The Ultimate Rejection

 John 18:25 Now Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. So they said to him, “You also are not one of his disciples, are you?” He denied it and said, “I am not.” 26 One of the servants of the high priest, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, asked, “Did I not see you in the garden with him?” 27 Peter again denied it, and at once a rooster crowed.

After the time with His disciples in the upper room and His intense conversation with His Father, Jesus went to the garden to pray and was arrested by soldiers and temple officers who had been led there by Judas.  Jesus totally expected this, and when Peter valiantly came to his defense with a sword, Jesus told him to back off.  Jesus then went through vigorous interrogation, beating, and a travesty of "justice,' being rejected by His own people and the supposed "servants" in His Father's house.  Even the High Priest, the only one allowed to enter the Holy of Holies, rejected Him.  Jesus was not surprised at all by these things. After this trial, one would think that calmer heads would rise to the occasion, as Jesus appeared before the Roman officials, but this did not prove to be true.  The hardest rejection of the day, however, was that of Peter and the others who had been faithful followers during His ministry.  Their abandonment was both a personal and vocational rejection.  They left Him alone to face the music, but they also were in a sense saying: "we don't think you can protect us," even though He had done so time and time again. Are we any different? 

Jesus Prayed for Us

John 17:20 “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me."

After the extremely emotional and intense time in the upper room, Jesus prayed this amazing prayer. He began by talking about His relationship with the Father, and how He had shown and told the message God wanted mankind to hear.  He then prayed for His disciples, who had been entrusted with that message, that they would be protected as they faithfully lived it out and carried it on for others to hear and receive. And then He prayed for us, and the ultimate purpose that He had in coming and passing these truths on. He wants us who believe to live out that oneness of purpose: trusting God, His Son, and His plan, together. He, and the Father, want us to understand the fellowship that the Father, Son, and Spirit share. They are, and always have been on the same page. Their Love is perfect, and when we live that out, others see it too. Jesus prayed that we would be on board with His plan and that we would trust Him and follow Him. Do we? 

The Hour Is Coming

John 16:32 Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me. 33 I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

Still in the upper room, Jesus was saying a lot of things that confused the disciples. He kept talking about "the hour." The chapter beings with Him saying: Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God, 4 But I have said these things to you, that when their hour comes you may remember that I told them to you. That was unsettling, but Jesus then promised to send the Holy Spirit, Who would guide them into the truth. Just when that settled them, He went on to say: “A little while, and you will see me no longer; and again a little while, and you will see me.” This raised a whole lot of questioning about where Jesus was going when, and why.  After promising them ultimate joy, Jesus then said: The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech but will tell you plainly about the Father.  That is what the discipled needed to hear: that they would clearly understand His plan, and so they responded: "Now You're talkin'!"  It is at that point that Jesus makes the final statement above.  They were going to go through some tough times that would keep them unsettled, but in the end they would understand "the hour" had arrived; they would see the pieces fit together as He had promised; they would have peace. So can we. 

The Lord Does It

 Psalm 126:1 When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion,
    we were like those who dream.
2 Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
    and our tongue with shouts of joy;
then they said among the nations,
    “The Lord has done great things for them.”

Psalm 127:1 Unless the Lord builds the house,

    those who build it labor in vain.

Unless the Lord watches over the city,

    the watchman stays awake in vain.

Psalm 128:1 Blessed is everyone who fears the Lord,

    who walks in his ways!

2 You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands;

    you shall be blessed, and it shall be well with you.

In these next three Psalms of Ascent, we find more reasons to praise God: restoration, family, physical blessings.  In all of them there is this constant theme: If the Lord had not provided them for us, we would not have them.  Our safety, our shelter, and our sustenance all come from Him.  As we head toward His house today to worship Him, may we be reminded of that. May we come to Him thankful, trusting, and looking to Him to provide again and again. 

Looking Up

 Psalm 123:1 To you I lift up my eyes,
    O you who are enthroned in the heavens!
2 Behold, as the eyes of servants
    look to the hand of their master,
as the eyes of a maidservant
    to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to the Lord our God,
    till he has mercy upon us.

Psalm 124:8 Our help is in the name of the Lord,

    who made heaven and earth.

Psalm 125:1 Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,

    which cannot be moved, but abides forever.

2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem,

    so the Lord surrounds his people,

    from this time forth and forevermore.

These are three more Psalms of Ascent, sung by the pilgrims on their way to Jerusalem. As they travel they keep looking forward. As they move to higher and higher elevations they are always looking up. But they are not just looking up to see the first glimpse of the temple; they are looking up to God as they sing. Their hope is in Him. He is higher than the mountain and mightier than their problems.  They know that God can see them where they are and that His lovingkindness surrounds them on their journey, but also after their journey, when the return to life as usual. The point is: they need to keep looking up, and so do we. 

Required Repetition

John 15:12 “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command you. 15 No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. 17 These things I command you, so that you will love one another.

Jesus repeated Himself often - not only because He travelled often and the audience changed, but because those that followed Him around, including the twelve, needed to hear Him say things more than once for it to sink in. We're the same way.  In the upper room there were certain topics Jesus repeated: servanthood, the Holy Spirit, obedience, fruitfulness, prayer, and His commandment to love one another.  This is what He chose us for; this is the life we chose when we follow Him, and these are the things we need to be reminded of over and over again. 

If You Love Me...

John 14:15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you."

This is one of those chapters that has so many statements of Jesus we cling to that it is hard to choose just one.  Others begin: “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me... I am the way, and the truth, and the life... Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do... “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you... Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you." So why choose the one above, which is in the core of the chapter?  The question of the upper room really is "Do you love me?" Though all were demonstrating love by being there, one was a traitor.  Though all proclaimed steadfast love and devotion to Jesus (especially Peter), all abandoned Him. How did they know if they really loved Him? How do we know if we really love Him?  When we, through the aid of the Holy Spirit, obey Him.