This Week Please Read Chapter 26 from the Story "The Hour of Darkness" and Matthew 26-27; Mark 14-15; Luke 22-23; John 13-14; 16-19
Timeless Truth: It is finished!
Knowing that His
time had come, Jesus spent His last few hours with His disciples. The Passover was approaching so they prepared
a customary feast. But this was no
ordinary Passover meal; Jesus was about to change history. At His “last supper,” He taught the disciples
a significant lesson by washing their feet.
He even washed Judas’ feet, although He knew Judas would betray
Him. Then Jesus took the unleavened
bread and cup of wine from the Passover meal and instituted the New Covenant,
the Covenant that Jeremiah and Ezekiel had promised centuries ago. Aware of His God-ordained destiny, Jesus
clarified His relationship to the Father so that His disciples might understand
what lay ahead. He promised them that an
advocate, the Spirit, would come and help after His own departure. After a lengthy prayer to the Father for His
glorification, Jesus led this rag-tag group through the night to the Garden of
Gethsemane.
What Peter lacked
in judgment, he made up for in zeal.
Peter pledged to even die with his Lord rather than abandon Him. But Jesus knew that He would go through His
ordeal alone. He told Peter that he
would disown Him three times before dawn.
Jesus’ anguish for what was to come drove Him to agonizing prayer. Peter and his companions quickly exchanged
fidelity for forty winks while Jesus prayed, searching to see if there was any
way to avoid what was awaiting Him. He
answered His own prayer when He acknowledged that He would do God’s will and
not His own. Then Jesus’ betrayer and
conspirators arrived to arrest Him. They
escorted Him to Caiaphas’ kangaroo court.
No one could find legitimate charges against Jesus until He affirmed His
identity—Messiah, the Son of God. The
Sanhedrin charged Him with blasphemy and sentenced Him to death. The religious henchmen beat and belittled
their legitimate King. Watching from a
safe distance, Peter denied knowing Jesus three times before the rooster
crowed. Stunned and ashamed, he left in
bitter humiliation. Judas, in a sudden moment of remorse, returned the blood
money and opted for a rope.
Meanwhile, Pilate
was stuck between a rock and a hard place.
The Jews wanted Jesus crucified, and he wanted Caesar’s sustained
support. What’s a governor of a no-name,
backwater region of Rome to do?
Interrogating Jesus himself, he found no legitimate charge to pin on
this man. Yet the pressure was escalating from the crowd as they threatened to
turn him in to Caesar as a rebel sympathizer.
Pilate’s thug soldiers clothed, beat and crowned Jesus with contempt
before they marched Him to the cross.
Crucifixion was an
exceptionally cruel way to die. The
public execution drew hordes of scornful onlookers. Their jeers challenged Jesus to save
Himself. They failed to grasp that Jesus
was there to save them. One of the two
criminals crucified with Jesus, however, got the picture. His faith secured his place in paradise. Even the creation itself testified to the
enormity of this event. As sin overcame
Jesus, darkness eclipsed the whole land.
“It is finished,”
He proclaimed. At that very moment, the
temple curtain was torn, an earthquake split rocks and tombs were opened. It was finished. What could compel the Son of God to endure
such torture? Finishing. Finishing the work that the Father sent Him
to do. The debt of all sinners was put
on Jesus who alone could pay it in full.
God is holy, loving and just. His
love compels Him to pursue His people, but His holiness requires justice for
sin. The mob of mockers witnessed a
Lower Story drama. A few faithful
disciples witnessed a Lower Story injustice.
But God witnessed the Upper Story culmination of a plan prepared before
the foundation of the world. It was no
surprise. It was justice. And it was finished.
Questions
- In what ways does Jesus’ preparation and celebration of his final Passover meal parallel the original Passover? What does this teach us about the purpose of Jesus’ death? (Review Exodus. 12:1-13, 21-27, John 1:29 and 1 Corinthians 5:7-8 )
- What was Jesus trying to teach the disciples when he washed their feet? What are some ways you can wash each others’ feet as a small group?
- Review Jeremiah 31:34 and Ezekiel 36:26-28, where the prophets describe the new covenant. What are some of the characteristics of the new covenant listed in these verses? How does Jesus fulfill these promises?
- Look back at pages 305- 306. How would you describe Jesus’ special relationship to the Father?
- How is the Spirit described on p. 306? How have you experienced the Holy Spirit in your life?
- What can we learn about Jesus and about prayer from the Garden of Gethsemane? (p. 307-308)?
- Compare Judas with Peter after each betrayed Jesus (p. 310). How can you tell the difference between remorse and repentance?
- The Sanhedrin could find no evidence to charge Jesus (p. 309). (Jewish Law, Deut. 17:6, required two witnesses.) Three times Pilate declared, “I find no basis for a charge against him,” (p. 311). Why is this important? Why was Jesus crucified?
- Discuss the irony of the statement, “He saved others but He can’t save himself.” How do you feel that such a price was paid for you?
- Compare Jesus as King to Israel’s and Judah’s former kings, and the religious leaders of Jesus’ day to Israel’s religious leaders in the past. Why did Israel need King Jesus?
