Until the Kingdom of God Comes

Until It Is Fulfilled

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At the Last Supper Jesus made a promise twice. “For I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God” (Luke 22:16). Then, with the cup, He said, “I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes” (22:18).

A goodbye with a promise. Jesus was about to leave His disciples. Within hours He would be arrested, and the next day He would die on the cross. But His words were not a final goodbye. They pointed to a day still ahead.

New, with you. Matthew tells us Jesus also said, “I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom” (Matthew 26:29). Jesus planned to share that day with His friends.

Something new. Mark has the word “new” too: “until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God” (Mark 14:25). Jesus spoke of that day with certainty.

Looking back. For many generations God's people kept the Passover to remember how He rescued them from Egypt. God told them, “So this day shall be to you a memorial” (Exodus 12:14).

Looking ahead. Jesus said the Passover would be “fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” The rescue from Egypt was a picture of a greater rescue: Jesus saving His people from sin and bringing them home to God.

Certain of the future. Jesus did not say if the kingdom comes. He said until. The cross was hours away, and He spoke of the kingdom just as surely.

Jesus keeps His word. Everything Jesus said about the cross came true. That is why His promise about the kingdom can be trusted too.

A kingdom now and coming. God's kingdom is wherever God rules as King. Paul wrote that God has already “conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love” (Colossians 1:13). One day that kingdom will come in full, and Jesus will be with His people.

A song on the way out. After the meal, “when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives” (Mark 14:26). Jesus sang praise to God with His disciples on the night before the cross.

The cross first. Before that kingdom day, Jesus would give His body and His blood for us in a new covenant. He died for our sins, and on the third day He rose again. Because He lives, His promise will be kept.

What to do. When goodbyes or hard days make you sad, remember that Jesus' story does not end at the cross. Thank Him for the day He has promised, and live today as someone who belongs to His kingdom.

Luke records two “until” promises at the Last Supper. “I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God” (Luke 22:16). “I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes” (22:18).

Pleroo (22:16). The word for fulfilled is pleroo (say: play-ROH-oh), to fill up completely. The Passover was not thrown away; it was waiting to be filled with its full meaning.

The memorial and the fulfillment. God told Israel, “So this day shall be to you a memorial” (Exodus 12:14). For generations the meal looked back to Egypt. Jesus said it also looked forward, to the kingdom of God.

New (Mark 14:25). “Until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.” Matthew adds two words that make it personal: “new with you in My Father’s kingdom” (Matthew 26:29). Jesus means to share that day with His own.

Basileia. The word for kingdom is basileia (say: bah-sih-LAY-ah), the rule of a king. God's kingdom has already begun in everyone who trusts Jesus: God “has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love” (Colossians 1:13). Jesus spoke of the day it comes in full.

A hymn (Mark 14:26). “And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.” Jesus walked out toward the cross after singing praise to God.

“Until,” not “if.” Jesus did not say if the kingdom comes. He said until. He spoke of that day as surely as He spoke of the cross.

The way through the cross. The kingdom promise rested on what Jesus was about to do. His body would be given and His blood shed for the new covenant. Then He rose, and the risen Lord is the One who will keep His word. Every promise He made at that table rests on what He did on the cross and on His rising from the dead.

For you. Hope in the Bible is not wishful thinking. It is confidence in a promise Jesus made with the cross in full view. If you trust Him, His “with you” includes you.

A Feast for All Peoples

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Jesus said the Passover would be fulfilled in the kingdom of God. The Bible gives us glimpses of that day, and one of them is a great feast.

A feast on a mountain. The prophet Isaiah said that on God's mountain the Lord of hosts will make a feast for all people, with the best food and the finest drink (Isaiah 25:6). God Himself sets the table.

For all people. Isaiah did not say the feast was for one family or one nation. God's invitation reaches every people on earth.

From every direction. Jesus said people will come from the east and the west, from the north and the south, and sit down in the kingdom of God (Luke 13:29). In Matthew He said, “many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 8:11).

A very big family. Abraham, Isaac and Jacob lived long before Jesus came. They will be at the table too. God had promised Abraham, “And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Genesis 12:3). God's family is bigger than one place or one time in history.

The risen Lord. After He rose, Jesus ate broiled fish in front of His disciples (Luke 24:42-43). The One who made the promise is alive.

Joy with Him. The greatest joy of God's kingdom will not be the food. It will be being with God Himself.

Who gets a seat? No one earns a place at God's table. Everyone has sinned, and no one can buy a seat with good behavior.

The way in. Jesus opened the way through the cross. His body was given for us, and His blood was shed for us in the new covenant. On the third day He rose again. Everyone who trusts Him is welcome.

What to do. Thank Jesus that He welcomes everyone who trusts Him, from every country and every family. Pray for someone who does not know Him yet, and ask God for a chance to tell that person about Jesus.

The Last Supper looked forward to a meal still to come. Scripture describes that day as a feast that God Himself provides.

Isaiah 25:6. Isaiah saw the Lord of hosts making a feast on His mountain for all people, a feast of the richest food and the finest, well-aged wine. The guest list is not one nation but all peoples.

Sitting down in the kingdom (Luke 13:29). Jesus said people will come from east and west, north and south, and sit down in the kingdom of God. In Matthew 8:11 He said, “many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.” People from every direction will share the table with the fathers of Israel.

Abraham's family. God promised Abraham, “And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Genesis 12:3). The table Jesus described, with people from every direction sitting down with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, is that promise kept.

A real, risen body. After He rose, Jesus took broiled fish “and ate in their presence” (Luke 24:43). The One who promised to drink it new rose bodily from the dead.

God's presence. The heart of the kingdom feast is not the food. It is being with God Himself.

On His mountain. Isaiah placed the feast on the Lord's mountain, where God meets with His people. The meal is not only rich; it is held in God's own presence, and He is the host.

A table God prepares. In Isaiah the host is the Lord of hosts Himself. That is grace: the Lord provides everything, and the guests bring nothing but their need.

The price of a seat. No one earns a place at this table, because all have sinned and fall short of God's glory. The seat is paid for by the One who said, “This is My body which is given for you” and “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.”

Risen to keep His word. Christ died, was buried and “rose again the third day according to the Scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:4). The promise He made at the table is safe because the One who made it is alive.

For you. If the kingdom feast is for all peoples, then the invitation is for you, and for the people around you who do not yet know Jesus. Trust Him, and pray for one friend by name this week.

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