Talk

Embracing Your Place At The Table

Brad Jones

August, 18, 2024

Brad Jones leads us through Luke 22, showing how we’ve been invited to participate in God’s magnificent story here on earth. God might not give us everything we want, but He will give us everything we need to live the life He’s called us to live and fulfill His purposes.

Key Takeaway

The story we are a part of is bigger than the role we play.

1. We have a role to play in the Kingdom.

Jesus sent Peter and John. God has an assignment on our lives, and you and I find joy when we embrace that assignment.

We have been invited in.

Nothing is better than being a part of Jesus' plan.

God will give us everything we need to live the life He has called us to live.

Don't just long for what you don't have. Embrace what you have, and find joy in purpose.

2. The story we are a part of is a BIG story.

The Last Supper is one of the most significant and consequential moments in history. It should be kept sacred and remind us of all He has done.

We have been offered a seat.

Do you rely on your seat at His table?

Jesus eagerly desired to eat THIS Passover. This Passover festival was different. For 33 years, Jesus had celebrated the Passover on earth, and for the last few, He had shared it with His disciples. This was His Last Passover meal on earth.

The blood of lambs was no longer needed; Christ, the Passover Lamb, was ready to shed His blood as a once-for-all sacrifice for sin.

3. The story we are a part of is not about us.

"Is it me?" to "Who is the greatest?" A dispute arose. Try to imagine, I know it will be tough, hard to fathom. A group of guys sat around a table, trying to figure out who was better.

Contentious, heated—Peter, John, James, Matthew—they quickly could recall why they thought they were better than the rest. They kept records/receipts, not just of our accomplishments/mistakes but also of others.

Sadly, this is all too common. We are all stuck in the cycle of trying to measure our value based on how we compare to other people instead of finding our value in the reality that we have been invited to the table with Jesus.

Be secure and find joy in who and where God has called you to be. Godliness with contentment is a significant gain.

We aren't the lead in the story, and things break down when we try to put ourselves in that position.

Dangerous to ourselves:

John Owen—"Pride is the most dangerous sin because it leads us to think more highly of ourselves than we ought, obscuring our need for God's grace."

Dangerous to the mission of the church:

Tim Keller—"In the church, pride manifests as an overemphasis on our achievements or a critical spirit towards others. Both undermine the mission of the gospel."

Don't be like the leaders of the world; be like Jesus, the true Leader of the world,

Andrew Murray—"Humility is the key that unlocks the door to true and lasting fellowship with God."

Resist pride and cultivate humility. Look up!

Charles Spurgeon—"The more we know God, the more humble we will become."

4. Our role is to create space for others to be a part of the story.

There is a place at the table for everyone.

This is the beauty of the church.

“

"Do you know the love that God has for you? And do you rely on it?"

”

Brad Jones

Discussion Questions

Are you embracing God's plan for your life, or are you trying to control it yourself?
God will give us everything we need to live the life He has called us to live. Do you believe this truth? How have you seen this to be true in your own life?
Has the significance of The Last Supper gotten lost on you? How has the reminder of what this meal meant helped you appreciate this event more?
How does it help you to know that you're part of a bigger story that has been unfolding for centuries?
In what ways have you been comparing yourself to other followers of Christ? How has this hindered your faith?
Are you secure in where God has called you to be? Why or why not?
How have you been putting yourself in the center of the story rather than putting Jesus in the center?
How have you personally invited people into the story?

Scripture References

Judas Agrees to Betray Jesus

1Now the Festival of Unleavened Bread, called the Passover, was approaching, 2and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were looking for some way to get rid of Jesus, for they were afraid of the people. 3Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve. 4And Judas went to the chief priests and the officers of the temple guard and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus. 5They were delighted and agreed to give him money. 6He consented, and watched for an opportunity to hand Jesus over to them when no crowd was present.

The Last Supper

7Then came the day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. 8Jesus sent Peter and John, saying,

“Go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover.”

9“Where do you want us to prepare for it?” they asked.

10He replied,

“As you enter the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him to the house that he enters,

and say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’

He will show you a large room upstairs, all furnished. Make preparations there.”

13They left and found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover.

14When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. 15And he said to them,

“I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.

For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.”

17After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said,

“Take this and divide it among you.

For I tell you I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”

19And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying,

“This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”

20In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying,

“This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.

But the hand of him who is going to betray me is with mine on the table.

The Son of Man will go as it has been decreed. But woe to that man who betrays him!”

23They began to question among themselves which of them it might be who would do this.

24A dispute also arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest. 25Jesus said to them,

“The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors.

But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves.

For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves.

You are those who have stood by me in my trials.

And I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me,

so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

“Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat.

But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”

33But he replied, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death.”

34Jesus answered,

“I tell you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know me.”

35Then Jesus asked them,

“When I sent you without purse, bag or sandals, did you lack anything?”

“Nothing,” they answered.

36He said to them,

“But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don’t have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one.

It is written: ‘And he was numbered with the transgressors’

; and I tell you that this must be fulfilled in me. Yes, what is written about me is reaching its fulfillment.”

38The disciples said, “See, Lord, here are two swords.”

“That’s enough!”

he replied.

Jesus Prays on the Mount of Olives

39Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. 40On reaching the place, he said to them,

“Pray that you will not fall into temptation.”

41He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, 42

“Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”

43An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. 44And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.

45When he rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, he found them asleep, exhausted from sorrow. 46

“Why are you sleeping?”

he asked them.

“Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.”

Jesus Arrested

47While he was still speaking a crowd came up, and the man who was called Judas, one of the Twelve, was leading them. He approached Jesus to kiss him, 48but Jesus asked him,

“Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?”

49When Jesus’ followers saw what was going to happen, they said, “Lord, should we strike with our swords?” 50And one of them struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his right ear.

51But Jesus answered,

“No more of this!”

And he touched the man’s ear and healed him.

52Then Jesus said to the chief priests, the officers of the temple guard, and the elders, who had come for him,

“Am I leading a rebellion, that you have come with swords and clubs?

Every day I was with you in the temple courts, and you did not lay a hand on me. But this is your hour—when darkness reigns.”

Peter Disowns Jesus

54Then seizing him, they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest. Peter followed at a distance. 55And when some there had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter sat down with them. 56A servant girl saw him seated there in the firelight. She looked closely at him and said, “This man was with him.”

57But he denied it. “Woman, I don’t know him,” he said.

58A little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.”

“Man, I am not!” Peter replied.

59About an hour later another asserted, “Certainly this fellow was with him, for he is a Galilean.”

60Peter replied, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. 61The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him:

“Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.”

62And he went outside and wept bitterly.

The Guards Mock Jesus

63The men who were guarding Jesus began mocking and beating him. 64They blindfolded him and demanded, “Prophesy! Who hit you?” 65And they said many other insulting things to him.

Jesus Before Pilate and Herod

66At daybreak the council of the elders of the people, both the chief priests and the teachers of the law, met together, and Jesus was led before them. 67“If you are the Messiah,” they said, “tell us.”

Jesus answered,

“If I tell you, you will not believe me,

and if I asked you, you would not answer.

But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God.”

70They all asked, “Are you then the Son of God?”

He replied,

“You say that I am.”

71Then they said, “Why do we need any more testimony? We have heard it from his own lips.”

3His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.

1The

Lord

said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt,

2“This month is to be for you the first month, the first month of your year.

3Tell the whole community of Israel that on the tenth day of this month each man is to take a lamb for his family, one for each household.

4If any household is too small for a whole lamb, they must share one with their nearest neighbor, having taken into account the number of people there are. You are to determine the amount of lamb needed in accordance with what each person will eat.

5The animals you choose must be year-old males without defect, and you may take them from the sheep or the goats.

6Take care of them until the fourteenth day of the month, when all the members of the community of Israel must slaughter them at twilight.

7Then they are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs.

8That same night they are to eat the meat roasted over the fire, along with bitter herbs, and bread made without yeast.

9Do not eat the meat raw or boiled in water, but roast it over a fire—with the head, legs and internal organs.

10Do not leave any of it till morning; if some is left till morning, you must burn it.

11This is how you are to eat it: with your cloak tucked into your belt, your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand. Eat it in haste; it is the

Lord

’s Passover.

12“On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn of both people and animals, and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the

Lord

13The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt.

14“This is a day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the

Lord

—a lasting ordinance.

1Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion,

2then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind.

3Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves,

4not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

5In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:

6Who, being in very nature God,

did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;

7rather, he made himself nothing

by taking the very nature of a servant,

being made in human likeness.

8And being found in appearance as a man,

he humbled himself

by becoming obedient to death—

even death on a cross!

9Therefore God exalted him to the highest place

and gave him the name that is above every name,

10that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,

in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

11and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,

to the glory of God the Father.

Psalm 84

For the director of music. According to

gittith.

Of the Sons of Korah. A psalm.

1How lovely is your dwelling place,

Lord

Almighty!

2My soul yearns, even faints,

for the courts of the

Lord

;

my heart and my flesh cry out

for the living God.

3Even the sparrow has found a home,

and the swallow a nest for herself,

where she may have her young—

a place near your altar,

Lord

Almighty, my King and my God.

4Blessed are those who dwell in your house;

they are ever praising you.

5Blessed are those whose strength is in you,

whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.

6As they pass through the Valley of Baka,

they make it a place of springs;

the autumn rains also cover it with pools.

7They go from strength to strength,

till each appears before God in Zion.

8Hear my prayer,

Lord

God Almighty;

listen to me, God of Jacob.

9Look on our shield, O God;

look with favor on your anointed one.

10Better is one day in your courts

than a thousand elsewhere;

I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God

than dwell in the tents of the wicked.

11For the

Lord

God is a sun and shield;

the

Lord

bestows favor and honor;

no good thing does he withhold

from those whose walk is blameless.

Lord

Almighty,

blessed is the one who trusts in you.

Brad Jones

Passion City Church Atlanta is pastored by Brad Jones. Together, he and his wife Brittany have been a part of the Passion Movement for over a decade helping carry the heartbeat of Passion Conference and Passion City Church. They live in Atlanta with their two children, Caleb and Addy.