Luke 22:8-9 - Where Would You Have Us Prepare it?

8 So Jesus sent Peter and John saying, “Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat it.” 9 They said to Hiim, “Where will you have us prepare it?” Luke 22:8-9

The time was the Day of Unleavened Bread. Soon the Passover lamb would be sacrificed commemorating the time when a lamb’s blood was painted on the doorposts of the homes of Israel, sparing them from the avenging angel of the Lord who passed through the land, killing the firstborn son of every family. Jesus asked Peter and John to go ahead of Him into the city to prepare the Passover meal.

Peter and John needed to purchase the supplies necessary for the meal, find a venue and prepare a meal for at least thirteen people. All of this needed to be done within a certain amount of time.

The disciples know what the Lord is asking them to do. They had celebrated enough Passovers to know what to do. They could have rushed into the city, one looking for a venue the other for supplies hoping to get it all done on time. This is not what they did, however. Instead, they took a moment to ask Jesus where He wanted them to prepare the meal and listened to His reply.

It is one thing to know what the Lord wants us to do, it is another to know how and where. All too many of us rush off and try to do what God has called us to do in our own strength and wisdom. Note here that it is not until the disciples asked the Lord where He wanted them to prepare this meal that the Lord reveals His purpose.

When the disciples asked the Lord where He wanted them to prepare the Passover, the Lord gave them a very specific answer. He told Peter and John that when they entered the city, a man carrying a jar of water would meet them. They were to follow him and go into the house he entered. That man would lead them directly to the place Jesus wanted to celebrate the Passover. 

I can pretty much guarantee that if the disciples went into the city on their own wisdom, they would not have come up with such a solution. The Lord his willing to lead us but we all too often rush off so quickly to do what He is asking us to do in our own wisdom. Could it be that the reason for so much struggle is that we have not taken the time to ask: “Where will you have us prepare it” (verse 9)?

Jesus not only tells the disciples how to find the house where they would celebrate the Passover, but He also tells them what they were to say to the master of that house. They were to tell him that the Teacher wanted to know where the guest room was where He could eat the Passover with His disciples. Observe that the disciples speak in the name of Jesus: “The Teacher says…” The name of the Teacher carried weight. It is uncertain whether the master would have released the guest room for two strangers who showed up. He was, however, certainly willing to release it to Jesus.

Jesus knew exactly what would happen when the disciples spoke in his name. The master of the house would show them a large upper room where they could prepare the Passover meal. 

How easy it is for us to rush out to do what the Lord wants us to do. The problem with this, however, is that we don’t have the wisdom in ourselves to accomplish the task. No human wisdom would have caused the disciples to follow a man carrying a water jug and ask the master of that specific home for a place to celebrate the Passover. The Lord who calls us knows exactly how He wants us to do the work He has given us to do. He would share that wisdom with us if we would only take the time to ask and listen to His leading.