The Last Passover

I was just going to go over to Mark chapter 14, Mark chapter 14 this morning as we continue on through the book of Mark here,

Mark 14 · chapter mention Mark 14 · chapter mention

as we see that reality of who Jesus is.

And the Gospels reveal to us all those things about Jesus, who he is,

and more importantly, or just as importantly, what he has done for us.

You know, it's important to realize what Jesus has done,

and as Mark continues to record these days in this last week of Jesus' life,

we find here that it's now come to Wednesday morning as Jesus and his disciples once again begin to head towards Jerusalem.

And we know that it was the day of preparation for the Passover meal,

and the disciples began to wonder where they were going to celebrate it.

You know, it was one of those things, it was not if, it was the when.

They understood that Jesus was going to celebrate the Passover because it was his custom.

It's just what he did, and as we understand, as we've seen him walk through this last week,

we've come to this day that's very critical because we see that transition

between what we talked about last week with Judas and the chief priests and the scribes doing the plot to kill Jesus,

and how all that went together, the different motivations that people have in that,

and even how we have to watch our motivations about things.

And then we're going to see here today,

Jesus, as he begins talking about here the last Passover,

Passover is what we're going to kind of call it,

because this is the last one that he celebrates before he goes to the cross.

And there's some important things that happen at this event.

But we need to understand the things surrounding it and the things going on with it,

because we know that from last week had been just the right time for everything to come together

and to understand how this was happening there.

And we know that Judas was looking for that convenient time to turn Jesus over to the scribes and the chief priests.

That convenient time.

And all this was working and doing and coming together,

and now we find it was the day of preparation to celebrate such a key event in Jewish history,

because oftentimes we just talk about the Passover.

But, you know, when we look and understand,

we're going to talk this morning a little bit,

because the Passover was a key memorial in Jewish history.

It was key to everything that they did.

It happened at the beginning of the year.

It was the religious festival that kicked off everything of their calendar.

It was the one that focused upon what God had done for them as they came out of Egypt.

Because remember, it was instituted the night that the Israelites left out of Egypt

after they had had the death angel pass over them because of the blood of the Lamb.

And we'll talk more about that as we get into the message here this morning.

But we find here that as Jesus is doing this,

let's pick up in our account here on chapter 14.

If you found chapter 14 in your Bible, let's stand together

in honor of reading of the Word of God here this morning.

And we'll pick up in verse 12 here this morning.

And it says,

And he said,

And he senteth forth two of his disciples, and saith unto them,

Go ye into the city, and there shall meet you a man bearing a pitcher of water.

Follow him.

And wheresoever he shall go in, you shall say to the good men of the house,

The master saith, Where is the guest chamber where I shall eat the Passover with my disciples?

And he will show you a large upper room, furnished and prepared.

There make ready for us.

And his disciples went forth and came into the city,

and found as he had said unto them, and they made ready the Passover.

Let's pray.

Heavenly Fathers, we come before you this morning.

Lord, we're thankful for your Word.

Lord, we're thankful for even the picture that we see here within the Passover,

the picture of your redemption for us.

Lord, help us to see and to understand,

and to grab a hold of and to make personal the reality of what it declares to us.

And Lord, as we pray you just have your hand upon each heart, each life here today.

Lord, just help us to focus upon your Word and what you would have for us

as we prepare for the message here today.

Lord, and we just give you all the praise in Jesus' name.

Amen.

May be seated.

Amen.

You know, we see here that the time of this happening was the 14th day of the month.

And we know that because it was the day that the Passover was to be killed.

We know from a Jewish history that the calendar was laid out.

It was Wednesday that this was taking place in that the 14th day of the month.

And when they were ready to kill the Passover,

Passover, and they were going to kill the Passover lamb to make ready for the meal

that was a part of the celebration.

You know, and this was the main feast of the religious year for the children of Israel.

Because we see here, as we begin here, it says the first day of unleavened bread

when they killed the Passover.

Now, we see here, and we talked about this last week,

the Feast of Unleavened Bread was a time here.

It's talking about here this period of time from the time that they chose the lamb,

how they observed the lamb, how the lamb was slain,

and then the feast that followed the seven days afterwards

where they would not eat of any leavened bread.

All this was the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

When they talk about that, each one of those is a separate thing,

but they talk about it because it all happens in sequence.

It all happened in a flow and set and calendared out every year.

These things took place,

and we see these things coming together with the Passover being prepared,

but we see the focus of the Passover because notice here

that the lamb was the important part where they killed the Passover.

The Passover, what they killed was a lamb,

and we're going to look at what those things were here in just a little bit,

but the Passover lamb was slain.

It was a meal, and that required preparation.

And we see here that just as the meal, that preparation was required,

so the disciples said,

Hey, Jesus, we know you haven't said anything about where we're going to eat the meal this year

because the way this is asked, it's like it was an expectation.

In other words, they said, you know, before we knew what was going on,

this year we don't seem to know.

You know, but we know that you got this in store,

and so the disciples come and ask,

and we know from Luke 22,

it tells us specifically that it was Peter and John

that were the specific ones heading this up,

and they were the ones that inquired about the need for the meal,

and they knew it was the day that the Passover lamb was to be killed

because it commemorated something very important,

because it commemorated the night that God,

the death angel of judgment in Egypt,

passed over all those that had blood applied upon their doorposts.

You know, we understand that that was the tenth plague there in Egypt,

and we find that Exodus 12 tells us about that preparation

of what the disciples and Jesus were considering and looking at there.

And so I encourage you to go over to Exodus chapter 12 here this morning for a moment,

Exodus 12 · chapter mention

because if we're going to talk about the feast of the Passover,

one thing we need to understand, what are we talking about?

You know, it gets talked about a lot.

You know, you hear the term Passover,

but what does it mean?

What was involved in it?

Because it's important to see the picture of what's taking place here,

to know what was in it.

And it's important to see how it applies,

and the picture that we see here applies for us even today.

Because here in Exodus 12,

it declares for them all the requirements for the preparation.

It talks about the preparation.

It talks about the participants.

It talks about the process.

The preparation of the meal and the purpose of the meal.

And we see here it was the beginning of another feast that lasted seven days,

the feast of unleavened bread,

where leaven would be removed from the household during the duration of the feast.

Now we understand as we look at leaven in the Old Testament,

and even in the New,

you'll find it equates to sin.

It's a picture of how it impacts the whole of the person.

You know, when we understand that sin doesn't just impact one part,

it impacts all.

Just like leaven or yeast,

when you put yeast in a loaf of bread,

there's none of it exempt.

It affects all of it.

It's that picture that we see here.

But the regulations here for the Passover are found here in Exodus 12.

Let's just take a glimpse at what's going on here,

because as we look here in verse 3 of chapter 12,

it says,

And then in verse 5 we find,

And so we see here that the first thing they had to do was choose a lamb.

You know, they had to choose a lamb,

and then they had to prepare the lamb by watching and observing

to make sure it was without blemish.

You know, they had to make sure it met the requirements.

You know, to know that everything was in order.

And then on the 14th day they would kill it in the evening.

And they would do so, we see here in verse 7,

back in Exodus it says,

And so we see here they would take some of that blood

when they were preparing the lamb,

and they would take,

and the Bible says that they would dip it in hyssop,

and they would put it on the doorposts,

and put it over,

and they had that blood on the outside of the doorpost.

And we're going to see that picture,

and what that did for them here in just a moment.

But we find here that then they're supposed to take the lamb

and roast it with fire.

Verse 8 tells us here of that.

Look here in verse 8,

it says,

And they shall eat the flesh in that night,

roast with fire,

and unleavened bread,

and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.

You know,

and so we see here there's some things that they have.

They roast with fire,

and they serve it with unleavened bread,

and the bitter herb.

Now,

the bitter herb,

how many like horseradish?

That's the bitter herb,

you know.

It does have a different twang to it than most,

you know.

People like hot things,

but horseradish has a distinct taste.

And it's a bitter root.

But we're going to see here,

that also represents the bitterness that they had

as they were captive there in Israel.

Or in Egypt,

and as Israel was preparing to come out.

And we see here that there was a way

they were supposed to eat it.

Watch this,

because this is unique,

because here's the evening meal.

Most of the time you think about the evening meal,

it's like you kind of are winding down,

you're kind of settling in,

but it tells them that they're supposed to eat it.

Look here in verse 11,

how they're supposed to eat.

They're supposed to eat it prepared.

It says,

And thus shall you eat it with your loins girded,

your shoes on your feet,

and your staff in your hand,

and you shall eat it in haste.

You know?

So in other words,

you're not going to get in trouble for eating fast.

You know?

Yeah.

Ever growing up,

have kids come to the table

and they're like scarfing it down

and mom's going,

slow down!

You know,

it was the one time a year

that you got to eat all the lamb they wanted

and nobody told them to slow down.

Because they're to eat it in haste.

And there was a reason for that

because they were supposed to be ready to go.

They were supposed to be ready for what was to come

and ready to be and prepared for that.

But I want you to see one quick note here.

We'll get back to this in a moment.

But at the end of verse 11,

I want you to see here

that even though God gave the Passover

to Israel to celebrate,

there's an important phrase

because it is the Lord's Passover.

It's not ours.

It's not yours.

It belongs to the Lord.

Because it's the Lord's picture

that He puts into it.

It's what God is going to do for us

because this is the Lord's Passover.

But let's break this down just a moment

because let's explain here

what's happening.

Let's stop here for a moment

and look at the importance

of what's happening with this meal.

Because it's easy to see the details

and the ritual of the event.

You know,

sometimes people get caught up

in ritual and detail

and we miss what's involved in it.

You know,

we are people that like repetition.

Now most people,

I don't like things to be...

You like things the same.

You know,

people feel comfortable

when they know what's going to happen.

When there's consistency,

there's comfort that comes.

We like that consistency.

We like the fact that,

hey, I know pretty much

what's going to happen.

You know,

a surprise now and then is fine,

but most of the time we like

when we know and have stability.

And part of that is in our ritual

and even our worship sometimes.

It can become just stiff

and it becomes just something you do.

You know,

it's like coming to church

on Sunday morning.

Well,

we're going to come

and Brother Miles

is going to lead us

in some songs.

You know,

you'll sing them.

You might belt them out.

You might just sit there

and mumble to yourself

whatever level you're at.

You know,

it's like,

just to remind you,

you're supposed to take

a joyful noise

unto the Lord.

Amen?

Everybody sings well?

You know,

joyful noise is a requirement

because that joyful noise

is something that ought to come

from the heart out.

When we sing,

it's not just process.

When we sing songs

to begin with,

but you know,

it's easy for that

to become process,

become ritual.

And we get caught up,

this is my expectation

of church.

This is the expectation

that we think.

But I want you to know

that it has more involved

than just the expectation

of the repetition.

The children of Israel

were to do this

every year.

And very easily,

it could become

just something we do

instead of something

that has a meaning,

something that has an impact.

Because God didn't give this

to the children of Israel

for no reason.

It was a memorial,

it was to remind them

to slow down

and to consider

what God has done.

And even today,

I think we need to be careful

we don't fall into ritual.

Now there's nothing wrong

with having order

and things put together,

but we've got to be careful

that in our mind

it isn't just something we do,

but it's something

that we come to honor

the one who came

and died for our sin.

Because the Passover

was reminding them

that there was a Redeemer.

That God cared.

And we're going to see here

in this,

even in this,

the picture that is there

because it's not just

a ritual of the event,

it was so much more.

Because it is a picture

of what was about to happen

before their eyes

just hours from then.

Israel back in

Exodus chapter 12,

Exodus 12 · chapter mention

when they celebrated

the Passover,

there was going to be

some major things

happening in just a few hours.

They were going to be set free.

When we consider this event

from Mark chapter 14,

Mark 14 · chapter mention

in a matter of a few hours,

there was going to be

some major changes.

Things were going to

alter history.

Because when Jesus

went to the cross,

He set us free from sin.

There was a big thing

going to take place.

The Passover pictures

those things,

but notice this feast,

there was a focus

about this feast.

The focus was centered

about the Lamb.

The Lamb was the central picture

of the Passover.

Everything we read here

in Exodus focuses on it.

You know, look at verse 3

for a moment.

Because as we look here

in verse 3,

I want you to see

and grab a hold of this

this morning.

Because here in verse 3,

right at the end of the verse,

it says,

a Lamb for a house.

I want you to see

this progression.

It goes from a Lamb.

Then we find in verse 4

it goes to the Lamb.

And then you go on down

into verse 5,

and it makes it

a little different

because it says,

your Lamb.

Your Lamb.

It moves from,

you might say,

a generic idea

of a Savior

to the identification

of a Savior

to the reality

that you need

a personal relationship

with the Savior.

You know,

that's a progression

we even make today

when it comes to

our relationship with God

because we first have

to recognize that He is.

To recognize that God

and God is there

and not just that

Jesus is the Savior.

You know,

there's many people today

that would tell you

that yes,

Jesus is the Savior.

But if you stop there,

you stop short

because Jesus

isn't just the Savior.

He needs to be

your Savior.

Just as when they

celebrated the Passover,

it had to be

your Lamb.

The benefits

didn't happen

because your neighbors

did it.

The benefit happened

because

you did it.

your participation

in that.

It would have been kept,

this Lamb was kept

for four days

before it was killed

and it was intentional

because also you'll find

that,

I don't know about you,

but it's pretty clear

that this is something

that the family kept,

the Lamb,

close to them

to observe it

for four days.

Now,

I don't know about you,

but when something

hangs out at your house,

especially,

you know,

like a one-year-old Lamb,

everybody thinks

it looks kind of cute,

you know,

and it's kind of cuddly

and, you know,

everything looks

kind of good,

but the problem is here

that it begins

to form an attachment.

It's amazing.

Have you ever taken,

brought a pet home

and how quick

do you attach

to something?

An animal

around the house?

I mean,

you attach to it,

especially the children.

And here they have

this Lamb

that's close

and they're observing

and it becomes

real personal

on the fourth day

when the Lamb

had to be slain.

It became very personal,

the reality

of what was happening

because this Lamb

was important.

It pictured for us

a personal Savior.

Jesus Christ

is not just a Savior.

He's not just

one among many.

He is the Savior

and His work

is only accomplished

in your life

when He is your Savior.

Today,

I encourage you

to make sure

that He is your Savior.

not a ritual Savior,

not one that just

goes through process

of salvation,

but one that's

a reality

that says

He is my salvation.

He is the one

that paid the price

for my sin.

Because we see here

that the Lamb

also in Exodus

Exodus 12:5

chapter 12,

verse 5,

speaks specifically

about this Lamb

being without blemish.

You know,

this Lamb here

that we're going to

look at

as a celebration

as they prepare,

everything was pointing

to the one

they were going

to celebrate it with.

When the disciples

said,

where are we going

to make that

we can celebrate

their Passover

with you,

your Passover,

you know,

the one that is there

at points to Christ.

You know,

we see here

that Jesus

was without blemish.

1 John chapter 3

1 John 3 · chapter mention

and verse 5

it says,

and you know

that He was manifest

to take away our sins

and in Him is

no sin.

I want you to understand

Jesus was without sin.

He paid a price

for you and I

that He did not deserve.

The picture of the Lamb

in the Passover,

the Passover Lamb

took something

that it did not deserve.

It was a substitute

for you.

The Lamb was not guilty

of anything,

but yet the Lamb

paid the price.

They were to take

the blood of this slain Lamb

and it was to be placed

on the doorposts

of the house.

The family was to eat

the meal

and remain in the house

until morning.

What a wonderful depiction

of what the shed blood

of Jesus Christ does.

You know,

the only thing

that will keep you

from the judgment of God

is the blood

of Jesus Christ.

When they put the blood

on the doorpost,

the Bible tells us

that the death angel

passed over.

That death angel

was God's judgment.

The plagues in Egypt

were God's judgment

upon the gods of Egypt.

That was that final judgment

where they lost

the firstborn.

That firstborn

would be killed

if they did not have blood

on the doorpost.

You know,

we see here

that it was the judgment

of God.

You know,

look over into Romans

Romans 5 · chapter mention

chapter 5 for a moment.

Romans 5 and verse 9

says,

As much more than

being now justified

by what?

His blood.

We shall be saved

from what?

Wrath

through Him.

God's wrath

is God's judgment.

If He is your Savior,

His shed blood

now allows God

to move His judgment

from you.

He literally

passes over

your sin

because your sin

has been covered

under the blood

of Jesus Christ.

Because notice here,

the lamb is to be

roasted with fire.

Fire here represents

God's judgment.

Just as God's judgment

was poured out

upon Egypt,

God's judgment

was taken upon

the lamb.

God's judgment

was upon the lamb.

And while we could

speak so much more

about this Passover lamb,

it's a clear reminder

that only by what

Jesus Christ did for you

that God's judgment

can be turned away.

You know,

we see this picture

of the lamb

that God's judgment

was there.

You know,

look over to 2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 5 · chapter mention

chapter 5.

2 Corinthians chapter 5

2 Corinthians 5 · chapter mention

and verse 21

says,

So He hath made Him

to be sin for us

who knew no sin

that we may be made

the righteousness

of God

in Him.

You know,

it's only by what

the lamb represents

and what the lamb did,

what the lamb took,

and we see this picture

from the Old Testament

now being moved

literally

into the new

because it now changes

because the lamb

is no longer

the little critter

that runs around.

The lamb was walking

among them.

John chapter 1

John 1 · chapter mention

talks about John the Baptist

when he saw Jesus

and said,

Behold,

what?

The lamb of God

that taketh away

the sin

of the world.

Jesus

is the lamb

in the Passover.

And we're going to see

this play through

as we begin looking here.

So as the disciples

asked Jesus

about this very important event,

look back into Mark chapter 14

Mark 14 · chapter mention

as we get back

where we started this morning

because let's look at this again

in light of that.

It says,

In the first day of unleavened bread,

when they killed the Passover,

His disciples said unto Him,

Where wilt thou that we go

and prepare that thou mayest

eat the Passover?

You know,

they understood this Passover,

this last Passover

that was going to be celebrated.

And you say,

Well, there's been people

that have celebrated

the Passover since then,

but you know,

the Passover since then

have not had the meaning.

Because everything

in the Passover

has been fulfilled.

Jews continue to celebrate

the Passover today.

You know what they do?

They miss the obvious.

They miss the picture

of who Jesus Christ is,

that He was the Lamb.

And we're going to find here

as we go through this

in the coming weeks

that Jesus takes this feast

to the Passover memorial

and takes it

and refocuses it

to a different,

slightly different memorial.

It's really kind of

the same memorial.

It's just you're looking at it

from a different perspective.

Because Jesus takes

and changes it

because it's His.

Because it moves

from looking forward,

because here,

we're going to talk

about this next week

as He institutes

the Lord's Supper.

The Lord's Supper

is not about looking back.

The Lord's Supper

is about looking forward.

It's a memorial

for what's been accomplished

but what He's going to do.

It helps keep us focused

and reminded.

Just like the Passover

kept the Jews focused

on the Messiah

that was to come.

The Lord's Supper

to a believer

is a time that we stop

and we reflect

and consider

what Christ has done for you.

It's the reason

we don't take it

just flippantly.

We'll talk about that

in the coming weeks.

That's a whole other

one to get into here

on that.

I want you to understand

that God's judgment

required that the lamb

be killed

in order for Him

to pass over.

Look back over

into Hebrews chapter 9.

Hebrews 9 · chapter mention

Hebrews chapter 9

Hebrews 9 · chapter mention

and we see here

this.

It says,

And almost all things

are by the law

purged with blood.

Without shedding of blood

is no remission.

I want you to understand

that the blood required

the blood was required

in the sacrifice.

Everything they did

pictured what Jesus Christ

did for us.

When we see this picture here

that the shedding of blood

was required,

you know,

people today

don't like the idea

the blood is needed.

You know,

we sang about the blood

this morning,

you know,

and you think about

those words,

you know,

hopefully you can look back

at what you sang this morning

and said,

you know,

that holds a little

different punch

because the blood of Jesus

was essential

for our salvation.

But let's look here

at the rest of this.

Let's see what happens here.

Notice in verse 13,

And He sendeth forth

two of His disciples,

and we already know

that that was John and Peter.

But look at the lodging problem

and how He's going to solve this.

Because look at what

Jesus tells them here

because this is one

of those passages

is it's like,

why did Jesus

so coy about

His statement here?

Because this is really

kind of ambiguous.

I mean,

this is worse

than getting directions

from some people

where they tell you,

well,

if you go down here

to the stop sign

and you go right

and then you turn left

at the big tree

and then that'll take you

down the street

where you'll see

the gas station

and then you turn right

at the gas station,

that takes you down

to the mall

you know.

I always love telling people,

well, you go west

and they'll look at you

like, what?

You know.

But I want you to see here

that Jesus could have gave

very specific

directions to this house.

But I want you to see

what He did in its place.

And I think there's a reason

we can discern from Scripture

why Jesus

presented it to His disciples

this way.

But notice what happens here.

And He saith in them,

notice He says

in verse 13,

Go ye into the city.

I'm pretty sure

John and Peter

were probably like,

okay,

we're heading

that direction.

And then Jesus,

look what Jesus tells them.

He says,

And there shall you meet

a man bearing

a pitcher of water.

Follow him.

Now this is one of those,

I guarantee you,

that we kind of miss

this cultural element here.

Because understanding

some Jewish culture

here is critical.

Because to us,

how would He figure out

which guy it was?

You know,

how many people

in a city the size

of Jerusalem at the time

would be carrying water?

You know?

I mean,

you could think,

man,

there could be lots and lots.

It would be like

going downtown

and then Lincoln

and saying,

you know,

in our minds,

you know,

go downtown

and find somebody

carrying a water bottle

and follow them.

you would look at them

like you are crazy.

But when we understand

culturally here

what Jesus is telling them,

the uniqueness

of what He's saying,

it helps us grasp

because in the day

of Jesus,

there was something

that happened.

Number one,

men didn't carry

pitchers of water.

Women carried

pitchers of water.

If a man

was to carry water,

it would be

in a skin.

You know,

kind of like

a soft-sided

water jug.

That was the normal

for a man to carry.

A woman would carry

a pitcher of water.

Now,

so when Jesus said,

you're going to,

when you enter the city,

you're going to see

a man,

a servant in this case,

carrying a pitcher

of water.

So,

understanding that

changes what Jesus

is telling them,

isn't it?

Because this man,

even though he's

going to be one

among many,

is going to have

something unique

that would have

stood out in the

crowd to them.

It was something

that they would have

looked at and said,

yep,

I'm pretty sure

he's it

because he's

carrying a pitcher

of water.

But we see here,

Jesus tells them

to follow this man

with a pitcher of water

to the place,

he says,

wherever he goes,

ye shall go in

and say to the

good men of the house.

You know,

we see here

as Jesus is telling them,

he says,

follow the servant

and then go on

into the house

and we have to

understand this

is the house

of the day.

You would have

the outer court

and you had

the different areas

of the house

and this man

having a large

upper room

that was fully

furnished.

We know some things.

He probably has

a man of resource

so it probably

wasn't a small

house.

Number one,

he had servants.

He had all these

different things

taking place.

But we see here

that they're supposed

to go in

and ask

or almost

instruct the man.

It says,

the master

say it there

in verse 14,

where is the guest

chamber

where I shall

eat the Passover

with my disciples?

In verse 15,

he will show you

a large upper room

furnished and prepared

there make ready

for us.

You know,

here Jesus gives

these instructions

to his disciples.

He says,

hey guys,

take this

and go into town

and follow this guy

holding a pitcher

of water

and you follow him

to whatever house

he goes to.

Go in,

talk to the master

and say,

hey,

Jesus said

that you have

a room for him.

You know,

and we're going

to see here

because I believe

Jesus already

had this all prepared

and arranged

with this man.

But why would

Jesus be so vague

in his instruction?

You know,

it relates to what

we talked about

last week.

What was Judas

up to?

Judas was looking

for a convenient

time

to sell Jesus out.

Jesus didn't,

who was standing

there when Jesus

gave the disciples

the instruction.

Judas was.

So Jesus looks

at Peter and John

and says,

go into the city,

follow the guy

with the pitcher

on his head,

follow him to his house,

and then we'll meet you

there a little later.

Judas would have had

no clue

where that was.

Because let's face it,

Jesus reveals

his knowing

of those things,

his omniscience,

for he knew

what was taking place.

He knew the heart

of Judas.

He knew what was

already put in place

over here.

He knew that

this man's servant

was going to be

carrying a pitcher

of water,

which is one of those

that's just kind of,

I think,

just sort of,

it's what took place.

And Jesus said,

hey,

this is what's

taking place,

I'll take and use that

because it's unique

to get my disciples

to his house.

You know,

I think as I read this,

one thing I was thinking

about is the disciples

and the amount of faith

that they had

in his instruction.

I mean,

most of the time

we find that

when Jesus,

if somebody would tell you

something like this,

I think most of us

would just look at him

strange.

But we have no record,

this wasn't a test

of their faith,

but Jesus told them

and they just followed.

Their faith was already

in Christ.

We asked him where to go

and he told us,

so let's go.

You know,

let's get busy,

let's do what we're

supposed to do.

You know,

they played,

they had a lot of faith

in the instructions

as they went,

even though Jesus

didn't reveal

all the details,

but what he did

is he gave them

exactly what they needed

to accomplish the task.

He gave them

exactly what was needed

to that.

You know,

and I think this applies

in our lives today.

Because if you ever know,

sometimes people say,

well,

I'll serve the Lord

if God gives me

all the details.

If God lays everything

out in detail,

I'll serve him.

I want everything

laid out.

I don't want

any unknowns.

But you know what?

Some days we need

to trust God

just like Peter

and John did

to say Jesus

has given us

what we need

to accomplish

what he set us out

to do.

And that Jesus

will fill in the difference.

You know,

over the course of my life,

I've learned one thing.

Sometimes as I look back,

I'm glad I didn't know

what was going to happen

beforehand.

Because what we think is,

well,

if it's bad,

I won't do it.

If it's good,

we'll do it.

It's like,

that's not the way

life works.

You know,

the same is true today.

We don't always know

all the details,

but we have to trust

him with what we know.

We confidently know

that he's already

has the details

worked out.

I mean,

what an amazing thing

to realize that Jesus,

when he told the disciples,

he said,

guys,

I already have

all the details

worked out.

Look how all that

came together.

Jesus said,

I have a place.

It's already prepared.

It's furnished.

All they had to do

was finish preparing the meal.

They had all the furniture

set up.

They had everything ready.

God already had

the rest of it

in place.

What they had to do

was trust him by faith

to take action

on what they knew

they were supposed to do.

Now,

we often quote

a very familiar passage

back in Proverbs chapter 3.

Proverbs 3 · chapter mention

You know,

Proverbs 3,

and it tells us this

in verses 5 and 6.

It says,

Trust in the Lord

with all thine heart

and lean not

on thine own understanding

and all thy ways

acknowledge him.

And now look at

that last part.

And he shall do what?

Direct thy paths.

We hear it,

but sometimes

we don't process it.

Peter and John

were living this verse.

Consider what they did.

They weren't leaning

on their own understanding.

Their own understanding

is Jesus,

you know,

you could have

given us an address.

It would be a little easier.

They said,

No,

Jesus gave us

what we needed

to accomplish the task

according to what

he has set out

and he's going to

direct our path.

Think of how God

directed the path

of Peter

and John

that day.

they found

the man

with the picture

and he took

them directly

to where they

needed to be.

Why were they

where they were

supposed to be?

Because they were

obedient to what

they knew.

They were obedient

to what God

had told them.

They went to the place

where everything

was furnished

and prepared.

You know,

this implies

that Jesus

had already arranged

to meet there

even though

he hadn't disclosed

it to his disciples.

That's another

important thing

to realize

that God

is working

in circles

and things

bigger than yourself.

God's got

details worked

out that are

beyond us.

But he's got

things fitting

into place

that's going

to benefit us.

God works

through those

details.

It was furnished

and prepared.

You know,

but why would

Jesus keep this

from the disciples?

You know,

and we understood

what was happening

here.

That Jesus

wanted to eat

the Passover

with his disciples

and where it

was going to be

where I shall

eat the Passover

with my disciples.

Look down

in verse 14

here in our text.

It says,

well,

it's what Jesus

says,

where the guest

chamber,

where I shall

eat the Passover

with my disciples.

You know,

we see here

Peter and John

went to Jerusalem

expecting

to find

what Jesus

had told them.

Seeing a man

with a water pitcher

followed him

to his house,

inquired to the

owner of the room,

finding it furnished

and prepared

and then making

the Passover

ready.

So I want you

to understand

they had some

things to do

other than just

having a prepared

and furnished room.

Their job

was to prepare

the meal

that was to come.

Part of that

preparation

was to kill

the lamb,

to roast it

with fire.

There were some

things that were

laid out for them.

The plan that

God had established

came to pass.

I want you to

understand this

morning that

God's plan

always

is fulfilled.

People may

try to thwart,

people might

try to ignore

God's plan

and what God's

purpose is,

but you know

what?

God is above

those things.

God says

what He promises

will come to pass.

He sets forth

the course

of history.

He sets forth

those things

in a way

that will be

beneficial

in the long

term

for us

and for those

who call upon

Him.

You know,

the plan that

God has established

is for our benefit

just like His

plan of salvation.

The Passover

was a picture

of His plan

of salvation

for me

and for you.

His plan

was about to

come to fruition.

As the disciples

were there

getting ready

to eat

the last

Passover,

His perfect

plan was

coming together.

You know,

look what the

apostle Paul

says.

Look over to

1 Corinthians

1 Corinthians 5 · chapter mention

chapter 5

for a moment.

1 Corinthians

1 Corinthians 5 · chapter mention

chapter 5.

You know,

here Paul's

talking about

some issues

of sin

in the church

and notice

what he says

as a believer

what we ought

to purge out.

He says,

Purge out

therefore the

old leaven

that ye may

be a new lump

as ye are

unleavened

for even

Christ our

Passover

is sacrificed

for us.

in the old testament they had a lamb that took god's judgment upon him because of the shed blood

of the lamb and today we have the lamb of god who shed his blood for you and me

jesus is literally the fulfillment and is our passover lamb his shed blood allows god's

judgment to pass over us it's by his sacrifice the blood that was shed for you that you

and i can be saved when he's not just a lamb or he's not just the lamb but when he's your lamb

you know first peter tells us this first peter chapter one says this but with the precious

blood of christ as the lamb without blemish and without spot who verily fordain before the

foundation of the world but was manifest in these last times for you

who by him to believe in god that raised him up from the dead and gave him glory

that your faith and hope might be in god you know the disciples were preparing the last passover that

was going to picture the ultimate passover as we're going to look in the coming weeks

about what takes place here at this passover but today just as that blood was applied for god's

judgment to pass over in egypt it passed over those that acted in faith sometimes we miss the fact that

it took a lot of faith to take a lamb something that had never been done before like this and put the

blood and apply it on the doorpost of your house they had to act in faith that god's judgment was going to

pass over them just like when we accept christ by faith when we trust in what he has done god's judgment

then can pass over you and that's by no other than faith in what christ has done look at the end of

that verse up there it says that your faith and hope might be where in god not in ritual

not in form and function not in liturgies

not even in history but that our faith is in god this morning the same is true

for you and i

has there been a point in time when he moved from the reality of just being

a savior to the savior

but most importantly has he become

your savior that's the critical part

to realize the need

to be your savior

as heads are bowed and eyes are closed this morning i encourage you to consider

what is jesus to you is he your savior if not i encourage you today this might be the day you

call upon him as your savior if you've never

understood never comprehended what was needed

it's not by works of righteousness which we have done but it's by what he has accomplished

and by putting our faith in him what about you today heavenly fathers we come before you this

morning lord we just thank you and praise you for the picture and the reality that we can understand

what you've done for us lord i pray if there's one here today

that has not called upon you as their savior

lord we can know about you but there's a difference when we have a connection with you as our savior

lord i pray just work mightily upon each heart each life here today

maybe we just need to slow down and really consider the reality and just to be thankful

thankful for what you've done for us and lord we just ask it all in your precious name

amen as heads are bowed and eyes are closed what about you today

you