The gospel writers have preserved for us a good portion of Jesus' life and ministry. Luke opens his book, saying,
Luke 1:1 Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, 2 just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. 3 Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you... 4 so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.
Nevertheless, "an orderly account" does not mean an exhaustive account. There is a limit to what these authors could record and, of necessity, they omitted many things, John closes his gospel with that admission.
John 21:25 Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.
Some omissions are obvious. There is little about Jesus' early years, particularly his adolescence. Other omissions are less evident, especially to the modern reader, who may not be familiar with the cultural background of the period. For instance, none of the gospel writers explain the significance of the heavenly voice the disciples hear at Jesus' transfiguration. Being able to fill in these details does not change what we believe, but they can add dimension and texture to what we read, enhancing our appreciation of what took place some 2000 years ago. Such is the case with The Bread of Affliction.
When Jesus met with his disciples in the upper room, he was observing a tradition God had instituted 1500 years earlier, upon delivering Israel from slavery in Egypt. At that time, God said to Moses,
Exod 12:14 This is a day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the LORD—a lasting ordinance. 15a For seven days you are to eat bread made without yeast.... 17 Celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread, because it was on this very day that I brought your divisions out of Egypt. Celebrate this day as a lasting ordinance for the generations to come.... 20b Wherever you live, you must eat unleavened bread.
The reason for this memorial was to recall the haste with which Israel had to leave Egypt. Pharaoh's refusal to free God's people elicited God's wrath in a series of plagues that culminated with the death of all firstborn in Egypt. At that point,
The Feast of Unleavened Bread begins with the Passover seder, a service that reviews the story of the exodus and contains elements designed to remind participants of that event.' One of those elements is, of course, matzah, unleavened bread.
Through the years, as Jews continued to observe this festival, other customs developed, each with its own symbolism. By Jesus' day, for example, it was common to drink four cups of wine at the seder to celebrate four aspects of God's deliverance. The original elements also took on addition meaning. The matzah, along with recalling the haste of Israel's departure from Egypt, became known as The Bread of Affliction, signifying the suffering God's people endured in Egypt that eventually led to their deliverance! Like the four cups, the matzah had a role in different parts of the service, the most interesting being a portion the host formally sets aside before the meal and distributes to participants at the end of the meal. This piece of matzah is called the Afikoman, meaning "that which comes after." Unlike other elements, however, early sources attribute no special significance or symbolism to the Afikoman.
It is against this background that Jesus and his disciples keep their last Passover seder together. The course of Jesus' ministry had seen them through three other seders prior this one, which were probably like those they had observed since childhood. They told the story of the exodus over the four cups of wine, ate the matzah, the bitter herbs, and the Paschal lamb. This time, however, Jesus adds a new twist to the traditional symbolism.
Matt 26:26 While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take and eat; this is my body."
What must they have thought when he said this? They recognized his statement as a metaphor—the transubstantiation of Catholicism or the consubstantiation of Lutheranism would never even have crossed their minds—but what did Jesus mean?' They were still trying to figure out how his impending death, which he kept talking about, could possibly herald the Messianic Age, so this must have confused them even more.
It is doubtful the disciples understood Jesus' statement that night about the bread and, later, about the cup. Upon further reflection, though, after his resurrection, they probably realized the import of Jesus' words. He had taken the matzah of Israel's affliction and made it symbolize his own, the affliction he would endure on the cross, just as Isaiah prophesied,
Isa 53:4 Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted.
Moreover, it seems that Jesus chose to make his pronouncement during the distribution of the Afikoman, taking a part of the seder that had no particular meaning and investing it with significance.
Jesus did not change the meaning of the Passover service. It still recalls the deliverance of Israel from Egypt, as God intended. What Jesus did was to expand the commemoration to include another deliverance as well. From this point on, his disciples and those after them would celebrate the Passover and remember two instances of God's intervention on behalf of His people: physical redemption from slavery and spiritual redemption from sin.
As we observe an abbreviated version of Jesus' last Passover in our communion service, bear in mind these two examples of God's involvement in human affairs, because they indicate His love and His power to act on our behalf. Paul says they also remind us that God is not finished, for He will provide final redemption when Jesus returns to celebrate the seder with us in the Kingdom of God.
Filling in some of the details of the Last Supper does not change what we believe, but it does help us to understand better what took place on that evening 2000 years ago, when Jesus gave to his disciples The Bread of Affliction.
For the Bibliography and Endnotes see the pdf here.
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Jim Skaggs