Introduction
In chapter 24 the Lord Jesus not only spoke about the troubles and trials we can expect in these, the last days in which we’re living, but he also spoke about his second coming, when he will come on the clouds with power and great glory and send his angels throughout the earth to gather his people for eternal life, whereas those who did not believe will mourn with sorrow, because they did not believe in him and the Day of Judgment has come.
So, we know he’s coming and we know what he will do when he comes. But no-one knows when he will come. It will be like in the days of Noah, when the people were getting on with their lives, eating and drinking and marrying. Every day was the same as the last, right up until the day Noah entered the ark and then the rain began to fall. In a similar way, people will be getting on with their lives, eating and drinking and marrying. And then, suddenly, the end will come. While men are working in the fields and woman are grinding flour, the Lord will come. So, he’ll come suddenly and unexpectedly, while we’re getting on with our lives. He’ll come like a thief in the night, when no-one is expecting him. And since that’s the case, since he might come at any time, we need to keep watch. In other words, we need to be ready for him. We must be like the faithful and wise servant, who faithfully and wisely did his duty while his master was away, so that he wasn’t ashamed when his master returned. And the way we get ready for Christ’s return is by believing in him, because whoever believes will be declared pardoned and accepted by God on the Day of Judgment, which follows his return. Whoever believes will be brought in to enjoy everlasting life in the presence of God, whereas those who do not believe will be condemned when Christ comes again and they’ll be sent away from the presence of God to be punished forever.
The Lord Jesus continued to speak about his coming in chapter 25, where we have the parables of the ten virgins and the servants and the sheep and the goats. Five of the virgins were ready for the bridegroom, and five were not. And so, are you ready for Christ’s return? Two of the servants served their master faithfully while he was away, whereas the third servant did not. The master praised the first two servants, who made good use of the money he gave them, whereas he condemned the third servant and sent him away to be punished. And the lesson is that we’re to serve Christ our King while we wait for his return, making use of all the good gifts he has given us, including what we own — all our possessions — and what we are — all our gifts and abilities and knowledge and skills. He has distributed his gifts to us unequally, so that he gives more to some and less to others. Nevertheless we’re to use what he’s given us for his glory.
And from the parable of the sheep and the goats, we learn that the way we serve the Saviour is by serving the people around us. The Lord Jesus does not need our good works, because he’s God and he does not rely on anyone or anything outside of himself for anything. In other words, he does not need us. And he does not need our good works. However, our neighbour does. And so, the way we serve our Saviour is by serving the people around us. This is his will for us while we wait for his coming.
So, the last two chapters we studied have been about the Lord’s second coming, when he will come again with power and great glory. As we turn to chapter 26 of Matthew’s gospel, we’re moving closer to the main event of his first coming, which is his death on the cross and his resurrection afterwards, because the reason he came into this world the first time was to give up his life as the ransom for many, before rising from the dead on the third day. This is the highest point of his life on earth, when he willingly gave himself up to the Father’s will and suffered and died for us and for our salvation.
And it’s fitting that we should be studying this passage this evening, because what better way is there to prepare for receiving the Lord’s Supper on Sunday, than by reading the account of the first Lord’s Supper, when the Lord gave his disciples the bread and the drink which speak to us of Christ’s broken body and his shed blood and of his sacrifice of himself for our sins.
And before the account of the first Lord’s Supper, we have contrasting stories, don’t we? There’s the story of how the chief priests and elders plotted his arrest. And there’s the story of how Judas agreed to betray the Lord for money. And those stories are contrasted with the story of the woman who displayed her love for the Lord by pouring expensive perfume on him to prepare him for his burial. And so, there are some who hate him and there are others who love him.
And one of the things which Matthew makes plain is that the Lord Jesus is not a helpless victim of the hateful actions of men, but that he came to do his Father’s will. One of the commentators (Hagner) writes about the deep sense of irony which fills the passage: though sinful men do their best to destroy the Saviour, they only accomplish the purpose for which he came. And so, let’s now turn to the passage.
Verses 1 to 5
In verse 1, Matthew tells us that after Jesus had finished saying all these things, he said to his disciples that the Passover is two days away. When he refers to what the Lord had finished saying, he could be referring to what the Lord had said in chapters 24 and 25 about his second coming. However, it’s also possible that he’s referring to all that the Lord said throughout the gospel. Everything he has said up to this point has been leading up to what’s about to take place in the book’s final three chapters. And so, having finishing his preaching ministry, it’s now time for the cross and resurrection.
The Lord refers to the Passover, which was that feast which was instituted in the days of Moses, when the Lord sent the tenth plague on the Egyptians and killed every firstborn male in the land, apart from in the homes of God’s people. His people were spared, because the Lord told them to kill a lamb and to paint the blood of the lamb on the doorpost of their homes. And when the Lord went through the land, he passed over the homes where there was blood on the door. He passed over them and spared the firstborn males inside, but he killed the firstborn males in every house where there was no blood on the doors. And afterwards the people were commanded to observe the Passover every year as a feast to remember the time when the Passover lamb was killed in their place.
And it’s fitting that the Lord Jesus should die at the time of the Passover, because he’s the true Passover Lamb, the one who died so that we might be spared from death.
And, then, after the tenth plague came on the land of Egypt, the people were set free from their bondage and they headed for the Promised Land. And through faith in Christ, who is our Passover Lamb, we are set free from our bondage to sin and Satan and death and we are now on our way to the Promised Land of Eternal Life in the new heavens and earth.
So, the timing of the Lord’s death is full of meaning. And the Lord says that the Passover was two days away and he, the Son of Man, will be handed over to be crucified. So, he knows he’s about to be crucified. Ans he knows it, because what happened to him was all part of God’s plan for the salvation of his people. Indeed, when he says that he’ll be handed over, it’s likely he means that he’ll be handed over by God the Father. The Lord could not have been arrested and beaten and whipped and crucified if this was not God’s will for him. And so, it’s not so much that the soldiers captured him and took him away, but that God the Father handed him over to them.
And in the very next verse, Matthew tells us that the chief priests and the elders of the people assembled in the palace of the high priest, where they plotted to arrest the Lord Jesus before killing him. The fact that Matthew places this information right after the Lord’s prediction suggests that we’re to take their action as a kind of fulfilment of his prediction. We might say that, in accordance with the word of the Lord, the chief priests and elders met together to plan his death. And it’s not only a fulfilment of what the Lord Jesus had just predicted, but it also fulfils the words of Psalm 31, which is a psalm which foreshadows the suffering of the Saviour. And in verse 13, the psalmist says, ‘they conspire against me and plot to take my life.’ And so, in accordance with the will of the Lord as revealed in Psalm 31, the chief priests and elders plotted to take his life. The chief priests and elders, along with the Pharisees, made up the Sanhedrin, which was the Jewish court of law in those days.
Matthew says they plotted to arrest him in a sly way. So, they wanted to do it secretly, because they were aware of the Lord’s popularity with the people. After all, it was only a few days before that the Lord rode into Jerusalem and the crowds welcomed him as the Son of David and their conquering king. So, if the chief priests and elders wanted to arrest and kill him, they had to do it secretly and without the knowledge of the people who regarded him as their king. In fact, Matthew tells us that they decided not to do it during the Passover feast, otherwise there may be a riot among the people. The population of Jerusalem multiplied during the time of the Passover, because so many people went there to celebrate the feast. And even if only a portion of the population supported the Lord Jesus, that would still be a lot of people who might riot. And who knows what the Romans might do, if the Jews rioted in Jerusalem? And so, the chief priests and elders decided to wait until after the feast before arresting the Lord.
Verses 6 to 13
In contrast to the chief priests and elders who were planning to kill the Lord Jesus, we have this woman who anointed his head with perfume.
Matthew tells us that the Lord was in Bethany, at the home of Simon the Leper. Bethany was near Jerusalem and it’s likely that Lord slept in Bethany, while he was visiting Jerusalem. Presumably Simon the Leper was a man who once suffered from leprosy, but who had been healed by the Lord Jesus.
This same story is recorded by Mark and John. John tells us that Lazarus and his sisters, Mary and Martha, were there. In fact, John tells us that the woman who anointed the Lord was Mary. Matthew describes the perfume as being very expensive; Mark tells us that the perfume was worthy three hundred denarii, which was a year’s wage for the average worker in those days. So, this was very expensive perfume. And it’s a sign of her loving devotion that Mary was prepared to use this expensive perfume to anoint the Lord Jesus.
The Lord explained that, by anointing him, she was preparing his body for burial. Whether or not this was her intention, this is how the Lord regards it. In those days, they would put perfume on the bodies of the dead before burying them. And this is what she had done for him, because the perfume on his head would flow down to his body.
The disciples, however, regarded it as a waste. And so, they were indignant, angry, rather than pleased at what she had done. And they complained that the perfume could have been sold and the proceeds given to the poor. You hear that complaint a lot, don’t you? When someone does something which seems unnecessary to others, there’s always someone to say that it’s a waste and the money could have gone to the poor instead. People are always the same in every generation. But the Lord calls her act beautiful. And so, instead of bothering her, instead of complaining, they should acknowledge that she has done a beautiful thing.
And he goes on to explain that they’ll always have the poor with them. So, there will be other opportunities to help the poor. However, there will not be many more opportunities to do anything like this for the Lord, because he will not always be with him.
And the Lord declared that what the woman has done for him will be remembered wherever the gospel is preached. And what he said has been fulfilled, because what she did has been recorded in the gospels, so that we’re able to hear what she did for the Saviour. And the Lord’s words also show that he knew that the good news will be proclaimed throughout the world. The good news was not to be confined to Israel, but was to be proclaimed to the ends of the earth.
Verses 14 to 16
Matthew has told us about the chief priests and elders who wanted to kill the Lord Jesus. They hated him. He has also told us about Mary who anointed the Lord with perfume to prepare him for burial. She loved the Lord Jesus. And now, in verses 14 to 16, we have Judas.
Matthew reminds us that he was one of the twelve disciples. And therefore it’s a reminder of the scale of his betrayal, because he was one of the Lord’s friends. But this ‘friend’ went to the chief priests and asked what they would give him if he handed Jesus over to them.
No doubt Judas was motivated to betray the Lord by many things. But here we see his greed. He was prepared to give up the Saviour for money. And they were prepared to give him 30 silver coins. It’s not entirely clear how much 30 silver coins was worth, but the commentators believe that while it was a lot, it wasn’t a huge amount. For instance, it was nothing compared to the price of Mary’s perfume. And so, it’s an indication of how little Judas valued the Lord that he was prepared to give him up so cheaply. It also fulfils what we read in Zechariah 11, where Zechariah received 30 pieces of silver as a sign to signify how the people no longer wanted God to rule over them. And afterwards, God told Zechariah to throw the coins to the potter, which was fulfilled when Judas’s money was used to buy the potter’s field.
In other words, Judas’s willingness to accept 30 silver coins for the Saviour happened in accordance with the will of the Lord as revealed in his word. God, and not Judas nor the chief priests and elders, is in control of what is happening. In fact, Judas’s decision to betray the Lord forces the chief priests and elders to act sooner than they had planned. Just a few verses ago, they had decided to wait until after the feast. But now, because of Judas’s help, they’re prepared to arrest the Lord during the feast. And so, the Lord’s death would coincide with the Passover to make clear that he is the true Passover Lamb who was killed for his people.
Verses 17 to 30
Now we come to the heart of the passage and the Lord’s Supper. Matthew mentions the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which was part of the Passover Feast. And the Lord’s disciples asked him where he wanted to eat the Passover. Those who were taking part in the feast would bring a lamb to the temple to be slaughtered. The meat would then be roasted and it had to be eaten in Jerusalem in the evening. And so, where did the Lord want to eat the feast? And it seems that the Lord has already made an arrangement to have the meal in a certain home. And the disciples went away and got everything ready.
And when evening came, and the Lord and his disciples were reclining at the table, he announced to them that one of them would betray him. What a shock that must have been to them. What a shock to Judas, who may have thought he had been found out. But what a shock to the others, who might be thinking that he knows something about us that we don’t know ourselves. And Matthew tells us that they were very sad. They were grieved at the thought that they would betray him. And each of them said to him, ‘Surely not I, Lord?’ Although he says it was someone who dipped bread into his bowl, it’s still not clear who he means, because several of them would have used his bowl to dip their bread. But while he’s unclear about the identity of his betrayer, he is perfectly clear about the betrayer’s guilt. He, the Son of Man, must go just as it has been written about him. That’s a reminder to us that this is all part of God’s plan which has been announced in the pages of the Scriptures. But woe to that man who betrays him. Woe to him, because of what he has done to betray the Saviour.
And Judas, who was there, joins in with the others and says, ‘Surely not I, Rabbi?’ But yes, it is you, Judas. You’re the one who will betray me.
Judas was presumably hoping to keep it all a secret. But the Lord knows exactly what is happening, because it is all part of God’s plan to save his people from our sins and to give us eternal life. The Lord was not a helpless victim of Judas’s betrayal, because the Lord is ahead of Judas every step of the way. He knows that Judas has agreed to betray him. And he knows that Judas will betray him. Betraying the Lord was a wicked thing for Judas to do. But it was all part of God’s plan for our salvation.
And Matthew tells us that while they were eating, the Lord took bread and he gave thanks to God and he broke it and gave it to his disciples and told them to take and eat it, because this is his body. Later he took the cup and gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, ‘This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.’
The original Passover meal was instituted by the Lord so that his people would remember and give thanks for the way God had rescued them from Egypt. But the Lord Jesus Christ changes the meaning of the meal. He has instituted the Lord’s Supper so that his people would remember and give thanks for the way God has rescued us from sin. And he has rescued us by his Son whose body, like the bread, was broken for us; and whose blood, like the drink in the cup, was poured out for us. His body was broken, and his blood was shed, for the forgiveness of our sins so that all who believe may have peace with God and the hope of everlasting life.
The Lord mentions the covenant. This is a reference to the new covenant of Jeremiah 31. God promised to make a new covenant with his people, which would not be like the covenant he made with his people when he rescued them from Egypt. The sacrifices of that old covenant could not take away their sins. In fact, the sacrifices of that old covenant only reminded the people that they were guilty. But under the terms of this new covenant, God promises to forgive our wickedness and to remember our sins no more. And God is able to forgive our wickedness and remember our sins no more because Christ has offered himself as the perfect, once-for-all sacrifice to take away our sins forever and to make a lasting peace between God and his people.
The words of the Lord in verse 28 about his blood being poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins recalls the words of Isaiah 53, where it says that God’s Suffering Servant bore the sin of many. And Isaiah 53 also reminds us that it was the Lord’s will to crush his Suffering Servant and to cause him to suffer; and the Lord made his Servant’s life a guilt offering for sin. By recalling the words of Isaiah 53, the Lord once again makes clear that he was not a helpless victim of the hateful actions of men, because he had come to do the will of his Father and to offer himself as a sacrifice for our sins.
And notice that the Lord not only took the bread but he gave it to his disciples to eat. And he not only took the cup, but he offered it to them to drink. Food on a plate and a drink in a cup will do us no good whatsoever. If we’re to benefit from the food and from the drink, we must eat it and drink it. And Christ does us no good unless we take him as our Saviour by believing in him.
And the Lord then looked beyond his death and beyond his resurrection and beyond the last days in which we’re living. He looked beyond all of those things to the day when he will drink with his disciples again in his Father’s heavenly kingdom in the new heavens and earth. Because the sinless Saviour died for us, we can look forward to his coming, when we’ll be invited to sit and dine with him in the new heavens and earth. The troubles and trials of this life will be over and we can at last enjoy perfect peace and rest and everlasting joy and happiness with him in the life to come.
Conclusion
And when we gather around the Lord’s Table on Sunday, we too can look forward to his coming, when he will gather his people together and bring us into the presence of God in the new heavens and earth. We can look forward and rejoice because we know that we will see God in the face of Christ our Saviour and we will become like him and we’ll be happy like him forever.
And when we gather around the Lord’s Table on Sunday, we can look back to his death for us on the cross, when his body was broken and his blood was poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. We can look back and rejoice because, for the sake of Christ, God has promised to forgive our wickedness and to remember our sins no more.
And since Christ died to free you, not only from the penalty for sin, but also from the power of sin, then you should give up your sins. And since God has forgiven you for your sins against him, then you should do the same and forgive those who have sinned against you.
Sermons and Stuff 