And He took bread and gave thanks and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is My body which is given for you. This do in remembrance of Me. Likewise also the cup after supper. Luke 22:19,20
If we were to look in on that first instance of the Lord’s Supper and compare it with the way that we observe it today, we would be amazed at some of the differences. For one thing, that first instance occurred during the eating of the Passover supper, so all of the trappings of that feast would be in evidence. For another, the disciples and the Lord Jesus would not be seated at a table, but reclining on the floor around a cloth spread in the middle. While it is true that the first Lord’s Supper had the bread and the cup, as we do today, and all partake of it, there were some significant differences in the bread and the cup that were used on that first occasion, primarily because they were borrowed from the observance of the Passover.
Today, we use a loaf of bread that is passed from one to another, as we remember the body that the Lord Jesus gave for us. What type of bread really does not matter, and the loaf will vary from place to place. But that first observance of the feast did not use a loaf; they could not use a loaf because no loaves were available during the days of unleavened bread. What they used was a flat type of bread, possibly similar to a large unleavened pita bread. Something that would be very obvious to the eaters of this bread would be the many times that it is pierced with a knife or fork to prevent it from rising in the pan or oven. Jews today still use a type of unleavened bread, known as matzah, for Passover. In later years, as they carried out this feast, the disciples would remember those pierce marks, and recall the words of Zechariah 12:10, and also of John 19:37: They shall look on him whom they pierced. Today, as we carry out this feast, let us also remember how that pierced bread speaks of the sufferings of our Saviour.
Our text speaks of the cup after supper. This was a distinct cup that was part of the Passover. This was the third of the four cups that were part of the Passover observance. This cup was referred to as either the cup of redemption or the cup of blessing. The apostle Paul referred to this when he was addressing the matter of the Lord’s Supper in 1 Corinthians 10:16: The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? Redemption and blessing would be upon the minds of the disciples as they partook of that cup. And they are on our minds today as we recall the shedding of the blood of Christ and the redemption and blessing that we receive through that blood.
As we carry out our Lord’s instructions: This do in remembrance of Me, we recall that first observance of that feast, and how the Passover provided wonderful pictures in the bread and the cup. – Jim MacIntosh