Our Atonement

Series: Matthew

Title – Active Faith

Scripture – Matt 26:17-30

Subject – Substitution

Central Theme – Recognize the substitution

Resource: Lifeway’s ETB Winter 25 Lesson #13

Objective Statement:

Every person should recognize the significance of Jesus substitutionary death because of these 3 details.

Detail #1 – The Passover Picture. (17-19)

Detail #2 – The Prophesied Betrayal. (20-25)

Detail #3  - The Permanent Payment. (26-30)

FIRST THOUGHTS

None of us knows the precise time and date of our death. We do know, however, that death is a certainty for all. Consider this scenario: you know the exact day of your impending death, but no one else knows. You throw a dinner party for your family and friends, knowing this will be the last meal you will have with them. What emotions do you think you would experience if this scenario played out in reality? 

How does death sometimes sharpen our focus on the things that really matter in life?     

Read Matthew 26:17-30 in your Bible.

What emotions do you think the disciples felt at this “final meal” with Jesus, especially considering the statement about betrayal?

Context:

“[On Tuesday] or perhaps a day earlier, the chief priests met to initiate Jesus’s arrest (26:3-5). Sometime that afternoon, while Jesus spoke of end times under the olive trees on the Mount of Olives, Judas the betrayer sold Him out (vv. 14-16). Sometime on Thursday, Jesus sent John and Peter to prepare for the Passover celebration (see Luke 22:8). Following the Passover meal, Jesus returned to the garden of Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives, where He spent an agonizing time in prayer as He faced the coming event of the crucifixion (vv. 36-46).”

Transition: Today’s session focuses on Jesus’s Passover meal—His “last supper”—with His disciples. This includes the initiation of the Lord’s Supper. Through Jesus’s words around that meal, we’ll get a clear view of our own sins and what Jesus’s death means for our sinfulness.

Every person should recognize the significance of Jesus substitutionary death because of these 3 details.

Detail #1 – The Passover Picture. (17-19)

Matthew 26:17–19 KJV 1900

17 Now the first day of the feast of unleavened bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying unto him, Where wilt thou that we prepare for thee to eat the passover? 18 And he said, Go into the city to such a man, and say unto him, The Master saith, My time is at hand; I will keep the passover at thy house with my disciples. 19 And the disciples did as Jesus had appointed them; and they made ready the passover.

(vv. 17-19) Where wilt thou that we prepare . . . the passover implies that Jesus already knew where they would celebrate the festival.

Luke 22:8 named Peter and John as the disciples Jesus sent into the city to get things ready.

Jesus told them to locate such a man and to tell him that the Master’s time is at hand. This referred to Jesus’s impending death and seems to indicate that Jesus had shared what lay ahead for Him with this unnamed man.

Made ready the passover involved arrangement of the room and the food for the meal. It also could have included sacrificing the lamb at the temple and transporting it to the site where it would be roasted and eaten. Other parts of the meal included greens, bitter herbs mixed with stewed fruit, wine, and unleavened bread.

A second detail points to the significance of Jesus’ substitutionary death.

Detail #2 – The Prophesied Betrayal. (20-25)

Matthew 26:20 KJV 1900

20 Now when the even was come, he sat down with the twelve.

(v. 20) That even, Thursday night, Jesus and the twelve were sat down in the upper room.

The Jews adopted the Roman arrangement called triclinium for their formal feasts. This involved couches arranged in a U-shaped pattern with a low table in the center.

Each guest reclined on his left elbow and took food with his right hand.

Matthew 26:21–22 KJV 1900

21 And as they did eat, he said, Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me. 22 And they were exceeding sorrowful, and began every one of them to say unto him, Lord, is it I?

(vv. 21-22) During the meal, Jesus made a startling announcement: One of you shall betray me.

Even though Jesus previously had referred to His betrayal (Matt. 17:22; 20:18; Mark 9:31; 10:33; Luke 9:44), this time He suggested a member of His inner circle would be involved.

The disciples were exceeding sorrowful, especially since this revelation came during a meal that symbolized close relationship.

Four items are noteworthy in the shared response: Lord, is it I?

First, the Greek structure expects a “no” from Jesus.

Second, eleven of the disciples acknowledged Jesus as Lord.

Third, Judas spoke up last, probably to avoid attention.

Fourth, when Judas did speak, he called Jesus “Master” (or “Rabbi”) rather than Lord (v. 25).

Matthew 26:23–24 KJV 1900

23 And he answered and said, He that dippeth his hand with me in the dish, the same shall betray me. 24 The Son of man goeth as it is written of him: but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! it had been good for that man if he had not been born.

(vv. 23-24) Dippeth his hand probably does not mean their hands were in a bowl at the same time. Instead, the betrayer was present at the meal.

This hint was ambiguous since Jesus referred only to he and because all the disciples had shared the dinner bowl with Jesus.

Using Son of man, Jesus tied His betrayal to both Scripture and human responsibility.

This betrayal was written of him. However, He added a woe to the betrayer (see Matt. 11:21-22; 18:7; 23:13-29). Jesus said it would be better if the betrayer had not been born than to face God’s wrath for this duplicity.

Matthew 26:25 KJV 1900

25 Then Judas, which betrayed him, answered and said, Master, is it I? He said unto him, Thou hast said.

(v. 25) Judas used the same construction as the others, expecting a negative reply. As noted, he called Jesus his Master, rather than “Lord.” He would address Jesus the same way in Gethsemane (26:49).

Jesus’s reply, Thou hast said, affirmed that He knew about Judas’s disloyalty.

Application Point: Believers must recognize their own capacity to betray Jesus.

Read: Invite a volunteer to read Matthew 26:17-25 aloud as the group highlights the setting and significance of the event.

Explain: Briefly summarize verses 17-20. Use information from verses 17-19 to explain the background. Note that the secrecy about the location would keep Jesus and His disciples hidden from the Jewish leaders.

Ask: How did the disciples respond to Jesus’s announcement of betrayal? How do you think He felt in that moment?

Recap: Allow adults to discuss their responses.

While the impending death of Jesus was the fulfillment of both prophecy and the plan of God, the actions of Judas arose from his own willful choice. There is no conflict between God’s sovereign will and Judas’s free will. Jesus was not a victim of some political process but the center of God’s plan for the salvation of humanity. Judas was not merely a pawn in God’s plan but someone who acted out of his own decisions and perhaps flawed thinking. Because of this, Judas would suffer the consequences for his decision. 

Share: Emphasize that Jesus knew exactly what was going on. Point out that His response showed that He understood how Judas had given himself over to sin.

Ask: What can we do to resist becoming immune to the dangers of sin?

Group Activity Option

Object Lesson: Bread

Bring an unsliced loaf of bread to the session and allow each adult to pinch off a small piece. Say: Jesus explained that the one who would betray Him had dipped bread in the bowl just as Jesus had done. Point out that while Judas was the betrayer, each disciples’ sin would send Jesus to the cross. Emphasize that our sins played a role in Jesus’s betrayal and crucifixion as well. Challenge adults to examine their lives for sins that might be hindering a fuller relationship with Jesus.

Every person should recognize the significance of Jesus substitutionary death because of these 3 details.

EXPLORE THE TEXT

Detail #3  - The Permanent Payment. (26-30)

Matthew 26:26 KJV 1900

26 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.

(v. 26) In verses 26-28, Jesus explained the theological reason for His death.

As Jesus took bread and brake it, He prayed a blessing over it. In giving it to His disciples to eat, Jesus also introduced a new meaning to this ancient ritual.

Jesus’s command to take, eat allowed each disciple to be an active participant in His body, which the broken bread represented.

By this simple act Jesus transformed the Passover memorial into “the Lord’s Supper.” To be clear, Jesus’s words were symbolic.

Matthew 26:27–28 KJV 1900

27 And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; 28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

(vv. 27-28) The lamb’s blood was a major feature in the Passover ritual (Ex. 12:7,13,22-23).

But now Jesus focused on His own blood, represented by the wine in the cup.

Four cups were used during the Passover meal.

Taking this one, possibly the third, Jesus gave thanks and urged His disciples to drink ye all of it.

That Jesus had them drink from a common cup symbolized their unity.

Shed indicates a violent death and reflected Old Testament sacrificial language for atonement (see Ex. 29:12).

The promises of God to Moses were central to Judaism and the Passover, but Jesus was initiating a new testament based on His sacrifice (see Jer. 31:31-34).

For many points to the substitutionary nature of Jesus’s death. It also emphasizes that the redeemed community would be larger than just those followers of Jesus in that room at that moment.

Meanwhile, for the remission of sins goes to the heart of Jesus’s death (see Matt. 1:21; 20:28). Ultimately, that is why He came.

Matthew 26:29 KJV 1900

29 But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.

(v. 29) But I say unto you again called for hearers to pay close attention. Then using a strong double negative, Jesus emphasized that this was the last Passover—but not the last meal—He would share with them. He simply would abstain from the fruit of the vine (either diluted wine or grape juice) until His return. On that day, He would drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom. Jesus’s emphasis was not on His abstinence but on the coming of the kingdom. With you reassured the disciples they would be present.

Matthew 26:30 KJV 1900

30 And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives.

(v. 30) The Passover meal was required to end before midnight. To conclude the celebration, the host would lead the guests in singing an hymn.

Normally, Psalms 115–118 (called “Hallel” psalms”) were used.

From the upper room, Jesus and His disciples left the city and walked east to the mount of Olivesand Gethsemane. Sometime later, Judas arrived, and Jesus was arrested (v. 47).

Application Point: We find forgiveness by accepting Jesus’s death as the payment for our sins.

Read: Direct the group to read Matthew 26:26-30 silently, underlining the meanings of the bread and the cup. 

Ask: What was the significance of the Passover meal? How did that meal connect to Jesus’s mission?

Connect:

“At this point in history, the Passover had been celebrated for over 1,500 years. Now Jesus was going to change everything. . . . The Passover meal included prayers, blessings, and sharing a variety of dishes with different meanings. One of those dishes was the matzah bread, a flat, unleavened piece of bread that represented the bread eaten in haste in Egypt as the Israelites prepared to flee. Jesus broke and gave this bread to each disciple with the instructions to take, eat. With this action, Jesus changed the meaning of this bread. The breaking of the bread pointed to His death. No longer was this a reminder of the exodus event; now it would serve as a reminder of Christ’s atoning death. Four cups of wine were used in the Passover ceremony. The sharing of each cup was accompanied by prayers and blessing. . . . Jesus called this cup ‘my blood of the new testament.’ A testament is a binding agreement or an oath-bound promise between two parties. God’s covenants in the Old Testament were ratified through blood sacrifices. In the death of Jesus, a new covenant was instituted through His blood, giving a new pathway to a right relationship with God.”

Ask: Why is it important for believers to remember Jesus’s sacrifice on the cross?

CHALLENGE

Summarize:

· Believers must recognize their own capacity to betray Jesus.

· We find forgiveness by accepting Jesus’s death as the payment for our sins.

Challenge: As a group, consider why it is important for all believers to regularly remember Jesus’s sacrifice on the cross. Remind adults that regularly celebrating Jesus’s death through the Lord’s Supper should challenge them to reflect on their sin and His atonement.

Discuss: Guide the group to consider how they personally prepare for the Lord’s Supper and how they might encourage one another the next time the ordinance is observed. Urge adults to reflect on these questions and to ask for God’s help in eliminating false steps that could lead them to deny or betray Jesus.