At the Bottom of the Cup

"And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it.” (Matthew 26:27)

      I noticed something one day when I was reading this story of our Lord’s final meal with His disciples, when He initiated what has come to be called “The Lord’s Supper.” In verse twenty-six, when the Savior served the broken bread to His friends in anticipation of his broken body, He didn't say, “Eat ye all of it,” as He later said of the fruit of the vine in the cup. I think there is significance to this. 

     The “cup” is used as a metaphor for both good and bad in Scripture. For instance, in Psalms, we find David’s wonderful “full and overflowing cup” of blessings (23:5; 116:13); but we also read of a cup of judgment for the wicked in Psalm 75:8.

     In this case, I cannot help thinking that when Jesus offered the cup to the disciples, a picture of His own Blood that would be shed for the remission of our sins, He was, no doubt, thinking of His own bitter cup, of which He would pray to the Father that same evening, "O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me:nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt" (v. 39). He knew that once He began to drink from that awful cup, He would have to drink “all of it.” Sin, judgment, death, hell—all of it. "He took the cup in dark Gethsemane/ And drained it to the dregs on Calvary/ Oh, who can know the depths of agony/ To which the Savior went for you and me?"

     There is always one cup or another in our hands, sometimes good, but sometimes bad. Whichever it is, however, we should remember the instructions of our Lord: “Drink ye all of it.” If it is sweet, savor it to the very last drop; but if it is bitter, drink it to the very dregs. Because, Child of God, when you reach the bottom, you will find the face of God.