TEXT: Luke 22:14-21

SUBJECT: The Lord Jesus desired to eat with His people

The Lord Jesus desired to eat with His people. To the ancient mind, social eating occupied a special place. It was more than a way to quiet a growling stomach or satisfy an appetite. Eating with others was a way of expressing fellowship. This is what made the betrayal of Judas so cruel: "My familiar friend, with whom I ate bread, has lifted up his heel against Me. This is why men of old were so anxious to prepare a meal for heavenly visitors. Eating implies fellowship. Thus, the Lord Jesus desired the fellowship of His people.

The Lord's desire to eat with His people was strong. My Bible describes the desire as "fervent". The RSV says He "earnestly desired" it. The NIV puts it "eagerly". The translators use different words, of course, but they agree that His desire was strong. How strong? The word "desire" means "lust". And anyone who has come under the power of lust: for sex, for drink, for money, for revenge, knows the force of desire. This is how strongly He wanted to eat with His disciples. He "lusted" for their fellowship.

The sort of men with whom He desired to eat is worth noting. They are "the apostles". What sort of men are they? Except for Judas, they are Christian men. But was their Christianity perfect? It was not. Was it highly mature? It was not. Was it above average? No. These were men, converted to Christ, but not very advanced in holiness. They were proud men. James and John (and the others) had just jockeyed for position in the Kingdom. They were short-tempered men. The sons of Zebedee thought fire-bombing a city was the proper response to unbelief. They were narrow-minded men. A bit earlier, they spotted a man casting out devils--whom they quickly bawled out. Why? "Because he did not follow us". He went to the wrong church--you might say--and therefore, he'd better stop helping others for Christ's sake. They were ignorant men. They never understood the Lord's mission. Peter went so far as to "rebuke" the Lord for suggesting that He must die. And so, the Apostles weren't the holiest men in the world, yet the Lord Jesus "desired" to eat with them. He craved their fellowship.

The Lord Jesus still "desires to eat" with His people. And so He does in the Lord's Supper. He is as much with us in this Supper as He was with the Apostles in the Upper Room. He is not here physically, of course. But He doesn't need to be. He is here. He promised to be with us. "I will not leave you comfortless, I will come to you". And so He has in the Holy Spirit. Thus we affirm the "Real Presence of Christ" in the Supper. He's not in the bread or wine, He's in those who partake of them. Isn't this better? "Christ in you the hope of glory".

The Lord's eating habits have not changed over the centuries. It is not with perfect men that He eats; not only with the knowledgeable; not only with the highly sanctified. He eats with His foolish people; He eats with His lagging people.

The Lord's Supper reminds us of the Lord's sociability. He still desires the fellowship of His people. Especially at His Table.