Matthew 26:26-29 is about eating Holy Communion.
The last Passover equals to the first Holy Communion.
Eating the Passover was with the unleavened bread and roasted flesh.
Eating the Holy Communion [Matthew 26:26-28] is eating the body of Christ and drinking the blood of Christ.
Exodus 12:8
12:8 'Then they shall eat the flesh on that night; roasted in fire, with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.
It shall be eaten on that night means the condition of the last days which is full of the darkness of sin up to the peak of sin and physical crisis. The most suitable food to face the last days is the true teaching Word and Holy Communion.
The regulation of eating the Passover/Holy Communion is as follows:
The last Passover equals to the first Holy Communion.
Eating the Passover was with the unleavened bread and roasted flesh.
Eating the Holy Communion [Matthew 26:26-28] is eating the body of Christ and drinking the blood of Christ.
Exodus 12:8
12:8 'Then they shall eat the flesh on that night; roasted in fire, with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.
It shall be eaten on that night means the condition of the last days which is full of the darkness of sin up to the peak of sin and physical crisis. The most suitable food to face the last days is the true teaching Word and Holy Communion.
The regulation of eating the Passover/Holy Communion is as follows:
- The flesh must be roasted in fire.
The fire spiritually means Holy Spirit. Thus, eating the Holy Communion must be in the anointing of Holy Spirit.The fire of Holy Spirit puts to death the flesh and all its lusts, so we eat the Holy Communion not for satisfying our flesh but we can humble ourselves and give thanks to God.
Eating the Holy Communion without the anointing of Holy Spirit will cause pride or arrogance.
The fire also equals to the love of God. Thus, eating the Holy Communion must be with the longing to love God more than anything and to love other people as we love ourselves. - [Exodus 12:8] With unleavened bread.
The bread means the Word of God; being unleavened means purity. Thus, the unleavened bread is the pure Word of God which is not comfortable for our flesh. That is the true and hard teaching Word sharper than any two-edged sword. Eating the roasted flesh must be with the unleavened bread means eating the Holy Communion must be with the true and hard teaching Word.
2 Timothy 4:2
4:2 Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.
The content of the true teaching Word is as follows:- Convincing, showing us our hidden sins, so we can realize, regret, and confess them, and there will be no judgment come upon us.
- Rebuking to make us leave the sin.
Keeping the sins, the Word rebukes harder until one leaves the true teaching Word to seek false teaching according to the will of his own ears.
On the contrary, the Word will advise us if we are willing to repent and leave our sin. - Exhorting.
The advice is as the guidance of God's hand to make us keep on living in righteousness and holiness. The advice will become the solution of all our problems even the impossible ones.
The solution outside the Word is dead-end and forever perdition although the problems seem to be finished.
Eating the Holy Communion encouraged by the true teaching Word refers to the Table of Showbread, on which there were two rows of bread, six in a row, referring to sixty six books in Bible or the true teaching Word.
The bread equals to the body of Christ.
The drink offering refers to the blood of Jesus.
Exodus 25:29
25:29 "You shall make its dishes, its pans, its pitchers, and its bowls for pouring. You shall make them of pure gold.
Exodus 30:9
30:9 "You shall not offer strange incense on it, or a burnt offering, or a grain offering; nor shall you pour a drink offering on it.
The Table of Showbread refers to the perseverance in doing Bible Study Service and Holy Communion. The perseverance means we do it continually, and cannot be hindered by anything.
Psalm 15:1-5
15:1. << A Psalm of David. >>LORD, who may abide in Your tabernacle? Who may dwell in Your holy hill?
15:2 He who walks uprightly, And works righteousness, And speaks the truth in his heart;
15:3 He who does not backbite with his tongue, Nor does evil to his neighbor, Nor does he take up a reproach against his friend;
15:4 In whose eyes a vile person is despised, But he honors those who fear the LORD; He who swears to his own hurt and does not change;
15:5 He who does not put out his money at usury, Nor does he take a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things shall never be moved.
Through the perseverance in doing Bible Study Service and Holy Communion we will experience continuous sanctification, beginning from our heart (verse 5), deeds (verse 2), saying (verse 3), and sight (verse 4), until our whole life becomes blameless as Jesus is.
If we want to be sanctified continually, we will experience the growth of spirituality as we climb up the mountain of worship until we are on the top of mountain together with Jesus, we will like to worship God.
The result will be real as follows:- Being strong and of good courage facing anything.
- Experiencing the rain of God's blessings, the blessings from heaven.
Psalm 24:3-5
24:3. Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD? Or who may stand in His holy place?
24:4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, Nor sworn deceitfully.
24:5 He shall receive blessing from the LORD, And righteousness from the God of his salvation.
On the contrary, if we eat the Holy Communion without the true teaching Word, it will become a habit that is unworthy, so the rain of curse will come. - Convincing, showing us our hidden sins, so we can realize, regret, and confess them, and there will be no judgment come upon us.
- [Exodus 12:8] With bitter herbs.
Meaning we have to eat the Holy Communion with the cross experience together with the Lord, whose practice is as follows:- Suffering in the flesh to cease from sin.
1 Peter 4:1
4:1. Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind, for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin,
Judas ate the Holy Communion with keeping his sin, so the sin became blood and flesh or permanent. Consequently, Judas was separated with the Lord and perished forever. - Suffering in the flesh to obey the will of God, the true teaching Word.
1 Peter 4:2
4:2 that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will of God.
Such a life is as John leaning on Jesus' bosom. His life and death are in the hand of God. - Suffering in the flesh without any sin.
1 Peter 4:12-14
4:12. Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you;
4:13 but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ's sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy.
4:14 If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified.
It equals to facing the test or the sprinkling of blood in the forms as follows:- Suffering because of serving and ministering God.
- Suffering because of holding fast the true teaching Word.
- Suffering because of being blamed although there is no fault.
- Being slandered, despised, and blamed.
- Facing problems, even the impossible ones.
Facing the suffering without any sin is as if we are facing dark clouds as Mary and Martha facing the dead Lazarus. The important thing is not the problem but our attitude. - Weeping, being hopeless and disappointed, as well as blaming other people and God. In such condition one becomes in destruction and rottenness the more.
John 11:31
11:31 Then the Jews who were with her in the house, and comforting her, when they saw that Mary rose up quickly and went out, followed her, saying, "She is going to the tomb to weep there." - Falling down at Jesus' feet to worship Him with contrite heart.
John 11:32
11:32 Then, when Mary came where Jesus was, and saw Him, she fell down at His feet, saying to Him, "Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died."
We confess that we are only clay which is unworthy, even we are unworthy of being helped.
Ezekiel 1:28
1:28 Like the appearance of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the brightness all around it. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. So when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard a voice of One speaking.
If we can fall down at Jesus' feet, we will not hope on others but we will only look upon His face. As a result, the light of God's glory penetrates all dark clouds so the rainbow of God's glory appears. Lazarus could be raised, meaning as follows:
- Suffering because of serving and ministering God.
- Suffering in the flesh to cease from sin.
- The rainbow of God's glory is able to preserve our life in the midst of difficulties and impossibilities in the world.
- The rainbow of God's glory is able to help us, to settle all our problems even the impossible ones in due time.
- The rainbow of God's glory gives us beautiful and joyful future life.
- The rainbow of God's glory renews our life from glory to glory until we become as glorious as He is.
2 Corinthians 3:18
3:18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.
Tonight, let us start with believing and entrusting ourselves to the Lord, without any doubt about Him and the true teaching Word. It has already been the rainbow of God's glory. We are also changed to become patient waiting the time of God.
Let us fall down at Jesus' feet much more when we have not been helped yet. Do not insist the physical "rainbow" first, but the spiritual one, namely life renewal, first. It continues until we are renewed to become as glorious as Jesus is.