John 18:1-27. Who do you seek? Who do you deny?

John 18:1-27.  Who do you seek? Who do you deny?

[Today our text will ask: who are you seeking? Who do we deny, Jesus or ourself? Do you seek Jesus, when we don’t know what Jesus is doing?   

Jesus walks with his followers out arose the brook Kidron and goes to a garden.

Jesus: knows,protects, follows his fathers will, challenges evil, 

1-4 Jesus walks with his followers out arose the brook Kidron and goes to a garden.

Judasknew of the place Jesus had often meet with his disciples there, Judas comes with some soldiers and some people form the high priest, with weapons and lights. Jesus knows all that would happen, and he walks forward, and ask the question who do you seek? A great question, that might even make them think, why are we doing this? Why are we seeking to arrest Jesus? We will get back in to it but the great question stands who do you seek?

5-9 They respond we seek, Jesus of Nazareth.  Jesus said I am he… And they all fell to the ground, also Judas, - why? The majesty of his words? That God was speaking? A glimpse of Glory and holiness. (I am statement /it is me). Jesus asks again who do you seek? They respond the same, Jesus of Nazareth, - Jesus said I said I am he and he protects the disciples, - and say they should let them go, - and John writes that this is the prophesy for filed, and it is what Jesus said would happen, when he was praying and talking with the disciples in the previous chapters.  

10-14 Peter that had said he would not deny Jesus fights and cuts an ear of one of the high priests servants. Peter is trying to fight for Jesus and keep his word, - but Peter is fighting for his own understanding of who Jesus is, and not who Jesus really is. Jesus is the promised Messiha, the one prophesied about in the old testament, - but he is also the suffering servant, and the good shepherd that would lay down his life for his sheep, - Peter has the view of Jesus as the conquering king, - and Jesus will do that but he will die for sin and conquer sin and death first. Jesus asks Peter should I not do what my Father has given me to do? Drink the cup? And Jesus is arrested. And they take him to Annas, that was the father in-law of Caiaphas, the one who told the Jews it would be better that one man die for the nation. (That was more true that the way he meant it – prophet words).

15-18 Peter and the other disciple go to the house, but only the other one can enter, he knows the owner, and Peter waits door, and the other disciple gets Peter in but the servant asks if Peter is Jesus’ disciple and what does Peter do fight? No, as Jesus had said he denies that he is.  Why? The pressure, he is at the enemies’ court? He is almost alone? Because it was not socially acceptable? We can’t be 100 % sure, but we do see the one that would fight, now say I an not his disciple.

19-24 Jesus respond I have openly taught in the temple and in synagogues ask the people that head me teach, including them their servants, the many people that did believe in Jesus’ teaching. Instead of a response Jesus gets hit in the face, Jesus them asks the person, what did I say wrong? If I spoke the truth then why did you strike me?  There is not recorded response and instead the ship Jesus on to the next place.

25-27 Peter is confronted again, and deny 2 times that he is Jesus’ disciple, even one relative of the man who’s ear, he cut of said he saw him in the garden and Peter deny it. (It was not me song).  It easy to look down on Peter but what about us?

Why do we deny Jesus? – Fear? Pressure, social, praise of man, wanting to fit in to culture, tolerance and diverse. Why is this an important question? -It might reveal your idols – and functional God, what you really seek, money, fame, everyone to like you etc.] Therefore, it is a great question who do you seek? – Everyday, for everything?  Wisdom of the world – or from Jesus?  Is it Jesus or yourself?

Are we confused about what Jesus is doing or not doing? – We can see Peter is, he fights, I will not deny Jesus I will die with him, before his enemies can take him away. Peter fights, but it was for his own idea of who Jesus was, what he should do, - and Peter did not know yet. Then Peter deny that he is a disciple of Jesus 3 times.

(I was thinking what does this passage do to you? (We have all denied Jesus), - but what do we do when we find out we have?) – I remember after Jesus saved me, I was seeing a movie where this part was in, and it hit me deeply, - how I had denied Jesus in my life many times, and lived for my self and not seeking Jesus, - and that was why Jesus came and chose to die on the cross for my sin and my denial of him and the father. I/we can now choose to deny my self and take up my cross and follow Jesus, seeking him and not my own. – Oh, man that is so, old, and not good, to deny myself, I want it my way, and like what all of culture say, do it, show it, eat it, buy it, - your worth it, just do it, you be you, follow your heart, - that is not slogans that Jesus mentioned, - the question is the same who are you seeking? Is it Jesus? Or yourself? Yourself will fail and you, will not be satisfied, whatever drug, money or fame, - it will not be what you think it is, - it will not last, like drugs other, the effect will get less, and we will seek more and more to our own destruction. A warning, - cocaine is now seen by many as an innocent/soft drug and is used very often in Denmark – some put it in the same class as cannabis. Almost not dangerous. (But both drugs are dangerous, and has massive negative effects. – NOTE where there are legal drugs, the effects increase, addiction, psychoses, and illegal use increase, we can try to normalize rationalize in our heads and socially, but the effects of the drugs don’t change. Why this illustration, - well the church and believers are always pressed to make things that are sin acceptable – false teachers will try to normalize, what sin and evil and hurtful to people for: own gain, so who are we seeking Jesus our own idea of who he should be?) Because if we say something is not sin, it doses not change the effects of the sins.

I pray that we will always as a fellowship seek Jesus, and not our own idea of Jesus but, how God reveals his self in the bible, the perfect picture in Jesus. (And as we will see and has seen Jesus does everything for the glory of his Father – and loves by suffering and sacrifice not to gain his own way apart from the father).

Again, who do you seek? Who do you deny? Is it Jesus you deny and your own you seek? Or is it Jesus you seek and your self you deny?

What about in this story, Peter seeks his own, and so does Judas, the Pharasises, and the rulers, they are seeking Jesus but to kill and destroy him and his teaching, why; to preserve them self and even gain more power. They had a false understating they had built so much around the scriptures, so much that they could not see who Jesus was, even when he fulfilled many prophesies.

What Jesus does is very different, - Jesus as John writes know what will happen, he goes to the garden knows he will be arrested and tried and killed, - Jesus knows this, then why do it? He could have gone home, away from Jerusalem, avoided the suffering and pain. This is the very difference that Jesus is not seeking his own, he is seeking Gods’ will and for the good of all who would believe in his life, death, resurrection and coming back the good news that Jesus came to make a way for us to be with God, his life for our sin, - that Jesus obeyed and suffered and that was his glory to do in God, the Holy one died for the unholy, and Godless, that Jesus might show us who God is, and what greatness and leadership should be, submission to God, to do his will, and to glorify him, also in suffering.  – Invite to Jesus - Give the gospel –

What now? Well, if there have been idols reveal in your life, - as the question was asked, the Holy Spirt, showed you, well I seek this and this… It is time to repent, and ask forgiveness of Jesus, - Deny yourself and take up your cross -and chose to follow and seek Jesus for who he is, and for his glory, in Christ by the Holy Spirts power.

If you don’t know Jesus, - well who do you seek and why? Why do you deny? And why?

I would like you to invite you to seek Jesus, to stop seeking all other things and seek Jesus, the one that gave up his life that you might have eternal life in him, you sins washed away, adoption in to Gods family, and invitation to submission to God and his will for your life, in Christ God has laid out good works for you to walk in, even before the world began.  Deny you self and get life in Christ Jesus.