Why do we celebrate Seder?
Our Holy Week begins on Palm Sunday. But Jesus had come to Jerusalem or rather a small town adjacent to Jerusalem called Bethany, some time earlier. His disciples had followed Him, convinced that this return to Jerusalem would mean their deaths. It was at Bethany that Jesus restored to life, a man who had been dead and buried for three days.
When the Sanhedrin, the religious ruling body of Judea, heard of this miracle, they reaffirmed that Jesus must die in order to safeguard their positions and that of Judea in the Roman Empire.
We celebrate the response of Jesus to this decision every year as Palm Sunday, the day Jesus Triumphantly entered Jerusalem on the back of a donkey. In order to understand Palm Sunday within our culture, let's think of it an act similar to buying every advertisement aired during the Super Bowl and sending the message "I am here!"
This simple act created such fervor in Jerusalem that the Sanhedrin could not touch Jesus. And that evening Jesus went back to Bethany.
Why did Jesus return again to Jerusalem? And why did Jesus, the last time He entered Jerusalem, slip into town unnoticed only to be found through the deceit of Judas. Jesus tells us Himself:
"With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer."
Luke 22:15 "this Passover..." was The Seder Dinner.
- This ceremony and celebration that had been commanded by God.
- This ceremony and celebration that had been an annual event ever since the Exodus.
- This ceremony and celebration that brought most religious minded Jews to Jerusalem every year.
- This ceremony and celebration that had brought Jesus to Jerusalem almost every year of His life.
Somehow, during the hustle and bustle of this week, Jesus had arranged for a place to have this dinner. He sent His Disciples into Jerusalem to find this place and to prepare for this dinner. The Passover Dinner that was the turning point between His Triumphant Entry and His Death on the Cross. The Passover Dinner, with all of it's symbolism, that was used by Jesus to explain His Ministry one last time.
And, at the end of this dinner, Jesus asked His Disciples to "Do this in remembrance" of Him. The early Church took this request seriously. The Seder Dinner was the basis of their Christian Lord's Day Service for the next 300 years.
|
