May 27, 2018 The Abstinence Of Christ by Conley Owens Deacon

Be good here. All right, let me begin. I've got, well, yeah, I've got water here, thanks. I've got more. Let us begin by reading Luke 22, beginning in 14 and going to verse 18. Excuse me, I'll read all the way down to verse 23, but the preaching text for this morning is verses 14 to 18.

And when the hour came, he reclined at the table, and the apostles with him. And he said to them, I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you that I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.

And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he said, take this and divide it among yourselves. For I tell you that from now on, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.

And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, this is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me. And likewise, the cup, after they had eaten, saying, this cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.

But behold, the hand of him who betrays me is with me on the table. For the son of man goes as it has been determined, but woe to the man by whom he is betrayed. And they began to question one another, which of them it could be who is going to do this.

And the Lord bless the reading of his word. So today, I have a very wonderful truth for you. It's a very grand truth. It's something that's become very precious to me. At the same time, it is a very obvious truth.

It is a truth that scripture very plainly says, something that everyone knows, and not just Christians, but anyone who knows anything about Christianity knows and believes this. Other sects outside of the true faith believe this.

Other religions, Hindus, Muslims believe this. Atheists even believe this. And that is that Jesus is not physically with us, partaking this supper with us. Now, I could say that in other ways. I could say Jesus is not present with us.

But that might be confusing, because even our confession says that Jesus is really with us, and we feed on him spiritually when we eat the bread and drink the wine. And I might say that Jesus is not bodily with us, but then you might think that I'm talking about what Roman Catholics believe, that Jesus, through transubstantiation, is in the cup and the bread.

But that's not what I'm talking about either. I'm talking about the fact that Jesus, his head, arms, legs, torso, that human Jesus is not with us here, sitting with us, partaking of the Lord's Supper.

And that might seem, like I said, a very obvious truth and not something to spend too much time thinking about, but it's something that Jesus makes a large issue about here in this passage, and it's something that I think communicates a significant amount about what the Lord's table means, about what it should signify to us.

In this table, it proclaims the joyous union that we have in salvation. It proclaims the kingdom of God, this joyous union that we have in salvation. So I'd like to go through this passage with you and show you how Jesus' current absence from our table, his bodily absence from our table, what that is to communicate to us about this joyous union we have in salvation, and what it is that we're to be anticipating about the joyous union that we have in salvation.

Christ’s Abstinence and the Joy of the Kingdom

So it says in verse 15,. And he said to them, I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer, for I tell you I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God. So here, Jesus, it says he is with his apostles.

Of course, they have not been sent out yet, but Luke is telescoping, looking forward to when they will be sent out. Of course, one of them, Judas, is not sent out, but the eleven are. And so, as Jesus gathers with them, he is preparing them for the work that they are to do as they are going to be sent out for this meal that is going to commemorate his death.

And he says that he will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God. Now, it seems that he's eating it here, so he's saying he eats it this once, and then he will not eat this meal again until we're with him in the kingdom of God.

And then he says, and then it says, he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he said, take this and divide it among yourselves, for I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.

So Jesus, in this solemn act, taking the cup, dividing it, is solemnly declaring to the disciples that he will not drink wine until the kingdom of God comes. Essentially, he is swearing off wine, letting them know his resolve to bring that kingdom together, bring all the people together with him in that kingdom.

We have a great salvation in Jesus Christ. However, it is not complete. It is not complete in that there are many who are God's elect who are not yet counted among his children. We still wander in this world struggling, dealing with the issues of death and sin, and it will not be fully complete until all of us have reached heaven.

And so Jesus, to show us that he is committed to this work that he is doing, swears off this festive meal, swears off wine, to let the disciples know how committed he is to bringing all this together into God's kingdom in heaven.

Now, that should impact us and cause us to think about the sincerity of God's words, the sincerity of our own words. And, you know, we've been talking in Sunday School about the significance of oaths and vows, how we should feel about the truthfulness of our own words.

And think about this. We trust God. We trust God to do the things he says because he is God and he is truthful. But there is something that scripture is doing in relating to this to us. Not only does Jesus have divine motivations for bringing this about, he has human motivations for bringing about this complete salvation.

He has a vested interest, having sworn off the celebratory meal, having sworn off wine, to bring about the kingdom of God in its fullness. That's something that should cause us to not just be convinced of the matter the way that one might be convinced of God's word, but in a human, relatable sense, he is letting us know that.

This should give us assurance about what it is that God will do. So, I mentioned this communicates to us about the joyous union that we have in salvation. I'd like to take a moment and talk about that joy.

He says he has earnestly desired to eat this Passover. He earnestly desired. This desire is for this joyous occasion. And it says in verse 17 that he gave thanks. Thanks, of course, always for something good.

This word for thanks is eucharisteo, which is why some people call this the Eucharist. He's giving thanks to God for this good thing. This is a joyful thing, and of course feasts are always joyful. And then wine in the Bible, it can represent multiple different things, but one of those things that wine frequently represents is joy.

Judges 9 .13 says that wine cheers God and man. Now, I don't know exactly how wine cheers God, but the idea here, and maybe it's even talking about, maybe it's even looking forward to Christ becoming flesh and drinking wine with his disciples, but it says that wine cheers God and it's a symbol of joy.

And Psalm 104 .15 says that wine gladdens the hearts of man. You see, it's everywhere very frequently as a symbol of joy. And one of the Old Testament punishments when people would disobey God, one of the Old Testament punishments was that God would take away their vineyards, he would take away their wine.

Why? Because it's representative of their joy. He's taking away their joy because they have disobeyed him. And think about Jesus' first miracle, which is to bring wine at the wedding at Cana. Once again, it is to show that his ministry is one of joy.

Even Paul, when he is, as an apostle of Christ, conducting the ministry of Christ in 2 Corinthians 1, he talks about how he is working together for the Corinthians' joy, that that is what his ministry is.

It's a ministry of joy. And so Jesus, in starting his ministry, produces wine out of water to show us that his ministry is one of joy. There's an additional text I would like us to look at in Song of Solomon.

So if you look at the Song of Solomon, chapter 2, the church has, all throughout the ages, recognized the Song of Solomon as, you know, of course it's about Solomon and his bride, but it is ultimately giving a picture of Christ and his church.

So as we read this, let's think about this picture of Christ and his church. So in chapter 2, verse 3, she speaks, "...an apple tree among the trees of the forest, so is my beloved among the young men.

With great delight I sat in his shadow, and his fruit was sweet to my taste. He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love. Sustain me with raisins, refresh me with apples, for I am sick with love.

His left hand is under my head, and his right hand embraces me. I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles or the does of the field, that you do not stir up or awaken love until it pleases.".

In verse 4, if you're using the Pew Bible, you'll notice that there's a little footnote associated with banqueting house. This is literally the house of wine. This is speaking of Solomon taking his bride to a house of wine where they can be joyous together.

This is a picture of what Christ does with this church. He's taking his disciples here, celebrating with them one last time before he is absent for a very long time, and then will be eventually reunited with them.

So wine represents joy. Now, let me ask you this. Jesus, right now, he has a physical body. He was raised from the dead. His body did not die again. It's not here on earth, so where must it be? It is in heaven.

He's in heaven now. He's with his Father. He's with all the angels. He's with all the saints deceased. Would you say that he is joyous right now? I would say the answer to that is, of course, yes, he's joyous.

So what does it mean that he has sworn off the celebratory meal, and he's sworn off wine? He's sworn off these symbols of joy because his joy is not complete because you are not there with him yet. His joy is not complete while we are not there with him.

And so he refuses to fully engage in celebration, knowing that there are some of his people away from him still. Now, one day he will return, and we will celebrate with him. And Isaiah 25, 6 says, On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast full of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine, a feast of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined.

That is talking about this day when Jesus is reunited from us and is willing to feast and engage in celebration with his people when they will all be reunited. So looking at this table that is incomplete because Jesus is not here with us, and he has sworn off this meal, this incomplete joy paradoxically should make us even more joyful because the fact that Jesus is refusing to participate in it and yet commands us to means that he desires us to be joyous, to enjoy the salvation and unity that we have right now, even though he is committed to bringing it about more fully.

He wants you to have joy. And on top of that, it should make us excited for that great joy that we will experience in the future when we are all together. So if you struggle with lack of joy, I can't just tell you to be joyful, but maybe as you contemplate this, as you contemplate the fact that your Savior wants you to be joyful, and he does this in this very solemn way of giving us this table, allowing us and commanding us to celebrate our unity, our salvation, while he himself refuses to.

In the meanwhile, while he has resolved himself to fulfilling it completely, knowing his desire for your joy hopefully should fill you with some joy. Now this is a joyous…. So I once heard a story that I think somebody here told me, so I'm sorry if I'm telling your story and I'm telling it poorly, but someone told me that they once had a Thanksgiving dinner where they invited another family, and that family came a little late, and they didn't really eat any food, and they asked them, why aren't you all eating any food?

And they said, oh, we stopped at McDonald's on the way over. So think about… think about Jesus' joy right now. Jesus, he is so anticipating this reunion that we're going to be having, this Thanksgiving dinner, in a way that we cannot relate to because he is not participating in it.

We are participating in it weekly, enjoying this joy. He, in being so resolved to bring this together, abstaining from it, will be so much more enthralled and joyous. He is so much more eager to see this take place, to see our reunion in heaven.

Communion as Unity with Christ and His People

And that union also is important in this passage. He speaks of eating and drinking with the disciples. Excuse me, I lost my place in Luke. He speaks of eating and drinking with his disciples, and you don't see it here, but in Matthew, he speaks of when he drinks it again, he eats it again with them in the kingdom of heaven.

He doesn't use that phrase with you here in Luke 22, but this table represents union. You know, I mentioned last week, that's why it's often called come union, because it represents our unity. And 1 Corinthians 10 .16 says, the cup of blessing that we bless is it not a participation in the blood of Christ?

The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread. So this table is supposed to represent our unity.

Now, that unity, just like that joy, is not complete yet, although Jesus wants us to still enjoy it. It's not complete because Jesus is not here with us. It's not complete because we are not with the saints in heaven.

It is not complete because there may be a generation yet to come who has not yet known Christ. These things are not complete. In addition, we get to, if I were to ask you, you know, are we united with Christ?

Then hopefully you know that the answer is yes, we're united with him in spirit. We have his holy spirit. He is present with us through his spirit. Now, while we have the spirit of Christ in us, so that we are united to Christ, Christ has no spirit of us dwelling in him.

There is a sense in which we get to appreciate this unity with each other, this unity with Christ in a way that Christ does not himself once again celebrate, does not himself enjoy the way that we get to enjoy.

And he wants us to enjoy this thing, this union that we have. I've heard of soldiers who, while they're away from their families, will refuse to eat any kind of Christmas meal. Once again, the idea being that they don't want to celebrate this occasion without what Christmas has come to mean for them, which for many people Christmas is about unity with family.

You know, of course we would think of Christmas as primarily being about Christ, but for a lot of people it's about unity with their family. And so they refuse to participate in Christmas until they have that unity again.

This is what Christ is doing. Now, if he wants us, meanwhile, to enjoy the unity that we have with one another, you know, I am here with Ken Tompkins, and Jesus is not enjoying bodily presence with Ken Tompkins.

He wants me to enjoy this fellowship in a very special way. So think about the ramifications for that. If you are not appreciating the unity, you are not appreciating what Christ has given you. If you are not reconciling your differences, but you are holding grudges towards others, think about that.

I've heard of and I've seen some people abstain from the Lord's table because they were upset at somebody else in the body and didn't want to take communion with them. Now, think about what exactly it is that that says.

That says something along the lines of, Jesus, I know you want me to celebrate communion with them, and I know that you are refusing to celebrate because you are not with them and don't get to enjoy their bodily presence, but even though I'm with them and do get to enjoy their bodily presence, it's not good enough for me.

That is what is going on when someone does something like that, and that is what's going on in a secondary way when we refuse to reconcile with our brothers and sisters. Jesus Christ is not to get to enjoy this thing at the moment that he is allowing all of us to enjoy, that this unity with one another and with bodily presence here on earth.

And so, that is not something that should be spited. That is something that should be enjoyed and appreciated, and it's something that has serious ramifications for our actions and behavior towards one another in striving for unity.

Salvation, the Exodus, and the Marriage Supper of the Lamb

Now, this Lord's table also represents the salvation that we have in Christ. We proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. It says, and when the hour came, he reclined at the table and the apostles with him, and he said to them, I've earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.

So, of course, that suffering points forward to his death and resurrection, which will result in the salvation of God's people. The Passover points to the salvation that God has provided also, right? The reason why Jesus is co-opting this meal and turning it into his own ordinance is because of what it already represented.

It already represented salvation, represented salvation from Egypt. So, the Israelites left Egypt and were taken out of the Red Sea, and they were spared death because of the blood of the lamb painted on their doorposts.

Now, Jesus, being the lamb of God whose blood takes away the sins of the world, this is an appropriate co-opting of this into his own ordinance. Now, we have that salvation. He wants us to enjoy that salvation.

But if you think back to the Exodus, the Exodus doesn't just refer to making it out of Egypt, crossing the Red Sea. The Exodus plays out further into the people wandering through the wilderness and eventually crossing the Jordan into the Promised Land.

Right now, we have crossed over the Red Sea. We have been freed from the bondage of sin and death, but we still wander in this wilderness, struggling, being tested constantly, tried and tempted, until we finally make it into the Promised Land, into heaven, across the Jordan.

Now, Jesus wants us to enjoy coming out of Egypt, but he is resolved to see to it that we make it across the Jordan, not just the Red Sea, but the Jordan, into the Promised Land, into heaven. Jesus is hard-set on our salvation.

Philippians 1 .6 says, and I am sure of this, that he began a good work, and you will bring it to completion on the day of Jesus Christ. All right, that work, maybe you'll think, oh, it'll be complete when I'm dead, because then I'll be perfectly sanctified.

There's more to it. On the day of Jesus Christ, when he returns, then the kingdom will be completely fulfilled. Then we will all be together. That is what Jesus is hard-set gunning towards, and he has resolved himself by means of abstaining from the celebration, abstaining from wine, until this occasion occurs.

He desires your salvation. If you have any doubts about whether or not he's willing to forgive your sin, about any doubts about whether or not, he is willing to help you as you repent and you strive against sin.

If the battle seems too difficult, think about how much more Jesus is resolved to get us there than we are. He is vastly more resolved. If our eagerness for this thing, you know, Peter talks about how we should not say that God is slow, as some count slowness.

He's patient with us, and he has his own purposes and his own plan. So if you are impatient about the Lord tearing, and you are eager to see salvation completed in the kingdom of God in heaven, think about how much more eager he is.

This is something we think about occasionally with little fleeting thoughts. If our eagerness and zeal, it's like a little fire, it'd be like a match that goes out occasionally, maybe sometimes we relight it.

Jesus is like a forest fire. He is so eager, so desiring our salvation, a way that he has committed himself to, and one of the ways he's showing us that is by his abstinence from this table. If you have any doubts about that, think about how much more eager he is than us.

And ultimately, this joyous union in salvation is fulfilled in the kingdom of God. He says in verse 18, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes. Now, the kingdom is already among us, as Jesus says, but at the same time, there's a way in which it's not yet fully fulfilled.

Jesus will return. We will all see heaven. We will see him, and this kingdom will be fully together. That kingdom is what we are striving for. Right now, Jesus is king, but that kingship is not universally recognized.

There's a parallel I'd like to show you that I think illuminates this a little. Jesus is frequently called the son of David because it's that Davidic kingship that Jesus is restoring, that kingship of David.

Now, David is this king who shows us a little bit about who Christ is. I'd like you to turn to 2 Samuel 23. Where it speaks of David's mighty men, and you may be familiar with this story in 2 Samuel 23 about how David's mighty men got water for him.

So, 2 Samuel 23 verse 13, and three of the thirty chief men went down and came about harvest time to David at the cave of Adalom. So, if you remember the cave of Adalom, that is where David hid from Saul.

So, this is, while in the timeline of 2 Samuel, where after David is fully installed as king, this is at a time where David has been anointed king, but his kingship is not recognized, kind of like Jesus is right now.

He's in hiding. David is, I guess. When a band of Philistines was encamped in the valley of Rephaim, David was then in the stronghold, and the garrison of the Philistines was then at Bethlehem. And David said longingly, oh, that someone would give me water to drink from the well of Bethlehem that is by the gate.

Then the three mighty men broke through the camp of the Philistines and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem that was by the gate and carried it and brought it to David. But he would not drink of it.

He poured it out to the Lord and said, far be it from me, O Lord, that I should do this. Shall I drink the blood of the men who went at risk of their lives? Therefore, he would not drink it. These things the three mighty men did.

So, this is a picture of David being an excellent king, being an excellent leader. He is not willing to live off of the blood of his men. Now, think about… think about Jesus. Not only does Jesus have that kind of servant's heart, but on top of that, he gives us his own blood in the Lord's table.

It's even beyond what David did in an act to show his dedication to his men. Jesus abstains from the table as David abstains from the water, and on top of that, he gives of himself. Now, ultimately, when we are reunited and we enjoy that kingdom, that meal, that eventual Lord's table, is called the marriage supper of the Lamb.

It's written about in Revelation 19. In Revelation 19, verse 6, it says,. Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters, and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out, Hallelujah!

For the Lord our God, the Lord Almighty reigns! Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory. For the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. It was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure.

For the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. So, here we have a picture of the kingdom coming together and that feast being enacted, and Jesus participating with all the saints and his celebratory meal.

This is what it will look like when that kingdom of God is fulfilled in its fullness. Maybe you've seen political victories before where everyone involved in the campaign celebrates, and I've heard they can get pretty wild.

And I imagine the people who are the most joyous are those people who have participated the most and resolved themselves the most to see the progress of that kingdom, and who more does that belong to than Jesus?

But at the same time, that is something that we can participate in. We can also push forward this kingdom of God. We can advance it by sharing it with those around us, by proclaiming the gospel to those who do not know it, and by repeating it to those who already do.

This kingdom is something that we should appreciate now, that Jesus wants us to appreciate now. But this kingdom is also something that we should be striving for and advancing, and we should be regularly proclaiming the Lord's death, not just through this ordinance, but regularly through our daily lives and the way we talk to others.

This kingdom is something that is to be appreciated through this table. Now, I said at the beginning that the truth I had for you was an obvious truth, but the fact that it's obvious and everyone knows it doesn't mean that it's a truth for everyone.

Even if they believe it, it is not something that everyone would find a good truth that would fill them with joy. It's only the case for those who love him. But if you love him, if you trust in Jesus for the forgiveness of sins, then how much more can this help you?

It should give you joy, seeing the incompleteness of the joy we have here, but knowing the joy that Jesus wants us to have and that we will have. It should help you to appreciate the unity, knowing that it is incomplete, and knowing that Christ does not enjoy it in the special way that you get to enjoy the unity bodily with your neighbors here in this church.

And it should give you strength and confidence about your salvation, knowing that Jesus wants you to celebrate that salvation. And it should increase your resolve to advance this kingdom of God. I'd like to close off by giving you a picture of that, of what it looks like to anticipate that kingdom.

Anticipating Christ’s Return in the Song of Solomon

Back in Song of Solomon, we see the bride once again speak of her husband, essentially the church speaking of Christ. In chapter 3, it says, on my bed by night, I sought him whom my soul loves. I sought him, but found him not.

I will rise now and go about the city. In the streets and in the squares, I will seek him whom my soul loves. I sought him, but found him not. The watchmen found me as they went about in the city. Have you seen him whom my soul loves?

Scarcely I have passed them when I found him whom my soul loves. I held him and would not let him go until I had brought him into my mother's house and into the chamber of her who conceived me. I adjure you, oh daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles or does of the field, that you not stir up or awaken love until it pleases.

And that's where we are right now, anticipating, looking for Christ, dreaming of him, waiting for him while he is currently absent from us. And know that he so much more is waiting to be with us. Dear Heavenly Father, I pray that we would be able to appreciate this truth of your son's abstinence from this table.

I pray that it would drive us towards joy and unity, and it would drive us towards appreciating the salvation that he has granted us. I pray that we would be able to appreciate that here and today as we come to the table.

I pray that you would be with us as we seek to advance your kingdom. In Jesus' name, amen.