Jesus, the Passover Lamb (Luke 22:7-23)

Introduction

If you have your Bible, please turn it to Luke 22:7-23.

If you were here last week, you’ll notice that this week’s passage is a few chapters after last week’s. Last week we spent our time talking about the Triumphal Entry of Jesus into Jerusalem the week before His crucifixion. Between last week’s passage and this week’s passage, there are a several things that have occurred—Jesus has cleansed the temple, the chief priests, scribes, and other elders have outrightly opposed Him, Jesus has taught a lot and He has warned against the leaven of the the religious leaders.

Jesus gives a few prophecies—He prophesies about the destruction of the temple and the destruction of Jerusalem, which happened after His death in 76 AD when Rome destroyed both the temple and Jerusalem, He foretells of His own return, that “there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress,” which, by the way, doesn’t refer to the impending solar eclipse on the basis of the fact that Luke 21:25 records signs not naturally occurring events—signs are miracles, this solar eclipse is a natural event, which is why scientists were able to predict it quite some time ago.

So, we’re in Luke 22, and there are a few points that are important to know before we get to our text. In vv. 1-6, we’re told of three significant details that set the stage for us:

This is during the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which they also called the Passover.

The chief priests and the scribes are plotting to murder Jesus.

And v. 3 tells us that “Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot” for the purpose of betraying Jesus to the chief priests for money.

So, for those familiar with Jesus’ life, you know that this occurs during the night of His betrayal—in fact, Jesus tells His betrayer to go and do what He needs to do. After this event comes multiple illegal trials and the eventual crucifixion, but before I get ahead of myself, let’s read the text.

Luke 22:7–23 ESV

7 Then came the day of Unleavened Bread, on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. 8 So Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat it.” 9 They said to him, “Where will you have us prepare it?” 10 He said to them, “Behold, when you have entered the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him into the house that he enters 11 and tell the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says to you, Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ 12 And he will show you a large upper room furnished; prepare it there.” 13 And they went and found it just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover. 14 And when the hour came, he reclined at table, and the apostles with him. 15 And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. 16 For I tell you I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” 17 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, “Take this, and divide it among yourselves. 18 For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” 19 And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 20 And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood. 21 But behold, the hand of him who betrays me is with me on the table. 22 For the Son of Man goes as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom he is betrayed!” 23 And they began to question one another, which of them it could be who was going to do this.

As we study this text together, we’re going to break it into two parts: (1) Passover (7-13), which is more about preparation for the Passover meal and (2) The Lord’s Supper (14-23), which records Jesus giving the first Lord’s Supper. There is a lot of symbolism happening here between the concept of Passover and the new concept of the Lord’s Supper. And I want to be clear as to what all is going on—so, to do this, we’re going to dig a little deeper into the meaning of passover, we’re going to talk about the clear symbolism represented here, and then we’ll base our application on this. In reality, what Jesus is doing is He is making a bold statement that He is the Passover Lamb.

Prayer for Illumination

Passover (7-13)

Our text starts by giving us the setting in v. 7, “Then came the day of Unleavened Bread, on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed.” This statement actually gives us a good reason to do a little historical background so that we fully understand what the Jewish people are celebrating.

Jesus didn’t always obey the Jewish customs of His time

For instance, Jesus had no problem disobeying what the Pharisees had added to God’s Law.

So, even though the Jewish people around Him wouldn’t pick food on the Sabbath—Jesus encouraged HIs disciples to.

Even though the Pharisees considered Jesus healing a man work on the Sabbath—Jesus still healed a person.

The Jewish people wouldn’t even speak to certain people groups because they thought they were too unclean—Jesus goes out of His way to speak to the Samaritan woman.

But note that in these cases, Jesus isn’t disobeying God’s Law, He’s rejecting what the Jewish leaders had added to God’s Law.

So the fact that He is obeying the celebration of the Passover tells us two things, in particular: (1) it’s important to Jesus and (2) this must be something that’s actually commanded by God for the Jewish people to do; it’s not something that was added by the people later.

And a cursory look at the Old Testament actually shows us that Passover was something commanded by God.

The guidelines (and really the institution of Passover) occurs in its first observation in Exodus 12.

God commands that the people prepare for the final plague sent against the Egyptians. The instructions are that:

Every family needs to select a lamb, unblemished for sacrifice (there are some exceptions for those who cannot afford their own lamb).

They are to sacrifice the lamb at twilight on the 14th day of the month.

They are to put the blood of the lamb on the doorposts and lintel of the house.

Then the family is to roast the lamb and eat the roasted lamb with unleavened bread on bitter herbs.

Any part of the lamb left over must be burnt.

And all this is to be done in haste, ready to leave at a moment’s notice.

There were a few other instructions that are also given—only God’s people were to eat the Passover meal, the meal had to be eaten in one house and couldn’t be taken out of that house, and none of the bones of the lamb were to be broken.

In the first observation of the Passover meal, the meal really wasn’t the primary issue at hand—rather, it was the blood from the lamb spread across the doorpost that indicated that those who live within the house are relying completely on the mercy and grace of Yahweh for salvation.

And that’s really where Passover gets its name—that when the Destroyer came, He passed over the houses of those of whom had blood on their doorposts.

Of course, the Israelites are told to keep this meal as an annual feast, which we see explained more in Leviticus and Numbers.

And for the most part, the Jewish people obeyed the command to keep this feast, except when they were in exile and a few cases concerning war.

By the time of Jesus’ life on earth, the Jewish people had been celebrating Passover for several thousand years simply because God had commanded them to.

So, as Jesus enters the last bit of His earthly life, He decides to celebrate Passover with His disciples, but this time around, there’s something different going on.

In vv. 8-13, Jesus sends Peter and John to go and prepare Passover.

We aren’t given too many details in Luke, but the reality is that they’re devout Jewish people who have been celebrating the Passover their whole lives, so they know what exactly they need concerning food and drink, their only question is, “where will you have us prepare it?”

Where are we going to eat this meal?

And like Jesus’ preparation for the Triumphal Entry, He already has a plan for the Passover, which we see in vv. 10-11, “Behold, when you have entered the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him into the house that he enters and tell the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says to you, Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ And he will show you a large upper room furnished; prepare it there.”

Now, how exactly all this came to pass, we’re not really sure. Some have suggested that Jesus had made the arrangements Himself at an earlier date—perhaps He had sent a message ahead requesting use of the upper room.

Maybe the owner of the house has a spare room that he keeps open just in case someone happens to be traveling through like this.

Regardless, Jesus sends His disciples in to prepare passover and the Bible says that they found a room just as he had told them and they prepared the Passover.

Regardless of how exactly this all came into being, what it does show us is that Jesus is sovereignly and providentially orchestrating all the events at hand.

Now, there is significant symbolism with the Passover that everyone who partook of the Passover during this time period would recognize. For instance:

Lambs are often viewed as innocent animals—they really can’t defend themselves, they aren’t the quickest, strongest, or really even, the most intelligent animals.

Thus, when they’re preparing the Passover and they’re partaking in the Passover, there’s a part of them that recognizes that for them to have this meal, the death of an innocent animal had to occur.

Of course, throughout the history of Israel, they understood the need for blood to atone for their sins—and thus, they would’ve picked up on the fact that they had to shed blood for their meal.

The sacrificial system of the Old Testament in which the Jewish people regularly and frequently had to offer sacrifices for their sins would’ve cemented in their minds the need for blood to cover sin.

Again, considering the innocence of the lamb, the ideology would then be amplified.

Think about these symbolic ideas as we continue in the text.

The time for the meal comes and Jesus ties more symbolism into the Passover meal in which He makes it abundantly clear that He is the lamb slain for man’s sin. Let’s re-read vv. 14-23.

The Lord’s Supper (14-23)

Luke 22:14–23 ESV

14 And when the hour came, he reclined at table, and the apostles with him. 15 And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. 16 For I tell you I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” 17 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, “Take this, and divide it among yourselves. 18 For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” 19 And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 20 And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood. 21 But behold, the hand of him who betrays me is with me on the table. 22 For the Son of Man goes as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom he is betrayed!” 23 And they began to question one another, which of them it could be who was going to do this.

Our text continues with what is actually a prophecy given with multiple details:

Jesus makes the statement that he has desired to eat this Passover with them before He suffers.

That’s the first detail, that He will suffer.

In hindsight, we know that includes the physical torment that He’s about to face on the cross; and, in reality, it includes something worse than the physical torment in that He is about to face the wrath of God for the sins of mankind.

He then says that He will not partake in a similar meal until “it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God” and that he will not “drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”

The statement that He will not eat of it again is primarily based on the fact that He’s about to die on the cross for the sins of His people.

The statement that it won’t happen until “it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God” is an eschatological idea—this refers to the supper that’s prophesied about in Revelation during which God’s people will sit and dine with Him in heaven.

This idea amplifies the significance of the event that’s currently taking place in Luke 22.

And in this event, Jesus makes additional symbolic references to the supper that they’re partaking of.

In vv. 19-20, we see the words that are familiar to anyone who partakes in the Lord’s Supper to this day—at Grace, we literally read these words straight from Scripture.

The Bible tells us that Jesus takes both the bread and the cup, which are both ordinary elements and He adds a symbolic meaning to them.

I’m emphasizing this point—that Jesus is giving symbolic meaning to the bread and to the cup for two reasons:

I’m emphasizing it because this is what the plain reading of the text says—Jesus is using metaphors, which are figures of speech to figuratively tie the bread to His body and the cup to the new covenant in His blood. He’s not saying that the bread and cup literally transform into His body and blood.

I’m also emphasizing it because the Roman Catholic Church teaches that the bread and the cup literally become Jesus’ body and blood, which is called transubstantiation; and even the Lutheran church teaches a modification of this view in which Jesus’ body and blood are present as the elements (known as consubstantiation).

It’s important to note their difference of teaching concerning the Lord’s Supper because it then explains why they treat the Lord’s Supper (what they call the Eucharist) so differently compared to what we do.

To them, they are eating and drinking the literal body and blood of Jesus Christ—as such, to them, the most important thing that we do when we gather for worship is to partake in the Eucharist.

But the text doesn’t say that the bread and the cup are literally the body and blood of Jesus Christ.

The statements at hand are metaphors, it’s figurative meant to remind us of what Jesus has done for us.

As such, that informs us that when we gather together, the Lord’s Supper isn’t the most important thing that we do together, but it is an ordinary means through which we experience the grace of God.

The Lord’s Supper is one way in which the Holy Spirit convicts, leads, directs, and drives us to repentance. It is one way in which the Holy Spirit encourages, exhorts, and convinces us towards the truth of God’s Word.

I think the London Baptist Confession of Faith sums up how we view the Lord’s Supper in an adequate way:

“The supper of the Lord Jesus was instituted by Him the same night He was betrayed. It should be observed in His churches to the end of the age as a perpetual remembrance and display to the world of the sacrifice of Himself in His death. The Lord’s Supper is also gives: (1) for the confirmation of the faith of believers in all the benefits of Christ’s death, (2) for their spiritual nourishment and growth in Him, (3) for their further engagement in and for the duties they owe Him, and to be a bond and pledge of their communion with Him and each other.” (30. Of the Lord’s Supper, 1. The Purpose of the Lord’s Supper)

When dealing with the issue of whether the body and blood of Jesus are physically present in the Lord’s Supper, the London Baptist Confession of Faith says, “People who receive the Lord’s Supper in a worthy manner, do so inwardly by faith, not physically and bodily. They spiritually receive and feed upon Christ crucified and all the benefits of His death. The body and blood of Christ are not present bodily or physically, but rather spiritually to the faith of believers in the Lord’s Supper. This is how the elements are to their outwards senses.” (30. Of the Lord’s Supper, 7. The Lord’s Supper is Spiritual Feeding)

The Lord’s Supper today is not physical in the sense that while we’re partaking in the elements physically, Jesus’ body and blood are not literally in our hands.

The Lord’s Supper is a spiritual, symbolic event in which we remember the Lord’s death, burial, and resurrection.

Jesus in Luke 22 adds a symbolic meaning to the bread and the cup in that the bread represents His body and the cup represents the new covenant in His blood.

That’s the direct added symbolism in this text, but remember, this is the Lord’s Supper during the Passover feast, so there is a level of symbolism that’s deeper than the stated symbolism that Jesus verbalizes.

And that level of symbolism is found in the meal itself. During this meal, the Jewish people would eat a lamb, which was slain specifically for this purpose—that lamb would be without blemish, perfect, and prepared specifically for this occasion.

And in their minds, the disciples would already be connecting all this to the original passover in Exodus 12.

Then Jesus makes an additional connection to what’s going on in the Lord’s Supper, in the Passover to Himself.

What’s happening is that Jesus is tying the symbolism of the Passover feast to His own body and blood.

Or, in other Words, Jesus is making the bold statement that He is the Passover Lamb.

Now then, apply that truth to everything we know about Passover.

Like the Jewish people in Exodus 12, there is coming a day of judgment.

Like in Exodus 12, this coming day of judgment is unavoidable, it is judgment from God Himself, and no human in His own ability can hide.

And just like the first Passover, the only salvation available is through God Himself and the Passover lamb utilized by God to atone for their sins.

Do you see the symbolism behind the Passover Lamb and Jesus?

Now, you might push back and you might think that I’m reading into things a little too much, but I’m not the only person who is saying that Jesus is the Passover Lamb.

John the Baptist says it way before any of this happens, in John 1:29 “29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”

John, the Apostle links the fact that Jesus’ legs were not broken as fulfillment of Exodus 12:46—that the Passover lamb’s bones shouldn’t be broken.

Paul says in 1 Corinthians 5:7 that Jesus is our Passover lamb. “7 Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.”

1 Peter 1:19, Revelation 5:6, 8, 12 all point to Jesus as the Passover Lamb who takes away the sins of the world.

Jesus is the Lamb who saves.

Of course, we know that the text continues and in the last three verses we see Jesus make the statement that the one who will betray Him sits at the table with them.

And while His disciples are curious, wondering who exactly is going to betray Him.

Jesus reveals His omniscience and providence by pointing out that His betrayer is in the room.

This leads us to this morning’s application and it all stems from the idea that Jesus is the Passover Lamb.

Application

So, think with me about the first Passover in which the Jewish people were told to prepare this meal, eat this meal, and paint their doorpost with the blood of the lamb. There are a few details that are worth noting from the Passover that helps us see our application better:

Judgment against sin was definitely coming—there wasn’t anything that they could’ve done to change the fact that the Destroyer was coming to enact judgment.

Other than to simply obey God’s commands—to prepare that meal and spread the blood of the lamb on the doorpost, there was absolutely nothing that anyone could’ve done to save themselves.

They simply had to believe that doing what God had told them to do—prepare this meal, eat this lamb, and paint your doorpost with blood would be sufficient for their salvation—that just doing these things and believing that God would keep His Word would be sufficient for the Destroyer to pass over them.

All of that sounds oddly familiar doesn’t it?

According to the Bible, judgment for sin is definitely coming—there’s nothing we can do to change the fact that we will all be judged for our sins.

Other than to simply repent from our sinful lives, call on the name of Jesus, and believe in Him, there is absolutely nothing that we can do to save ourselves.

We simply believe that our salvation requires repentance, belief in and then submission to the King of kings and Lord of lords.

And that’s really where our application is—it’s in the statement that Jesus is our Passover Lamb.

First, Jesus is our Passover Lamb — so trust Him.

Just like the Israelites in Exodus 12, there is absolutely nothing we can do to save ourselves and there is absolutely no way for us to earn our salvation.

You can’t work harder to be saved, you can’t try more to be saved, you cannot do anything but rely on and depend on the blood of the Passover Lamb, which covers us.

The issue is that many of us know that in theory, but we don’t follow that in practice.

And the way that you can figure out if you think you can earn your salvation is by checking your motivation when you do good work.

The Bible teaches us that good work is the fruit of genuine faith—this is true even to the extent that Jesus says you will know whether someone believes by their fruit.

So, the question is when you do good work are you doing it because you’re trying to earn God’s favor or are you doing it because you have God’s favor?

Or, it might help to put it differently—are you doing it because you think God will bless you for doing it or are you doing it because God has already blessed you?

One way reveals the belief that you think you can earn God’s favor and really your salvation. The other way reveals the belief that you cannot possibly do anything to earn God’s favor nor salvation.

The issue is that if you’re motivated by earning God’s favor or earning your salvation, you ultimately set yourself up for failure.

Because again, you can’t work hard enough, you can’t try more, you cannot do anything but rely on and depend on the blood of the Passover Lamb, which covers us.

Or, put another way—our fleshly tendency is to think that we need to earn salvation, but we can’t. We just need to trust Jesus.

You need to trust Jesus for salvation, who is your Passover Lamb.

Second, Jesus is our Passover Lamb — so remember Him.

We actually do this in one particular way every week as a church. When we partake in the Lord’s Supper together, we’re remembering Jesus’ sacrifice for us as the Passover Lamb.

In fact, every week, before partaking in the Lord’s Supper, we point out that it is a both a somber memorial and a celebration of all that Jesus has done for us as our sacrificial and substitutionary atonement for our sins.

The Lord’s Supper is meant for this because it motivates, it encourages, it causes self-reflection, and it points our hearts and minds at Jesus, His death, burial, and resurrection.

But this is something that we actually ought to do more often than just Sunday morning—and just to clarify, I’m not talking about the full Lord’s Supper aspect, but the reflection of and the remembrance of what He has done.

Our tendency is to take it all for granted and to really forget about it, which is why as a church, we put such a high priority on the Gospel.

When we reflect on the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ for our sins, it changes the way we view our sin—doesn’t it?

If we’re facing temptation, but our mindset is, “oh, it doesn’t really matter, it’s not that big of a deal,” we’re more likely to fall into our sin.

But if we’re facing temptation and our mindset is, “I shouldn’t do this because Jesus died to set me from it,” we’re less likely to fall into that sin.

Constant reflection and remembrance of Jesus as our Passover Lamb ought to compel us to stop desiring sin and it should draw us to a deeper love for and of Him.

You need to remember Him and His sacrifice for you—Jesus is your Passover Lamb.

Lastly, Jesus is our Passover Lamb — so proclaim Him.

Again, we do part of this in the Lord’s Supper each week that we participate in it.

In fact, we make that statement right at the very end—after we partake in the bread and the cup, we make the statement that when we partake we proclaim His death until He returns.

So, there is an aspect of our proclamation of Jesus Christ that is fulfilled whenever we come together for the Lord’s Supper and really, when we come together for worship—we’re making that proclamation that Jesus is the Lamb who takes away the sins of the world.

But again, this is something that we ought to do more than just Sunday morning—and again, I’m not talking about the full Lord’s Supper aspect, but really just the proclamation aspect.

The reality is that if you’re in a healthy church, you’ve been told over and over and over again that as a Christian you are to make disciples.

The start of making a disciple is the proclamation of Jesus Christ—you cannot make a disciple if you never bother to proclaim Jesus.

In fact, Paul after making the statement that you must repent and believe to be saved then makes this argument in Romans 10:14 and 17, “How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone ηκουσαν? . . . So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.”

ηκουσαν — often translated as preaching, but it’s main meaning is to proclaim.

The misconception about Romans 10:14 is that it’s about preachers going to preach the Word of God, but in reality, it’s not about professional Christians, it’s about you as a believer going and proclaiming the truth.

Or, in other words, you can’t make disciples if you aren’t proclaiming the Gospel and people don’t become disciples if they never hear the Gospel.

Thus, you as a believer called to make disciples of every nation ought to be proclaiming the Gospel as often as possible.

You ought to be proclaiming Jesus as the Passover Lamb to everyone that will listen.

And I know you hear me say that frequently, in fact, I make the statement that you ought to go and make disciples every single Sunday.

And yet, if I were to ask who is one person that you’re actively trying to evangelize, to disciple, to point towards Jesus—I’m willing to bet most everyone would say that they can’t really think of anyone that they’re intentionally trying to lead towards Jesus.

But Jesus is our Passover Lamb who died to take away the sins of the world—you need to go and proclaim Him to everyone who will listen.

Really, what we learn from Luke 22:7-23, is that Jesus is the Passover Lamb who takes away the sins of the world—trust Him, remember Him, and proclaim Him.

Pastoral Prayer