How to use this guide. Each session has a reading assignment, an opening prayer, four discussion questions, and a closing meditation. Plan ~75 minutes per session: 5 min opening, 15–20 min review of the reading, 30–35 min discussion, 10 min closing. Encourage participants to read the chapter before the session — the discussion is for working through the material, not delivering it.
Session 00 — Introductory session — why the cup matters
Reading: Skim the home page and the first paragraph of each chapter.
Opening prayer. Father, you have given us your Word and your Spirit. Open both to us as we open this material together. Help us read with reverence and honesty. Through Christ our Lord, Amen.
Discussion questions.
- What images come to mind when you think of 'the cup' in Christian language?
- Where in your spiritual journey have you encountered the cup of wrath, the cup of blessing, or the cup of consummation?
- What do you most hope to gain from working through this material together?
- What is one Reformed-confessional commitment you bring into this study, and what is one open question?
Closing. Read 1 Corinthians 11:23–26 aloud together. Pray for one another by name.
Session 01 — The four cups (Chapter 1)
Reading: Chapter 1 — The four cups (allow 25–30 minutes for reading).
Opening prayer. Lord of the covenant, we come to learn what your servants have learned, with humility about what we cannot know and confidence in what your Word makes plain. Amen.
Discussion questions.
- What are the four cups of the Reformed framework, in order? (Blessing, Wrath, Reservation, Consummation.)
- What does it mean to call the four cups a 'teaching device' rather than a doctrinal innovation?
- Which Reformed-confessional sources ground each of the four cups (Westminster, Heidelberg, Belgic, Canons of Dort)?
- How does keeping the cups distinct sharpen the doctrines of the atonement and the Lord's Supper?
Closing. Read Exodus 6:6–8 together. Note the four 'I will' verbs and the fifth 'I will bring you in.'
Session 02 — The Last Supper (Chapter 2)
Reading: Chapter 2 — The Last Supper. Bring a Bible, ideally with the Greek text or a study Bible noting the Greek.
Opening prayer. Christ Jesus, on the night you were betrayed, you took bread and gave thanks. Give us thanks tonight as we contemplate the cup you blessed. Amen.
Discussion questions.
- What does Calvin teach about the Lord's Supper in *Institutes* 4.17? Trace the *sursum corda* movement.
- How do Reformed sacramental theology, Roman-Catholic transubstantiation, and Lutheran consubstantiation differ?
- What does it mean for the cup to be 'the new covenant in my blood'? Trace the echo back through Exodus 24:8 and Jeremiah 31:31–34.
- How do Westminster Confession ch. 29, Heidelberg Catechism Q. 75, and Belgic Confession art. 35 each describe the Cup of Blessing?
Closing. Read Mark 14:22–25 aloud. Discuss what changes in your hearing of these verses after this chapter.
Session 03 — Gethsemane (Chapter 3)
Reading: Chapter 3 — Gethsemane. Read slowly. The chapter is dense.
Opening prayer. Father, your Son sweat blood for our salvation. Make us tender toward what he endured and confident in what he accomplished. Amen.
Discussion questions.
- What is the difference between 'the cup as physical suffering' and 'the cup as divine wrath'? Why does Calvin insist on the latter?
- How does the prophetic vocabulary (kos, ḥemah, tar'elah) sharpen the meaning of Mark 14:36?
- What does Isaiah 51:22 tell us about the *transfer* of the cup? How does this ground penal substitution?
- Why does the Father not remove the cup? What does the negative tell us theologically?
Closing. Read Isaiah 53 together slowly. Pray Psalm 22:1.
Session 04 — The cross (Chapter 4)
Reading: Chapter 4 — The cross. Have a copy of John 19:28–30 in front of you.
Opening prayer. Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world, give us hearts that hear τετέλεσται as the announcement that we are loved. Amen.
Discussion questions.
- What does the perfect passive tense of τετέλεσται tell us about the abiding nature of Christ's finished work?
- Why is the 'PAID IN FULL receipt' illustration misleading? What is a better way to preach the verb?
- What is the difference between the οἶνος ἐσμυρνισμένος Jesus refused (Mark 15:23) and the ὄξος he received (John 19:29–30)? Why does it matter?
- Why does John specify ὑσσώπῳ ('hyssop')? Trace the echo back to Exodus 12:22.
Closing. Read John 19:28–30 aloud. Sit in silence for one minute.
Session 05 — Dissenting voices (Chapter 5)
Reading: Chapter 5 — Dissenting voices. The hardest chapter; reward the work.
Opening prayer. Spirit of truth, give us the courage to face hard questions about the historical record without flinching, and the humility to be corrected where correction is due. Amen.
Discussion questions.
- Of the three solutions to the Synoptic-Johannine chronological problem, which do you find most compelling and why?
- What does the Reformed reading concede to the Arminian objector? What does it hold?
- How does the four-cup framework on this site differ from Roman-Catholic and Lutheran sacramental readings? What is gained by keeping the cup of wrath and the cup of consummation distinct?
- Why does the manuscript evidence for Luke 22:19b–20 matter pastorally?
Closing. Read 2 Timothy 2:15. Pray for sound learning in the church.
Session 06 — Synthesis (Chapter 6)
Reading: Chapter 6 — Synthesis. Re-read the four-fold table at the top.
Opening prayer. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit — Triune God of our salvation — gather what we have learned and bind it to our hearts in love. Amen.
Discussion questions.
- Restate the four-fold cup framework in your own words: Blessing · Wrath · Reservation · Consummation.
- What is the Reformed sacramental position and how does it differ from Roman and Lutheran readings of the Lord's Supper?
- Which of the chapter's pastoral applications (the believer afraid of dying, the weary believer, the believer in dryness, the believer in conflict) speaks to your current season?
- How would you commend this material to an unbelieving friend?
Closing. Sing or read Psalm 116:13. 'I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD.'
Session 07 — Closing session — at the Table
Reading: If your tradition permits, share the Lord's Supper together at the close of the series.
Opening prayer. Sursum corda. Habemus ad Dominum. Lift up your hearts. We lift them up to the Lord.
Discussion questions.
- What has changed about how you approach the Lord's Supper after this study?
- Where in your evangelistic conversations might the four-fold framework be useful?
- What is one specific practice (devotional, liturgical, conversational) you want to take from this study into your ongoing life?
- For whom should this small group pray, that they would come and drink?
Closing. Sing the Doxology together. Read Revelation 19:6–9 (the marriage supper of the Lamb).