Wednesday of Holy Week

Passover began last night at sundown. Jews around the world will gather to remember how God had worked in their history to rescue them from slavery in Egypt. They'll call to mind the plagues, eat symbolic foods, and look forward to a Messiah they believe has yet to arrive.
What do you know about the Passover? Read Exodus 12:1-28 and think through these questions:
• Why did God institute the Passover?
• What does it commemorate?
• Why did the people have to eat the meal while dressed to leave?
• What does the Passover have to do with Easter?


Yet during Holy Week, it's important to remember that all those years ago, Jesus, the Messiah, sat down to eat the Passover meal with His disciples. Read Luke 22:7-13 today and consider Jesus' instructions to the disciples as they set out to find a place to have this special meal together. Then read what Matthew and Mark had to say in their Gospels about this preparation in Matthew 26:17-19 and Mark 14:12-16.

The Passover meal the disciples worked so hard to prepare for is significant. What they didn't understand was that it would be their final Passover with Jesus. He was their friend, their Teacher, the one they had seen do nothing short of miracles. Shortly after eating the meal, He would be betrayed, tried, and on Friday, crucified. They thought they were preparing to celebrate an important Jewish holiday, which they did, but at that Last Supper, Jesus would explain again that He was going to die and detail the significance of His death. He would institute a new practice, what we call the Lord's Supper, with the bread and drink symbolizing His broken body and spilled blood—the sacrifice He gave so that we might live abundant life.

At Passover, Jews offered a sacrifice at the temple. At this last Passover meal with His disciples, Jesus explained that He was going to be the sacrifice that would end the need for further sacrifices at the temple. Jesus alone—fully God and fully man, sinless—could offer Himself as a sacrifice that would cover all sin.

Dwell on that thought today. And like Jesus instructed the disciples, start preparing for Easter. What does it mean to you that Jesus offered Himself as the sacrifice for your sin? What things are you letting get in the way of truly experiencing the truth and joy of that this Easter?

Other Scripture:
Philippians 2:5-11
Mark 14:1-11 (the woman who anoints Jesus which He says is in preparation for His burial).
What praise can you bring to Jesus today?