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Hello, my “Walking with Jesus” friends,
For many people around the world today is known as “Maundy Thursday”, a melancholy day of reflection. 2000 years ago, Jesus and His disciples had been, for many weeks, looking forward to this weekend which was Passover for them and many thousands of Jews who had traveled to Jerusalem. The Holy Spirit led all four Gospel writers to give us distinctive insights into those last days of Jesus’ earthly journey.
I invite you to journey with me today as we draw from those who were with Him and follow some of the significant events which led Jesus and His disciples through that final week; up into that upper room for the Passover meal; then to the garden of Gethsemane; and finally, Golgotha and Jesus’ crucifixion.
Matthew tells us Jesus again repeated His horrible prediction of His death: “As you know the Passover is two days away – and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified.” (Matt. 26:1,2) Judas Iscariot’s frustration had been growing for a long time, and we had seen some evidence of that in his rude comments about Mary’s anointing of Jesus’ feet a few days before, at the dinner in Bethany, remember?
Judas now took action: “Judas, one of the Twelve, went to the chief priests and asked ‘what are you willing to give me if I deliver Him over to you?’ So they counted out 30 pieces of silver. From then on Judas watched for an opportunity to hand Jesus over.” (Matt. 26:14-16) 30 pieces of silver was the going rate for purchasing a common, uneducated, unskilled slave. Offering that price was yet another way for the Jerusalem Jewish religious leadership to shame Jesus and those crazy enough to follow Him.
The next day Jesus sent Peter and John into Jerusalem to make preparations for their much-anticipated Passover meal together. Jesus told them: “Go make preparations for us to eat the Passover together. As you enter the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him to the house that he enters, and say to the owner of the house: ‘The Teacher asks: Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with My disciples?’ He will show you a large room upstairs, all furnished. Make preparations there.” (Luke 22:7-13) Peter and John found everything just as Jesus had predicted and made the room ready.
John gives us four chapters (John 13,14,15,16) detailing what occurred in that upper room with Jesus and His disciples celebrating the Passover meal together that evening. May I urge you to find some time today to carefully read all four chapters, pausing often to reflect on what was happening and the implications 2000 years later for you and me, and every human being.
John’s opening statement is so significant: “Jesus knew that the hour had come for Him to leave this world and return to the Father. Having loved His own who were in the world, He now showed the full extent of His love. The evening meal was in progress and the devil had already prompted Judas Iscariot to betray Jesus. Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under His power and that He had come from God and was returning to God, so He got up from the meal…” (John 13:1-5) Pause. What does John want us to know here?
Before anyone said or did anything, do you see John wants to be sure WE understand that Jesus was fully aware of all that was happening and how it fit into God the Father’s eternal plan for the Redemption of the human race?
Jesus understood the significance of Jesus dying at the time of the Passover Festival, for Jesus was offering Himself as the Passover Lamb for the deliverance of all people by the rescuing power of God, just as God had delivered the Hebrew slaves who trusted God by putting the lamb’s blood on their door frames! (Ex. 12:1-17)
Jesus understood a great spiritual battle was raging and Satan himself was present working in Judas.
Jesus understood God the Father had given Jesus supreme authority and power, yet Jesus would need to restrain Himself, from that moment, through that horrible night, all the way to the cross.
Jesus knew He MUST pay the full sin atonement price for all humanity and thus He could NOT retaliate against any who mocked Him or betrayed Him or denied Him or beat Him nor crucified Him. The eternal destiny of all humanity hung in the balance and only Jesus was qualified to pay our sin-atonement price with His death!
But Jesus also could see the future, on the other side of these next horrible hours. Jesus could see…
* His victorious resurrection after three days of death; (John 20)
* His 40 days of proving Himself resurrected and giving His disciples their final instructions; (Acts 1:1-8)
* His ascension from the Mount of Olives back to heaven; (Acts 1:9-11)
* His restoration by God the Father to His place of supremacy over all things; (Heb. 1:1-3)
* His unique place as Redemptor of all repentant sinners; (Heb. 7:25)
* and finally, Jesus could see, long into the distance, the Great White Throne judgment day when He, Jesus, will preside over the justice judgment of every person who has ever lived. (Rev. 20:11-15)
And Hebrews 12:1,2 tells us Jesus saw one more significant thing as He looked into the future that night in the upper room: Jesus saw His CHURCH! Billions of people who, over the centuries after that Passover in the upper room evening, would trust crucified and resurrected Jesus to save them from their sin-bondage and sin-condemnation, and they would be ‘born again’ by the Holy Spirit and brought into the family of God. It was the “…joy set before Him” that gave Jesus the power to “endure the cross, scorning its shame”. And we celebrate that the crucified and resurrected Jesus then ascended “and sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.” (Heb. 12:1,2)
With all of that front and center in the mind of Jesus that Passover night, He rose up from that Passover meal table, picked up a towel and basin, and did the unthinkable: Jesus washed His disciples’ feet, including Judas who would within a few hours betray Jesus to an angry mob; (Matt. 26:47-56) and also Peter, who later that very night would enthusiastically DENY that he even knew Jesus! (Matt. 26:69-75)
Then, as they ate, Jesus taught them some of the most profound truths they had ever heard, and they have offered to us in their writings…
* God’s truth that JESUS is the ONLY way to God! (John 14:6)
* God’s truth about the Holy Spirit, whom God would send to live with and IN them, these and all followers of Jesus! (John 14:15-17, 23-27; 16:7-15)
* Jesus’ invitation for His followers to live in a closely connected, fruit producing, vine & branches relationship with Jesus! (John 15:1-8)
* Jesus’ warning that His followers will experience great persecution if we are known as Jesus followers, yet the Holy Spirit will be faithful to help us! (John 15:18-27)
* Jesus’ promise that His peace will always be with us and that we should take heart because HE has overcome the world and reigns sovereign and supreme over all! (John 16:27-33)
* And of course the remarkable prayer which Jesus prayed over His disciples which gives us wonderful, fresh insight into Jesus’ relationship with His Father and with us, His followers. (John 17)
And then, after that long and wonderful evening in the upper room together, Jesus led His disciples down from that upper room, across the Kidron Valley to the Garden of Gethsemane, and His final agony began, as I’m sure you remember. Tomorrow, we’ll join Jesus and His disciples there and then follow Him to the hill of crucifixion.
For today, I invite you to find some time to sit in a quiet, reflective place, and read John 13-18, all in one sitting, pausing often to reflect and pray. Put yourself there, in the upper room, and ask the Holy Spirit to help you understand, more than ever before in your life, the significance of the events of that Thursday evening; and all through that dreadful night, up until shortly after daylight the next day, when Jesus was finally sentenced to die. And here’s a wonderful song to help us in these important reflections:
Today’s Scripture: John 13-17.
Choose below to read or listen.
John 13-17 John 13
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John 14
John 15
John 16
John 17
Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.
Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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