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It was the fifth day of the week – Thursday – and the 14th day of Nissan on the Hebrew calendar. The Passover Festival was to begin at dusk with the Passover Seder and continue for seven days, as it still does today. In preparation for the festival, all leavening (Chametz) was to be removed from the Jewish households. Leaven symbolized corruption or sin, so for the seven days of Passover, Jews ate only unleavened bread.(1) Often, any Chametz remaining in the household the day before Passover was removed and destroyed by burning. That morning in Jerusalem the pungent odor of burning Chametz would have permeated the air in and around the city. Every household was completing its preparations.
The preparations were so important to Jesus that He sent His two most trusted disciples:(2) Peter (the one upon whom He would build His church)(3) and John (the one to whom He would entrust the care of His mother).(4) Notice that when Jesus instructed them to go and prepare the meal, they wisely asked Him for specific instructions. Both men would have known what preparations were required under the Law. Both had traveled to Jerusalem many times before for the observance of Passover. Both were leaders. It would have been very easy for them to receive instruction from Jesus to “go” and then head off to do what they believed was right. How often do we attempt to go off and do God’s work in our own way? How often do we fail to ask Him the “how” question? How often do we make our own plan and ask Jesus to bless it instead of asking Him for His plan, so we can join Him in His activity?
Gratefully, Peter and John asked. And Jesus had all the details already worked out. i wonder how much time and energy Peter and John would have needlessly wasted if they had failed to ask. As we take up the cross that Jesus has called us to carry, let us not forget to continue to ask Him the “how” question. Peter may have had his shortcomings as the day progressed, but he started the day well by wisely asking Jesus “how.”
Just as Jesus had arranged for a donkey and its colt to be available for His entry into the city on the first day of the week, it appears that Jesus had made prior arrangements for the Passover meal. Apparently, during His previous visit to Jerusalem for the Feast of Dedication in the winter,(5) He had made these arrangements. Remember, the record crowd in Jerusalem would have made it very difficult to find a room in the city—but Jesus had already taken care of that detail. He had left nothing out of His planning, as reflected by the detailed instructions He gave Peter and John.
As they entered Jerusalem:
There would be a man waiting to meet them.
The man would know who they were—in a crowd of over one million people, no less!
The man would be carrying a pitcher of water so that he could be identified by them.
They were to follow him.
As the man entered the house, they were to follow him in and speak to the owner.
They were to ask on behalf of the “Teacher” where the room was that they would be using for the meal.
The owner would take them to the room that had been reserved and was of sufficient size for all of them to gather.
It was there that Peter and John were to make preparations for the meal so that everything would be ready when Jesus and the other disciples arrived.
Bear in mind that Jesus knew He would be betrayed and arrested that night. He knew it that morning when He gave Peter and John these instructions, and He had known it back in the fall when He made the arrangements. He wasn’t distracted by what was about to occur. On the contrary, His planning and preparation were complete to the most “minor” detail—because nothing in God’s providential plan is minor! Don’t lose sight that our God is God over all the details. There is nothing in our path—or in our lives—that escapes His notice or foreknowledge.
Imagine if you knew exactly what the stock market was going to do tomorrow. You could buy or sell today and tomorrow in a way that would maximize your financial gain because it would all be mapped out for you, down to the very detail. You would know the exact time and manner to execute your strategy—and there would be no guessing involved. Well, we serve a God and follow a Master who knows exactly what tomorrow holds—and His designs are much greater than anything that will happen in the stock market! And He has a perfect plan and path for us—including the most minor detail, if we will but ask, heed, and follow His plan!
The Seder was typically conducted in a family home or, as pilgrims gathered in Jerusalem, in a room set aside for that purpose with a gathering of family members or friends. There would have been a table large enough for Jesus and His disciples to gather around. There would have been pillows for everyone to be seated on the floor in a reclining position. The menu would have included an unleavened flatbread called “matzo,” bitter herbs called “maror,” dipping bowls of salt water, and red wine to drink (symbolizing the lamb’s shed blood). The Gospel accounts do not reference other elements that would have been common to the Seder meal, so i will not include them here. However, it is very probable that other elements were a part of their Passover Seder that night. Peter and John were charged with the responsibility to make sure that every detail was in place, and they found everything as Jesus told them it would be.
The same Lord who directed the angel of death to “pass over” the homes whose door posts were stained with the blood of the lamb so many years prior,(6) and who directed the people through Moses to observe the Passover each year,(7) was now going to lead His disciples through one last remembrance. And the Lamb of God made certain that every detail was in place—just as He had told them.
As we take up the cross to follow Him, we can be confident that everything will be ready, and every detail needed will be in place in order to accomplish His plan and purpose. Trust Him and heed His word—just as He has told you!
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You can read the instructions Jesus gave His disciples in the twenty-second chapter of the Gospel of Luke.
This post is taken from chapter 28 of my book, Taking Up The Cross. For more information about the book, click here.
(1) Exodus 12:15
(2) Luke 22:7-13 (NLT)
Now the Festival of Unleavened Bread arrived, when the Passover lamb is sacrificed. Jesus sent Peter and John ahead and said, “Go and prepare the Passover meal, so we can eat it together.” “Where do you want us to prepare it?” they asked Him. He replied, “As soon as you enter Jerusalem, a man carrying a pitcher of water will meet you. Follow him. At the house he enters, say to the owner, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is the guest room where I can eat the Passover meal with My disciples?’ He will take you upstairs to a large room that is already set up. That is where you should prepare our meal.” They went off to the city and found everything just as Jesus had said, and they prepared the Passover meal there.
(3) Matthew 16:18
(4) John 19:26-27
(5) John 10:22
(6) Exodus 12:13
(7) Exodus 12:14
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