040215 SM

Well, good evening to all of you.

As we prepare to participate in communion,

I wanted us to look at the Last Supper of Jesus

as recorded in the Gospel of Luke, Luke chapter 22.

Luke 22 · chapter mention

However, even though the account is quite long

and has many, many sides to it,

I wanted us just to look at one verse.

That's all, just one verse.

And that verse is Jesus' words in Luke 22, 20.

It says, 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.

This cup is the new covenant in my blood

which is poured out for you.

These are Jesus' words.

So when I read these words,

I asked myself,

what was going on in Jesus' minds?

What ideas were going through him?

What was he reflecting on?

And I would like to suggest that he was reflecting on several things.

So even though this verse looks very short,

it turns out to be very loaded simultaneously.

Let's take a look at it one by one.

The first part is,

Jesus says,

this cup is the new covenant in my blood.

The new covenant in my blood.

Notice the words covenant and blood.

So where does that idea come from?

When Jesus says,

my blood of the covenant,

or covenant in my blood,

what was he thinking about?

Well, believe it or not,

he was thinking about Exodus 24.

So if you have Bibles,

turn to Exodus 24.

If not,

I'll be happy to read it for you.

Exodus 24 is the chapter

in which God makes a covenant with Israel.

and the one who mediates in that covenant

happens to be Moses.

And then in Exodus,

in Exodus 24,

in the middle of this ceremony,

in the middle of this covenant,

look what Moses says.

In verse 8,

Moses then took the blood,

sprinkled it on the people,

and said,

this is the blood of the covenant

that the Lord has made with you.

This is the blood of the covenant

that the Lord made with you.

Jesus is thinking to himself

that he, like Moses,

is going to make a covenant

that God is going to use him

to make a covenant with the people.

And so he, like Moses,

mentions the blood of the covenant.

But what was Moses doing?

Of course, covenant is a religious term

for the secular word of treaty.

So a treaty and covenant

are the same thing.

And you can make treaties between equals

when nations make treaties with each other.

Or in this case,

it is a treaty between unequals

when God is making it with people.

So what was God wanting to accomplish

in this covenant

that Moses was officiating at?

He wanted to accomplish two things.

The first thing,

he wanted them to realize

that they belong to God,

that they are God's special treasure.

Now, there's a difference

between special and ordinary.

Believe it or not,

I have a tuxedo,

but none of you have ever seen me

because I only wear it

to special occasions.

And the next time I wear it

will probably be my funeral,

so you can see it then.

I also have,

but I have worn it before

to my daughter's wedding,

but that's all.

Then I have

three-piece suits,

and the only time I wear those

is when I go to teach class

and I'm completely unprepared,

and then I hope

that my attire will distract

them from my lousy lecture.

But when I am informal like this,

I'm very prepared,

so don't worry.

No tie, no coat, nothing.

So,

there are special clothes

that you wear on special occasions,

wedding dresses,

tuxedos,

and then there is ordinary,

average, normal.

And God was saying

that he wanted Israel

to be the special part,

not the ordinary part.

And so Israel was going to be special

because it was going to be the agent

that God was going to use

to bring salvation to the world.

And so in Exodus 19,

4, he says,

you are my special treasure,

segula,

which 1 Peter quotes,

by the way,

and applies it to us.

So God wanted them to be,

to realize that they belong to him.

Well,

all of us belong to several things.

I happen to belong to the United States.

I wasn't born in this country.

I was naturalized.

So through naturalization,

I became a U.S. citizen.

I also belong to Trinity International University

because they have hired me to teach there.

I belong to Christ the King Church

because I agreed to become a member

and I was accepted.

I belong to the YMCA

because I want to see

if God can still perform miracles

and transform me

in spite of,

you know what.

Well,

we all belong to different things.

So,

they were going to be special,

but what were they going to belong to?

The statement that is made

again and again is,

I will be your God

and you will be my people.

They were going to be his people.

And that is repeated,

as I said,

over 50 times

just in the Old Testament.

I am God

and you are my people.

Not,

I am God

and you are my employees

or I am God

and you are my factory workers

or I am God

and you are my choir

or I am God

and you are my soccer team.

It is,

I will be your God

and you will be my people.

So,

if he wants them

to become his people,

how is he going to do it?

And it's the thing

that he says

again and again.

You can see it

in Exodus 6, 7.

You can see,

you can see,

yes,

Exodus 6, 7.

You can see it

in Exodus 19,

4 and 5.

What he was going to do

was to adopt them.

God was going to adopt them.

So,

they were going to belong to him

not by hiring them

or coercing them

or whatever,

but through adopting them.

Now,

what happens

in an adoption?

Several things

happens.

One obvious thing

that happens

in an adoption

is a person

who is an outsider

becomes an insider.

And when that person

becomes an insider,

usually,

maybe the first name

is changed.

Certainly,

in most cases,

the last name

is changed

and one is given

a new name.

And those who

were not belonging

now belong.

Those who were

on the outside

now become

on the inside.

And with that

comes, of course,

the privileges

of being adopted

into this family

and not that family.

Presumably,

the love

of these parents

who adopted

the individual.

Maybe,

perhaps,

the wealth

of that family

is rich

or perhaps

the prestige,

the honor,

the name

of the family

and so on

and so forth.

And so,

God is saying,

you belong to me,

I am going

to adopt you

and the way

that I am going

to adopt you

is through

this covenant.

And, of course,

that is very special.

Now,

this doesn't,

this illustration

doesn't deal

with adoption

but it will help

make a point.

I was a smart student

when I was at UCLA

and I did very good grades

in philosophy.

And being an analytic philosopher,

I quickly realized,

surprise, surprise,

it's just as easy

to fall in love

with a rich girl

as it is

to fall in love

with a poor girl.

So, I thought,

I'm going to put

controls on my heart,

none of this

middle class stuff,

you know,

I'm going to check

her last name,

but regrettably,

there was no Rockefeller

at UCLA

who was single

and available.

So,

I was not

married

into a rich

family.

And,

not only

did I inherit

my own debts

and student loans,

but others.

where is Rockefeller

to come to the rescue?

Where is J.P. Morgan?

They obviously

didn't send their

kids to UCLA.

Well,

we are being adopted.

We may be adopted

by a famous name

like Bush

or Clinton

or Lincoln,

or we may be adopted

by an ordinary family.

and based on

what we are adopted,

we get the privileges

and the advantages

of being part

of that family.

Now,

I want you to think

for a second.

Is there anything

special

about being

adopted

by God?

Is there

any advantage

that we have

over others

if we are

adopted by God

and this other

person is not?

Is there

anything

wonderful

about

being adopted

by God

or is it just

a common

ordinary thing?

What does

being adopted

by God

make available

to us?

God wants

to adopt us.

There is something

very interesting

that

happened

between the Old

and the New Testaments

there is a

German scholar

by the name

of

Joachim

Jeremias

who studied

every written

prayer

that was prayed

in the last

400 years

before Jesus

appeared on the scene.

Every written

prayer

in the Talmud,

in the commentaries,

in the writings,

he studied

every one of them

and he wasn't

out to prove

a point

but he discovered

to his great

surprise

that in the

spirit of 400

years

every prayer

that was prayed

that is also

written,

recorded for us

addresses God

formally

and collectively.

so it is

always

our,

it is never

my

and it's

always

father,

it is never

dad.

So every

prayer for 400

years,

out of great

respect for God,

the nation,

the rabbis,

the priests

would pray

our

father

rather than

my

dad.

and of course

you can see

that,

that is

the beginning

of the

Lord's prayer,

our father

who art in

heaven.

But if you

continue to

read in

John's account

of the

Last Supper,

the Lord

says that

part of

being adopted

is that

we will be

allowed to

call God

Abba.

Not

Avinu

as all the

other prayers

but Abba

and Abba

is Aramaic

for dad.

Jesus

calls the

father

intimately

the same

way a

child would

call.

My sons

never,

never called

me Mr.

Messuah

or Professor

Messuah

or anything

like that.

It was

dad

because there

is a

relationship

between me

and them

that allowed

them to be

intimate with

me and

allowed me

to be

intimate

with them.

And

Jesus

says,

you can

also read

it in

Romans 8,

the spirit

bears witness

with our

spirit by

which we

cry out

Abba,

father,

dad.

So we

are adopted

and we

are allowed

to think

of God

intimately

although of

course there

is nothing

wrong in

thinking about

God with

reverence and

awe and

exaltation.

it's not

an either

or,

it's two

different

approaches.

One we

approach him

as his

subjects,

the others

we approach

him as

his children.

And the

first thing

that Jesus

is thinking

about is

just as

Moses accomplished

that,

Jesus is

going to

accomplish

this as

well.

However,

if we go

back to

Luke 22,

20,

there is a

difference,

slight difference

between what

Moses said

and what

Jesus said.

Moses said,

the blood

of the

covenant.

Jesus says,

my blood

of the

covenant.

So while

in Exodus

they were

offering animals,

Jesus is

announcing that

he is going

to offer

his own

life.

That this

covenant that

God is going

to make is

going to cost

him his life

rather than

the life

of bulls

and goats

and sheep.

And so

the second

thing is

this.

When Jesus

is thinking,

I am going

to accomplish

a great

act of

salvation.

I am

going to

fulfill

God's

purposes

and plans.

And it's

going to

cost me

my own

life.

And I'm

a human

being.

What else

is he

thinking about?

Where else

do we

have an

individual

who is

willing to

give his

life to

bring salvation

to the

world in

the Old

Testament?

That is

Isaiah

53.

So Jesus

is thinking

about

Exodus

24,

but in

addition to

that he

is thinking

also of

Isaiah

53.

Take a

look at,

it's a

familiar

passage,

but if

you're

in

53,

look at

verses

4-7.

So

Isaiah

53,

4-7.

7.

Surely

he took

our

infirmities

and carried

our sorrows,

yet we

considered him

stricken by

God,

smitten by

him and

afflicted,

but he

was pierced

for our

transgressions,

he was

crushed for

our

iniquities,

and the

punishment that

brought us

peace was

upon him.

By his

wounds we

are healed.

We all,

like sheep,

have gone

astray.

Each of us

has turned to

his own way,

and the Lord

has laid on

him the

iniquity of

us all.

He was

oppressed and

afflicted,

yet he did

not open

his mouth.

He was

led like a

lamb to

the slaughter,

lamb to

the slaughter.

Why lamb?

Because he

wants us to

connect this

passage with

the Passover,

lamb.

And it's

not only that

Isaiah saw

it, guess

what?

John the

Baptist saw

it.

And when

John saw

Jesus, the

first thing

he announced,

behold the

lamb of

God who

takes away

the sin

of the

world.

And it's

not just

John the

Baptist saw

it and

nobody else

in the

New Testament.

Turn with

me to

1 Corinthians

5-7.

That's a

very important

passage.

1 Corinthians

5-7.

Let me

read it

for you.

1 Corinthians

5-7.

1 Corinthians

5-7.

In the

middle of

this verse,

Christ, our

Passover

lamb, has

been sacrificed.

sacrificed.

And that's

as explicit

as you can

get.

Christ, our

Passover lamb,

has been

sacrificed.

Jesus understands

it.

Paul understands

it.

John the

Baptist understands

it.

Jesus is

offering

himself to

make it

possible for

us to be

adopted, has

become our

Passover lamb.

So, Jesus

is thinking of

Exodus 24,

the blood of

the covenant.

He is thinking

of Isaiah 53,

like sheep led

to the slaughter,

he opened not

his mouth.

But Jesus is

also thinking of

one more thing.

Please turn to

Luke 22,

20.

In the

same way,

after the

supper, he

took the

cup saying,

this is the

new covenant

in my blood

which is

poured out

for you.

He doesn't

say this is

the covenant

in my blood.

He says,

this is the

new covenant

in the blood.

So, just as

he adds the

word my,

he also adds

the word

new.

And so,

what is he

thinking about

now when he

says new

covenant in

my blood?

He is thinking

of Jeremiah

Jeremiah 31 · chapter mention

chapter 31,

31.

This is the

only passage

in all of the

Old Testament,

in all of the

Old Testament,

that uses the

expression the

new covenant.

covenant.

Nowhere else

is that

phrase used

in the Old

Testament other

than Jeremiah

31, 31.

The days are

coming, says

the Lord, when

I will make

a new covenant.

And Jesus

says, this is

the new covenant

in my blood.

So, he is

thinking Jeremiah,

he is thinking

Isaiah, he is

thinking Moses.

But what is

special about

the new covenant?

It is

verse 34.

I will

forgive their

iniquities and

remember their

sins no more.

So, in order

for God

to adopt

us, he

must also

forgive us.

He needs to

forgive us

first and

then adopt

us.

And what

the new covenant

emphasizes is the

forgiveness of

sins.

So, we have

been adopted

by God.

And we

have the

privilege of

being intimate

with him and

call him

dad, knowing

that our

sins are

forgiven.

And that

this covenant

has cost him

his life.

Now,

since I

making eye

contact with

Mike, I

will use

him for

an

illustration.

Suppose

someone

kidnaps

Mike and

writes me a

letter and

says,

Samir,

we have

Mike.

If you

want him

back, you

have to

pay ransom.

And I

said, oh,

okay.

How much

do you

want?

Five

dollars.

Mike is

safe.

Let's

say he

says

$10.

Mike is

still safe.

$50.

Still

safe.

$100.

I have to

think about

it, but

still safe.

$2 million.

No way, I

don't have

that kind of

money.

how about

not just

$2 million,

but $2

million and

the life of

my grandchildren.

No way.

I mean, I

love Mike and

all that, but

I am not

willing to

give the

life of my

grandchildren

for him.

My love

has limits.

So you

have to ask

yourself, how

much do I

love somebody?

And how

much am I

willing to

go?

And we

have the

answer.

John 3.

16.

God so

loved the

world that

he gave

not just

$50 or

$100 or

$2 million.

God gave

his son

to show

you how

generous he

is.

That he

wants to

adopt us

so much

that he

is willing

to pay

that much.

You think

Ben would

give the

life of

his son?

Not in

million years?

But God

is willing

to.

That is

what we

are celebrating

this evening.

That we

are adopted

by God.

God

says, you

can call

me dad.

I love

you more

than you

realize.

God

and I'll

even give

the life

of my

son for

you.

Not

cows,

not cattle,

but my

son.

And that

is what

Jesus

initiated.

And he

wants to

establish it

as a

treaty,

as a

covenant,

so nobody

would have

any question

or doubts

as to what

he is

doing.

Amen.