Bolstered with strength from God, Jesus is ready to meet His adversaries, and to allow the events leading to His death on earth unfold.
18:1-3 Recently, in John 13:21-30, Judas was appointed/identified as the one who would orchestrate the circumstances of Jesus' capture. In these first verses, those events come into fruition.
18:4-5 Without trepidation, Jesus steps forward. He's not afraid of these men or their weapons and torches. Jesus is aware of the entire plan; God's plan from even before His birth and beyond His death on earth. He was foretold specifically of the adversity He would have here and He still elected to come. With God guiding and protecting Him, there was nothing any enemy could do to worry Him.
Jesus knows that the purpose of His death on earth is to teach and comfort God's children, to show them that they did not need to fear enemies or death. He knows that it will help us to distinguish truth from deception, and selfishness from compassion. He knows that it will teach us to be brave, wise and purposeful, to never settle as victims under those who rule with injustice around the earth. For these reasons, He was not hesitant at all to accept the circumstances with courage and willingness.
18:6-9 Jesus immediately identifies Himself for another reason: He wants to protect His disciples and followers. Jesus has promised God to protect the students He was sent to guide and He never neglects to do so.
18:10 Simon Peter is impassioned, eager to defend Jesus. Simon Peter does not yet understand or accept the fact that these events must unfold -- Jesus must be handed into the hands of His enemies in order for scripture to be fulfilled, in order for God's plan to work. It's entirely understandable, of course -- we naturally protect the ones we love.
18:11 However Jesus reminds Simon Peter that these circumstances were orchestrated by God for a purpose and Jesus reminds him that He will fulfill God's word. Jesus does not need weapons to diminish or escape His enemies; if God did not want it to be so, those enemies would not even have ever existed. Moreover, God does not use violence to bring justice to the world.
18:12 Jesus is captured and bound.
18:13-14 He is brought to Annas and held for trial and his enemies hoped, death.
18:15-18 Remember in John 13:10-11 Jesus foretold Peter of his denial while washing his feet (the metaphor of having oneself cleaned and solidified by the word of God) Here is a portion of the study:
13:10 ...If Simon Peter is to be a worker of God, as he desires to be, he will need to be bold and determined even against his enemies. It's easy to believe something when you're safe and warm in your comfort zone... but once you are beyond those boundaries, you have to uphold and defend your beliefs with actions. In order to make a difference you think the world needs, you must be brave enough to enforce it.
Simon Peter is not yet entirely "clean" because he's halfway in his spiritual journey -- faithful, but not yet productive and bold in his faith (a necessary component).
13:11 Simon Peter, as we spoke of above, will deny his relationship to Jesus when in the company of enemies and feeling vulnerable. Jesus knows that this is necessary to embolden Simon Peter in his faith and courage. Our lives are filled with lessons and our "mistakes" only become actual mistakes when we refuse to learn from them. Simon Peter will learn from his lesson.
Within these verses we have Simon Peter's first denial. He's afraid to identify Himself with Jesus -- it's his first experience without Jesus physically at his side while against enemies and his faith is not yet courageous enough to dispel his fear.
18:19 Meanwhile, Jesus is being questioned by the high priest.
18:20 Jesus informs the man of the truth: He has always taught openly and honestly. He has never plotted or performed duplicitous work.
18:21 Jesus is confident because He's telling the truth. The high priest can ask any number of the multitude of people Jesus taught and each of them would confirm that Jesus always taught openly and innocently.
18:22 Here is an instance of arrogant machismo. This type of authority has always and still exists int the world: people are drunk with power and enforce it violently. These people want to be revered but Jesus already knows Who God is and He reveres only Him. Jesus has answered honestly and plainly, nothing He has done deserves punishment.
18:23 Jesus requests that they justify their reason for physical force. He requests that they identify any error that He might have made to justify it...they cannot of course; they have no logical reason.
God's children always remain courageous in their honesty. God's children value and uphold logic and their perceptive nature guides them in recognizing falsehood and injustice. Be alert and observant in all situations to that you will remain centered in the logic and reality of them.
Jesus could have reacted very differently -- and we often make the mistake of doing so. He did not become frantic or chaotic, He kept calm, He remained humble and He requested that logic and justice be utilized.
Jesus could have reacted very differently -- and we often make the mistake of doing so. He did not become frantic or chaotic, He kept calm, He remained humble and He requested that logic and justice be utilized.
18:24 Still captured, although not yet officially accused or guilty of any crime, they move Jesus.
18:25-27 Within these verses Simon Peter denies being associated with Jesus two more times, fulfilling scripture. Consider the context; he's terrified and justifiable so. But God truly wants us to trust His protection; it is only with our trust that He can give it to us. Peter is experiencing this lesson and is (perhaps unknowingly at the time) building his faith and trust.
Funnily, we each usually learn our most important lessons unknowingly. God is craftily subtle in His instruction and only the perceptive realize and learn from it, so be perceptive in your life!
18:25-27 Within these verses Simon Peter denies being associated with Jesus two more times, fulfilling scripture. Consider the context; he's terrified and justifiable so. But God truly wants us to trust His protection; it is only with our trust that He can give it to us. Peter is experiencing this lesson and is (perhaps unknowingly at the time) building his faith and trust.
Funnily, we each usually learn our most important lessons unknowingly. God is craftily subtle in His instruction and only the perceptive realize and learn from it, so be perceptive in your life!
18:28 The keep moving Jesus around and in this verse they enter the judgement hall.
18:29-30 They accuse Jesus of being an evil-doer. They try to condemn Him with lies but His life of truth will triumph over their attempts.
18:31-32 Not wanting to be responsible for killing Him, they bring Him outside of their jurisdiction and try to convince this Pilate to do it for them. Deceitful people always pass responsibility onto someone else. This is not an obsolete tactic.
18:33-35 Pilate is entirely unaware of the situation; he's not religious or spiritual in any way. He's quite removed from the situation. He questions Jesus, asks Him who He is and what He's done.
18:36 Jesus answers truthfully: He is not afraid because he is not vulnerable to the people of the world. If the world were Jesus' (or God's children's) true home, Jesus explains that the circumstances would be different. However because He is not from this world or vulnerable to it, He's quite unconcerned: He knows that nothing can happen to Him that God has not allowed and protected.
It's the way of the world to fight and flee for freedom but Jesus does not need to do that -- God easily establishes freedom without any of that.
18:37 Jesus agrees that He is a king, but not one in competition* with his adversaries. Jesus rightly claims to not be of this world. He supersedes it. He came to innocently and humbly speak His truth. He came to give humanity an option; He did not come to enforce it.
*There is no competition between man and God -- God wins before even the thought of a battle.
Followers of Jesus agreed with the compassionate philosophy of God, they chose it over what their corrupt leaders were offering. This enraged those corrupt leaders. They accused Jesus of threatening their law... all Jesus did was present the world with another law...opposite theirs and people fell away from the old to embrace the new. The corrupt leaders began to lose their power and wealth and they desperately, greedily worked to keep it -- they believed killing Jesus would ensure the continuation of their unjust reign.
18:38 Pilate could not find fault in Jesus' honesty and he did not pretend otherwise (like the others, Jesus' enemies, were).
18:29-30 They accuse Jesus of being an evil-doer. They try to condemn Him with lies but His life of truth will triumph over their attempts.
18:31-32 Not wanting to be responsible for killing Him, they bring Him outside of their jurisdiction and try to convince this Pilate to do it for them. Deceitful people always pass responsibility onto someone else. This is not an obsolete tactic.
18:33-35 Pilate is entirely unaware of the situation; he's not religious or spiritual in any way. He's quite removed from the situation. He questions Jesus, asks Him who He is and what He's done.
18:36 Jesus answers truthfully: He is not afraid because he is not vulnerable to the people of the world. If the world were Jesus' (or God's children's) true home, Jesus explains that the circumstances would be different. However because He is not from this world or vulnerable to it, He's quite unconcerned: He knows that nothing can happen to Him that God has not allowed and protected.
It's the way of the world to fight and flee for freedom but Jesus does not need to do that -- God easily establishes freedom without any of that.
18:37 Jesus agrees that He is a king, but not one in competition* with his adversaries. Jesus rightly claims to not be of this world. He supersedes it. He came to innocently and humbly speak His truth. He came to give humanity an option; He did not come to enforce it.
*There is no competition between man and God -- God wins before even the thought of a battle.
Followers of Jesus agreed with the compassionate philosophy of God, they chose it over what their corrupt leaders were offering. This enraged those corrupt leaders. They accused Jesus of threatening their law... all Jesus did was present the world with another law...opposite theirs and people fell away from the old to embrace the new. The corrupt leaders began to lose their power and wealth and they desperately, greedily worked to keep it -- they believed killing Jesus would ensure the continuation of their unjust reign.
18:38 Pilate could not find fault in Jesus' honesty and he did not pretend otherwise (like the others, Jesus' enemies, were).
18:39-40 This custom during Passover was to release a prisoner: rather than release the innocent one, they demand that the actual criminal be released. This is a cruel and illogical bunch of people. They want Jesus gone because they want to retain their corrupt power. They exhibit no truth or justice and this is exactly why God sent Jesus to humanity -- to embolden us against such enemies.
