Matthew couldn't wait 'till the others got there. Two of Jesus' followers had been there most of the day getting ready for them to eat the Passover. Every year some group would use the big room in the upstairs of Matthew's house, but this time Jesus and His apostles were coming. Matthew could hardly wait.

Finally, the others arrived. Matthew watched as they took their places around the table. Jesus sat at the head of the table where the leader always sat. Matthew's mother had told him not to make a pest of himself, but sitting on the top step listening wasn't really being a pest was it?

Matthew had heard Jesus teach many times, but this time He was saying different things. Things like, "I'm going away and I will come back later." Matthew wondered where Jesus was going.

Once during the supper, Jesus took a piece of the special bread they used during Passover and blessed it. Then He passed it to the rest of the group and told them, "This is my body which is broken for you. Do this to remember me." After they had eaten, Jesus took one of the cups of wine and said, "All of you drink some of this because this is my blood poured out for you to forgive sins."

"This is my body, this is my blood," Matthew thought. "I wonder what Jesus means? How can bread be His body, and wine be His blood? I know," Matthew thought, "that must be a parable. Jesus is always telling parables. I wonder what this one means?"

When Jesus and the others had gone, Matthew still thought, "I wonder what He meant?"

The next day, Matthew's father had some business to take care of around the city and Matthew asked to come along. One place they had to go took them outside the city gate and past a place called Calvary, which means 'The place of a skull.' Matthew didn't like to go out there because that was where the Roman soldiers killed bad people. They would pound nails through the bad person's hands and feet and hang them on a cross until they died. Sometimes there was only one cross, but today there were three.

Matthew tried not to look because it looked so bad, but he just couldn't seem to keep his eyes off the hill, especially the cross in the middle. What was so special about that cross?

He had never seen anything look that bad. The man was dirty. His hair was covered with blood, and blood ran down his arms and dripped onto the ground. His face was covered with bruises and blood. He had been beaten so badly his back and sides were like raw meat. Matthew wondered what that man had done to deserve to be treated like that.

The sign at the top of the cross answered his question. It read "Jesus, king of the Jews."

Matthew jumped as he realized that the man on the cross was Jesus. "No! It can't be Jesus," Matthew thought." A cross is for bad people, and Jesus is the best person who ever lived. Why would anyone want to kill Jesus?"

As Matthew wiped tears from his eyes, Jesus raised his head just a little and said, "Father, forgive them. They don't know what they are doing."

"Father, forgive them," Matthew thought. "Jesus is dying on the cross and He says 'Father, forgive them.' How can He say that!"

Then Matthew's mind went back to the night before. "What was that Jesus said? 'This is my body broken for you. This is my blood poured out for you to forgive sins.' My body, my blood -- Father, forgive them. My body, my blood -- Father, forgive them."

That's what Jesus meant. His body was broken and His blood was poured out to forgive our sins.

Now Matthew understood! And now YOU understand!

THANK YOU JESUS!