man.” And immediately the rooster crowed. And Peter remembered the saying of Jesus, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly. Matthew 26:69-75
As we contemplate the final days and hours of Jesus' life and how He spent them, it should bring to us a sense of deep humility and an understanding that we are no better than Peter or the other disciples, many of us today, in fact, are not any better than the religious leaders seeking false witnesses against not only a man but against the Messiah. What should also cause us to wonder and worship is the fact that Jesus was willing to go through all of this for our sakes!
Have you accepted His sacrifice on your behalf? Will you share that meal with Him one day in His Kingdom? Right now is the time for you to make that choice!