A Light In the Darkness

Psalm 118:24-29 This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. . . . God is the Lord which hath showed us light; bind the sacrifice with cords, even unto the horns of the altar.

We have come with Jesus to the Upper Room. Passover is a FAMILY meal, and yet Jesus has made us family. We still love our flesh-and-blood relatives very much. But this is a "forever family" somehow . . .

The Upper Room is borrowed — and yet it, like all the earth, is His. We have come here especially to celebrate the Passover. It is Thanksgiving and Christmas and reunion and worship. For almost 2,000 years the people of God have been remembering deliverance. There has been some kind of disturbance. An uneasiness. Jesus has talked about betrayal, and of sorrow and death. We have all denied, of course. We don't want to ruin the fellowship. Judas has suddenly gone out into the night. But now we go on with the Passover ritual.

We sing the usual songs of praise, the "hallel." The 118th Psalm— about the joy of God's Providence, and His provision for coming into His Presence. Somehow these words seem to take on weight: The stone which the builders have rejected— IS become the headstone of the corner. THIS is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it. Never mind that in just a few short hours the darkness of Gethsemane will be over us. God has showed us LIGHT! Then the Master does a NEW thing: He takes the bread and breaks it and speaks of His broken body; He takes the cup and passes it and speaks of His shed blood. We do not fully understand it— yet somehow— this Passover becomes...

I. A CELEBRATION THAT SPEAKS OF SACRIFICE FOR SIN

The Paschal Lamb was first a sacrifice, its blood sprinkled on the lintel and doorposts . . .

THEN it became food for the journey; strength to escape from bondage and move toward the Promised Land . . .

II. A MEMORY THAT IS ALSO A HOPE

Passover looked BACK — but THIS Passover looked to the immediate tomorrow. NOW we look back to Calvary— but we also look forward to a time when we shall celebrate Passover at the married supper of the Lamb!

III. A LIGHT WHICH NO DARKNESS CAN EXTINGUISH

We will lose our way in the hours ahead. We will grope in utter darkness. We will lose our sense of faith. Our faith will slip into the past tense. But we will remember this New Passover! And Jesus will call our faith back into newness of life! And then ever after this, when we eat the bread and drink the cup, we will remember — and look forward to living forever with Jesus!

And NOW— the sacrifice must be bound to the horns of the altar! BUT REMEMBER! God's MERCY endures forever!

Invitation to Communion:

Dedication of the Elements of Communion; of our own selves before God to worship, to receive of God's grace.

Invitation to come, to partake.