Grace at the King’s Table — Part 2

If Matthew emphasizes the kingship of Jesus in his book, then how should we read his account of the Lord’s Supper? Two issues rise immediately to mind. First, throughout the Bible, kingship is not really about power. It is more about service. When Deuteronomy established standards for any king of Israel, Moses established three restrictions on the king. He must not multiply horses, wives, or gold (17.16-17). The reason for these restrictions is that the king must remain weak in every way, militarily, politically (especially internationally), and economically. Then, when should one expect from the king? First Samuel gives a clear answer: the king first delivers his people by risking his own life for them; then he reigns (consider the differences between Saul and David). At the table, the King offered His own body and blood for His people. Subsequently, He enters upon His royal prerogatives. This is a table of a suffering Monarch, not the feast of the powerful. By this means He presents the call to those who share table fellowship with Himself, the call to deny themselves, take up their own cross and follow (Matt 16.24).

Second, remarkably, the King welcomes failures to His table. Matthew sandwiches the account of the table with two passages, both of which predict the failures of His disciples. The first passage, Matt 26.21-25, predicts Judas’s betrayal. Yet we have no indication in the passage that Judas left before the initiation of the Lord’s Supper (in fact, John 13 indicates that Judas took part in the entire meal). The probability is, even more remarkably, that Judas was in the position of highest honor among the disciples, since he is placed to Jesus’ left (with John himself on Jesus’ right, in the position of the master of the feast). He would have been the first to whom Jesus passed the elements of the Supper.

The other passage in the sandwich, Matt. 26.31-35, predicts that all of Jesus’ disciples will abandon Him (citing Zech 13.7), and then declaring that Peter would deny Him three times. Yet, though He knew that the disciples spiritual and emotional failings, He not only did not expel them, but He included them in the Supper. Even Judas, as we have seen, took part in this meal. This is shocking, but it is of a piece with other places where Jesus eats with people. His preferred company was with sinners (cp. Matt 9.10-11; 11.19), and this tendency brought opposition from the Pharisees. It appears that this King prefers those who fail to those who succeed. But this fits with the first lesson of the Supper we saw above. This King lays down His life to deliver His people before He reigns. Thus, He cannot expel the unworthy. He calls them to the fellowship of the suffering Monarch so that they will be able to take part in the fellowship of the triumphant King. In the meantime, He calls those who continue in His fellowship to participate as His ambassadors to call all the nations to be His disciples.