Luke 22:14-23
14 And when the hour came, he reclined at table, and the apostles with him. 15 And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. 16 For I tell you I will not eat it  until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” 17 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, “Take this, and divide it among yourselves. 18 For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” 19 And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 20 And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood. 21 But behold, the hand of him who betrays me is with me on the table. 22 For the Son of Man goes as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom he is betrayed!” 23 And they began to question one another, which of them it could be who was going to do this.

Humans think of physical death as the end. The final stop. Death, we believe, is the last destination and eventual fate of everything. But as Christians we need to check that understanding and make sure we don’t go too far. Physical death is only the end of physical life. While we project into that reality the death of opportunity, the death of hope, and the death of all things to come, the end of life does not equal the end of everything. In fact, our physical death is the beginning of many things – thanks to the person and work of Jesus. 

The first Passover (Exodus 12) pointed Israel toward this truth. By killing lambs and putting blood on their doorposts, God allowed Israel to pass through the death that He used to judge Egypt and into the life that awaited them as a new nation. Here in Luke, Jesus is readying his disciples to see His coming crucifixion as the perfect realization of that first Passover. His death, He tells them, will be how they can pass through judgment and enter eternal life as children of God. There is a new covenant in His blood!

Death must still come. Because God is just, every sinner deserves the consequence of losing their physical life. But God is also merciful. And while the body must die as a consequence of sin, the soul and spirit can be saved because of the sacrifice of Christ Jesus. What’s more, the body can be renewed because Jesus has conquered death. Just as He rose from the grave, He will raise us too – new bodies, with redeemed souls, and sanctified spirits. 

This is what Jesus points us to when he speaks of the “meal” to come. In Luke 22:18 Jesus foretells a meal (Rev 19:6-9) when the sacrificial and redemptive work is done, and the new heavens and earth become our new home. The Passover pointed the Jews to Jesus. Jesus points His disciples, us included, to the beginning of life everlasting with Him. He is about to suffer and die, but He will endure the cross because of the joy set before Him (Hebrews 12:2). What is this joy? Eternity with you and me. Life after death. The will of the Father perfectly worked out in the eternal lives of His children. 

The next time you take the elements of communion, recognize the power of the physical symbol and the promise of the spiritual reality. God gave Israel blood-covered doors leading to an open land, and Jesus gives us the symbols of an occupied cross leading to an empty tomb. Both sets of symbols help people see that death is not the end. But only one sacrifice enables everlasting life. Death is an end. We will all physically die. Those are real and true statements about our physical reality. But Death is not The End. Jesus rose again and will return again to call us to Himself. That is true as well. There is a beginning after the end, and a wedding feast to which we are all invited if we believe in the Lord Jesus.