A bulbul was perched high in the garden yesterday and broke the silence of the morning with its solo songs that brought music to the soul!
A butterfly was still and silent, resting on a leaf calling to find peace in stillness!
The cashew tree had a ripe fruit ready to be plucked!
The Rambutan tree was covered with its fruits and would soon be ready to be food for avian and humans!
The nutmeg tree had a few split open fruits, offering to be plucked and used!
I got a sense of 'fullness of time' in nature!
It was in this inner milieu I read the passage from the Bible about the events associated with the fullness of time in the life of Jesus of Nazareth, following His visit to the temple at Jerusalem.
For Jesus, it was the last passover with His disciples; for the disciples it was the first passover to prepare for His absence from them.
In the narrative of Mark in his gospel, mentions the Last Passover and the Lord's supper separately ( Mark 14: 12 -21 and 22-31).
The Last Passover on the first day of Unleavened bread, was in a borrowed, large furnished guest room of a house, made ready by the owner of the house on request by two disciples of Jesus. (v12,13). The sign Jesus gave to the disciples was that of a man carrying a pitcher of water, whose house with an upper room was to be the place for the gathering of the disciples and Jesus.
The owner of the house was carrying a pitcher of water for the ceremonial washing associated with the family passover feast, as it was the custom for such an occasion! Jesus chose a home which was ready; the owner had a readied heart to welcome Jesus. Jesus chose a home whose residents had an interior space apart from offering the physical space for Him to be with His disciples for the passover feast. Jesus Himself was going to wash the feet of His Disciples. Jesus chose a home where the household was probably getting ready for the ceremonial washing. This is the style of Jesus of Nazareth-becoming incarnate in new situations! He became present humbling Himself to be with those whose hearts were ready to turn Godward!
On one occasion, on the last day of the celebration of the festival of the Booths, Jesus stood among people and said, 'If any man is thirsty let him come to me and drink' (John 7:37) ! On that occasion, 'there arose a division in multitude because of Him. And some of them wanted to seize Him but no one laid hands on him' (John 7:43,44). Jesus knew then, that His 'time is not yet hand..'(v 6).
Jesus knew that His time had come. Jesus became present with a household and His disciples at the passover festival! Jesus was creating a community of fellow travellers for the disciples to belong to. Jesus in His high priestly prayer as stated in John 17;11, had prayed, 'Father keep them in Thy name, the name which Thou hast given me, that they may be one even as we '.
This passover festival in a guest room of a home is a demonstration of the desire of Jesus to make His disciples sense their calling to find people and homes, where there is room and readiness for God to dwell in ! Jesus knowing that His time had come to lay down His life, He led the disciples out of the cocoon or insular existence in his proximity to becoming near to those who are in pilgrimage after God. The passover was the festival of remembrance of the deliverance of people of Israel from the bondage in Egypt. What was celebrated was not that memory but the festivity associated with merchandise even in the temple at Jerusalem.
Jesus turned the passover meal in a stranger's guest room as an occasion to restore it as a memorial of God's favour of deliverance. Jesus made it as an occasion to integrate His disciples with a home and family as an invitation for them to feel connected after the crucifixion of Jesus, instead of living scattered and disturbed. Jesus primed the disciples to foresee a new orbit of relationships, ministry and vocation after the time of Jesus. The disciples had to be made ready to be rooted in their faith and hope rather than expect the physical presence of Jesus to be their strength and anchor anymore! The time of physical togetherness with Jesus was going to be over.
Jesus appointed 'the twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them to preach and to preach and to have authority to cast out demons..'(Mark 3:13-15). Now the time to be with Him was about to be over. The larger calling to preach and minister would be the reality from then onwards with Jesu's crucifixion which was imminent.
What a well planned transition it was for disciples that the Master Himself introduced them at the passover occasion to a family to relate to, as the beginning of the new scenario for their subsequent ministry in the community! That was the preparation to institute the Lord's supper, which Jesus did a little later.
To me this became an occasion, when Jesus committed the disciples to a new orbit of relating to people with whose generosity and hospitality they will be enabled to 'Go out into the word..'!
The passover festival therefore became an occasion of looking beyond the inner circle of Jesus and finding others to build a community of followers of Jesus on earth!
It was in this setting Jesus instituted the Lord's supper at the occasion of the Last Supper.
Jesus washing the feet of His disciples and revealing the one who was to betray Jesus happened on this occasion.
Both of these left lasting messages to the followers of Jesus.
The Lord's supper, the followers of Jesus celebrate now, in the worship service, was instituted when Jesus felt broken in body and spirit! At the last supper Jesus gave Himself to His disciples, and offered them a broken piece of bread, saying, 'take it and eat..' His was an act love and an upbuilding act towards peace in their troubled hearts. That was the formal and the first celebration of the Lord's supper.
Jesus offered His presence with the disciples although He would be taken away from them. The Lord's supper became the symbol of God's abiding presence in human hearts.
Dr A.K.Tharien once shared a thought that has since then stayed with me. He said this after a communion service in a church that 'the Lord's supper reminds us of God's presence with us. What is that we can leave in villages to remind them of God's presence in their lives: He said, a common well, a Balwadi for children of the village and a goat for each family'! For those, who live marginalised, the symbol of God's presence will be a well from where they can get clean water; a Balwadi which prepares the children for school and a goat which shall give each family them milk!
Jesus left with the followers of Christ, the last supper as a symbol to remember God's love and presence.
The Lord's upper invites the followers of Jesus to offer symbols of God presence to our neighbourhood!
M.C.Mathew (text and photo)
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