Tag Archives: kiss

THE GOSPEL OF MARK – ONLY JESUS!

Bible Study, ,

ONLY JESUS!

43 Just as he was speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, appeared. With him was a crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priests, the teachers of the law, and the elders.
44 Now the betrayer had arranged a signal with them: “The one I kiss is the man; arrest him and lead him away under guard.” 45 Going at once to Jesus, Judas said, “Rabbi!” and kissed him. 46 The men seized Jesus and arrested him. 47 Then one of those standing near drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear.
48 “Am I leading a rebellion,” said Jesus, “that you have come out with swords and clubs to capture me? 49 Every day I was with you, teaching in the temple courts, and you did not arrest me. But the Scriptures must be fulfilled.” 50 Then everyone deserted him and fled.
51 A young man, wearing nothing but a linen garment, was following Jesus. When they seized him, 52 he fled naked, leaving his garment behind. Mark 14:43-52

God’s moment is always perfect. Once His decision had been made, Jesus didn’t have to hang around waiting. The gang of ruffians, led by Judas, emerged from the shadows. Recruited from the street by religious leaders, they were lured into doing the dirty work of the so-called “holy” ones.

Following Judas’ pre-arranged signal, they pounced on Jesus as though He were some dangerous criminal. Jesus protested but they ignored Him and “roughed” Him up just to warn Him not to try anything.

The disciples were stunned. What was all this about and what was Judas up to? They always knew there was something strange about him. He was never really one of them – always cagey, always aloof.

In a vain attempt to do something, Peter unsheathed his sword and took a swipe at the nearest guy, cleanly slicing off his ear. That didn’t work. The disciples, realising that any resistance was hopeless, took off and fled into the darkness, leaving Jesus at the mercy of ruthless men.

An anonymous young man got mixed up in this. Who was he? Most likely the one telling the story, otherwise why the detail?

One thing stands out clearly in this whole story; no other religious book relates the price the originator had to pay to provide the benefits of his life and death for those who follow him. Buddha? Mohammed? Sun Myung Moon? You can think of the religious system of any other initiator and you come up empty. They can tell you what to believe (on whose authority?) and what to do (to gain the god’s approval) but only Jesus, the Son of God, died for the benefit of the whole world to reconcile mankind to the Father!

THE GOSPEL OF LUKE – LET THEM BE, EVEN IN THIS

Bible Study, ,

LET THEM BE, EVEN IN THIS

“No sooner were the words out of His mouth than a crowd showed up, Judas, the one from the Twelve, in the lead. He came right up to Jesus to kiss Him. Jesus said, ‘Judas, you would betray the Son of Man with a kiss?’

“When those with Him saw what was happening, they said, ‘Master, shall we fight?’ One of them took a swing at the Chief Priest’s servant and cut off his right ear.

“Jesus said, ‘Let them be. Even in this.’ Then touching the servant’s ear, He healed him.” Luke 22:47-51.

Picture the scene. A mob, led by Judas, one of Jesus’ followers, moves menacingly towards Jesus, brandishing swords and clubs. Luke does not mention who was in charge. John tells us that there were soldiers and officials from among the crowd, sent by the chief priests to arrest Him.

Instead of slinking away into the darkness among the tress, Jesus steps forward to meet them. Judas has a prearranged signal – ‘the one I kiss’ – to identify Him. A gentle rebuke from Jesus, ‘Judas, you would betray the Son of Man with a kiss?’ does not even touch his hardened heart. How bizarre that Judas would choose a greeting of affection to show the soldiers whom to grab. This was surely an idea straight from Satan whom Luke said had taken possession of him.

The disciples react in a typically human way. “Boys, let’s fight.” Their entire disciple training to be followers of Jesus and to wear the Rabbi’s yoke goes straight out of the window. What happened to “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you” and, “Turn the other cheek”? They are in no apparent danger. The soldiers are only interested in Jesus.

One of the disciples, the ever-impulsive Peter, lashes out with his sword – slicing off the ear of the one nearest to him. It happens to be Malchus, a high-ranking servant of the high priest. Now there’s going to be trouble! That action immediately involves the disciples and puts them in danger of arrest along with Jesus.

In the midst of the tumult, Jesus keeps His cool and remains who He is, the Son of Man and the Son of God. He stands as God’s representative and does what His Father does – restores the man’s severed ear.

What would Malchus remember of that whole incident when he lay in bed that night? Would he ever forget the face of the man they arrested as a criminal, the man who reattached his ear and miraculously stopped the pain and bleeding, in the middle of His own crisis? Would he ever understand the words and attitude of Jesus – “‘Let them be. Even in this'”? Six simple words in a paraphrase version, but loaded with significance!

Jesus had once informed His opponents, ‘No one takes my life from me. I have the power to lay it down and I have the power to take it up again. This was given to me by my Father.’ In that statement, He pulls the rug from under His enemies’ feet. They may think that they are in charge but they cannot do a thing to Him without His Father’s permission and His submission.

His statement also clearly indicates who takes responsibility for His arrest, trial and crucifixion – all those who were implicated in the event. This is a perfect example of God’s sovereignty working together with man’s responsibility. Our little brains will never be able to work out how He did it.

It was God’s plan, devised before the foundation of the world, working perfectly to effect man’s salvation but implemented through man’s wickedness so that God’s glory – His disposition of compassion and mercy, could be put on display. Wow!

Brazen Treachery

Bible Study, , ,

BRAZEN TREACHERY

Just as He was speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, appeared. With him was a crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders. Now the betrayer had arranged a signal with them: ‘The one I kiss is the man; arrest Him and lead Him away under guard.’ Going at once to Jesus, Judas said, ‘Rabbi!’ and kissed Him. The men seized Him and arrested Him. Then one of those standing near drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear.

‘Am I leading a rebellion,’ said Jesus,’ that you have come out with swords and clubs to capture me? Every day I was with you, teaching in the temple courts, and you did not attest me. But the Scriptures must be fulfilled.’ Then everyone deserted Him and fled. (Mark 14: 43-50)

How low could Judas sink to do this treacherous deed?

The moment had come. Jesus was prepared. He had fought His battle in the garden and won. His spirit was at rest, submitted to the Father and willing to face His ordeal through the power of the Holy Spirit. It was time for the action to begin.

How terrible that it had to be one of His own who would sell Him out to the enemy. Notice how Judas did it. First of all he walked up to Jesus and called Him ‘Rabbi’. What did that mean? To every disciples, his rabbi was everything – his leader, his teacher, his mentor, his example, and his model – everything to shape him into a replica of his master. Jesus had bent all His energies to train these twelve men to be like Him, not only in their actions and behaviour but also in their very heart and attitude.

How could Judas so brazenly address Jesus as ‘Rabbi’ when his very word betrayed his hypocrisy? He had become just like the ones he now served. With a sneer and a mocking smile, he walked straight up to Jesus and kissed Him. His very action must have cut Jesus to the heart.

It was a signal for the unruly mob to grab Jesus and tie Him up like a common criminal; Jesus’ hands, which had brought healing, comfort and life to many were now bound and he was dragged off to face the hatred of the most religious of all Israel’s people! Jesus protested. Why? He did not resist arrest. He questioned their outrageous behaviour when He was at their mercy at any time. He was a public figure, teaching and preaching to the crowds, not skulking in dark corners to dodge the authorities.

They could have taken Him at any time, but they waited until He was alone with His friends and out of the public eye. He knew that the religious leaders were too cowardly to order His arrest in the daylight. It was a deed of darkness. It had to be done under cover of darkness so that, by the time the city awoke, the trial would be over and He would be condemned to die. The people would have no say, and they could do nothing about it.

What a shock it must have been for His disciples! They had chosen not to take notice of His repeated warnings. Suddenly, everything He had told them began to happen. Judas, the missing disciple that none of them even bothered to ask about, appeared out of the darkness leading a mob of ruffians. Jesus was grabbed and bound, dragged away unprotesting while they gaped in horror.

They did not wait for the inevitable. No way were they going to be arrested with Him. Without a backward look, they fled into the darkness of the olive grove while the taunts and shouts of the arresting mob grew fainter. Perhaps they stopped in the depth of the garden, breathless and trembling, wondering what it was all about and where their Master was being taken.

When they realised that they were not being targeted, they quietly retraced their steps, listening for the noisy crowd and following them into the city. Where were they taking Him? They could only guess. To the headquarters of the Sanhedrin, no doubt, or perhaps to the house of the high priest.

Their minds were in a whirl. So it was Judas after all whom Jesus had unmasked at the Passover meal. The traitor! None of them betrayed Him, but they were no better. Where were they when He needed them the most? Trembling in the darkness, leaving Him to face the mob alone.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Have you read my new book, Learning to be a Son – The Way to the Father’s Heart (copyright 2015, Partridge Publishing)? You’ll love it!

Available on www.amazon.com in paperback, e-book or kindle version or order directly from the publisher at www.partridgepublishing.com.

Check out my Blog site – www.learningtobeason.wordpress.com