The Story

Read about the Last Supper the Lord ate with His disciples in Luke 22:7-23.

You might also want to compare how this story is told in Matthew 26:17-30 and Mark 14:12-26 or John 13:1-30.

Ideas for discussion

1. Who did the Lord send to Jerusalem to prepare the Passover? (Peter and John) How would they know where to prepare it? (They would meet a man carrying a pitcher of water and follow him to his house where there was a large upper room.)
2. At the first celebration of Passover, the children of Israel ate roasted lamb, unleavened bread, and bitter herbs (see Exodus 12:1-14). Peter and John prepared these to celebrate the Passover with the Lord. And there was wine.
3. During this Last Supper with the disciples, the Lord was showing them how to celebrate the Holy Supper. What did the Lord give to His disciples as part of this new celebration? (wine and unleavened bread)
4. The Passover feast is celebrated in remembrance of the Lord’s powerful and protective love for the children of Israel. The Holy Supper has a similar purpose for Christians.
5. The Lord came into the world to draw closer to us and to teach us what is good and true. And He gave us the Holy Supper to help us come before the Lord, humbly asking for His help and spiritual sustenance.
6. In the Holy Supper the Lord is wholly present with the whole of His redemption. His “flesh” symbolizes the Divine good of His love, and His “blood” the Divine truth of His wisdom (True Christian Religion 716).

Read more about the Last Supper:

• “The Last Supper and the Holy Supper” by Eric H. Carswell (for ages 7-14)
  The Holy Supper is a special church service to remind us of the last supper the Lord had with His disciples.
• “Taking the Holy Supper” by Alfred Acton (ages 7-14)
  When the Lord celebrated His last supper on earth, He was teaching people how to be with Him in a new special way. When we understand that taking food into the body is like taking good things into the mind, then we can start to understand this supper.
• “The Holy Supper” by Patrick A. Rose (ages 18 and up)
  When people take the Holy Supper, they are approaching the Lord to receive spiritual life from Him.

Projects and activities for various ages

• The Last Supper Video
  Presents the story of the Last Supper as it is told in the gospel of Mark, chapter 14.
• The Last Supper (ages 7-14)
  This project uses a drawing by Ruth Davis Gyllenhaal to depict the Last Supper.
• Eating the Last Supper Coloring Page by Lisa S. Buss (ages 7-14)
  Shows the Lord and His disciples celebrating the Passover together.
• Preparing an Upper Room for the Lord (for ages 7-14)
  Use two empty shoeboxes to prepare an upper room like the one where the Lord and His disciples celebrated the Passover together.
• Compare the Passover with the Holy Supper (ages 8-12)
  Look at various customs and their origins and sort them into categories.
• How Did Jesus and the Disciples Feel at the Last Supper
  Look at a picture of the Last Supper. Think about how the people in the picture feel. Draw your own picture of a person in the group. Explain how he might have felt.
• The Last Supper Coloring Pages by Robert G. Glenn (ages 7-14)
  An intricate illustration of the Lord and His disciples at the Last Supper.
• This Do in Remembrance of Me Spiritual Task by David Roth (ages 18 and up)
  The meaning of holy supper is that we must, throughout our life, take into us and make part of us the Lord’s love or goodness and wisdom or truth. These are the spiritual nourishment that will sustain us.

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