Week Six of 42 Days through Good News according to John
Spiritual Practice of the Week: Thanksgiving
Have any of your Leap of Faith prayers been answered? Reflect on your Leap of Faith journey. Think about the highs and lows that you encountered along the way. Thank God for being with you on this journey! You might try starting a gratitude journal to keep a record every day of things you’re thankful that God has done. This practice can help increase your awareness and confidence that God is Good and that He is With you. As you reflect on this year’s Leap of Faith, think about which spiritual practices you especially liked. Consider incorporating them into your routine even after the Leap of Faith ends.
For families and groups, discuss your Leap of Faith prayers. Have any been answered? Reflect on your Leap of Faith journey together by sharing highs and lows that you encountered along the way. Thank God for being with you on this journey! You might try starting a gratitude journal to keep a record every day of things you’re thankful that God has done, or you might take turns saying thanks to God every night before dinner.
As you reflect on this year’s Leap of Faith, talk about which spiritual practices you especially liked. Consider incorporating them into part of your household or family’s routine even after the Leap of Faith ends.
Monday, March 30
John 18:1–14—Jesus is Arrested
1 After saying these things, Jesus crossed the Kidron Valley with his disciples and entered a grove of olive trees. 2 Judas, the betrayer, knew this place, because Jesus had often gone there with his disciples. 3 The leading priests and Pharisees had given Judas a contingent of Roman soldiers and Temple guards to accompany him. Now with blazing torches, lanterns, and weapons, they arrived at the olive grove.
4 Jesus fully realized all that was going to happen to him, so he stepped forward to meet them. “Who are you looking for?” he asked.
5 “Jesus the Nazarene,” they replied.
“I Am he,” Jesus said. (Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them.) 6 As Jesus said “I Am he,” they all drew back and fell to the ground! 7 Once more he asked them, “Who are you looking for?”
And again they replied, “Jesus the Nazarene.”
8 “I told you that I Am he,” Jesus said. “And since I am the one you want, let these others go.” 9 He did this to fulfill his own statement: “I did not lose a single one of those you have given me.”
10 Then Simon Peter drew a sword and slashed off the right ear of Malchus, the high priest’s slave. 11 But Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword back into its sheath. Shall I not drink from the cup of suffering the Father has given me?”
12 So the soldiers, their commanding officer, and the Temple guards arrested Jesus and tied him up. 13 First they took him to Annas, the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest at that time. 14 Caiaphas was the one who had told the other Jewish leaders, “It’s better that one man should die for the people.”
Points of Interest
- ‘they all drew back and fell to the ground’—though he is on one level simply saying, ‘I’m the one you’re looking for,’ he is also evoking God’s name, I AM (Exodus 3:14). It’s not just a bluff. There’s such power behind it that it actually bowls them over.
- ‘I did not lose a single one’—the good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep (10:11). Jesus gives himself up in such a way that his flock is safe.
- ‘Simon Peter drew a sword and slashed off the right ear of Malchus’—I find this equal parts heroic and comical—cute even. Peter is putting his life in danger in an effort to rescue Jesus, and I have to respect him for that. But Jesus doesn’t need rescuing, and if he did Peter wouldn’t be the one to do it. Jesus does more damage to the mob merely by saying his name than Peter does by drawing a sword. It’s pretty clear that if Jesus wanted to, he could handle this mob fairly easily without Peter’s help.
- ‘they took him to Annas, the father-in-law of Caiaphas’—Caiaphas is the official high priest as far as the Romans are concerned, but Annas may be considered the ‘real’ high priest by the Jewish people; Annas had been deposed by the Romans about fifteen years before, but as far as Jewish religious law is concerned high priest is a lifetime appointment (IVP Bible Background Commentary).
Taking It Home
- For you: It’s a pretty sure bet that if any of us had a loud mob of angry people, including someone who had previously been one of our closest friends, coming after us and treating us like criminals, we would just crumble to the ground in fear and hurt. But Jesus stands confidently in the face of the hostility and accusations that come his way. Are there things you feel accused of? This could be actual accusations from other people (hopefully for your sake no actual mobs with torches are after you) or just an internal voice of strong criticism. Spend some time talking to Jesus about those things. The Bible tells us that accusation is the work of the devil, and that we don’t need to tolerate it. If you feel like you can identify the specific accusation, consider praying something like this:
“I reject the lie of {insert accusation here} in Jesus name” or “I say to any spirits of accusation or criticism to go in Jesus name.”
Opposed to Satan, Jesus makes it his aim to bless and encourage. Ask Jesus to show you his encouragement and truth in those places where you feel accused. - For your 6: The image of Jesus’ three small words sending this huffy, war-like crowd to the ground reminds us a little bit of the story of when David, a mere shepherd boy, takes down Goliath, a giant warrior (literally— a giant), with a small stone and a slingshot. The power of God on your side seems to be able to conquer anything. Ask Jesus to show that power to your 6. Just as the crowds are literally blown to the ground by the words of Jesus, pray that your 6 would also be blown away by Jesus—but in a good way.
- For our church: It’s safe to say that this day counts as a very, very bad one for Jesus and his disciples. Maybe because we know how the story ends, we easily overlook just how hard this would have been for them in the moment. Ask Jesus to give us grace, confidence and comfort to navigate our own hard times well. Ask Jesus to make our church more like him—patiently enduring and staying faithful—and less like Peter—unhelpfully taking initiative and impulsively cutting off people’s ears.
