Mt. 26:57-68 - "Tell us if you are the Christ. . ."

     "Those who had arrested Jesus took him to Caiaphas, the high priest, where the teachers of the law and the elders had assembled. . .The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false evidence against Jesus so they could put him to death" (v. 57, 59).
     During the time of Christ, the Jewish court, the Sanhedrin could pass a death sentence, but not carry it out without Roman approval. The goal of this hearing before the Sanhedrin was to find a charge worthy of death, but "they did not find any, though many false witnesses came forward" (v. 60).
     Throughout the judiciary process before Jews and Romans, Jesus conducted Himself with great dignity and wisdom. He never cringed to speak the truth, and He never passed up an opportunity to witness. However, as false testimony was being given, He did not try to defend Himself. There was no need; His life and character were His defense.
     The only testimony that seemed to carry any weight was, "This fellow said, 'I am able to destroy the temple of God and rebuild it in three days'" (v. 61). As John reports (Jn. 2:18-22), when Jesus had originally said this, He was speaking about his death and resurrection. The temple He was referring to was His body, and the three days were His time in the grave. When Jesus rose from the dead His disciples remembered His words, another confirmation He was the Messiah.
     Finally, in exasperation, the high priest demanded Jesus answer a question that would result in His condemnation (which was illegal to do): "I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God" (v. 63).
     How could Jesus' stay silent now? Caiaphas has commanded Jesus to confess His identity and mission in the name of His Father. Though He knows it will bring about His death, Jesus' witness is powerful and convicting. Although many would reject Him, there were some, no doubt who heard His words and later surrendered to His Lordship.
     Picture the scene in that august courtroom as Jesus speaks. Everyone is holding their breath as He says: "Yes, it is as you say, but I say to all of you: In the future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven" (v. 64).
     We've seen it in countless pictures--Jesus coming in glory surrounded by all the angels. We welcome the scene. We know it is our hope and the hope of the world.
     But it was not welcome that day. Jesus' holy life rebuked hypocrisy and sin, and the crowds who eagerly followed Him to receive His healing touch and soul stirring teaching, inflamed their leaders' jealousy.
     Immediately, they condemned Him to death and forgetting their dignity and their holy office, rushed at Him. "Then they spit in his face and struck him with their fists. Others slapped him and said, 'Prophecy to us, Christ. Who hit you?" (v. 67)
     Jesus' physical suffering now begins. Increasingly, it will worsen as each new chapter opens, leading to the crucifixion. Satan will do everything he can to shake Jesus' trust in His Father, to cause Him to sin even once.    
     What makes this hour's torment so hard is to see men who have been called to represent God's character, degrade themselves into the likeness of Satan. For three years He has poured Himself out to redeem and restore people, but His efforts had been rejected by these.
    

Mt. 26:47-56 - "It must happen this way."

     The moment Judas appeared with a large crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priests and elders (v. 47), a rapid chain of events began to unfold.
     Jesus asked the crowds whom they were seeking, and when they said, "Jesus of Nazareth," Jesus answered, "I am He." When He spoke those words, the crowd mysteriously stumbled back and fell to the ground" (Jn. 18:6). This was another sign of Jesus' identity and power. The great I AM had spoken His name (Jn. 8:58; Ex. 3:13-14). It was only because of His mercy they lived.
     Judas then stepped forward and kissed Jesus, the prearranged signal. The ignominious betrayal was complete, and Jesus was arrested.
     Now Peter springs into action. Peter who could not watch and pray with Jesus for one hour was ready to fight. When we fail to watch and pray, we do the wrong thing every time, or at least in the wrong spirit.
     Drawing his sword Peter swings wildly at the nearest target, who happened to be the servant of the high priest. (Nice job, Peter.) He meant to cleave his head, but it was a bad aim. The glancing blow only severed the man's ear, which for him was painful enough.
     Though under arrest, Jesus freed himself and took control of the situation. Loudly, he said to Peter, "Put your sword back in its place, for all who draw the sword will die by the sword. Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels?" (v. 52-52).
     A Roman legion had about 5,000 soldiers. Jesus point to Peter: I am trusting my Father for His plan; you should too. Don't take things into your own hands; if you do, you will die prematurely. As followers of Christ, we are invited to carry the good news, not fight in the kingdoms of this world (Jn. 18:36).
    Then Jesus touched the servant's ear and healed him. Imagine for a moment what it would have been like to be that servant. What a story you would have to tell the high priest. What a witness of Jesus' compassion and power to the most powerful man in Israel. Jesus was certainly sending another message of mercy to that leader.
     But today we end with Jesus' final words to Peter and to the mob, "How then would the Scriptures be fulilled that say it must happen in this way?" (v. 54). "But this has all taken place that the writings of the prophets might be fulfilled." (v. 56).
     Never can we look at Jesus' sufferings and death as an unfortunate accident, or the result of human capriciousness. It was all foreseen by God from eternity. And under inspiration, it was predicted by the prophets and sages of Scripture.
     From Genesis to Malachi every significant detail of Jesus' Passion is described. (See, for example, Ps. 22, Ps. 69, Isa. 53). Jesus knew what was coming because He had read and studied His Bible carefully, with eyes annointed by the Spirit of God. All this was happening as a part of the plan to redeem us from sin, to restore the lost sheep to God's fold, to bring His children home again.
     Will you respond to His invitation? He wants you.

Mt. 26:46 - "Here comes my betrayer."

     Judas didn't just betray Jesus once in the end. He had betrayed His trust all along by living a double life; pretending to follow Jesus while his heart was not in it. He also repeatedly betrayed Jesus by stealing from the church treasury. This was all the result of not keeping his heart, letting human thoughts and emotions run astray.
     When Mary anointed Jesus with expensive perfume (for His burial, according to Jesus' deeper insight), Judas objected. He complained in front of everyone that the perfume should have been sold and the money given to the poor. But John tells us, "He did not say this because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it" (Jn. 12:6).
     Jesus rebuked Judas, but his correction was gentle and primarily for the sake of Mary who felt judged and misunderstood by Judas' self-serving comment. Christ could have taken the opportunity to expose Judas, but he knew that only love wins. Jesus even washed his feet in the Upper Room, hoping against hope that Judas would repent before it was too late. But he didn't. Jesus would have saved Judas to the last. Amazing patience; amazing grace!
     Judas' betrayal began by living duplicitously--acting like a believer, but doubting everything; never truly surrendering his heart. Jesus disappointed his ambitious hopes, and eventually Judas began to pay himself back from church funds for his trouble.
     Are you disappointed by the church, by unexplained troubles in your life? Does Jesus disappoint you? This story shows He is always there and that He always loves. He knows everything, and everything has a purpose.
     We must beware of the little betrayals of our hearts and the excuses we make for them. Let Jesus' love conquer.

Mt. 26:45 - "Are you still sleeping and resting? The hour is near."

     Jesus' disciples could have broken through their drug-like drowsiness if they had believed and acted on Jesus' words, "Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak" (v. 41)
     Jesus had promised God would give them anything they needed if they asked (Jn. 15:7; Lk. 11:9), so why didn't they ask? Did they feel strong enough to handle anything that would come? It seems like that is the human default button. Were they in denial about what lay ahead, ignoring Jesus' warnings because they didn't fit their hopes? Were they discouraged because of recent rejections and Jesus' dark prophecies about suffering?
     Through prayer, they could have broken through to a better place and experienced enlightenment and strengthening by the Spirit. But now "the hour" had come--a time set back in eternity for Jesus' sacrifice and all it entailed. Predicted in prophecy, symbolized in the sanctuary and sacrificials system, the Christ will now suffer and die for humanity.
     A few days earlier (Mt. 24-25) Jesus predicted His end-time disciples will struggle with the same lethargy (Mt. 25:1-13; Rev. 3:14-22). When the "hour" arrives again many of Jesus' disiples will be slumbering.
     So I ask you, would it be a good idea to learn from those first disciples' failure and begin "watching and praying" with Jesus--taking time to stay spiritually awake, observe His words, think about them, talk them over with Him on a daily basis, and serve as He leads? The is the "one thing" Jesus kept refering to (Lk. 10:42).
     To us living in these last days, Jesus says, "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect. Him. Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whose master finds him so doing so when he returns. I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions" (Mt. 24:45-47).
     The hour is near.
        

Mt. 26:44 - "He prayed a third time, saying the same thing."

     When faced with temptation, Jesus worked it out in prayer. He had a line in the sand: only His Father's will. Beyond that point He would not go. He would not jeopardize His relationship with God, and He must be our sinless Substitute.
     But it was in prayer with His Abba that He found the strength to win the battle with sin. He had His line in the sand, but it was prayer that made His strong enough not to cross it.
     The disciples had not learned that lesson yet. "The spirit is willing, but the body is weak," Jesus had said, after finding them asleep. "Pray so you will not fall into temptation" (v. 41). They thought they were strong enough. After all, they were tough men; and they had two swords, besides. But Jesus knew they were weak.
     It is a universal truth that our nature is fallen and weak. Paul admits that in Romans 7 and 8. "I do not understand what I do. The good I want to do, I don't, and the evil I don't want to do, I keep on doing. . .Who will deliver me from this body of death?" (Rom. 7:14-24).
     He explains the problem in 8:3: "For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering." Which brings us back to the Garden.
     Jesus knew that only the power of God could keep Him, and in prayer He received strength to cement His resolve. He will save humanity at any cost to Himself. His only prayer was that God would allow only His will to be done. This must have sustained Jesus through every slap, punch, jeer, lash, and nail.

Lk. 22:44 - "His sweat was like. . .blood"

     Luke was a physician. Because of his trained skills in observation he often reports details about the life and death of Jesus the other gospel writers don't. As Jesus prayed in the Garden, Luke reports, "And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground" (Lk. 22:44).
     Sweating blood has been documented scientifically. Wikipedia tells us: "Hematidrosis (also called hematohidrosis) is a very rare condition in which a human being sweats blood. It may occur when a person is suffering extreme levels of stress, for example, facing his or her own death. Several historical references have been described; notably by Leonardo da Vinci: describing a soldier who sweated blood before battle, men unexpectedly given a death sentence, as well as descriptions in the Bible, that Jesus experienced hematidrosis when he was praying in the garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:44)." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hematidrosis (Accessed Mar. 24, 2012).
     Luke's point is that Jesus was experiencing extreme stress and great mental anguish as He struggled with the separation from God caused by the world's sin, wrestled with demonic forces, and agonized with His decision to die in our place. He was doing this out of love for us and for a world that did not love Him.
     Friend, sin in whatever form is our enemy. It caused His agony and killed Jesus. May God help us to embrace our Savior and stop undulging our sin.
     As He continually presents His sacrifice at the Mercy Seat in heaven, Jesus remembers His loving anguish for you and me. He loves to help the weakest. He never turns anyone away. Whatever sin we struggle with, "Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need" (Heb. 4:16)

Mt. 26:39 - "If it is not possible. . ."

     We have begun our journey toward the cross with Jesus and are now in the Garden as He begins to suffer under our sins. Overwhelmed with "sorrow to the point of death" (Mt. 26:38) Jesus falls on His face and begins to plead with God to save Him from the horrendous experience of receiving the world's sins (1 Jn. 2:2)
     Notice the difference between his first and second prayers. There is something very important about a relationship with God and obedience here. 
     In Jesus first prayer, He has just begun to suffer as our Substitute. He feels Himself suffocating in our sins, and in desperation He cries out, "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup (the cup of judgment for sin) be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will." (v. 39)
     In the suddenness of his overwhelming suffering, He could think only about escape. He calls out for rescue and help. Yet throughout His life He had trained Himself to always do His Father's will.
     After this prayer (and Matthew only summarizes; it must have gone on a long time), I am sure Jesus waited breathlessly for an answer. But none came. The heavens were silent.
     Perhaps He mentally reviewed all He knew about the Suffering Messiah prophecies. Was there another way? Had He missed something? No, the Messiah was going to suffer and die (Isa. 53; Zech. 13:7; Ps. 22). He had already explained this to His disciples (Mt. 16:21, 17:22, 26:28).
     Like Abraham, when God asked him to sacrifice his promised son, Isaac, and then prayed and waited for a rescinding command, Jesus must have hoped, and listened, and waited. As in Abraham's story, would God provide a substitute? But the voice did not speak, because Jesus was the Substitute. He was the reality toward which that ram pointed.  No hand stopped the sword of Justice now. Only the truth of Scripture pointed out His path and duty.
     So we notice a difference in the second prayer. He had heard no celestial caveat, no divine loophole. So His prayer is a prayer of relinquishment, a plea of trusting commitment. "If it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done" (v. 42).  In the first prayer, Jesus struggles and cries for escape, yet commits to God's will. In the second He realizes there is no other way but His death, and He surrenders to His Father's will.
     It is the same battle we each face with temptation and obedience. And Jesus experienced it on our behalf to earn the right to help us. Listen! "During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him" (Heb. 5:7-9). (Italics mine)
     Praise God, Jesus can help us because He already went through what we do in this life. "For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God" (Heb. 2:17). He "was tempted in every way, just as we are--yet was without sin. . .so we can approach the throne of grace with confidence, "receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." (Heb. 5:15, 16).
     That is why we must look to Jesus for inspiration and help: "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: 'My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves. . .'" (Heb. 12:2-6).
     Deciding now to trust Jesus and do nothing but God's will, will save us from the consequences of sin, which is separation and death. As we see in Jesus' Passion, this is not easy, but it is the only path to peace. And Heaven will help us. An angel came to help Jesus (Luke 22:43), and God will help us too.

Mt. 26:39 - "My Father" - 2

     Jesus had a wonderfully close relationship with God. He called Him Father, which He was in a unique way. But He invites us to call Him Father too. He is our Father by creation and redemption.
     My dad refused to let his children call him “father.” He made the point over and over that we have only one Father in the ultimate sense. It seemed narrow and picky at the time, but I have never forgotten who my true Father is. Somehow it was easier to make the transition because of Dad’s lesson.
     Jesus was close with His Abba (daddy). He was the model of intimacy with God. His favorite times were when He could be alone with Him. I have seen dads who have cultivated closeness with their sons, without losing either their authority or respect. They share their thoughts and lives easily. I imagine Jesus’ relationship was like that.
     God loves to have us think of Him as a loving Father who only wants the best for His children (Ps. 103:8-14). And He loves it when we really believe we are dear to Him and enjoy being with Him. I understand that those who had distant, abusive, or authoritarian fathers have difficulty seeing God that way. It is nevertheless true. For them He can be the kind of Father they always wished they had.
     Jesus saw Himself as dear to God. His favorite times were being alone with Him. God’s heart must have been filled with grateful love as He saw His Son seeking Him in prayer and reading His words day by day, night after night. God loves it when we do too.
     I love to talk to my young grandson on the phone. The other day, after a conversation, he apparently wanted more time with Grandpa. He hadn’t had enough of hearing Grandpa’s voice. My daughter found him in his room listening to me on a recordable book I had made for him at Christmastime.
     When I heard this, it really warmed my heart—and gave me a glimpse of how God feels when we want to be with Him, talk to Him in prayer or listen to His word. Jesus showed us how and bridged the gap with His atonement so we could (1 Pet. 1:3-9).

Mt. 26:39 - "My Father. . ."

     Throughout His life, Jesus had resolutely kept a close, intimate relationship with His Father, closer than we will ever fully understand. It was this closeness that always sustained Him.

     Because He never sinned, His heart never knew a cloud of guilt or sense of separation from His Abba (Daddy). He had cultivated such life-long such intimacy He could say “My Father and I are one” (Jn. 10:30).  Often, after long days of ministry, He prayed all night, or arose early in the morning, and was refreshed and strengthened by this communion with His Father.

     Now, as the time of His great Sacrifice approaches, Jesus naturally flees to His Father. But what shocks and pains His heart, what terrifies His soul, is the separation from Abba our sin upon Him is causing.

     Think of the person you hold dearest in life. If they withdrew their love, loyalty, and support (apparently), would it not crush your heart?

     Beginning in the Garden, “He who had been one with God, felt in His soul the awful separation that sin makes between God and man. . .It was the burden of sin, the sense of its terrible enormity, of its separation of the soul from God--it was this that broke the heart of the Son of God.” (The Faith I Live By,” p. 101)

     Writing about Jesus’ experience on the cross (we know His suffering begins in Gethsemane), Ellen White explains: “Upon Christ as our substitute and surety was laid the iniquity of us all. He was counted a transgressor, that He might redeem us from the condemnation of the law. The guilt of every descendant of Adam was pressing upon His heart. The wrath of God against sin, the terrible manifestation of His displeasure because of iniquity, filled the soul of His Son with consternation. All His life Christ had been publishing to a fallen world the good news of the Father's mercy and pardoning love. Salvation for the chief of sinners was His theme. But now with the terrible weight of guilt He bears, He cannot see the Father's reconciling face. The withdrawal of the divine countenance from the Savior in this hour of supreme anguish pierced His heart with a sorrow that can never be fully understood by man. So great was this agony that His physical pain was hardly felt.” The Desire of Ages, p. 753 (Italics mine). 

     Jesus suffered the breaking of His relationship with God so we can experience the healing of ours. What an amazing price was paid so we can receive the acceptance and intimacy Jesus redeemed for us. “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure.” (1 Jn. 3:1-3). 

     “Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, ‘Abba, Father.’ you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir” (Gal. 4:6-7). Praise God!

Mt. 26:39 - "My Father, please remove this cup."

     After Matthew tells us about Jesus' deep sorrow--"even unto death", he describes how Jesus "fell with his face to the ground," (further evidence of His superhuman anguish). Then Christ "prayed, 'My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me.'"
     Minutes earlier Jesus had offered the Passover cup to His disciples describing as the "blood of the covenent. . .poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins" (Mt. 26:27-28). He announced it then, but now He is tasting its bitter contents. And it was this cup, the cup of His suffering and death, He was asking to be spared from.
     In Gethsemane He teeters on the edge of the abyss, the shadows the Second Death, enveloping Him, and His soul recoils. "May this cup be taken from me!" What made this cup so awful?
     This cup included more than physical suffering and death. In the Bible Jesus used, the Old Testament scriptures, a "cup" is used symbolically for God's judgment on the wicked. In our place, Jesus was accepting the results of our sin and drinking it "down to the very dregs" (Ps. 75:8: Isa. 51:17).
     Three times Jesus asks if there is another way, if He can be spared. But the steel-black heavens are silent, because God's will--a plan to which Jesus had agreed way back in eternity--had already been sealed. And as One Who always placed His Father's will above all, Jesus surrendered.

Mt. 26:38 - "Stay here and watch with me."

We are thinking about Jesus' suffering as we move toward Easter, convinced that meditating on His death will draw us closer to Him. In Matthew 26:37, we read that as Jesus entered the Garden, an overwhelming sorrow came over Him. In verse 38 He says to Peter, James, and John, "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me." Yesterday we learned that this sorrow "to the point of death" was more far more than anxiety about His impending suffering. He was, even then in the Garden, becoming the Divine-human Substitute for the world's sin, and it was crushing out His life (Isa. 53). Now Jesus pleads for His three closest disciples to stay with Him and keep watch. Always the One to support others, Jesus now feels His need of human support and the assurance they are praying for Him. But it may also have been for their sake He invited their prayers. They needed to enter into what Jesus was going through for them. If they had, they would not have fallen, and they would have understood so much more of the events of His Passion. "Stay here and keep watch with me." Jesus words are also for us. We need to stay right here--in the Garden of Jesus' suffering, keeping watch and praying. Do not run through the Garden in your devotions. Stop and ponder the meaning of each word, each emotion Jesus expresses, and you will learn precious things that will bind Him to your heart. We need to "stay here" in His story regularly and often, or we will forget what Jesus' sacrifice cost. And if we forget, we wander from His love.

Meditations on Jesus' Passion: "He began to be sorrowful and troubled."

     In His Passion story, Matthew describes Jesus entering the Garden of Gethsemane with his disciples on the eve of His death. Upon entering the Garden, he records, Jesus "began to be sorrowful and troubled" (Mt. 26:37).
     It was your sin and and mine--and the sins of the whole world (1 Jn. 2:2)--that were troubling Him and causing such sorrow. He was now beginning to take our place as the Divine-human Substitute for sins, the "Lamb of God that would die for the sins of the world" (Jn. 1:29).
     Sin separates us from a holy God (Isa. 59:1-2), but Jesus took our sins on Himself and endured our separation so we could be reconciled with our Father.
     In the Garden, we watch as our sins begin to separate Him from the life of His Father. He is in agony because the oneness with the God He had always loved from eternity is being broken up.
     Beginning here in Gethsemane he begins to die the just and agonizing death of our separation from the Father, the Second Death (Rev. 20:6, 14), culminating eventually on the cross when He cried, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me!" (Mt. 27:46). 
     "God made Him Who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God" (2 Cor. 5:17). God gifted Him our sin, so He could gift us His perfection (Rom. 4, 5) to stand justified in the sight of a loving, holy God (Rom. 5:1-10).
     "We all like sheep have gone astray. Each of us has turned to his own way, and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. He was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities. The punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed" (Isa. 53:7, 6).
     "See from His head, His hands, His feet, sorrow and love flow mingled down. Did e'er such love and sorrow meet, or thorns compose so rich a crown? Were the whole realm of nature mine, that were a present far too small. Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all." ("When I Survey the Wondrous Cross," Hymn 154 in SDA Church Hymnal).
     His strong love made the supreme Sacrifice for you. Will you give Him your love and obedience in return?