Josh Benner

Tag: gospel

  • Jesus and the Last Supper – more than just a meal

    Jesus and the Last Supper – more than just a meal

    As part of Holy Week, Maundy Thursday is recognized this evening. It was the night in which Jesus ate the Last Supper with his disciples. The time in which Jesus died corresponded with the Jewish holiday of Passover. And the Last Supper was the first night of Passover. An annual dinner for Passover is held, called a Seder, which is the Hebrew word for “order.” In 3,500 years, rabbinical tradition and teaching helped to form the ceremony of the Seder.

    Some of these pieces were traced back to the original Passover. Others came in Jewish history from rabbinical traditions.

    Also, once the Israelites were in the land, and after the temple was built, this impacted Passover traditions. When you had the temple, the lambs were sacrificed at the temple. But what didn’t change was that people could only sacrifice lambs that were perfect.

    I think it’s worth spending so much time in talking about Passover because I think it can help give us a greater context and understanding for the events surrounding the death of Jesus.

    In the gospels, the time of the death of Christ revolves around the Passover. That’s not a coincidence! Jesus would be sacrificed at the time that was associated with sacrifice. Jesus had gone to Jerusalem for Passover. In Jerusalem, the city within the Roman Empire that was the epicenter of Jewish culture, thousands of lambs would have been slaughtered annually. Jewish people would have been coming in from all over the empire.

    We see many traditions of the Seder at the last Supper.

    Some of them are small things. In the gospel accounts, it talks about Jesus reclining at the table (Luke 22:14).

    Jesus wasn’t sitting in a la-z-boy. He was on a couch that he was lying on, that was a Seder tradition. They had been enslaved in Egypt but being able to lie down showed the freedom and security.

    Or when Jesus is alluding to his betrayer, he says in John 13:26, “It is he to whom I will give this morsel of bread when I have dipped it.” So when he had dipped the morsel, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot.

    Again, I know the mental image that most of you probably have when you read this. It’s hard to know precisely where in the Seder this is, but it seems that it’s probably referring to when you take Haroset which is made from apple, nuts, cinnamon. They weren’t eating the Last Supper at an Italian restaurant. They didn’t have a bowl of olive oil in the middle of the table. But all of the elements we see at the Last Supper are part of what you’d see in a traditional Seder.

    As part of the Seder, you’d take the unleavened bread…looks like a cracker. And you’d break the bread.

    Luke 22:19, “And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”

    For over a thousand years of Seder dinners, bread had been broken. Unleavened bread, just like the Israelite forefathers had eaten before fleeing from Egypt.

    The body of Jesus, given for you, given for your sins. Given for your forgiveness. And he says “do this in remembrance of me.”

    What more fitting words could you say at a Seder? A meal revolving around remembrance, about retelling the story of God saving his people by the blood of the lamb.

    Remembering what God has done. Remembering what Jesus has done. Remembering the sins that he’s redeemed you from. Remembering his body that he gave for you. Remembering his death that he died for you. Remembering the grace that he offers to you. Remembering his gospel.

    Luke 22:20 says, “And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.”

    The Seder dinner involves four glasses of wine. This seems to have been the second or third glass of wine in the meal, although there’s scholarly debate.

    But how profound it is. Wine drank in remembrance of the Passover. Jesus takes the wine, he blesses it, he says it is the new covenant in his blood, at the Seder dinner.

    It clearly points backwards to the blood of the Passover lamb, the blood that was put on the door posts. And it also points forward to the blood of Christ, shed for the forgiveness of sins. The blood of the true lamb.

    At the beginning of the gospel of John, when John the Baptist sees Jesus he says “Behold, the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” Jesus is the true lamb of God. The lamb who took the penalty for sins. The one who was scarified for the salvation of God’s people.

    And by trusting in him and having faith in him, that puts the blood on the doorpost of your heart. On the first Passover, there would not have been a pardon for a person who didn’t put blood on the doorpost. It wasn’t that the blood saved them, God saved them. But to not put the blood on the door was to show that a person didn’t have faith in the Lord, didn’t trust in the Lord.

    When we take the Lord’s Supper, it’s not arbitrary. It’s not just using the random items that were around. It’s all symbolic. It takes symbols important to the first Passover, the first time God had delivered Israel, and it reminds of the new Passover, from the perfect sacrifice for sins.

    The Passover passage in Exodus 12:5 says that the lamb that was used had to be without blemish. Jesus is the ultimate lamb without blemish, a life lived in perfection.

    1 Corinthians 5:7 says “Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover Lamb.”

    Thanks for reading! I’d love to hear what you think, and don’t forget to subscribe! 

    Originally published April 13, 2017

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  • Sunday to Friday – “Save us” to “Crucify.” Passion week

    Sunday to Friday – “Save us” to “Crucify.” Passion week

    Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.” 4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying, 

    5 “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your king is coming to you, 

    humble, and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’ ” 

    6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. 8 Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” 10 And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, “Who is this?” 11 And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.” 
    -Matthew 21:1-11

    Jesus enters Jerusalem riding on a donkey. It’s a festive scene. Passover week, one of the most significant holidays in the Jewish calendar. Jesus has been preaching throughout the region of Galilee. He has built up quite the following: teaching on the kingdom of heaven and performing miracles.

    And here he enters the holy city, the crowds shouting “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” (Matthew 21:9). Palm branches had become a Jewish symbol of victory and the crowds bring these branches out as they chant. The processional they created was somewhat makeshift, but it had kingly overtones. They’re treating him like someone who was returning to Jerusalem after having conquered an enemy. Ironically, he was coming into Jerusalem to conquer sin.

    Hosanna in the highest! They shouted. Probably saying it over and over again, “Hosanna in the highest! Hosanna in the highest! Hosanna in the highest!”

    The word Hosanna in Aramaic essentially means “Save now!” It’s a plea.

    In Jesus’ day, there were a lot of expectations as to how the Messiah would act. Some thought of him as a great king. In reality, he was a king. But not the king the people wanted. He didn’t come to conquer others from the outside, but to save souls from the inside. Others expected a great religious teacher. He was a great teacher, but he also challenged the religious teachers of his day and they hated him for it. While many prominent religious teachers had separated themselves from overtly sinful people, Jesus immersed himself with these groups. Others expected two Messiahs. The Essenes expected a Messiah who would usher in the end of the world. Jesus ushered in a New Covenant.

    Hosanna in the highest!

    Many of us today have part of Jesus that we like. Maybe we accept part of who he is.

    I can be freely forgiven? Hosanna! Save me now. But then we reject any idea of knowing Jesus better or acknowledging the sin which made us need a savior.

    Jesus talked about feeding the poor? Hosanna! Save me now, I’ll accept that Jesus. But then we treat things Jesus said with how we’re to interact with society as if that’s all the gospel is.

    Jesus emphasized loving people? Hosanna! Hosanna in the highest! But then we want to discount everything he said about sin.

    Jesus talked about accepting people regardless of their past sins? Hosanna! But then we hear that he also said “I am the way and the truth and the life, no one comes to the father except through me.”

    Jesus said we could be with him? Hosanna! But then we reject his bride, the Church.

    Today, as on that first Palm Sunday, we live in a world where people expect many different things related to the Christ. The crowd shouted Hosanna. They thought it was their Jesus.

    “Hosanna!” on Sunday. “Crucify!” on Friday. Jesus came in perfect fulfillment of the Old Testament. He came in perfect righteousness and holiness. God on earth. But God on earth didn’t bend to the whim of what every person thought he should be. It is not the people who judge Jesus. We don’t pick and choose what to accept with Jesus. We don’t just hear that he forgives and ignore all the rest. We don’t like a loving Jesus and discount Jesus the moral teacher.

    Jesus takes us as we are, and we must believe in him as he is. At the beginning of Holy Week, if you are someone who considers yourself a follower of Jesus, do you really believe his message and who he is?

    Thanks for reading! If you liked this post, please share and subscribe!

    Originally published March 20, 2016

    Sources: Carson, D. A. New Bible Commentary: 21st Century Edition. Leicester, England: Inter-Varsity, 1994. Print.

  • Sermon: The cross and the crown – John 18:38-19:16

    Sermon: The cross and the crown – John 18:38-19:16

    In this passage, Pontius Pilate goes through a range of emotions and opinions as he questions Jesus. He goes from mocking Jesus, to trying to pardon Jesus, to having Jesus flogged, to fearing Jesus, to proclaiming Jesus’ innocence, to ultimately having Jesus crucified. This passage also returns to the theme of kingship where we see that Jesus is the king who suffers. 

    Sermon manuscript

  • Sermon: Jesus, Peter, and the Priest – John 18:12-27

    Sermon: Jesus, Peter, and the Priest – John 18:12-27

    This passage goes back and forth between two simultaneously occurring stories. You have Jesus arrested and taken before the high priest meanwhile Peter tries to follow Jesus, gets cold feet, and denies Jesus three times. It’s a contrast between Jesus standing up to the authorities to the truth of who he is and Peter folding and denying even knowing Jesus. It’s a passage about faith, our fallenness, and the savior who forgives.

    Sermon transcript

  • Cleansing the temple. Studying John 2:13-17

    Cleansing the temple. Studying John 2:13-17

    Passover in the first century 

    In Jesus’ day, at Passover, it was a time of year when Jewish people from all over the Roman world would come to Jerusalem to observe this sacred holiday. 

    Imagine that you’re a Jewish person in the first century and you’ve gone to the temple for Passover. It’s not a temple. It’s THE temple. 

    And then you see a man you’ve never seen before. You don’t know who he is. Maybe you can’t even hear his words, but he has some sort of whip that he’s made and he’s driving the merchants away from the Temple. He’s driving the oxen and the sheep away from the temple. 

    Jesus in the Temple

    John 2:13:

    The Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 

    The opening of this passage ties the story to a time of year. It’s Passover. Passover is an annual Jewish holiday which celebrates the Jews being freed from Egyptian slavery at the beginning of the Exodus. It would also be at the time of Passover when Jesus was crucified. 

    At this time, Passover was celebrated in Jerusalem. Jerusalem was, and is, a monumentally important city. It had been the capital city of God’s Promised Land during the Israelite Kingdom. 

    And Jesus goes to the Temple. 

    Throughout this Gospel of John, the apostle makes several references to various Jewish holidays. And he frequently makes references to Passover. We see it here in chapter 2 as well as John mentioning Jesus being part of the Passover festivities in chapters 6 and 11. 

    John is referring to different years. 

    John tells us what Jesus sees. Verse 14: In the temple he found those who were selling oxen and sheep and pigeons, and the money-changers sitting there. 

    As I mentioned, Jewish people would have come from great distances to celebrate Passover. And part of Passover involved making various animal sacrifices. 

    The sacrifices had to be animals that were healthy, without blemish, without defect. But if you were traveling from a great distance, tending to an animals and keeping them unharmed and healthy as you journeyed could be a pretty daunting task. 

    So what many would actually do was buy an animal at the temple. 

    Defiling the temple

    So that’s the first group. People who are selling the livestock. 

    The text also refers to money changers at the temple. What that’s referring to is that when people would give money to the temple, it had to be the appropriate currency and so they could exchange their coins for the appropriate coins which would be used in Jerusalem…for a fee, of course. 

    So between people selling livestock, and money-changers, the Temple grounds became an area of commerce at Passover. 

    That’s a problem. 

    Verse 15-16: 

    And making a whip of cords, he drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and oxen. And he poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables. And he told those who sold the pigeons, “Take these things away; do not make my Father’s house a house of trade.”

    So Jesus drives the merchants out of the Temple. 

    When is the temple cleansed?

    One other thing which should be noted. While we’re at the beginning of the ministry of Jesus and he’s clearing out the temple. 

    In the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, we see Jesus clearing out the temple, cleansing the temple at the end of his ministry. 

    In Mark and Luke, Jesus’ cleansing the temple actually precipitates the religious authorities seeking to have him crucified. 

    At the end of the temple cleansing in Luke 19, it says:

    And he was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people were seeking to destroy him (Luke 19:47).

    Why is the story found at two different times? 

    Some scholars have argued that John moved the story up because he’s more concerned with themes than chronology and that he did this for theological reasons. 

    I think there’s a simpler solution. 

    I believe Jesus cleansed the temple on two different occasions. Jesus does it here in John 2 at the beginning of his ministry. Then he does it again a couple years later and it is that later event which is recorded in the other gospels. 

    If you compare the story in John to the story in the other gospels, the things Jesus says are different, the sins Jesus is exposing are different. John did not move up an event. He is describing an entirely different event from the other gospels.  

    Once again, John’s Gospel ends by saying that Jesus did more than could ever be recorded (John 21:25). It’s certainly possible that Jesus cleansed the temple more than once. 

    To say that John just moved the story up overlooks that John actually focuses a lot on timing.

    Do not make my father’s house a house of trade

    Jesus drives the people out and he says: “do not make my Father’s house a house of trade” (John 2:16). 

    The merchants are taking a sacred space and commercializing it. Jesus has righteous indignation at what they’re doing. It’s not that selling livestock or charging a fee to exchange currency are inherently bad things in themselves. 

    But it’s the misuse of the temple property that is an offense to Jesus. 

    Undermining the sacred 

    As a society, we often overlook the sacredness of life and institutions. 

    Marriage is sacred but nearly half of them end in divorce. Our world doesn’t treat it as sacred, set apart, and from the Lord. 

    Life is sacred. But in America, nearly a million babies are aborted every single year. More and more states are legalizing euthanasia for people who are terminally ill. In European countries who allow euthanasia, there’s an increasing push to allow euthanasia for young, able bodied people who suffer from depression. That’s not meant to criticize people who have depression, but to criticize a society who would give justification and legal legitimacy to a person opting to end their own life. Life is sacred. 

    The name of the Lord is sacred, but people throw that around and curse by it. We must have reverence for God. 

    And that’s one of the mistakes that cultural Christianity makes. We make God someone we casually approach. We couldn’t approach him at all but for the work of Christ. We were so unholy, so unworthy that it took Jesus’ death to make us worthy. 

    And for that, let us praise the Lord. 

    But may we not lose sight of the holiness of God because Jesus brings redemption. Let the work that he has done, the price that he has paid, the grace that he extends further deepen our appreciation and reverence for God’s sacred character and righteousness. 

    You can never have too high a view for the holiness and sacredness of God. Jesus is at the temple and they’ve turned it into a marketplace. 

    While churches might not do that specific thing, there are still many things which American churches do which totally undermines the sense of reverence which we should have for the bride of Christ. 

    Churches often pander to the culture to try to get people in the doors. 

    I recently asked members in a theological Facebook group of the most ridiculous gimmicks they’ve seen churches resort to. 

    One church did a guns and Jesus study where they had a brief devotional and then went shooting. 

    One church turned their sanctuary into a haunted house for halloween. 

    A pastor did an advent series where he wore a different costume every week including a Frosty the Snowman one week, Buddy from Elf another week, etc. 

    One church did a several weeks long sermon series on the Tim McGraw song “live like you were dyin.”

    There are pastors who have ridden into worship on motorcycles, hoverboards, and segways. 

    There are churches which do raffles and giveaways to get people to go. Some churches have even given cars away. 

    The list goes on and on and on. 

    None of those things would be so bad on its own, outside the context of worship and church. 

    But it’s when you feel that preaching the gospel, and teaching the Word of God isn’t enough and needs your own creativity than there’s a problem. 

    In 1 Corinthians 2:1-2, Paul says:

    when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. 2 For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.

    Our society says “to each their own,” “live and let live,” “follow your truth,” “whatever makes you happy,” “whatever floats your boat,.”

    All of those communicate a general apathy for the world around us. 

    As Christians, we are not called to apathy. Now we can’t change what everyone does or thinks. But let us not fall into the trap of becoming apathetic to the things which are sacred. 

    Verse 17 says: 

    His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for your house will consume me.”

    That phrase is taken from Psalm 69 which is a Psalm David wrote. 

    Psalm 69 is a lament of the injustices and difficulties of life and of following the Lord. Several verses in that Psalm apply to Jesus and to the church. 

    But in this place, there’s one verse in particular which would be remem

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