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or London Baptist Confession 
of 1689 reads, in the 28th chapter introducing the ordinances of 
our Lord Jesus Christ. Baptism and the Lord's Supper 
are ordinances of positive and sovereign institution appointed 
by the Lord Jesus Christ, the only lawgiver to be continued 
in his church to the end of the world. Since we will partake 
of the Lord's Supper this morning, I felt it appropriate that we 
could consider the institution of the Lord's Supper by our Lord 
Jesus Christ as we find it in Matthew chapter 26. So you can please turn there. We're going to look at the text 
of Matthew chapter 26 concerning the Lord's Supper, just a few 
verses. But if you could back up in that 
chapter to verse 1, we're going to read verses 1 and 2. Then 
we're going to skip to verse 17 and read to verse 20. And 
then we will read verses 26, 27, 28, 29 and 30. Hopefully you followed 
all of that. But we're going to begin reading 
in Matthew chapter 26 at verse one. and we'll read verse 2 then skip 
to 17 and then we'll be skipping to 26 a few verses after that. This is Matthew 26 at verse 1. Now it came to pass when Jesus 
had finished all these things that he said to his disciples, 
you know that after two days is the Passover and the Son of 
Man will be delivered up to be crucified. Verse 17. Now on the first day of the Feast 
of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus saying to him, 
Where do you want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover? 
And he said, Go into the city to a certain man and say to him, 
The teacher says, My time is at hand. I will keep the Passover 
at your house with my disciples. So the disciples did as Jesus 
had directed them, and they prepared the Passover. When evening had 
come, he sat down with the twelve. Verse 26. And as they were eating, 
Jesus took the bread. Jesus took bread, blessed it, 
and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, Take, 
eat, this is my body. Then he took the cup and gave 
thanks and gave it to them, saying, Drink from it, all of you. For 
this is my blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the 
remission of sins. But I say to you, I will not 
drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when 
I drink it new with you in my father's kingdom. And when they 
had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. Amen. Well, let's pray. Our Father, 
we praise you again that we can come to your Holy Scriptures 
and consider them. Father, we pray that we would 
never think it an unheavy or a light thing, that we get to 
consider your Bible, that we get to open it up and read from 
it, that we have all 66 books of the Old and New Testaments. 
And we praise you, Father. for the reality that there is 
redemption in this Bible, that page after page, chapter after 
chapter, it points to Christ upon the cross working out the 
salvation of sinners. We ask, Father, as we consider 
this particular passage, that we would glory in the institution 
of the Lord's Supper as we find it here, as our Lord Jesus instituted 
this particular ordinance. Might we consider the gravity 
of it, the significance of it, and might we glory, Father, in 
the fact that we as your people get to partake of such a representation 
of the sacrificial, substitutionary work of our blessed Christ. And 
it's in His name that we pray. Amen. Well, the Lord Jesus had 
just completed five discourses prior to our reading this morning. There are five discourses in 
the book of Matthew that we find our Lord Jesus Christ giving 
before hearers, whether to disciples or to multitudes gathered before 
him. The first of which is the Sermon 
on the Mount in chapters 5 to 7. Secondly, the missions of 
the king or kingdom missions of chapter 10. The kingdom parables 
in chapter 13. Fourthly, the authority and character 
of the church in chapter 18. And fifthly, kingdom judgments 
in chapters 24 and in 25. Well now we have a transition 
to a new phase, if you will, a new historical account in the 
life and ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ. At verse 1 we read, 
Now it came to pass when Jesus had finished all these sayings 
that he said to his disciples. So, he had finished all of the 
sayings that he had, the five discourses that we find in the 
book of Matthew. And it's interesting to note 
here that we find the transition. Our Lord Jesus Christ had just 
executed his office as prophet. Not that he now relinquishes 
his office as prophet, but primarily up until this point, our Lord 
Jesus Christ was functioning in his office as prophet, bringing 
the will and the force of the weight of God's revelation to 
the people of Israel, to the disciples, building up his church, 
building up the faithful, and indicting and pronouncing imprecation 
upon those who would oppose the gospel of our great king. And now we have the phase, if 
you will, or the point in this particular discourse that our 
Lord Jesus Christ is executing or beginning his role as priest, 
as our great high priest. He has exercised his role, his 
office as prophet. Now we find the transition to 
Jesus Christ doing the work of the high priest, not only the 
work of the high priest in offering up a sacrifice, but also and 
peculiar to the Lord Jesus being also that sacrifice himself. And so we have this or we have 
arrived at this particular point in Matthew that we read this 
morning. The Lord has predicted his death 
three times prior to chapter 26 at verse 2. We read of another 
prediction. You know that after two days 
is the Passover and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be 
crucified. The Lord Jesus has announced 
this three times prior to this occasion with objections, most 
notably from Peter and with his disciples not necessarily understanding 
why this needed to take place. But as the life and ministry 
carries forth, as our Lord Jesus Christ continues to instruct 
his disciples, and as redemptive history moves forward, we find 
that the disciples have come and do come to an understanding 
of why Jesus Christ needed to be delivered into the hands of 
wicked men, to be crucified, and that he would rise again 
the third day. what we're going to notice here 
is a number of things as we follow through the text of verses 26 
to 30 primarily 26 to 28 and the content of the institution 
of the Lord's Supper and we're going to notice first of all 
here or let's notice first off verse 26 and as they were eating 
Jesus took the bread, blessed, and broke it." This institution 
of the ordinance of the Lord's Supper by our Lord Jesus Christ 
is taking place within the context of a meal. Of course, it's taking 
place within the context of the Passover meal. And we need to 
make a note about that and we're going to look more at that tonight 
as we consider typology, Passover and the Christ who is our Passover. But we need to notice that there 
is not an insignificance to the fact that Jesus is instituting 
the Lord's Supper within the context of the Passover meal. 
There is great significance. It is not just accidental or 
coincidental. It's not just a small or simple 
thing that this is taking place within the context of the Passover 
meal. As if Jesus would have announced 
at verse 2, you know that after two days it is Thursday and the 
Son of Man must go to be crucified. No, there is great significance 
to the fact that this is taking place within the context of the 
Passover meal. And it is striking. It is striking 
and hopefully you get the weight of this or you receive the weight 
of what's going on here that this is taking place within the 
context of the Passover meal. It's amazing that Jesus Christ 
is the one here instituting the Lord's Supper within the context 
of the Passover meal. Why? Well, it was and it is the 
Passover meal that foreshadowed the Lord Jesus Christ. not only 
the events that the Passover meal looked back to in remembrance, 
but the Passover lamb itself. We have here the Lamb of God, 
Christ, our Passover, instituting the Lord's Supper within the 
context of a meal that foreshadowed and pointed to Him and His redemptive 
work. It is an amazing thing that the 
Lamb of God the actual and the real Passover lamb of redemptive 
fulfillment is here eating the Passover meal. So we need to 
consider or we need to understand the significance of the fact 
that this is taking place within the context of that Passover 
meal. Also, they were there, the disciples 
were there, Christ was there, as a result, or rather the disciples 
were gathered together in this place as a result of obedience 
to Christ's request. We read that at verse 17. Now 
on the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the disciples 
came to Jesus saying to him, where do you want us to prepare 
for you to eat the Passover? And he said, go into the city 
to a certain man and say to him, the teacher says, my time is 
at hand. I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples. So the disciples did as Jesus 
had directed them. That's a good thing. The disciples 
of Christ, not only these at this particular time in history, 
but the disciples of Christ are to heed the command of their 
master. They are to be obedient to the 
directives, to the instruction of their great King, the Lord 
Jesus. So they're there, gathered together 
as a result of obedience to Christ's request. And this account, verses 
26 to 30, most likely was taking place near the end of the Passover 
meal, after they would have taken part of the majority of that 
Passover meal. Now, the discourse, of course, 
continues, or the narrative continues, and as they were eating, Jesus 
took bread, blessed, and broke it. Jesus takes the bread, most 
likely a loaf of bread, a simple loaf of bread, but he uses it, 
or he takes this loaf of bread, which certainly was fitting for 
the occasion of instituting the Lord's Supper, and he blesses 
it. Now, we need to understand what's 
going on when we read this language of blessing it. Now, why do we 
need to understand what's going on? Well, there have been monstrous 
monstrous damages done to particular doctrines, to the doctrine of 
the Lord's Supper, throughout the history of Christianity, 
or rather throughout the history of Christian perversion. When 
Jesus took the bread and he blessed it, he was not somehow some prototypical 
papist priest. doing some sort of magical incantation 
over the bread, or conferring some sort of hocus-pocus upon 
the bread. No, our Lord Jesus Christ, yes, 
was setting it apart from a common to a holy use, that's the language 
of our confession. that the ordained minister or 
the one authorized to institute the Lord's Supper or to give 
the Lord's Supper takes the elements and sets them apart from a common 
to a holy use. But the qualification, of course, 
is that it's nothing magical or mystical going on in that 
particular action. Jesus Christ blessed the bread. No doubt this was a giving of 
thanks to the Father for providing them with bread to eat. it was 
a giving of thanks. In fact, we find that language 
in other accounts or actually in this account at verse 27 with 
regards to the cup. Then he took the cup and gave 
thanks. So, it's a giving of thanks to God the Father for 
the giving of the bread. Now, It was very common in the 
Jewish recognition, or in the Jewish carrying out of the Passover 
meal, and in meals generally, to render a blessing with regards 
to the meal that they were about to partake. The common Jewish 
formula for such an occasion that we find here was, Blessed 
art thou, O Lord our God, the King of the world, that produceth 
bread out of the earth. So our Lord Jesus Christ, we 
don't have a report of the words that he actually used in this 
blessing, but no doubt he used words befitting the occasion, 
and no doubt he gave thanks to his Father, as he often did, 
for those things that he gave from his merciful and gracious 
hand. So the Lord Jesus Christ takes 
the bread, he blesses it, and he breaks it. Now we need to 
spend a little bit of time on this particular language. Jesus 
took the bread, blessed and broke it. Now, yes, of course, Jesus 
broke the bread in order to distribute it to the disciples who were 
eating this Lord's Supper with him. He took the bread, he broke 
it so that it could be distributed amongst the disciples that they 
might receive it and eat it according to his command. But, of course, 
and we need to note above that the significance of the breaking 
of the bread. Elsewhere, or in the Lucan account, 
we have the language of the bread that was given for you. It was 
broken or this is my body broken for you, this is my body given 
for you. We need to understand that this 
breaking of the bread is emblematic of something. It is symbolic 
of the breaking of the body of our precious Savior. When Jesus 
takes the bread, He blesses it, and He breaks it, it is not simply 
what it is for distribution to the disciples, but it is emblematic 
and representative of a grand truth. And that truth is that 
our precious Savior's body was broken for the sins of His people. 
Now, what does broken mean? Does it mean the breaking of 
bones. Of course it could not mean the 
breaking of bones because that would fly in the face of or that 
would undo the biblical typology of the Lamb of God. You can turn 
actually to John chapter 19 for a moment just to understand a 
little bit more what this breaking means. It's good to rehearse these things. I know most of you, if not all 
of you, of course understand the biblical reality or the scriptural 
fulfillment of the Passover and what it means when not a bone 
of our Lord's body would be broken. But it's good to rehearse this 
as we consider the language of the breaking of the bread and 
the fact that it is emblematic of the breaking of our Savior's 
body. We can turn to chapter 19 and 
we'll begin reading at verse 34. But one of the soldiers pierced 
his side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out. And 
he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true, and 
he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you may believe. 
For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, 
not one of his bones shall be broken. And again another scripture 
says, They shall look on him whom they pierced. Now, one of 
the things that we find previous to that particular verse is the 
fact that the Jews asked Pilate that the legs of the prisoners, 
or the Lord Jesus Christ and the two that were beside him, 
would be broken. so that they might be taken away, 
or in order to expedite the crucifixion, they were to break the legs so 
that the process would be sped and that they could get about 
the business of Jewish religion. Well, we find the account there 
that our Lord Jesus Christ was already dead. that the soldiers 
pierced his side and they were given evidence that the Lord 
Jesus Christ truly had or truly was dead at that particular point, 
so they did not have to break his body. They did not have to 
break his legs. And this was not a simple, just 
something that happened haphazardly or chronologically or as a historical 
account. in the narrative. No, it was 
a fulfillment of scripture, as the text of John says. And it 
is a common misunderstanding that that is a fulfillment of 
Psalm 22, whereas it is actually a fulfillment of Exodus 12 and 
the breaking of the Passover or the ceremony with regards 
to the Passover lamb. Not a bone of the Passover lamb 
was to be broken. And so we have there a fulfillment 
of the fact, or a revealing of the fact, that Jesus Christ is, 
was the Passover Lamb, the Lamb of God, who was to take away 
the sins of the world. So the breaking here means not 
a breaking of the bones again, because that would be contrary 
scripture, but the breaking means that our Lord Jesus Christ received 
breach upon breach of his body by torture and by the crucifixion 
by Roman nails. the breaking of his body, it 
speaks of the wounds, the sufferings, and all of those things that 
came upon him, the bruisings, and all of the trials of physical 
travail that came upon him, and ultimately his death. So when 
Jesus takes the bread, blesses it, and breaks it, that breaking 
is again representative of his body, which was soon to be broken 
for the sins of his people. The Lord Jesus Christ now speaks 
the words after he takes the bread, after he blesses it and 
breaks it, he gives it to the disciples and he says, take, 
eat, this is my body. And these, just those four words, 
this is my body, serve as the battlegrounds for the last 2,000 
years of the doctrine of the Lord's Supper. Of course, most 
notably between the Roman Catholics and the Protestants. And while 
I don't want to While I don't want to go into an unnecessary 
consideration or a lengthy consideration of the negative aspects of what 
this does not mean, it is good to rehearse that before we actually 
get to the blessed reality of what it does mean, because there 
is much misunderstanding with regards to the literalism of 
this is my body. So again, Jesus takes the bread, 
he blesses it, he breaks it, he gives it to his disciples, 
and he says, take, eat, this is my body. Again, the gospel 
writer Luke adds, which is given for you. Which is something of 
a qualifier, because we'll get to that in a moment. But we're 
going to reiterate or rehearse what this does not mean, what 
this is my body can't mean. And what it can't mean is that 
the bread that Christ was holding, the bread that Christ held and 
that he distributed to the disciples was literally and truly his body. In other words, it was not the 
case that Christ was holding up this bread and breaking it 
and that that bread was literally his body. Now, many of you might 
be saying, well, yeah, of course, that's repugnant to common sense 
and reason, like the language of our confession. And you would 
be right. But there is, of course, that 
doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church, transubstantiation. They take this passage, this 
is my body, apply a wooden literalism to it, and say that that really 
becomes, by consecration of the priest, and at this point, by 
consecration of the Lord Jesus Christ, it really and truly becomes, 
not just the body, but the body, soul, and divinity of the Lord 
Jesus Christ. Now, this bread, again, to reiterate, 
is emblematic of, or it represents, Christ's body. This is our confession 
at chapter 30, paragraph 6, regarding the doctrine of the Roman Catholics. That doctrine, which maintains 
a change of the substance of bread and wine into the substance 
of Christ's body and blood, commonly called transubstantiation, by 
consecration of a priest, or by any other way, is repugnant 
not to Scripture alone, but even to common sense and reason, overthroweth 
the nature of the ordinance, and hath been and is the cause 
of manifold superstitions, yea, of gross idolatries." So that 
is the statement of our confession, biblical to its core, repudiating 
or being or opposing, of course, the doctrine of the Roman Catholics 
with regards to this verse and their understanding of it. Now, 
why is it repugnant or opposed to Scripture and to reason? We're going to look at four things. 
This isn't exhausting the sound evidences against why it is repugnant 
or supporting why it is repugnant or opposed to Scripture and reason, 
but they are for good points to observe. The first is that 
the Bible and the events it records concerning Matthew 26 demand 
a figurative understanding of this is my body, not a literal 
understanding but a figurative understanding of this is my body 
first, it's notable that in the eating of the Passover meal, 
the Jews would often recite a formula that would also contain language 
that supports the figurative interpretation. The Jews would 
say concerning the bread, this is the bread of affliction which 
our fathers ate in the land of Egypt. So it wasn't literally 
the bread of affliction that their fathers ate in the land 
of Egypt that Jews celebrating the Passover meal would be partaking 
of. It was emblematic. It was symbolic 
of that bread that their fathers ate in their season of trouble. 
They did not think it to be the actual bread, again, that their 
fathers ate in their bondage in Egypt. In many places in the 
Bible, we find the figurative use of the verb to be. many different 
forms of the verb to be, the word are, the word is, different 
constructions of the verb to be, but in many places in the 
Bible, we find that figurative use. And kids, what figurative 
means is that we could sort of use it as the opposite of literal, 
but in this case, figurative means the use of one thing as 
a symbol for another thing. For example, in Revelation 120, 
the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches and the 
seven lampstands are the seven churches. They weren't literally 
those things, but they were represented by those things. Genesis 41, 
in an interpretation of Pharaoh's dreams, the seven good cows are 
seven years, and the seven good heads are seven years. Of course, 
not a literal understanding can we bring to that or take from 
it, but rather a figurative one. Ezekiel 37.11, these bones are 
the whole house of Israel. While those bones weren't literally 
the whole house of Israel, they were symbolic, rather, of the 
whole house of Israel. Now, you might say, or those 
who revile our biblical doctrine may say, well, yeah, but those 
are just dreams and visions, interpretations of dreams and 
visions. Well, turn to 1 Corinthians 11 
for a moment. You're well familiar with that 
particular passage, as we consider it almost every Lord's Day. But 
even in the context or in the institution of the Lord's Supper, 
in an account of the institution of the Lord's Supper, we find 
figurative language. Verse 25 of 1 Corinthians chapter 
11. In the same manner, he also took 
the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new covenant 
in my blood. Now, that might seem simple to 
you, but that cup really wasn't the New Covenant, literally speaking, 
but rather it was a representation, the blood that was in the cup, 
the cup there, referring to the blood that was contained in it, 
was representative of the New Covenant in the blood of the 
Lord Jesus Christ. Or rather, sorry, the wine that 
was in the cup was representative of the blood of the New Covenant. 
But again, we have that figurative use of the verb to be. This cup 
is the New Covenant in my blood. So again, the figurative use. 
In the Gospel of John, we find page after page of figurative 
use, used by our Lord Jesus Christ concerning Himself, and even 
in some cases concerning His believers. But in the Gospel 
of John, I am the Bread of Life, John 6.48. I am the Living Bread, 
John 6.51. I am the Light of the World, 
John 9.5. I am the Door of the Sheep, John 10.7. I am the door, 
John 10, 9. I am the resurrection and the 
life, John 11, 25. I am the true vine, John 15, 
1. I am the vine, you are the branches, 
John 15, 5. Now, if we were to take the wooden 
literalism of the Roman Catholics and apply it and apply it freely 
to passages like these, well then there ought to be within 
the doors of their churches ordinances where they set up a door that 
the congregants must walk through because Jesus is the door. or perhaps a setting up of vines 
and branches, or whatever it might be. It's ridiculous to 
take a wooden literalism and apply it to verses in the Bible 
that very clearly, by the force of obviousness, are to be taken 
figuratively. Jesus Christ was not literally 
a door. He was not literally a vine. 
There are blessed spiritual realities that are represented by those 
physical objects. And it's interesting, although 
John, of course, or Jesus in John's account, probably didn't 
have Matthew chapter 26 in the back of his mind. But it's very 
interesting, and you don't have to turn there at John 16, 25. 
Jesus speaks something of a vindication. I can use this verse as a vindication 
for the Protestants in biblical understanding of this is my body. 
Verse 25 of John 16, These things I have spoken to you in figurative 
language. But the time is coming when I 
will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but I will 
tell you plainly about the Father. Our Lord Jesus Christ used figurative 
language in order to communicate precious and divine truths. Now, secondly, a figurative interpretation 
upholds the reality of the immediate historical context of the events 
of the institution of the Lord's Supper. Now, simply, or in other 
words, Christ was right there with them. Christ was right there 
with them in the account of the institution of the Lord's Supper. 
It is a lie to the senses. It is a lie to the biblical reality 
of the fact that it supports the use of our senses, that Jesus 
Christ is somehow to be in front of them present, and yet holy 
and holy in the bread that not only he was eating, but that 
his disciples were eating also. So again, a figurative interpretation 
upholds the reality of the fact that Jesus Christ was right there 
with them. Christ was right there with them, 
eating the Passover meal and participating in the eating of 
the bread, the taking and the eating of the bread, the taking 
and the drinking of the wine. He was sitting before them in 
his sound, undivided flesh, as A. A. Hodge says. When our Lord, 
this is A. A. Hodge, when our Lord said 
this, when he said, this is my body, and gave them bread to 
eat, he was sitting by them in his sound, undivided flesh, eating 
and drinking with them. How is it, then, that the Roman 
Catholics can claim that in every piece of bread distributed, Christ 
is fully present, body, soul, and divinity? It is a contradiction 
of the Scripture which requires, this is my body, to be taken 
figuratively." So again, Christ was right there before them. 
as if our Lord Jesus Christ would be, or according to the Roman 
Catholics, if what they say is true and it is not, our Lord 
Jesus Christ would be participating in auto-cannibalism, which is 
an affront and an abomination and a blasphemy forced upon Holy 
Scripture. A figurative interpretation upholds 
the biblical doctrine of the true humanity of Christ. God was manifested in the flesh. was with God, and the Word was 
God, and the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us. He made himself 
of no reputation, taking the form of a bond-servant, and coming 
in the likeness of men. Therefore, in the book of Hebrews, 
therefore, in all things he had to be made like his brethren." 
Now, where am I going with all of this? Well, here's Waldron 
on this particular subject, the fact that a figurative interpretation 
upholds and a literal interpretation does violence to the biblical 
doctrine of the true humanity of Christ. This is Waldron. This 
is my body, taken literally, contradicts the biblical doctrine 
of the person of Christ. Christ assumed a true human body, 
but he still has it. He will have it forever. That 
body is, during the present age, absent from the earth. Such a 
body could not be present in a thousand sacraments at once. 
Furthermore, according to the explicit witness of the Bible, 
transubstantiation cannot be true. The Lord's Table is a remembrance, 
a memorial of Christ till He comes. This speaks of the reality 
and normality of His human body and of its absence at the Lord's 
Table. We do not remember one who is 
physically present. The very text of Holy Scripture, 
Jesus Christ, is there with them. And he says, though, at verse 
29, but I say to you, I will not drink of this of the fruit 
of this vine. from now on until that day when I drink it new 
with you in my father's kingdom. The Lord Jesus Christ, holy man, 
holy God, the God-man descended, or rather ascended to the right 
hand of the majesty on high after his crucifixion, after his resurrection, 
and after appearing to over 500. And so the Lord Jesus Christ, 
or it is, it does, do violence to the Christology of our Bibles 
to say that Christ can somehow be body, soul, and divinity in 
every single piece of wafer distributed within the walls of the Romanist 
church. Again, we do not remember the Lord's Supper. Part of it, 
or a characteristic of it, is that it is a memorial, it is 
a remembrance, and we do not need to remember one who is physically 
present in the ordinance that we are using to remember him. Fourthly, a figurative interpretation 
upholds common sense and reason, which, properly understood, are 
never repudiated by scripture, but assumed by it as required 
tools of looking at reality. Now, before you jump all over 
me here for a moment, I will issue a qualification. I affirm 
presuppositional apologetics. If nobody knows what that means, 
we can talk afterwards. But I'm not affirming here an 
evidential approach to Christian apologetics. What I'm saying 
is, is that scripture does actually say that we can have a righteous 
use of our senses and that they are valuable tools for affirming 
reality. You can turn to 1 John for a 
moment. 1 John for a moment, as we consider 
the fact that a figurative interpretation of this is my body upholds common 
sense and reason. 1 John chapter 1 verse 1. That which was from the beginning 
which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which 
we have looked upon and our hands have handled concerning the word 
of life. The life was manifested and we 
have seen and bear witness and declare to you that eternal life 
which was with the Father and was manifested to us. That which 
we have seen and heard we declare to you. that you also may have 
fellowship with us, and truly our fellowship is with the Father 
and with His Son, Jesus Christ, which we have heard, which we 
have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our 
hands have handled." And also, you don't have to turn there, 
but you can if you will, Luke chapter 24. Luke chapter 24 and 
the Lord Jesus Christ affirming the righteous and wholesome use 
of the senses in order to affirm a particular reality. Verse 36 
of Luke 24, Now as they said these things, Jesus himself stood 
in the midst of them and said to them, Peace to you. But they 
were terrified and frightened, and supposed they had seen a 
spirit. And he said to them, Why are you troubled, and why 
do doubts arise in your hearts? Behold my hands and my feet, 
that it is I myself. Handle me and see, for a spirit 
does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have. When He had 
said this, He showed them His hands and His feet. But while 
they still did not believe, for joy and marvel, He said to them, 
Have you any food here? So they gave Him a piece of broiled 
fish and some honeycomb, and He took it and ate it in their 
presence. Jesus Christ asks His disciples in order to dispel 
unbelief, in order to dispel confusion, He says, Look on Me, 
look upon Me, and handle Me. Not only that, but watch Me as 
I eat the broiled fish and honeycomb. So, the Gospel writer, the Epistle 
writer, John, affirms a righteous and wholesome use of our senses 
in order to exercise common sense and reason, and our Lord Jesus 
Christ authorizes those in Luke 24 as a wholesome means of apprehending 
the truth of a given reality. So, again, a figurative interpretation 
upholds common sense and reason. Now, do we deny Do we deny the 
supernatural by repudiating the Romish doctrine, or repudiating 
the possibility that the bread could be turned into the body 
of our Lord Jesus Christ? Of course we repudiate that doctrine, 
but we don't deny the supernatural. We're not saying, because we 
do affirm, that with God all things are possible. But what 
we are saying is that God our Father Our great God does not 
work against and counteract or contradict His revelation. He does not go against His scripture. 
That word which He exalts above His name, He does not Himself 
violate. He does not contradict Himself 
because He certainly cannot do so. Now one other thing before 
we move on. One other thing before we move 
on with regards to this subject. We do, believe it or not, if 
you'll have patience with my use of the word, in a positive 
light, we do have a biblical example of transubstantiation. If you want to turn to John chapter 
2. And forgive me for using that word in a positive light, but 
Waldron in his exposition uses it to affirm that we actually 
do have a biblical example of things that had one substance 
being changed into something that is another substance. John 
chapter 2, where are we going with this? Water turned to wine. water turned to wine. We can 
start at verse 6. Now there were set there six water pots of stone 
according to the manner of purification of the Jews. containing 20 or 
30 gallons apiece, Jesus said to them, fill the water pots 
with water. And they filled them up to the 
brim. And he said to them, draw some out now and take it to the 
master of the feast. And they took it. When the master 
of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine and did not 
know where it came from, but the servants who had drawn the 
water knew, the master of the feast called the bridegroom. 
And he said to him, every man at the beginning sets out the 
good wine. And when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior, 
you have kept the good wine until now. So it's here that we have 
a biblical example of actual transubstantiation. Now what 
is the difference? This is an actual miracle. This 
is an actual miracle. If we consider the miracle, in 
quotes, of the Roman Catholic Church, it would be tantamount 
to, or it would be equal to, the Lord Jesus Christ saying, 
OK, I'm going to change this water into wine. Here you go. And then the people look on it 
and say, well, this looks like water. Well, yeah, just trust 
me, it's actually wine. Well, the substance of it is 
water. It's clear. It tastes like water. It looks 
like water. It's water. No, no, no, no. It's 
a miracle. The outward appearance of the 
elements still looks to be water, but inwardly it really is wine. 
That would be ridiculous. Our Lord Jesus Christ isn't about 
an affront to common sense and reason. He's not about doing 
violence or lying to our senses. When a miracle actually takes 
place, a miracle actually takes place. And so here we have actual 
miracle, and certainly by necessary implication or by logical extension, 
a denial of the so-called miracle of transubstantiation of the 
Roman Catholic Church. Now finally, what does this is 
my body mean? We have already defended and 
established the figurative interpretation of it. But what does it mean? 
This is my body is emblematic. It's symbolic. It's a representation 
of Christ's sacrificial substitutionary work on behalf of his people. And this is one of those points, 
however feeble the preacher may be, that we really do need to 
worship the God of Holy Scripture. When we come to the simple reality 
that this is my body, is representative of Christ our Savior giving up 
himself, giving up himself to breach upon breach of his flesh 
for his people. It should have been, or it was 
to be, brethren, our bodies built. It should have been our bodies 
broken. It wasn't our Lord Jesus Christ 
who fracture upon fracture did violence to the righteous precepts 
of the covenant woman. It wasn't our Lord Jesus Christ 
who raised his fist, who railed against the beautiful law of 
a kind and a merciful God. It was us who should have received 
the bruises. We should have been bruised. 
We should have been stricken. We should have been cut off. 
We, brethren, should have been led as lambs to the slaughter 
in order to fulfill and to satisfy divine justice. That should have 
been us. Our bodies should have been broken. 
We should have been breached, fracture upon fracture of our 
flesh. But our Lord Jesus Christ said, 
here am I. Send me. Our Lord Jesus Christ 
said, Behold, I have come, in the volume of the book it is 
written of me, to do your will, O God. And it was our Lord Jesus 
Christ who came into this world to save sinners. It was our Lord 
Jesus Christ who went into Gethsemane, not us, and said, If it is possible, 
let this cup pass from you. Nevertheless, not my will, but 
thine be done. It was our Lord Jesus Christ 
who received bash after bash. You've got to consider that kids 
Those of you who reject the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, those 
of you who roll your eyes at our Savior, turn away from that 
richness. This one entered into the world 
to save sinners. This one came into this world, 
he received breach upon breach, lash upon lash. He was tortured. This one who was unblemished, 
perfect, undefiled, The Holy One, the God-Man, the One who 
enjoyed the praises of angels, entered into our lower ignominy 
and received lash upon lash for guilty sins. Don't roll your 
eyes at the Lord Jesus Christ and turn to idol upon idol, whether 
it's sports, whether it's music, whether it's movies, whether 
it's whatever. If you cast all those things 
aside and you own the Christ, who would depart glory and come 
into this world to die for sinners and to rise again, we should 
have been beaten. We should have been slaughtered. 
But God, in His mercy and according to His grace and to the praise 
of the glory of His grace, put Christ in our step, put Christ 
in our place. And that's one of the things 
that we certainly remember. Do this in remembrance of me. 
Yes, Lord Jesus, we'll remember you for that saving work, for 
that sacrificial and substitution. We'll move on in the discourse 
as we try to quickly move through, considering the institution here. 
Verse 27, Then he took the cup and gave thanks and gave it to 
them, saying, Drink from it, all of you. He took the cup. 
just like he did when he took the bread it was common to Jewish 
custom the Lord Jesus takes the cup he gives thanks again we 
don't have a record of what the Lord Jesus said in the giving 
of thanks but no doubt it was or it could have been that Jewish 
formula blessed art thou oh Lord our God the king of the world 
who has created the fruit of the vine But our Lord Jesus Christ, 
of course, was not restricted to any Jewish formula. Our Lord 
Jesus Christ could have said anything that he wanted, and 
no doubt, whatever it was, it was fitting such a somber and 
such a righteous and joyful occasion as this, befitting the institution 
of the Lord's Supper. Now, one of the things we need 
to consider, just very briefly, we drink red wine in remembering 
and in following through with the ordinance of our Lord Jesus 
Christ, and certainly that was the case in the time of Christ 
and throughout redemptive history. the recognition or the drinking 
of red wine first to remember the blood that was sprinkled 
upon the doorposts on that first Passover and continually through 
to this point in redemptive history where now the redemptive focus 
is shifted to our Lord Jesus Christ and the shedding of his 
blood. So they drink red wine, they 
give thanks, or Jesus in this case gives thanks And he says 
to them, drink from it, all of you. Now, just two brief things 
to consider from this statement of our Lord Jesus. Drink from 
it, all of you. First off, It is the case that 
we are to heed, the disciples first, prototypical, we are to 
heed the commands of our Lord Jesus Christ. It's a simple command, 
but nevertheless, when our Lord Jesus renders a command, it is 
the obligation of his people to follow through with adhering 
to it. Now, this isn't something that 
we do. begrudgingly, or it certainly 
isn't something that we ought to do begrudgingly, or as if 
we're under the harsh imposition of a slave master. No, we are, 
Christians are, in joyful obedience to our master, the Lord Jesus 
Christ. The Lord Jesus gives the command 
to drink from it, And he says, all of you, which touches upon 
the intended recipients of this particular ordinance. There have 
been gross errors throughout the history of the church in 
denying the drinking of the cup to particular communicants. I'm 
not saying denying it to unbelievers. The ordinance is for believers. But there has been an unbiblical 
separation of clergy and laity, if I can use those terms. throughout 
the history of the church. The Lord Jesus Christ here in 
his institution clearly says that all disciples, the 12 in 
this case, but all disciples, true disciples, those who believe 
in the Lord Jesus Christ and are seeking to walk in newness 
of life are to drink from the cup at the Lord's Supper. So 
the intended recipients here, all of you, are the words of 
our Lord Jesus Christ. No doubt he drank of the cup 
also. and then his disciples drank 
from it. And then we have similar language 
that we just touched upon, we do not need to rehearse what 
we just discussed with regards to this is my body, but the Lord 
Jesus continued at verse 28, for this is my blood of the new 
covenant which is shed for many for the remission of sins. Now, 
one thing that we have here is fulfillment taking place within 
the context of the Lord's Supper. And you need to see this. We 
have biblical fulfillment taking place in the context of the Lord's 
Supper, but in this particular verse. And I believe there's 
a couple of things that we have in the background here. First 
off, though, with regards to the Lord's Supper, we have the 
fulfillment of the Passover celebration. Remember, this is taking place 
within the context of the Passover meal, while we have a fulfillment 
now, a revealing of what the true meaning of the Passover 
was. In the first Passover, the congregation of Israel, in the 
very first Passover meal, we're anticipating the short release, 
or the short time before they would be released from bondage. 
But the Passover meal, historically, is looking back upon God's redemption 
pulling the nation of Israel out of bondage in Egypt. and 
bringing them to the land of promise. And of course, not just 
that particular action, but also the deliverance, or passing over 
them, while the angel of death destroyed the firstborn of Egypt, 
and there was much death, much wailing, and much judgment. And 
so, now we have a realization of the true meaning of the Passover 
meal, is that it typified, it pointed forward to, the Passover 
Lamb. The Lord Jesus Christ, the Lamb 
of God, who would give his blood, who would give himself up for 
the sins of his people. Now, two other things that we 
have in this particular verse. For this is my blood of the new 
covenant. We have another full realization 
of what was done in the old covenant when Moses sprinkled the book 
of the covenant and the people with the blood of bulls and goats. 
We have another fulfillment here. That first sprinkling or that 
first act of affirming the covenant of God was typical. It was another 
thing that pointed forward to a greater reality. We have in 
the book of Hebrews the fact that the blood of bulls and goats 
could never take away sins, but rather the blood of the high 
priest an actual efficacious sacrifice was only that which 
could take away the sins of God's people. So we have at verse 28, 
for this is my blood of the new covenant, not only Exodus 24 
and verse 8 in view, but we have Jeremiah 31, 31 to 34 in view 
also. We have now, finally, an announcement of the inauguration 
of the new covenant that was announced so many hundred years 
ago. Remember Jeremiah, in Jeremiah 
31, he announces the coming of the new covenant. Actually, Well, 
we don't need to turn to Hebrews, but just the language of Jeremiah 
31, just so we understand that in the context, in this initiation, 
in this institution of the Lord's Supper, we have the Lord Jesus 
Christ affirming from His own mouth that He is the mediator 
of the New Covenant, that He is the testator, that He is the 
one who would ratify or confirm or fulfill the New Covenant. 
Jeremiah 31, 31, Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, 
when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and 
with the house of Judah." And of course the prophet continues 
saying that this would not be like the old covenant which he 
made with his people, but rather in this covenant all people would 
have his law written upon their minds and upon their hearts. 
All of the people would receive the remission of sins, the blessed 
forgiveness of sins, and all of his people would know the 
Lord and would walk with them, would walk with him. So we have 
here Jesus Christ and in the background of his statement, 
for this is my blood of the new covenant. We have the Exodus 
24 sprinkling of the book of the covenant and the people by 
the blood of bulls and goats. And we have the new covenant 
announcement by Jeremiah 31 also in the background. Now the language 
here continues, for this is my blood of the new covenant which 
is shed for many for the remission of sins. Now this is where we 
have obviously a clear and a striking difference between those old 
covenant symbols and points and ceremonies, etc. We have the 
fact that now the announcement of the efficacious or the powerful 
or the real sacrifice was about to be made. Now there would be 
no need for that typical sprinkling of the blood of bulls and goats. 
Now there would be no need for those multitudinous washings 
and sacrifices and rituals because the one whom now all of that 
pointed to has come. He has arrived on the scenes. 
he has carried out his prophetic office, he has now come to the 
point in redemptive history where he would give his life for his 
people, where he would shed his blood of the new covenant for 
the remission of sins. And this This brings us, or it 
brings us clearer to the point, that there is a redemptive focus 
to this account, to this narrative account. It is not simply a meal, 
a supper that is to take place. It is not simply people partaking 
of the elements of bread and of wine. It is a celebration. It is a memorial. It is a proclamation. It is a recognition of the redemptive 
work of the Son of God who came into the world to save sinners 
from their sins. We need to see that the Bible 
here, in joining together the Passover with the Lord's Supper, 
in joining together thousands of years of redemptive history, 
or many centuries of it, is sort of setting forth the strength 
of the fact that the Bible is a redemptive document. if I can 
use the word document. The Bible is a redemptive document. It has a redemptive focus. It is not simply some dusty tome 
of histories, of truths, and of proverbs. Again, page after 
page, chapter after chapter, it points to the Lord Jesus Christ 
upon the cross of Calvary working out the salvation of sinners. 
The redemptive movement or the movement of revelation while 
we have God dealing with his people, while we have judgment, 
restoration, judgment, restoration, while we have many lessons of 
morality, biblical morality throughout the Old Testament and into the 
New Testament, the movement of Holy Scripture is to the Lord 
Jesus Christ according to the eternal covenant, according to 
the eternal plan of God, saving sinners upon the cross of Calvary. And so we have that redemptive 
focus here. For this is my blood of the new 
covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. It 
has always been about redemption. The people celebrating the Passover 
meal were not just eating lamb and the various foods and drinks 
that were involved in the Passover meal. They were remembering. 
They were looking back to that point when God brought them out 
of the house of bondage and into the land of promise. they would 
remember the fact that God redeemed them from out of that land and 
brought them into their own particular freedom. So it is always redemption. And how much more than in the 
Lord's Supper or in the New Covenant era, if Israel rejoiced in a 
physical removal from bondage, how much more ought we, the New 
Covenant people, rejoice and remember and relish in and just 
be awed in the fact of spiritual removal from the house of bondage. 
If Israel could century after century and time after time look 
back in that historical retrospect and praise God for pulling them 
from out of bondage in Egypt, if they could do that time and 
time again, how much more ought we, ought the people of God, 
to rejoice, to render psalm, to render doxology, to render 
glory to our great God for pulling us out of that spiritual Egypt, 
for transferring us from out of the house of bondage spiritually, 
from pulling us out of darkness and into his marvelous light. 
And another thing that we ought to consider here is that it is 
required, it was required, that blood be shed for the remission 
of sin. It is a violent thing and it 
does damage to the doctrine of sin, the doctrine of man, but 
more importantly, the doctrine of the atoning work of the Lord 
Jesus Christ, to think lightly about sin and about shed blood, 
about the law of God also. But it was required that blood 
be shed for the remission of sin. That ought to point us to 
the fact that sin is great. sin, the breaking of law, the 
transgression of the law, and a lack of conformity unto the 
precepts of our covenant God is a heavy and a hard thing. And what does it require? It 
does not require and it cannot be put away by jingling money 
in the cups of papists. It cannot be put away by paying 
the priest or lighting a candle. It cannot be put away by our 
works done. It cannot be put away by good 
deeds. It cannot be put away by creature 
or creaturely things. It can only be put away by creator 
things. the one who created the world, 
the one who fixed the stars in place, entered into our reality 
and took upon himself the sanctions due us, the penalties due to 
us in order to purchase the remission of sins. It is a heavy thing 
that blood was required by our great God in order to put away 
the sins of his people. And we ought not ever to think 
lightly of it, because sin required a heavy sacrifice. And when we 
consider the language in a moment, when we move on to the Lord's 
Supper, when we consider the language of do this in remembrance 
of me, we need to remember those weighty realities. First, the 
weighty reality of this is my body that the Lord Jesus Christ 
breach upon breach received, breach upon breach in his flesh, 
the reality that by the shedding of his blood, the perfect Lamb 
of God, we have remission of sins. Those who breach upon breach 
broke the law of God, those who were deserving of breach upon 
breach in our flesh, We fractured God's law. He was, He should 
have fractured us, but He fractured the Son of His love. We need 
to remember those things as we consider the Lord's Supper. Very 
briefly, the Lord Jesus Christ gives us some evidence that an 
attribute of the Lord's Supper is anticipatory or is a looking 
forward to a reality. Verse 29, But I say to you, I 
will not drink of the fruit of the vine from now on until that 
day when I drink it new with you. in my father's kingdom. 
There is an anticipatory reality to the Lord's Supper. We're looking 
forward with great joy to the coming of our conquering King. 
And notice verse 30, very briefly, when they had sung a hymn, they 
went out to the Mount of Olives. This wasn't the time for them 
to mourn, although it was a sober occasion. It was a solemn occasion. 
This wasn't a time, though, for them to mourn, as they may have 
previously, when they lamented at Christ's announcement that 
he would be crucified, that he would be delivered, that he would 
be put to death, and that he would rise again the third day. 
Though they sang a hymn, yes, no doubt, as a reality of participating 
in the Passover meal. They would close the celebration 
and actually throughout the meal they would sing psalms. But no 
doubt they had joy in their hearts because they realized that this 
Christ was, or they wholly realized, that this Christ was the Passover 
lamb, that this Christ was the realization of the blood of the 
covenant, that this Christ was coming to fulfill all of the 
law. and all of the prophets. So they 
sang at him and they went out to the Mount of Olives. Matthew 
Henry notes that no doubt the Lord Jesus Christ had, yes, the 
fact that he needed to move forward with the Father's providential 
plan for him. He needed to go to the garden. 
He needed to be betrayed and arrested in Gethsemane. But Matthew 
Henry notes that secondarily, the Lord Jesus Christ was being 
kind to the master of the house that they were eating in. He 
did not want to bring trouble upon the master of the house 
that they were eating the Passover meal in. So the Lord Jesus Christ, 
after they sing a hymn, the king leads his kingdom people out 
to the Mount of Olives. We don't want our master to be 
brought into trouble. We don't want to have an uprising 
in the city. No, we'll go to the Mount of 
Olives. We'll pray. I'll be arrested, portrayed in 
the garden. And providential and redemptive 
history will continue, and I'll give my life for you, and I'll 
rise again, and I'll ascend to my father, and I'll ever live 
to give intercession for you, my precious people. Just a few 
brief notes, and then we'll move on after a prayer to the Lord's 
Supper. One, we need to have a sober 
but joyful remembrance. When we approach the Lord's Supper, 
we ought not ever to approach it lightly, brethren. It's bread 
and it's wine. Yes, but our Lord Jesus Christ, 
in instituting it, set these things apart from a common to 
a holy use. It is not us kicking back, just 
chilling, and having some bread and some wine like we would have 
some snacks and some juice. This is something that resembles, 
that is emblematic of our Savior's body broken for us. It's emblematic 
of our Savior's blood shed for us. And we are, too, as we heard 
this morning, we're to have an improvement upon our own wickedness. We need to repent of thought 
of deed and action. If we haven't, we need to do 
so. We need to have a growth in our faith. As we partake of 
the Lord's Supper, this is something that is a constant reminder of 
us that we have been saved by such a God, that we have been 
saved by such a Savior, by such an act as redemption of the Cross 
of Calvary. We need to have a sober and joyful 
remembrance that we are looking forward to inheriting eternal 
life. We have it saved up, pulled up 
for us in heaven. That is assured in a certain 
fact. But we look forward to the realization of that. We look 
forward to the coming of our conquering king, and he comes 
with the glory of all his holy angels. When he judges those 
who are wicked, but brings to eternal bliss those who are his 
righteous by his work. We are proclaiming the death 
of Christ. We are exhibiting, we are demonstrating 
the death of Christ. It is a visual gospel, as one 
man has said. We are proclaiming to each other, 
to the world, and to God, the death of our Lord Jesus Christ. 
It is an exhibition, a revealing of the gospel reality, that Jesus 
Christ came into this world to save his people from his sins. 
And lastly, I want to appeal to the children And I want to 
appeal to them using something that we find in the discourse 
in the book of Exodus. And you don't need to turn there, 
but children, we as parents, we as adults in the church, we 
as people of the great lamb, people of our Lord Jesus Christ, 
would hope and pray and we would plead that you would do as the 
children of the nation of Israel were encouraged to do so many 
hundreds of years ago. They were required to say, they 
were asked to ask, what do you mean by this service? They were 
asked to ask the question, what is this Passover meal all about? And with regards to the Passover 
meal, the people were to respond. that you shall say, it is the 
Passover sacrifice of the Lord, who passed over the houses of 
the children of Israel in Egypt, when he struck the Egyptians 
and delivered our households. So the people bowed their heads 
in worship. Then the children of Israel went away and did so. Just as the Lord had commanded 
Moses and Aaron, so they did. We would ask children that you 
would ask us, what do you mean by this service? And each and 
every one of us ought to be ready to tell you, this is what we 
mean by this service. And such a Christ descended from 
on high, such a Christ descended from on high, entered into, again, 
that lowest ignominy, living rejected by his people, living 
without a place to put his head, no pillow for his Savior, rejected 
by his people, spit upon, mocked, beaten, crucified, but all of 
this in order to redeem his people. He was that Passover sacrifice 
of the Lord, and by it, the Lord God passes over us, passes over 
you if you believe in him. While he exercises judgment on 
the wicked, he in his grace and his mercy and his kindness passes 
over you because he counts you covered by the blood of the Lamb. 
Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved. Never 
roll your eyes, never look down at the floor, never fiddle with 
anything while the preacher is saying, believe on the Lord Jesus 
Christ and you shall be saved. Cast off idols, cast off the 
folly of your own mind, the folly of your own opinion, the religion 
of your own head and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Let's 
pray. Father, we thank you so much. for the reality of our 
Lord Jesus Christ and the giving of himself, the giving of his 
body, the shedding of his blood for guilty sinners. We just pray 
that we would be renewed this day in the reality of that Father. 
Help us, God, to consider just the weight of redemptive history, 
the weight of the biblical testimony. that Jesus Christ came into this 
world to save sinners, that He came into this world to save 
His people, God, and may we always relish in these truths. And may 
each and every one who heard this message, Lord God, everyone 
who heard this message, however feeble, however quick, God, would 
believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, because it is possible with You. 
We pray that each and every mouth would leave this place singing 
the praises of our blessed Redeemer. We pray in His precious name. 
Amen.