Pictures of the Messiah:
The Last Supper

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And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves: {18} For I say unto you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine, until the kingdom of God shall come. {19} And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. {20} Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you.
Luke 22:17-20
  • What is the Last Supper

  • Who Observes the Last Supper

  • When is the Last Supper Observed

  • Common Debates












    What is the Last Supper

    The Meal in Scripture

    The evening before the Messiah would fulfill the prophecies of the Passover sacrifice He gathered together the apostles for one last meal together. During this meal He gave some final examples and instructions on how care for one another and how to remember that He would return. After the meal was over, the Messiah used a loaf of bread and a cup of wine as symbols of the death he was about to experience and as a promise of His return.

    The Communion Meal

    The word 'communion' describes a person who is a participant, partner, or in fellowship. All who are believers in the Messiah are described as being in communion with the Messiah, with one another, and in the promise of eternal life. The wine and bread used in the communion meal are symbols used in accepting the Messiah and the promise of eternal life that He brings.

    The Prophecy in Joseph's Life

    The life of Joseph is one large prophecy of the two comings of the Messiah. In regards to the last supper and the Messiah's death we look at Genesis chapter forty. Joseph is in jail and the wine bearer and the baker have dreams. It is shown that in three days the wine bearer shall be raised up to his position near the pharoah and the baker shall die by being hanged on a tree. The wine and the bread, being lifted up, and being hanged are all pictured in this short segment which comes shortly before Joseph becomes as king and is the second most powerful leader in all of Egypt.

    The Wedding Betrothal

    There are many similarities of the last supper to a traditional Jewish wedding betrothal. Typically the father will choose a bride for his son much like our Heavenly Father has chosen the bride for His Son. When the marriage proposal is given, an agreement by the bride is shown by accepting a glass of wine much as the Believer does at the communion meal. When it is publicly declared the bride goes through a period of immersion or cleansing much like the act of baptism. During the betrothal, the groom goes to prepare a house and does not know the time of his return but must wait until the father states the house is ready. This matches how the Messiah prepares for us our heavenly home and his return at a time no one but the Father knows. Often, a gift is given for which the Believer has received the Spirit.

    Who Observes the Last Supper

    Believers

    The Messiah instructed that the bread and the wine be used as a reminder of what He has done for His people and that He will return. Therefore, believers all over the world continue to do observe and remember through this event. Sadly, many differences in style, method, or interpretation have developed through the centuries that divide His people rather than bring them together.

    Christianity

    In general, Christianity has stated that the Communion Meal has replaced the Passover Sacrifice or sometimes states that it is the Passover meal itself. This event then becomes included in the Easter celebration (typically on Good Friday) which is the biggest liturgical event of the year and is celebrated across the world.

    Messianic Judaism

    In general, Messianic Judaism interprets the Last Supper to be part of the Rabbinic Passover Seder meal. Therefore the Communion meal becomes the third cup of wine as the cup of redemption and unleavened bread eaten as matzah.

    When is the Last Supper Observed

    Scripture

    When the Messiah broke bread He stated that it should be done in remebrance of His body given for us (Luk 22:19). Paul records the Messiah as stating that as oft as we drink from the cup of wine we should do so in remembrance of His blood given for a New Covenant (1 Cor 11:25). For most people, the communion meal has special significance in the springtime as it helps prepare oneself for Passover, yet it is something that can be a reminder throughout the year.

    Christian

    Each denomination has its own doctrines and traditions regarding the communion meal. Some will do this each week, others a few times a year, and some only once eacy year in the spring. Virtually all groups will take it as a part of the Easter week celebration.

    Messianic

    Messianic Jewish congregations will often have some type of oneg (fellowship meal) each week that will include wine / grape juice and/or bread. However, this is not always connected with the communion meal. In the springtime, there will be a communion meal taken as part of the Passover Seder ceremony.

    Common Debates

    What is the Last Supper

    The major debate about the Last Supper is whether or not it was a separate event from the Passover Meal. The synoptic gospels seem to say that the Messiah kept the Passover meal with His disciples and was crucified the next day. The gospel of John states the last supper was earlier and that Messiah died at the exact time of the killing of the Passover Sacrifice. It seems that a person must choose that either the synoptic gospels are wrong, the gospel of John is wrong, both are correct, or both are wrong. I have never seen an argument that both are wrong. The attempts to make them both correct make large assumptions without any evidence or facts and use very unnatural interpretations of certain words making this highly unlikely. The following reasons show that the weight of evidence falls in favor of the Gospel of John as being correct.

    Internal Consistency

    Within the gospel of John there is nothing self-contradictory to the time-line of events that is given. In the synoptic gospels, there are contradictory elements. This includes eating leavened bread during what would be the feast of unleavened bread, and placing guards at the Messiah's tomb after passover but before He would actually be dead).

    The Bread

    The Passover Meal is eaten after the Passover Sacrifice and at the start of the Feast of Unleavened Bread and is therefore instructed to be eaten with unleavened bread. At each recording of the Last Supper, it states that the Messiah gave leavened bread (Greek: artos) to the Apostles rather than unleavened bread (Greek: azumos). This could not be the Passover Meal.

    Buying on the Sabbath

    After the last supper was over, the Messiah told Judas to go do his job quickly. The other disciples thought this might be to purchase other items needed for the feast. It is a commandment that no buying, selling, or work be done on the first day of Unleavened Bread. If this had been the Passover meal, the disciples would not have expected any purchases to be made on that day. Joh 13:26-30

    Guarding the Tomb

    It is stated that 'on the morrow of the Passover' the chief priests and Pharisees asked for guards to be placed at the tomb to make sure that no one could steal the body and claim He had risen. Yet according to the synoptic gospels, the Messiah would not yet even be dead.

    Prophetic Fulfillment of the Lamb

    The Passover sacrifice was instructed to be killed on the fourteenth day of the first month and the Passover meal would follow afterwards. The death of the Messiah is considered a greater fulfillment of this event as is described in the Epistles. According to the synoptic gospels the Passover sacrifice and meal had already occurred and therefore the Messiah's death could not have occurred at the correct time to fulfill this event. According to the gospel of John, the Messiah died at exactly this same time and matches the fulfillment of the Passover Lamb.

    Inspecting the Lamb

    The Passover Lamb was to be chosen on the 10th day of the month and inspected for four days to see if it was without blemish. Some have suggested that it would be very difficult to assemble the religious and secular leaders in the early morning hours and have four trials in rapid succession. Instead, the four trials of the Messiah may have occurred over four days with each trail showing that the Messiah had done nothing wrong. This concept has interesting ideas in fulfilling the type of the Passover lamb, but does not directly add to the Last Supper / Passover meal debate.

    Bitter Herbs and Lamb

    It can be pointed out that neither the lamb nor the bitter herbs are directly mentioned as being eaten at the last supper. However, it must be properly noted that they are not excluded as well. Therefore, this really becomes a non-issue for the debate.

    Todd Elder is a believer in the Messiah who wants to help people understand Scripture and know the message of Salvation. For more information from the Assemblies and Festivals Series, please visit http://www.exploringsalvation.info and look under 'Messiah'.
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