King James Bible Study – [And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. – Mark 8:34]
Date: Friday, November 08, 2024
Chapters: Matthew Chapter 26
Message: Holding On To Faith
Hello My Friend,
Well another birthday has come and gone, it was a peaceful and relaxing day as I was able to take the day off from work. Every year, I look back to see if I made the year count or wasted it, but I believe that it was a productive year in the sense that I made through the most challenging year that I have yet to remember in my life. It was all possible of course through my faith in Christ, [Romans 8:38-39 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.]
While my ministry has suffered a little bit I kept pressing and have not allowed any of these challenges alter my faith and think that that is the key to getting through all of life’s challenges. Charles Spurgeon said, [The life of faith is represented as receiving-an act which implies the very opposite of anything like merit. It is simply the acceptance of a gift. As the earth drinks in the rain, as the sea receives the streams, as night accepts light from the stars, so we, giving nothing, partake freely of the grace of God. The saints are not, by nature, wells, or streams, they are but cisterns into which the living water flows; they are empty vessels into which God pours his salvation….When I receive Jesus, he becomes my Saviour, so mine that neither life nor death shall be able to rob me of him.]
Those are some comforting words to those who life by faith in the hope that one day all pain and sorrow will disappear forever and that when they do they will be with Jesus. Let me tell you, the older I get in my faith and come to understand that pain is no respecter of persons, the closer I relate to the pain that Jesus had endured for me. As we continue in the reading of the Gospels, we are now getting to the events that would take place leading to Jesus being captured and tried like a criminal. Matthew, begins telling of the plot to not only capture, but kill Him. Jesus, knew that the time was fast approaching and even spoke of His being betrayed.
[Matthew 26:1-5 And it came to pass, when Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said unto his disciples, 2 Ye know that after two days is the feast of the passover, and the Son of man is betrayed to be crucified. 3 Then assembled together the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders of the people, unto the palace of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas, 4 And consulted that they might take Jesus by subtilty, and kill him. 5 But they said, Not on the feast day, lest there be an uproar among the people.]
[Not on the feast day, lest there be an uproar] All the days of feast happened to be sabbath days, so could you imagine the people’s reaction if they were to capture Jesus on a sabbath? It is no wonder why they thought it best not to capture Him at that time. Many of them also had respect for Jesus and would have come after them. Nevertheless, they did get an offer they could not refuse when Judas Iscariot approached them. It all began when a woman came up to Jesus when He was eating.
[Matthew 26:7-12 There came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat. 8 But when his disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying, To what purpose is this waste? 9 For this ointment might have been sold for much, and given to the poor. 10 When Jesus understood it, he said unto them, Why trouble ye the woman? for she hath wrought a good work upon me. 11 For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always. 12 For in that she hath poured this ointment on my body, she did it for my burial.]
[they had indignation, saying, To what purpose is this waste?] [Indignation; Extreme anger mingled with contempt.] In particular, Judas, was a thief, so his intention may have been to steal the perfume and sell it, but whatever reason why he was so angry that he went to the chief priests and negotiated a deal with them so that they could capture Jesus after the Passover feast, [Matthew 26:14-16 Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests, 15 And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver. 16 And from that time he sought opportunity to betray him.]
[covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver.] [Covenant; Pledged or promised by agreement.] They agreed to pay Judas what would amount to approximately sixteen dollars and sixty-seven cents in US dollars. What a ridiculous thing to betray someone over? And at what cost? To their soul! This man was not angry over some perfume that he could have stolen, this was something that festered in him from the day that Jesus came into his life and I believe it was because he did not believe Jesus. Conviction will bring out the most fierce reactions in those who have no faith in Christ, [Titus 1:15-16 Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled. 16 They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.]
Now, the next day was the Passover, Jesus, arranged for a room for just Him and the disciples to eat the Passover meal, as He sits down with them, and gave them all a shock when He flat out tells them that He knew that one of them was going to betray Him.
[Matthew 26:17-21 Now the first day of the feast of unleavened bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying unto him, Where wilt thou that we prepare for thee to eat the passover? 18 And he said, Go into the city to such a man, and say unto him, The Master saith, My time is at hand; I will keep the passover at thy house with my disciples. 19 And the disciples did as Jesus had appointed them; and they made ready the passover. 20 Now when the even was come, he sat down with the twelve. 21 And as they did eat, he said, Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me.]
[Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me.] How would you react to Jesus saying this to you? Like most people who have a conscience, they would start thinking about what they have been doing and wondering if it was them. Let me tell, there is absolutely no person on earth who is not capable of doing something wicked, and we all fail God every day at some point, but some are just wired with more wicked thoughts because truly are reprobates and the reason why Jesus said this, [Matthew 12:33-34 Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit. 34 O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.]
You see, while much of our upbringing contributes to our faith, it all comes down to what is in the heart. Well, each one of them began to ask Jesus if they were the one who was going to betray Him, [Matthew 26:22-25 And they were exceeding sorrowful, and began every one of them to say unto him, Lord, is it I? 23 And he answered and said, He that dippeth his hand with me in the dish, the same shall betray me. 24 The Son of man goeth as it is written of him: but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! it had been good for that man if he had not been born. 25 Then Judas, which betrayed him, answered and said, Master, is it I? He said unto him, Thou hast said.]
[He that dippeth his hand with me in the dish,] This reminds me of what David said when he was betrayed by his own son, [Psalms 55:12-15 For it was not an enemy that reproached me; then I could have borne it: neither was it he that hated me that did magnify himself against me; then I would have hid myself from him: 13 But it was thou, a man mine equal, my guide, and mine acquaintance. 14 We took sweet counsel together, and walked unto the house of God in company. 15 Let death seize upon them, and let them go down quick into hell: for wickedness is in their dwellings, and among them.]
David, did not mince words, whenever he failed God he was sure to seek forgiveness and vowed repentance and to teach others what not to do. It was not uncommon for him to pray that God would take care of those who wronged him either, so I can imagine what Jesus might have been thinking knowing that Judas had turned on Him. Jesus, knows all of us, and whether or not we are among the believers just to reap the benefits that come with it. Of course, Judas already knew that Jesus was talking about him. Nevertheless, they continued their feast, then Jesus did something strange, He took a loaf of bread, blessed it, broke it into pieces and began to pass it down to each of them, likewise a cup of wine.
[Matthew 26:26-29 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. 27 And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; 28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. 29 But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.]
[For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many] Think about the purpose that Jesus had for doing this, first of all, He was that very flesh and blood that He said that we need in order to live, [John 6:53-54 Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. 54 Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.]
Judas, would find out rather quickly that he would be guilty of the body and blood of Jesus after he betrayed Him. Nevertheless, as soon as they finished eating, Judas ran off while Jesus and a few of the disciples went to Gethsemane, where He became quiet sorrowful and began to pray.
[Matthew 26:36-39 Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder. 37 And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy. 38 Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me. 39 And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.]
[O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me:] Jesus, in His flesh, was no different than the rest of us, even though we know that God will work everything out for good, that does not stop us from having sorrowful and heavy hearts when we know that we are going to have to endure some pain. Jesus, went to His Father two more times and asked Him if there were some other way to save mankind, even though He knew it was the only way. Nevertheless, He basically said, “Thy will be done” and as soon as He finished praying, that was when Judas showed up with the chief priests.
[Matthew 26:47-52 And while he yet spake, lo, Judas, one of the twelve, came, and with him a great multitude with swords and staves, from the chief priests and elders of the people. 48 Now he that betrayed him gave them a sign, saying, Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he: hold him fast. 49 And forthwith he came to Jesus, and said, Hail, master; and kissed him. 50 And Jesus said unto him, Friend, wherefore art thou come? Then came they, and laid hands on Jesus, and took him. 51 And, behold, one of them which were with Jesus stretched out his hand, and drew his sword, and struck a servant of the high priest’s, and smote off his ear. 52 Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.]
[Friend, wherefore art thou come?] Wow! Talk about words that cut like a knife. I know that Judas must have been wishing that he was never born after hearing those words. No one knows the impact of denying Christ until they face Him, [Matthew 10:32-34 Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. 33 But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven. 34 Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.]
[for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.] Jesus, was pointing out to them that anyone who attempted to stop this heinous act was going to die. Jesus, was appointed to be the sinless sacrifice that would bring salvation to man once and for all, that is, to all who would believe on Him, and at any point if any of it did not go as planned, then it would have ruined God’s testimony, [Hebrews 6:17-19 Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath: 18 That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us: 19 Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil;]
Nevertheless, it did not matter that prophecy was being fulfilled, they were still capturing an innocent man and anyone who attempted to overthrow the prophecy or was a part of it would receive the same fate. And just like that, they captured Jesus and took Him to Caiaphas, the high priest, who was the ringleader in the plot to kill Jesus in the first place.
[Matthew 26:57-60,63-64 And they that had laid hold on Jesus led him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled. 58 But Peter followed him afar off unto the high priest’s palace, and went in, and sat with the servants, to see the end. 59 Now the chief priests, and elders, and all the council, sought false witness against Jesus, to put him to death; 60 But found none: yea, though many false witnesses came, yet found they none. At the last came two false witnesses, 63 But Jesus held his peace. And the high priest answered and said unto him, I adjure thee by the living God, that thou tell us whether thou be the Christ, the Son of God. 64 Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.]
[Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power,] Jesus, was telling them that when He has finished the work that He came here to do, all of his enemies will be subdued under His footstool as David had written, [Psalms 110:1-2 A Psalm of David. The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool. 2 The LORD shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thine enemies.]
Jesus Christ Revealed/Magnified: [Matthew 26:28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.]
Today’s Prayer: God, There are many things in this world that I do not understand, many times I see my life and wonder if it is really in Your will for me or just me trying to alter Your plan. Nevertheless, I know one thing is for sure, You have a purpose for me and You will keep me here until I fulfill that purpose. Thank You for watching over us and protecting us as we walk this journey with You. It is not always easy as there are many willing to sell us out for their own selfish greed. Lord, Lead us and guide us, give us Your wisdom to know how to speak to everyone, discernment to know who is true, Your mercy and grace to see us through, Your strength that pierces through our weakness, and the courage to always proclaim Your Son as our Saviour. With You by our side, we can do and endure all things. I pray this in Your name Jesus, Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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