The arrest of Jesus John 18: 1-11
Last week we finished a bit early, and there were a few things that I wanted to see here. Now, when we hear the name Judas today it’s synonymous with Hitler, Dracula or some perverted mass murderer. It’s like it’s the epitome of everything wicked we can think of. There are people who have hateful guard dogs they call Judas and the reason they use that name is because no one is safe around them.
And the odd thing is, Judas was such a common name in Biblical times. It comes from the root Judah who was one the twelve sons of Jacob. Jacob’s blessing of Judah in Genesis 49 includes a passage that is traditionally understood by Christians to mean that Judah’s descendants would rule over the land of Israel, culminating with Jesus. In Revelation 7:7, Judah is at the top of the list of the tribes receiving the Seal of God for 12,000 of its members. The name Judah means "to praise." So, to be named Judah or even Judas was a name that had historical roots and prophetic implications.
There are actually three men named Judas mentioned in the New Testament. There was the author of the book of Jude, (And Jude was short for Judas and he was also the half-brother of Jesus) then there was the disciple named Thomas whose proper name was Judas Thomas Didymus and then there was Judas Iscariot. And the reason people used their second name or even an abbreviation of the first was to eliminate the hassle of having three people respond every time you called a name.
I remember we were having a family get together at my father in laws home when he lived in Port Franks, Ontario and there were four of us in the family who were pastors. There was him, his brother Stan who was also a pastor, my brother-in-law Joe and myself. The phone rang and someone yelled from the kitchen and said, “It’s for the pastor.” Well, all four of us got up to answer it. You see, there’s a bit of confusion when several people go by the same title. Or when Sally’s sister Susan had a baby girl she called her Lori which is also the name of Susan’s other sister. So, whenever they got together, there was big Lori and little Lori. And now little Lori is married and doesn’t want to be called little Lori anymore so we have problem again with the names. And you can imagine the hassle when all three of these disciples who named Judas were together day and night for over three years.
And the strange thing about Judas Iscariot is that none of the other disciples ever seemed to imagine that he was the one who would betray Jesus. And yet, if you look at all the paintings that are supposed to portray Judas, you would have to be an idiot not to know which one he was because Judas always looks like the sleaziest, most evil person you had ever met. Probably, the most famous one is DaVinci’s portrayal of the Last Supper where you see him sitting at the table clutching onto the money bag and in front of him is the little communion cup that’s been knocked over. If there was any truth at all to this picture, you’d have to wonder why none of the other disciples noticed him?
I mean, when Jesus said that someone at the table was going to betray Him they all said, “Is it I?” And nobody said, “Is it Judas?” If he were that obvious I think everyone would have looked back and said, “We suspected he was going to do something at some point but we certainly didn’t think it was that bad” but, that’s not what happened.
And when you read the New Testament you see that some of the writers still had almost a healthy respect for him whenever they mentioned his name. For instance, he was always referred to as one of the twelve. They don’t call him names and they never put him down. And that was because he seemed just as normal as the rest of them. And the fact that he appeared just like them, would have been a warning to all of them to examine themselves to make sure they were in the faith.
Judas, along with the other eleven were sent by Jesus to preach the gospel and they given "authority to cast out demons," and so we would assume that Judas was just as effective and successful as the rest of the disciples when it came to either. So, he would have preached the good news and confirmed the message with attesting signs and wonders and I have no doubt that he even made personal sacrifices to be part of the ministry, in the same way the others did. And I’m not saying this in defense of him but there must have seemed to be something in Judas in terms of his potential for service in the kingdom of God. There are some who’ve written to say that if Judas was able to do anything miraculous then it was the devil who had empowered him to do it. And although that may be true, we also have to consider that God uses His word to save people regardless of who preaches it.
And yet, there came a point in time where Judas seemed to turn against Jesus and everything he had seemingly believed in. I think this point came when Mary had anointed Jesus with that really expensive perfume and then Jesus rebuked not only Judas but the other disciples as well for criticizing her and then He spoke about how her sacrifice and act of service were a wonderful gift which she had kept to honor Him at the time of His burial.
And then it would appear from the writings of Matthew, Mark and Luke that Judas was deeply offended by this. And I think he was offended while the others weren’t because he was the one who started the conversation in the first place and all they did was jump in and agree with him. And so first he was hurt, and then he was angry and then he wanted to get even and ultimately that led him to strike a bargain with the chief priests to betray Jesus.
In other words, he wanted something for all the time he put in before he left. And the scripture says that he betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver which according to the law was the price of a dead slave. In the Old Testament it says that if your ox killed the neighbor’s slave you would have to pay that amount to the owner. And the scripture tells us that the reason he betrayed Jesus is because the chief priests “promised to give him money”. Listen, the love of money can always pervert anybodies good intentions to become evil deeds and especially if they were already leaning in that direction.
You see, when Judas heard Jesus talking about dying rather than taking control of the kingdom, he could see that Jesus’ plans didn’t interest him and he was more concerned with taking advantage of what time he had left in this world than he was in sacrificing for the world to come.
Mt. 27:3-10 tells us Judas hung himself but Acts 1:18-19 says he fell down and his guts were spilled out but I don’t think there’s any contradiction between these two accounts because they both actually happened in that he hung himself but he may have done a lousy job at tying or even choosing the rope and it either broke or it came undone and his body fell.
Now, as I said, the disciples were much kinder when referring to Judas than any of the other writers in the first couple of hundred years who really hated him and held nothing back. For instance, there was an ancient document called the story of Joseph of Arimathea which teaches that Judas was the son of the brother of Caiaphas, the wicked high priest, and he had been persuaded to infiltrate Jesus’ group of followers as a spy with the deliberate intention of devising a scheme for the destruction of Jesus. So, what they had done was make up a story and insinuate that he was related to the most hated man alive and that would explain his behavior.
Another ancient document called the Acts of Pilate says that Judas went home after betraying Jesus and found his wife roasting a chicken on the fire. He told his wife that he felt so guilty about betraying Jesus that he was afraid that He might rise from the dead and torture him and so, in order to avoid all that, he said he was going to kill himself. And then his wife, according to this story said that Jesus would no more rise from the dead than the chicken she was cooking would sit up and crow and it did, so, Judas went out and hanged himself.
And then another one called the Coptic Narrative and it says that Judas did the whole thing because he was a victim of his wife’s greed for money and the betrayal of Jesus was his means of getting her some. I guess that was his way of saying, it was all her fault.
And then there was a book called Kramer’s Katina and it says that Judas contracted some disease and became so swollen with inflammation that a wagon could pass where he couldn’t. His head swelled up so much that his doctor couldn’t find his eyes and then worms destroyed the inside of his body and the place where he died had to be avoided because of a terrible stench. And then another ancient document says he was killed by a wagon and he was crushed in such a way that his body burst apart. And the point all these stories is to show us that for centuries after, there was such a hatred toward him that the attitude of the other disciples was hard to understand.
And then there were certain characteristics that are true of Judas that we only saw after the fact of his betrayal. And first of all, it was cowardly. Luke 22:6 says, "And he began seeking a good opportunity to betray Him to them apart from the multitude." In other words, Judas wanted to do it but he didn’t want everyone to know that he did it and so, he picked a place where no one would see him. And then we also see how he left the others in John 13:30, “And so after receiving the morsel, he went out immediately; and it was night." It was a cowardly act done in the dark so no one would know who was responsible.
And then second, it was calculated. Matthew 26:16 says, "And from then on he began looking for a good opportunity to betray Him" And Mark 14:11 says, "And he began seeking how to betray Him at an opportune time" And in Luke 24: 4 and 6 it says, "He went away and discussed with the chief priests and officers how he might betray Him to them ... and began seeking a good opportunity to betray Him to them." He really thought this over and he took his time to devise a plan where he could not only get rid of Jesus but also make a few bucks while he was at it.
And then third, his act was callous. And this action goes down as the ugliest act in all of human history. I mean, the hypocrisy of it is beyond description. Verse 48 says, “Now he who was betraying him gave them a sign saying whomever I shall kiss, he is the one. Seize him.” The signal of the kiss might have been used so that no one would grab one of the other disciples while Jesus got away. And this tells us, that Jesus didn’t have any special physical features, He might not have been taller than everyone else and He certainly didn’t have anything like a halo over his head. There was no way to tell it was Him and it would probably even be harder in the dark, and so Judas had to find a way to identify him, and he did it, with a kiss.
Kissing at that time was a mark of great love and respect that was paid to a teacher. And it was also a sign of affection. Someone who considered themselves your inferior would kiss the back of your hand or if they were above the position of a servant, they could kiss the palm of your hand. A slave would kiss your foot and so would someone who was trying to appease their master if he was angry. Kissing the hem of a garment expressed great reverence, but the kiss on the cheek was a sign of intimacy. It was warm affection among equals. It’s not a mark of gratitude or subservience but it was a sign of love. And so Judas intensified the ugliness of his action with a kiss that told the opposite story.
And then it says he went to Jesus and said, ’Hail, Rabbi!’ and kissed Him." And the Greek here means he kissed him intensely, fervently, repeatedly, and affectionately. It was like he kept on kissing Him. And the word that is used is the same as the one you’d use to describe a man who was kissing his bride. Mark says Judas went ahead and said, “Master! Master!” and kept kissing him. And all this makes us wonder, was he putting on a show, just pointing Him out or did he feel bad at the very last minute.
When we read the various accounts in the gospels we often wonder, why did he actually betray the Lord? What could possibly have motivated Judas to do what he did? There have been several theories have been proposed over the years, but here are four of the most common ones.
First, there is the good motive theory and this says that the betrayal was nothing more than a matter of poor judgment on the part of Judas. The people who believe this would say, Judas wasn’t evil he was just stupid. And they would characterize him as a "patriotic nationalist" who expected Jesus to lead the Jews to victory over the Romans and restore the kingdom to Israel. And the problem they said was that Judas saw Jesus as being a little too slow to start the political revolution so he felt like he had to force Jesus’ hand by threatening His life and then He’d have to rally the troops of both heaven and earth to save Himself and then He would set up the kingdom.
These people think that Judas believed that even if Jesus was put on public trial, the common people would have risen up and started a political revolution and would have brought Judas’ plans to completion. As one of their scholars said, "Judas Iscariot acted not from treachery and avarice, but from an honest endeavor to arouse Jesus to action and to hasten His Messianic triumph." And, when you think of Judas this way he doesn’t sound like a bad guy. As a matter of fact, it actually paints him as being a lot smarter than Jesus.
There have always been those who felt Judas got a "bum deal" because he was only trying to move things along. They say Jesus needed someone to give Him a good push in the right direction and that’s what Judas was trying to do. Ancient writers by the names of Tertullian and Irenaeus spoke of a group known as the Cainites who actually saw the actions of Judas as being good and suggested that he was trying to be the "savior of the Savior." And in the end Judas was actually surprised when his plan to bring in the kingdom resulted in the crucifixion because they said that was something he never anticipated.
And you know, in the last couple of years there have been several books that have presented Judas as the hero of the gospel who did Jesus a big favor by accepting such a poor reputation for doing what had to be done. And the bottom line is that it paints Judas as a poor misunderstood hero who takes the fall for Jesus who was weak and dependant on him. And all this shows us is, what happens whenever a non-Christian interprets the scripture.
Some of you might have heard of the Gnostic work known as the Gospel of Judas. The National Geographic Society did a presentation of this in their magazine and also on TV. This ancient document presents a point of view that has been around for hundreds of years. It’s the view that just before His crucifixion, Jesus took Judas aside and asked him to betray Him into the hands of the Jews. In other words, Judas didn’t do this because he was evil but because he was being obedient to what the Lord wanted him to do. And in this document, Judas is portrayed as Jesus’ closest friend, he’s the one Jesus shared all His deepest secrets with and here Jesus warned him that by doing this he’d be hated by all men for all time but in the end he’d be exalted in the spirit realm for all of eternity.
And as wild as this theory may seem to most of us, there is a growing interest in it due to the publicity which is being given to it by National Geographic Association and others.
And then secondly, there is what’s known as the mingled motives theory and this theory says that Judas, like most people, was a very complex individual. And his act was motivated by a combination of factors like greed, ambition, misguided loyalty, nationalistic fervor, disillusionment and maybe even jealousy over the fact that he was the only disciple who wasn’t from Galilee. These, as well as many other factors are why he did what he did.
This theory is based in part on the assumption that the ultimate truth generally lies somewhere between two extremes. Therefore, rather than his act being either fully negative or fully positive Judas was a sinner just like the rest of us and what he did we all could have done and so they conclude that in the end he shouldn’t be punished for being just the same as those of us who are going to heaven.
And then third, there is the Satan incarnate theory where some have actually gone as far as to claim that Judas wasn’t really human or that he was only partly human and that Satan had indwelt and influenced him. And what they claim is, that just as Jesus who is God took on a human form, so also did the devil. And these two great cosmic forces assumed the form of flesh and blood at the same time to do battle with one another within the physical realm. And so, they claim that Jesus welcomed Satan in the form of Judas within His group of disciples so as to daily do battle with him.
And then fourth, there is the puppet of God theory where those who happen to take an extreme Calvinistic perspective say that Judas had been chosen specifically for this role long before he was even born. And that this poor man was doomed to be the betrayer and condemned to hell before the beginning of time. In other words, "He was predestined," and so he had no choice in the matter. And if this view were true it would certainly raise some very serious questions about God and His dealings with mankind.
For instance, do we have free will, or is our eternal destiny determined before we were ever made a choice? I mean, if everything is already set then that means God has already chosen those whom He will save and those whom He will condemn and we have absolutely no say in the matter, which when you think of it makes evangelism an unnecessary absurdity. I mean, why bother preaching to the lost if their eternal destiny is already determined?
There are a lot of people with a lot more education than I have who say that we have no free will but I’m not smart enough or dumb enough to believe that. I don’t believe God created a bunch of puppets who dance at the ends of strings that are held in His hands. We have the freedom to choose and although God may know ahead of time what we our choice will be that doesn’t mean He predetermines our choice. The outcome of our lives is determined by us because we have a free will. This applies to you and I and it also applies to Judas.
At the same time, Jesus knew what role Judas would play because John 6:64 says, "For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who it was that would betray Him" but the decision to betray Jesus was made by Judas and by him alone.
It is my conviction that the best theory as to why Judas betrayed the Lord is the "mingled motives theory" because there were in him as there are in us, all kinds of passions that affected his heart and mind.
We have to realize that even Judas may not have fully understood all the things that motivated him, although his greed was certainly a strong one and that had led him to steal from the collection box that was for the needs of all the disciples. I’m sure that Judas found some way to justify the actions in his own mind which we all do to a certain degree. And we all do this anytime we try to justify our sin.
What sets Jesus apart from the rest of the world is that He knew all along the flaws in the character of Judas Iscariot but He loved him the same way He loved the others. He knew Judas intended to betray Him; He knew he was stealing from the money bag; He knew about of his lack of dedication and love. And yet, He never indicated to Judas or the others what He knew. And in showing mercy and compassion, He gave Judas what he needed rather than what he deserved. It’s always so easy to simply react to people and especially when they hurt us but Jesus didn’t.
Listen, I want you to see first of all that Judas is the world’s greatest example of lost opportunity. No man ever, ever is a greater tragedy than he was. I mean, twelve men had the privilege of walking for three years in the presence of the living God and he missed it. Isn’t that incredible? Judas was content to associate with Jesus but that was it.
Secondly, he is the world’s greatest example of wasted privilege. All it seems he wanted was money when he could have possessed the universe forever but he sold that right for ten or twenty dollars. He’s like Esau who sold his birthright for a pot of soup. God offers every one of us the riches of eternity and yet people will often settle for some little trinket that’ll burn up in the end of time.
Thirdly, Judas is the world’s greatest example of the love of money as the root of evil. He loved money so much that he actually sold the living God. He is a monument to the destructiveness and the damnation of greed.
Fourthly, I believe Judas is the greatest example in the history of the world of the patience and love of God. Only God could have known what He knew and put up with him for that long.
And finally, I believe Judas also served a purpose because the Bible tells us that Jesus was perfected through His suffering and by this He became a sympathetic high priest. We are often betrayed in one form or another and when we go to Jesus and say, “I’ve had this happen in my life, do you understand?” Of course, the answer is that He does and He learned it from putting up with the worst.
Let me just wrap this up by saying that Judas is a prime example of a professing believer who fell away. I said, he was a professing believer and that doesn’t mean he was saved. He said he was saved but proved by his actions that he wasn’t. For three years he followed the Lord with the other disciples and he appeared to be one of them. He probably thought of himself as a believer, at least in the beginning. I don’t think he joined Jesus with the idea of ever turning against him but somewhere along the line he became greedy, but that could hardly have been his motive when he started because I don’t think Jesus and the disciples ever had anything to speak of. It would almost seem like Judas had initially shared the hope of a coming kingdom and he probably even believed that Jesus was the Messiah but his view of these things was worldly and since his faith wasn’t real he was unsaved and his heart gradually got so hard that he sold his Savior for a little bit of money and in the end he was so open to do Satan’s bidding that the devil himself possessed him. And then he was so distressed over what he did that he threw the money into the temple and went out and "hanged himself."
Dante, in "The Divine Comedy" which is better known as Dante’s Inferno places Judas in the lowest circle of the damned; and he has only one roommate and that’s Satan himself, and there they share the worst tortures of hell forever.
It also tells us in verse 4, that Jesus went out of the gate to meet them as they were coming to get Him and because in His omniscience, He had seen Judas make his deal, He had seen them all leaving Jerusalem and He had seen them all going down the hill and then climbing up the Mount of Olives. And as they approached Him Jesus asked them a simple question which was, “Whom do you seek?” Now, we hear that and wonder, why did He ask that? I mean, wasn’t it obvious who they were looking for? They responded, “Jesus of Nazareth.” And He said, “I am.” Now, I know in the King James it says, “I am He” but the word ‘he’ is assumed, it’s not actually written there. And then it says, “As soon then as he had said unto them, I am he,(Or, I am) they went backward, and fell to the ground.”
This tells us that He wasn’t trapped, He wasn’t tricked and He certainly wasn’t surprised but there flowed from Jesus such a commanding sense of power and authority that they couldn’t even stand up in His presence. This was another sign that John gives us so we can see that Jesus wasn’t a victim in this situation but He was in total control of everything. And I think He part of the reason He revealed His power was so His disciples could see it was He and not the Romans or the Jews who were in control.
When that happened the disciples could also see that Jesus was willfully submitting to His enemies because He laid down His life down and no one was taking it from Him. I mean, think about it, the only thing He did was say, "I am," and several hundred people all fell down. So, what could they possibly do that He didn’t allow?
I read one commentator who said, they were probably all standing too close together and when the front row stumbled and fell backwards everyone naturally followed suit. And that’s about the stupidest explanation I ever heard. I mean, these men were the Roman soldiers, they weren’t the Keystone Kops.
And the strangest part is that they didn’t even acknowledge it happened. At least, they didn’t react. They just all stood up and the conversation continued as it was before. I think, the power coming from Jesus was another sign recorded by John to show us that Jesus was anything but a victim here but He was in total control of everything.
It’s interesting to see that He asked such an obvious question. I mean, He already knew why they were there. So, what was the point of asking the obvious? I think, He asked the same question twice because His question was more than it seemed. At first glance, His question made sure they focused on Him and let His disciples go and this seems to be enough reason for the question but there was obviously more than that because when the soldiers responded by saying they were looking for Jesus of Nazareth, He said, “I am.” And it was an answer to their question, but it was more. He was Jesus of Nazareth, but he was more than the man from Nazareth. And as I said, Jesus didn’t say, “I am he,” nor “I am this Jesus,” nor even, “I am the one you seek.” His answer is simply, “I am” and these words identify Jesus with the very name of Yahweh, the God of Israel. And having clarified who they were looking for and who they found, the question left hanging was what they would do with Him. What would they do with God, now that God was in their hands and submissive to whatever they wanted to do.
You see, the scripture clearly tells us that Jesus was never trapped, tricked, or surprised and He certainly wasn’t a victim. He went to the cross of His own free will because that was why He was born and that was why He came. In John 12:27 He said, "Now is My soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save Me from this hour. But for this cause came I unto this hour." Then in verses 32-33 He says, "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto Me. This He said, signifying what death He should die." So, He came into the world to die and that was the only reason for which He was born.
I think the rulers would have loved to have gotten their hands on all His disciples, so Jesus made the leaders repeat their orders twice so that from their own mouths they would have to say that they had no right to arrest the disciples. And two times He forced them to say that they had come to take Him and Him alone. Jesus wanted to have the disciples there to see that He wasn’t a victim, but He also wanted them to be free to carry on the ministry.
And then in verse 12 it says, "That the saying might be fulfilled, which He spoke, of them whom Thou gavest Me have I lost none." And here He was saying, I’m not going to lose any of them physically and that’s why I don’t want them captured. He was protecting the disciples to make sure they were safe from something He knew they weren’t prepared to handle.
And then here’s my favorite part of the story. In verse 10 it says, "Then Simon Peter, having a sword (Or a dagger) drew it, and smote the high priest’s servant, and cut off his right ear. The servant’s name was Malchus." I like this part because every time I mess up I think, well, I’ve never cut anybodies ear of yet.
Peter is what we’d call impetuous. He acts without thinking. He takes out a knife and starts stabbing at the first person who’s closest to him. The Bible says that Peter cut off his right ear and yet, I’m sure he wasn’t even aiming for an ear. Fortunately, Malchus had fairly good reactions and he must have ducked sideways and Peter caught his ear rather than his throat. And then, in a beautiful demonstration of His protective love, Jesus recreated the ear and gave him a new one. And I think this whole thing must happened rather quickly because the Roman soldiers were probably standing back a ways, but close enough to act and ready to intervene but only if it was called for.
Can you imagine what the normal reaction would have been, once Peter had his sword out and was lopping off the ear of the man closest to him? This was like striking a match in a room filled with gasoline fumes. How quickly and easily both the Jewish and Roman soldiers could have jumped on the whole crowd of disciples and the situation would have been completely out of control.
We aren’t sure but some suggest that Malchus wasn’t necessarily just a menial slave because according to oriental usage, the term can be used of a king’s official or ‘a minister’ and since he was referred to as the high priests servant he was probably the high priest’s official representative at the arrest. So, he might have been standing beside Judas and had the responsibility to make sure that Jesus was arrested.
One writer suggested that the Lord’s healing of Malchus was more out of concern for His disciples than an act of compassion for His enemies because if Malchus had gone home without his ear then the soldiers would have had plenty of evidence to arrest all the disciples as well. So, this healing made sure there was no evidence to charge the disciples with anything.
I wonder if Malchus was ever able to forget the sensation of Jesus’ hand on the side of his bloody face. One minute he’d feel the excruciating pain and blood all over the place and the next minute, nothing. Several commentators have suggested that the reason John mentions his name is because later he became a disciple and this was known to the Christian community but we really don’t know.
And then verse 11 tells us, "Then said Jesus unto Peter, Put up thy sword into the sheath." Which is another way of saying, Peter, put that thing away. Peter momentarily put his trust in the sword, rather than the Lord and as brave as he looked here later that night Peter found out that he wasn’t as great as he thought he was because before that night was over, he’d be crying his heart out after he denied Jesus three times.
Well, by this time, this crowd had seen two miracles. They had all fallen over when Jesus revealed who He was and now they saw Him give a man an ear. And under normal circumstances those miracles would have blown them away but not here, because sin had so blinded their minds. And just as they saw two miracles we also see the love of Jesus was expressed here in two different ways. First, He protected His disciples by making the soldiers answer the same question twice and then as He performed this miracle of healing He was making sure no one had any reason to arrest them.
And then in verse 11 it says, "Then said Jesus unto Peter, put up thy sword into the sheath; the cup which My Father hath given Me, shall I not drink it?" And Matthew includes the statement: "for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword." In other words, this is God’s plan, Peter. And I don’t think He was critical when He said that because He knew that Peter was only doing what he did because he loved Him.
We also notice that Jesus uses the word "cup" here and the idea of cup in the Old Testament is associated with judgment. In Jeremiah 25:15 we read about the cup of His wrath and in Revelation 14:10 it mentions the cup of indignation. So what Jesus was saying was that He was going to drink a cup full of the wrath of God. And that’s what the cross was all about because it was there that God poured out His wrath on the sin of the world.
Well, from the accounts of the gospel writers concerning the arrest of Jesus, one primary truth stands out and that’s that Jesus was in complete control of the situation. He wasn’t the helpless victim of a cruel and unjust system and His life wasn’t snatched from Him but He surrendered Himself to sinful hands. In other words, it was like He said in John 10:17-18. “For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down my life that I make take it up again. No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father.”
I know there are many who would like to paint a picture of Jesus as a helpless victim, as someone who wanted the world to see a better way but His plans fell apart because the world didn’t care. Then there are others who see Him as a man whose plans went astray and that His efforts to change the system simply blew up in His face. And the truth is, these people are the unbelievers because they fail to grasp the fact that God was in control. He was in control before creation, He was in control when Jesus was on the cross and He’s still in control today even though life so often seems to be out of control because, in spite of everything that goes on and the effects of sin that are so obvious, God is still in control.
This is a strange portion of scripture because of all that’s here. I mean, we have the disciples all gathered with Jesus in the garden and for the most part they’re silent. And then we have somewhere around 600-100 men coming with Judas who was there to betray the Lord. And then finally, we have Malchus who lost an ear but got it back again. And all these things seem to be disjointed in a way but it isn’t. You see, in spite of everything seeming to be on the crazy side Jesus was still in control. You see, the fact is, until we look to Jesus then life really doesn’t make an awful lot of sense.
And so, for most of us today as we try to make sense of our lives apart from the Lord we soon find that it doesn’t work. We need to learn to start the day with Him and then consciously bring Him everything that’s on our minds throughout the day and then at the end of the day discuss the things that took place during our day. And as we spend our time with Jesus our life will make more sense because He’s the one who put us here and He’s the one who has a reason for our being here.hen
