Two Tables

Max Lacado @ The Journey Fellowship

• Introduction
• Bethany: Jesus was served.
• Upper Room (Jerusalem): Jesus served.
• BETHANY
• Matthew 26:6-13 MSG
• When Jesus was at Bethany, a guest of Simon the Leper, a woman came up to him as he was eating dinner and anointed him with a bottle of very expensive perfume. When the disciples saw what was happening, they were furious. “That’s criminal! This could have been sold for a lot and the money handed out to the poor.” When Jesus realized what was going on, he intervened. “Why are you giving this woman a hard time? She has just done something wonderfully significant for me. You will have the poor with you every day for the rest of your lives, but not me. When she poured this perfume on my body, what she really did was anoint me for burial. You can be sure that wherever in the whole world the Message is preached, what she has just done is going to be remembered and admired.”
• It takes nerve to have a wanted man in your house but it takes nerve to touch a man with Leprosy.
• Mary's gesture was not spontaneous.
• Simon and Mary saw a chance to serve Jesus
• There is a time for extravagant gestures of love when logic should take the back seat.
• Being kind to someone who deserves out, forgiving someone, etc...

• THE UPPER ROOM
• Matthew 26:26-30 MSG
• During the meal, Jesus took and blessed the bread, broke it, and gave it to his disciples: Take, eat. This is my body. Taking the cup and thanking God, he gave it to them: Drink this, all of you. This is my blood, God’s new covenant poured out for many people for the forgiveness of sins. “I’ll not be drinking wine from this cup again until that new day when I’ll drink with you in the kingdom of my Father.” They sang a hymn and went directly to Mount Olives.
• Communion is a meal that God has with me.
• Within 24 hours of Jesus' death, he invited commoners to be served by Him where Jesus was the host not the honoree. Then he left the invitation out there for all who would follow him.
• Being a Christian is more about receiving than giving...and more about trusting than accomplishing.
• Pause to allow Jesus to serve.
• Mark 10:45 NIV
• For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Exhortation

• Matthew 27:45-46 MSG
• From noon to three, the whole earth was dark. Around midafternoon Jesus groaned out of the depths, crying loudly, “ Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? ” which means, “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”
• Jesus became sin, the very thing that His father could not tolerate.
• Matthew 27:51-53 MSG
• At that moment, the Temple curtain was ripped in two, top to bottom. There was an earthquake, and rocks were split in pieces. What’s more, tombs were opened up, and many bodies of believers asleep in their graves were raised. (After Jesus’ resurrection, they left the tombs, entered the holy city, and appeared to many.)
• The separation between us a God disappeared.