Mark 14:26-72

Radiant Church, December 9, 2018 Mike Rydman Mark 14:26-72 Bread and Wine, typical of the Passover feast But no mention of the lamb (also typical of the feast) Why? Mark 14:26-31 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. And Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away, for it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’ But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.” Peter said to him, “Even though they all fall away, I will not.” And Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” But he said emphatically, “If I must die with you, I will not deny you.” And they all said the same. Jesus predicts he will be abandoned by everyone. And a promise that they will be together with him again. Peter denies both what God had written, and what Jesus said Self-trust and presumption; peter even questioned Jesus to his face And like any leader, Peter led all of them into his same sin Luke 12:8-10 And I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God, but the one who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God. And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. Therefore, we are all guilty in some way. At some point, all of mankind had and has abandoned Jesus Mark 14:32-42 And they went to a place called Gethsemane. And he said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled. And he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch.” And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour? Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words. And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy, and they did not know what to answer him. And he came a third time and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.” “sorrowful” meaning “astonished.” Jesus was looking into the fires of what he would be stepping into. It shocked the unshockable Son of God Staying awake Praying In a way, both pictures of practical abandonment Cup – metaphor for the wrath of God, which God would pour out on sinners in righteous judgment But what if you only want the gracious God and not an angry God? You cannot have one without the other The greater the love the greater the sense of justice The more you love someone, the more angry you are when that loved one is abused or mistreated…or when you ferociously react with anger when that loved one is hurting themself by doing wrong Also, if God is not angry with sin, then he doesn’t really care. If he does care, he is telling and showing us that we are of great worth to him How valuable are you to God…so much so that he would go to the cross in your place, to those depths to love you “It is enough” – it is settled. Jesus speaks to his obedience to the Father Mark 14:43-50 And immediately, while he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders. Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man. Seize him and lead him away under guard.” And when they came, he went up to him at once and said, “Rabbi!” And he kissed him. And they laid hands on him and seized him. But one of those who stood by drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his ear. And Jesus said to them, “Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs to capture me? Day after day I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not seize me. But let the Scriptures be fulfilled.” And they all left him and fled. The “kiss of death” Showed that Judas only saw Jesus as an earthly king, to be removed by earthly methods (stronger force – swords and clubs, armed resistance) Peter responds in a similar fashion. He’s all about justice, peace, fairness, but when it gets tough, he starts swinging a sword Running away or swinging a sword is what everyone thinks to do there in the garden…but Jesus is the only one standing there passing the test The sword for us is any attempt to make our own life, to control our own circumstances, to win over our challenges Jesus, on the other hand, knew full well he was the King of a new Kingdom He acted and reacted differently Zechariah 13:7 “Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, against the man who stands next to me,” declares the Lord of hosts. “Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered; I will turn my hand against the little ones.” Mark 14:51 And a young man followed him, with nothing but a linen cloth about his body. And they seized him, but he left the linen cloth and ran away naked. Mark talking about himself Mark 14:53-65 And they led Jesus to the high priest. And all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes came together. And Peter had followed him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest. An d he was sitting with the guards and warming himself at the fire. Now the chief priests and the whole council were seeking testimony against Jesus to put him to death, but they found none. For many bore false witness against him, but their testimony did not agree. And some stood up and bore false witness against him, saying, “We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and in three days I will build another, not made with hands.’” Yet even about this their testimony did not agree. And the high priest stood up in the midst and asked Jesus, “Have you no answer to make? What is it that these men testify against you?” But he remained silent and made no answer. Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” And Jesus said, “I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.” And the high priest tore his garments and said, “What further witnesses do we need? You have heard his blasphemy. What is your decision?” And they all condemned him as deserving death. And some began to spit on him and to cover his face and to strike him, saying to him, “Prophesy!” And the guards received him with blows. Inconsistent testimonies could not be used in a formal charge Jesus never said the “He” would destroy the temple. This was a false charge. Jesus says, “I AM,” claiming to be God, thus the charge of blasphemy. The paradox: Jesus, the true Judge of the world is here being judged by the world We naturally run from suffering, believing suffering is always wrong Jesus unnaturally goes into his suffering for us. He “loves” into the suffering Knowing it or not, this is the love you have spent your life looking for This love does not abandon you, or give up; it is constant and forever, paid for through his suffering Mark 14:66-72 And as Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came, and seeing Peter warming himself, she looked at him and said, “You also were with the Nazarene, Jesus.” But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you mean.” And he went out into the gateway and the rooster crowed. And the servant girl saw him and began again to say to the bystanders, “This man is one of them.” But again he denied it. and after a little while the bystanders again said to Peter, “Certainly you are one of them, for you are a Galilean.” But he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know this man of whom you speak.” And immediately the rooster crowed a second time. And Peter remembered how Jesus had said to him, “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” And he broke down and wept. In a weird kind of way, Peter is showing his faith He knew what he was doing, lying to save his own life That’s the difference between someone who knows Jesus from someone who does not know Jesus – when we deny being associated with him, we know what we’re doing in that moment. That’s why Peter broke down and wept. That’s what people do when they feel they’ve lost a relationship they value; they mourn the loss of that person in their life. But…and here is gospel…Jesus said that after he was raised he would meet up with them again in Galilee Peter, and all of us who believe, would be forgiven, restored, reconciled to the God who made us and loves us. And he provided the way for that to happen – Jesus going to the cross, bearing our guilt and shame. The price was paid so God the Father could welcome us back into His family. The table this morning has both bread and juice The Lamb for the feast is Jesus himself, the Lamb of God who came to take away the sins of the world