It was over, and the Pharisees had won. Jesus’ disciples were meeting together behind closed doors while the battered, lifeless body of their leader lay in a stone-cold tomb. Soon His teachings would be forgotten, only remaining as a cherished memory in the hearts of His disillusioned followers. Yes, Satan had realized his age-old ambition […]
Be careful of that little word “but.” It often flies in the face of known truth. For instance, even though Pilate had freely admitted that he found “in him no fault at all,” he still used that word. “But ye have a custom, that I should release unto you one at the Passover,” giving the
Down through the centuries, God had spoken “unto the fathers by the prophets.” And then, after 400 years of silence, He spoke to His people once again “by his Son.” As John 1:14 tells us ” — the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of
That last Passover Feast with Jesus had been most unforgettable. Not only had He given the disciples His promise of inner peace, but He had introduced them to a new privilege in prayer. John 16:23 “— Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you.” No, He
What had started out to be a traditional Passover ceremony had turned out to be a most unusual evening. First of all, from the remnants of the meal, Jesus instituted a lasting memorial, which, along with baptism, would become the two ordinances of the Church of Jesus Christ . Then, He slowly redirected His disciples’ expectations away from the
All that evening, Jesus had been equipping His disciples for the days ahead. It’s not that He hadn’t been teaching them on a daily basis, but now there was a special need. He was leaving, but He wasn’t going to leave them in the lurch. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ In His example of foot washing, He had demonstrated the servant
John 15:18-27 & 16:1-15 Read More »
As we closed our Bibles on last week’s lesson, we heard the door to the upper room open, and Jesus’ voice summoning His disciples — “Arise, let us go hence.” ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ During the evening, Jesus had given them a new commandment — “That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one
It might surprise you to learn that the Gospel of John doesn’t actually record the Passover Feast or the Lord’s Supper. In fact, the first words we hear in John 13:2 are — “And supper being ended.” However, John’s Gospel does give us an excellent account of the happenings in the upper room after supper. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ As soon
John 13:1 “Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end.”(Or onto the uttermost) ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Chapter 12 marks the end of Jesus’ public ministry — “These
In last week’s lesson, Jesus was in Bethany at the home of His friends, but only two miles away, His enemies were plotting against Him —“Now both the chief priests and the Pharisees had given a commandment, that, if any man knew where he were, he should shew it, that they might take him.“ Yes, they had His
