When last have you been someone’s guest? What was the experience like, did you get fed, or was it only accommodation? How did you respond when offered food or drink? Would it be different if the body was also your mentor/teacher? I ask these questions to invite our reflection on Today’s Holy Nougat.
Matthew 26:27-28 CEB
[27] He took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from this, all of you.
[28] This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many so that their sins may be forgiven.
The Host
It was a strange season that we were in, I tell you. The Rabbi was more cryptic than usual, and it seemed as if he was falling into depression. He was talking a lot about death and betrayal. None of it was making sense to us, not since he entered Jerusalem with all pomp and majesty that first day of the week. In hindsight, it makes sense. Because the moment the Rabbi began that journey, he was a marked man. And he knew it.
We knew it, too. All twelve of us. Yes, even his betrayer. But this was our Y’shua. He’d literally walked on water before, he’d raised the dead and he’d also spoken out against the establishment. We acknowledged that he was the Messiah, and we were ready to help him establish God’s kingdom once more. A kingdom that would put David’s rule to shame, and would be even more powerful than these Romans over us.
When he had us help him to prepare for a special dinner, we were watchful and curious. Woth whom was he meeting, what was the meeting about, was this when His plans to overthrow Pax Romana would be revealed? We wondered why he actually was hosting this dinner, we were normally guests of others. Something was in the air, but we weren’t sure what it was.
Imagine our surprise to discover that we were the guests! And if you thought before that he was acting strange, imagine how we felt when he blessed the food – as he always did – and told us the bread was his body, and invitedus to eat. We tried to act nonchalant about the whole thing, but it was weird. What made it even weirder was that he had said one of us would betray him.
Well, if you thought the bread incident was strange, wait till you hear this:
Rabbi poured out the wine, as he always did. But this time, as he offered it to us he said,
Drink from this, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out
I really didn’t want to drink. A blood covenant meant something had to die, and Rabbi implied that it would be him! How do you drink to that?! In drinking, would we all become accessories to murder? Because he said all of us should drink.
We drank
I don’t know that we drank willingly. But Rabbi was our host, we were trying to be good guests. We also figured that something miraculous was going to happen. (Remember, his first miracle also involved wine.)
Les than a day later, he was dead. We were devastated! And ironically, it was one of us who betrayed him. One of us who ate and drank with him that fateful night. One of us who had been his disciple and part of his inner circle.
He hosted us. Gave us his blood in a new covenant. And we let him down.
If you’d been there, what would you have done?
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May all we seek be found in Christ
