Maundy Thursday

Matthew 26.36-46

We are in familiar territory, the Garden of Gethsemane. We’ve watched Jesus before as He wrestled here in prayer. We’ve considered different lessons from what happened here. And we return again to see more, to grow more. This time we’re going to focus on the cup. ‘My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me…’ Let’s look at the cup.

The image of a cup goes back into the Old Testament. Imagine being a guest at a meal as your host offers you a cup of something to drink, an expression of his hospitality. That’s what David was thinking about when he wrote: ‘You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup runneth over.’ David pictures himself a guest at God’s table, receiving blessing upon blessing until his cup overflows. A great picture of the abundance of God’s blessings.

But the cup isn’t always filled with good. ‘…it is God who executes judgment, putting down one and lifting up another. For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup with foaming wine, well mixed, and He pours out from it, and all the wicked of the earth shall drain it down to the dregs.’ [Psalm 75.8] And what is the symbolism of the cup now? It certainly isn’t an expression of hospitality. No, here, the cup is a symbol of judgment. And what is the content of the cup? This time from Isaiah [51.17]. ‘Wake yourself, wake yourself, stand up, O Jerusalem, you who have drunk from the hand of the Lord the cup of his wrath, who have drunk to the dregs the bowl, the cup of staggering.’

Let’s return to the Garden. Now, we can see clearly what Jesus is talking about. It is this cup – this cup of the wrath of God – that Jesus struggles with. He sees the Father extending His hand to Him, and there is this cup of wrath. And the Father calls Him to drink its contents. It is this cup that He prays might pass from Him, the cup of God’s wrath against sin.

None of us here has any idea of the enormity or the intensity of God’s full wrath. How can we even try to imagine it? Have you ever been confronted by someone who is almost out of control with rage, someone who directs all of that rage at you, someone who just might act on that rage and attack you to do you great harm? If you have ever faced that I’m sure that it was a terrifying experience. But even if that were to happen, how could that compare to the rage of God against sin? But Jesus was confronted with that rage. And He had a very good idea what it would mean to endure that rage. So, is it any wonder that He pleaded with the Father that it might pass? Is it any wonder? But it didn’t pass. And so, Jesus took the cup and drank it all, down to the dregs.

Let’s shift our focus now to another cup. In the Lord's Supper, along with the bread, we receive the cup, the cup of the blood of Jesus. Frequently, when I take the cup I turn my thoughts to the Old Testament sacrificial Law that states, ‘The life of the flesh is in the blood.’ When I take the cup, I remind myself that I am receiving the life of Jesus, the life that renews and strengthens. It is no surprise, then, that Paul calls it the ‘cup of blessing’. That’s the cup of the Lord's Supper. But now, we’re back again to David talking about the countless blessings of God: ‘My cup runneth over.’ That is the cup we all receive during Communion. The cup of the glorious blessings of God.

The cup of wrath. The cup of blessing. These two cups actually go together. You receive the cup of blessing by which the Spirit does such a great work in your life. By that cup you are renewed and strengthened as you follow Jesus. Your cup runneth over. But please bear in mind that the only reason that you can receive this cup of blessing is because Jesus took the cup of wrath. The two cups go together. Jesus drank the cup of wrath to the very bottom. He drank it all at the cross. And He did that so that you might be able to drink from the cup of blessing, and to be able to do that over and over, because you will never reach the bottom of the blessings of God. The two cups go together.

In a few moments we will celebrate the Lord's Supper. You will receive the cup of blessing, the cup of the life-giving blood of Jesus. As you do, I want you to try to imagine what it would be like if, instead of holding the cup of blessing you were holding the cup of wrath. Try to imagine having to drain that cup of all the wrath of God against your sin. What could that possibly feel like? What horrors could such an experience contain? It is beyond imagining. But have no fear. That will never happen to you. Jesus has drained that cup. There is no wrath left for you to face. All that is left is blessing for you to enjoy.