Luke the beloved physician wrote, “Then came the day of unleavened bread, when the passover must be killed. And he sent Peter and John, saying, Go and prepare us the passover, that we may eat. And they said unto him, Where will you that we prepare? And he said unto them, Behold, when you are entered into the city, there shall a man meet you, bearing a pitcher of water; follow him into the house where he enters in. And you shall say unto the goodman of the house, The Master says unto you, Where is the guest-chamber, where I shall eat the passover with my disciples? And he shall show you a large upper room furnished: there make ready. And they went, and found as he had said unto them: and they made ready the passover. And when the hour was come, he sat down, and the twelve apostles with him. And he said unto them, With desire I have desired to eat this passover with you before I suffer. For I say unto you, I will not any more eat thereof, until it be fulfilled in the kingdom of God”, and in chapter twenty-two and verse eighteen of his book Luke shared how Jesus, “took the cup, and gave thanks” where we read:
And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves:
The verse reads, “And he took the cup, and gave thanks, ...” Luke began with the words, “and he took the cup” or “and Jesus received, took hold of and embraced the drinking vessel”, “and gave thanks” which means “and expressed gratitude or grace”. Luke shared how Jesus received a “drinking vessel” and “expressed gratitude” for it.
The verse continues, “... and said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves:” Luke added the words, “and said” or “and uttered, declared and proclaimed”, “take this” which means “lay hold of, receive and procure the cup”, “and divide it among yourselves” or “and distribute the drink within the cup among the disciples”. Luke shared how Jesus instructed His disciple to receive the “cup” and distribute it among the disciples themselves.
When we consider Luke's words in this verse, we see the first part of Jesus' directives to His disciples concerning what is known as “Holy communion or the Eucharist” as a sacrament of the church. Jesus instructed His disciples to receive the “cup” which He blessed and to distribute it among themselves. God desired to have Jesus shed His blood for the remission of the sins of mankind, “without shedding of blood is no remission” (See Hebrews 9:22), and Jesus was giving His disciples a symbol by which they could remember what He did for them. God loves everyone, and His desire is to have a personal relationship with them through His Son Jesus. Those who are wise will consider Jesus' intentional plan to “save” them and receive Him as their “Savior and Lord” today.
Next time Luke shares how Jesus says, “I will not drink of the fruit of the vine, until the kingdom of God shall come”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow…there is more…
Look for the daily devotional book
“Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the
marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the
Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms
Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County"
in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com
; http://www.barnesandnobles.com
; download to e-books, and find it locally at
www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
All references are from "Strongs Concordance".
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