The Darkness Of Betrayal Series

• For someone now to reject the church for which Christ died, think of Judas. The 11 other disciples did not ultimately stop working together for the cause of Jesus, because of the actions of Judas. If the actions of the unfaithful derail your obedience to Christ’s calling you need to ask yourself if your faith is in people or in Christ.

Please turn to John 7

When the traitor came to the garden, he was accompanied by a great crowd/multitude with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and elders of the people. This great crowd/multitude was not the typical spontaneous crowd of admirers that often sought Him out. It was rather a carefully-selected group brought together for the sole purpose of arresting Him and putting Him to death. The great crowd/multitude included officers of the Temple (Luke 22:52), who were granted limited police powers by the Romans in matters concerning Jewish religion and society. This group was armed with clubs. The great crowd/multitude also included a cohort of Roman soldiers (John 18:3), which, at full strength, comprised 600 men. Because they had to have Roman permission to exercise the death penalty, the Jewish leaders had requested Roman soldiers to join in the arrest. These soldiers from Fort Antonia in Jerusalem, and perhaps some of the Temple police as well, were armed with swords. The soldiers probably were also included because on a previous occasion when the Temple police were sent to arrest Jesus, they came back empty handed (John 7:32, 44–46). In total, the opposition to the kingdom of God was a great crowd/multitude Those who are against Christ will generally outnumber those who are for Christ. But popularity does not validate evil. (Butler, J. G. (2008). Analytical Bible Expositor: Matthew (p. 438). LBC Publications.)

It should have been obvious from the previous attempts to arrest Jesus, that He was not a mere criminal, but divine. John records the previous attempt, showing this:

John 7:32–36. 32 The Pharisees heard the crowd muttering these things about him, and the chief priests and Pharisees sent officers to arrest him. 33 Jesus then said, “I will be with you a little longer, and then I am going to him who sent me. 34 You will seek me and you will not find me. Where I am you cannot come.” 35 The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we will not find him? Does he intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks? 36 What does he mean by saying, ‘You will seek me and you will not find me,’ and, ‘Where I am you cannot come’?” (ESV)

• Those who reject Jesus will never come to where He was going when He ascended and currently rests at His Father’s right hand in heaven, because they will die in their sins (8:21). Like Isaiah, who wrote, “Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near” (Isa. 55:6), Jesus was warning His opponents not to delay conversion until it is too late. As Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “Behold, now is ‘the acceptable time,’ behold, now is ‘the day of salvation’ ” (2 Cor. 6:2); and the writer of Hebrews pleaded, “Today if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts” (Heb. 4:7; cf. 3:15). Jesus Himself promised, “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out” (John 6:37)