The first shall be last, and the last shall be first.
Those who want to be great, must become servant of all.
In order to save your life, you must lose it.
Paradoxical. It’s one way to describe the faith.
And today is the day we historically remember that Jesus instituted the “Last Supper”… I wonder how paradoxical that is as well?
He changed all the meanings of the Passover meal to this new celebration of Christ’s sacrifice, suffering and new covenant.
He changed the Last Supper of the Passover, to the first supper of the church age.
And with that, like a meteor striking the surface of a distant planet sending shockwaves in every direction, completely unstoppable, this “Last” Supper paradoxically generated a new world of firsts.
- The Firstborn among the dead.
- Our first hope beyond the grave.
- Humanity’s first entrance into the Holy of Holys.
- The first Advocate for us in the throne room of grace itself.
- The first Sacrifice to completely satisfy.
- The first and only work to bring redemption, restoration, reconciliation, resurrection!
He is the First and the Last, the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End, He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords!
He is our Savior.
The last supper calls us to remember his body broken as bread crumbling in the hands of the disciples. It calls us to remember His blood spilled out in sacrifice as we drink the cup of the new covenant.
A cup that represents a peace treaty between humanity and it’s failed war against the Creator of the heavens.
The last supper.
The garden prayer.
The mockery of a trial.
The humiliation of the cross.
The temple veil torn.
The disciples gathered, afraid.
The stone rolled away.
The empty tomb.
Jesus is risen!
The first day of our eternity.