26And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, "Take, eat; this is My body."
27Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you. 28For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. 29But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father's kingdom."
30And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
I can’t imagine the sorrowful feeling at this meal. They knew they had just a couple of days with Him. As they were eating, Jesus tells them that one of them will betray Him and they all wonder “Is it I?” And now, as they are still eating the same meal, Jesus says, “Take, eat; this is my body.” Eating and drinking something that someone says is their body and blood ,or even just represents their body and blood, seems to me like it would be offensive, especially knowing it was the body of a close and dear friend, one who is still with you and you do not want to die.
But what Jesus is doing here is good news. It is not just about the end of His life, a body and blood that will exist no more. Sure, His body was blessed with Jesus, and sent by God to live a life on earth with us, and will be broken by those who want to destroy Him, just as this bread was blessed and broken by Jesus. But God did this to Jesus’ body for all. Jesus is giving this bread to all.
The same with His blood which will be shed for all for the forgiveness of sins. Jesus established a new covenant with us. He died for our sins so we wouldn’t have to. Eating of the bread and drinking of the wine is our reminder that Jesus died for us, His life was for all of us, His body broken and His blood poured for all of us. But it is not a reminder of a sad thing, but a reminder of a joyous thing: that of our new covenant.
I was surprised of Jesus’ statement that He would not drink of the fruit of the vine again till He is with us in His Father’s kingdom. I was wondering if that was simply a statement of no more wine before His death? But that explanation seems to be of too little significance for Jesus to even say it here.
Or maybe it is more symbolic of celebrations, that if drinking wine indicated a special occasion, maybe He was saying that the next special celebration would not be till He is with us in heaven. But it just seemed like at that time, wine was served with practically every meal, not just special occasions. So I’m not sure that Jesus tying wine to a celebration.
But I’m starting to wonder if by joining us in His Father’s Kingdom, Jesus is referring to the end times. Now that will be a day of great celebration. And another key word that seems to help fit it into this scenario is His statement of “that day when I drink it new with you”. In the last supper, they were drinking the blood of the new covenant. I think that when He talks of drinking it new with us, it will be something other than this covenant that He established here. It will be something new. I think it will be the entry into the new season that will start after the end times. According to Matthew 25:31-34, at that time Jesus will sit on the throne of His glory and will invite the blessed of His Father to inherit the kingdom that was prepared for us. That is when we will be with Jesus in His Father’s kingdom. And there will be a new wine for us to share with Jesus.
Jesus established this new covenant with us. We are reminded of it every time we have communion at church. It is not just about Jesus’ death, and not even just about the forgiveness of our sins, but also about the hope of the new season we all want to be part of. Jesus made it possible for us.