Love Israel

Speaker 1

Shalom. And welcome to Via Hafta Yisrael, a Hebrew phrase which means you shall love Israel. We hope you'll stay with us for the next 30 minutes as our teacher, Dr. Baruch, shares his expository teaching from the Bible.

Dr. Baruch is the senior lecturer at the Zarah Avraham Institute, based in Israel. Although all courses are taught in Hebrew at the institute, Dr. Baruch is pleased to share this weekly address in English.

To find out more about our work in Israel, please visit us on the web at loveisrael.org—that's one word, loveisrael.org.

Now here's Baruch with today's lesson.

Speaker 2

The Bible makes it very clear that Yeshua died upon that cross on Passover. And biblically, from the book of Leviticus, chapter 23, we know something. Passover, known also as the preparation day, is the 14th day of the first month on the biblical calendar. Now, you may not know this, but there is a tradition in Judaism, and that tradition is tied to the Scripture. We know that the children of Israel were brought out of Egypt with that mixed multitude because God struck Egypt. And what did he strike them with? The plague of the firstborn. We talked about this last week, both the firstborn of humanity, meaning the firstborn child of a family, as well as the firstborn among the flock and livestock. So we talked about how Passover relates to death.

Now, because Messiah died Passover, the night before he did a tradition with his disciples. The tradition is this: because the 14th day of the first month is Passover, the tradition is to remember the slain of the firstborn. And we remember that by fasting. That's the tradition. And therefore, the night before Passover, this is when we would eat the supper, the last supper, before the fast. And we know that. We call that meal that Yeshua had with his disciples before he was crucified the Last Supper. In Hebrew, seudat Meph.

So everything fits together. What we're going to be studying in this section of Scripture from Luke chapter 22 is that last supper, what he said, why he said it, and what is the significance of that for you and me today as we, as believers and his disciples, look forward to the establishment of the kingdom of God? So with that said, take out your Bible and look with me to the book of Luke, chapter 22. And we're going to pick up where we left off last week in verse 14.

Now, the Passover meal is a very special observance. According to what we read in Exodus chapter 12, we would eat that reclining. This is why we see in this first verse of ours, verse 14, such language, where it says, "And when the hour came about, he reclined, as the Scripture demands. He reclined also the twelve apostles with him." Now, some of your Bibles may not have the number 12, as the Nestle Allen text does not. But the better Greek manuscript called Texas Receptus, which I'm using right now, does indeed have that Greek word for the 12th. So the 12 disciples were with him.

And notice what else it says. Read now verse 15. "And he said to them," in a very Hebraic way, because the word for desire appears twice. This is what's done in the Hebrew language to emphasize and to stress one's desire. Whenever a verb is repeated in Hebrew, it is to emphasize. Oftentimes we translate that as utterly. We would read it this way: "He said to them, I utterly desired this, the Passover, to eat with you before I suffer."

Now, Messiah had told them over and over, in fact, in Matthew's Gospel, three specific times. He says, "I'm going up to Jerusalem for Passover, and there I will be betrayed, I will suffer, I will die." In fact, sometimes he even points out how he will die by crucifixion, letting the reader know that it will be Rome that assassinates him. He will die. But he says, "On the third day, I will rise again." This reference to the resurrection, we learned this last week, should cause the reader always to think about the kingdom.

And we're going to see that in this section there is a kingdom emphasis. Once more, verse 15. "And he said to them, I have utterly desired this Passover to eat with you before I suffer." Verse 16: "For I say to you, no longer." Now, there's the double negative here. In Greek, it doesn't make it an affirmative statement, but it emphasizes the negative. So he says, "No longer." And we might translate it as "never, never." He says that, "I will eat from it until whatever should be fulfilled in the kingdom of God."

So whenever it should be fulfilled. Now we're talking about what Passover is. We learned last week that Passover is the festival of redemption. So he's waiting for the fulfillment of this Passover payment. Passover speaks of redemption, but the word that's used here is the word "padute" in Hebrew. And "padute" is a payment. What did he pay? As we'll see in a moment, he laid down his life, he gave of his body, and he shed his blood. It was through this that redemption could be offered up before God as payment in full for your salvation and my salvation, the salvation of the world.

So he says, "For I say to you, no longer, no, no," meaning never will I eat from it until when it should be fulfilled in the kingdom of God. Now, no sooner did he say that than he wanted to show us, teach us what he was going to do in order to bring about this kingdom redemption. Look now to verse 17. "And receiving the cup after giving thanks, he said, 'Take this and distribute it among yourselves. For I say to you that no, no, I will drink,' meaning I will never drink from the fruit of the vine until whatever the kingdom of God should come."

Now notice there's an emphasis on a Passover observance. Passover relates to redemption, and it's only through redemption that we can experience the kingdom of God. And notice he talks about the fruit of the vine. Now, if you come from a Jewish background, there is a "bracha," a blessing that we say when we drink from the fruit of the vine. We understand that the fruit of the vine symbolizes something. And what is that? Sanctification. In fact, every Shabbat and every festival, we make what's called the "Kiddush," which is the prayer where we bless the fruit of the vine. The term "kiddush" means sanctification, meaning set apart for a purpose.

Therefore, what he is speaking about here is how through his blood, the kingdom of God is set apart. For who? For every believer. Hopefully for you and for me. So he says in this Scripture, after receiving the cup, he gave thanks and he took. He says, "Take this and divide it among yourselves." Verse 18: "For I say to you that I will never drink from the fruit of the vine until whenever the kingdom of God should come."

Verse 19. Now we're going to see something very similar. He takes the cup first. But now look at verse 19. "And after taking the bread, he gave thanks. He broke and he gave it to them, saying, 'This is my body in your behalf. It is given this do in remembrance of me.'" Now this teaches us something that within the context of Passover is very important. Again, I want you to understand that Passover relates to a payment, a payment that produces an outcome. And what is that outcome? Redemption.

Only through redemption can we have a hope, a sure hope, one that is going to be fulfilled. What type of hope? A kingdom hope. This is what redemption through the blood of Messiah Yeshua brings about. It brings about for us a kingdom redemption, whereby we are set apart. Remember, the fruit of the vine being sanctified for a kingdom life. That's why Messiah came into the world, in order that you and I could live not according to these worldly standards, but rather according to the standards of the kingdom of God.

This has some serious implications. Why? Well, when we talk about the establishment of the kingdom of God, a good place to look is the book of Isaiah, chapter two. You begin to read in Isaiah, chapter two. And what does it say? It speaks about the last days. "For from Zion will go forth the law." Now the law speaks of the righteousness of God. Again, the law does not make us righteous, but the law reveals to us righteousness according to God's standards. If we want to be righteous, and we should, then we need to follow the example. What example? Avraham Avinu, our Father Abraham.

The Scripture says in Genesis chapter 15, verse 6, that Abraham believed in God, and God accredited it to him for righteousness. So by faith, one is made righteous. That righteousness is the chief adjective that describes the kingdom of God. Why would I say such a thing? Because it says in the book of Matthew, chapter six, where it tells us, "Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness." So there's a connection between the kingdom of God and the righteousness of God.

Therefore, that is only possible being the very righteousness of the kingdom through faith in the redemptive work of Messiah. When did he do this redemptive work? No surprise, on the festival of redemption that is Passover. So he's gathering with his disciples for this special observance. Because the next day, the 14th day, the only thing that can be done is the preparation of the Passover lamb that would be offered up. The second thing that is observed is a fast.

So the people the night before would begin the fast. Therefore, they would eat that last supper. In doing that, they would partake of a meal. That meal was very similar to what they would also do the next night, which is what? Observe the first day of unleavened bread. What was done on the first day of unleavened bread? They would eat the Passover, and there was a specific meal. What would be done was this: that night before the first day of unleavened bread, at evening when the day began. This observance would be followed the night before. It was a tradition, and still a tradition in many communities that men would gather with their rabbi.

That's what the disciples did. That's what the last supper was all about. They would gather with their teacher; they were students, that is, disciples. They would hear from their spiritual leader as he would impart truth concerning the Passover observance. What Yeshua did was this: he threw this tradition of what we call the last supper or communion, dealing with the fruit of the vine, the matzah, that bread. Matzah is a type of unleavened bread. He used these two things.

Notice how specific the word of God is. Look again where he says at the end of verse 19, "This do in remembrance of me." Verse 20: "Likewise also the cup." And notice this, "after the supper." Why is that so important? After the supper? Well, according to tradition, it was after the supper that the last thing that was eaten would be that matzah, that special matzah called the alfikoman.

Now, the alfikoman is the only word within the observance of the Passover meal that is Greek. The word "alfikoman" means "I have come." Isn't that marvelous? You couldn't invent anything better than that term from the Greek word "ercomay" in a unique form. "Alfie koman," I have come. Messiah wants us to know that he has come to be the redeemer. As the apostle Paul says in First Corinthians chapter 5, he is our Passover lamb. He commands us, "Let us keep that festival." Let us receive Christ our redeemer in order that we should live an unleavened life.

What does that mean? A life of humility, a life of selflessness. Not being selfish, but selflessness. Putting others before ourselves. Let us serve while we're alive in this world. Why? Because this world is only a vapor, here today and gone tomorrow. What is eternal? If you have received Messiah Yeshua, that is that gospel message. If you have received him as your Lord and savior, then this world is just a vapor, here now, gone in a moment. What will be our eternity? The kingdom of God.

So think of it this way: this life that God has given you and me, what is it, 70, 80 years at most? A few even longer. But what is that compared to eternity? It's nothing. That's why James tells us this life is but a vapor. Therefore, we should utilize this brief life for a kingdom purpose. That's what Messiah is instructing us. Therefore, we need to be kingdom-minded. That's what he's calling us to do here when he says, "This do in remembrance of me." Live your life always in remembrance of Him.

Look now to verse 20. "Likewise also the cup." What cup? The cup after the supper. I said the last thing that was eaten was a piece of matzah called the Alfie Coleman. In Hebrew, we can use the word "safun," that which is hidden. The truth that Messiah has come has been hidden from much of the Jewish community. But he has come. After we partake of that little piece of matzah, in doing so, in remembrance of him, we take a cup, the cup after the supper.

What cup is that? It is the third cup. Traditionally, there are four cups during the Passover meal. That third one is the cup of redemption. We have the first one, the cup of sanctification. Then we have the second one, the cup of thanksgiving. Then we have the third one, the cup of redemption. I'll come to the last one in a moment. But notice what he says. Verse 20: "Likewise also the cup after the supper, the cup of redemption, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in my blood.'"

What is the new covenant? Well, we don't have to speculate. It tells us precisely in Hebrews chapter 8. The foundation of that chapter, Hebrews chapter 8, is Jeremiah chapter 30. One word speaks of that new covenant. Do you remember what I said to you last week? That new covenant consists of two things. It's a covenant of forgiveness, absolute forgiveness. What's the second thing? It is a cup of forgetfulness. Why? He promises to remember our sins no more.

He has forgiven all of your sins if you accept the gospel. Not only has he forgiven you, but he has forgotten all your sins, all your transgressions, all your iniquity. They are eradicated, wiped clean. They no longer exist. You become a new creation. That new creation, the very righteousness of Christ, has been placed upon you. That's why we can have absolute assurance that when I go, when you go, it doesn't matter. Every believer, when we go before God, God looks at us. He remembers none of our sins. They are all forgotten and forgiven. He looks at us and sees the righteousness of His Son.

So we can have assurance, we can have confidence that we are going to be in the kingdom of God. He says, "Here, this is the cup of the new covenant, my blood in behalf of you." It has been spilled or given, we might say. But behold, verse 21: "The hand of the one betraying me is with me at the table." Obviously, we're talking about the one we mentioned last week, Judas Iscariot. He's there at this time.

Messiah says, look at verse 22. "And the one," meaning the son of man, "he goes according to what has been marked out." Some will say predetermined, but if you look at this word, it is the Greek word "orism." What is "orizo"? It can best be understood, and I've shared this with you before, as something that is seen beforehand. God has perfect foreknowledge. He sees it ahead of time. It's something that has been cut out, like a pattern for some garment.

If you see the fabric that is going to be used, a person who is a seamstress can know what it's going to look like. This is what it's saying here, that Messiah, his call that he is going to lay down his life, that he's going to be that Passover lamb, has been cut out. It has been already known by God. This is what's being said here. But look on at the next verse, the last part of verse 22, where it says, "However, woe to that man through whom he has been delivered." Meaning woe to Judas Iscariot, who has done what? Who delivered Yeshua over to the leadership that they would put him to death, meaning that they would betray him and hand him over to Rome and pressured Rome in order for him to be crucified.

Last verse, verse 23. Notice what it said here. "And they began to seek from one another who it was that was from them." Meaning who was the one who was betraying that was about to do this act. But what's important? Well, Messiah says something earlier on in this Scripture when he speaks about the one who betrayed him. He speaks about this cup. I want to go back up to the verse where he says in this passage of Scripture that he is not going to drink of it again until he drinks of it in the kingdom of God.

Remember I mentioned that fourth cup? That fourth cup is known as the cup of Hillel. What is that? Praise. Therefore, what Messiah is saying is this: he is not going to drink of that last cup, that fourth cup, until he shares it with you and me in the kingdom of God. Therefore, based upon the fulfillment of what he's done, the outcome of his work of redemption, which is what? Us being that kingdom creation, us being in that kingdom of God. Then and only then, he is going to drink of the fruit of the vine.

Because he, through his blood, has sanctified us in order that we have that eternal kingdom experience. Isn't God good? The word of God is so precise to teach us clearly, without any doubt, that Messiah came into this world having been sent by His Father. Prophetically, he is Emmanuel, God with us, because it was God who brought about our redemption through the Son of God, Messiah Yeshua, Jesus Christ.

On the day of redemption, Messiah was crucified. He shed his blood, he gave of his body, he laid down everything in order that we might have life, kingdom life, eternal life, that we might be that new creation. He tells us here that he is not going to enjoy the fruit of the vine again until he's with us, or we should say we are with Him. That kingdom, whereby together the body of Messiah, meaning the congregation of redeemed, we could say the Church, we all in one accord are going to drink that fourth cup, the cup of praise.

That's what Hallel means, the cup of praise together. We will be there with all of our family who have believed as well, all those who have experienced redemption. They are going to behold his glory and experience his blessings and take hold of all of his promises. We will do so not in a former body, a body that wears out, a body that ages, a body that dies. But we will be in that new body. We will celebrate with him in the kingdom of God, our eternal life, our kingdom life.

We will all do one

Speaker 1

Well, we hope you will benefit from today's message and share it with others. Please plan to join us each week at this time and on this channel for our broadcast of love israel.org.

Again, to find out more about us, please visit our website, love israel.org. There you will find articles and numerous other lectures by Baruch. These teachings are in video form; you may download them or watch them in streaming video.

Until next week, may the Lord bless you in our Messiah, Yeshua—that is Jesus—as you walk with Him. Shalom from Israel.