“The Man with the Water Jar”

           This Sunday (September 6th), our congregation will celebrate “The Lord’s Supper” (or “Eucharist”) as we do on the first weekend of every month—and during other special worship services throughout the year. 

But, why do we celebrate The Lord's Supper every month?

            In my message this weekend, I will focus on The Lord’s Supper.  We will explore its origins in the scriptures and why it is fundamental to the life and practices of the Christian church.

            Jesus’ institution of the Lord’s Supper is described in all three of the synoptic Gospels (Matthew, 26: 26-29, Mark 14: 22-25, and Luke 22: 7-20) as well as in Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians (11: 23-26).  My sermon this Sunday will be grounded in Luke’s account of the Eucharist.

            The three synoptic Gospels describe Jesus as instituting The Lord’s Supper (or Eucharist) as part of his celebration of the Jewish Festival of Passover with his disciples and other closest followers.  Luke begins his account of the evening with Jesus sending Peter and John into Jerusalem to prepare the Passover meal. (Luke 22: 7).  Jesus says, “when you have entered the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you; follow him into the house he enters and say to the owner of the house, ‘The teacher asks you, “Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?”’”

Now, in the Jerusalem of Jesus’ time, the sight of a man carrying a jar of water would have been very startling because carrying water was a task usually fulfilled by women within each household.  At any rate, Peter and John do as Jesus has instructed and the home owner directs them to a large, upper room for their Passover celebration.  At the time for the meal, Jesus and his disciples gather together in the Upper Room.

            In order to fully understand The Lord’s Supper, it is important to remember that the Jewish Passover celebrates the Israelites’ escape from bondage and slavery in Egypt.  The Passover celebration was a very important and meaningful religious observance for Jesus and his followers, who were all devout Jews.  The Passover consists of special foods and a liturgy which is followed during the meal.  According to historians, the celebration of the Passover in Jesus’ time would have taken a form similar to this:

A.    Preliminary Course.  A word of declaration, with a preliminary dish (an appetizer) consisting of greens, bitter herbs, and a sauce of fruit puree.  The first cup of wine is shared.

B.     Passover Liturgy.  Here the story of the first Passover and the Israelites’ escape from slavery and bondage in Egypt is re-told, beginning with these words:  “A wandering Aramean was my father…”.  A second cup of wine is shared.

C.     Main Meal.  Grace is spoken over unleavened bread, and then a meal is shared.  The meal consists of the Passover lamb, unleavened bread, bitter herbs, with fruit puree.  During the meal, a third cup of wine is shared.

D.    Conclusion:  A fourth cup of wine is shared.

             According to the accounts in the three synoptic Gospels, during the Passover meal Jesus takes a loaf of bread, blesses it and gives it to his disciples, saying:  “‘Take; this is my body.’”  Then, he takes a cup of wine; after blessing the wine, he offers it to his disciples, telling them:  “‘This is my blood of the [new] covenant, which is poured out for many.’”  (Luke 22: 19-20)

In The United Methodist Church we recognize The Lord’s Supper and Baptism as sacraments.  A sacrament is an outward, visible, and physical sign of an inward and spiritual gift or assistance from God.  Both sacraments are established in the Bible and we are encouraged to practice them as part of our spiritual lives.   

When we celebrate The Lord’s Supper, I frequently feel especially close to the Divine.  In my sermon on Sunday, I will share a special story of how I intensely felt the Divine presence with me and the congregation during a celebration of the sacrament on Easter Sunday. 

This is why we celebrate The Lord’s Supper:  it allows us to be healed from all that separates us from the love of God and re-connect with the presence of Jesus Christ in our lives.  The Lord’s Supper should not be a ritual that we periodically go through.  Instead, it is a spiritual—sometimes mystical—connection with the love and presence of Jesus which is already present in our lives. 

But, there is more.

The Lord’s Supper is also that spiritual moment which points us to the future and reminds us of our ultimate destiny; that moment when Jesus will keep his promise to the original disciples as well as all of his followers.  As recorded in Luke, Jesus says:  “‘I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for I tell you, I will not eat it [again] until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.’” (Luke 22: 15-16)  The Lord’s Supper never ends.  Instead, it always points the way forward to the “eschaton,” the time when Jesus will come again; when God will transform us and everything else into a New Creation; and when God’s Reign will be fully established.  At that time, Jesus will join us and all of his disciples at a heavenly banquet and celebration.

Come, join us this Sunday, as we explore and celebrate The Lord’s Supper.  Our church, Christ United Methodist Church, is located at 4530 A Street in Lincoln, Nebraska.  Our classic worship services are at 8:30 and 11:00 on Sunday mornings. 

Everyone is welcome and accepted because God loves us all.