FROM SACRIFICE TO SACRAMENT

The Hebrews were commanded to remember how the Lord God Jehovah delivered them from bondage in Egypt.  The Laws of Sacrifice and Obedience were reintroduced.  Because Israel had been slaves of a polytheistic people, they no longer knew the one true God.  But they had been asked to remember and remember they did.  Even today, those of Jewish ancestry celebrate the Passover, just as they did in Moses' day and Jesus Christ's day.  The last supper was the Feast of the Passover, or Seder.  

Traditional foods are served and rituals observed which help them remember the goodness of Jehovah.  Roasted lamb is served in remembrance of the sacrificial lambs of the Law. The bread is unleavened to remind them of the haste with which they had to leave Egypt.  Bitter herbs are served as a reminder of the bitter hardships they faced for forty years in the wilderness.  The red wine represented blood of the lamb on the doorposts and lintels.  The wine was lightly fermented so that it had a low alcohol content.

The Lord gave Moses and Aaron this commandment.  We read in Exodus 12: And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs shall they eat it. (v 8) And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the Lord throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance forever. (v 12 emphasis added)

The Feast of the Passover was, therefore, not just a meal, but a meal that was symbolic, one that was an ordinance before God.  Jesus celebrated this Feast with his Apostles in the upper room. He took the emblems of the Seder and made them the emblems and tokens of His new Covenant with Israel.  While I'm sure they ate lamb, there was no lamb in Jesus' new covenant because He Himself was the Lamb. 

He took the unleavened bread, broke it and blessed it.  He told His apostles This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. No longer would the bread be in remembrance of the haste in God delivering them from Egypt; from then on, it would be in remembrance of His sacrifice of the great and infinite atonement.

He then took the wine and blessed it and said: This cup is the new testament (Covenant) in my blood, which is shed for you. The wine represented His blood shed for us, no longer in anticipation of an event yet to come, but in an unbelievable sacrifice that has occurred and whose saving reach is, in fact, infinite.

During the traditional Seder in a Jewish home today, the youngest child in the family is to ask the presiding priesthood holder: WHY IS THIS NIGHT DIFFERENT FROM  OTHER NIGHTS?  It is an invitation for the sage to teach his family about God and the miracle of the night that the destroying angel passed over the Children of Israel and did not slay them.  They remember the Exodus.

We as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints remember each week when we partake of the Sacrament.  I am so grateful to have two worthy Priesthood holders in my family who can prepare, administer, and pass the sacrament to me and my family.  These are precious moments.  We remember the Atonement. 

Jesus Christ is at the center of both.

© April 2020 Dr. Kathleen Rawlings Buntin Danielson

This Sunday marks the beginning of the Holy Week leading to the triumphant resurrection on Easter morn. Beginning on Sunday, I will indicate the things that happened during the last week of the Savior's life. 

Somewhere just before Sunday, Jesus brought Lazarus back to life in Bethany.  It has always touched my heart that even though Jesus knew that Lazarus would live, he was so empathic to the suffering of His friends, Mary and Martha, that when they wept, Jesus wept. (Gospel of John)