There are several mottos or slogans I have picked up throughout the course of my life that I regularly repeat to myself because I believe they’re true. They aren’t slogans you’ll find in Scripture, but I still believe they illustrate principles that are biblical in nature.
One of those slogans is the phrase, “You don’t have to attend every argument you get invited to.” I’m sure we can all attest to the fact that there are plenty of people in our lives who never seem to miss an opportunity to argue their point when they could have engaged in a peaceful conversation instead. As often as possible, I try not to take their bait. Arguing is a sign of immaturity. Those who are mature prefer to discuss.
Another slogan that I think has value relates to the concept of respect. I would imagine that most people prefer to be respected, not disrespected by others. There’s a key to being respected that can be summarized with a simple statement. “If you want to be respected, always do what you said you were going to do.” This is true at home and in the workplace. This is true when it comes to marriage and parenting. It’s also true when it comes to being respected as a leader or a friend.
Trusting Jesus Means Following His Word Even When it Doesn’t Make Sense
Jesus is both a leader and a friend to those who trust in Him, but would we have been willing to trust Him at all if we didn’t believe what He said? If we weren’t absolutely convinced that He will do what He said He will do, would we be willing to entrust our hope and eternal aspirations to His care and protection? Jesus can be trusted, and in Mark 14:12-25, He demonstrated that His words are true and that He has done or will do everything He said He would.
“And on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they sacrificed the Passover lamb, his disciples said to him, ‘Where will you have us go and prepare for you to eat the Passover?’ And he sent two of his disciples and said to them, ‘Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him, and wherever he enters, say to the master of the house, “The Teacher says, Where is my guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?” And he will show you a large upper room furnished and ready; there prepare for us.’ And the disciples set out and went to the city and found it just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover.” - Mark 14:12-16
The events of this passage took place just before Jesus experienced the torture of crucifixion. He was crucified on Friday, and the activity that’s described in this passage took place either on Wednesday or Thursday. It was time to celebrate the Passover meal with His disciples, so Jesus sent two of them (Peter and John) into Jerusalem to begin making preparations for the meal (Luke 22:8).
It’s interesting to observe the instructions Jesus gave Peter and John because in order to carry out what He told them to do, faith would be required. For starters, they were told to go into the city and once they were there, they would be met by a man carrying a jar of water. He would meet them and lead them to a home where they could make a request of the home’s owner.
It’s obvious that Peter and John trusted what Jesus said because they did exactly what He told them to do, but I can’t help but wonder what they were thinking and talking about as they approached the city. They were to look for a man carrying a jar of water. Does that strike you as odd? Wouldn’t there potentially be many men carrying jars of water?
In the culture at the time, it was customary for women to go to local wells and bring water home for their families, so it would definitely stand out if you happened to see a man carrying out this specific task. We’re told that Peter and John encountered this man just as Jesus assured them they would.
When that man, who was likely a household servant, brought Peter and John to the home in which he served, they were told to tell the master of the home that the Teacher needed use of the guest room so he could eat the Passover with His disciples. That man would then bring them to a large upper room that would be furnished and ready for them. Tradition holds that this may actually have been Mark’s home and the master of the home was his father. Again, just as Jesus said, this is precisely what took place.
Betrayed but Not Surprised: How Jesus Understands Our Deepest Wounds
There are many statements, assurances, and future promises Jesus has given us in His word. How confident are you that everything He has said will take place? There’s a simple test you can give yourself to confirm the depth of your confidence in His words, and that test is… obedience. If you actually believe Him, you’ll obey Him. Like Peter and John, you’ll obey Jesus in obvious ways while also taking steps of faith into unfamiliar territory.
“And when it was evening, he came with the twelve. And as they were reclining at table and eating, Jesus said, ‘Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me, one who is eating with me.’ They began to be sorrowful and to say to him one after another, ‘Is it I?’ He said to them, ‘It is one of the twelve, one who is dipping bread into the dish with me. For the Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born.’” - Mark 14:17-21
That evening Jesus, along with His disciples, came to the place where the Passover meal had been prepared. There were many things Jesus said and explained at this meal. Mark doesn’t record it all, but John’s gospel (starting with Chapter 13) gives us further details of Christ’s teaching at this meal. One aspect of the conversation that Mark made a point to record, however, was Christ’s declaration that one of the disciples was actually a traitor. After several years of living and serving together, this had to trouble these men severely. It’s also clear that they didn’t immediately realize it was Judas who would betray Jesus.
I get the impression that the disciples had a lot of trust for Judas. He was their treasurer, and they certainly wouldn’t have placed him in charge of their finances if they didn’t consider him to be a man of integrity. But Jesus knew what was in Judas’ heart. He knew what he intended to do. He knew what really motivated this man. Jesus also made it clear that it would have been better for Judas if he had never been born than to betray the Savior of the world.
This betrayal was ultimately part of Christ’s plan and it certainly didn’t shock Him, but without a doubt it troubled Him emotionally. Have you ever experienced the pain of betrayal? Have you ever taken the risk to trust someone only to be hurt by their desire to abandon you or work against you at a later point? I have experienced this pain several times in my life, but my consolation in the midst of it is the fact that Jesus is sympathetic to this pain as well. When we pray to the Father in the name of Jesus, we’re coming before the throne of God in the name of our merciful and sympathetic High Priest who understands our pain. And through the Holy Spirit, we are granted comfort and relief.
Jesus’ Promise of Forgiveness and Future Glory
“And as they were eating, he took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to them, and said, ‘Take; this is my body.’ And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. And he said to them, ‘This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. Truly, I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.’” -Mark 14:22-25
As the Passover meal continued, Jesus instituted a practice that His followers have continued observing ever since. Jesus took bread, blessed it, ripped it to pieces, shared it with His disciples and told them that this bread that was just ripped apart represented His body. Then He took a cup of wine, gave thanks for it, shared it with His disciples so they could take a drink, then explained to them that it represented His blood which would be shed in order to inaugurate the New Covenant between God and men, a covenant that didn’t require the symbolic sacrificial death of animals like a Passover lamb because Jesus, the Lamb of God, would die once for all to atone for the sins of man. Through faith in Him, we would receive new life and not be condemned.
“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” - Jeremiah 31:31-34
What a blessing it truly is to know that through Jesus, our sins are forgiven. Jesus took them upon Himself. He bore them in His body so that they would no longer be held against us. As the Scripture tells us, they are remembered no more. In Christ, the slate of sin that stood against us is completely wiped clean.
“Truly, I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.” - Mark 14:25
Jesus, knowing that His crucifixion would come soon after this meal, wanted to make sure His disciples kept their eyes focused on the future when the kingdom of God will fully prevail. The cup of wine made from the fruit of the vine had been passed among them and all who were present drank, but Jesus said He would not do this again until a future day when the full effects of the kingdom of God were established. I can’t help but wonder if His words are meant to allude to the marriage supper we’re told about in Revelation 19:9.
“And the angel said to me, ‘Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.’ And he said to me, ‘These are the true words of God.’” - Revelation 19:9
The words Jesus spoke to His disciples during the Passover meal were confirmed to be true. The words He has spoken to us have likewise been confirmed. Everything will be just as He told us it would be. We can have confidence that the word of Christ is true. Jesus will do what He said He will do.
Originally published by Bible Study Headquarters. Used with permission.
Photo Credit: ©Unsplash/Navneet Mahajan
John Stange is the Lead Pastor at Core Creek Community Church and a professor at Cairn University where he leads the Digital Media and Communication program. He also leads an online community called Platform Launchers where he helps people build message-based online platforms.
John has authored over 30 books and presently hosts several podcasts on the LifeAudio podcast network. His shows have been downloaded millions of times by listeners throughout the world.
You can learn more about John’s ministry, books, and podcasts at BibleStudyHeadquarters.com.
