말보다 말씀! 빚보다 빛!

Passion Week: Thursday

Matthew 26:17–46

After the silence of Wednesday, Jesus becomes active again on Thursday. On this day, He shares a meal with His disciples—those who had walked with Him for three years. It is the time of the Passover, and knowing His death is near, Jesus gathers His disciples for what would become the Last Supper (Matt. 26:17–30). After the meal, He foretells Peter’s denial (Matt. 26:31–35). Then Jesus goes to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray alone to the Father (Matt. 26:36–46). What do these Thursday events mean?

Through the Last Supper, Jesus proclaims that He is the Savior. He breaks bread and gives it to His disciples. He shares the cup and calls it His blood of the covenant. These actions are a declaration: Jesus is the Messiah, the One sent to save His people from their sins. The context of the meal also carries deep meaning—it is Passover, a feast that proclaims God’s mighty work of salvation. The original Passover was established the night before the Exodus, during the final plague in Egypt (Exodus 12). The Israelites were saved from the death of the firstborn by placing the blood of a lamb on their doorposts. That night, God "passed over" their homes. From that time on, Passover became a sacred celebration of God’s deliverance. The lamb of the Passover pointed forward to Jesus, the true Lamb of God. The blood of the lamb foreshadowed Jesus’ own sacrificial death on the cross. Through the Last Supper on Passover night, Jesus revealed that He had come to be that Lamb—the Savior of the world.

[https://m.blog.naver.com/gksmfl56/221789063990] 

But the disciples did not yet understand the meaning of Jesus’ words. After the meal, Jesus predicted that Peter would deny Him. This was shocking, especially since Peter was the one who had boldly confessed, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (Matt. 16:13–20) That very Peter would deny Jesus not once, but three times. This was not only a moment of personal weakness—it revealed how deeply the disciples still misunderstood Jesus’ identity. If Peter had fully grasped who Jesus was, he would have realized that the cross was not a tragic end, but a divine sacrifice. Later, in the Garden of Gethsemane, while Jesus prayed in agony, the disciples fell asleep—three times. This shows more than just physical fatigue. It highlights their spiritual dullness and inability to recognize Jesus as the Savior and Lord of their lives. In the end, the disciples neither fully understood Jesus nor followed Him faithfully.

Who is Jesus to you? Who is Jesus in your family? Who is Jesus in our church? Jesus is not only the One who saves us from sin and leads us to eternal life—He is Lord of our lives. This Holy Week, may our families welcome Jesus as Lord. May our church hold His Lordship as our highest value. As Jesus said:
“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
—John 14:6

With joy and blessing,
Pastor Hyung Joong Kim
© 2025 by Hyung Joong Kim