Day 38: This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.
The meal is finished, and the plates have been cleared. Only the stack of matzah and wine are left. Playfully, amid much encouragement and calling out of “hot” and “cold”, John finally finds the afikomen, the middle matzah that was wrapped and hidden earlier in the evening. He settles back in next to Jesus and hands it to him with a happy grin. Jesus smiles back, but pauses as he holds the matzah, waiting for the chatter to die down. When the room is quiet, Jesus breaks it, and choked with emotion, says quietly, “This is my body, given for you…”. He tucks half the matzah between the two that are stacked on the table and passes the other half around, watching as each person breaks off their piece.
Thoughtfully holding the pieces of matzah, they repeat the familiar liturgy, “Blessed are you, Lord our God, King of the Universe who brings forth bread from Heaven.” Jesus can see the wonder and glimmer of understanding on some of the faces, but Peter’s face clouds with a sense of foreboding as he eats his piece.
Mary hurriedly refills each cup with wine. This is the third ritual cup, the cup of Redemption, a reminder that God redeemed the Israelites from Egypt with an “outstretched arm and mighty acts of judgment.” Jesus lifts his cup, and says,
“This cup is the new covenant in my blood which is poured out for you.”
Looking around the table he sees the questions forming behind the furrowed brows, and perhaps he repeats the words. Some shake their heads slightly, trying hard to understand as they lift their cups and repeat by rote memory, “Blessed are you, Lord our God, King of the Universe, Creator of the fruit of the vine.”
Together, they drink the wine of the new covenant.
Vineyard Metaphor
Like apple and pear seeds, grape seeds do not produce genetically identical fruit as the parent plant.
They are not “true to seed” and are best propagated by using cuttings or grafting rather than planting seeds. There are many methods of propagation, but they all include cutting a piece of a cane from a vine with the desired qualities of the new vine. The cuttings are usually collected just before winter pruning.
For field propagation, the 6-8” cutting (which looks like a stick to the untrained eye) will be planted in the soil with the end of the cutting closest to the root of the vine pointing down. The entire stick is then covered with a mound of dirt. In the spring, a small volcano of leaves will sprout out of the mound indicating that a root system has begun to grow. The leaves are left for the season as the roots get stronger. The following spring, the dirt is pulled away from the cutting just enough to graft a new scion onto the now-established, new rootstock. The scion carries the DNA of the specific grape varietal the winemaker wants to grow on this new vine. During this second spring, the new scion will push out some shoots and leaves, and these will form the basis for the new vine to grow. The fruit that will grow on this new vine will have the same genetics as the fruit that grew on the parent vine from which they collected the scion.
Creating your own rootstock is a long process that is generally only performed by the most dedicated vineyard owners to preserve the genetics of vines they have loved and have given the best fruit.
Reflection and Meditation
The Passover meal, or Seder, is a reminder, an embodied memorial, of the covenant relationship God has with Israel. The last meal Jesus ate with his disciples was the Passover meal, where he instituted a new covenant relationship between God and humanity. As Jesus raises the cup of Redemption, he declares that his blood will seal a new covenant, a new relationship. Like the blood of the lamb the Israelites painted on the door frame at the first Passover which protected the firstborn from the angel of death, the blood of Jesus will save those who believe from eternal death.
Just like a new vine that is propagated from an old vine, Jesus becomes the true vine with a new root system, yet still connected to the original. The old covenant is not abolished but fulfilled with the new covenant Jesus brings. We embody the memorial of Jesus’ death and the new covenant every time we drink the wine, the blood of Christ, at Eucharist.
Take a moment and ponder the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross with his broken body and his lifeblood poured out. Consider the cost of the new covenant… Jesus’ life.
If this is a new concept for you, hear Jesus invite you to the relationship of the new covenant. Can you see his hand reaching out to you? He gave his life for you; how will you respond? Will you give him your life in return?
Tell Jesus your thoughts and rest in his love for you.
“Jesus lost all his glory so that we could be clothed in it.”