Matthew 26:36-56

Today we begin Jesus’ Passion – it starts with His praying to His Father and His arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane. Each of the Gospels reports on this Garden and Jesus’ arrest, but John does not include Jesus’ prayer with His Father.

As He arrived in the Garden, He took forward with Him the three disciples (Peter, James, and John) that He had chosen for special occasions at least two other times – His Transfiguration and His healing of Jairus’ daughter. That is, Jesus knew that He would be going through this terrible ordeal so He brought forward His three closest disciples so that He might gain strength from their support. Alas, their failure to stay awake and be with Jesus is a sad event.

So I put myself there along with Peter, James, and John. They nod off to sleep. Do I join them or do I stay awake for Jesus? Maybe they had too much wine at that Passover meal? Did I? Or maybe they were just tired from a long day? And me? Tired? Always, it seems! But too tired to stay awake with Jesus? Like Peter, James, and John? Alas, their failure is my failure. All too often I’ve been too tired to “stay awake” with Jesus – for whatever He is asking me to do. Carol recalls a Bible Study back in Texas when one of her friends soundly declared that these three disciples were failures, that there was no way that he would have slept after Jesus asked him to stay awake. I wish I had that kind of conviction in my life, but I think I would have fallen asleep.

See also:

• November 12 (2019) / Matt. 26:36-46
• November 14 (2019) / Matt. 26:47-56

John 17:1-26

I will have to post later – Carol and I have Audra for today and overnight. But for now, please read all my comments from my 2019 posts below. This chapter in John, Jesus’ “High Priestly Prayer” is powerful. I am touched every time I read it.

See also:

• November 9 (2019) / John 17:1-5
• November 10 (2019) / John 17:6-19
• November 11 (2019) / John 17:20-26

John 16:1-33

There is a great deal of Jesus speaking about the Holy Spirit in today’s reading. See my comments in the first link below.

Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God. (v. 16b) This statement is so true in our own time, with Islamic extremists convinced that their murder of western Christians will bring them eternal life before Allah. So sad. I pray often for God to intervene for His people in this “holy war” that they are waging. But, no doubt, He loves each and every Moslem who is fighting against His Son.

I posted yesterday on Jesus’ comments about “asking”, that He twice discussed the topic of asking. Again today He speaks of the disciples’ asking and again He repeats Himself: Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in My name, He will give it to you. Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full. (vv. 23b-24) … <and> … In that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf… (v. 26) In repeating Himself on this topic, Jesus seems to elevate the disciples’ position before the Father, that they can go directly to the Father with their petitions “in Jesus’ name” without needing Jesus’ direct intercession, again only that they ask “in My name”. That is, it seems to be the case that we have these two “asking” options in our prayer life, to ask the Father directly or to ask Jesus to intercede with the Father for us. Am I reading and interpreting this passage correctly? Your thoughts…?

See also:

• November 6 (2019) / John 16:1-15
• November 7 (2019) / John 16:16-24
• November 8 (2019) / John 16:25-33

John 15:1-27

If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. … You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in My name, He may give it to you. (vv. 7, 16 ) I commented below in that first post how Jesus emphasizes His words by repeating certain words, phrases, and compete thoughts. Here Jesus’ repetition is “asking”, with a prelude of “abiding” occurring three times – we abiding in Jesus; His words abiding in us; and the fruit that we bear abiding. I looked up the word abiding: “lasting a long time; enduring”. (Oxford Dictionaries) So if we want to be successful in our “asking” prayer life, we need to (1) last a long time (endure) with Jesus; (2) have His words lasting a long time (enduring) in us; and (3) have the fruit that we bear lasting a long time (enduring). Those of us reading these words together have been a long time with Jesus – certainly at different levels, but still with Him. His words have been with us a long time – our presence and participation in Eucharistic celebrations years on end have provided us countless Gospel lessons and sermons (His words) to digest. Then there’s the question of fruit that we bear. In that same first post below I discussed the concept of fruit that we bear. There I talked in terms of converts or love – surely there’s more. Just now I’m thinking of service – service to our church, to our friends, to our neighborhood, to people far away we don’t even know. I’m not sure what “fruit” God is asking of us, but whatever that fruit is, if it’s part of our lives our “asking” prayer lives will become more powerful.

See also:

• November 3 (2019) / John 15:1-8
• November 4 (2019) / John 15:9-17
• November 5 (2019) / John 15:18-27

John 14:12-31

Our Men’s Group last night watched Archbishop Foley Beach’s “Three Streams” talk on the Holy Spirit, the Spirit stream in our Three Streams heritage. In his talk he quoted our verses 16 and 17 today: And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. You know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. The Archbishop highlighted a number of aspects of these verses, but what stuck with me was the ending, that the Holy Spirit dwells with us (us together) and in us (you/me, individually). That is, as a group we are a Spirit-filled church and individually we are Spirit-filled. All we have to do is ask.

I cannot read these Holy Spirit sections today, tomorrow, and Friday without remembering the transformation in my life two years ago when I did that in-depth study of the Holy Spirit from Jesus’ Last Supper talks, as recorded in John chapters 14-16. I remember saying back then and still today, “Me and the Holy Spirit are getting tight!” (Please forgive my pedestrian language.) Back then I began to see the Holy Spirit more personally, more a “Being” than an “It”, one with whom I could speak my mind, my troubles, my prayers. And doing so does not diminish the Father or the Son at all; Jesus says in verse 13, “Whatever you ask in My name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.” Each of the members of the Trinity is glorified when any one of them is glorified. We need more Holy Spirit power, folks, in our church and in our personal lives. Get tight with Him!

See also:

• November 1 (2019) / John 14:12-24
• November 2 (2019) / John 14:25-31

John 14:1-11

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (v. 6) I have quoted this verse often, especially in the context of non-Christians’ eternal destination, as in “What about people who have never heard the Gospel?” or “Will Ghandi be in Heaven?” If someone has not been born again, if she or he has not asked for Jesus’ forgiveness and accepted His mercy, can they be saved? And my answer is that I don’t know, but that Jesus is the entry way to the Father. If He says “Come in”, then they will enter. Yes, even Jews, Moslems, Buddhists, Hindus, atheists. It’s Jesus’ call, not ours.

See also: October 31 (2019) / John 14:1-11

Matthew 26:30-35, Mark 14:26-31, and Luke 22:31-38

With today’s readings about Jesus foretelling Peter’s denial, the Synoptic writers end the Last Supper. The next readings in these three Gospels have Jesus and the disciples at Gethsemane. John also covers Peter’s denial at the end of his chapter 13. I commented on that yesterday. Although the Synoptic Gospels have the Last Supper ended, we still have four chapters in John before we leave that Upper Room.

At this Last Supper we have Judas’ betrayal and Peter’s denial, together with the other ten also chiming in as to their willingness to suffer with Jesus. And these are people who have spent three years with Jesus (according to the best chronologies that scholars have determined) and will still fall away when the going gets tough. I just finished reading The Night of the Barbarians, a book written by a Slovak Cardinal who was imprisoned for his faith (1960-1968) during the Communist repression of Central and Eastern Europe (1948/50 – 1989). He spoke of hundreds, possibly even thousands of other bishops, priests, and nuns who were likewise arrested and questioned (including torture for some), deprived of their clerical offices, and sent away to labor camps and prisons. But he also spoke derisively of other priests and bishops who compromised their vows by going along with the Communist authorities and were eventually excommunicated by the Vatican. Are we any different? I suspect that very few of us have been tested so dramatically for our faith. We can be thankful for that, but even with that we need to remember to pray regularly for the persecuted church.

See also:

• October 27 (2019) / Matt. 26:30-35
• October 28 (2019) / Mark 14:26-31
• October 29 (2019) / Luke 22:31-38

John 13:18-38

In verse 33b Jesus says, “Where I am going you cannot come.” Then He says those two verses on “a new commandment” and “love one another”. But in verse 36 Peter comes right back to “Lord, where are you going?” One wonders if Peter even heard Jesus speaking of “a new commandment” and “love one another”! But if Peter missed it, that is so like me. I get so quickly distracted when reading Scripture or listening to a sermon that a number of verses or a number of sentences will pass me right by. It takes effort and discipline to really listen to what I’m reading or to what I’m hearing!

John has details on the betrayal that the Synoptic writers do not include. Not surprising in that there is much agreement that John was that disciple …whom Jesus loved who asked Jesus to identify the betrayer. (vv. 23b, 25) So if you buy the notion that John was “the disciple whom Jesus loved” and that John wrote this Gospel, then clearly John had more information on the betrayal than the Synoptic writers. [For more on “the disciple whom Jesus loved, see also John 20:2 and John 21:20, followed by John 21:24.]

See also:

• October 24 (2019) / John 13:18-30
• October 26 (2019) / John 13:31-35
• October 30 (2019) / John 13:36-38

John 13:1-17

Archbishop Beach today (slightly edited): …self-help, self-image, self-actualization … self-denial! Abp. Beach’s words ring true with today’s reading. Jesus doesn’t talk about self-denial in washing His disciples’ feet, but He clearly demonstrates it! If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. (v. 14) So many times I have told the kids at Avanza – know Him, love Him, serve Him! Jesus wants a life of service from us. Service within our family, service within our church, service within our neighborhood. Verse 17: If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.

See also: October 25 (2019) / John 13:1-17