Plotting and Betrayal
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Good morning! Welcome to Greenwood Sanctuary. This is always such a wonderful weekend of simply enjoying God’s marvelous creation. Immediately following the conclusion of our service this morning will be our baptisms. We have a few here that have committed to be baptized this morning and if anyone else would like to also, we will allow time for that as well.
We now find ourselves in chapter 22 of Luke’s gospel. Chapter 23 concluded with what is known as the Olivet Discourse where He speaks prophetically of things to come—from the temple’s destruction, to wars and persecution, and also to His return. He doesn’t give us dates, but rather signs and it is these signs, that Jesus says in Matthew’s parallel account, “are but the beginning of the birth pains” (Matthew 24:8).
Chapter 21 concludes by telling us that every day Jesus was going into the temple to teach and to preach. This, no doubt, was the final straw for the religious leaders. Up to this point you could feel tensions rising and the increasing frustration of the religious leaders.
Back in chapter 19, there desire for His end was already on their hearts.
And he was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people were seeking to destroy him, but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people were hanging on his words.
Then immediately following Jesus’ parable of the wicked tenants—which called the religious leaders out for their hypocrisy and a prophetic word predicting they would kill Him—were further angered and further desired to kill Him.
The scribes and the chief priests sought to lay hands on him at that very hour, for they perceived that he had told this parable against them, but they feared the people.
And now with Passover on the horizon, these religious leaders felt desperation begin to creep in. If Jesus’ influence spread to the hundreds of thousands of visitors, then surely they’d never find the opportunity to put Him to death.
Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread drew near, which is called the Passover. And the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how to put him to death, for they feared the people.
What would they do? A betrayal of one of the 12 would work perfectly for their plan. So let us turn to Luke 22 as we begin our study this morning.
PRAY
A Betrayal
A Betrayal
Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread drew near, which is called the Passover. And the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how to put him to death, for they feared the people.
Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve. He went away and conferred with the chief priests and officers how he might betray him to them. And they were glad, and agreed to give him money. So he consented and sought an opportunity to betray him to them in the absence of a crowd.
This is a portion of Scripture we looked at on Easter Sunday. And if you’re like me, you probably can’t remember that far back. But just to touch on it here again—the text does not suggest demonic possession, but rather demonic influence. It is the same language we see in Acts 5 with Ananias.
But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land?
As R. Kent Hughes so aptly puts it:
Judas’ heart was under the devil’s influence. But on each occasion Satan could not have entered into Judas unless Judas opened the door.
It seems from the gospel texts, too, that Judas’ heart was given over to money rather than God. As Jesus so pointedly said in Matthew 6:24 “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”
John’s gospel gives us further detail of Judas’ heart when he spoke up after Mary anointed Jesus with expensive oil.
He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it.
Judas—as one of Jesus’ 12—was a perfect co-conspirator for the religious leaders because he would know Jesus’ schedule. He would know where He would be at a time of night when the city was silent and asleep.
Again, looking to John’s gospel, it helps to set the stage for what was happening.
Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him,
This is a heartbreakingly beautiful passage because it further reveals the heart of Jesus. He knew betrayal was coming. He knew whom the betrayer would be; and even so, “He loved them to the end.” And this is Jesus’ heart toward everyone. Even though we sin against Him. Even though our hearts, at times, betray Him. Even though we fall so terribly short of the glory of God—He continues to love us.
There is a tenderness in the heart and love of Jesus that we will never know from any other relationship in our lives. I’ve failed and fallen short more times than I can count, and it breaks me. But there is also a wonderful hope knowing that Jesus has loved me through it all and will continue to love me to the end.
And He will continue to love you to the end. And this isn’t said to encourage us to continue walking in sin; “No matter what I do, Jesus will continue to love me. Therefore I can continue to live in the flesh and satisfy its desires…” No! But it is said to reveal His love and His graciousness towards us. It is said that when we do sin, we find comfort in His arms as we turn away from our sin.
As John 13 continues, we read of the beautiful moment where Jesus washes the feet of His disciples. And we come to verse 18 and listen to what Jesus says.
I am not speaking of all of you; I know whom I have chosen. But the Scripture will be fulfilled, ‘He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.’
And Jesus here is quoting from the book of Psalm 41:9 where David references his close friend Ahithophel, who betrayed him. And that expression of “lifting his heel against me” is used to describe a horse lifting its back foot and delivering a deadly kick. Not sure if anyone here has worked with horses before, but they have a wicked kick!
I remember going to a horse camp when I was 12, I believe, and one of the kids there received one of these. Fortunately, they were far enough back that it just knocked them over without doing any significant damage.
Sadly, the parallel between Ahithophel and Judas doesn’t end with the betrayal but also their ends. Because 2 Samuel tells us that after Ahithophel betrayed king David, he set his house in order and hanged himself. Likewise, Judas met the same fate.
Jesus knew the heart of Judas, and even still, sought the redemption of His soul. As John’s gospel continues in chapter 13, verse 26:John 13:26 “Jesus answered, “It is he to whom I will give this morsel of bread when I have dipped it.” So when he had dipped the morsel, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot.”
This was more than just a sign to the other 11. Understanding the significance of this gesture requires us to step into the ancient culture. Because when a host of a meal would take a morsel from the table and dip it in the common dish and give it to another it was a sign of honor and deep friendship.
Knowing that makes this moment all the more heartbreaking. Jesus could have called him a coward, a hypocrite, a selfish money-worshipper. But instead, through this act, He calls Judas a dear friend.
And then Jesus would tell Judas that what he was about to do, to do it quickly. And this would be the moment they planned for—as verse 6 in our study of Luke tells us—”an opportunity to betray him in the absence of a crowd.”
Let us now continue on in Luke 22, verse 7.
Passover with the Disciples
Passover with the Disciples
Then came the day of Unleavened Bread, on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. So Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat it.” They said to him, “Where will you have us prepare it?” He said to them, “Behold, when you have entered the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him into the house that he enters and tell the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says to you, Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ And he will show you a large upper room furnished; prepare it there.” And they went and found it just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover.
The Passover feast was a time of celebration and remembrance. There was an order to the celebration feast; and the people would recline at table while they ate because it signified they were no longer slaves, unlike they way they at while slaves in Egypt.
In this manner you shall eat it: with your belt fastened, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. And you shall eat it in haste. It is the Lord’s Passover.
Then the host would take the celebrants through each of the foods and how they represented a certain part of their deliverance. For example, the bitter herbs would represent the bitterness of their slavery. The boiled fruits would form a texture and color that would remind them of the bricks they made during their enslavement.
The roasted lamb was a representation of the lamb’s blood they put on the doorposts, and the eating of the lamb, and the passing of the angel over their homes. And while the celebration lasted late into the night, afterwards, many would return to the temple at midnight to continue in worship and in prayer. It was a wonderful, celebratory moment for the nation of Israel.
You may also notice a resemblance to Jesus’ entrance into the city where He gives His disciples instruction to find a colt of a donkey, and tell the owner the Lord has need of it, and there as well, Scripture tells us they found it just as he had told them.
To me, this reveals the full control Jesus had throughout the moment. Although Satan was at work, Jesus was in control of the entire moment. He was not undone by some satanic plot; rather, He accomplished everything He was sent to do!
And so with everything prepared and set, Jesus arrives with the other 10 to the upper room and partake of the Passover meal. Let us continue, verse 14.
The Lord’s Supper
The Lord’s Supper
And when the hour came, he reclined at table, and the apostles with him. And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, “Take this, and divide it among yourselves. For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.
As we close this morning, we too, will partake of communion together as a remembrance of what the Lord has done for us.
I love how R. Kent Hughes explains this moment from Jesus’ perspective. He writes:
Jesus had an intense longing for this special time alone with his disciples at the eating of his last Passover meal. This is also why he had taken such elaborate preparations to insure that the meal be undisturbed. He was eager to teach them from that meal the most wonderful truths ever revealed. That meal would be transformed forever. Its celebration would become an acted parable of his life and death. Jesus would recoil at the reality of the cross but not from this!
His heart also swelled at the thought of the next time he would eat with his own beyond history. Jesus’ heart traveled beyond the sorrow and death to reunion with them in lavish festal joy. These anticipated joys sustained him in this crucial hour. As the writer to the Hebrews put it, “who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame” (Hebrews 12:2). And the center of that joy is that his redeemed will sit with him at table in the kingdom.
Whenever we partake of communion together, we ought to do so with a heavenly hope in our hearts of that ultimate Communion with our Savior. We think of the words of Paul, and this is exactly why he says it. He writes,
For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
There is an eagerness in Jesus seen here to fellowship with His disciples and dine with them, and that is no doubt shared with us in the marriage supper of the Lamb described in Revelation. This is the heart of our God.
So in this beautiful moment, Jesus shares in the intimacy of communal oneness. They share of the bread and the wine which represents this unity. But there is also a connection to Passover within the elements as well.
In verse 19 it tells us that Jesus bork the bread and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” Remember how we mentioned that the bitter herbs represented the bitterness of slavery. The different portions of food throughout the Passover meal representing something or another as a means to remember their affliction and celebrate their freedom? The bread itself was equated with—often called—the bread of affliction because it was seen as a reminder to their persecution in Egpyt.
You shall eat no leavened bread with it. Seven days you shall eat it with unleavened bread, the bread of affliction—for you came out of the land of Egypt in haste—that all the days of your life you may remember the day when you came out of the land of Egypt.
The bread represented the nations affliction, but now Jesus has given it a deeper meaning. It is now a representation of HIS affliction for us. The phrase, “This is my body” signifies that the bread represents His body. Jesus was not stating that it is literally His body. Medieval theologians contended that the bread literally became His body—the doctrine of transubstantiation, but this isn’t the case.
It is simply a representation; a reminder to us of His sacrifice. Christ was speaking figuratively here, just as He said, “I am the door.”
But, I believe the most important part of this statement comes immediately after. He says, “This is my body…which is given for you.” It wasn’t for Him. The sacrifice of the cross wasn’t for His own benefit, but wholly for ours!
For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures,
And so Jesus, tells His disciples, and us in turn, to “do this in remembrance” of Him. We partake of the bread and the cup as a reminder of His sacrifice for us.
Humans can be forgetful creatures. I know I have a way of forgetting things, personally. I have to set reminders in my phone ALL THE TIME for things. Otherwise I will forget them. And sometimes I forget to set the reminder!
So the bread, for me—and for many—helps jog our poor memories. So as I look upon the bread, it stirs in my heart a visual of my Lord upon the cross. It reminds me of His love and His incredible sacrifice for me—a sinner. It brings my heart to sorrow as I enter into repentance and elevates it back up with joy as I remember the purpose and the hope that the cross brings.
While we immediately jump from the bread to the cup in verses 19 and 20, it is likely some time has elapsed for the group in the upper room. And so once more, Jesus uses a visual—and this time the representation is HUGE! And this isn’t to say His body broken for us isn’t huge. But I say this is so remarkable because of the language Jesus uses here. Let’s read it again—verse 20.
And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.
By calling the cup “the new covenant in my blood,” Jesus was intentionally contrasting his atoning work (the shedding of his blood) with the Old Covenant’s continual sacrifices of blood.
Blood was a very significant aspect of the Old Covenant. Everything of significance in the Law was seemingly covered in blood. Take a look here.
And he sent young men of the people of Israel, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen to the Lord. And Moses took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he threw against the altar. Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it in the hearing of the people. And they said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient.” And Moses took the blood and threw it on the people and said, “Behold the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words.”
This whole visual is pretty gruesome when you think about it. Half of the sacrificial animal’s blood was poured on the altar. The other half on the people and the book of the Covenant. But this was done for two reasons. The first was to emphasize to the people the seriousness and consequence of sin. And secondly, it was to teach that the payment for sin is death, which Paul would reiterate in his letter to the Romans, which is where he also teaches us that the new Covenant in the blood of Jesus is TOTALLY and ENTIRELY dependent upon Him! Our salvation comes down to His divine blood, as Jesus puts it, “poured out for you.”
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
What Jesus speaks of here is the prophesied promise found in Jeremiah!
“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
The Old Law was external. Laws written in stone; no power within ourselves to live them out. Yes, memorizing the Scriptures are GREAT, but the promise of God to write His Word upon our hearts goes beyond the ability of man. This is the Spirit of God at work!
In essence, He gives us a new heart. God has written his laws within us. He has made his people partakers of the divine nature.
Furthermore, God promises, “I will be their God. This means He gives Himself to us. “And they will be my people.” He takes us to Himself. And this New Covenant in Jesus does something entirely miraculous and wholly remarkable! “For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
This is what puts the New Covenant above the Old! Under the Old, sins weren’t completely forgiven. They were covered by the blood of the sacrifice, waiting for and pointing to true forgiveness found in Jesus. What this promise also reveals to us is the willful forgetting of our sin by God. God is perfect, His memory is perfect. He doesn’t forget things in the manner we forget things. Things don’t “slip His mind.” Forgetting on God’s part requires deliberate intention, which further reveals the love and forgiveness He has toward us!
As theologian F.F. Bruce puts it:
It is because His grace has determined to forgive them—not in spite of his holiness, but in harmony with it.
This is what we are to recall and to hold dear to as we partake of communion. His body broken—not for Himself—but for YOU. and for ME. This is His blood POURED OUT for YOU. and for ME. Here is the greater and New Covenant—one with complete forgiveness and salvation. A covenant that is WHOLE and ETERNAL. May we always remember.
PRAY
