All Becomes “All”

The upper room was associated in the minds of the disciples with the Last Supper, for it was in this room that Jesus unfolded for them the meaning of redemption. As He broke bread with them, He said, “This is My body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of Me.” In the same way He also took the cup after supper and said, “This cup is the new covenant established by My blood; it is shed for you” (Lk 22:19-20).

The upper room had a double content—the Cross and the Spirit. These are more closely connected than we might realize, for if we do not bear the spirit of the Cross we will not bear the Spirit of God. We are to be crucified followers of a crucified Lord.

Did that upper room stand in the minds of the disciples as a symbol of Christ’s self-giving? And would the whole atmosphere of the place remind them that, just as He had offered His all, so must they offer their all? I cannot help but believe that the connection between the Last Supper and the promised descent of the Holy Spirit would be much upon their minds. In that room, God, in the person of His Son Jesus Christ, had offered His all. Now the 120 disciples were being confronted with the same challenge. Out of Christ’s offering came power, for God answers self-giving by the giving of Himself. We can only conclude that something significant happened in the lives of those disciples in that ten-day waiting period, for out of that “all” offering came “all” power.

Further Study

Ac 1:14; Eph 2:14; Col 1:20; 2:14

What was abolished by the Cross?

What is the relationship between “Passover” and “Pentecost”?