Flashback Episode — Siding With Jesus: Luke 22:7-13

As we come near the point in Jesus’ ministry that He is crucified, it seems like many of the gospels slow down their narrative and focus on all the details they can about what happened. If we look at each gospel, it would seem – at least to me – that the gospel writers focused heavily on the last week, and even the 24-hour period prior to Jesus’ crucifixion.

The time of year that this happened was during the annual Passover celebration, and this commemorated the last plague in Egypt where the angel of death passed over the homes that had a lamb’s blood spread on parts of the doorway. It was this last plague that marked the Israelites being kicked out of Egypt, and as a result, they celebrated this event each year as a reminder of what God did for them, and as a memorial of the blood that was put on their doorposts, the Israelites sacrificed a lamb to remind them that their lives had been spared.

Leading up to the weekend Jesus was crucified, we read in the gospel of Luke about a special task Jesus gives to two of His closest disciples. This event can be found in the gospel of Luke, chapter 22, and we will be reading from the New International Reader’s Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 7, Luke tells us:

⁷ Then the day of Unleavened Bread came. That was the time the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. ⁸ Jesus sent Peter and John on ahead. “Go,” he told them. “Prepare for us to eat the Passover meal.”

⁹ “Where do you want us to prepare for it?” they asked.

¹⁰ Jesus replied, “When you enter the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him to the house he enters. ¹¹ Then say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher asks, “Where is the guest room? Where can I eat the Passover meal with my disciples?” ’ ¹² He will show you a large upstairs room with furniture already in it. Prepare for us to eat there.”

¹³ Peter and John left. They found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover meal.

When I read about this event, I am amazed at a couple of things. The most obvious thing to be amazed at is Jesus’ exact knowledge of what Peter and John would find when they entered the city. When Luke tells us that a man carrying a water jug would meet them at the entrance to the city, I am curious if Luke describes a man giving these two disciples a friendly greeting, or if as they enter the city, they would simply see a man carrying a large jar of water.

If we wanted to get a better understanding of this exact portion of the event, we could look in one or both of the other gospels that include this event. But regardless of exactly how the disciples knew which person to follow, the fact Jesus knows what happens in detail is amazing, but it isn’t the most amazing thing in my mind when I read about this event.

One of the other things that stand out in my mind relates to the owner of this mysterious home. Jesus describes the man carrying the jar of water as one of the servants of this homeowner. Either that, or the man carrying the water may have simply been an angel that only these two disciples could see. But when we look at the details surrounding this home, it would appear like this owner was a secret follower of Jesus, or at the very least, someone who didn’t fully support the Jewish leader’s campaign to arrest Him.

When we stop and look a little closer at this event, it seems amazing in my mind that a homeowner would open his home to a group of wanted men so that they could share a meal together. This is essentially what was going on, because at this point in Passover week, the religious leaders had put the word out calling for information from those living in and around Jerusalem so they could arrest Jesus. What this homeowner did by letting Jesus and His disciples enter his home would have made him an enemy of the religious system.

The only way this makes sense is that either this man was already opposed to the religious system currently in place, or He had dedicated His home to God and was willing to let God use this location whenever and however God saw fit.

What this homeowner essentially did was side with Jesus during some of the tensest points in spiritual history, and this too is a powerful thought we should remember: When we are faced with spiritual tension, we should always side with Jesus!

Another perplexing angle on this event is that the disciples are simply instructed to refer to Jesus as “the Teacher”. Whether this was because not everyone in the household was friendly or sympathetic to Jesus, or whether this was a key undercover phrase that this homeowner would recognize, what matters is that this phrase was the key to unlocking access to this upper room.

While we can dig into and marvel at the details surrounding this homeowner, and speculate over the details surrounding how the upper room was opened to Jesus and His disciples, we should not overlook the role of the disciples. I wonder if they just went along with whatever Jesus said at this point in His ministry. When we read how this passage concludes, we don’t see any questioning, any doubt, or any hesitation written. Luke tells us in verse 13 that “Peter and John left. They found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover meal.”

If it were me, I might have wanted to know a little more what the man who was carrying the water jug looked like, just in case there was more than one man at the entrance to the city that fit this description. I might have wondered or asked for a secondary phrase to say if the homeowner wanted more details regarding who the vague “teacher” referred to.

But this is me, and this might show that I have a more doubtful or skeptical mind than these two disciples. The biggest things I see in this passage that are powerful thoughts are the duel ideas that Peter and John obeyed Jesus’ instructions, even if Jesus’ instructions didn’t make any sense, and the homeowner was willing to open his home when God had called Him to do so.

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

When faced with spiritual tension or a spiritual challenge, always side with Jesus, and with the God of love. When in doubt, this is the best direction to lean towards. Continue intentionally seeking God first and be sure to intentionally place Him first in your life at the beginning of each day.

Also, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself, because no pastor or podcaster is going to have 100% of the message God wants to share with you, and even if you are able to learn from someone else, nothing can take the place of personal study and learning from the Bible personally!

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!