2303.) John 19:31-42

John 19:31-42   (NRSV)

Jesus’ Side Is Pierced

³¹Since it was the day of Preparation, the Jews did not want the bodies left on the cross during the sabbath, especially because that sabbath was a day of great solemnity. So they asked Pilate to have the legs of the crucified men broken and the bodies removed. ³²Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who had been crucified with him. ³³But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs.

Regarding the Passover lamb:

Numbers 9:12   (NIV)

They must not . . . break any of its bones.

³⁴Instead, one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once blood and water came out.

Jesus’ side is pierced with a spear, Fra Angelico (c. 1440), Dominican monastery of San Marco, Florence.

Zechariah 12:10   (NIV)

Mourning for the One They Pierced

“And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son.”

³⁵(He who saw this has testified so that you also may believe. His testimony is true, and he knows that he tells the truth.) ³⁶These things occurred so that the scripture might be fulfilled, “None of his bones shall be broken.” ³⁷And again another passage of scripture says, “They will look on the one whom they have pierced.”

Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in Thee
Let the water and the blood,
From Thy riven side which flowed
Be of sin the double cure,
Cleanse me from its guilt and power.

The Burial of Jesus

³⁸After these things, Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, though a secret one because of his fear of the Jews, asked Pilate to let him take away the body of Jesus. Pilate gave him permission; so he came and removed his body. ³⁹Nicodemus, who had at first come to Jesus by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, weighing about a hundred pounds. ⁴⁰They took the body of Jesus and wrapped it with the spices in linen cloths, according to the burial custom of the Jews. ⁴¹Now there was a garden in the place where he was crucified, and in the garden there was a new tomb in which no one had ever been laid. ⁴²And so, because it was the Jewish day of Preparation, and the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.

A Roman period tomb with a rolling stone, discovered near Mount Carmel in Israel.

With thanks to Joseph of Arimathea for the provision of a tomb — Jesus won’t be needing it long!

_________________________

FRIDAY
by Ann Weems

The sky peels back to purple
      and thunder slaps the thighs of heaven,
and all the tears of those who grieve
      fly up to the clouds and are released
and drench the earth.
The ones who see and hear
           know
      that all is lost.
The only One named Savior
           died
      upon a cross.
The ones who believed and loved
      huddle together
           stunned.
All night long
      the angels weep.

_________________________

Music:

HERE  is “Were You There?” by the Annie Moses Band — sorrowful but with a joyful closing!  Annie Moses Band is a musical ensemble known for their virtuosic strings and creative re-imaginings of American classics. Their style spans classical crossover, Americana, folk, and jazz influences. And — they are siblings!

_________________________

Reflections:

1)   As Frederick Buechner states in Beyond Words, “Jesus Christ is what God does, and the cross is where God did it.” What all does God do at the cross?

2)  Of all the possible adjectives, why does “Good” precede “Friday” for the day Christ died?

_________________________

The New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Images courtesy of:

John 3:16.  http://www.catholic-convert.com/wp-content/uploads/john3-16.jpg

Fra Angelico.   https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/angelico.jpg

tomb.   http://ferrelljenkins.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/tomb_153-t.jpg

crucified Jesus, face.   http://newparadigmthinkers.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/crucified_jesus__the_face_by_devcager.jpg

2302.) John 19:17-30

John 19:17-30   (NRSV)

The Crucifixion of Jesus

So they took Jesus; ¹⁷and carrying the cross by himself, he went out to what is called The Place of the Skull, which in Hebrew is called Golgotha. ¹⁸There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side, with Jesus between them.

¹⁹Pilate also had an inscription written and put on the cross. It read, “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.” ²⁰Many of the Jews read this inscription, because the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, in Latin, and in Greek. ²¹Then the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews,’ but, ‘This man said, I am King of the Jews.’”

²²Pilate answered, “What I have written I have written.”

The inscription on Jesus’s Cross was “in Hebrew, in Latin, and in Greek.” These were the three great languages of the ancient world and they stood for three great nations. In the economy of God every nation has something to teach the world, and these three stood for three great contributions to the world and to world history. Greece taught the world beauty of form and of thought; Rome taught the world law and good government; the Hebrews taught the world religion and the worship of the true God. The consummation of all these things is seen in Jesus. In him was the supreme beauty and the highest thought of God. In him was the law of God and the kingdom of God. In him was the very image of God. All the world’s seekings and strivings found their consummation in him. It was symbolic that the three great languages of the world should call him king.

–William Barclay

²³When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his clothes and divided them into four parts, one for each soldier. They also took his tunic; now the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece from the top.

²⁴So they said to one another, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it to see who will get it.” This was to fulfill what the scripture says,

“They divided my clothes among themselves,
and for my clothing they cast lots.”

²⁵And that is what the soldiers did. Meanwhile, standing near the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. ²⁶When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing beside her, he said to his mother, “Woman, here is your son.” ²⁷Then he said to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” And from that hour the disciple took her into his own home.

“Jesus looked down from the cross to see his mother standing nearby. As far as we know, only one of the twelve apostles was there at the foot of the cross: “the disciple whom Jesus loved,” usually identified as John. Naked and in horrible pain, Jesus thought not of himself but was concerned for the well-being of his mother after his death. This shows Jesus’ humanity and the depth of love he had for his mother and the disciple into whose care he entrusted her.”

–Adam Hamilton, 24 Hours That Changed the World

²⁸After this, when Jesus knew that all was now finished, he said (in order to fulfill the scripture), “I am thirsty.” ²⁹A jar full of sour wine was standing there. So they put a sponge full of the wine on a branch of hyssop and held it to his mouth.

Psalm 69:21 (NIV)

They put gall in my food
    and gave me vinegar for my thirst.

³⁰When Jesus had received the wine, he said, “It is finished.”

Jesus’ final word (tetelestai in the ancient Greek) is the cry of a winner. Jesus had finished the eternal purpose of the cross. It stands today as a finished work, the foundation of all Christian peace and faith, paying in full the debt we righteously owe to God.

–David Guzik

Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

2 Corinthians 5:21 (NIV)

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

_________________________

Music:

“When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” — one of the most poignant, moving hymns ever sung.  It was written by Isaac Watts and first published in Hymns and Spir­it­u­al Songs in 1707.  Charles Wes­ley reportedly said he would give up all his other hymns to have written this one.  HERE  it is sung by Kathryn Scott, with pictures of “the whole realm of nature” by C. E. Price.

_________________________

Reflections:

1)  John records Jesus saying three things:  giving his mother into John’s care and keeping, expressing his thirst, and announcing his completion of his work.  What do these three statements tell you about Christ?

2)  What does a picture of Jesus on the cross say to you?  If you could be there then, what would you say to Jesus while he is hanging on the cross?

_________________________

The New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Images courtesy of:

John 3:16.  http://www.catholic-convert.com/wp-content/uploads/john3-16.jpg

stained glass – nailed hand.  http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/jcpjr/jcpjr0908/jcpjr090800001/5299375-stained-glass-window-of-the-crucifixion-of-jesus.jpg

inscription in three languages.   https://i.pinimg.com/736x/02/43/62/024362984138942e4c71fdd0700005fe–the-s-pilates.jpg

Behold your son/mother.    https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2018/02/dfead-11th.jpg

I thirst.   https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2018/02/10a4a-ithirst2.jpg

Finished.   http://rlcnotes.com/files/john1930.jpg

2301.) John 19:1-16

John 19:1-16   (NRSV)

Jesus Sentenced to Death

Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged.

Scourging was a legal preliminary to every Roman execution, and only women and Roman senators or soldiers (except in cases of desertion) were exempt.  In regard to crucifixion, the goal of the scourging was to weaken the victim to a state just short of collapse and death. As the Roman soldiers repeatedly struck the victim’s back with full force, the iron balls would cause deep contusions, and the leather thongs and sheep bones would cut into the skin and subcutaneous tissues. Then, as the flogging continued, the lacerations would tear into the underlying skeletal muscles and produce quivering ribbons of bleeding flesh. Pain and blood loss generally set the stage for circulatory shock. The extent of blood loss may well have determined how long the victim would survive the cross.

–David Guzik

²And the soldiers wove a crown of thorns and put it on his head, and they dressed him in a purple robe. ³They kept coming up to him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and striking him on the face.

⁴Pilate went out again and said to them, “Look, I am bringing him out to you to let you know that I find no case against him.” ⁵So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, “Here is the man!”

⁶When the chief priests and the police saw him, they shouted, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”

Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and crucify him; I find no case against him.”

⁷The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die because he has claimed to be the Son of God.”

⁸Now when Pilate heard this, he was more afraid than ever.

⁹He entered his headquarters again and asked Jesus, “Where are you from?” But Jesus gave him no answer. ¹⁰Pilate therefore said to him, “Do you refuse to speak to me? Do you not know that I have power to release you, and power to crucify you?”

¹¹Jesus answered him, “You would have no power over me unless it had been given you from above; therefore the one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin.”

¹²From then on Pilate tried to release him, but the Jews cried out, “If you release this man, you are no friend of the emperor. Everyone who claims to be a king sets himself against the emperor.”

¹³When Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus outside and sat on the judge’s bench at a place called The Stone Pavement, or in Hebrew Gabbatha. ¹⁴Now it was the day of Preparation for the Passover; and it was about noon. He said to the Jews, “Here is your King!”

¹⁵They cried out, “Away with him! Away with him! Crucify him!”

Pilate asked them, “Shall I crucify your King?”

The chief priests answered, “We have no king but the emperor.”

Actions speak louder than words.  Funny — they wanted a Messiah to save them from the Romans, yet now they embrace Caesar as their king.

¹⁶Then he handed him over to them to be crucified.

Actions speak louder than words.  After declaring several times that he could find no guilt in Jesus, Pilate yields to the crowds and lets them kill an innocent man.

_________________________

Music:

HERE  is a tribute to our Lord Jesus Christ, Lord of the universe, yet willing to go to the cross — “No Other Name,” by Hillsong.

_________________________

Reflections:

1)  Consider Pilate. How would you describe him here? I’ll start you off: he is unwilling (to assume the responsibility of dealing with Jesus); seeking to compromise (will a scourging be enough?);  appealing to the crowd (let them make the decision); superior (hear his demeaning attitude towards the Jews?) . . . You continue!

2)  Consider Jesus. Describe him in this exchange. Barclay mentions his “sheer majesty” and “utter directness” in addition to his “physical courage.” How does studying Jesus at this moment add to your own humility and to his glory?

_________________________

The New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Images courtesy of:

John 3:16.  http://www.catholic-convert.com/wp-content/uploads/john3-16.jpg

Jesus flogged.   https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2018/02/9a5c6-1.jpg

Jesus before Pilate.   https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/jesusandpilate.jpg

2300.) John 18:28-40

John 18:28-40   (NRSV)

Jesus before Pilate

²⁸Then they took Jesus from Caiaphas to Pilate’s headquarters. It was early in the morning. They themselves did not enter the headquarters, so as to avoid ritual defilement and to be able to eat the Passover. ²⁹So Pilate went out to them and said, “What accusation do you bring against this man?”

Pilate wants to understand the charges being brought against Jesus.

³⁰They answered, “If this man were not a criminal, we would not have handed him over to you.”

³¹Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and judge him according to your law.”

Once Pilate realized it was a religious matter, he dismissed it. Let the Jews take care of their own problems.

The Jews replied, “We are not permitted to put anyone to death.” ³²(This was to fulfill what Jesus had said when he indicated the kind of death he was to die.)

The Jews would have killed him by stoning; Jesus said he would be “lifted up” on a cross.

³³Then Pilate entered the headquarters again, summoned Jesus, and asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?”

³⁴Jesus answered, “Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?”

³⁵Pilate replied, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What have you done?”

Pilate is not used to having the accused question him!

³⁶Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here.”

Augustine observed from this verse that earthly kingdoms are based upon force, pride, the love of human praise, the desire for domination, and self interest — all displayed by Pilate and the Roman Empire.

The heavenly kingdom, exemplified by Jesus and the cross, is based on love, sacrifice, humility, and righteousness.

–David Guzik

³⁷Pilate asked him, “So you are a king?”

Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.”

³⁸Pilate asked him, “What is truth?”

It is often observed that Jesus did not answer Pilate when he asked his famous question, “What is truth?” We may think of the entire passion, however, as Jesus’ answer. The right human relation to the one true God is that of trusting in the life-giving power of the Spirit of the Father, even in the face of hostile enemies. 

— Shults and Sandage, Transforming Spirituality

Jesus Sentenced to Death

After he had said this, he went out to the Jews again and told them, “I find no case against him. ³⁹But you have a custom that I release someone for you at the Passover. Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?”

⁴⁰They shouted in reply, “Not this man, but Barabbas!” Now Barabbas was a bandit.

_________________________

Music:

HERE  is “There is a Redeemer,” sung by Keith Green. Simple and powerful.

_________________________

Reflections:

1)   “What is truth?”  Suppose Pilate asked you the same question he asked of Jesus — how would you answer it?

2)   Are you seeing more of what it cost Christ to be your Savior?

_________________________

The New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Images courtesy of:

 Jesus stands before Pilate.   http://www.thecollectionshop.com/Image_Resize_Detail_Image.asp?MiscImage=17188UF

My kingdom.   https://i.pinimg.com/originals/b1/19/94/b11994a39ca301f1e9ae58cd932460ff.jpg

What is truth?   http://www.ramsteinchurchofchrist.org/data/ramstein/WhatIsTruth885x339.jpg

2299.) John 18:15-27

John 18:15-27   (NRSV)

Peter Denies Jesus

How is it, Lord, that we are cowards in everything save in opposing Thee?

– Teresa of Avila

¹⁵Simon Peter and another disciple followed Jesus. Since that disciple was known to the high priest, he went with Jesus into the courtyard of the high priest, ¹⁶but Peter was standing outside at the gate. So the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out, spoke to the woman who guarded the gate, and brought Peter in.

¹⁷The woman said to Peter, “You are not also one of this man’s disciples, are you?”

He said, “I am not.”

¹⁸Now the slaves and the police had made a charcoal fire because it was cold, and they were standing around it and warming themselves. Peter also was standing with them and warming himself.

The High Priest Questions Jesus

“Jesus before the High Priest” by Alessandro Mantovani (Italian painter, 1814-1892)

¹⁹Then the high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and about his teaching. ²⁰Jesus answered, “I have spoken openly to the world; I have always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where all the Jews come together. I have said nothing in secret. ²¹Why do you ask me? Ask those who heard what I said to them; they know what I said.”

²²When he had said this, one of the police standing nearby struck Jesus on the face, saying, “Is that how you answer the high priest?”

²³Jesus answered, “If I have spoken wrongly, testify to the wrong. But if I have spoken rightly, why do you strike me?” ²⁴Then Annas sent him bound to Caiaphas the high priest.

In saying this, Jesus wasn’t being uncooperative, only asserting His legal right. There was to be no formal charge until witnesses had been heard and been found to be truthful. And there is the problem, since it was the High Priest’s duty to call forth the witnesses first, beginning with those for the defense. These basic legal protections for the accused under Jewish law were not observed in the trial of Jesus.

–David Guzik

Peter Denies Jesus Again

“Peter’s Betrayal” by Carl Heinrich Bloch (Danish painter, 1834-1890)

²⁵Now Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. They asked him, “You are not also one of his disciples, are you?”

He denied it and said, “I am not.”

²⁶One of the slaves of the high priest, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, asked, “Did I not see you in the garden with him?”

²⁷Again Peter denied it, and at that moment the cock crowed.

Oh, Peter! How often we remember your failings! As Antony said while eulogizing Caesar in Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, Act III, scene 2: 

The evil that men do lives after them;
the good is oft interred with their bones.

So let’s instead remember some of the good of Peter. Remember he alone of the disciples had drawn his sword to defend Jesus when the soldiers arrived. Remember Peter followed Jesus after the arrest, when the remaining disciples scattered. Remember that Peter stayed with the group and was there when Jesus returned to them after the resurrection, whereas Judas removed himself from their company permanently. As William Barclay says, Jesus saw the true faithful disciple under this crack of the denial, and loved him back into fellowship and leadership.  Oh, the strong, sweet  love of Jesus!

_________________________

Music:

HERE  is Fernando Ortega and his version of “O Holy Jesus.”  Especially verse 2: “Twas I, Lord Jesus, I it was denied you.”

(It seems to be finished — after an instrumental interlude the screen goes black at about 3:30 — but the last verse is still to come.)

_________________________

Reflections:

1)   Do you see any similarities between yourself and Peter?

2)   Are you seeing more of what it cost Christ to be your Savior?

_________________________

The New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Images courtesy of:

Peter denies Jesus.    https://i.pinimg.com/736x/23/fe/ec/23feec89e138e4c212af3e28d9fef8bc.jpg

Mantovani.   https://goodnewsshared.files.wordpress.com/2016/03/alessandro_mantovani_jesus_before_the_high_priest_700.jpg?w=326&h=244

legal scales.  https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/legalscales5b15d.gif

Bloch.     https://i.pinimg.com/originals/14/3f/1b/143f1b006934add267e4d2288a0d2c2a.jpg

2298.) John 18:1-14

Very old olive trees in the Garden of Gethsemane.

John 18:1-14   (NRSV)

The Betrayal and Arrest of Jesus

After Jesus had spoken these words, he went out with his disciples across the Kidron valley to a place where there was a garden, which he and his disciples entered.

When the last meal was finished and when Jesus’s talk and prayer with his disciples were ended, he and his friends left the upper room. They were bound for the Garden of Gethsemane. They would leave by the gate, go down the steep valley and cross the channel of the brook Kidron. There a symbolic thing must have happened. All the Passover lambs were killed in the Temple, and the blood of the lambs was poured on the altar as an offering to God. The number of lambs slain for the Passover was immense. On one occasion, thirty years later than the time of Jesus, a census was taken and the number was 256,000. We may imagine what the Temple courts were like when the blood of all these lambs was dashed on to the altar. From the altar there was a channel down to the brook Kidron, and through that channel the blood of the Passover lambs drained away. When Jesus crossed the brook Kidron, it would still be red with the blood of the lambs which had been sacrificed; and as he did so, the thought of his own sacrifice would surely be vivid in his mind.

–William Barclay

²Now Judas, who betrayed him, also knew the place, because Jesus often met there with his disciples. ³So Judas brought a detachment of soldiers together with police from the chief priests and the Pharisees, and they came there with lanterns and torches and weapons.

⁴Then Jesus, knowing all that was to happen to him, came forward and asked them, “Whom are you looking for?”

⁵They answered, “Jesus of Nazareth.”

Jesus replied, “I am he.”

See the courage of Jesus:  he gives himself up to the authorities.

Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them. ⁶When Jesus said to them, “I am he,” they stepped back and fell to the ground.

See the authority of Jesus:  one single, unarmed figure before whom the Roman soldiers and Jewish police retreated and fell to the ground.

⁷Again he asked them, “Whom are you looking for?”

And they said, “Jesus of Nazareth.”

⁸Jesus answered, “I told you that I am he. So if you are looking for me, let these men go.” ⁹This was to fulfill the word that he had spoken, “I did not lose a single one of those whom you gave me.”

See the protective love of Jesus:  his thought was not to protect himself, but to shield his friends.

¹⁰Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it, struck the high priest’s slave, and cut off his right ear. The slave’s name was Malchus.

¹¹Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword back into its sheath. Am I not to drink the cup that the Father has given me?”

See the utter obedience of Jesus:  if this was God’s will, that was enough for him.

Two gardens.

The entrance of Christ into the Garden at once reminds us of Eden. The contrasts between them are indeed striking.

In Eden, all was delightful; in Gethsemane, all was terrible.

In Eden, Adam and Eve parlayed with Satan; in Gethsemane, the last Adam sought the face of His Father.

In Eden, Adam sinned; in Gethsemane, the Savior suffered.

In Eden, Adam fell; in Gethsemane, the Redeemer conquered.

The conflict in Eden took place by day; the conflict in Gethsemane was waged at night.

In the one, Adam fell before Satan; in the other, the soldiers fell before Christ.

In Eden the race was lost; in Gethsemane Christ announced, “Of them whom thou givest me have I lost none” (John 18:9).

In Eden, Adam took the fruit from Eve’s hand; in Gethsemane, Christ received the cup from His Father’s hand.

In Eden, Adam hid himself; in Gethsemane, Christ boldly showed Himself.

In Eden, God sought Adam; in Gethsemane, the last Adam sought God!

From Eden Adam was “driven”; from Gethsemane Christ was “led.”

In Eden the sword was drawn (Gen. 3:24); in Gethsemane the sword was sheathed (John 18:11).

–Arthur W. Pink

Jesus before the High Priest

¹²So the soldiers, their officer, and the Jewish police arrested Jesus and bound him. 

“The Taking of Christ” — alabaster, from the early 1300’s (Museum Mayer van den Bergh, Antwerp)

from This Day with the Master,
by Dennis F. Kinlaw

CAN MAN SEIZE GOD?

On the night of Jesus’ arrest, what was it that bound the Lord to those Roman soldiers? Surely the ropes and cords were not strong enough to hold the Creator of the universe. If Sampson could break the ropes of the Philistines, certainly the Son of God could do the same. No, Christ was not bound by the soldiers; he was bound by his own compassionate, divine, loving heart that caused him to give himself to them. It was Christ’s love for you and me that caused him to go with those soldiers who eventually nailed his body to the cross.

Can man seize God? Never! God gave himself away that night. Jesus was in perfect control all throughout his arrest, trial, and crucifixion.

God will never let you get into a situation in which he is not in perfect control. When you find yourself in circumstances that seem to be full of chaos and confusion, look to Christ. If you belong to him, you will find him there in perfect control of your situation.

It was Jesus, the One in whom all things exist, who sustained the Roman soldier’s life while he roughly placed the Son of God on the cross, and it was Jesus who gave that soldier the physical strength to drive the spikes into his hands.

¹³First they took him to Annas, who was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest that year. ¹⁴Caiaphas was the one who had advised the Jews that it was better to have one person die for the people.

Annas was a former high priest; four of his sons had also been high priest and Caiaphas is his son-in-law. His family was immensely rich and they had, over the years, bought the position of high priest from the Romans, who sold it to the highest bidder and most active collaborator. Jesus is certainly not expecting anything close to justice here.

_________________________

Music:

HERE  is the St. Olaf Choir from Northfield, Minnesota, and “What Wondrous Love Is This.”

_________________________

Reflections:

1)   One technique for studying Scripture is to read with your senses alert. I think that method is particularly rich in this passage. Imagine what the garden with its old trees looked like in the moonlight that night, what it smelled like. Can you hear the approach of the soldiers? Was there a gasp from the disciples when Judas came in view? Did the tension rise when the ear was sliced off and the blood spurted? What was the look on Jesus’ face as he spoke to Peter? What was the look on Annas’ face when he saw the bound Jesus arrive? How does his house look, and smell? And so on.

2)   Are you seeing more of what it cost Christ to be your Savior?

_________________________

The New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Images courtesy of:

olive trees.    http://www.christusrex.org/www1/jcm/JC-olives.jpg

Kidron Valley.   http://templesecrets.info/jnbldwtr/jnbldwtr2.gif

garden greenery.   http://www.greeninfluence.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/goeden.jpg

“The Taking of Christ.”    https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/christ-arrested1.jpg

2297.) John 17

John 17   (NRSV)

Jesus Prays for His Disciples

After Jesus had spoken these words, he looked up to heaven and said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you,

How does the cross glorify the Father?

“The Son glorified the Father by revealing in the act the sovereignty of God over evil, the compassion of God for men, and the finality of redemption for believers.”

–Dr. Merrill Tenney

Matthew 27:54   (ESV)

“Truly this was the Son of God!”

²since you have given him authority over all people, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. ³And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.

We know what God is like because Jesus has revealed him to us. And Jesus has modeled that the way to know God is to be obedient to what he asks of us, by finishing the work that lies in front of us for his sake.

⁴I glorified you on earth by finishing the work that you gave me to do. ⁵So now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had in your presence before the world existed.

⁶“I have made your name known to those whom you gave me from the world. They were yours, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word.

Jesus says of them, “They have kept your word.” When we think of all the failures and disappointments Christ experienced with the disciples, this is a kind assessment from Jesus. He generously judges His disciples. And Christ generously judges us, for he is our Savior as well as our Judge.

How, then, ought I treat others?

⁷Now they know that everything you have given me is from you; ⁸for the words that you gave to me I have given to them, and they have received them and know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. ⁹I am asking on their behalf; I am not asking on behalf of the world, but on behalf of those whom you gave me, because they are yours. ¹⁰All mine are yours, and yours are mine; and I have been glorified in them.

¹¹“And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one. ¹²While I was with them, I protected them in your name that you have given me. I guarded them, and not one of them was lost except the one destined to be lost, so that the scripture might be fulfilled. ¹³But now I am coming to you, and I speak these things in the world so that they may have my joy made complete in themselves.

from Experiencing God Day-by-Day,
by Henry T. Blackaby and Richard Blackaby

THE JOY OF CHRIST

If there is anything that ought to characterize the life of a Christian, it is joy! Jesus spoke many times to his disciples about His joy being complete and full in them. His disciples were filled with joy as they realized who they were:  children of God and joint heirs with Christ (Romans 8:16-17). They had been dead in their sins but were now made alive in Christ (Romans 6:4). They had once been helpless victims of death, but now death had no hold over them (1 Corinthians 15:55-58). With such a marvelous salvation experience with Christ, how could the disciples be anything less than joyful?

Don’t deny yourself that which is your birthright as a child of God. Don’t be satisfied with a joyless life. There ought to be in every Christian a deep, settled fullness of the joy of Christ that no circumstance of life can dispel. This comes as you allow the Holy Spirit to express Himself in your life. One of the fruits of the Spirit is joy (Galatians 5:22). This joy is unlike any happiness that is produced by the world. It fills you and permeates everything you do.

Jesus did not pray that you would merely be happy or even that you would escape grief. He prayed that you would have the same joy that the Father had given Him:  a divine joy, a joy that comes from a deep and unwavering relationship with the Father. It is a joy that is grounded so firmly in a relationship with God that no change in circumstances could ever shake it. This is the kind of joy that Christ is praying will be in you.

¹⁴I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. ¹⁵I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one. ¹⁶They do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world.

¹⁷“Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.

I remember, as a child, hearing the pastor open his sermon Sunday after Sunday with this prayer:  “Sanctify us in the truth; thy word is truth.” Obviously this made an impact on me, since it is many decades later that I still hear that plea in my mind. In such a simple way I was taught that the word of God, both the written words of Scripture and the Word made flesh in Jesus Christ, is ultimate truth. Such an idea is not so popular today in a society which readily accepts relativism and falsehood. But with Martin Luther and millions of other believers through the ages I say, “Here I stand.”

¹⁸As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. ¹⁹And for their sakes I sanctify myself, so that they also may be sanctified in truth.

²⁰“I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, ²¹that they may all be one.

This verse is one of the most wonderfully amazing verses in all the Bible, I think, for here Jesus prays for us! We are among those who believe because of the word of the apostles as found in Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and Acts. Jesus prayed then, and continues to intercede now, for you!

As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. ²²The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, ²³I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

²⁴“Father, I desire that those also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory, which you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.

²⁵“Righteous Father, the world does not know you, but I know you; and these know that you have sent me. ²⁶I made your name known to them, and I will make it known, so that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.”

From this prayer Jesus was to go straight out to the betrayal, the trial, and the Cross. He was not to speak to his disciples again. It is a wonderful and a precious thing to remember that before those terrible hours his last words were not of despair but of glory.

–William Barclay

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Music:

HERE  is a simple song which grows out of our passage today as well as other Scriptures throughout the Old and New Testament:  “Glorify Thy Name.”  For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, forever and ever.  Amen.

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Reflections:

1)  John writes at length about the oppositions to Jesus, as in John 15:18-25, John 16:29-33, and John 17:12-16. Who/what might he see as Jesus’ opposition today?

2)  Verse 26 gives us the “secret” of a faithful Christian life:  God’s love, in Jesus Christ, in us. How can you live that out today? 

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The New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Images courtesy of:

Sanctify them by the truth.   https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/john-17-17.jpg

“Be kind.”  Calligraphy by Michael Noyes.  http://www.michaelnoyes.com/images/products/product_152_border.png

fruit of the spirit – joy.   http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u62/ParkcrestHSM/blogg/FruitoftheSpirit02JoyTitle.jpg

I pray for them.   http://revphil2011.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/iprayforthem.gif

2296.) John 16:16-33

 

John 16:16-33  (NRSV)

Sorrow Will Turn into Joy

¹⁶”A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me.”

¹⁷Then some of his disciples said to one another, “What does he mean by saying to us, ‘A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’; and ‘Because I am going to the Father’?” ¹⁸They said, “What does he mean by this ‘a little while’? We do not know what he is talking about.”

A LISTENING
by Ann Weems

Going through life
     is a listening.
When we listen
     to the word,
we hear
     where we are so
blatantly
     unliving.
If we listen to the word
     and hallow it
into our lives,
     we hear
how we can so
     abundantly
live again.

¹⁹Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, “Are you discussing among yourselves what I meant when I said, ‘A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’? ²⁰Very truly, I tell you, you will weep and mourn, but the world will rejoice; you will have pain, but your pain will turn into joy. ²¹When a woman is in labor, she has pain, because her hour has come. But when her child is born, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy of having brought a human being into the world.

It sometimes happens, even in the best of families, that a baby is born. This is not necessarily cause for alarm. The important thing is to keep your wits about you and borrow some money.
–Elinor Goulding Smith

Babies are such a nice way to start people.
–Don Herrold

Spread the diaper in the position of the diamond with you at bat. Then fold second base down to home and set the baby on the pitcher’s mound. Put first base and third together, bring up home plate and pin the three together. Of course, in case of rain, you gotta call the game and start all over again.
–Jimmy Piersal, on how to diaper a baby

Children are a gift from the Lord.
–Psalm 127:3

²²So you have pain now; but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you. ²³On that day you will ask nothing of me. Very truly, I tell you, if you ask anything of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. ²⁴Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.

Peace for the Disciples

²⁵“I have said these things to you in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures, but will tell you plainly of the Father. ²⁶On that day you will ask in my name. I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf; ²⁷for the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.

“This is a remarkable passage, by which we are taught that we have the heart of God as soon as we place before Him the name of His Son.”

–John Calvin

²⁸I came from the Father and have come into the world; again, I am leaving the world and am going to the Father.”

²⁹His disciples said, “Yes, now you are speaking plainly, not in any figure of speech! ³⁰Now we know that you know all things, and do not need to have anyone question you; by this we believe that you came from God.”

³¹Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe? ³²The hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each one to his home, and you will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone because the Father is with me.

³³“I have said this to you, so that in me you may have peace.

• Jesus made the way for peace with God:

Romans 5:1 (NLT)

Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us.

• Jesus made the way for peace with others:

Ephesians 2:14 (NLT)

For Christ himself has brought peace to us. He united Jews and Gentiles into one people when, in his own body on the cross, he broke down the wall of hostility that separated us.

In the world you face persecution. But take courage; I have conquered the world!”

_________________________

Music:

Take courage!  HERE  is “Be Not Afraid!”  by John Michael Talbot.  Lyrics follow.

1.
You shall cross the barren desert, but you shall not die of thirst.
You shall wander far in safety though you do not know the way.
You shall speak your words in foreign lands and all will understand.
You shall see the face of God and live.

R.
Be not afraid.
I go before you always.
Come follow me, and
I will give you rest.

2.
If you pass through raging waters in the sea, you shall not drown.
If you walk amid the burning flames, you shall not be harmed.
If you stand before the pow’r of hell and death is at your side, know that
I am with you through it all.

3.
Blessed are your poor, for the kingdom shall be theirs.
Blest are you that weep and mourn, for one day you shall laugh.
And if wicked men insult and hate you all because of me, blessed, blessed are you!

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Reflections:

1)   “Ask and you shall receive,” Jesus says in verse 24. Consider keeping a prayer journal to record your petitions and the answers God sends. It can be a record of the Lord’s faithfulness to you, a reminder of his loving presence. 

2)  Do you have times when you feel lonely and abandoned? Jesus says in verses 31-32 that his disciples will be scattered and he will be left alone. The writer  of Hebrews tells us, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” What comfort can these verses bring to you, or to others who may feel alone in this world?

_________________________

The New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

 Images courtesy of:

verse 33.   http://www.triciagoyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/take-heart.png

good listening.    http://iesbal3ctrabajando.files.wordpress.com/2010/06/marauz_good_listening.jpg

mom with newborn baby.  http://cdn.sheknows.com/articles/2011/04/parenting/mom-with-newborn-baby.jpg

verse 24.   https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7091/6971171934_3de3a54f24_b.jpg

Jesus.  http://media.salemwebnetwork.com/weblog/Pohlman/JesusName.JPG

peace dove.    http://lisawallerrogers.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/image-9-peace-dove-with-flowers1.jpg

2295.) John 16:1-15

John 16:1-15   (NRSV)

“I have said these things to you to keep you from stumbling. ²They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, an hour is coming when those who kill you will think that by doing so they are offering worship to God. ³And they will do this because they have not known the Father or me. ⁴But I have said these things to you so that when their hour comes you may remember that I told you about them.

Regarding persecution:

Jesus foresaw this and gave warning beforehand. He did not want anyone to be able to say that he had not known what to expect when he became a Christian. When Tyndale was persecuted and his enemies were out for his life because he sought to give the Bible to people in the English language, he said calmly, “I never expected anything else.” Jesus offered men his glory, but he offered them a cross as well.

–William Barclay

The Work of the Spirit

“I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. ⁵But now I am going to him who sent me; yet none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ ⁶But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your hearts.

⁷Nevertheless I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. ⁸And when he comes, he will prove the world wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: ⁹about sin, because they do not believe in me; ¹⁰about righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will see me no longer; ¹¹about judgment, because the ruler of this world has been condemned.

“Sin is the truth about man,
righteousness is the truth about God,
judgment is the inevitable combination of these two truths.”

–David Guzik

And it is also the work of the Holy Spirit to help us find the One who will rescue us from sin and judgement, and clothe us in his righteousness. How sweet to meet our Savior!

¹²“I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. ¹³When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. ¹⁴He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. ¹⁵All that the Father has is mine. For this reason I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.

Jesus frankly admitted that His own teaching was incomplete, and anticipated the further instruction of the church by the Holy Spirit. This statement of Jesus leads us to anticipate the formation of the New Testament.

Jesus Himself refutes those who say “I’ll take what Jesus taught, but not what Paul or the others taught.” Paul and the other New Testament writers taught us the many things that Jesus spoke of.  Today, the Holy Spirit continues to personally lead us into truth, but never in opposition to the Scripture.

The Holy Spirit’s ministry is revealing Jesus to us. He has many different ways, and He uses many different gifts to accomplish this, but the purpose is always the same: to reveal Jesus.

–David Guzik

_________________________

Music:

HERE  is “Speak, O Lord,” from the Gettys.

Speak, O Lord, as we come to You
To receive the food of Your Holy Word.
Take Your truth, plant it deep in us . . . 

_________________________

Reflections:

1)   Are you facing any “persecution” now — are you encountering opposition as you serve God? Thank the Lord now that all the details of your situation are already known to him, and that he will bring you through the hard times while teaching you more about who Christ is and your need of him. Ask him to help you be faithful in the struggle. The promise is sure:  God works ALL THINGS together for good to those who love him!

2)  Jesus says the Spirit of truth will “guide you into truth” and “glorify me.” How do you experience the Spirit’s work in these respects in your own life? Pray for open eyes to see the Spirit’s ministry in and through you!

_________________________

The New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

 Images courtesy of:

verse 13.   https://i.pinimg.com/736x/64/46/1e/64461e893a8767e20bafbcf17e660073–scripture-quotes-bible-verses.jpg

books of the New Testament.  http://www.bhpublishinggroup.com/supplies/supplyIMG.asp?p1=9780805406115

2294.) John 15:18-27

John 15:18-27   (NRSV)

The World’s Hatred

¹⁸“If the world hates you, be aware that it hated me before it hated you. ¹⁹If you belonged to the world, the world would love you as its own. Because you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world—therefore the world hates you.

1 John 3:13-14 (NIV)

Do not be surprised, my brothers and sisters, if the world hates you. We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love each other. Anyone who does not love remains in death.

²⁰Remember the word that I said to you, ‘Servants are not greater than their master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you; if they kept my word, they will keep yours also. ²¹But they will do all these things to you on account of my name, because they do not know him who sent me. ²²If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin. ²³Whoever hates me hates my Father also. ²⁴If I had not done among them the works that no one else did, they would not have sin. But now they have seen and hated both me and my Father. ²⁵It was to fulfill the word that is written in their law, ‘They hated me without a cause.’

The reason for the hatred: knowledge and responsibility.

Jesus did two things. First, he exposed sin. He told men of the things which grieved God and of the way in which God wished them to walk. He set the true way before men. Second, he provided the remedy for sin; and he did that in a double sense. He opened the way to forgiveness for past sin, and he provided the power which would enable a man to overcome sin and do the right. These were the privileges and the knowledge which he brought to men. Suppose a man is ill; suppose he consults a doctor, and the doctor diagnoses what is wrong and prescribes a cure. If that man disregards the diagnosis and refuses to use the cure, he has no one to blame but himself if he dies, or comes to a condition which makes life wretched for himself. 

It is possible for us to do the same. Not many are actively hostile to Christ, but many live their lives as if Christ had never come and simply disregard him. But no man can know life in this world or in the world to come if he disregards the Lord of all good life.

–William Barclay

²⁶“When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father, he will testify on my behalf. ²⁷You also are to testify because you have been with me from the beginning.”

It is remarkable that our Lord moves quickly from His words about love for one another to this word — to the world’s hatred for the Christian. The world refers to secular society. The world is organized society without God, but with its own morals and standards and value systems. It is what we ordinarily call the system, and it is what hates believers and wants nothing to do with them.

What is to be the attitude of the Christian to this kind of world in which we still live? Our Lord’s answer is found in verses 26-27. He says, When the Spirit of God has come, you will bear witness to this world. The world is not to be left in its hopeless rejection of Christ–even though it has resisted and rejected truth when it knew it to be truth.

So the Christian is not to retaliate, not to resent the hatred and persecution of the world, not to be vindictive and to return evil for evil. Rather, we are exhorted to return good for evil. Nor are we to retire from the world, to withdraw from it and build a Christian ghetto in which to hide ourselves and then throw tracts across the chasm! Rather, we are to move into the world, live in its midst just as Jesus did, and bear witness to the truth, even though it is often rejected. We are to do this for the sake of those who will receive, believe, and accept the Word.

Primarily it is the witness of the Holy Spirit. He does what no person can do. The Spirit of God opens hearts, removes blindness, and opens minds to understand. He bears witness that a word is true, gives it a ring of authenticity, so that power in witnessing rests with the Spirit, not with us. But as Jesus indicates here, we also are to bear witness here as the apostles did–as to what they saw and heard, what they themselves experienced. That is where every Christian stands. Just before His ascension Jesus said, But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses . . . (Acts l:8a). We are all to be witnesses of what Jesus has been to us, what we have experienced, what has happened in our lives, what He has done for us.

And the Holy Spirit will witness with that, using those words, simple as they may be, to open minds and to break through hard hearts, to pierce and break down barriers, and to open people up to the Word. 

–Ray Stedman

_________________________

Music:

Only light can drive out darkness. Only love can drive out hate.

HERE  is a song from my childhood — “Jesus wants me for a sunbeam.”

_________________________

Reflections:

1)   What is to be our response when we see or experience hate in the world? What is the way we can be an effective witness?

2)   Pray this: “Lord, You have placed me in this world, in this time, in this community, in this family. Now let me be Your witness today in all that I say and do. Let your love shine through me, for Jesus’ sake.”

_________________________

The New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Images courtesy of:

 John 15:18.   https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Inspirational-Images/large/John_15-18.jpg

love-hate heart.   http://www.cuorhome.net/heart-images/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/lovehate37-500×286.jpg

John 15:26-27.   https://i.pinimg.com/736x/d2/f0/34/d2f03468b93dd0a361b06e4ba0287577.jpg