The Bread and Cup He Promised to Share
Month 10: The Upper Room · Why We Believe
Today's Scripture
Read together: Luke 22:18-20 & 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
18 For I tell you that I will not drink of the fruit of the vine from now on until the kingdom of God comes.” 19 And He took the 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.” 20 In the same way, after supper He took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is poured out for you. — Luke 22:18-20
23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night He was betrayed, took bread, 24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” 25 In the same way, after supper He took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes. — 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
Memory Verse
“Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”— John 14:6 (BSB)
📖 Bible-in-a-Year (optional)
Today's reading: Haggai 1-2; Zechariah 1
Reading the whole Bible in a year — do this when you have extra time. (God stirs His people to rebuild His house and promises, "I am with you.")The Heart of It
Here is something amazing about the Lord's Supper. We can check the story. Luke wrote down what Jesus did that night. Then the apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians only about 25 years later. He repeated almost the exact same words: "I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you." Paul was not passing along a legend that grew over hundreds of years. He was handing on eyewitness teaching. The earliest Christians already knew it by heart and practiced it every week. Two separate witnesses. The same Supper. The same Lord.
And Jesus made a promise over that cup. He said, "I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes." In other words, the Last Supper was not only looking back. It was looking forward. Every time the church breaks the bread, we "proclaim the Lord's death till He comes" (). It is a meal stretched between two events we believe really happened and really will happen. A cross in the past. A kingdom feast in the future. We don't take communion because it feels nice. We take it because it is true. And we take it because Jesus told us to, until we eat with Him face to face.
Around the Table
Jesus made a promise: one day He'll share a meal with us in heaven! The bread and cup help us wait.
Let's do it: Pretend to set the table for a big feast and say, "Jesus, we can't wait to eat with You someday!"
Two different writers, Luke and Paul, wrote down the very same Last Supper. Why does having more than one witness help us trust that it really happened?
Let's talk: The Supper looks back at the cross and forward to heaven. What is one thing you're looking forward to about being with Jesus?
Paul's account in 1 Corinthians is one of the earliest written records of Jesus' life. It is closer to the events than most history we trust without question.
Let's go deeper: Why does the early date of these records make the gospel harder to dismiss as a slowly invented myth?
💬 Conversation Starter
Imagine you saw something amazing. Then your friend wrote it down the very same way you remembered it. How would that make you feel about your story being believed?
🛡️ Defending the Faith
When someone says, "The stories about Jesus were made up long after He lived," you can answer kindly. Paul recorded the Lord's Supper in 1 Corinthians around AD 55. And he says he was passing on what he had already received. So the teaching goes back to the first few years after the cross. That is far too early and too well known for a legend to take root. Eyewitnesses were still alive who could have corrected it. We say this gently, "with gentleness and respect" (). Good evidence and a kind tone go together.
For Dad · Go Deeper
The "tradition language" in ("received… delivered") is the same technical vocabulary used in 15:3 for the resurrection creed. Scholars date that creed to within a handful of years of the events. This is some of the strongest historical bedrock we have for the gospel. It is not late. It is not anonymous. It was not slowly mythologized. It is early, public, and repeatable. As you disciple your kids in a skeptical age, give them this confidence. Christian faith rests on testimony that can be examined, not on a leap in the dark. And then point past the evidence to the Person. The Supper is not finally about dates. It is about a Savior who keeps His promises, and who will keep the biggest one yet: "till He comes."
Draws on: Gary Habermas & Michael Licona, The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus.
Let's Pray Together
"Father, thank You that the gospel is true and we can trust it. Thank You for the bread and the cup. They help us remember Jesus' death and look forward to His coming. Keep our family faithful until we feast with You. In Jesus' name, amen."
The Supper is no fairy tale. It remembers a real cross and waits for a real King.