Jesus' Last Week

For the past few weeks I have been helping my Sunday morning "SuperKids" track the last week of Jesus here on earth. We started with the story of the triumphal entry into Jerusalem two weeks ago.
Last week I told the story of the woman who washed Jesus feet with expensive ointment and then demonstrated the way Jesus washed HIS disciples' feet. We had snow on the ground outdoors and the water in the basin we were using was every bit as cold. One brave 3rd grade girl, Shantanelle volunteered while Tyler and two other guys others followed suit. I asked them what message Jesus was trying to teach and Travis saw it first, he told me it was about serving others.
They liked the idea that we were using some pretty fancy shower gel and that some great smelling lotion was part of their foot rub afterwards. They all got to choose lotion or gel to take home and were told to offer to give somebody in their family a hand rub or FOOT RUB. (Don't know how many actual takers we had on that idea.)

Today we continued with the story of the annual Passover Feast which was the last one that Jesus celebrated with his disciples. I knew it was going to be a real challenge when upon going downstairs, I discovered this morning that the lamb I had put in the crockpot to cook overnight was still cold because the crockpot didn't heat up. I was super disappointed since I had paid a hefty amount for those three tiny lamb chops. I SO badly wanted my kids to taste it as they heard the story of this all-important feast of the Jews. I wanted them to know that Jesus' last meal with his followers was this very same feast and from this meal He gave them and US careful instructions about the meal he wanted to be kept whenever his followers came together.

With no lamb safe to serve -- we used pot roast instead -- (However, not one to give up easily, I did go on and cook those little chops at an extremely high temp and brought one to show) We made "Passover wraps with beef, parsley and flour tortillas) to improvise for the unleavened bread, bitter herbs and lamb. The kids said we needed barbecue sauce -- but I explained that we wanted to eat it as they would have. My picky eaters decided the parsley wasn't too bad and they all asked for more. We used one of the beautiful cross candlesticks that Jessie gave us for Christmas.

We talked about the fact that long ago Moses and the Israelites ate it with their coats & sandals on, their belts in place, holding their walking sticks, all of them, ready to move. We tried to put that in terms they might be able to understand - it's like having the car ready and running when you are headed on a trip -- eating before you hit the road.

We ate it with red ovals taped to the doorframe to represent the sprinkled blood. . . reminding them that the Israelites had to eat the feast inside their houses as the death angel passed over.

It was so precious to see all ten sitting on squares of carpet waiting for everybody to be served and eating it all very quietly, asking questions. But that's the way the traditional Jewish Passover meal took place -- the youngest asking the questions and then the older retelling of deliverance from Egypt. They were able to name the 10plagues leading up to the last.

As we ate, we talked about how long those Israelites traveled that wilderness and decided that it was as long as Thomas and Luke's dads had been alive. (Dylan looked at me and asked, "how OLD are you?" and immediately Mason said "44" -- Thanks kids!)

From this experience I wanted them to see the connection between the meal's sacrificial firstborn lamb and the Lamb of God. . .and to remind them that as Jesus served this lamb to his disciples -- HE KNEW that he WAS that lamb and THE LAMB OF GOD explained to them that now it would be a new feast with only bread and wine.

It was a tender moment for me -- Every year this story becomes sweeter and more precious and each year a different part of the redemption and resurrection story impacts me in a profound way . . . this year's revelation -- He became the Passover Lamb to die not only FOR me -- but AS me.