Betrayal at Last Supper
April 13, 2006 - Mark 14.10-25
Open It
What is one ceremony or observance that is important to you?
How does your church celebrate the Lord's Supper?
Explore It
When did the events of this story take place? (14:12)
What did Jesus' disciples ask Him? (14:12)
How did Jesus make the arrangements for the Passover meal? (14:13)
Whom did Jesus send to make the arrangements for the Passover meal? (14:13)
What specific instructions did Jesus give the disciples he sent out? (14:13-15)
How did Jesus' predictions compare to what the disciples actually found when they got into the city? (14:16)
What was the reaction of the disciples to Jesus' prediction of his betrayal? (14:19)
How did Jesus specify who would betray him? (14:20-21)
The central emphasis of the Passover meal was traditionally the sacrificial lamb; where did Jesus place his emphasis? (14:22-24)
What important announcement did Jesus make? (14:25)
How did Jesus and the disciples conclude their Passover meal? (14:26)
Get It
Why do you think Jesus told his disciples that one of them would betray Him?
How does the fulfillment of Jesus' predictions in this account encourage you to trust him?
When have you had opportunity to trust God with your future?
What does the account of Judas's betrayal of Jesus tell us about God's sovereignty?
What does the account of Judas's betrayal of Jesus tell us about our accountability to God?
What causes Christians to betray or reject Christ after following him for a while?
Apply It
What are two or three steps you can take to prepare for the next time you celebrate the Lord's Supper?
What do you want to remember the next time you take the Lord's Supper?
How can you say thank you to Jesus each day this week for the suffering he endured for you?
Notes
Mark 14:14-15: Many homes had large upstairs rooms, sometimes with stairways both inside and outside the house. The preparations for the Passover would have included setting the table and buying and preparing the Passover lamb, unleavened bread, sauces, and other ceremonial food and drink.
Mark 14:19: Judas, the very man who would betray Jesus, was at the table with the others. Judas had already determined to betray Jesus, but in cold-blooded hypocrisy he shared the fellowship of this meal. It is easy to become enraged or shocked by what Judas did; yet professing commitment to Christ and then denying him with one's life is also betraying him. It is denying Christ's love to disobey him; it is denying his truth to distrust him; it is denying his deity to reject his authority. Do your words and actions match? If not, consider a change of mind and heart that will protect you from making a terrible mistake.
Mark 14:20: It was often the practice to eat from a common bowl. Meat or bread was dipped into a bowl filled with sauce often made from fruit.
Mark 14:22-25: Mark records the origin of the Lord's Supper, also called Communion or Eucharist (thanksgiving), which is still celebrated in worship services today. Jesus and his disciples ate a meal, sang psalms, read Scripture, and prayed. Then Jesus took two traditional parts of the Passover meal, the passing of bread and the drinking of wine, and gave them new meaning as representations of his body and blood. He used the bread and wine to explain the significance of what he was about to do on the cross. For more on the significance of the Last Supper, see 1 Cor. 11:23-29.
Mark 14:24: Jesus' death for us on the cross seals a new covenant between God and people. The old covenant involved forgiveness of sins through the blood of an animal sacrifice (Exodus 24:6-8). But instead of a spotless lamb on the altar, Jesus offered himself, the spotless Lamb of God, as a sacrifice that would forgive sin once and for all. Jesus was the final sacrifice for sins, and his blood sealed the new agreement between God and us. Now all of us can come to God through Jesus, in full confidence that God will hear us and save us from our sins.
Mark 14:26: The hymn they sang was most likely taken from Psalms 115-118, traditionally sung at the Passover meal.