The Last Supper

The Apostle John’s account of Jesus’ last night with his disciples focused primarily on the message Jesus delivered in the upper room where he and his twelve apostles celebrated the Passover Feast. John began by stating, “And supper being ended, the devil having now put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him; Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he was come from God, and went to God; he riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel, and girded himself. After that he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded” (John 13:2-5).

John was the only person that recorded Jesus’ humble act of washing his disciples feet. It could be that John was particularly impressed by this action because Jesus’ betrayer, Judas was still in the room when Jesus performed this task. John may have wondered afterward why Jesus would go to such great lengths to show kindness to a man that was possessed by the devil, but his account of the conversation that took place showed that Jesus was intentionally trying to teach his disciples a lesson even if they didn’t completely understand it. John stated, “So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you?” (John 13:12).

Jesus’ explanation of his act of washing his disciples feet pointed to the fulfillment of prophecy about his betrayer (John 13:18). Evidently, Judas could have resisted the devil’s attempts to make him a traitor. None of the other disciples suspected Judas of any wrong doing. When Jesus told Judas, “What you are going to do, do quickly” (John 13:27), John stated, “No one at the table knew why he said this to him” (John 13:28). After Judas left the room, Jesus told his disciples, “Now is the Son of man glorified, and God is glorified in him” (John 13:31). It could be that Judas’ act of betrayal was the final step in God’s plan of salvation. Although Satan intended to stop Jesus from becoming the Savior of the World, he actually helped him by turning him over to the authorities that were able to have him crucified.

In connection with the New Testament that was established during The Last Supper (Matthew 26:28), Jesus told his disciples, “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another” (John 13:34-35). This commandment might not seem very extraordinary in the light of all that has happened since Jesus died 2000 years ago, but it was what we might call today a game changer. Love was not a characteristic that was typically associated with God or his people. In response to Peter’s claim that he would lay down his life for him (John 13:37), Jesus told Peter, “Verily I say unto thee, That this day, even in this night, before the cock crow twice, thou shalt deny my thrice” (Mark 14:30).

Jesus’ last meal with his twelve apostles was a critical event that marked the end of his three year ministry on Earth. The objective of this special event was threefold. First, it was supposed to be a celebration of the Jewish Passover Feast that was instituted by Moses at the time that the Israelites were delivered from slavery in Egypt (Exodus 12:11). Second, it signified the institution of Jesus’ New Testament or Covenant with the Jews (Matthew 26:28; Jeremiah 31:33-34). According to the Apostle Paul, the Lord’s supper was to repeated periodically until Christ’s return (1 Corinthians 11:26). Finally, The Last Supper symbolized restored communion between God and man and became a ritual known as the Eucharist that represents for believers Christ’s substitutionary death on the cross.

A central point of The Last Supper was Jesus’ recognition of his betrayer, Judas Iscariot. Matthew recorded, “Now when the even was come, he sat down with the twelve. And as they did eat, he said, Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me” (Matthew 26:20-21). The reason Jesus may have wanted his disciples to know that he was aware of who would betray him was so that they wouldn’t be shocked when it actually happened. Jesus definitely wasn’t caught off guard and didn’t even seem to be slightly disappointed that Judas was planning to betray him. It appeared as though Jesus was actually encouraging Judas to do what he thought he needed to when he told him, “What you are going to do, do quickly” (John 13:27, ESV).

The words that Jesus spoke as he passed the bread and wine to his disciples are recorded in three of the four gospels, but there are some variations that suggest his words were not remembered or recorded exactly as he spoke them. Matthew’s account is likely the most reliable since he was present when the words were spoken. He said, “And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to his disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it, for this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. But I say to 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” (Matthew 26:26-29).

Jesus’ association of the bread with his body and the wine with his blood may have been a spiritual metaphor that was intended to draw his disciples attention to the act that he was about to complete. Although some people may have been taught that Jesus’ words were meant to be taken literally, there is no indication that the bread the disciples ate and wine they drank was anything other than normal food and beverage. It could be that the symbolic nature of Jesus’ last supper was intended to be evident in his instruction to “Do this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19, ESV). The Greek term that appears in the phrase translated “remission of sins” in Matthew 26:28, aphesis (af´-es-is) indicates a legal transaction is taking place in which the sinner is being pardoned and/or set free from captivity.