John- Believe In Jesus And Live!-Part 10- " Have It Your Way?" Series

John – Believe in Jesus and live!

Part 10

“Have it your way?”

As I was reading and preparing for today’s message

I knew where I wanted to go in scripture

But

I was uncertain as to how to present the material

We have been in the book of John now for 10 weeks

We have covered Jesus’ entire public ministry

And most of his private ministry

Either in our sermons series or in the Round pen bible studies

In the last few weeks we have seen Jesus teach and mentor his boys

We have seen him pour out his love on them

And

Explain to them things that, they at the time could not begin to understand

In today’s study we are going to look at Jesus’ completion of the plan

Before we get into that part

Please open your bibles to John Chapter 18

Let me read verse 10-11 for you

Then we can dig into to our topic

“Then Simon Peter drew a sword and slashed off the right ear of Malchus, the high priest’s slave. 11 But Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword back into its sheath. Shall I not drink from the cup of suffering the Father has given me?”

In this passage of scripture Jesus was moving toward completion of the purpose for which he came to earth

In the preceding chapters

Judas had betrayed him

He had told the disciples all about how he must die so that they could live

He had explained the coming of the Holy Spirit

And

How that he must leave in order for him to come

He had explained how the world would hate them and us simply because of him

And

He had told them how in spite of the hate

They must share his love

In chapter 17

He had prayed for himself, his disciples and for all the ones to come – that would include us

You see Jesus had spent 3 ½ years training his disciples

First publicly

Healing

Casting out demons

Raising the dead

Miracles that went against the laws of nature

Science

Miracles that went against reason in human terms

And then he taught them privately

One on one

A last bit of intensive training

So today we start out in the garden

Jesus’ is fulfilling prophesy

Fulfilling his mission

His purpose

And

Peter

Knot headed Peter

Decides he has a better plan

This is not a first for Peter

Not a first for Jesus disciples

But in attempting to carry out his own plan

He was trying to change what must happen

Let me read for you the account from God’s word of the events leading up to verse 10

After saying these things, Jesus crossed the Kidron Valley with his disciples and entered a grove of olive trees. 2 Judas, the betrayer, knew this place, because Jesus had often gone there with his disciples. 3 The leading priests and Pharisees had given Judas a contingent of Roman soldiers and Temple guards to accompany him. Now with blazing torches, lanterns, and weapons, they arrived at the olive grove.

4 Jesus fully realized all that was going to happen to him, so he stepped forward to meet them. “Who are you looking for?” he asked.

5 “Jesus the Nazarene,”[a] they replied.

“I AM he,”[b] Jesus said. (Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them.) 6 As Jesus said “I AM he,” they all drew back and fell to the ground! 7 Once more he asked them, “Who are you looking for?”

And again they replied, “Jesus the Nazarene.”

8 “I told you that I AM he,” Jesus said. “And since I am the one you want, let these others go.” 9 He did this to fulfill his own statement: “I did not lose a single one of those you have given me.”

Jesus knew what he must do

He knew that the plan that had been started before creation was nearing completion

But

Then Peter

Unleashes his better plan

Verse 10

“Then Simon Peter drew a sword and slashed off the right ear of Malchus, the high priest’s slave.”

You have to love this disciple named Simon Peter – The rock

He is so much like some of us some time

Reactive

Impulsive

Loyal

Ready – shoot - aim

I think back to the 70’s

There was a commercial on TV

For burger king

Ya’ll are going to say ugly things about your Preacher tonight as you are trying to go to sleep and this song keeps rolling through your brain

“ Hold the pickles

Hold the lettuce

Special orders don’t upset us

Al we ask is that you let us serve it your way

Then

Have it your way

Have it your way

Peter had been told what must happen