What Kind of Love - Matthew 27:26-37

Welcome to Eat This Bread Drink This Cup

The communion meditation today is based on a passage of Scripture from the New Testament, Matthew 27:26-37. In this passage of Scripture, the Apostle Matthew recounts the horrible and gruesome details of Jesus' crucifixion. From other passages of passages of Scripture in the Gospels, we are reminded of who Jesus is and why He died on the cross for us. We remember Jesus' suffering and death and His love for us as we partake of the bread and drink the fruit of the vine from the cup. All Scripture quotations are from the New International Version (NIV) and are used with permission

As you listen to the episode today, my hope is that you will be encouraged from the time spent meditating on what Jesus has done for you. You are a special person; the one Jesus died to save!

Transcript

Welcome to Eat This Bread Drink This Cup. The title of my communion meditation today is "What Kind of Love?" I read from Matthew 27:26-37 (NIV). All Scripture quotations are from the New International Version and are used with permission.

26 Then he released Barabbas to them. But he had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified. 27 Then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole company of soldiers around him. 28 They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, 29 and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand. Then they knelt in front of him and mocked him. “Hail, king of the Jews!” they said. 30 They spit on him, and took the staff and struck him on the head again and again. 31 After they had mocked him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him. 32 As they were going out, they met a man from Cyrene, named Simon, and they forced him to carry the cross. 33 They came to a place called Golgotha (which means “the place of the skull”). 34 There they offered Jesus wine to drink, mixed with gall; but after tasting it, he refused to drink it. 35 When they had crucified him, they divided up his clothes by casting lots. 36 And sitting down, they kept watch over him there. 37 Above his head they placed the written charge against him: THIS IS JESUS, THE KING OF THE JEWS.

When Pontius Pilate turned Jesus over to be crucified, he handed Him over to the well-oiled Roman execution machine. Crucifixion was more than just an execution, it was public, slow, and shameful, and meant to be a deterrent to all lawbreakers and enemies of Rome; it was a technique refined over centuries of Roman rule. Jesus was flogged, tortured, stripped naked, and then crucified. On the cross, He was mocked and insulted by those who enjoyed watching His suffering. After excruciating pain and suffering, He died. Have we heard this story so many times that it just goes in one ear and out the other? Jesus died a most horrible and gruesome death. You have to ask yourself, "Who does such a thing? Why didn't He run with the rest of the disciples?" We turn to the Scriptures for Jesus' answers. As recorded in John 12:27, Jesus speaks from Jerusalem, “Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour." After His resurrection, He told His disciples (Luke 24:44), "He said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.” Jesus foreknew all of this would happen to Him, yet He still decided to come. Jesus is a faithful Son who shared the Father's love and did what He asked Him to do. The who is also inextricably linked to the why. As John writes in John 3:16-17, "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him." Jesus would look into our questioning eyes and say, "I died for you because I love you." Jesus showed us that no one will ever love us as much as He loves us. As we partake of the bread and drink the fruit of the vine from the cup, we remember His suffering and death and cherish Jesus who loved us. Let us pray.

Abba, Father. Today we bless and set aside this bread and the fruit of the vine in this cup to remember Your Son, Jesus. We know that the bread represents His body that was nailed to the cross, and the fruit of the vine represents His blood that He shed for us. As we pour out the wine from the cup, we are reminded of how Jesus poured out His own blood that our sins might be forgiven. Abba, Father, we have difficulty reading the account of Jesus' suffering and death on the cross; it was just so horrible and gruesome. We know it was because we needed saving, and dying for us was the only way. We are overwhelmed by His love for us and remember Him just now as we partake of the bread and drink the fruit of the vine from the cup. Thank-you, Abba, Father. In the name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.

Today, Jesus invites you to partake of His supper. I read from Matthew 26:26-28 (NLT).

26 As they were eating, Jesus took some bread and blessed it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, “Take this and eat it, for this is my body.” Let us partake of the bread.

27 And he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. He gave it to them and said, “Each of you drink from it, 28 for this is my blood, which confirms the covenant between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice to forgive the sins of many." Let us partake of the cup.

And the assembly of believers said, "Amen!"

Until next time, from Numbers 6:24-26 (NIV), “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”

Artist's Note: If you have questions about the Lord's Supper, I invite you to visit my website, https://eatthisbreaddrinkthiscup.com, for a brief overview. The Eat This Bread Drink This Cup podcast is listed in most podcast directories, and I invite you to add my podcast to your favorites and be notified of new posts. There is a written transcript that accompanies each podcast, and you are free to use the transcript in accordance with US copyright law. My prayer is that you will benefit personally from this time with Jesus and encourage others to observe the Lord's Supper. In these trying times, we need to keep our eyes on Jesus!