hanks

3. Why are Jesus' opponents often unable to listen to truth told them by credible people? (Luke 22:67b-68) How does understanding this help us to be more faithful disciples? The Messiah had been promised and prophesied by Moses, and all the prophets. A long-time expected Messiah who would come and rule over Israel and get rid of the Roman oppressors rule over them. Whatever was told to them they would not listen to or believe. Jesus said that they will not believe Him whatever He said or even that He was the Messiah. Their unbelief was wilful, obstinate, and unshakeable. They had pretended to have an open mind and ask sincere questions, but this was all a sham. Nothing would convince them, they weren’t listening, they were spiritually deaf. How often had they heard and seen His words and His works. The miracles He had performed were by the authority of His Father and for His Father’s glory. As a man, Jesus lived a perfect life, and so He is a perfect example of how to live. As God, Jesus gives us the power to do what is right. We can’t please God on our own; we must depend on Christ. This understanding helps us to be more faithful disciples, and makes it possible to live a godly life – through following our Lord Jesus Christ.

2. Why was it important to Jesus' opponents to get Him to admit to being the Messiah? (Luke 22:67a) What kind of Messiah were they expecting? It was important for Jesus’ opponents to get Him to admit to being the Messiah, as this would prove He is a political threat to Rome, one of the messianic pretenders who stir up rebellion. This was all they wanted to hear, just the evidence they needed to convict Him. Now the Romans would quickly get rid of Him, since they would quickly crush any inkling of a rebellion. It’s ironic that they never once even considered that maybe His claim might in fact be true. They were so adamant on convicting Him that they never considered the implications of what He had said, or that their ideas about the Messiah might be completely wrong. They wanted a military Messiah, a military leader who would deliver them from the Roman rule. They weren’t interested in a Divine Messiah who would reign in God’s kingdom.

1. How did the temple soldiers abuse Jesus? (Luke 22:63-65) Why did they abuse Him, do you think? Mark suggests that initially some members of the Sanhedrin began to spit on the Son of God, to blindfold Him, and then demand that He prophesy “Who hit You?” The temple soldiers then joined in the scandal by mocking and beating Him, all of which was carried out with the wholehearted permission and co-operation of the members of the Sanhedrin. The fact that the official trial had not even started and they were already beating Jesus, shows us how desperate these leaders were to silence Jesus. By getting Him to prophesy meant that they knew Jesus claimed to be a prophet, yet they did not believe nor accept it, but instead they mocked Him, insulted Him, abused Him, despised Him, beat Him, and humiliated Him. What they were doing is no different than what the Jews had been doing for centuries. Earlier in our study of Luke we read: "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you” (13:34). What we notice here is the strength and calmness of our Lord Jesus, over against the haunting fear of His venomous adversaries. How scared they are, even though for the moment they seem to be the ones that are victorious.

7. Only a few stories are told in all four Gospels. Why do you think Peter's denial is one of these? Why do you think Christians can relate so easily to this story? I think we relate so easily to this story of Peter’s denial because we are all guilty of doing exactly the same sometime in our own lives. We deny our Lord Jesus Christ by our disobedience, by our rejection of Him, by our pride, and our selfishness, among other things. We put our trust in either church membership or baptism and communion but not in Jesus Himself. We so easily reject Him when things go wrong in our lives, or when we face troubles of any kind, or when we don’t get our way. When we rely on our own worldly wisdom, or the wisdom from fellow men (1 Cor 3:18). When our hearts are not right with God, when we are so self-confident and full of pride. Instead, we need to have a childlike confidence to trust in God from day to day. Our spiritual security should come from true faith that relies on God to fulfil His promises. We can and should take warning from the bad example of Peter, we have a greater responsibility, because we can learn from his mistakes. Let us learn from this story, how vulnerable we are if rely on ourselves. We must resist the temptation to be selfish and self-focused. The one who thinks he stands will not stay on guard against temptation, so he may easily fall. This story about the denial by Peter is recorded in each of the four Gospels, and I think this has been done to teach us an important lesson, that even though we fail the Lord, He will forgive us when we repent.

6. Why does Peter weep bitterly? Peter recalled every word of his Master, and also how he had boasted about being willing to follow Him to prison and to death (22:33), then went out of the palace into the open and wept bitterly. He was totally aware of the mighty wrong he had done the Lord. The tears flowed but they do not wash away the sin, but they also flowed from the assurance that Christ’s love, like a flood, had swept it away. There was sincere sorrow and repentance. Peter’s repentance was the consequence of Jesus’ love shown to Him, and the sign of his recovery. Jesus knew Peter had learned his lesson; his faithlessness had ended when his heart was broken.

5. What effect does it have on Peter when Jesus turns and establishes eye contact with him? What do you think is communicated in that look? At the moment of Peter’s final denial, the **** crowed, and in that dark moment Jesus turned and looked at Peter, and he remembered the prediction that before the rooster crows, he would deny Him three times. This look of the Saviour, whom he had so deeply grieved with his great sin, entered deeply into the heart of Peter. As Jesus is led past him, he sees that look, so full of love, reproof, and pardon bringing him back to loyalty, and saving him from despair. The assurance of Christ’s knowledge of our sins against Him melts the heart when the assurance of His forgiveness and tender love comes with it.

4. What does Peter's denial consist of? Why is it so serious? In what ways do modern-day Christians deny Christ in similar way? In Peter’s first denial a servant girl recognised him sitting in the firelight, and accused him of being a follower of Jesus. Taken by surprise he denies knowing our Lord. A little later someone else saw him and accused him of being a member of that notorious band. He now denies with greater emphasis his discipleship. Finally, another declares that Peter was with Jesus, for he is a Galilean. This Peter vehemently denies, and the threefold denial of the Lord had become a fact. No doubt cowardice had a share in the denials, but there was more than that in them. Peter was worn out with fatigue, excitement, and sorrow. To deny Christ is serious. I can think of two instances where Jesus says that He will disown those who deny Him. “But whoever disowns Me before others, I will disown before My Father in heaven” (Mat 10.33), and “If we disown Him, He will also disown us” (2 Tim 2:12b). Those who deny Christ will be denied by Him. Here the thought is not of a temporary denial of the Saviour under duress, as in the case of Peter, but a permanent, habitual denial of Him. These words describe an unbeliever - one who has never embraced the Lord Jesus by faith. Today we deny our Lord Jesus Christ by our unbelief, by our doubts, by our sinfulness, by being swayed by current opinion, by not standing up for Jesus when being threatened, even by our cowardice. By being ashamed of admitting being a Christian for fear of ridicule, for fear of being laughed at.

3. Why do you think Peter's courage melts so quickly? Peter who had earlier told Jesus that he is prepared to go with Him both to prison and to death (22:33), who is now trying to hide among the servants, gets identified by a servant girl (22:56). One can imagine the suddenness and boldness of the servant girl in recognising him must have caught him off guard. He is now frightened and panics. Peter’s denials got progressively more intense, he denies knowing Jesus, "Woman, I don't know Him" (22:57); he denies being a follower of Jesus, "Man, I am not!" (22:58); he even denies that he is from Galilee, "Man, I don't know what you're talking about!" (22:60). What is worse Mat 26:74 tells us that at the last denial Peter even began to curse and swear, hoping that it would distance himself from being associated with Jesus. We see his courage quickly melting away!

2. Who is seated around the fire in the courtyard? (To whom does "they" refer in verse 55?) Was Peter's danger real or imagined? What evidence do you have to support your answer? Seated around the fire warming themselves, were the temple guards and the servants of the house. Thinking that he faced real danger, Peter put himself among the servants hoping to blend in, and not be recognised as a follower of Jesus or the person who cut off the ear of Malchus. This could easily have resulted in his arrest and death. Jesus had warned Peter earlier (22:31-32) that the disciples, but especially Peter, would face severe trials. Satan wanted to crush Peter and the other disciples like grains of wheat, hoping to find only chaff and blow it away. If we recall, Jesus said, “But I have pleaded in prayer for you, Simon, that your faith should not fail” (22:32). Jesus knew that Peter having faced this trial would recover, and be able to strengthen fellow believers. Which he did at Pentecost when he addressed the crowd and about 3000 were saved (Acts 2:41). I feel sorry for Peter, who in a state of panic, had forgotten what Jesus had told him earlier, and to him the danger was real.

1. Does the clause, "Peter followed at a distance," reflect positively or negatively upon his character? Why is he there at all? I think it is easy for us to think of Peter following at a distance, and denying our Lord as a cowardly act, but I wonder if I would have done any better. All the disciples had fled, except Peter and “another disciple” followed the Lord even though it could have meant their death. To me this reflects positively upon Peter’s character. He followed at a distance probably through fear, and because he did not have the courage to be associated with Jesus. Also, there was the possibility that someone would recognise him as the one who cut off Malchus’ ear. He didn’t have to be there. Yet he is there because of his love for his Master, and because he must have been concerned for Jesus and wanted to know what would become of Him.

6. What are pastors and leaders to learn from Judas' betrayal of Jesus? What are followers to learn? I only have to read Gal 5:19-21a to know what we are capable of: “The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like”. And Judas’ betrayal of Jesus just highlights our condition. To think he spent so much time with Jesus, heard all His teachings, saw all His miracles, and His healings; yet he is capable of such an evil deed! Every part of us – our mind, our will, our emotions, and our flesh - have been corrupted by sin. There is so much in the Bible about our sinful condition, for example, how we love darkness, and how we are held captive by the love of sin (John 3:19). This just shows us, leaders and disciples, that Satan will use all the means at his disposal to attack us and alienate us from our Lord Jesus.

5. Jesus intends double meanings when He uses the word "darkness" in 22:53. What are the two meanings? The first meaning is the power of spiritual darkness. It can be described as a state of spiritual blindness. It is the realm in which Satan rules, where evil triumphs, where there is hatred for anything good, and hatred for our Lord Jesus. But we know that this evil power of darkness will not last for ever. A time will come when purity, truth, love, and righteousness will rule. God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. He is absolutely holy, absolutely righteous, and absolutely pure. The other meaning Jesus refers to is the cover of darkness, the darkness of night. Here evil deeds are performed under cover of darkness, thinking that they are hidden and unseen. They forget that nothing is hidden from our Lord. “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account” (Heb 4:13).

4. Why does Jesus heal the severed ear of His enemy? (Luke 22:51) How is this a rebuke to His disciples? How do you think it affects His enemies? Jesus performed a miracle to repair the damage Peter had done. Because of this special act the injured man was none the worse, and the harm done was neutralised by our Lord. We often see this in our Christian life. We mean to do good, but then through just plain ignorance, or carelessness, or some indiscretion we land up doing just the opposite. Fortunately for us our Lord sometimes steps in and undoes all the harm we have done. As mentioned previously, Jesus rebukes them for using carnal means to fight a spiritual warfare. This is a volatile situation and could easily have resulted in further bloodshed if Jesus hadn’t acted as He did.

3. The disciples begin to defend Jesus with their swords (Luke 22:49-50). In what way is this courageous? In what way is this foolish? How does their sword defence display their spiritual dullness? In John 18:6 we read that our Lord Jesus revealed Himself as the I AM, the Almighty God. This was so overpowering that the crowd briefly drew back and fell to the ground. I think this may have encouraged them to defend Jesus with their swords. If one takes into consideration that there were several hundred-armed troops present, this may be seen as a courageous act, or even perhaps a foolish act. From a spiritual perspective, this was a foolish and thoughtless act, that displayed their lack of understanding of Jesus’ mission. They were using carnal means to fight a spiritual warfare, not realising that God’s predetermined purposes/plans must come to pass. That Jesus had come to die for sinners.

2. Why is loyalty so important a quality in disciples? In leaders? For both disciples and leaders their highest loyalty should be to God and His eternal values. When Jesus said that we cannot serve two masters (Mat 6:24), He was contrasting heavenly values with earthly values, and He explained that our first loyalty should be to those things that do not fade, cannot be stolen or used up, and never wear out. When it comes to our Lord Jesus there can be no middle ground. Loyalties must be declared and commitments made, sometimes to the point of severing other relationships. As Jesus’ disciples, we demonstrate our loyalty and self-sacrificing allegiance to Him by following His command: "Whoever wants to be My disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow Me” (9:23). In relationships loyalty is vital and an essential part of true friendship. “A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity” (Prov 17:17). Often it takes hard times to show which friends are genuinely loyal. We are to be loyal to our church leaders, support them as much as we can. Betrayal, back-stabbing will undermine their leadership and can have drastic adverse results for the church as a whole. However, as Christians, we are told not to follow our leaders/teachers blindly but are told rather to “test everything; hold on to the good” (1 Thess 5:21).

1. Why is Judas' kiss so hideous? (Luke 22:47-48) Have you been the victim of such a betrayal by those who are outwardly sweet? Have you ever been party to such a betrayal? To me, it is a hideous act to use a sign of love as an act of betrayal. With this kiss of greeting, Judas showed himself to be the ultimate traitor. To think that only hours before his betrayal Judas had eaten with Jesus; this is the height of disloyalty and hypocrisy. The betrayal of the Messiah our Saviour, by one of His own disciples who had spent about 3 years with our Lord, and had witnessed all His healings, miracles, and heard His teachings. One cannot imagine what would motivate a person to do such a deed. It can only be that Satan managed to gain control of Judas, for him to perform such inexcusable treachery. No, I cannot think of ever having been a victim of any betrayal, nor have I ever been party to such an evil deed. I can only imagine the pain a close friend can inflict by their betrayal. It happened once to my wife, and it took her years to recover.

7. In what ways does alert prayer keep us from temptation? (Luke 22:46) Jesus teaches us to pray so that we will not fall into temptation (Matt 6:13; Mark 14:38, 22:46). And if we are tempted, God has promised that we will not be tested beyond what we are able to bear, to limit its intensity, and to provide a way of escape (1 Cor 10:13). Prayer keeps our minds set on things above, not on earthly things (Col 3:2). Nothing better than having our minds filled with the majesty and holiness of God, the love and compassion of our Saviour Lord Jesus Christ. All of which are reflected in His perfect Word. For me Psalm 119:11 is a powerful verse to memorise: “I have hidden Your Word in my heart that I might not sin against You”. Another one of my favourites is Phil 4:8: “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things”. If we walk in the Spirit, having fellowship with Jesus we make decisions in the light of His holiness; our mind is occupied with Christ and there is no thought of sin. By keeping our minds on heavenly things, we will not be bombarded with messages and images that may lead to sinful lusts.

6. Have you ever been "exhausted from sorrow"? What was it like? What is its spiritual equivalent. (Luke 22:45) As I get older I seem less able to handle stress. And extreme stress has a debilitating effect on me, it is totally exhausting; I become tired and depressed. Initially one panics, and cannot believe what our Lord is allowing to happen to me. I think what is happening is that I allow the flesh to dominate and take control. I question God, after a while I come to my senses and start praying earnestly, and the Holy Spirit takes over and I start experiencing the peace that comes from my trust in Him. Once again, I never learn, I forget that in ALL things God works for the good of those who love Him, even though Rom 8:28 is one of my favourite verses. I still forget! “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose”.

5. Why do we avoid seeking what the Father's will actually is? We avoid seeking what our Heavenly Father’s will is, because it is submitting to God’s ways and His plans; meaning that we are no longer in control. By praying “Your will be done”, we acknowledge God’s right to rule; that our will be conformed to His, and that He knows what is best for us. This scares us because we lose control of our lives, scared that He has something special lined up for us that might take us out of our comfort zone. Besides asking for His will to be done requires that we must know some Scripture and know what we are asking for. It includes asking for wisdom, enabling us to know the will of God, it includes asking in faith, so that we can trust the will of God, it includes knowing that our highest aim is to bring glory to our Heavenly Father (1 Cor 10:31). It is to make sure that our prayers are in line with His will - as it is revealed throughout Scripture. I love these next two verses: “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us - whatever we ask - we know that we have what we asked of Him” (1 John 5:14-15). We can now pray with confidence knowing that He will certainly answer us.

4. How can it be inauthentic to pray "Your will be done" prayers without petitioning the Father for what our will is? Jesus taught us earlier in Luke 18:1-8 not to give up praying for what we earnestly desire. We are to persist in keeping our prayers before God, and as we persist in prayer we grow in character, in faith, and in hope. James said “we do not have because we do not ask God” (James 4:2). By asking for something specifically, by mentioning it by name – if His answer is a Yes, then we know that He approves. Otherwise, if pray “Your will be done”, and His answer is a Yes, then we only know what He permits. We know God wants an increase of righteousness in the world, to bring more people to repentance, and to further the cause of the kingdom of His Son. I think our prayers become more powerful when our desires correspond to His will for us. We might not receive what we asked for, since we asked for the wrong reasons, or for the wrong things. Do we only want to satisfy our desires or do we seek God’s approval? Then our prayers will become more effective if we allow God to change our desires so that they correspond to His will for us.

3. Extra credit. In what way is this "cup" costly to the Father and to the unity of the Father and Son? Will we ever understand the pain and sorrow that God the Father must have felt for putting His Son through the agony and pain of the cross? For punishing and killing His own Son, who had committed no sin. For the humiliation, the weight of all the sins, past, present, and future, of the whole world, He had to go through. God made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Cor 5:21). Jesus knew there was no other way to redeem mankind, that He is the only possible sacrifice to redeem the world (Acts 4:12). Jesus not only endured the withdrawal of the Father’s fellowship, but also the actual outpouring of the Father’s wrath upon Him as a substitute for sinful humanity. “This was the blackness and darkness of His horror; then it was that He penetrated the depths of the caverns of suffering” (Spurgeon).

2. Is Jesus' prayer to have the "cup" removed an indication of His weakness? Yes or no? Explain your answer. When Jesus prayed to have the cup removed, He was not trying to get out of His mission. This was not an indication of any weakness on His behalf. He was only expressing His true feelings about the fear of the coming trials. And in His humanity, He was battling the flesh and its desire for self-preservation and comfort; “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Mat 26:41). Immediately afterwards He reaffirmed His commitment to do God’s will. He was no victim of circumstances beyond His control, and unlike any animal sacrifice, went with full knowledge, and willingly resolved to lay down His life as a sacrifice for our sins. Jesus was unafraid of death, and when He had finished His work on the cross – the work of receiving and bearing and satisfying the righteous judgment of God the Father upon our sin – when He finished that work, He simply yielded Himself to death as His choice. He is the Sacrifice itself. He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). Who would willingly give up His life for someone else? What love, what a Saviour! Not weakness but loving strength in abundance! At no time did our Lord falter or turn back. He kept His eyes fixed on the coming glory when all the redeemed would be gathered with Him eternally. This enabled Him to think nothing of shame and to endure suffering and death. Today He is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

1. What is the "cup" that Jesus prays about? Why does He pray that it may be removed? (Luke 22:42) The cup that Jesus prays about is the suffering He was about to endure. Repeatedly in the Old Testament, a cup is a powerful picture of the wrath and judgment of God. God will pour out His fury on His enemies (Psalm 75:8; Jer 25:15). Jesus became, as it were, an enemy of God, who was judged and forced to drink the cup of the Father’s fury, so that we would not have to drink from that cup. Drinking this figurative cup was the source of Jesus’ greatest agony on the cross. Jesus is fully God, but He is also fully human. Here He prays that the cup may be removed, which is the natural human desire to avoid pain and suffering, "Father, if you are willing....".

6. How was being "numbered" with the transgressors fulfilled in Jesus' life? According to the passage quoted in Isaiah 53, what did He do for the transgressors by means of His death? This was fulfilled on the cross where Jesus was crucified between and numbered/identified with robbers (Mat 27:38), and with criminals (23:33). This great passage quoted in Isaiah 53 gives us a complete picture of what the death of our Lord Jesus Christ did for the transgressors of the whole world (1 John 2:2). This does not mean that the whole world is saved. Rather it means that the work of the Lord Jesus is sufficient in value to save all the world, but it is only efficient to save those who actually put their trust in Him. It is because His work is sufficient for all men that the gospel can be offered to all the world. Because He was numbered with the transgressors, and bore the sin (Isa 53:6) of many, that is, everyone, He is exalted and allows believers to share in the benefits of that exaltation. And because He is alive (Isa 53:10), He now intercedes for transgressors (Isa 53:5; 53:8). His death satisfied God’s righteous demands for judgment against sin, thus opening the way for everyone to come to God in faith for salvation from sin.

5. Why does Jesus' quotation about being "numbered with the transgressors" have to do with the context of this passage? (Luke 22:37) Jess was telling the disciples that He will be treated/considered as a transgressor and be put to death as if He had been one. Jesus had previously told His disciples that He would be rejected and crucified (17:25; 18:31-33), meaning that every prophecy about Him will occur, perhaps hinting that it will happen soon. “For I tell you, what has been written must be fulfilled in Me” (22:37), indicating that our Saviour regarded not only His life but also His death as the fulfilment of God's plan. But He is innocent, holy, blameless, pure, undefiled, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens (Heb 7:26). “He poured out His life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For He bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors” (Isa 53:12b).