John 18: 1 – 11 (NLT)
“After saying these things, Jesus crossed the Kidron Valley with his disciples and entered a grove of olive trees. 2 Judas, the betrayer, knew this place, because Jesus had often gone there with his disciples. 3 The leading priests and Pharisees had given Judas a contingent of Roman soldiers and Temple guards to accompany him. Now with blazing torches, lanterns, and weapons, they arrived at the olive grove.
4 Jesus fully realized all that was going to happen to him, so he stepped forward to meet them. “Who are you looking for?” he asked.
5 “Jesus the Nazarene,” they replied.
“I am he,” Jesus said. (Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them.) 6 As Jesus said “I am he,” they all drew back and fell to the ground! 7 Once more he asked them, “Who are you looking for?”
And again they replied, “Jesus the Nazarene.”
8 “I told you that I am he,” Jesus said. “And since I am the one you want, let these others go.” 9 He did this to fulfill his own statement: “I did not lose a single one of those you have given me.”
10 Then Simon Peter drew a sword and slashed off the right ear of Malchus, the high priest’s slave. 11 But Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword back into its sheath. Shall I not drink from the cup of suffering the Father has given me?”
(historical data in this devotion is taken from Warren Wiersbe’s EB Bible Study Series)
Chapter 18 takes us back to the action. Jesus has given His disciples His last thoughts and instructions, and we have read His prayer for them – and us. Now the worst time of their lives is about to begin.
After the Passover supper, Jesus and the disciples head to the Garden of Gethsemane which was a place they often went. (v.2) This garden was located to the east of Jerusalem on the Mount of Olives. To get there, they had to walk through the Kidron Valley – so they walked out of the city, walked down a slope and crossed the Kidron Brook to go up the other side to the garden. The Kidron Brook was a dark water stream which carried the blood of the sacrifices away from the Temple. The Garden of Gethsemane was a place of olive trees like so many gardens on that hill area; in fact, the name, Gethsemane, means oil press. Here’s where the English teacher in me kicks in. What a setting for the events about to happen!
The Garden of Eden was the place where disobedience and sin entered the world when Adam and Eve decided they wanted to know more than God did. The Garden of Gethsemane was a place of obedience where Jesus knew what was going to happen and went there anyway. He knew His upcoming crucifixion and suffering would be the remedy for what happened in that first garden. I find it interesting that the location of this second garden is near the Kidron Brook, where the blood of sacrificed animals flowed. It was a garden that grew olive trees, the source of olive oil created by pressing the olives into mush. I love that God loves imagery as much as English teachers do. This place where Jesus prayed and begged God to take away the cross, and where blood actually oozed from his body as He prayed was a place of suffering already – a place of agony.
Try to picture this scene in your mind. Jesus wakes up the disciples from their sleep while He was praying. They look up and see bright lights from torches coming toward them. The Bible tells us it was a contingent of Roman soldiers – another word for contingent is cohort. The usual Roman cohort was 600 soldiers, but it’s likely there weren’t that many there that night. However, they had tried to arrest Jesus before and He had always managed to disappear, so I wouldn’t be surprised if there were quite a few soldiers. So, keep this picture in your heads – a dark garden, soldiers with lanterns, blazing torches, and weapons – and a small group of 12 men (Jesus and 11 disciples).
Jesus steps right up and asks them who they are looking for. They say they are looking for Jesus the Nazarene. Jesus tells them, “I AM he” and they all step back and fall down. What??? I think a couple of things might explain what happened here. Some of the soldiers might have been Jewish men who had enlisted in the Roman army to get a good pay cheque. They would know the significance of what Jesus had said. Exodus 3: 14 tells us that God identified Himself to Moses as “I AM WHO I AM” and then He said, ‘Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, I AM has sent me to you.” This name – I AM – is recognized as the name of Jehovah God. This is not what soldiers would expect to hear as they were about to arrest this man in the dark garden. Or the Roman soldiers might have been surprised and stunned at the authority and command that emanated from Jesus as He spoke – not what they had expected at all from someone about to be arrested. Or perhaps God Himself struck them down to impress on them that this man is no ordinary man.
Then Peter jumps in. I love Peter and his quick, impetuous responses. Peter takes a small sword and lops off the ear of Malchus, the high priest’s slave. Jesus turns around and tells Peter to put that sword away, and then Jesus heals Malchus’ ear. That night Peter had really shown his true colours. First at the last supper, he refused to let Jesus wash his feet. He only gave in when he realized that Jesus was insisting that the foot washing was needed. Then Jesus told Peter he would deny knowing Jesus three times before the dawn of the next day, Peter swore he would never do such a thing. Then Jesus asked Peter and a couple of the other disciples to watch and pray for Him in the Garden of Gethsemane, but Peter fell asleep. You’d think Jesus would get tired of Peter, but Jesus is so patient with him. Jesus protects Peter by healing Malchus’ ear, so Peter wouldn’t get arrested for harming the man. He tells Peter to put the sword away so the troops wouldn’t see him as a threat. And … Jesus steps forward and agrees to go with the soldiers.
I am so grateful that Jesus loves me even though I do so many senseless things, and I suspect you are grateful too. I don’t think of consequences. I do think about myself first. There are just so many things over the years that I would do differently if I had a chance to do them over again. But Jesus is patient with me. He protects me from so many consequences of my actions. He so willingly offered to pay the consequences for my sin and wrongdoing when He stepped up to those soldiers and went with them knowing what was ahead.
I read these first eleven verses in John 18, and I picture that incredible night. And I don’t have the words to express my gratitude that God loves me so much. And I suspect that you don’t have the words either. Isn’t it just amazing???
Our song for today is Another in the Fire by Hillsong United.