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The Memorial Supper.
“And as they did eat, he said, verily I say unto
you, that one of you shall betray Me. And they
were exceeding sorrowful, and began every one
of them to say unto Him, is it I? And He an
swered and said, He that dippeth his hand with me
in the dish, the same shall betray me. The Son
of man goeth as it is written of Him: but woe unto
that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed!
It had been good for that man if he had not been
born. Then Judas, which betrayed him, answered
and said, Master, is it I? He said unto him, Thou
hast said. And as they were eating, Jesus took
bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to
the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.
And He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave
it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; for this is
my blood of the new testament, which is shed for
many for the remission of sins.’’—Matt. 26: 21-29.
Our study at this time contains the account of
the institution of the Lord’s Supper. The curtain
is now about to drop. Our Lord’s visible appear
ance on the earth is soon to cease. Judas, the be
trayer, has already plotted his doom. Just out
yonder only a little way is Gethsemane, and lifting
its skull-shaped head above Gethsemane is Gol
gotha.
It is a very significant occasion. What is done
must be done quickly. This the Master knows, and
his enemies also know it, for his betrayal has al
ready been arranged.
We are very anxious about what transpired in
those last hours. Let us therefore come close and
watch with care the Master’s every word and move
ment.
Directing the Passover.
The first thing we observe him doing is giving
directions concerning the eating of the passover.
Observing the passover was a Jewish custom which
He always kept. It had a double significance: It
was a memorial, and a prophecy.
As a memorial, it w r as to keep in perpetual re
membrance the passing of the Red Sea, the coming
out of Egypt, and the final deliverance from Egyp
tian bondage. It was observed every year. No
Jew would dare fail to observe it.
As a prophecy, the passover pointed to the com
ing Deliverer who should deliver His people from
sin.
Jesus, as a Jew, conformed to this old Jewish
custom. He had come, to be sure, to work reforms,
but He could best work his reforms from within,
rather than from without. This is often true of
reforms of today.
Many a blow administered in the name of re
forms has been ineffective because the reformer
fancied that it could be administered better from
without. This is why we have so many “come
outers.” Men and women who have become dis
satisfied with existing conditions in the church
have come out, and now administer their reform
strokes as outsiders. Such work generally comes
to naught.
The same thing is seen in polities. A man is
fired with the idea of changing existing evils, and
instead of creating a sentiment on "the inside of his
party, pulls out and starts a new party.
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It sometimes happens that such a course is nec
essary, but it is very seldom. The wisest course
to pursue is the one which Jesus pursued: it is to
work from within. I feel this way about the great
question of temperance reforms. I do not believe
that a distinct prohibition party will ever win in
this country; certainly not until after w T e have
done our best to influence existing parties.
Predicts His Betrayal.
The next thing we find Jesus doing at this feast
is predicting his betrayal.
“Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall
betray me.”
This was strange news to the disciples. It was
strange news even to Judas, for although he had
planned his betrayal, yet he must have been puz
zled at the knowledge that Jesus had of it.
No wonder they all said, “Lord, is it I?”
Listen now at the answer of Jesus to this in
quiry: “He that dippeth his hand with Me in the
dish, the same shall betray Me.”
This was not so much the identification of the
betrayer, as it was a rebuke. They were all dip
ping with Him in the dish. What He meant to
convey was this: One will betray Me, one who is
at present intimate enough with Me to eat out of
the same dish with Me. One pretendedly so close,
and yet having murder in his heart.
What treachery! No wonder Jesus rebuked it.
There is nothing baser and meaner than treach
ery. To share the benefits of one, to profess friend
ship and love, and at the same time carry in the
heart enmity and disloyalty, is a thing that a brute
would not be guilty of.
I think this is what made Jesus so heavy-hearted
in Gethsemane: To think that the men who had
followed Him all along through His journey could
not watch with Him in the great trial. This, too,
when He had so tenderly asked them to do it.
Such conduct is what makes life hard.
Sometime ago I saw 7 an old horse roaming about
in a pasture with no grass, and seldom any water.
He was so poor he could hardly stand up. His
shoulders bore the marks of many a pull. I said
to some one standing near by, “What is the matter
with that poor, old horse?” Has he done anything
to cause such treatment as he is getting?”
“Oh,” said he, “he is twenty years old—that
old horse. He has been one of the best family of
horses in this community, but he has now reached
the place where he can be of no more service.”
“And you have just put him out here to die?”
said I.
“Yes,” said he, “that is the way we do things
in this country. We have no use for anything that
cannot work.”
This was bad treatment for the old horse, and I
felt sorry for him, but I have seen many a man and
woman treated that way. Many a faithful husband
has been shoved aside because he has reached the
point where he cannot make things go as once he
did. Many a wife, many a mother and father have
had to share a like fate.
I have known churches to commit this sin. When
the old preacher who had stinted himself and built
up the enterprise, was afflicted, and, perhaps,
could not keep up with the progress of vigorous
youth he was shoved aside, and one who had never
suffered at all was brought in to share his labors.
Ingratitude! I know of no sin that will com
pare to it. The man who is lacking in gratitude
lacks the real quality of man.
The Lord’s Supper.
The next thing at the feast that Jesus did was
to institute the Lord’s Supper. This is what I want
us to consider most particularly at this time.
We will observe; it was at the close of the Pass
over feast. Nothing new was prepared. Jesus
The Golden Age for April 19, 1906.
Len G . Broughton
did as He always did, used the elements at hand,
to teach his lessons. The bread and the_ wine used
at the institution of the Lord’s Supper was the
simple unleavened bread of the Jews, and the red
wine of the country.
I have no idea that it was unfermented wine,
although I am in favor of using unfermented wine
in the Lord’s Supper of today as a means of ex
pediency.
The early church under Paul we know used fer
mented wine, for some of them got drunk on it,
and Paul warned them against drinking it for that
purpose.
The wine that Jesus used, as I believe, was di
luted with water, but it was the ordinary fer
mented wine which they used at that time. If any
body wants to make capital out of this opinion of
mine for the bacchanalian feasts of today, let him
do it. My charge to him is, that he see to it that
Jesus is a guest, and that He is pleased with what
he does and says. If that is so, then there need
be no further trouble.
The Purpose of the Supper.
But what is the purpose of the Lord’s Supper,
and what is its place in the Christian world of
today ?
First, the Lord’s Supper is a Christian ordin
ance, intended for Christian people, and Christian
people only. No man who does not accept the
blood of Jesus Christ as his passport for heaven can
consistently partake of the Lord’s Supper. Belief
in His life, however beautiful it may be, is not
enough. It is in his blood that one must believe,
and in His blood alone.
To be qualified for the Lord’s Supper, one must
see Jesus on the cross in his place, paying the pen
alty for his sin. But this sight of Jesus, in itself,
is not sufficient, he must see Him and accept Him,
as the all-atoning, saving Savior.
The Lord’s Supper, like the Passover, which it
is to take the place of, has a double significance:
It is a memorial looking back to Calvary, whence
we were redeemed from the bondage of sin; and a
prophecy of the coming again of Jesus Christ to
rule and reign in the affairs of men.
The apostolic church had this view: The Apostle
Paul writing to the Corinthians concerning the
Lord’s Supper, said: “For as often as ye eat this
bread and drink this cup, ye do shew forth the
Lord’s death till He come.”
What a beautiful ordinance this is. How its
double vision breaks the light of the glory world
into our souls. On the ore hand we see the droop
ing head and the dripping heart of our Savior and
Redeemer, and from the picture we get his last
words, as if spoken from heaven today: “It is
finished! It is finished!” On the other hand we
behold our coming Lord and King, clothed in the
robes of his Royal Majesty, accompanied by the
hosts of the city of our God; coming to reign
where once He was shamed. Oh, the mighty
sweep of it: From Calvary to the throne!
The Christian’s Duty.
This ordinance is for the Christian; it is his
right. The blood of Jesus Christ accepted as the
ground of salvation is his passport. The old Jew
ish Passover was obligatory upon the Jews. Moses
commanded that they should observe it as an ordi
nance for them and their congregation of the chil
dren of Israel.
Shall the Christian’s passover be less significant
to him? He is saved by the broken body and shed
blood of Christ. It means eternity; that which
he memorializes. But alas, so many, for one rea
son or another, shut ‘out from this
privilege.
I have found people who say they are unworthy,
and therefore, they cannot take part in the Lord’s