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Love
Teaching Text: Luke 22: 7-34
Then came the day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover.”
“Where do you want us to prepare for it?” they asked.
He replied, “As you enter the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him to the house that he enters, and say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ He will show you a large room upstairs, all furnished. Make preparations there.”
They left and found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover.
When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.”
After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among you. For I tell you I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”
And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”
In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you. But the hand of him who is going to betray me is with mine on the table. The Son of Man will go as it has been decreed. But woe to that man who betrays him!” They began to question among themselves which of them it might be who would do this.
A dispute also arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest. Jesus said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors. But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves. For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves. You are those who have stood by me in my trials. And I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me, so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdomand sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
“Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”
But he replied, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death.”
Jesus answered, “I tell you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know me.”
Themes
Consider these themes and ask your group what else they see in the passage:
Vision Sundays | Formation | Tables
Formation
Thoughts and notes you can use for discussion:
Describe one of the most memorable meals you’ve ever had and why it was so memorable.
Imagine yourself at the end of your life, looking back and asking yourself what matted most in your brief time on earth.
ALTARS
We are answering the question, “What matters most?”
Jesus himself, when asked to summarize, said, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. And love your neighbor as yourself.”
We are spending a few weeks this fall asking what is most important for us as a church. What is our VISION?
PRESENCE - FORMATION - LOVE
That we are called to make this a priority as a church family, as people…to…
Be with God
Become like Jesus
Live by the Spirit
ALTARS + TABLES + GARDENS
We believe God is inviting us to…
Build Altars - places where we are seeking God’s presence and mark that God has met with us
Set Tables - places of welcome, friendship, hospitality, where we are formed in community
Tend Gardens - sow seeds of love, tend places where good things are growing, seek the fruit of the Kingdom of God
“If you can read the gospels without getting hungry, you are not paying attention.”
– Arthur Boers
In Luke 5 Jesus eats with tax collectors and sinners at Levis house.
In Luke 7 Jesus is anointed at the home of Simon the Pharisee during a meal.
In Luke 9 Jesus feeds the five thousand.
In Luke 10 Jesus eats at the home of Mary and Martha.
In Luke 11 Jesus condemns the Pharisees and teachers of the lay at a meal.
In Luke 14 Jesus is at a meal when he urges people to invite the poor to their meals rather than their friends.
In Luke 19 Jesus invites himself to dinner with Zachaeus.
In Luke 22 we have this account we heard today of the Last Supper.
In Luke 24 the risen Christ has a meal with the two disciples in Emmaus, and the later eats fish with the disciples in Jerusalem - thats where PETER is restored after his predicted denial
”The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10;45); “The Son of Man came to seek and save the lost: (Luke 19:10); “The Son of Man came eating and drinking.” (Luke 7 v 34.)
Tim Chester points out in his book A Meal with Jesus …
“The first two are statements of purpose. Why did Jesus come? He came to serve, to give his life as a ransom, to seek and save the lost. The third is a statement of method. How was he going to do this? He came eating and drinking.”
– TIM CHESTER
THE SACRAMENT IS A MEAL
“The blend of celebration and betrayal in the scene at supper is preparing us for the blend of triumph and tragedy in the crucifixion itself. Jesus accomplishes his true mission by being falsely accused. He achieves his divine vocation by submitting to the punishment that others had deserved. As God took the arrogant opposition of Pharaoh in Egypt and made it serve his own ends in the spectacular rescue of his people, so now, through this one man at supper with his friends, we see God doing the same thing. When the powers of evil do their worst, and crucify the one who brings God’s salvation, God uses that very event to defeat those powers.
We who, daily, weekly or however often, come together to obey Jesus’ command, to break bread and drink wine in his memory, find ourselves drawn into that salvation, that healing life. The powers may still rage, like Pharaoh and his army pursuing the Egyptians after Passover. But they have been defeated, and rescue is secure.”
– NT WRIGHT
We grow through BREAKTHROUGHS and HABITS
What tables can you set?
What invitations can you extend?
Where are you committed to showing up every day? Every week?
What are your practices and habits of formation?
Parents:
What table habits can you create that will immerse your kids in the value of hospitality?
Which non-married person/s could you invite over for a meal to welcome them and give the family time to hang out with?
How can your family show hospitality to the vulnerable and or under-resourced?
For ideas on how to show hospitality through the Good Neighbor Collaborations, email Patricia Manwaringat patricia@trinitygracechurch.com
