51 And behold, one of those who were with Jesus reached and drew out his sword, and struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his ear. 52 Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its place; for all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword. 53 Or do you think that I cannot appeal to My Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelve legions of angels? 54 How then will the Scriptures be fulfilled, which say that it must happen this way?” 55 At that time Jesus said to the crowds, “Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest Me as you would against a robber? Every day I used to sit in the temple teaching and you did not seize Me. 56 But all this has taken place to fulfill the Scriptures of the prophets.”
Jesus gives His final discourse to the disciples, rebuking them for their well-intended, but misguided action. We know from Luke 11:38 that they had brought two swords and from John 18:10 that one of them was wielded by Peter who was, in fact, the one who sliced off the ear of the high priest’s slave. Impetuous? Yes, but also demonstrating his loyalty to Christ. After all, Peter had just insisted that he was willing to die for Christ (26:35), as did all the other disciples.
This was not the time, however, for defending Jesus or protecting Him from being arrested. They thought all depended upon them, but the Lord pointed out that He did not need any human help to accomplish His goals, for He had at His disposal the supernatural forces of God. The issue was not whether the events could be stopped. Scripture had to be fulfilled, God was keeping His word, prophecy needed to unfold as planned.
How often do we wrestle with our circumstances, so desperately trying to change them, when in fact God may have something different in mind. As Peter Kerr so aptly put it, “Our dear Lord knows best and may not act according to our understanding. He does not always have an easy, pleasant path for us, but He does always have a good path for us–even if that path involves suffering. His goal is NOT our earthly ‘happiness.’ His goal is our eternal holiness in Christ!”
Jesus questioned the crowd about their covert approach to arresting Him. Why had they not apprehended Him in the temple, if in fact the problem was His teaching? He was no ordinary foe. Others they could dismiss with blistering diatribes, with the crowds cowering in fear. But with Jesus, public debates always ended in their embarrassment. The Lord’s questions implied the obvious: their agenda was one of hatred born of insecure, sinful hearts. Though He did not resist, He spotlighted the prophetic irony of what they were doing.
Lord, help me not to run ahead of You or behind You, but to keep in step with Your plan and purpose for my life.
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