Day 309 – Jesus’ Arrest

• Well, if this was a film, the slow thoughtful bit with Jesus in the upper room speaking to His disciples will have passed, and the tension and music will start ramping up as the night-time action begins. Today’s action-packed story is recounted by all four gospel writers (Mark 14 is the other one if you want to read the set). I enjoyed reading the different accounts, and I hope you did too, especially as these are familiar words. You should have noticed several differences in the events, although none of them contradict with each other, of course.
• Before the excitement of the arrest, what did Jesus do? Why do you think Jesus prayed? How and where dis He pray?
• Why do you think Jesus called upon some of His closest disciples to watch over Him? What temptations would Jesus have faced at this time?
• When Jesus was praying that God would “take the cup away from him”, what do you think He meant? Do you think He wanted to not go on? Why – and this is important – did Jesus not give up? What verse can you point to?
• Jesus’ disciples fell asleep more than once. Do you think they understood the significance of the event that were happening, or that were to come? Have you ever let a friend down, like they did here? How did you feel afterwards?
• As the moment of Jesus’ arrest drew closer, Judas brought a large crowd armed with swords and clubs, including a number of the chief priests and teachers of the Law. Think for a moment what that scene must have been like. It brings to my mind the pitchfork waving mob that marched on the castle in Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast”! You could watch one of the ways a modern film showed it in the video below. What do you think the mob expected Jesus to do?
• What did Judas do? If you call someone a “Judas” now, what are you calling them?
• How did Jesus react to the betrayal? Matthew 26:52-56 will help. Was Jesus expecting the events of the evening? Even at this time, how did Jesus show love to His “enemies” with the healing of the centurion’s ear?
• The same verse also talks about the disciples fleeing. What do you think of this response? What do you think you would have done in the situation?

Despite being surrounded by people, Jesus is alone now. Judas betrayed Him. Peter will deny Him three times in our next passage. The rest of the disciples have fled. The chief priests and teachers who claim to love God have put Him in chains. The crowd that shouted “Hosanna” a few days earlier have come with clubs and swords to see Him taken away.

As Jesus was being marched out of the garden, what must He have been thinking? He was about to go to the cross, and not just for nice, moral people. He was about to go to the cross for Judas, for Peter, for the disciples, for the priests and for all those in the crowd. What love!

What love. It blows my mind just to think of it.