Jesus and the disciples finish the Last Supper in today's passage and Jesus tells the disciples He won't drink the cup again until He drinks it with believers in the kingdom. He also has the strength to sing a hymn of praise as the meal concludes, even knowing the torture and shame that lies ahead of Him in the next several hours.
When we left off yesterday Jesus passed the cup, stating that it symbolized the blood of the new covenant. He now remarks, "Truly I tell you, I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God." (Mark 14:25) Why is Jesus going to drink no more wine until the kingdom comes? I consulted several commentaries on this, some of which made very good points, but I think Charles Spurgeon sums it up most wonderfully. Spurgeon points out that from the moment the Last Supper ends, Jesus renounces the joys and comforts of life. "Here He bids farewell to social cheer. Whatever little comforts He had enjoyed were now to be quitted....Now He had other work to do. He must, therefore, forego all that would stand in the way of His accomplishing it. He had to sweat the bloody sweat. He had to stand accused before Pilate and Herod. He had to bear His cross through Jerusalem's malicious crowds. He had to give His hands to the nails, and His feet to the cruel iron. These were no times for thinking of comforts....Giving up the fruit of the vine was not, it itself, a great act of self-negation, but as a symbol it was very significant. As I have already observed, it betokened His putting aside everything that is considered gratifying and joyous in life. Jesus Christ, out of love to us, gave up all."
The next time Jesus celebrates this meal of loving communion with His followers it will be at the marriage supper of the Lamb. (Revelation 19:9) The cup will represent joy on that day, so He is abstaining from it until we can enjoy it with Him. Have you ever noticed how much more enjoyable the good things of this life are when those we love share the good times with us? Jesus feels the same way! He won't drink the cup of celebration and victory without us, for since He gave new meaning to the cup at Passover (saying that it symbolized His blood of the new covenant) that cup represents His sacrifice for us. It represents His blood which, when applied to our hearts, causes the wrath of God to pass over us, just as the blood of the lambs applied to the doors of the Israelites in Egypt caused the wrath of God to pass over them. Jesus isn't going to celebrate a victory like this alone; He's going to celebrate His work of redemption with those who have been redeemed.
"When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives." (Mark 14:26) Jesus sings praises to God the Father as the shadow of the cross looms large over Him. How can He praise the name of God with so many torturous hours ahead of Him? Sometimes, when facing our own dark moments in life, singing is all we can do and all we should do! It's amazing what happens when we sing the praises of God even when we don't feel like singing. Many many times in my life I haven't felt like singing. I haven't felt like praising the Lord in my grief or hurt or bitterness or shock. But the Scriptures don't tell us to sing the praises of the Lord only when things are going our way; the Scriptures tell us to sing the praises of the Lord because He is righteous. (Psalm 7:17) We are to sing His praises because He is good. (Psalm 13:6) We are to sing His praises because He is strong and mighty. (Psalm 21:13) We are to sing His praises because He is holy. (Psalm 30:4) We are to sing His praises because He is our helper. (Psalm 63:7) Something wonderful happens when we turn the Christian radio station up loud in the car and sing along with the songs even when we aren't feeling our best. I challenge you to try it for yourself. The next time you feel down and out, the next time you're disappointed or discouraged, put on some praise music and sing out loud to the Lord. Doing this has helped me so many times. I didn't always see a change in my circumstances right away, but I did see a change in how I felt about my circumstances.
If Jesus could sing the praises of the Lord as He faced the torment of the cross, isn't He capable of giving us the strength to sing praises even in our troubles? Maybe things are going well for you right now. If so, sing the praises of the Lord! Maybe things aren't going well for you right now. If so, sing the praises of the Lord! Satan would love to keep you and me from singing praise to our God because of our circumstances, but Jesus sets a beautiful example for us in today's passage. Jesus shows us what to do when times are tough. Jesus knew singing praise to God would give Him strength for the trials ahead. It will do the same for us.
No comments:
Post a Comment