The Institution Of The Lord's Supper

The Institution Of The Lord's Supper

(Matthew 26:20, 25-30 KJV)

20 Now when the even was come, he sat down with the twelve. 25 Then Judas, which betrayed him, answered and said, Master, is it I? He said unto him, Thou hast said.26 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.27 And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it;28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.29 But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.30 And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives.

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ne of the greatest institutions of the church is the Lord’s Supper for Christ left it on record that every believer must do this in remembrance of him until his return. It is important to remember the two ordinances of the church is baptism andthe Lord’s Supper. The Lord’s Supper cannot be experience with those who have not gone through the proper acts of obedience as left on record by Jesus Christ.

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.(Romans 10:9)

He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. (Mark 16:16)

In the Old Testament no one was declared righteous without the atonement of blood by an unblemished lamb. This is where the Priest would offer up a sacrifice on behalf of Israel’s sins. The redemption by the blood of a lamb recalls the annual Passover celebration, by which Jewish people commemorated their redemption, basically their freedom from slavery in Egypt byway of the blood of the Passover lamb

Here's an observation concerning the Passover. Israel had been in Egypt in bondage for over 400 years. They had been oppressed and enslaved. God delivered them by the leadership of Moses through a series of plagues. You can read about them in the opening chapters of the book of Exodus. Finally Pharaoh was so distraught at what was happening in his nation that he let them go. The final plague, you remember, was the death of the firstborn, the angel of death came and killed the firstborn in every family, the firstborn of man and animal unless you had sacrificed a lamb and splattered the blood on the doorposts and the side beams. Then the angel of death passed by and consumed his victims.

There’s a simple principle that comes through in that and it is this, to be delivered from judgment requires death of an innocent unblemished lamb. God was saying while the people were Egypt, “I will spare you; I will deliver you from this judgment if there is the death of an innocent substitute.” The message of the Passover is God delivers through the death of an innocent substitute. From then on, all sacrifices and this is not the first sacrifice, but from then on all sacrifices were clearly indications that God delivers from judgment by the death of a substitute.

Now in the text Jesus Christ comes as a lamb before the shears of man to be slaughtered. Jesus appeared, as a theophany of God in the flesh for the purpose of Salvation and Redemption. How is it that the blood of Christ redeems us? First, Jesus Christ was just like the Passover lamb, "without blemish and without spot." When Jesus Christ came to earth, He never sinned; He never transgressed the law of God. He stood before God as the Perfect and Ideal Man. He was acceptable to God, perfectly acceptable. As the Ideal and Perfect Man, whatever Jesus Christ did, it would stand for and cover men faults and follies.

Therefore, when Jesus Christ died, He was able to take all of man's guilt and judgment upon Himself and die for man. He was able to bear the judgment and punishment of transgression for man. The death or blood of Jesus Christ is the eternal ransom for man. When we believe in Jesus Christ, really trust Him, God counts us as having died in Christ. Therefore, having died with Him, we shall never die. When it is time for us to depart this world, quicker than the blink of an eye, God shall transfer us into heaven, into His very own presence. Jesus Christ has redeemed us; He has paid the ransom and delivered and set us free from sin and its penalty of death.

Here in the text the setting is evening time, and it'sjust about the close of another day.Jesus the Christ is sitting at the table before the Passover supper and contemplating the arrival of his executioners. The disciples are preparedto remember when the death angel passed over Egypt during the days of their forefathers. As we dissect the text let us observe the following:

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