Jesus shares a final Passover meal with his disciples before his crucifixion. He tells them this will be the last time they celebrate the Passover and announces that the bread and wine will now symbolize his body and blood in the new covenant. Despite the betrayal and uncertainty ahead, Jesus uses the meal to strengthen his disciples and establish the tradition of Holy Communion. The disciples argue about which of them is greatest, but Jesus teaches them that true greatness comes from humility and service.

1. The Privilege of Serving
Luke 22:14-30

2. Call to Worship
(Psalm 118, Luke 19)
Blessed is the one who comes
in the name of the Lord!
Blessed is the one who comes
for us all!
Peace in heaven.
Peace on earth.
And glory in the highest heaven!
Glory always to Jesus!
Blessed is the one who comes
in the name of the Lord!

3. Questions for Thought
What are some distractions that you
have to personally fight off when
taking Communion?

4. As Luke 22 opens the Lord Jesus
Christ is facing the coming hours and
death for which He came to this
earth

5. John 12:27 (NIV)
27 "Now my heart 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.

6. In a little more than twenty-four
hours from the events described in
our text, Jesus would stand before
the rulers of the temple who would
demand He renounce His messianic
claims or face certain death.

7. In addition to the hatred and
rejection of men Jesus was about to
face, He also was about to suffer the
wrath of God for the sins of all
humanity.

8. Despite the intense pressure and
uncertainty of each passing
moment, He found time to
strengthen His disciples and eat the
Passover with them before He
suffered and died.

9. Every time Israel celebrates Passover
and Unleavened Bread it is for the
purpose or remembering how God
set them free from the land of
bondage.
(Deuteronomy 16:1, 3).

10. In Jesus’ day, Passover and the Feast
of Unleavened Bread (two feasts
celebrated at the same time), were
observed for seven days from the
15th through the 21st of Nisan which
is our months of March and April
(Leviticus 23:6).

11. Jesus sent Peter and John to locate a
room and set everything in order for
the final Passover meal (Luke 22:8).
A lamb would be slain, bitter herbs
secured, unleavened bread and wine
prepared.

12. Luke 22:14 (NIV)
14 When the hour came, Jesus and his
apostles reclined at the table.

13. It was in Jesus’ heart to be alone with
his disciples at this last Passover meal.
He wanted to teach them from that
meal some of the most wonderful
truths ever revealed.
Beginning at “this hour” things would
forever be different.

14. Luke 22:15 (NIV)
15 And he said to them, "I have eagerly
desired to eat this Passover with you
before I suffer.

15. Before the evening is over Jesus will
change the Passover to the Lord’s
Supper. “Desire” means “craving intense
longing.” The word “desire” was used in
the Greek culture to refer to something
essential.

16. Jesus is saying, “This night must
happen.”
Because what Jesus is doing here is
essential to God’s plan and the future of
Christ’s church.

17. “With you” reflects the love and
intimacy involved in all that is
happening.

18. Luke 22:16 (NIV)
16 For I tell you, I will not eat it again until
it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of
God."

19. “This is the last Passover meal” Jesus will
eat with His disciples. He ate the lamb
with them and then became the Lamb
for them.
Things will forever be different after this
night.

20. We should understand that the language
of the verse before us indicates a
transition: Jesus and His followers are
moving from one era into another.

21. This Passover meal He and his apostles
were celebrating would not be
celebrated again “until it be fulfilled in
the kingdom of God.”
“It” may refer to the redemption of
Israel celebrated by the Passover meal.

22. But until then, there will be no
celebration of Passover.
From now on Christ is our Passover .

23. 1 Corinthians 5:7 (NIV)
7 Get rid of the old yeast that you may be
a new batch without yeast--as you really
are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has
been sacrificed.

24. Luke 22:17 (NIV)
17 After taking the cup, he gave thanks
and said, "Take this and divide it among
you.

25. In the Passover “four cups of wine”
were served.
The first “cup” was taken up by Jesus
and then he “gave thanks” to the Father
for His faithfulness to Israel in the
exodus from Egypt.

26. But, instead of drinking “the cup,” He
gave it to His disciples and said, “Take
this and divide it among yourselves.”
He then made another announcement
in verse 18.

27. Luke 22:18 (NIV)
18 For I tell you I will not drink again of
the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of
God comes."

28. This is twice Jesus had said “I will not” to
stress the fact that the Old Testament
Passover is finished.
It’s over until Jesus reinstitutes it in His
kingdom.

29. Luke 22:19 (NIV)
19 And he took bread, gave thanks and
broke it, and gave it to them, saying,
"This is my body given for you; do this in
remembrance of me."

30. It was a custom in Jesus’ day for the
head of the household to hold up the
“bread” as representative of the bread
of affliction suffered by the Jews in
bondage.
But Jesus identified the “bread” as a
symbol of His broken body.

31. With these words Jesus begins replacing
the Passover with the Lord’s Supper.

32. “This do in remembrance of me” is also
a command, not unlike God’s order for
the Israelites to observe the Passover
regularly.

33. Luke 22:20 (NIV)
20 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.

34. “Likewise” means “in the same” or, “he
did the same with the cup” shows that
some time must have elapsed between
the taking of the “bread” and the
drinking of the “cup.”

35. By using the words “cup, new
testaments, blood” and “shed,” Jesus is
contrasting all of the Old Testament
“blood” sacrifices with what He is about
to sacrifice on the cross.

36. In the Old Testament, God sealed
covenants with the blood of a sacrifice
(Exodus 24:8; Leviticus 17:11-14); so
here, Jesus used the “cup” or the juice to
represent the “blood” He would soon
shed on behalf of His followers.

37. Luke 22:21-22 (NIV)
21 But the hand of him who is going to
betray me is with mine on the table.
22 The Son of Man will go as it has been
decreed, but woe to that man who
betrays him."

38. Luke 22:23 (NIV)
23 They began to question among
themselves which of them it might be
who would do this.

39. Jesus had already hinted to His disciples
that one of their number was not truly
with Him (John 6:66-71), but now He
openly spoke about a traitor in their
midst.
However, He did not do this just for the
sake of the disciples, but more for the
sake of Judas.

40. Jesus had kissed Judas and washed his
feet and now He was giving Judas
another opportunity to repent. It is most
significant that Jesus did not openly
identify Judas as the traitor but
protected him until the very end.

41. “Began to inquire” suggests that there is
the atmosphere of chaotic discussion in
the room as each disciple tried to
convince the other of his loyalty to
Jesus.

42. “How could one who was on such close
terms with the Savior of the world
betray his friend and teacher?
We do not understand this fully, but
Luke records that Judas is motivated by
the presence of Satan in his heart (Luke
22:3) and the lure of money (Luke
22:5).”

43. Luke 22:24 (NIV)
24 Also a dispute arose among them as to
which of them was considered to be
greatest.

44. This is truly amazing. These men had
been our Lord’s constant companions for
over three years.

45. Could it be possible that in the disciple’s
attempts to identify the worst among
them, that they began to exaggerate
their own importance?
In fact, none of the disciples figured out
that it was Judas.

46. “Strife” is the Greek word philoneikia
which means “eagerness to contend.”
These disciples didn’t mind this debate
over who was the “greatest.”

47. Luke 22:25 (NIV)
25 Jesus said to them, "The kings of the
Gentiles lord it over them; and those
who exercise authority over them call
themselves Benefactors.

48. Jesus interrupted their debate to correct
their view of the coming kingdom.
Christ’s kingdom operates completely
different from this present world.

49. “The kings of the Gentiles exercise
lordship over them…” means the kings
and rulers exercise their power over
people in a self-serving manner while
thinking only of how it benefits them.

50. Luke 22:26 (NIV)
26 But you are not to be like that.
Instead, the greatest among you should
be like the youngest, and the one who
rules like the one who serves.

51. Having established the pattern of self-
serving rulers, Jesus gives two other
examples of social priority to make his
point.
Younger men of the first century are
considered social inferiors to their
elders. Slaves or servants are always in a
lesser position than their masters.

52. Jesus turns this leadership model inside
out by proclaiming the greatest one is
not the person ordering others around,
but the one who serves others

53. Luke 22:27 (NIV)
27 For who is greater, the one who is at
the table or the one who serves? Is it
not the one who is at the table? But I am
among you as one who serves.

54. How sad this must have made Jesus at
this sacred and critical moment in
history, to have to address such
selfishness in the lives of his disciples.

55. Luke 22:28 (NIV)
28 You are those who have stood by me
in my trials.

56. These final words of our Lord are simply
amazing. Jesus was far more gracious to
these “slow to get it” disciples.
Instead of giving them a stern
authoritative rebuke he reminds them of
the authority that awaited them in His
kingdom.

57. Luke 22:29-30 (NIV)
29 And I confer on you a kingdom, just as
my Father conferred one on me,
30 so that you may eat and drink at my
table in my kingdom and sit on thrones,
judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

58. In spite of their overestimation of self-
worth and slowness to learn, Jesus’
disciple would, indeed, “sit on thrones
judging the twelve tribes of Israel.”

59. BLESSINGS

60. May the Lord raise you from the dust
and may He lift
you from the ash heap; may He seat you
with princes
and may you inherit a throne of honor
(1 Sam. 2:8 NIV).

61. May the good Lord provide atonement
for everyone
who prepares his heart to seek God, the
Lord God of his fathers
(2 Chron. 30:18-19, NKJV).