A Table in the Wilderness: A Study on God's GoodnessSample

When I Need to Remember

For thirteen hundred years, the people of Israel celebrated the Passover meal together every year. Whether they were in the wilderness or the Promised Land, in Babylonian exile or under the rule of the Roman Empire, year after year, the people would find an unblemished lamb to sacrifice in celebration of the Feast of Unleavened Bread in remembrance of God’s deliverance in Egypt. The lamb pointed toward the perfect lamb of God who would once and for all take away the sins of the world, God’s plan to provide a perfect sacrifice for sin through His perfect Son, Jesus.

The night before the crucifixion, Jesus transformed the Passover meal into the Lord’s Supper. No more would a lamb be needed as a sacrifice for sin. The bread would now symbolize Christ’s body sacrificed for the salvation of people. The shedding of blood had always been God’s requirement in establishing a covenant. In the same way, Christ’s blood was shed for the remission of sins (Hebrews 9:22).

The disciples thought they understood the events happening around them, but their actions around the time of the crucifixion revealed that they had no idea what God was up to. Like the disciples, most of us have difficulty understanding what God is doing in our lives. One of the most important lessons in our Christian walk is learning to trust God even when His ways don’t make sense. As long as God knows the way, we don’t need to.

Most people in the time of Jesus were happy that He offered them physical bread to eat. It was when He offered them lasting joy through the sacrifice of Himself that they struggled to believe.

Not much has changed today. Most of us are happy so long as we have what we want. But trusting God for what we need rather than demanding what we want is the only pathway to joy.

There is no greater evidence of God’s love for us than the cross where Jesus died. And there is no greater sign of His goodness to us than in the Lord’s Supper, which helps us remember how deep His love for us is—and how much joy He offers!

With Jesus’ last Passover table in mind, where do you think God might be inviting you to trust Him more?