Reflective Bible Study

In what was probably the longest night Peter experienced as a follower of Jesus, the night Jesus was arrested was likely also the most stress-filled. While Peter was one of Jesus’ closest followers, and one of the disciples that had been with Jesus the longest, the events of that night were almost overwhelming.

Earlier in the evening, at supper, Jesus had told Peter that before the night was out, he would deny Him three times. A rooster crowing would be the sign that the night had ended.

Then after they had walked to the garden, Jesus had asked Peter and the others to stay awake and pray, which they were too tired to do. Jesus even had told Peter that He was praying for him specifically, which may have given Peter some encouragement, but it may have also made Peter wonder.

However, when the mob arrived, Peter was ready to defend Jesus to the death – especially knowing Jesus could resurrect the dead – but his first act of defensive was a counter attack that Jesus reprimanded him for. Jesus even healed the man Peter had injured.

And then Jesus let Himself be arrested. The Messiah of the world had let Himself be taken by His enemies who wanted to end His life. But that wasn’t in the Messiah’s future. The Messiah was destined to live forever, and He couldn’t live forever if He was dead.

But Jesus had been talking to them about His death, not His eternal life. Many times up to this point, Jesus had shared with them about His upcoming death. Would Jesus allow Himself to be killed?

The whole evening and night had been a roller-coaster of highs and lows, and Peter was left with lots to think about.

These details set the stage for what happens in the passage we are focusing in on for this episode. We will be reading from the gospel of Luke, chapter 22, using the New American Standard Bible translation. Starting in verse 54, Luke tells us that:

⁵⁴ Having arrested Him [referring to Jesus], they led Him away and brought Him to the house of the high priest; but Peter was following at a distance. ⁵⁵ After they had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter was sitting among them.

A quick side-note here would be that Peter was likely thinking about all the things we had just discussed, while also wanting to be close enough to learn firsthand what Jesus’ fate would be. He wanted to be near Jesus if Jesus chose to escape, but not so near that he would be targeted and condemned to death with Him.

Picking back up reading in verse 56:

⁵⁶ And a servant-girl, seeing him as he sat in the firelight and looking intently at him, said, “This man was with Him too.” ⁵⁷ But he denied it, saying, “Woman, I do not know Him.” ⁵⁸ A little later, another saw him and said, “You are one of them too!” But Peter said, “Man, I am not!” ⁵⁹ After about an hour had passed, another man began to insist, saying, “Certainly this man also was with Him, for he is a Galilean too.” ⁶⁰ But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are talking about.” Immediately, while he was still speaking, a rooster crowed. ⁶¹ The Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had told him, “Before a rooster crows today, you will deny Me three times.” ⁶² And he went out and wept bitterly.

In this passage, whether Peter was taken off guard, or whether he was lost in thought and didn’t realize his words in the context of Jesus’ prediction, three separate times, Peter denied Jesus. Perhaps these were unintentional times, or maybe each denial was Peter telling himself something like, “Well, I’ll deny Jesus this time, but certainly not three times.”

However, not only did Jesus’ prediction come true, Luke tells us that through some set of circumstances, at the time the roster crowd, there was a break in the crowd that allowed Jesus and Peter to make eye contact. It was in this moment that Jesus’ prediction returned to Peter’s memory, and the realization that he had let Jesus down broke Peter’s heart.

Perhaps this is because Peter had talked up a good talk, and had denied the possibility of even coming close to denying Jesus when Jesus had made the prediction immediately, but whatever the case, Peter realized that Jesus knew him even better then he knew himself.

It is the same with us today.

While we know ourselves pretty well, it is amazing to think that God knows us even better. What is even more amazing is that knowing who we are and what we would do, God still was willing to bring us into the world. Regardless of the mistakes we would make, and/or the times we would reject God, He is still willing to give us life and the chance to choose Him.

And probably the most amazing reality in all of this is that knowing everything we would do and all the ways we would make mistakes, Jesus still came and died for us. Jesus died for you and me, and this is because He loves us, and wants us to have the opportunity to choose eternal life with Him.

With this idea in mind, as we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always open these challenges by saying in one way or another, intentionally seek God first in your life. Wherever you are in life at this point, if you haven’t chosen to place your trust, faith, hope, and belief in Jesus, choose to do so now. Regardless of where you are in your life right now, or what you have done in the past, choosing Jesus is the only way to secure your future.

Also, intentionally pray and study the Bible for yourself to learn firsthand what Jesus is like. While we can take another person’s word for it, nothing can replace a personal relationship with God. God wants a personal relationship with you, and for a relationship with God to be personal, it can’t be filtered through a middleman like a priest, a pastor, or even a podcaster.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or give up on where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

On the night Jesus was arrested, as He and the eleven remaining disciples were arriving at the garden, Jesus shares a powerful prayer to God the Father related to His live and mission. The prayer Jesus shares doesn’t just focus on Himself, it also focuses on the lives and mission for all of His followers living at that point in history, as well as throughout all of history following the first century.

I debated whether to pull an excerpt out of this prayer to focus on, but could not settle on one. Instead, for this week’s episode, let me simply read you the prayer in its entirety, then close out with some things to think about and challenges about how to apply what Jesus shared in this prayer in your life today.

John’s gospel is the only one to include this prayer, and it is found in chapter 17. Reading from the Contemporary English Version and starting in verse 1, John tells us that:

¹ After Jesus had finished speaking to his disciples, he looked up toward heaven and prayed:

Father, the time has come for you to bring glory to your Son, in order that he may bring glory to you. ² And you gave him power over all people, so that he would give eternal life to everyone you give him. ³ Eternal life is to know you, the only true God, and to know Jesus Christ, the one you sent. ⁴ I have brought glory to you here on earth by doing everything you gave me to do. ⁵ Now, Father, give me back the glory that I had with you before the world was created.

⁶ You have given me some followers from this world, and I have shown them what you are like. They were yours, but you gave them to me, and they have obeyed you. ⁷ They know that you gave me everything I have. ⁸ I told my followers what you told me, and they accepted it. They know that I came from you, and they believe that you are the one who sent me. ⁹ I am praying for them, but not for those who belong to this world. My followers belong to you, and I am praying for them. ¹⁰ All that I have is yours, and all that you have is mine, and they will bring glory to me.

¹¹ Holy Father, I am no longer in the world. I am coming to you, but my followers are still in the world. So keep them safe by the power of the name that you have given me. Then they will be one with each other, just as you and I are one. ¹² While I was with them, I kept them safe by the power you have given me. I guarded them, and not one of them was lost, except the one who had to be lost. This happened so that what the Scriptures say would come true.

¹³ I am on my way to you. But I say these things while I am still in the world, so that my followers will have the same complete joy that I do. ¹⁴ I have told them your message. But the people of this world hate them, because they don’t belong to this world, just as I don’t.

¹⁵ Father, I don’t ask you to take my followers out of the world, but keep them safe from the evil one. ¹⁶ They don’t belong to this world, and neither do I. ¹⁷ Your word is the truth. So let this truth make them completely yours. ¹⁸ I am sending them into the world, just as you sent me. ¹⁹ I have given myself completely for their sake, so that they may belong completely to the truth.

²⁰ I am not praying just for these followers. I am also praying for everyone else who will have faith because of what my followers will say about me. ²¹ I want all of them to be one with each other, just as I am one with you and you are one with me. I also want them to be one with us. Then the people of this world will believe that you sent me.

²² I have honored my followers in the same way that you honored me, in order that they may be one with each other, just as we are one. ²³ I am one with them, and you are one with me, so that they may become completely one. Then this world’s people will know that you sent me. They will know that you love my followers as much as you love me.

²⁴ Father, I want everyone you have given me to be with me, wherever I am. Then they will see the glory that you have given me, because you loved me before the world was created. ²⁵ Good Father, the people of this world don’t know you. But I know you, and my followers know that you sent me. ²⁶ I told them what you are like, and I will tell them even more. Then the love that you have for me will become part of them, and I will be one with them.

In this prayer, Jesus defines what it means to have eternal life, and He contrasts His followers with those living in the world. But Jesus also doesn’t just limit His followers to the eleven disciples present at that moment. Instead, Jesus extends the definition of disciple and follower to include everyone who believes in Him following the events of that weekend.

I am amazed that Jesus prays for us to remain in the world, but to be protected. How powerful would our lives be if we truly lived with the assurance that Jesus is protecting us? This prayer of protection might not mean that every bad thing will be blocked, but perhaps that any bad thing that reaches us has been filtered and permitted because it can be a key part of our testimony that can help others – that is, if we let it.

Jesus concludes this prayer by saying that love will be the defining attribute of His true followers – and that is because God is love, and Jesus is also love.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, continue growing closer to God and to Jesus in your life. Invite God to live in you and love others through you. Accept the reality that He has placed us in the world and sent us to the world, but remember and trust His promise to protect us from the evil one. Ask for His help to live boldly for Him.

Also, while living for Jesus, don’t let your spiritual foundation weaken. Intentionally choose to strengthen it by prayerfully studying the Bible for yourself. The Holy Spirit uses the words of the Bible to strengthen and renew our minds and hearts, and through the Bible, we are continually reminded of God and His love for each of us.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or walking away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

On the night of Jesus’ arrest, while the remaining eleven disciples are walking with Jesus to the garden just outside of Jerusalem, the gospel of John shares a powerful conversation Jesus had with these closest followers. In this conversation, we can learn a lot about who God really is.

If we think about the timing of this conversation, this is Jesus’ last chance to share with the disciples before His death – and Jesus knows there is a lot that still needs to be shared.

However, as I read this part of John’s gospel, I am drawn to a metaphor Jesus shares part way through the conversation. This metaphor is found at the beginning of John, chapter 15, and we will be reading from the New International Reader’s Version. Starting in verse 1, Jesus says:

¹ “I am the true vine. My Father is the gardener. ² He cuts off every branch joined to me that does not bear fruit. He trims every branch that does bear fruit. Then it will bear even more fruit. ³ You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. ⁴ Remain joined to me, just as I also remain joined to you. No branch can bear fruit by itself. It must remain joined to the vine. In the same way, you can’t bear fruit unless you remain joined to me.

⁵ “I am the vine. You are the branches. If you remain joined to me, and I to you, you will bear a lot of fruit. You can’t do anything without me. ⁶ If you don’t remain joined to me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and dries up. Branches like those are picked up. They are thrown into the fire and burned. ⁷ If you remain joined to me and my words remain in you, ask for anything you wish. And it will be done for you. ⁸ When you bear a lot of fruit, it brings glory to my Father. It shows that you are my disciples.

We’ll stop reading here because I want to focus in on the metaphor of being a branch on the vine. It would seem that Jesus emphasizes the idea here that what we say doesn’t really matter as much as the fruit we produce. When I read about Jesus describing us producing fruit, I get the picture that He is describing everything our lives produce. This would include our words, our actions, our projects, and even our relationships.

Everything our lives produce should be in harmony with everything else our lives produce. Otherwise our lives wouldn’t make sense. It would be weird to grow an apple that has the skin of an orange.

While God can grow anything and there may be an apple-orange hybrid fruit in heaven, this isn’t where I am going with this thought. Instead, I want to emphasize that our words, which are like the skin of our fruit, should match our actions, projects, and relationships, which are all like the inside parts of our fruit. Our words should match our actions.

Jesus describes God as walking along the vine looking for branches that are not bearing fruit. When He finds such a branch, He cuts it off. While this sounds harsh, this is what happens when someone who says they are a Christian does not live like they are. In our world and culture today, these people live worldly lives but claim to be Christians because they want to avoid hell more than they ultimately love Jesus. It’s my opinion that God is more interested in building relationships with us than simply having us around because we preferred to not spend time in the hot place.

But fruitless branches are not the only ones God the Gardener touches. When God comes by a branch that is bearing fruit, Jesus tells us that He trims those branches as well. Most gardeners will tell you that to get a plant to really start producing fruit, vegetables, or flowers (whichever the case may be for that plant), one must cut off some of the first things that are produced, and perhaps a little more afterwards. The process is known as pruning, and pruning in a spiritual sense is what really prompts fruit to grow in our lives.

However, pruning is the result of God cutting away things from our lives. These things might be friendships, hobbies, jobs, homes, cars, money, or really anything that God knows won’t serve us in the long run. God wants our hearts, and He will prune away the things in our lives that might draw our hearts away from His.

We cannot escape being touched by God the Gardener. Either we choose to be cut off because we are not fruitful, or pruned because we are being fruitful and God wants to see us produce even more fruit.

Jesus also challenges all of His disciples and followers to remain joined to Him. This is the only way we can truly bear fruit. Just like your favorite flower, if you leave it connected to the bush or plant, it will survive longer than if you cut it off to put it in a vase. While flowers in vases look pretty as decorations around the house, after a few days or weeks, most will have begun to wilt and die. This is because they are no longer connected to the plant.

The only way we can truly have life that never ends is to remain connected to the life-giver – and that is Jesus. Remaining joined to Jesus is the only way to have eternal life. If we separate ourselves from Him, we will dry up and die.

Jesus finishes the illustration of the vine by saying that when we are joined and connected to Him, with His words living inside of us, we are free to ask for anything we wish and it will be done for us. The whole context of this illustration is bearing fruit, so in truth, all of Jesus’ answers to our requests will center on us bearing fruit for God. When we bear a lot of fruit, it brings glory to God and it shows that we are Jesus’ disciples.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life and choose to remain connected with Him. Understand that God the gardener will touch your life and when He does, let Him prune you because you are being fruitful. Know that the things that God takes out of your life might not make sense now, but when we reach heaven, we will understand more and all our questions will be answered.

Also, intentionally pray and study the Bible for yourself to keep that connection with God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit strong. It is through this connection that we are able to bear fruit, bring glory to God, and truly live like disciples of Jesus. Only through this connection can we truly do anything in life.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or abandon where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

On the night of His arrest, which happened on the day before His crucifixion, Jesus shared a special supper with His followers. This supper has become known throughout the Christian church as “The Last Supper”, and one of the key things that happened during this supper is an event we call communion.

Matthew, Mark, and Luke all include Jesus eating and sharing bread and wine with His disciples, and each of these gospels includes Jesus attaching a symbol to each part of the communion ceremony. Let’s read from Matthew’s gospel to uncover what happened and what symbolism Jesus attached to the bread and the wine during this supper meal.

Our passage for this episode is found in Matthew’s gospel, chapter 26, and we will read it using the Good News Translation. Starting in verse 26, Matthew describes what happened:

²⁶ While they were eating, Jesus took a piece of bread, gave a prayer of thanks, broke it, and gave it to his disciples. “Take and eat it,” he said; “this is my body.”

²⁷ Then he took a cup, gave thanks to God, and gave it to them. “Drink it, all of you,” he said; ²⁸ “this is my blood, which seals God’s covenant, my blood poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. ²⁹ I tell you, I will never again drink this wine until the day I drink the new wine with you in my Father’s Kingdom.”

³⁰ Then they sang a hymn and went out to the Mount of Olives.

In these short 5 verses, we have one of the most symbolic and treasured ceremonies throughout the entire Christian Church. While different denominations celebrate communion differently, what is always present is bread and some form of grape juice, and everyone rightly attaches symbolism to each item as they eat or drink it.

Earlier in Jesus’ ministry, He describes eating His flesh and drinking His blood when challenging a crowd of supposed followers. While at the time, most people thought He was crazy and cannibalistic for saying this, perhaps He was simply pointing forward to the foundation He lays during this meal.

Verse 26 describes the first symbol, which is attached to the bread: “While they were eating, Jesus took a piece of bread, gave a prayer of thanks, broke it, and gave it to his disciples. ‘Take and eat it,’ he said; ‘this is my body.’”

The Passover bread represented Jesus’ body. When reading this, part of me wonders if Jesus isn’t actually describing any new symbolism. I wonder if the Passover bread that was eaten throughout the centuries following the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt was a symbol of the Messiah. If this was the case, then what the people had missed for over a thousand years was a symbol pointing to the Messiah tucked in one of the highest, most significant Jewish feasts in their entire calendar.

When breaking and eating the Passover bread, if we keep in our minds the symbolism that it represents Jesus’ body, then we can associate it with Jesus’ sacrifice and Him giving His body to be put to death. While Passover was celebrated as a reminder of the last plague that struck Egypt, tucked in it is an incredible symbol of God’s love, protection, and redemption of His people.

Verses 27 and 28 draw our attention onto the next symbol: Then [Jesus] took a cup, gave thanks to God, and gave it to them. “Drink it, all of you,” he said; “this is my blood, which seals God’s covenant, my blood poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

While the bread was symbolic, the cup filled with wine is even more symbolic. The wine represented Jesus’ blood, and while it sounds disturbing to think about drinking blood, a person or animal’s blood represents its life. The Jews were commanded to not drink blood from an animal, or even to eat meat with the animal’s blood still in it.

Perhaps there is symbolism in the command to avoid an animal’s blood as well. Since God views us as being more valuable than animals, if we blend these two ideas together, the idea of eating or drinking an animal’s blood would symbolically imply that we desire to be more animal-like. This is just speculation on my part, but it would be an interesting study to undertake.

But we cannot escape the symbolism pointing Jesus’ blood being symbolic of His life. Jesus’ life and death sealed God’s covenant with His people, and it made a way for God’s justice to allow for the forgiveness of sins. The symbolism in the communion drink is that we are taking in Jesus and desiring to be more Christ-like with every drop that is consumed. Drinking during communion is a way for us to symbolically internalize Jesus’ life and accept His sacrifice on our behalf.

In one of the most significant Jewish festivals, Jesus draws out one of the most significant pair of symbols for the early Church. Maybe the Jews understood the Passover memorial of the final plague in Egypt to be symbolic of the Messiah, but maybe not. Either way, the plague of the angel of death, and the lamb’s blood that saved the Israelites marks an incredible symbol of the effectiveness of God’s Messiah.

None of the previous plagues had worked to change Pharaoh’s heart into letting Israel go. It took the most powerful symbol of the Messiah coming and dying to protect His people that ultimately broke the Pharaoh’s grip on God’s people.

As I say this, I wonder if the plagues’ themselves, and Israel’s exodus is symbolic – representing history, specifically God’s redemption for all His people throughout all of history. If this is the case, at the heart of the exodus event was the blood of the lamb, and at the heart of our salvation story is the blood of Jesus. In both cases, God’s people are protected by the sacrifice and life that was not theirs. We all benefit from the sacrifice that Someone else made and that makes our salvation that much more valuable.

When we celebrate communion, we pick up and remember thousands of years of symbolism in a seemingly simple ritual, but even though we might not think about how deeply the Messianic symbols flow through Communion and the Passover celebration, we still can be blessed knowing that we are carrying on a symbol that Jesus began long ago.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life. The next time you take part in a communion ceremony, remember how everything points to God. Also, remember how the Passover celebration itself foreshadowed Jesus as God’s Messiah.

Also, as I regularly challenge you to do in one way or another, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself. While pastors and other religious leaders are valuable for giving you ideas to think about and places to start, what matters most is that you are growing a personal relationship with God through the reading and study of His Word.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or deviate away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!