Sermon Audio

Then He said to them, "With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God." Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, "Take this and divide it among yourselves; for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes."

St. Luke is keen to keep us filled in to the urgency of things. Last week, we heard that the Feast of Unleavened Bread was approaching—it was the time for the Feast. At the beginning of this evening's gospel, it was the day of the Feast itself—the day on which the Passover Lamb was to be slain. Then, in verse 14, we are told that it was the hour at which the meal of this Feast took place—the time when Jesus and His apostles reclined at the table. If our focus has gone from a nebulus "time of" to a finer point of "the hour," something special must be happening...something special must be coming.

Jesus has a fervent desire to eat this meal with his disciples. Speaking only of His humanity, we might imagine that He had a great anticipation for the Passover meal, as we greatly anticipate some major meal that we will be hosting or attending. But his deep desire wasn't just for celebrating the Passover meal, but it was for celebrating this particular Passover meal—His Last Supper before His death and resurrection. It would have special meaning for the disciples...and for us.

Now, it was difficult to look at this passage and not to preach on the institution of the Lord's Supper. I want to save that for Maundy Thursday. Rather, tonight, I intend to focus on the Passion of the Christ in the significance of this Last Supper and the kingdom of God, which means I cannot escape preaching about the Lord's Supper.

"I have deeply desired to eat this Passover with you before my suffering," Jesus said, "for I tell you that, by no means, I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God...by no means will I drink, from now on, from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes." "I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God...I will not drink from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes." In less than 24 hours after He says this, it will find fulfillment in the kingdom of God as the kingdom of God comes.

The kingdom of God was present in the person of Jesus the Christ—from the moment of Jesus' conception, the kingdom of God had come in the flesh to man. In fact, the kingdom of God had been present among man throughout the Old Testament in the tabernacle and temple, through the patriarchs and Moses, in the Davidic monarchy and dynasty, and in the ministry of the prophets and priests. All of these were types of Christ and found fulfillment in the person of Jesus—Israel reduced to One.

Likewise, the Old Testament Passover would find fulfillment as the the Passover Lamb—the Lamb of God—is slain. The kingdom of God came as the Messiah gave His life as a ransom of all on the tree of the cross and on the third day rose to life again. There, in His death and resurrection, God enforced His right as the Sovereign of the Universe and defeated the prince of this world, crushing his head—that is, subduing his power and authority—and rightfully claimed all power and authority for Himself. The kingdom of God has come, God reigns, and the Passover is fulfilled—Christ's blood covers those who receive Him, and the angel of death cannot touch them.

However, we still pray, "Thy kingdom come", as we are told to do. "God's kingdom certainly comes by itself without our prayer"—Christ was crucified and is risen for us without our prayer—"but we pray in this petition that it may come to us also." So, when we pray, we are asking God to give us "His Holy Spirit, so that by His grace we believe His holy Word and lead godly lives here in time and there in eternity."

We still live in a sinful world. The prince of this world still scowls fiercely. He still prowls around like a lion seeking whom he may devour. He works with the powers of this world to cause us to doubt God's holy Word and turn from Him. He works with our Old Adam to cause us to satiate our belly-god, seeking after our own pleasure and delight, against the will of God. This is the struggle we live with: the good that we want to do we do not do, but the evil that we do not want to do, that we know we should not be doing, that we keep on doing. We sin against God.

So, in confession, it behooves us to pray, "Thy kingdom come." And if, in confession, we pray, "Thy kingdom come", we must also, in confession, pray, "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." Thanks be to God that "the good and gracious will of God is done even without our prayer." But when we pray, "Thy will be done", "we pray that it may be done among us also." We pray that God would "break and hinder every evil plan of the devil, the world, and our sinful nature, which do not want us to hallow God's name or let His kingdom come", and that He would "strengthen and keep us firm in His Word and faith until we die." The good and gracious will of God is this: that He reign among us as God...that we receive Him in His Word and Sacraments; therefore, that we receive the forgiveness of our sins.

And because the kingdom of God has come and the Passover has been fulfilled in the kingdom of God—because God reigns over the devil, the world, and our sinful flesh—those who receive Him and His Word and His kingdom cannot be harmed by the fierce scowling of the prince of this world. We are still covered by the blood of the Lamb—the door-posts of our souls have been washed in His blood—and the angel of Death passes over us.

But notice again what Jesus said: "I tell you that, by no means, I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God...by no means will I drink, from now on, from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes." Jesus indicates that He will again eat the Passover Meal and again drink of the fruit of the vine once the kingdom of God comes and the Passover is fulfilled. The Passover has been fulfilled in the kingdom of God and the kingdom of God has come.

Jesus certainly ate again following His resurrection. He ate with the disciples after He appeared to them on the way to Emmaus. He ate with them as they were hiding behind locked doors. He ate breakfast with them on the shore of the Sea of Tiberius. None of these was a Passover meal, but they are good for demonstrating the connection and fellowship Jesus has with his disciples and followers. They are good for demonstrating the fact that Jesus is still fully human, even after His resurrection; so, we can be sure that He is still fully human now, even after his ascension.

Now ascended, and still fully human, it is likely that Jesus eats as He celebrates a Feast with those who have died in Him. Scripture refers to this Feast as the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. St. John was privileged to have a glimpse of it.

But He doesn't leave those on earth without a foretaste of this feast...a foretaste of this feast to come to those still on earth, anticipating and deeply desiring His return. To the church, Christ has given a Passover meal at which He is both host and food, demonstrating that He is still connected to us and in fellowship with us. "Do this in remembrance," we are told; likewise, St. Paul wrote, "For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes." Eating and drinking the Lord's Supper is a proclamation that the kingdom of God has come—an act of table fellowship celebrating that the kingdom of God has come—and will ultimately and fully come when Christ returns to claim all who have been washed in His blood.

Therefore, dear hearers, when we pray, "Thy kingdom come," that prayer is answered in the Body and Blood of our Lord, given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins, received by you as you take Him into your mouths in the Lord's Supper—the Passover meal given to the church in that very hour when Jesus deeply desired to eat and drink a particular Passover meal with his disciples before He suffered. And in this new Passover meal, given to the church, you are prepared for the eternal feast of the Lamb in His kingdom...a kingdom which has no end...a kingdom which has come to you in the death and resurrection of the Lamb of God—in the passion of the Christ.

Lamb of God, pure and holy, Who on the cross didst suffer,
Ever patient and lowly, Thyself to scorn didst offer,
All sins Thou borest for us, Else had despair reigned o'er us:
Have mercy on us, O Jesus! O Jesus!