Have you ever thought about how you want to spend the final moments of your life? As we near the end of Luke’s Gospel, in chapter 21, Jesus knew what was coming. The cross was hours away. His time was short. He was in His final moments of freedom before His suffering and death. And how did He want to spend those final moments? Gathered with His disciples around a table for a meal.

Now this was no ordinary meal. It was the Jewish Passover, Israel’s oldest remembrance of rescue. But Jesus took that old tradition and filled it with new meaning in what we call the Lord’s Supper or Communion or the Eucharist. The bread represents His body, broken as a substitute for us. The red wine-filled cup points to His blood poured out for us, ratifying a new covenant. It wasn’t an animal sacrifice as in the Old Covenant, but Christ Himself.

Beloved, this substitutionary sacrifice isn’t some theological footnote. It’s the heartbeat of the gospel. Jesus took the seat we deserved at the table of God’s judgment so we could take the seat we don’t deserve at the table of His grace. And every time we celebrate the Lord’s Supper, we remember this. Jesus said, “Do this in remembrance of Me.”

The Lord’s Supper is a recurring invitation to remember, to look back, at what Jesus did on the cross so that gratitude may shape how we live today. Every time the bread is broken and the cup is filled and passed, we declare: Christ did this for you. He took your place and your punishment and secured everlasting grace for you. Marvel at the wonder of that, and don’t ever take your seat at His table for granted.

Eat, drink, and be merry in Jesus, whose sacrifice made it all possible!

Change begins in you!