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Maundy Thursday – March 24, 2016 / Pastor James Krueger
Luke 22:7-20
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Then came the day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb had to be
sacrificed. 8 Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and make preparations for us to eat the
Passover.”
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“Where do you want us to prepare for it?” they asked.
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He replied, “As you enter the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him to
the house that he enters, 11 and say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is the
guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ 12 He will show you a large room
upstairs, all furnished. Make preparations there.”
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They left and found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover.
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When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table.15 And he said to them, “I have
eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. 16 For I tell you, I will not eat it
again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.”
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After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among you. 18 For I tell
you I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”
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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.”
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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.
The Fellowship Meal
1. An imperfect fellowship on earth.
2. A taste of the perfect fellowship in heaven.
Dear fellow redeemed, grace, mercy and peace are yours this day from God our Father and
from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Were you ever amazed to find out that someone wanted to do something with you? When I was
young I really looked up to someone who was a little older than I was. For him to want to do
anything with me was something that would have been a dream come true. And then one day I
got a phone call. “Do you want to go duck hunting with me?” Wow! You talk about an excited
boy. I went with him. Never shot a single duck but I was as happy as could be because I got to go
duck hunting with him.
Not long after that I found out that this was all set up by my mom and dad. They asked him to ask
me to go hunting with him. I think he felt an obligation to take me with him. You see, it was our
black Labradore named Butch that he took with him hunting. Butch was one of the best hunting
dogs around and mom and dad let him use that dog for his hunting trips. So I was saddened when
I realized that the guy I so looked up to didn’t really want me to go duck hunting with him. I got
over it.
Do you realize how amazing it is that Jesus would WANT to do ANYTHING with you or me for
ANY amount of time? That Jesus would want to become flesh and blood and live among the
fallen human race. That is shocking! The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among
us. (John 1:14) That Jesus would want to have fellowship with us here tonight. That is beyond
shocking. “For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them." That Jesus
would want us to spend eternity with him! I mean, just think about that. When we get company
for the holidays no matter how much we love them we sometimes can’t wait to have them leave
so we can have our privacy. And yet what does Jesus say? And if I go and prepare a place for
you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. (John 14:3)
Dear ones, Jesus! God! The maker of heaven and earth! The Ruler over all creation wants to be
with you now and forever! And it’s not out of a sense of obligation or that he feels sorry for us.
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When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, “I
have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. In the original language
Jesus’ desire is emphasized. Jesus REALLY, REALLY wanted to eat the Passover with them.
Tonight we come together to remember what Jesus did on the night he was betrayed; what he did
before he suffered. Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper. What is the Lord’s Supper? There are
different names we use for it and each name emphasizes a certain aspect of this Supper.
We call this Sacrament:
1. The Sacrament of the Altar
2. The Eucharist
3. The Lord’s Supper
4. Breaking of the Bread
5. Communion
It’s this last one I really want to talk about tonight – Communion. Communion is a fellowship
meal in that in allows us to share a special closeness with both our risen Lord and his family, the
church. (Richard A. Melheim; Welcome to the Lord’s Table; page 26) There are two things about
this fellowship we will take to heart tonight. The fellowship we have in Christ and the fellowship
celebrated in this meal is…
#1 An imperfect fellowship on earth.
#2 A taste of the perfect fellowship in heaven.
Let’s deal with the imperfect part first.
1. An imperfect fellowship on earth.
Before I say anything else, I want to make this clear to everyone. The fellowship we share in this
meal is not imperfect because there is something imperfect about this meal. This is a perfect
meal. In this meal we receive bread and wine together with the perfect body and blood of
Jesus Christ. “This is my body given for you…“This cup is the new covenant in my blood,
which is poured out for you.”
This is a perfect meal instituted by a perfect Savior using God’s perfect Word. “After taking
the cup, he gave thanks and said...And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to
them, saying…”
In this meal we remember a perfect sacrifice. Jesus said, “… do this in remembrance of me.”
We do this in remembrance of Jesus and His perfect atonement. Through this meal Jesus offers
and gives perfect forgiveness. Perfect forgiveness people! There is no such thing here as buy
one forgiveness of sin and get another one free. No such thing here as partial forgiveness for
a sin. It’s full and it’s free forgiveness for all sins with no strings attached. But understand this
also; there is no such thing here as lay away. You don’t put forgiveness on lay away when you
take the Lord’s Supper. Intending to sin after taking the Lord’s Supper will get you into big time
trouble with God. This is not permission to go on sinning. This is the remission of sins with the
sincere intention to change our sinful lives.
So, if the meal in and of itself is perfect then what is imperfect? Jesus eagerly desired to eat this
Passover with his disciples. And who were his disciples? One of them was a hypocrite. One of
them was a fake and Jesus knew it. Right after verse 20, Jesus says, But the hand of him who is
going to betray me is with mine on the table. The Son of Man will go as it has been decreed.
But woe to that man who betrays him!” They began to question among themselves which of
them it might be who would do this. This man was Judas Iscariot.
The fellowship we have in this meal is imperfect because there are hypocrites among us. There
are people who are fake Christians. These hypocrites are scattered here and there. You may
want to know who they are but unless they give themselves away by words and actions we won’t
know who they are.
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Don’t be too concerned about trying to find out who in our congregation or other Christian
congregations might be a hypocrite. Instead, MAKE SURE YOU ARE NOT ONE! This is
where we can say it’s a good thing to look out for yourself. I’m not calling anyone here tonight a
hypocrite just telling you to make absolutely sure you are not one. Don’t assume that because you
were baptized and confirmed you are a Christian. Not that long ago I spoke to someone who
was living in unrepentant sin. The response I got was “I was baptized. I’m going to heaven.” I
said, “But you are living in unrepentant sin!” And again the response was, “I don’t care. I was
baptized.” Don’t assume that because you do what Christians do that you are a Christian.
If you are a hypocrite you have no fellowship with Christ and no fellowship with His true body –
the Holy Christian Church. If you are a hypocrite, partaking of this meal will bring God’s wrath
and judgment on you. Soon you will sing these words. Take them to heart.
They who his Word do not believe
This food unworthily receive
Salvation here will never find –
May we this warning keep in mind!
(CW 135 verse 8)
The fellowship we have on earth as Christians is imperfect because there are hypocrites among
us. Make sure you are not a hypocrite. It says in Lamentations, Let us examine our ways and test
them, and let us return to the LORD. (3:40) The Bible also says, Examine yourselves to see if
your faith is genuine. (2 Cor. 13:5) Repent of whatever is in you and in your life that is fake and
turn to Jesus and let him heal and restore you.
And think about this for a moment. What comfort and joy can anyone who is NOT a repentant
sinner find in the suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ? Take faith; take repentance
out of the picture and all you have left is boring formalism; boring hymns; boring sermons;
boring liturgy; boring Bible Studies; boring fellowship; boring worship. But, you take sin and hell
and repentance seriously and what we do here together really means something.
The fellowship we have is imperfect because there are fake Christians among us. It’s imperfect
for another reason. It’s imperfect because even if there were no hypocrites among us, we are still
saints AND SINNERS. Do you know what Jesus’ disciples did right after the Lord’s Supper?
We hear about it in verse 24. A dispute also arose among them as to which of them was
considered to be greatest. Of all the things to argue about after celebrating the Lord’s Supper and
before Jesus would die on the cross. Imagine children gathering around their dying father in a
hospital room. The father is in much pain and agony. Within hours the father will die. And in that
hospital room right in front of their father the children start arguing about who will get the
greatest share of the inheritance. What immature little brats!
Is this not what we also are? Children of God who at the same time are IMMATURE LITTLE
BRATS. And if anyone of you gets mad at me for saying that about you, you only prove that I
am right.
Dear ones, the fellowship we share here among us; the fellowship expressed as we together
partake of this precious Supper is imperfect because of us. You know how people today are
always looking for the perfect church? Billy Graham said, “If you find the perfect church and
join it, it becomes imperfect.”
The parents of a little girl named Sirina sent her off to a camp one summer. Here is the note
Sirina sent back to her parents:
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Could we not all say the same about our church? “I love everything about this church except the
people!” So what do you think? Have you been disenchanted with this church? Are you no
longer happy or satisfied about someone in this church? Are you disenchanted with me? Are you
disenchanted with that other guy who wears a white robe? No surprise there. We are imperfect
and we daily fall short of the glory of God and that hinders our fellowship. I speak for both
Pastor Krieger and I when I say, We are sorry. Forgive us. And we pastors will be honest with
you too. At times we become disenchanted with you. You disappoint us by your words and
actions. You don’t always listen to us when you should listen to us. You don’t always take our
words and actions in the kindest possible way and that too hinders our fellowship. Are you
sorry? Be assured we forgive you.
As a Christian church on earth our fellowship is imperfect but as we come together in Christ to
hear His word of forgiveness and to receive His true body and blood with the bread and the wine
in this fellowship meal, we, as one pastor says, clean out the garbage and confess our sin
before God and each other and amazing things happen. Enemies become friends. Grudges melt
away. Brokenness is healed. Relationships bound for the garbage heap are salvaged. (Richard
A. Melheim; “Welcome to the Lord’s Table”; page 36)
The disciples were told to tell that man carrying a jar of water, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is the
guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ Here tonight is that guest room
for us. We are the guests. Jesus invites us saying, "Come to me, all you who are weary and
burdened, and I will give you rest. (Matt. 11:28) Jesus gives us this rest as we receive from Him
the forgiveness of sins, life and salvation through Word and Sacrament. And as we receive this
forgiveness together, our imperfect fellowship with Jesus and with each other is
strengthened. It’s just like a marriage. There is no longer any perfect marriage on this earth.
However, every marriage can be strengthened. Our fellowship is strengthened as we together
fellowship with Jesus in His Word and in His Supper.
And while our fellowship will be imperfect here on earth we look forward to heaven where our
fellowship will be perfect. And so remember this about this Fellowship Meal,
2. It is a taste of the perfect fellowship in heaven.
As Christians living on this earth we all need to be realists or we will become very discouraged
with one another and the work of the church. Sometimes I’m not a realists. I want God to give
me the perfect church with perfect members. And maybe you too have times when you think,
“Lord, why can’t you give us a perfect pastor?” That day won’t come on earth so respect and
honor the pastors God does give you and expect that they will also honor and respect you.
We need to be realists but at the same time we all need to dream about the day when our
fellowship will be perfect and that, my friends, is going to be a dream come true. In our lesson
Jesus refers to that day when he says, For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds
fulfillment in the kingdom of God.” Jesus would eat no more Passover meals until the coming of
the future kingdom of heaven.
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The fellowship we have here in this meal; the fellowship we share in Christ is a taste of the
perfect fellowship in heaven.
Just think about that for a moment. What will that perfect fellowship look like? There will no
more divisions among Christians. In heaven, unlike on earth, we will be able to worship with all
believers. Here on earth it is not that way. Tomorrow there will be a community Good Friday
service at the local Methodist church. Your pastors will not be there and I trust that you know
you shouldn’t be either. No doubt there will be Christians there with whom we will be
worshipping in heaven praise be to God. But not here. Not now. God tells us to separate
ourselves from those who teach false doctrine and so we do. It’s painful. It often invites ridicule
and scorn. People don’t understand it. We lose members over it. Let us endure it by the grace of
God while we look forward to heaven where we will worship with those we can’t worship with
on earth.
In heaven we will have perfect fellowship not only with all believers but with each other. No
more will there be pastors or councilmen leaving a council meeting upset. No more members
feuding with each other. No more hurt feelings. No more misunderstandings. No more
anybody leaving the church. No more sin to hinder our fellowship. The Bible says, "No eye
has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who
love him."(1 Cor. 2:9) One thing that God has prepared for us in heaven perfect fellowship.
Tonight we get a taste of that fellowship. Enjoy it.
I pray heaven comes soon my friends but until that day comes, let us strive to strengthen our
imperfect fellowship on earth. How do we do that? Here is how we do that:
Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us
consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting
together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as
you see the Day approaching. (Hebrews 10: 23-25)
Amen.