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Join the community: Facebook - @appianmedia Instagram - @appianmedia Twitter - @Appian_Media Youtube - @appianmedia Web - www.appianmedia.org The Birth of Jesus ...... 4
Nighttime Announcement & Dedication In The Temple ...... 10
Jesus’ Childhood in Nazareth ...... 16
The Family Trip to Jerusalem ...... 23
The Baptism of Jesus...... 29
The Temptation of Jesus ...... 35
The Calling of the Apostles, Part 1 ...... 41
The Calling of the Apostles, Part 2 ...... 47
Capernaum, The Town of Jesus ...... 53
Recalling Simeon & Anna ...... 59
Jesus’ Rejection at Nazareth ...... 65
Jesus Calms the Sea ...... 71
“Who do people say that I am?” ...... 77
Miraculous Signs in the North ...... 83
Miraculous Signs in the South ...... 89
No One Taught Like Jesus! ...... 94
Teaching Along the Way ...... 100 2 The Last Week: Triumphal Entry ...... 106
The Last Week: At The Temple ...... 112
The Last Week: The Passover Meal ...... 118
The Final Day: Gethsemane ...... 123
The Final Day: Jewish Trials ...... 130
The Final Day: Roman Trials ...... 136
Jesus’ Death ...... 142
Jesus’ Burial & Resurrection ...... 149
Jesus’ Appearances & Ascension ...... 155
3 LESSON ONE The Birth of Jesus
Watch Following the Messiah episode 1 (0:00 min. - 12:30 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes about what you remember about the birth of Jesus and how you imagine it may have looked.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
4 DISCUSSION Nearly everyone in the western world has some familiarity with the account of Jesus’ birth, many in the religious community celebrate an annual holiday in December to commemorate it. The birth probably took place in late September or early spring, since the shepherds were out in the fields; however, nearly every month of the year has been suggested as a possible birth month. What can we learn from examining the Biblical text and comparing it with what we saw in Bethlehem? Additionally, what should it mean to us?
THE BIRTH OF JESUS IS ROOTED IN REALITY. Luke, the historian of the gospel writers, connects the birth of Jesus to multiple politicians and historical events (Lk. 2:1-7). He mentioned a registration performed to facilitate the taxation, which was completed under the Syrian governor, Quirinius. Luke got the geography correct; he got the politics right. It seems logical to conclude that perhaps the details regarding Jesus’ birth are also correct!
One of the significant locations visited in this episode of FTM was The Church of the Nativity, which is a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. The historical tradition of this location goes back to within 100 years of the birth of Jesus when Hadrian built a worship site to Adonis on top of what the locals had long identified as the cave where Mary had given birth. Over the centuries, many buildings have been built on top of others on the same site. Located underneath the altar in the main sanctuary, is the Grotto of the Nativity, the cave where Mary is believed to have given birth. A silver star with 14 points marks the spot on the floor.
The Grotto of the Nativity is one of several caves at this site. You can access the rest underneath the sanctuary of the adjoining, St. Catherine’s Church. Perhaps one of the most sobering spots is the Grotto of the Innocents, where the remains of several 1st-century boys were found. Many believe these remains are the silent witnesses of Herod’s attempt to kill Jesus (Matthew 2:16-18).
CHURCH OF THE NATIVITY
The Church of the Nativity is a historical building located in the city of Bethlehem. According to long-held tradition, the building is built upon the site where Jesus Christ was born. It was originally built in the 4th century and has had many modifications over the centuries. Below the main hallway, visitors can descend down a number of steps to the remains of a cave. Inside this cave, there are markers denoting the traditional locations of where Jesus was born and where He was laid in a manger.
5 JESUS’ BIRTH FULFILLED OLD TESTAMENT PROPHECIES What Herod did not realize is what became known as "The Slaughter of the Innocents" was prophesied by Jeremiah. This event was only one of multiple prophecies regarding the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus (Jeremiah 31:15; also see the list of references at the end of the lesson)!
When considering the number of prophecies that Jesus GROTTO OF THE NATIVITY fulfilled in his life, think about how each fulfilled prophecy increases the odds that he was who he claimed to be. Some mathematical probabilities have listed below: 1 • The likelihood of just eight prophecies being fulfilled is one chance in one hundred million billion! That number is millions of times greater than the total number of people who have ever walked the planet. If you took this number of silver dollars, they would cover the state of Texas to a depth of two feet! If you marked one silver dollar among them and had a blindfolded person bend Below the main floor of the down and pick up one coin, what are the odds he would Church of the Nativity is the choose the marked currency? Grotto of the Nativity. Cut into the • Mathematician Peter W. Stoner computed that the original bedrock, this small room probability of fulfilling 48 prophecies was one chance in holds the traditional location of a trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion, the birth of Jesus. On the floor of trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion. the grotto, visitors can see a small, metal star denoting this location. The star has 14 points JESUS’ ENTRANCE INTO THE WORLD WAS HUMBLE Several Biblical texts dramatically describe God around the edge. Scholars differ descending from heaven and manifesting his presence to on the exact meaning of the his people. Probably the most well known is when God met number of points. However, the with Israel at Mt. Sinai following their exodus from Egypt most likely meaning has to do (Exodus 19:16-20). The ground heaved, heavenly lights with the generations described in dimmed, a fire was involved, and the witnesses of his Matthew 1:17. These generations arrival were awe-struck, humbled and terrified! are from Abraham to David, David to the Babylonian exile and In contrast, Jesus’ arrival as a newborn infant was quietly the exile to Jesus. witnessed by his parents in the small community of Bethlehem, likely within a cave set in the hillside. His birth was announced to some shepherds in the nearby hills. It was celebrated by wise travelers who followed a sign in the night sky. His first bed was the stone
1 Lee Strobel, The Case for Christ: A Journalist’s Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1998) p. 183 6 manger of some animals. Before he was able to return home to Nazareth, his parents fled the country to preserve his life, and an enraged and fearful ruler killed dozens of his peers.
His birth was not what some might expect of Immanuel, “God with us.” But it was precisely the kind of entrance into the world that God intended. It was that entrance which God used to teach us about the nature of his kingdom and the humble service it modeled for us (Philippians 2:1-11).
Do you believe the Biblical account of Jesus’ birth?
7 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Jesus’ birth with what you just saw and read. Are there any differences? What are they?
2. What part of the Biblical account of Jesus’ birth stands out most to you? Why?
3. One of the things every person needs to consider about the birth of Jesus is the reason he came to earth! What reason did the Hebrew writer give in Hebrews 2:10-18?
8 APPLICATION What impresses you? What catches your attention and excites you? Some people are impressed with opulence, wealth, glitz and glamor. That kind of person won’t be impressed with the lowly birth of Jesus. Then, what kind of person will the birth of Jesus attract? Those who are diligently, humbly seeking God (Matthew 5:3-12; 1 Corinthians 1:26-31; Hebrews 11:6). Are you one of them? If not, allow the gospel account of the humble, selfless arrival of Jesus to motivate humility, gratitude and a desire for God within you. Take a moment to write a prayer to God thanking him for sending Jesus to earth.
ADDITIONAL REFERENCES OLD TESTAMENT PROPHECIES Isaiah 7:14 — The miraculous conception and birth of Jesus (cf. Matt. 1:22-23). Micah 5:2 — The location of the birth (cf. Matt. 2:5-6). Hosea 11:1 - The Messiah spending time and coming out of Egypt (cf. Matt. 2:15). Jeremiah 31:15 — Grief in Israel over lost children (cf. Matt. 2:17-18).
NEW TESTAMENT REFERENCES Matthew 1:18-25 - Matthew’s account of Jesus’ miraculous birth. Luke 1:26-38 - The angelic announcement to Mary about the miraculous conception of Jesus. Philippians 2:1-11 - Paul’s inspired perspective on Jesus’ arrival in bodily form. 1 Timothy 3:16 - Paul’s song/prayer highlighted the features of the gospel, including Jesus’ birth. Hebrews 2:10-18 - The Hebrew writer explained that for Jesus to become our redeemer, he needed to endure what we endure, so he became a man who never gave in to sin. Hebrews 4:14-5:4 - Since Jesus experienced life in the flesh, he is a sympathetic high priest who deals gently with us.
9 LESSON TWO Nighttime Announcement & Dedication In The Temple
Watch Following the Messiah episode 1 (12:30 min. - 24:07 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
Personal Notes: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about the angelic announcement to the shepherds and Jesus' dedication at the temple. How do you imagine it may have looked?
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
10 DISCUSSION Approximately 1,000 years before the birth of Jesus, the prophet Samuel visited a family in the small village of Bethlehem (1 Samuel 16). Samuel had been sent by God to the specific household of Jesse to anoint one of his sons as the next king of Israel. As Samuel visited with Jesse's family, he met the oldest son and was impressed with what he saw. He thought he was looking at the future king. However, God told him that this man was not the one. God told Samuel, "Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature…For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7). After meeting seven of Jesse's sons, God rejected all of them. When asked, Jesse remembered that his youngest son was still outside tending to the sheep. The young shepherd's name was David, who we now know as "a man after God's own heart" (1 Samuel 13:14). God took David from the simple task of tending the sheep of his father and gave him the significant responsibility of shepherding the people of Israel (Psalm 78:70-72).
Nearly 1,000 years later, in the hills where David had grown up caring for and defending his sheep, the promised Messiah was born! Jesus, the long-awaited descendant of David, arrived (Matthew 1:5-6, 16-17; Luke 3:23-24, 31-32)! Not only did Jesus arrive in the same humble place that his forefather David came from, but his birth was announced to nearby shepherds doing the same job that used to be David's. Not only that, Jesus' first bed was a simple manger, a feeding trough for animals. Let's think about what Luke tells us about the nighttime announcement to these men and the sign that God gave them regarding the manger.
THE MANGER: A SIGN OF JESUS’ BIRTH. From our previous study, we know that because so many people had traveled to their family towns for the census, there was not enough room for Joseph and Mary in the guest house (not an inn or a hotel, but a family guest space). Instead, they went to a quiet, safe, and discrete place for Mary to give birth. According to tradition, this was a hillside cave or a room connected to the house. It is now known as the Grotto of the Nativity. When Jesus arrived, he was wrapped, or swaddled, and placed in a manger to sleep.
Our text, Luke 2:8-20, reveals that the same night Jesus was born, some local shepherds were watching over their flocks. An angel from God appeared with the brightness of God's glory around him! After reassuring them, he told them that the long-awaited Messiah had been born and told them where they could find him. So that they would know it was him when they saw him, the angel gave them the sign that the infant would be swaddled and in a manger. Finding a newborn in a trough was not a regular thing, even in the first century. As soon as the angel finished giving the message, the heavens erupted with angels praising God and celebrating that men could now find a way to be at peace with him.
11 The shepherds were so excited they hurriedly left the fields to witness what God had revealed to them. When they found Jesus in the predicted manger, they did two things: 1) They told everyone they could, about what had happened in the field - including Mary and Joseph! They were prototypical evangelists who shared the angelic message and what it meant for humanity. When she heard it, Mary stored that information away in her heart. 2) Afterward, the shepherds returned to watching over their sheep, praising God as they WHAT IS A MANGER? went. What an appropriate response to finding the Messiah! Everyone who comes to believe that Jesus is the promised The definition of a manger is a redeemer and savior should praise God for sending him to long box or trough used to earth! feed animals. But, for students of the Bible, is means so much A TEMPLE VISIT: THE HUMBLE FAMILY OBSERVED more. It is the first resting place LEVITICAL LAW of Jesus after He came to this earth. Several times during his ministry, Jesus explained to people that he didn't come to abolish the law of Moses, but to A manger is usually depicted perfectly keep it (Matthew 5:17; 3:15). His willingness to obey as small, wooden and slightly God's special revelation to his people was a process that tilted. This, however, is began when he was just an infant! Joseph and Mary made probably not what Mary and the short 6-mile journey from Bethlehem to Jerusalem when Joseph would have used. Jesus was forty days old to visit the temple and do two things: During the first century, mangers were usually made out of stone, very similar to the 1) Dedicate Jesus: As the firstborn son, Jesus was one shown in the picture dedicated/redeemed. This ritual was something that God above. Having it made out of instructed after the death of the firstborn during the Exodus stone would have made it (Exodus 13:1-2, 11-16; 22:29-30). The thought seems to be much more durable and this, "God could have taken our (Israel's) firstborn, just like therefore, would have lasted those of the Egyptians. Therefore, our firstborn are God's longer. possession—in a more specific way than as a part of God's creation. If God lets us keep them, it is due only to God's Just imagine our Savior as He grace and God's plans for our future.” 2 The other part of the would have laid there for the s h e p h e r d s t o s e e . T h e eighth-day dedication is when an Israelite boy was prophesied Messiah was finally circumcised and named (Genesis 17:10-14). At that point, the here! Glory to God in the was a child of the covenant. It was during this visit that they Highest! called him Jesus (Luke 1:31). 2) Despite their financial lack, Joseph and Mary took the miraculous child who was theirs, but not theirs, and presented
2 Waldemar Janzen, Believers Church Bible Commentary: Exodus (Waterloo, ON: Herald Press, 2000) p. 167 12 him before the Lord. God chose this humble and imperfect couple to be stewards of the greatest gift to the world.
HEROD'S TEMPLE
Of all of the amazing things that King Herod built, nothing is more impressive than the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. For a family coming from a rural village in Galilee, the initial view of this mammoth, 39-acre platform and gold plated building would have been awe inspiring. Jesus' family would have brought Him here eight days after His birth to have Him dedicated according to Jewish laws.
One can imagine that as they put the money into the container to purchase their two turtledoves, both parents wished they could afford more. Foreshadowing the generous gift of a poor widow, Joseph and Mary joyfully gave all they could provide for Mary's sacrifices. Let us do the same when we recognize the gift God gave us by sending Jesus!
13 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of the early days of Jesus' life with what you saw in the episode and read in the Biblical text. Are there any differences? What are they?
2. What part of the account of the early days of Jesus' life stands out most to you? Why?
3. When you reflect on the shepherd's response to the announcement of Jesus' birth, how does it compare to yours? How could you better respond in terms of sharing the news with others and rejoicing?
4. When you reflect on how Joseph and Mary helped bring Jesus up to respect and submit to God, what can you learn from that example? Discuss this with your group.
5. Parents and Grandparents: What practical things can you do to encourage the children in your life to live pleasing to God and sacrifice for him (2 Corinthians 5:9)?
14 APPLICATION How do you respond when you read God's word? When God instructs, warns, and reveals, what do you tend to do? Some turn a deaf ear. Some listen with an ear to modify the message until it's easier. The shepherds in today's text gave us a great example to follow! They immediately responded. They went out in search of Jesus and didn't stop until they found him. When his unusual crib matched what they had heard, they excitedly shared what they had learned with others. When they returned to daily life, they praised God. Stop for a minute, and think about what believing in Jesus will change in your life. It might be intimidating to consider. But only Jesus offers peace with God. Count the cost, then enthusiastically respond to him in faith, tell others, and praise God! Take a moment to write a prayer committing to respond to God's revealed will more enthusiastically, more evangelistically, and close by finding something about him to praise.
15 LESSON THREE Jesus’ Childhood in Nazareth
Watch Following the Messiah episode 2 (0:00 min. - 13:55 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about the childhood, upbringing, and family life of Jesus.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
16 17 DISCUSSION PREFACE: JESUS’ TIME IN EGYPT Because of Herod's desire to kill Jesus, God warned Joseph to take his family to Egypt for a while. Commentators speculate that this brief international trip lasted anywhere from a few months to less than two years. The family's stay in Egypt ended at the death of Herod. Joseph received the news in a dream from God. Joseph then moved his family back to the Galilean village of Nazareth, where he resumed his trade of carpentry as well as the daily business of family life. The little family grew with additional sons and daughters (Matthew 13:53-58; Mark 6:1-6). The next time the gospels record a significant event in the life of Jesus was when he made another trip to Jerusalem with his family at twelve years old.
THE DEATH OF HEROD THE GREAT For a larger than life political figure, the Biblical text is intentionally brief in describing the dramatic death of Herod the Great. Only one gospel writer mentions it, and he does so in a single sentence, "Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child's life
18 are dead." That's it! That is all the information the gospel provides. For more details, we have to turn to extra-Biblical sources. Josephus provides details of the painful death in Antiquities 17.6.5.
Following Herod's death, his kingdom was divided into four parts. The three largest portions (tetrachys) were given to his sons, Archelaus, Antipas, and Philip. The smallest piece was given to his sister, Salome I.
Archelaus was like his father when it came to violence and oppression. When Joseph realized who was ruling over Judea, he decided to avoid living in that region and took his family back to Galilee in the north, where Antipas was in charge (Matthew 2:22).
OBSCURITY IN NAZARETH Matthew explained that the family moved back to Nazareth. Jesus being a Nazarene, was a fulfillment of "the prophets" (Matthew 2:23).
The interesting thing is there isn't a single prophecy in the Old Testament that names Nazareth as the town of the Messiah. How does Matthew's claim make any sense?
It's important to notice what Matthew typically did when specifying the fulfillment of Messianic prophecies. Throughout his record, Matthew usually identified the name of the individual prophet who spoke (Matthew 2:17; 3:3; 4:15-16; 12:16-21; 13:14; 15:8-9; etc.) or quoted the text (Matthew 1:23; 2:6; Matthew 13:35; 21:4-5; etc.). In this instance, Matthew attributed the designation of Jesus being a Nazarene to the "prophets," plural. What many commentators observe is that what Matthew is doing is not quoting a specific prophecy or prophet, but "summarizing a broader scriptural
The books of Matthew and Mark tell us that both Jesus and THE CARPENTER His earthly father, Joseph, were carpenters. Today, we usually associate a carpenter as someone who works with wood. However, in the first century, a carpenter was more of a builder in general and commonly used a variety of materials including stone. No doubt, it was very hard work.
As a good Jewish father, Joseph would have taught his son the skills of being a carpenter. This experience would have been very beneficial to Jesus as He grew older.
While Jesus was praying to His Heavenly father to "let this cup pass from him", He was probably also thinking and relying on the valuable lessons that His earthly father taught Him. That by being a carpenter and knowing that if He worked hard, He would be able to endure to the end.
19 theme."3 And what was that broader Messianic theme? At the least, it was the theme of obscurity and contempt (Is. 53:1-3; Ps. 69:11, 19), which fits with Nathaniel's first-century perception of people from the town, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth" (John 1:46)?
ONE VERSE SUMMARIZES JESUS’ CHILDHOOD “And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man” (Luke 2:52).
There are so many things I would love to know about the decades of Jesus' life that are just not revealed to us. God has revealed what we need to come to faith (John 20:30-31), but some details are not shared. We know from Luke that as a human, Jesus went through the developmental stages that all children go through (1 Samuel 2:26).
Even without very many details of Jesus' upbringing, you can see the rural influence in how he taught. He spoke about salt and lamps (Matthew 5:13-16), birds, lilies, and grass (Matthew 6:26-30), grapes, figs, and trees (Matthew 7:15-20). When he began teaching in parables in the well-known kingdom chapter of Matthew 13, his short stories had a rural focus, using seeds, weeds, leaven, fields, merchants, and fishing as illustrations.
The time Jesus spent growing up in the rustic town of Nazareth with the humble family of Joseph and Mary provided the familial influence and upbringing that God wanted his Son to have.
3 Craig Blomberg, New American Commentary: Matthew (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman, 1992) p. 70 20 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Jesus’ formative years with what you learned about today. Were there any differences? What were they?
2. What part of Jesus’ rural upbringing stands out the most to you? Why?
3. Knowing the unimpressive nature of Nazareth in the first century, what do you think you might have thought when you heard where Jesus was from?
21 APPLICATION God often used humble, rural, and obscure settings to prepare deliverers for his people. He used Joseph after he spent years enslaved and imprisoned in Egypt (Genesis 37, 39, 40 & 41). Moses lived in Midian for forty years taking care of livestock (Exodus 2:11-25). Nehemiah served as a cupbearer to a foreign king while in captivity (Nehemiah 1 & 2). Matthew summarized the Messianic theme of humble and obscure beginnings by calling Jesus a Nazarene.
On top of how his humble upbringing helped prepare Jesus for service, his childhood was not impressive by worldly standards. Neither Jesus' agrarian education or the zip code of his family's house drew people to him. The opposite was true. According to Nathaniel, the name of Jesus' hometown town made people hesitate. Like Isaiah said in 53:2,
"For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him."
If anyone was attracted to Jesus, it was because what he taught, what he did, and who they believed him to be. Take a moment to write a prayer thanking God for Jesus' humble background in Nazareth, and how it serves as an initial test to see if we are attracted to Jesus for the right reasons.
22 LESSON FOUR The Family Trip to Jerusalem
Watch Following the Messiah episode 2 (13:36 min. - 23:31 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about Jesus during his pre-teen and young adult years.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
23 DISCUSSION The gospels remain silent about the early childhood of Jesus in the Galilean hills around Nazareth. However, Luke picks up the record of Jesus between his 12th and 13th birthday, as the family made an annual pilgrimage to Jerusalem to observe the Passover. The family would have taken approximately three days to travel 70-80 miles south through the Jordan rift valley. Since Herod the Great's son, Herod Archelaus, had been banished from the country and was no longer reigning, it was safe for Jesus to travel again and be seen in Judea (Mt. 2:19-23).
This trip would have been momentous for Jesus. Twelve is the age when young men were expected to attend the Passover feast. Additionally, it's significant that Mary was present because, based on the customs of the day, women were not expected to attend. Yet Luke made it a point to specify that this was an annual family tradition.
They made the trip as a group of travelers, a caravan, moving "UP TO JERUSALEM"...FROM on foot, and with animals. After spending a week in town, the NAZARETH? family began the 3-day trip home, assuming that Jesus was with family or friends. Luke 2 tells us of Jesus and His family leaving Nazareth and going "up to Jerusalem". How is that JESUS’ ABSENCE WAS NOTICED possible since Jerusalem is about After trekking the average daily distance of 20-25 miles, Mary 60 miles south of Nazareth? It is and Joseph began looking for Jesus. Think about the because the Biblical writers used enormity of that task. Some estimate the population of g e o g ra p h i c a l d e s c r i p t i o n s Jerusalem at the time to be between 80,000-100,000. But differently than we do today. during the Passover, 2,000,000-4,000,000 would have Sitting about 2,700 feet in elevation, the city of Jerusalem attempted to visit the city! During the tail-end of such a would have been much higher population surge, this young couple began a search on what than many of the areas of the was now the third day of Jesus' absence. country, including Nazareth. So, as they were going to Jerusalem, JESUS DEMONSTRATED SUPERNATURAL WISDOM they were literally going uphill. It In just a moment, we will discuss the main point of the is very common to read these passage, found in Jesus' profound reply to his parents. But descriptions other places in before that, Luke revealed that Mary and Joseph found Jesus Scripture (for example, see Ezra 1:3, Luke 19:28, Acts 15:2). As you sitting among the teachers in the porches of the temple, read through the Bible, pay listening and answering questions. As his parents walked up, s p e c i a l att e n t i o n t o t h e s e Luke contrasted the dumbfounded reaction the teachers had prepositions as they give the at Jesus' supernatural understanding and his answers (Lk. r e a d e r s a v e r y a c c u r a t e 2:47), with Mary and Joseph's lack of understanding when he description of the land of Israel. explained why he was in the temple (Lk. 2:50).
24 JESUS’ PROFOUND ANSWER When his parents located Jesus, Mary was the one to express her relief and concern by asking why Jesus was here THE WESTERN WALL instead of with the caravan. She expressed their mutual concern by saying, "Your father and I" had been searching in great distress. Jesus questioned why they were looking for him. "Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?"
In answering Mary, Jesus revealed two things:
First, at twelve years old, Jesus had some awareness of his special relationship with God. He was Jesus' father. Luke re- King Herod ruled in the area of records this awareness in Luke 10:22, 22:29, and 24:49. John Judea for approximately 34 does the same in John 8:19; 10:22-39 and 14:7. Jesus later years until his death in 4BC. stated that those who knew and saw Him (Jesus) knew and During his reign, he oversaw saw God (Jn. 14:9). It was by claiming this unique the construction of dozens of relationship with God that many Jews of the day considered massive building projects, him a blasphemer and heretic. One author described Jesus' including the Temple Mount. self-awareness in this way: "Thus the magnet, if it could To support the large amount speak, would express its astonishment, if it were assigned of dirt, he built a very high another than a northward direction, or the sunflower, if it was retaining wall around the entire area. The most visible supposed not to be always turned toward the sun." 4 portion of the wall is often called "The Western Wall". The The second thing Jesus' answer revealed was his awareness wall was constructed using of God's mission for him. This statement by Jesus is the first huge stones cut from a quarry of many times that Luke recorded Christ's conviction that he a couple of miles north of had been sent by God to accomplish a task (see also Lk. Jerusalem. The stones were 4:43; 9:22; 13:33; 17:25; 22:37; 24:7, 26 & 44). then transported to the site and put into place. Today, the After more than a decade of normalcy and obscurity, as Mary Jewish people write their prayers and push them into and Joseph heard Jesus' answer, "the supernatural nature of the cracks in the wall. Since this their son and his destiny broke in on them again.” 5 is seen as a holy site, they believe that their prayers are JESUS’ SUBMISSION TO HIS PARENTS transmitted directly to God. After their short dialog in the temple, the young family met up again with their traveling companions and returned to Nazareth. Despite what Jesus knew about his nature, his
4 J.P. Lange & J.J. Van Oosterzee, A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures: Luke (P. Schaff & C. C. Starbuck, Trans.) p. 49 (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software)
5 R. H. Stein, Luke (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1992) pp. 122-123 25 relationship with God, and his mission, he respectfully submitted to the parents to whom God had entrusted him.
For her part, this distressing and amazing trip was just one more event that she "treasured up in her heart" (Lk. 2:51). She did not fully comprehend them at the time, but she did not dismiss them. These were things she would call to mind decades later when Jesus visited Jerusalem during another crowded Passover festival when her world turned upside down.
JESUS MATURED Much of Jesus' childhood is not revealed to us. The gospel writers do not share it. After this brief episode in Jerusalem, the record falls silent again for nearly two decades. In the meantime, those years are summarized in Luke 2:52. We're told that Jesus grew and matured like so many other young people before him (see the description of John the Baptist in Le. 1:80 and Samuel in 1 Sam. 2:21, 26).
26 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Jesus' early trip to Jerusalem with what you saw in the episode and read in the Biblical text. Are there any differences? What are they?
2. What part of this family trip to Jerusalem stands out most to you? Why?
3. If you had been Joseph or Mary, how would you have responded to Jesus' answer? What do you think you might have felt?
4. What can we learn from how Jesus respectfully responded to those in authority over him, while still communicating Biblical principles (consider Eph. 4:15)?
5. As disciples of Jesus, what can we learn from his humble submission to his earthly parents for three decades?
6. What are the main things about Jesus that Luke wanted his readers to know in Lk. 2:49?
27 APPLICATION In his book, Dangerous Calling, Paul David Tripp explains the concept of visual lethargy. "Artists talk of the dynamic of visual lethargy, which means that the more you see of something, the less you actually see it. On that drive to work the first day, you are conscious of all the sights and sounds. You notice that beautiful grove of ancient trees and that cool modern duplex on the corner. But by your twentieth trip, you've quit noticing, and you're wishing the traffic would move faster so you could get to work, for Pete's sake! Something has happened to you that seems inevitable but it is not good. You have quit seeing, and in your failure to see, you have quit being moved and thankful." 6
Think about how many days, weeks, and months had passed for Joseph and Mary since the hectic moments surrounding Jesus' birth. For years they had been quietly going about the day-to-day business of life. Fixing meals. Working. Having more children. The memory of the events of Jesus' miraculous birth and their brief stay in Egypt faded over time. The same happens to all of us and our memories of the past. Years later, the reality of Jesus' identity and his purpose would have leaped to the front of their minds! Let us not experience spiritual lethargy. Let us avoid becoming so used to the Biblical truths of Jesus that we fail to realize the miraculous nature of his arrival and the ultimate and fantastic reason he came to earth! Take a moment to write a prayer of praise and gratitude to God for the perfect example that Jesus was of submission and faithfulness!
6 Paul David Tripp, Dangerous Calling: Confronting the Unique Challenges of Pastoral Ministry (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2012) p. 115 28 LESSON FIVE The Baptism of Jesus
Watch Following the Messiah episode 3 (0:00 min. - 11:00 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
29 DISCUSSION As we prepare to engage the texts that describe Jesus’ baptism by John the Baptist, it would be helpful to understand a little more about the significance of what John was doing at the time. We know that John was functioning as a prophet, but what does that mean? God’s prophets had an unusual and challenging job assignment! Their task was to speak God’s messages to his people, whether his people were willing to listen or not. Often the people did not respond favorably to God’s word or his messengers (Acts 7:51-53). Two additional details will help us understand the spiritual climate in which John prophesied and in which Jesus ministered:
1) The arrival of the primary person that all of the prophets foretold was the Messiah (1 Pet. 1:10-11)! 2) Until the pregnancies and births of John and Jesus, there had been centuries of silence from God. The 400 years between Malachi and Matthew is known as the Intertestamental Period (between the testaments). Because of a lack of revelation during this time, the period is referred to as “the years of silence.” There wasn’t any inspired communication from God to his people during that time. Even though the births of JORDAN RIVER Jesus and John were marked by prophetic activity, their childhoods and young adult years appear to have been Any list of the most famous rivers relatively quiet and uneventful. in the world must include the Jordan River. Though this small Decades later, into this climate of desired prophetic fulfillment river flows only 150 miles from and silence came John. He preached the arrival of the Mount Hermon through the Sea of Galilee to the Dead Sea, it is kingdom of God and proclaimed a baptism of repentance for important to many religious the forgiveness of sins (Mt. 3:2; Mk. 1:4). Many believed John people across the world. In the himself was the promised Messiah, and he had to repeatedly Bible, the Jordan River plays a correct that mistaken idea and point out they were all looking role in many stories. The Israelites for someone else to come. began their invasion of the land of Canaan by crossing the Jordan WHY WAS JESUS BAPTIZED ANYWAY? River. Elijah rode a flaming chariot Right off the bat, we need to consider this question. If John’s to Heaven from just east of the Jordan River. John baptized many baptism was about repentance and forgiveness of sins, why people, including Jesus, in the did Jesus do it? The gospel proclaims that Jesus was sinless Jordan. Today, the Jordan River is (Heb. 4:15; 2 Cor. 5:21; 1 Jn. 3:5), and therefore had nothing mostly an international boundary of which to repent. Even John initially objected to the between Israel and the West Bank necessity of Jesus getting baptized. on the west and the Kingdom of Jordan on the east. The Spirit reveals two reasons that Jesus was baptized. 1) Jesus states the first reason: he wanted to fulfill all 30 righteousness. 2) The second reason is shared by John the day after the baptism. The event revealed Jesus to John and the world as the Son of God. Let’s spend a little time discussing these two reasons.
JESUS’ BAPTISM FULFILLED ALL RIGHTEOUSNESS Jesus’ baptism endorsed the divine authority of John’s teaching and simultaneously gave us a powerful example of humble and faithful submission to God. WHAT IS BAPTISM? In numerous places, Jesus explained that as a man living under the law of Moses, he submitted to the instruction of The term "baptism" is used God (Mt. 5:17). As God gave new revelation and teaching frequently in the New Testament. through John, Jesus humbly responded to that as well! By It literally means "submerge" or being baptized, he testified to the authenticity and authority of "immersion". The act of baptism John’s message and continued providing an example of re q u i re s e n o u g h w a t e r t o faithful submission (Lk. 2:51). completely cover the person being baptized. JESUS’ BAPTISM IS WHEN GOD ENDORSED AND Outside of the pure definition, we TESTIFIED THAT HE WAS HIS SON can read of instances in the New While Jesus’ submission to baptism approved the divine Testament in which people were authority of John’s message and gave us an amazing baptized where there was a lot of example, God also used the moment to endorse Jesus as his water. Son. As Jesus came out of the water, the Holy Spirit descended from heaven in the form of a dove and rested on As we see in this lesson, John was him, and God’s voice was heard declaring his pleasure in his baptizing in the River Jordan when Jesus came to him. The Son! Remember the spiritual climate of the time? Everyone amount of water in the river was excitedly looking for the fulfillment of the Messianic would have allowed Jesus to be prophecies, and there had been centuries of silence from completely immersed. God. Suddenly, at the baptism of Jesus, the Holy Spirit rested with him, and God’s voice was audibly heard! The first thing In addition, we read in John 3:23 those people heard was God calling Jesus his “beloved that John was baptizing at "Aenon Son” and declaring that he was “well-pleased” with him! Both near to Salim, because water was God, the Father, and the Holy Spirit testified to the divine plentiful there". nature of Jesus! The day after Jesus’ baptism, John shared Finally, in Acts 8, Philip and the that the Holy Spirit descending and resting on someone was eunuch "went down into the a God-given sign meant to identify the long-awaited Son of water" and "came up out of the God who would baptize people with the Holy Spirit (Jn. water". 1:29-34)!
As we can see from the definition JESUS’ BAPTISM MARKED THE BEGINNING OF HIS and from the Biblical examples, EARTHLY MINISTRY true baptism is achieved by complete immersion in water. It was after the baptism that John’s ministry began decreasing as Jesus’ ministry began increasing (Jn. 3:30). From this point on, the gospel writers carefully chronicled the 31 events and teachings of Jesus, leading up to an astounding, heart-wrenching, and incredible week in Jerusalem. There weren’t any more years of quiet obscurity for Jesus after that moment at the river. But before we discuss all of that, several important things took place immediately after the baptism that we need to examine first, namely the temptation of Jesus and the calling of the apostles.
32 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Jesus’ baptism with what you saw in the episode and read in the Biblical text. Are there any differences? What are they?
2. What part of Jesus’ baptism stands out most to you? Why?
3. If you had been John, how would you have responded to seeing the Holy Spirit descend and rest on Jesus? How might you have responded to hearing God’s voice from heaven? What do you think you might have felt?
33 APPLICATION As we conclude this lesson, consider the significance of special events that mark the beginning of new stages of life. For example, think about the busyness of preparing for a wedding, the contagious excitement and celebratory mood that the bride and groom exude. That enthusiasm carries over to the wedding day itself! There is laughter and smiles as family and friends visit. But then the ceremony begins. The guests sit still, and a hush falls. At the proper moment, the bridal procession begins, and the wedding party starts walking up the aisle. The music of the bridal march commences, and the bride herself and her father appear. As the bride proceeds up the aisle, everyone stands to watch her. She is given to the groom so that they can exchange vows and rings, and the assembly quietly sits and listens attentively. At the conclusion, the couple exchange a kiss, then the two are presented for the first time as husband and wife. At that moment, the guests cheer, clap, cry, and celebrate at witnessing the beginning of the long-awaited marriage! The arrival and validation of Jesus as the eagerly anticipated Messiah, the Son of God, was like one of those desired moments but so much more!
There are other moments in life similar to this: graduations, births, promotions. Each is desired and eagerly anticipated. Each is celebrated when it arrives. The baptism of Jesus is like these, but far grander in significance and scope! The ministry and sacrifice of Jesus had been prophesied and sought after for millennia (Mt. 13:16-17; Lk. 10:23-24; 1 Pet. 1:10-12) and planned by God before creation (1 Pet. 1:20)! The scope of his life and sacrifice would reach back to bless God-fearers from previous generations and provide hope for every future generation (Heb. 11:39-40)! Jesus’ baptism by John, attested to by the Spirit and commended by God, marked the commencement of his incredible ministry. There is no way to adequately emphasize the significance of the next few years of Jesus’ life and what his decisions would mean for everyone. Take a moment to write a prayer to God thanking him for Jesus’ willingness to complete all righteousness and the baptism that testified to his sonship and marked the beginning of his long-awaited ministry.
34 LESSON SIX The Temptation of Jesus
Watch Following the Messiah episode 3 (11:00 min. - 19:22 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about when Satan tempted Jesus.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
35 DISCUSSION During a recent family trip, we stopped at one of the places in the United States, denoting the Continental Divide. The Divide is a watershed, an area where rainwater either flows to the Pacific Ocean or the Atlantic. The final destination of the water depends on which side of a hill the rain falls on. Over time people have used the concept of a “watershed” to describe the pivotal instant where a future outcome hangs in the balance of a single decision, phone call, sports play, etc. It could go one way or the other. The temptation of Jesus immediately following his baptism is one of those watershed moments! Three out of the four gospel writers record it, although Matthew and Luke devote more time to the event than Mark. We will spend most of our time considering what Matthew shared.
THE THREE TEMPTATIONS. Both Matthew and Luke tell us that Jesus fasted for 40 days in the wilderness of Judea on the western side of the Dead Sea. At the end of that time, Satan sought to take advantage of how physically tired and weakened Jesus was.
Temptation #1: In the first temptation, Satan appealed to Jesus’ physical desire for food! I have a toddler in my house who tells me his “belly hurts” from hunger every 90 minutes. The hunger Jesus experienced was more than just the munchies; it was visceral. And what Satan offered was a moment when “no one was watching” for Jesus to use a little bit of his divine power for himself. Why not transform a few of the many rocks surrounding them into loaves of bread? What could be the harm in that?
Temptation #2: Next, Satan took Jesus to the pinnacle of the temple mount (see sidebar on the next page) and appealed to his pride. Many scholars believe this was the southeast corner of the royal porch above the Kidron Valley. In Jesus’ day, the height from this roof to the valley floor was said to be 450 feet! Satan’s logic was simple: since he was God’s son, why not dramatically confirm that by throwing himself to the ground so that God would save him since scripture promised God’s protection?
Temptation #3: Finally, Satan visually showed Jesus all the kingdoms of the world and offered to deliver them all over if Jesus would bow down and worship him. As one author wrote, “The devil offered Jesus a kingdom without a cross, a temptation that has never lost its appeal.” 7
There are three helpful observations to note as we summarize Satan’s temptation of Jesus. 1) Satan didn’t question Jesus’ sonship directly; it was more subtle. The idea was, “since you are God’s son, why not prove it?” 2) All of the temptations forced Jesus to chose what type of Messiah he was going to be. Would he be a cheap magician, transforming things for his creature comforts? Or would he be
7 Craig S. Kenner, The IVP New Testament Commentary Series: Matthew (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1997) 36 like other deluded visionaries who did exciting things to draw attention to themselves or to prove their power? Would he choose to be an opportunistic political visionary who would do whatever was necessary to unite and control all of the kingdoms of the world? 3) The temptation that Jesus endured during his wilderness fast is like what all men experience. Satan appeals to everyone’s “desires of the flesh, THE JUDEAN WILDERNESS desires of the eyes, and the pride of life” (1 Jn. 2:16).
Thankfully, we know how Jesus responded because he knew himself to be God’s beloved son, whose utmost desire was to please Him! In the first of many moments of temptation, Jesus chose the longer, more selfless path of pleasing God.
JESUS’ CONSISTENT RESPONSE TO SATAN. As Jesus consistently refused Satan’s offers, it’s important to About 20 miles wide and note what he used to comprehend God’s will. As simple as it running from north to south sounds, he leaned on scripture memorization and quoted his along the western side of the Bible! Dead Sea, the Wilderness of Judea represents some of the most rugged landscape on the Deuteronomy 8:3 - “…man does not live by bread alone, but surface of our planet. Since man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the portions of the wilderness only Lord.” receive a few inches of rain per year, most of the water comes Deuteronomy 6:16 - “You shall not put the Lord your God to via the runoff from the rain the test…” which falls in the Hill Country. Temperatures, which can range Deuteronomy 6:13 - “It is the Lord your God you shall fear. well over 100°F during the day, Him you shall serve…” often drop quickly once the sun has set. And despite the shortage of food and water, In short, Jesus said, “I am going to submit to doing this God’s the wilderness is full of way, in God’s time. I am not here for me. I am going to put animals, which would make him first in all that I do, no matter the cost.” being there dangerous. Truly Satan believed that this was WHAT WOULD HAVE STOOD OUT TO EARLY ISRAELITE the ideal location to tempt READERS OF MATHEW? Jesus. Like the original readers of Matthew’s gospel, first-century Jews would have instantly caught on to some significant comparisons between the temptation of Jesus and a trial of a much more extended time: the wilderness wanderings of Israel after the Exodus.
• In both instances the people involved were led by God (Deut. 8:1-2; Mt. 4:1). • In both instances 40 units of time elapse; 40 days for Jesus and 40 years for the ancient Israelites. 37 • What makes the connection even more pronounced is that every scripture that Jesus quoted in response to his temptations came from the book of Deuteronomy (8:3; 6:16 & 6:13, respectively). Deuteronomy is a collection of Moses’ final sermons to the nation of Israel after their time in the wilderness.
PINNACLE OF THE TEMPLE With so many comparisons, there is a glaring contrast that Matthew’s readers would have spotted right away. The Israelites of Moses’ day failed their wilderness test. Repeatedly and consistently, Israel forgot God and gave in to the various temptations they encountered. In contrast to that, Jesus perfectly and faithfully refused every perceived shortcut and selfish abuse of his authority and power.
WHAT IS THE MAIN POINT GOD WANTS PEOPLE TO GET FROM JESUS’ TEMPTATION? By comparing and contrasting the temptations of Jesus with As Jesus was being tempted, Matthew tells us that Satan took the ancient Israelites, the main point God wants us to be Jesus up to the "pinnacle of the amazed by is the fact that Jesus did not give in to sin! His temple". What does that mean? faithful response was not an isolated event but characteristic Typically, we think of "pinnacle" of his entire life! The Hebrew writer described it well in to mean "top". However, most Hebrews 4:15-16, scholars believe that this was referring to the top of the “15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to southeastern corner of the sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every Temple Mount. During the first 16 century, this point would have respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us been several hundred feet then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that above the floor of the Kidron we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Valley. Visitors today can see this high point, although it is Praise God for his faithful and sinless son! After his victory much lower than it was in over Satan in the wilderness, Jesus began his Galilean Jesus' time. In 70AD, the ministry, teaching and preaching the area synagogues. Romans destroyed the city and Crowds started coming out to hear him teach and to be knocked down a number of healed. However, not everyone responded well to the newly these walls. Many of the walls active Son of God. In the next lesson, we will see how his have been rebuilt, but not to hometown of Nazareth responded to the ministry of Jesus. the height that they were then. In addition, the Kidron Valley has filled in with debris that has been washed in by the annual rains.
38 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Jesus’ temptation with what you saw in the episode and read in the Biblical text. Are there any differences? What are they?
2. What part of Jesus’ temptation stands out most to you? Why?
3. What can you learn from Jesus’ personal success against Satan in Matthew 4?
39 APPLICATION Some have made astute observations about Satan’s temptation tactics from his encounter with Jesus. 1) He is an opportunist! He waited for Jesus to be in a weakened moment to approach him. Even after Jesus told him to leave, the text reveals that he was waiting for another opportune time to try again. 2) He is thorough. He did not just appeal to one type of temptation and make one attempt but used multiple types and three attempts. 3) He is a liar. He tried to make sin look right. He quoted and twisted scripture to try and make the temptation appear like a right and proper thing to do.
No matter how wily Satan is, he is always defeated by Jesus! Just as we can learn something about Satan’s tactics from this text, we can learn something from Jesus’ methods of victory over him. 1) One of the ways we can identify temptations and reject them is by knowing what God has said about it (Ps. 119:9-11). 2) We can tell Satan to leave us alone! When writing to believers, James told them one of the gracious things God has done for us is to give us the power to resist Satan by getting closer to God, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (Jas. 4:7). 3) More foundational than anything else was Jesus’ reverent love and worship of God. He was not going to let anything come between himself and his father. Ultimately, a decision to sin is a worship disorder, where I have desired something more than God. For Jesus, pleasing his father was always paramount.
Take a moment to write a prayer of thanksgiving to God for Jesus’ example of faithful love that successfully led him through moments of temptation.
ADDITIONAL REFERENCES OT REFERENCES • Deuteronomy 8:1-5 - God tested the nation of Israel during their 40 years in the wilderness.
NT REFERENCES • Mark 1:12-13 - Mark’s record of Jesus’ temptation. • Luke 4:1-13 - Luke’s record of Jesus’ temptation. • Hebrews 4:15 - Jesus was tempted like us.
40 LESSON SEVEN The Calling of the Apostles, Part 1
Watch Following the Messiah episode 4 (0:00 min. - 10:48 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about the apostles meeting Jesus for the first time.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
41 DISCUSSION Do you remember playing "Red Rover" with friends in the front yard or schoolyard? It's the game where two teams of children create human chains by holding hands, and then they take turns taunting the opposing team to send over one of their players to see if they can break their chain. With each turn, the teams carefully select which player to invite over, strategizing the sequence of players that will give them the best odds of winning. Actually, as with any team sport, before the game begins, a selection process unfolds where people are sorted and selected. Typically, when choosing teams, the strongest, the fastest, and the tallest are chosen. It's assumed these qualities provide the team with an advantage over the other in some way.
Roughly halfway through his ministry, Jesus selected twelve men to follow him and serve his kingdom in a unique way. Yet, when he made his selection, he didn't pick who the rest of the world would have picked for his "team," i.e., the wealthiest, the most connected, the most educated. Instead, he chose twelve "nobodies." But as John MacArthur rightly observed, "God's favorite instruments are nobodies, so that no man can boast before God. In other words, God chooses whom He chooses in order that He might receive the glory." 8Let's use the next two lessons to consider the men Jesus spent the most time and energy training and teaching during his life and see what we can learn about what qualities the Son of God valued, and why he chose them.
If you're like me, you grew up somewhat familiar with the names of the apostles because, during Jesus' ministry, he selected twelve men for that role. Perhaps like me, your familiarity with the fact that Jesus chose these twelve men overshadowed when and why he chose them and how he selected and prepared them for the role as well as the type of men he appointed.
WHEN DID JESUS CHOSE THE APOSTLES? As you read through the gospel accounts, their names are introduced relatively early (Mt. 10:1-4; Mk. 3:16-19 and Lk. 6:13-16, respectively). Because of that, many assume that they were selected in the early days of Jesus' ministry. That isn't the case. What John helps us understand is that these common men were men who started as followers of John the Baptist and were encouraged to begin following Christ once John identified Jesus as the prophesied "Lamb of God" when he was baptizing people in the Jordan river (Jn. 1:28, 29, 35-37)!
MANY OF THE APOSTLES BEGAN FOLLOWING JOHN THE BAPTIST. That tells us a lot about these men and gives us a fresh perspective on their faith and zeal. These men had traveled from their home in Galilee to listen and learn from John down in the Judean Wilderness. They were excited about the coming of the kingdom of heaven (Mt. 3:1-2) and likely had
8 John MacArthur, Twelve Ordinary Men: How the Master Shaped His Disciples for Greatness and What He Wants to do With You (Nashville, TN: Nelson Books, 2002) p. 13 42 responded to John's call of repentance and baptism (Mk. 1:4-5). These men were humble followers of God looking forward to the fulfillment of his promises! As they came to grasp that Jesus of Nazareth was the one John had been telling them about, each of them individually came to believe in him and joined the growing crowds that followed him from place to place.
THE APOSTLES WERE PART OF THE CROWD THAT FISHING IN THE SEA OF GALILEE FOLLOWED JESUS. When Jesus returned to Galilee after his baptism and temptation, he was teaching and healing people, and the crowds kept growing (Mt. 4:12-13; Lk. 4:14-15)! At one point, the group became so large that he wanted to use the natural amphitheater of the lake and hillside, and used the nearby boat of the disciple Peter (Lk. 5:1-11). Remember, Peter had already been introduced to Jesus by his brother Andrew (Jn. 1:40-42). Why were Peter and his boat so readily available? Besides the fact that Jesus and Peter The first four men Jesus called to both lived in nearby Capernaum, Peter was staying as be apostles were Peter, Andrew, close to Jesus as he could because of who he believed him James, and John. These four men to be. were fishermen by trade. They spent most of their time fishing in JESUS DIDN’T CALL THE TWELVE IMMEDIATELY, BUT the Sea of Galilee. Although we do not know exactly, they were WAITED FOR THE RIGHT TIME. probably fishing for tilapia, a If you organize the gospel accounts chronologically, it isn't common fish found in the sea. until nearly halfway through his ministry that Jesus singled out twelve men from the crowds. Luke interestingly tells us Visitors to the area today can go in Luke 6:12-14, "In these days he went out to the mountain to any number of restaurants in to pray, and all night he continued in prayer to God. And the area and eat "St. Peter's Fish". when day came, he called his disciples and chose from This naming is a reference to the story in Matthew 17 in which Peter them twelve, whom he named apostles…" goes to the sea, catches a fish, and pulls a coin out of its mouth What we know about "those days" is that a definite shift had to pay the tax. taken place in Jesus' ministry as the religious leaders set themselves against him. The Scribes and Pharisees asserted themselves more visibly (Lk. 6:21, 30; 6:1-2). MacArthur points out that after watching Jesus heal a man's hand on the Sabbath they were "filled with fury and discussed…what they might do to Jesus" (Lk. 6:11) and that Matthew and Mark tell us that they "went out and conspired against him, how to destroy him" (Mt. 12:14; Mark 3:6).9 At that critical juncture, as both his ministry opportunities
9 John MacArthur, Twelve Ordinary Men: How the Master Shaped His Disciples for Greatness and What He Wants to do With You (Nashville, TN: Nelson Books, 2002) p. 6 43 and opponents increased and the day of the cross THE COVE OF THE SOWER loomed nearer, Jesus hand-picked twelve men to invest himself in and prepared them to be his witnesses, his ambassadors, his "sent ones."
In the next lesson, we'll consider why and how Jesus selected the twelve. We'll also examine the kind of men he chose. But for now, think about the fact that those twelve men had no idea that God would use them in a special way. They were humble and amazed seekers. For many events in the Bible, we are They were believers expectantly looking for the promised unsure of exactly where they took kingdom of God. They had heard about a man near the place. We may know a general area, Judean wilderness teaching and baptizing people in the but nailing down an exact location Jordan and sought him out. When John then directed can be difficult. them to Jesus, they quickly responded and followed and In Matthew 13, the gospel tells us stayed as close as they could to this "Lamb of God." that Jesus went from a house in What an incredible example of sincere and Capernaum and sat by the sea. As straightforward faith! the crowds came up around him, he climbed in a boat and taught the people from there.
The inlet in the picture has been called "The Cove of the Sower" and is the traditional location of where this event took place. This site is on the sea and very near Capernaum. During the past several decades, a number of audio tests have been performed here. During those tests, listeners were able to stand hundreds of feet from the shore and clearly hear someone speaking loudly from the water. This natural amphitheater gives additional credibility as a possible location of the teaching of Jesus in Matthew 13.
44 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Galilean brothers meeting Jesus for the first time near the Jordan River. Are there any differences? What are they?
2. What part of the apostles’ early encounters with Jesus stand out to you? Why?
3. If you had been following and listening to John the Baptist, how do you think you would have responded to being encouraged to follow Jesus?
45 APPLICATION When playing Red Rover, basketball, football, or any other game, the first prerequisite for participating is to be present! You can't participate if you're not there. Any coach will tell you that every player is essential, but if they don't show up for practice or game day, they won't play. The early disciples didn't know what God had in store for them. All they knew was what John the Baptist was saying was right, and all they could do was believe and respond. Their faith led them to be where God wanted them to be when he wanted them to be there, so they were available for God to use them! Peter was present when Jesus needed a boat, and all twelve were there when it was time for Jesus to identify and train his witnesses. Take the time to write a prayer of commitment to God, that you will start believing what he says so that in his time, he can start using you where he needs you.
46 LESSON EIGHT The Calling of the Apostles, Part 2
Watch Following the Messiah episode 4 (10:49 min. - 16:45 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about Jesus commissioning and training the apostles.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
47 DISCUSSION As we learned in our last lesson, the men who became the twelve apostles began as disciples of John the Baptist, who start following Jesus after John testified to his identity following his baptism (Jn. 1:29-51). From that point on, they are a part of a growing crowd of people who follow Jesus from place to place, listening, learning, and beholding the carpenter's son fulfill Messianic prophecies.
We also learned that approximately halfway through Jesus' ministry, as the crowds continued to grow, the religious leaders became more hostile and were trying to figure out how to destroy him (Mt. 12:14; Mk. 3:6)! It is in that tense atmosphere that we begin studying Luke 6:12-16.
JESUS’ NIGHT OF INTERCESSORY PRAYER Throughout his account of Jesus' life, Luke repeatedly calls the reader's attention to the fact that the Son of God regularly communicated with the Father through prayer (Lk. 5:15-16; 6:12-16; 9:16; 9:18-22; 9:28-29; 10:21-22; 21:36; 22:14-23; 22:39-46; 23:34). It shouldn't surprise us then that on the eve of such a significant event as the calling of the twelve, Jesus would spend a night in prayer. Jesus knew what each of the twelve would accomplish and do (Jn. 13:21-30; Jn. 21:18-19, 20-23), so, likely, he was not asking for help deciding who to chose; he already knew that. Instead, he was probably interceding on behalf of the men he would call. His prayer was likely very similar to the intercessory prayer he offered on the night of his betrayal 18 months later (Jn. 17:6-19). How amazing is that?! For an entire night, the Son of God went without sleep so that he could petition God on behalf of the men who would soon be taken and tried before "synagogues…rulers…and authorities" and eventually martyred for their faith in him (Lk. 12:11-12; Acts 12:1-5).
JESUS’ SELECTION OF THE TWELVE After his prayerful night, Jesus assembled the disciples who had been following him, and from that group, he singled out twelve.
Two sets of brothers. Local fishermen.
A Jewish zealot.
A despised tax collector.
A dishonest, thieving man who would betray Jesus.
Unknown, uneducated Galileans. That's what they were. These were the men Jesus selected to be his witnesses and teach his people, these men who by their inspired teaching would become one of
48 the gifts he gave to equip His saints and build His church THE VIA MARIS (Eph. 4:11-14).
As shocking as Jesus' selection may have been to the rest of the world, it was entirely consistent with the nature of the kingdom of heaven. When Paul described to the Corinthian church the type of person, who responds to the call of the gospel, he wrote, "not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to Stretching from Egypt to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the Mesopotamia, the Via Maris world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that (literally, "the way of the sea"), are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of was one of main international highways of the ancient world. God… 'Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord'" (1 Cor. For centuries, the road was 1:26-31). The underlying principle within that passage is the used to transport goods and kingdom of God has always been upside down, opposite the services throughout the world's standards. Jesus selecting and successfully using region. these twelve unlikely, imperfect candidates speaks to the wisdom and power of God. And it worked! After Jesus' From Egypt, the road ran in a ascension, during one of the apostles' early interrogations by northerly direction along the the Jewish rulers, elders and scribes in Jerusalem, when Mediterranean coast. Reaching Peter powerfully defended the miraculous healing that had the plain of Sharon, it would turn northeast and enter the been done in the name of Jesus, the critics "perceived that Jezreel Valley near Megiddo. these were uneducated, common men [and] were astonished. After crossing the valley, it And they recognized that these men had been with would descend from the Jesus" (Acts 4:13). The average, low-brow background of the Galilean hills to the Sea of apostles gave greater witness to the influence and power of Galilee. The road would pass Jesus working in them! the city of Migdal and follow the shoreline to Capernaum. JESUS MENTORED THE APOSTLES Turning north up the Hula Valley, travelers would pass Following their selection, Jesus gave the twelve miraculous Hazor and then turn northeast signs to perform and sent them out to nearby towns two by in the vicinity of Caesarea two to proclaim the arrival of the kingdom (Mk. 6:7-13). Philippi. After climbing the Afterward, they would return and report how things had gone Golan Heights, the Via Maris and how sometimes they had struggled (Mt. 17:14-21). All the would proceed in the direction while, Jesus was challenging their preconceived ideas, of Damascus. There is no increasing their spiritual endurance, and trying to deepen doubt that Jesus and his their faith in him. When the time was right, he also began disciples used this road many times during their travels. preparing them for the cross he knew was waiting for him (Mt. 16:21-23; 26:20-25; 26:30-35).
49 The apostles stumbled during Jesus' arrest, trial, and crucifixion. At his arrest in the garden, the disciples fled (Mt. 26:56). Peter followed and tried to get close and see what was happening during the initial trial, until he was identified as a follower and, out of fear for his safety, he abandoned his friend and Lord (Lk. 22:54-62). After his resurrection, Jesus appeared to them, forgiving, restoring, and commissioning them (Jn. 20:19-29; 21:1-19; Mt. 28:16-20).
Throughout the gospel accounts, the apostles are revealed to be relatable people. They were blue- collar men. They had families. They had jobs. They had imperfections. Their faith wavered. But they loved God and placed their faith in Jesus, and that made all the difference. Because of their humble faith, God used these men to provide testimony for his son and to bring glory to his name.
50 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Jesus selecting and mentoring the apostles with what you learned during the study? Are there any differences? What are they?
2. What part of Jesus selecting and training the apostles stands out the most to you? Why?
3. If you had been following and listening to Jesus, what might you have thought of the unexpected group of men he asked to follow him?
51 APPLICATION One of the things that stood out to me in this lesson was the principle that in God's perfect wisdom, he is always mentoring, training, and molding people for service. Moses thought he would be the one to lead his people out of Egyptian bondage, but he had to learn that it would happen in God's time and God's way, not his (Acts 7:23-34). Without knowing in advance that God would use him to lead Israel into Canaan, Joshua was mentored and prepared through decades of humble service under the guidance of Moses (Ex. 17:8-16, 24:12-14, 32:15-20; Num. 13; Deut. 3:23-29, 34:9-12). Each apostle was likewise challenged and stretched by God to become who He needed them to be to best serve the kingdom. How has God been trying to mold you? What lessons has he been trying to teach you? Have you humbly been responding, or have you been ignoring him? Take a moment to write a prayer thanking God for his providence and committing to allow him to change you as he thinks best.
52 LESSON NINE Capernaum, The Town of Jesus
Watch Following the Messiah episode 4 (16:46 min. - 23:58 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall Jesus doing within the town of Capernaum.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
53 DISCUSSION In Lesson 13, we’ll spend some time reflecting on Jesus being rejected in his hometown of Nazareth (Lk. 4:14-30). In this lesson, we’ll look at some of the things Jesus did after he left Nazareth and moved closer to the water on the northwest shore of Galilee to the town of Capernaum.
THE TOWN OF CAPERNAUM The village of Capernaum is located about “two and one half miles southwest of the point where the Jorden enters the Sea of Galilee” (Baker’s Bible Atlas). The town was a Roman military post and stretched approximately 300+ yards along the shore (Holman Bible Atlas). Based on what has been uncovered of the first-century village, the houses were modest dwellings constructed out of local black basalt. We know from Luke 7:5 that the town had a synagogue that had been built by the generosity of a local Roman centurion.
WHAT JESUS TAUGHT IN CAPERNAUM
HOUSE OF PETER Whenever Jesus spent time at home (Mt. 9:1), it was in Capernaum. So it makes sense that this provided him with many opportunities to teach locally.
For instance, it was when he was at home teaching that Jesus’ family came from Nazareth and had a hard time getting to him because the crowd of people was so large. Jesus used this moment to teach that his spiritual family was those who heard and did his Father’s will (Mt. 12:46-50; Mk. 3:31-35; Lk. 8:19-21). In the fifth century, the Byzantines built a small octagonal church One of the most significant and controversial things that building over a first century Jesus taught in Capernaum was recorded in Jn. 6:22-71, dwelling. Historians have therefore when he said, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to concluded that the Byzantine me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall people must have believed that never thirst.” He was teaching that he was the sole source this first century dwelling was the of eternal life and resurrection! Some of Jesus’ phrasing house of Peter. This tradition was off-putting to many superficial followers who objected continues until this day. In 1990, a memorial church building was to talk like this because of their familiarity with his constructed on top of this site. This childhood (Jn. 6:42) and at this teaching stopped building serves as protection following him (Jn. 6:66). during the rainy season as well as p ro v i d e s a u n i q u e v i e w i n g opportunity through the glass floor.
54 THE MIRACLES JESUS PERFORMED IN CAPERNAUM. On top of teaching while in town, the gospel writers record multiple miracles that were performed by Jesus in Capernaum!
One day while he was teaching in the Synagogue, a man with an unclean spirit mocked Jesus and called him out (Lk. 4:31-37)! Not wanting to have testimony come from a source like that, Jesus commanded the spirit to be silent and come out of the man.
After he left the Synagogue, Jesus entered the house of Peter, where the family pleaded with him to heal Peter’s CAPERNAUM SYNAGOGUE mother-in-law. After he obliged, she rose from her bed and began serving him (Lk. 4:38-39).
Perhaps one of the most well-known miracles of Jesus was the healing of the paralytic who was lowered down to him through the roof of a house (Mt. 9:1-8; Mk. 2:1-12; Lk. 5:17-26). He used this opportunity to convict those who questioned his divine authority. He performed the astoundingly visual miracle of healing an obviously paralyzed man to demonstrate that more importantly, he For modern visitors to Capernaum, had the power to remove the unseeable guilt of the man’s the centerpiece of their visit is to sins. walk into the reconstructed 4th century synagogue. With tiered Later on, Jesus healed a reputable centurion’s sick seating around three sides, this servant from across town only by speaking a word (Lk. synagogue could have easily seated several hundred people. 7:1-10)! Matthew tells us that the illness of the servant involved paralysis (Mt. 8:7). Interestingly, this synagogue was constructed on top of the first Even more astounding than healing paralytics was when century synagogue that existed Jesus returned to town one day, and both miraculously during the time of Jesus. The healed a woman of her ongoing bleeding and raised the Jewish people at that time were deceased daughter of the local ruler of the Synagogue proud of this synagogue which had (Lk. 8:40-56)! been constructed by a local Roman centurion. Luke recorded that Jesus performed even more miracles Even Jesus lived in this city and the than these from his home by the side of Galilee (Lk. people at the time were very 4:40-41). With each one, he was providing a sign of his religious, Jesus later condemned divinity; he was trying to inspire belief in those who heard this city and its inhabitants for their and witnessed him. However, in spite of the number of lack of faith. miracles performed or the degree of the miracle shown, some people chose not to believe.
55 WHY DID JESUS CURSE CAPERNAUM? Some of the most heartbreaking passages in the Bible to read are when God acknowledges that despite all he has graciously done to love someone, they still chose to reject him (Rom. 1:18-25).
Before the end of his ministry, Jesus pronounced woe on several Galilean towns and their populations. Despite hearing more of his teaching and seeing more miracles than anyone else, they chose not to believe in him! Sadly, in Matthew 11:20-24 it is revealed that Capernaum was one of those towns:
“20 Then he began to denounce the cities where most of his mighty works had been done because they did not repent. 21 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. 22 But I tell you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. 23 And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. 24 But I tell you that it will be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom than for you.”
56 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of the time Jesus spent living in Capernaum with what you saw in the episode and read in the Biblical text. Are there any differences? What are they?
2. What part of Jesus’ time in Capernaum stands out the most to you? Why?
3. If you had lived in Capernaum when Jesus lived there, teaching and performing miracles, how do you think you would have responded?
4. What obstacle did the locals have with Jesus’ teaching (remember Jn. 6:42)?
5. How might the dynamic of familiarity be an obstacle in your own relationship with God and Christ? Be prepared to discuss your answer with your group.
57 APPLICATION Have you ever played a party game where someone tried to get their partner or team to guess a secret based on what they drew or the clues they gave? The answer may have been glaringly obvious to you, and that is part of the fun. As the other team struggles to understand what is hidden from them, you laugh at their antics, until it becomes your turn! The arrival of Jesus, the Son of God, was similar. He did everything he could to provide the necessary signs for people to choose faith; however, some people simply did not believe in who was right in front of them. Contrary to being funny, their failure to believe was frustrating and heartbreaking.
Jesus foretold earlier in his ministry in the parable of the Sower (Mt. 13:10-17) that not everyone would believe. In his condemnation of the Galilean towns, he taught that they would be held accountable. However, their lack of faith was not a failure on God’s part! It was not from a lack of trying or a lack of information.
By faith, every person has to go through the same process as the first-century residents of Capernaum. Each of us has to decide whether we will see the signs and hear the teaching or not. Regardless of what we choose, God has done his part! He sent Jesus. Jesus came and died and was raised. The Holy Spirit convicts and teaches. Take a moment to write a prayer of gratitude to God for graciously doing everything he can to help us believe in Jesus.
58 LESSON TEN Recalling Simeon & Anna
Watch Following the Messiah episode 5 (00:00min. - 5:26 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about Simeon and Anna meeting Jesus as an infant at the temple in Jerusalem.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
59 DISCUSSION As we begin to conclude the first half of this study on the life of Jesus, let's tie together four events where different people reached astounding conclusions about the identity of Jesus. Let's start with what some might think was a chance encounter between strangers at the highly public temple in Jerusalem.
Have you ever been out and about and had a chance encounter? I remember just a few years ago when our family traveled out of state to spend some time together in the Great Smoky Mountains. One day we decide to hike to the top of Clingmans Dome, the highest point in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. After completing the short yet steep walk, we reached the bottom of the path and neared the parking lot, where we spotted someone we knew! It was friends from Alabama who happened to be visiting Clingmans Dome the same day as us! It was surprising, unexpected, and fun to see them!
Back in Lesson 2, we learned about Jesus being taken to the Temple Mount when he was forty days old to be dedicated to the Lord and for Mary to offer sacrifices of purification after giving birth. During that temple visit, the young family was surprised and amazed by two providentially arranged meetings that reveal a lot about who Jesus is.
SIMEON, WAITING FOR THE CONSOLATION OF ISRAEL One of the first things that we should point out is that Simeon's meeting with the young family from Galilee was not random. The Holy Spirit revealed that it was through his orchestration. The Spirit had promised that Simeon's life would not end until after he saw the Lord's prophesied Christ! To accomplish that, the Spirit led him to the temple that day (similar to how he had led Jesus to the wilderness in Mt. 4:1), to the specific location and the exact time where he would meet the new family. When he met them, he took Jesus up into his arms and praised God for keeping his promise!
“A SENTINEL FOR THE MESSIAH BLESSES GOD." I love Darrell Bock's description of Simeon as "a sentinel for the Messiah."10 He had spent his life actively looking for the fulfillment of the Spirit's promise for him to visually witness the desired Messiah. Therefore Simeon's observations about Jesus are invaluable! He lifted the baby, then began saying beautiful things about God for fulfilling his promise in what many refer to as the Nunc Dimittis, which is Latin for "Now you dismiss," based on the beginning of Simeon's praise. It is the 5th and final nativity hymn in Luke (Lk. 1:41-45, 1:46-56, 1:67-79; 2:13-14, 2:27-32). Simeon's praise of God underscored several things that he understood to be true:
• He understood that by seeing Jesus, the time for him to rest from this life was near. • He understood God had once again demonstrated his faithfulness by keeping his promise.
10 Darrell L. Bock, The IVP New Testament Commentary Series: Luke (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1994) 60 • He understood that by seeing Jesus, he saw the One by whom salvation would come. • He understood that the salvation Jesus would bring would provide revelation for Gentiles and glory for Israelites.
WHAT IS THE TEMPLE SIMEON PRONOUNCED AN OMINOUS BLESSING OVER MARY & JOSEPH After blessing God for letting him meet Jesus, Simeon then turned to the marveling parents and blessed them! However, the content of that blessing was more somber in its predictions. Simeon warned Mary about two things:
1) Jesus would cause division among his people. Looking forward, we know that Jesus was polarizing; either you The Temple Mount generally believed in him, or you didn't. The purpose of that division refers to the large platform built by King Herod in the first century was explained in the last phrase of the prophecy, "thoughts BC. A few years into his reign, from many hearts might be revealed." The way people King David moved the capital responded to Jesus revealed the condition of their hearts. from Hebron to the city of Think about the following passages: Jerusalem. It was his desire to build a temple to God on top of • Matthew 7:21-23 - Jesus will not accept everyone who the eastern hill of the city. claims to follow him. David's son, Solomon, eventually • Matthew 10:34-39 - Jesus did not come to bring peace, did just that. Not only did he but a sword. build the temple, but he built a large platform around the temple for people to use as they 2) Witnessing the ministry of Jesus (especially as he was were going to and from the area. rejected to the point of crucifixion) would pierce Mary's soul This temple was destroyed by like a sword. It's difficult as a parent to watch your child be King Nebuchadnezzar in 587 BC. mistreated at any age, but to watch your son be rejected and After the Babylonian exile, the abused to the point of Roman crucifixion would be soul- temple was rebuilt and the searing (Jn. 19:23-27)! God, in his great mercy, began platform was expanded during preparing Mary for where the road of Jesus' ministry would the Hasmonean empire. Later, King Herod, in an attempt to lead at a mere forty days after his birth. please the Jewish people, enlarged the temple and greatly Imagine how surprised the young couple must have been to e x p a n d e d t h e p l a t f o r m have an older man proclaim such incredible and ominous surrounding it. He did this by things about their son! But, the surprise meetings that day leveling off the top of the hill weren't over yet. Luke's account moves directly from the and enclosing the entire 37 meeting with Simeon to a meeting with an elderly prophetess acres with a high retaining wall. named Anna. Parts of this massive building project were destroyed by the Romans in 70AD, but much of it still remains to this day. 61 ANNA, THE PROPHETESS WHO THANKED GOD FOR BABY JESUS We are not told much about what Anna said as she met Jesus that day, but this widow who was devoted to God and spent all her available time in the temple also recognized something spectacular about the baby. She praised God for meeting him and mentioned this meeting to everyone who was looking for the prophesied redemption of God's people (compare Lk. 2:25, 30 & 38)!
WHAT DOES THIS EVENT DURING THE INFANCY OF WHY DID THEY GO TO JESUS TEACH US ABOUT WHO HE IS? JERUSALEM? Calling Jesus the "consolation of Israel," "salvation of Israel," and "redemption of Jerusalem" was not a common way to Why would Joseph, Mary and describe Jewish babies. Those redemptive concepts were Jesus make this trip to exclusively used for the prophesied Messiah (Gen. 12:1-3; Is. Jerusalem? 49:7-12). If men and women of Simeon and Anna's age, According to Leviticus 12, spiritual maturity, focus on God, and excited expectation Mary was required to come to testified to the unique identity and purpose of Jesus, then we the temple at the end of the should allow their testimony to influence whatever conclusion days of her purification (40 we reach about him. Their respective testimony about Jesus days) and present herself to was unanimous: Jesus was the prophesied Messiah, the the priest. When she came, Deliverer, and Redeemer everyone had been waiting for! In she was required to bring a the next lesson, we'll consider the unwitting testimony of some lamb for a burnt offering and people who chose not to believe in Jesus. a dove or turtledove for a sin offering. In the event that she could not afford a lamb, she would be allowed to bring two doves or two turtle doves to the priest.
62 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Simeon and Anna’s interaction with what you saw in the episode and read in the Biblical text. Are there any differences? What are they?
2. What part of Jesus’ temple meetings stands out the most to you? Why?
3. What can you learn from the conclusions Simeon and Anna reach about the identity of Jesus, even though he was so young he had not yet done or said anything?
63 APPLICATION When deciding who Jesus is, it makes sense to follow the example of Simeon and Anna and allow God to inform us, instead of our preconceived ideas. At meeting Simeon and Anna, Jesus was not old enough to make any claims about himself or perform any personal miracles. The text does not indicate that either of these seekers had heard about his miraculous conception or birth yet. Simeon and Anna reached their conclusions about Jesus based on what God had communicated to them through the Holy Spirit and Old Testament prophecies (Is. 8:14-15, 49:6, 52:10, 60:1-3 & Zech. 1:68-75). As we conclude this lesson, reflect on Simeon's statement that Jesus would sort people and reveal their hearts as they decided to respond to him or not. This very moment as you study through Luke, you are reading God's communication to you about Jesus. Who does God reveal him to be using the trustworthy witnesses, Simeon and Anna? What will you choose to do with that information? Write a prayer thanking God for the faithful testimony of those who recognized that the prophesied Redeemer had arrived in the person of Jesus!
64 LESSON ELEVEN Jesus’ Rejection at Nazareth
Watch Following the Messiah episode 5 (5:27 min. - 8:18 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about the early ministry of Jesus, and when he was rejected in his hometown.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
65 DISCUSSION Shortly after his baptism, Jesus called his first disciples (Jn. 1:35-52). He performed his first miracle in Cana (Jn. 2:1-12). He cleansed the temple of the money-changers for the first time (Jn. 2:13-22); met with Nicodemus to talk about being born again (Jn. 2:23-3:21); interacted with a Samaritan woman about worshipping God (Jn. 4:1-45) and performed a second miracle in Cana (Jn. 4:46-54). Luke summarized most of this activity in 4:14-15. After all of that, we have our second of four events that help us learn about who Jesus is.
JESUS’ HOMETOWN SYNAGOGUE SERVICE Jesus arrived home after beginning his Galilean ministry, and Luke emphasized the personal nature of this visit. Nazareth is "where he had been brought up" (Lk. 4:16). It is where Joseph had trained him and where he had grown up with his siblings. The people of this small town nestled in the hills of Galilee had witnessed the young infant grow to maturity.
"As was his custom," he attended the Sabbath meeting in the synagogue.
One commentator helps us understand the standard order of a synagogue service: "To appreciate the account, it helps to understand the order of an ancient synagogue service (m. Megilla 3–4; m. Berakot 2). To have a synagogue service required the presence of ten adult males. At the service, the Shema was recited (Deut. 6:4–9), followed by prayers, including some set prayers like the Tephillah and the Eighteen Benedictions (m. Berakot 2:2). After this, the Scripture was read, beginning with a portion of the Torah (Gen–Deut) and progressing to a selection from the Prophets. Instruction then followed. Often the speaker linked the texts together through appeal to other passages. The service then closed with a benediction."11
During the portion of the service where the Scripture was read, Jesus opened the scroll of Isaiah and read a selection describing the Messiah and his work.
JESUS’ STARTLING CLAIM The text that Jesus read was Is. 61:1-2. In a humble, quiet manner, Jesus rolled the scroll back up, handed it to the attendant, and sat down. As everyone stared at him, he made a startling yet straightforward statement, "Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." With that single, brief sentence, Jesus' audience of neighbors understood that he was making three claims: "(1) Jesus is anointed with the Spirit. (2) He is the prophet of fulfillment who declares good news…proclaim[ing] the arrival of a new era of salvation, functioning as a prophet-leader. (3) Jesus is the one who brings release as well as the one who proclaims it.” 12
11 Darrell L. Bock, The IVP New Testament Commentary Series: Luke (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1994)
12 Ibid 66 WHAT IS A SYNAGOGUE? By telling his audience that he fulfilled Isaiah's prophecy, he presented them with a choice. There was no room for straddling the fence. His statement did not leave any other option. Either they would believe in him or not.
THE SHOCKED RESPONSE Based on Lk. 4:22, the initial response of the neighbors appeared to be favorable. They were impressed with how he A synagogue is a Jewish place said what he said, "they spoke well of him and his gracious of prayer. During the first words." But they questioned the actual content of the claim century, every single Jewish because of their familiarity with his upbringing, "Is not this town or village would have a Joseph's son?” s y n a g o g u e . T h e m a i n assembly hall of a synagogue JESUS’ INSIGHTFUL REBUKE would be rectangular in shape with tiered seating along the On the surface, we might think that their struggle would be outside walls. The speaker easily overcome, but being able to read hearts, Jesus knew would be able to stand in the their doubt was more than superficial. He said three things center of the room and then that they correctly understood as a rebuke: speak to the crowd which would be wrapped around • First, in anticipation of their faithless response, Jesus him. quoted the common proverb he expected them to use to challenge him to prove his claim. "Physician, heal yourself." Scroll jars would be stored in a Next, he quoted another proverb describing the lack of small room just off the main • assembly hall. This would allow respect neighbors typically give local prophets. "No prophet the scrolls to be properly is acceptable in his hometown." protected, but also easily • Finally, he provided two historical examples of the last accessible when needed for an proverb. He reminded them of Elijah and Elisha. assembly. Undoubtedly, this last example is what set his neighbors over the edge. Perhaps they expected that as his neighbors, they would physically benefit the most from a miracle-working, prophecy-fulfilling Messiah! Instead, he rebukes them and tells them that like Elijah and Elisha, when they were rejected, faith-filled Gentiles were the ones to receive favor!
AN OMINOUS FORESHADOWING Hearing that Gentiles would receive favor instead of them, in jealousy, the small synagogue was filled with angry Nazarenes who rioted, chasing Jesus outside of town with the intent of killing him by throwing him from a cliff. On a much smaller scale, this whole moment in the Galilean hills with his neighbors ominously foreshadowed what would happen at the end of Jesus' earthly ministry years later in Jerusalem.
67 I can only imagine how Jesus felt at that moment. Who are GOING DOWN TO the people we typically want to help the most when we learn CAPERNAUM about the gospel? It's our family and friends. I am sure that Jesus had a strong natural desire to be a blessing to the people he spent the majority of his earthly life around. He approached them early in his ministry with honesty and gracious words. But they couldn't overcome their biases. Matthew tells us that Jesus was not able to do many miracles there, not because his power was limited, but because it would not have done any good (Mt. 13:58). They wouldn't believe in him. In Luke 4:31, after Jesus was rejected by his own people at I imagine that as Jesus miraculously walked through the Nazareth, it says that "he went angry mob of neighbors, his heart was aching as he saw down to Capernaum, a city of each familiar face. I assume that in some small way, his Galilee". This use of the word feelings that day were similar to how he felt a few years later "down" is interesting. We when he looked down on Jerusalem and mourned that Israel generally think of using the as a whole was rejecting him (Mt. 23:37-39). However, Mt. words "up" and "down" when 23:39 indicates that there is hope for those who initially reject we are discussing going north Jesus, and that hope is found in allowing God to soften their or south. However, in the Bible, hearts so that they would instead choose to believe in His those prepositions are used differently. Almost without Messiah! We know that some of Jesus' family who initially exception, they are used to refer doubted, eventually came to faith in him after his resurrection to elevation. So, in this verse, (Jn. 7:1-5; Mk. 3:20-21; Acts 1:12-14). when it mentions that Jesus went "down to Capernaum", FROM NAZARETH TO CAPERNAUM that is exactly what he did. He After being so soundly rejected by the people of his descended the 1900 feet from hometown, Jesus moved into a house in the nearby Galilean Nazareth (~1200 above sea level) to Capernaum (~700 feet town of Capernaum. From that spot, he would teach, travel, below sea level). and perform many miracles, trying to help people believe in who he was and what he had come to earth to do.
68 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Jesus’ rejection at Nazareth with what you saw in the episode and read in the Biblical text. Are there any differences? What are they?
2. What part of Jesus’ rejection early in his ministry stands out most to you? Why?
3. If you had been in the synagogue the day Jesus read from Isaiah, what biases do you think you might have had? What mistaken ideas have you personally had about Jesus that needed to be changed by the gospel? Be prepared to discuss your answer with your group.
69 APPLICATION We all know what it feels like to be rejected. Whether your personal experience is limited to a moment on a playground as a child where you were the last one picked for a game, or whether you were rebuffed after mustering up the courage to ask someone on a date, or perhaps it extends to your adult life where you are overlooked or ignored by some group you desired to belong to; rejection hurts.
I wonder if we overlook the personal sting of rejection when we apply the concept to God. I mean, he's God, right? But God, the Holy Spirit, and Jesus are not impersonal forces. They are beings that experience and express emotion perfectly. Genesis 6:6 tells us that God's heart grieved when he saw how wickedly people were living by rejecting him. Paul revealed in Ephesians 4:30 that believers could grieve the Holy Spirit if they refuse to listen to him and continue to live unchanged lives. Both in Luke 4 and Matthew 23, Jesus was grieved when the people he desired to help rejected him, their only true source of help.
Perhaps we need to do a better job remembering that God, the Holy Spirit, and Jesus each personally care for us. Instead of rejecting them in disbelief and causing them grief, we should instead seek to bring them joy by choosing to respond to each of them in faith! Take a moment to write a prayer of confession of a moment where you are convinced that you acted in disbelief. Then finish your prayer with gratitude for how much each person in the godhead cares for you!
70 LESSON TWELVE Jesus Calms the Sea
Watch Following the Messiah episode 5 (8:19 min. - 10:08 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about Jesus calming the stormy sea.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
71 DISCUSSION In our third event where the Biblical text highlights the identity of Jesus, it was his response to his environment that made those around him realize that there was much more to him than they previously realized. Leading up to that moment, so many significant things happened!
JESUS’ MOTHER AND BROTHERS HAD VISITED After crowds of people began swarming Jesus at his house, his mother and brothers came to see him (Mt. 12:46-50; Mk. 3:31-35; Lk. 8:19-21). It was during this visit that Jesus said that his family are those who hear and do what God says.
JESUS HAD BEEN MIRACULOUSLY HEALING He had also continued performing miracles as signs pointing to the authority of his teaching and the ongoing fulfillment of the Old Testament messianic SEA OF GALILEE prophecies, including the healing of Peter’s mother-in-law (Mt. 8:14-17).
JESUS HAD BEEN BUSY TEACHING Additionally, Jesus had gone up on a mountain and taught the pivotal Sermon on the Mount (Mt. 5-7), and began using parables, short stories using everyday things to illustrate spiritual truths. The first parable he used was The Parable of the Sower (Mk. 4:1-20; Lk. 8:4-15), followed by some parables where he compared the unseen yet amazing growth At about 700 feet below sea of the kingdom of God to seeds (Mk. 4:26-34). level, the Sea of Galilee is surrounded by hills that rise JESUS MADE AN AFTERNOON TRIP ACROSS THE SEA over 1500 feet above the All of this activity took place on the north and north-west side surface of the water. This of the Sea of Galilee. Matthew recorded that one afternoon unique environment can cause unexpected weather events to after teaching all day, Jesus noticed the growing crowd and o c c u r. W i n d s f r o m t h e instructed his disciples to go with him to the other side of the northwest can race down the sea, so his disciples loaded into a boat to do just that (Mt. hills resulting in rough seas 8:18, 23). The number of disciples that accompanied him within a matter of minutes. No required more than one boat (Mk. 4:36). doubt, Peter, Andrew, James, and John had watched this It must have been a refreshing moment for some of the multi- unfold numerous times as they generational fishermen to get back into boats and on the worked on the sea. Visitors to water (Mk. 1:16-20). However, the conditions were about to the area today can and do experience this same thing. take such a dramatic turn that even the seasoned sailors feared for their lives! Mark tells us that a windstorm came up,
72 likely blowing down from the channeled gorges in the west VESSELS ON THE SEA and up against eastern hills on the opposite shore. The waves became so large and choppy that they began swamping the boats!
During all of this, Jesus was asleep in the stern. The commotion of the storm, the rocking of the boat, the water flooding over the side; none of it had woken him up! But the disciples’ fear finally escalated to the point that they woke
Jesus with a question, “Teacher, do you not care that we are In the 1970s, the Sea of Galilee perishing” (Mk. 4:38)? Matthew’s account reveals them suffered from very low water pleading with him to intervene in some way, “Save us, Lord; levels. However, those water we are perishing” (Mt. 8:25)! They were so anxious, they levels revealed the presence of called to Jesus twice, “Teacher, teacher” (Lk. 8:24)! sixteen first-century ports around the perimeter of the Whatever they imagined Jesus would do, his response far lake. These ports would have been used by many people exceeded it. Like a master with his pet, he commanded the during that time. Today, most wind and the sea, “Peace! Be still!” I once saw a Bible of the boat on the surface of paraphrase render this, “Be calm! Be muzzled!” In an instant the sea are tourist boats. the wind stopped blowing and the sea was calm. If you have During the first century ever been on the water, you understand that winds to not however, there would have instantaneously stop, nor do the waves driven by them been much more activity on immediately become glassy smooth. Under natural the sea. Boats would have circumstances it takes time for those meteorological been criss-crossing the sea all phenomena to change. But at the verbal command of a of the time with people trading goods and services. recently resting Jesus, both things quickly changed!
Despite all that the disciples had heard Jesus teach and seen him do, this surmounted it. As their pulses slowed and the adrenaline abated, something else took its place. They were filled with great fear as they rightly asked each other, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” As we conclude this lesson, Mark challenges his readers with the same question, “Who is Jesus, that he is able to control the natural world with his word?!” From the perspective of an informed Israelite, only Jehovah could do what Jesus just did. As several commentators point out,13 for generations the Jews had been singing Psalms like:
Psalm 89:9 8 O Lord God of hosts, who is mighty as you are, O Lord,
13 R. Jamieson, A. R. Fausset, & D. Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc. 1997) Vol. 2, p. 70
73 with your faithfulness all around you? 9 You rule the raging of the sea; when its waves rise, you still them.
Psalm 93:4 3 The floods have lifted up, O Lord, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their roaring. 4 Mightier than the thunders of many waters, mightier than the waves of the sea, the Lord on high is mighty!
Just like their forefathers had witnessed God provide deliverance from Egypt by parting the Red Sea (Ex. 14), and grant yet another generation entrance into the promised land of Canaan by holding back the Jordan River during its flood stage (Josh. 3 & 4), the disciples of Jesus had miraculously been provided safe passage from one shore of a body of water to the other. How was he able to do what only God had previously done? The logical conclusion is that this third event also points to the awe-inspiring divinity of Jesus!
74 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Jesus calming the raging sea with what you saw in the episode and read in the Biblical text. Are there any differences? What are they?
2. What part of this miracle stands out most to you? Why?
3. If you had been in the group of boats traveling with Jesus that night, how might you have responded to the storm? How do you think you might have responded to his miraculous intervention? Be prepared to discuss your answer with your group.
75 APPLICATION “And they were filled with fear.” The apostles reaction to the divine power of Jesus is a common and appropriate response to being in the presence of God! Their response heightens the point of Jesus’ miracle. People throughout the gospel records show this response to Jesus (especially Luke). It was Zechariah’s response when he encountered an angel of the Lord in the temple (Lk. 1:12). It was the response of the shepherds who received the nighttime report of Jesus’ birth (Lk. 2:9). Upon raising a widow’s son from the dead, great fear filled them and they said, “God has visited his people” (Lk. 7:16)! Fear was the response of the Gentiles on the far side of the Sea of Galilee as they witnessed the effects of his power by healing two men possessed by demons (Lk. 8:37). If all of those people were able to recognize the divine power of Jesus and respond in a reverent way, then how can we do any less? Take a moment to write a reverent prayer of awe for who Jesus is and what he does!
ADDITIONAL REFERENCES NEW TESTAMENT REFERENCES Matthew 8:23-27 - Matthew’s account of Jesus calming the sea. Luke 8:22-25 - Luke’s account of Jesus calming the sea.
76 LESSON THIRTEEN “Who do people say that I am?”
Watch Following the Messiah episode 5 (10:09 min. - 19:47 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about Peter confessing that Jesus was the Christ.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
77 DISCUSSION Have you ever been slow to comprehend something? Perhaps it was early in the morning, and you hadn’t quite had enough coffee. Or maybe, it was late in the day, you were tired and having trouble concentrating. Sometimes, we fail to comprehend something because deep down, we really don’t want to get it. When Jesus began teaching in parables, he explained that some people’s hearts would be hard, and they would fail to comprehend his teaching and mission (Mt. 13:14-15).
Matthew 16 begins with such a group of people testing Jesus, challenging him to prove his identity by performing a heavenly sign, despite the fact that he had miraculously fed two different groups of thousands of people (Mt. 14:13-21, 15:32-39) walked on water (Matt. 14:22-33) and healed multiple people of all their infirmities (Mt. 14:34-36, 15:29-31). After predicting the sign of the upcoming resurrection, he left the area and traveled to the northern border of Israel for a quiet and contemplative conversation with his disciples.
THE DISTRICT OF CAESAREA PHILIPPI Caesarea Philippi is located 25 miles north of the Sea of Galilee, near the ancient city of Dan and the headwaters of the Jordan River. From the sea to Philippi, the water rises nearly 1,700 feet in elevation, and the landscape changes from the small lake in the bowl of Galilee to rocky, mountainous terrain. The city of WHO IS PAN? Caesarea Philippi was extremely pagan and recently renamed. It was known for its pagan rituals offered to the In the Greek religion, the god Greek god Pan, the deity of wild, desolate places. Pan was Pan was the god of the wild, shepherds, flocks, and rustic believed to live in a cave in the side of the cliff, which had a music. He was mostly man, but spring gushing from it in Jesus’ day. The locals would throw had the hindquarters, legs, and animal sacrifices into the spring, and if they were “rejected,” horns of a goat. Being a rustic they believed that Pan was angry, and the people would god, he was usually worshipped eventually offer a child to the water to appease him. In the in rustic settings such as caves vicinity of Pan’s grotto and the adjoining courtyard filled with or grottos. The Romans later niches in the wall for statues of Pan and his nymphs, Herod adapted much of this religion the Great also built a temple to Caesar Augustus. As you into their own culture and is approached the impressive cliff and spring, you would see the why a worship center like this developed in the city of temples, courtyards, and lifeless statues of the pagan deities Caesarea Philippi. and emperor. After Herod the Great’s death and during the ministry of Jesus, Herod Philip II controlled the area.
JESUS ASKED ABOUT POPULAR PERCEPTION To escape the crowds and busyness of his ministry, Jesus led his close disciples into this remote and pagan environment. Somewhere near the vicinity of Philippi’s temples and statues, Jesus asked his
78 BANIAS RIVER disciples what the crowds had concluded about his identity (Mt. 16:13-14). The group seems to have responded relatively quickly and offered four ideas. He was either (1) John the Baptist, (2) Elijah (3) Jeremiah, or (4) one of the other prophets.
The talk in the crowds revealed a level of prophetic expectation and excitement, but it overlooked some clear facts and teaching. Let’s look at the four options.
The Banias River flows out of a 1) Jesus was not the recently murdered John (Mt. 14:1-12) spring at the foot of Mount but was the one whom John foretold the arrival of (Mt. Hermon, which is fed by the 3:11-12; Mk. 1:7-8; Lk. 3:15-17; Jn. 1:29-34). rain and snow that falls high up on the mountain. By the time 2) Jesus was not the prophetic “Elijah” that had been John the the water flows out of the Baptist (Mt. 17:10-13; Lk. 7:24-30). spring at Caesarea Philippi, it 3) & 4) These two answers can be grouped together. Perhaps composes a stream about 25 because of texts like Deuteronomy 18:15-18, some Israelites feet wide. were looking for the return of some of the Old Testament Its crystal clear water descends prophets. However, Jesus was much more than any down into the northern edge of resurrected prophet. the Hula Valley. As it goes, the Banias River combines with the JESUS MADE THE QUESTION PERSONAL Iyyon, Senir, and Dan rivers to form the headwaters for the After hearing the current level of speculation from the large Jordan River. crowds, Jesus got deeply personal and asked these men who they believed him to be. The text emphasizes that instead of the group responding as before, Peter spoke first, and possibly for the group. The Holy Spirit recorded his answer for all time and for every generation to wrestle with:
“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Let’s consider the significance and nuance of Peter’s understanding of Jesus’ identity.
YOU ARE THE CHRIST… The apostles understood Jesus to be the long-awaited and prophesied Messiah of Israel! Their concept of the Messiah was not entirely in line with Jesus yet. Before his crucifixion, Jesus had to explain the spiritual nature of the kingdom to Pilate (Jn. 18:33-38). Even moments before his ascension the disciples still didn’t understand the spiritual nature of the Messianic kingdom (Acts 1:6-8), and it took them time to grasp the universal rule of the Messiah (Acts 10:44-48, 11:17-18; Rom. 1:16-17; Gal. 3:25-29). 79 THE SON OF…GOD… They also understood that Jesus was more than just another prophet, but someone with a unique relationship with the Father. Their grasp of his sonship would deepen and mature over time (Jn. 14:8-9; Col. 1:15-20; Heb. 1:1-4).
THE SON OF THE LIVING GOD… When Peter described Jesus as the Son of the living God, he was making an observant and key statement! In contrast to the dead, lifeless idols worshipped around them in Caesarea Philippi, Jesus was the Son of Jehovah, the God who was alive! This contrast between God and idols is found throughout the Bible (Ps. 115; Is. 44:6-20; Jer. 10:10).
HOW DID PETER KNOW THIS ABOUT JESUS? Jesus confirmed Peter’s designation by specifying how he reached that conclusion, by the revelation of God. It wasn’t something dreamed up by Peter himself; it wasn’t wishful thinking. I believe L. Chouinard rightly wrote, “Peter’s Christological insight should not be construed as a sudden flash of insight, but was fundamentally grounded in his observation of Jesus’ performance in word and deed. As a matter of fact, Jesus’ entire ministry was performatively God’s revelation concerning the mystery associated with his person.” 14
From the account of his miraculous conception, the worshipful birth attendants from the east and the shepherds at Bethlehem, the excited and warning strangers at his temple dedication, to the testimony of his Father and the Holy Spirit at his baptism and the evidence of all the miracles and teachings, the disciples who spent the most time with Jesus of Nazareth reached the conclusion God intended for every honest and humble seeker to reach, the man they had been following and learning from was who he claimed to be, the Son of the living God!
14 L. Chouinard, Matthew (Joplin, MO: College Press, 1997) Mt 16:17 80 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Peter’s confession of Jesus with what you saw in the episode and read in the Biblical text. Are there any differences? What are they?
2. What part of Peter’s confession stands out most to you? Why?
3. If you had been with Jesus and the disciples at Caesarea Philippi, how would you have responded to Jesus’ questions? What would you have based your answer on?
81 APPLICATION The famous author, C.S. Lewis, once wrote that Jesus’ claims to be the Son of God could only be explained if he were a liar, a lunatic, or indeed Lord!15 A more recent book written by Rice Brooks approaches the divine identity of Jesus in its very title, Man, Myth, Messiah. You see, readers of the Bible are faced with a decision about who they believe this man to be, and the decision has life- changing commitments that come with it! Everyone who encountered Jesus in the first century realized this. Everyone who continues to meet Jesus realizes this. But first, you and I need to decide, who does the inspired text of the Bible reveal Jesus to be? By faith, will you choose to believe him to be the Son of God (Jn. 20:30-31; Heb. 11:6)? If you take that step of faith, what does that faith call you to?
It calls for believers to verbally confess Jesus as their Lord (Rom. 10:9-10)! It is a joy to witness people do this for the first time. Some of the most genuine and simple confessions I have had the honor to hear were during conversions that took place within a state prison as humble and grateful men surrendered their lives to Jesus.
The gospel of Christ calls on believers to repent, or literally to change their mind (Acts 2:38 & 3:19). There are two parts of this for a new believer. The first is to change their mind about who they believe Jesus to be. They now believe him to be the son of God as opposed to before when they didn’t. But God also calls on believers to change their minds about much more than that! He calls on us to change our minds about our daily decisions and habits, to recognize when they are wrong, and by faith allow our change of mind to lead to a change in life (Luke 3:10-13). We can come to Jesus as we are, but we cannot remain unchanged!
Finally, the gospel calls on us to die to sin and self; it calls on us to die with Christ (Gal. 2:20; Col. 2:20; 2 Tim. 2:11-13). The New Testament authors understood this spiritual death to take place when, in faith, a person was baptized into Christ (Rom. 6:1-14). Baptism does not just mark the moment when a believer is united in death with Christ, where their sins are graciously and mercifully atoned for, but it is also the moment that their new life of faith and discipleship begins (Romans 6:5-6)! This undeserved gift of a new life is when every believer submits themselves to the Lordship of Jesus and is set free from sin.
Take a moment to prayerfully review how God would want you to respond to his Son. What will you choose to believe about him? Is he a liar, a lunatic, or Lord? Is he merely a man, a myth, or as Peter confessed at Caesarea Philippi, the Messiah?
15 C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity (New York: MacMillan Pub. Co., 1952) 82 LESSON FOURTEEN Miraculous Signs in the North
Watch Following the Messiah episode 6 (0:00 min. - 13:41 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group about the miracles you remember Jesus performing. What details do you remember?
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
83 DISCUSSION From Jesus' first public miracle when he turned water into wine at the Cana wedding (Jn. 2:1-12), the supernatural deeds of Christ were not mere parlor tricks meant to amaze and astound the crowds. They were signs pointing to truths about the identity and mission of the one who performed them. "This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory" (Jn. 2:11). Let's examine a couple of the signs Jesus performed in Galilee and see what they indicated about our Lord.
JESUS DRAMATICALLY DELIVERED TWO SEVERELY DEMON- POSSESSED MEN In any Bible class on the subject, one of the most memorable miracles taught is the casting of Legion into the herd of swine. The miracle is shocking! It is grand in scale from the man who is possessed by a multitude of demons (who identified themselves in the plural with the name "Legion," a Roman military unit which typically had 5,000 soldiers), to the size of the herd of swine that drowned (2,000). The miracle gets our imaginations racing: how could so many demons possess someone?! What did it sound like, look like, and smell like when 2,000 pigs ran into the sea?
Three of the gospel accounts contain the healing of two demoniacs who lived in the tombs outside of town (Mt. 8:28-34; Mk. 5:1-20; Lk. 8:26-37). Mark shared more details than the others, even though he focused on the healing of one demoniac to the exclusion of the second (Mk. 5:2).
There are many vital lessons God intends for us to learn from this text, of which four stand out:
1. This is a powerful example of Christ overcoming spiritual forces hostile to God and mankind! Notice the stark contrast between the demoniac's condition prior to Jesus arriving and then after he had been delivered: he had been living amongst the dead in tombs, he was naked, he was wildly out of control, and he was alone and hurting. After Jesus intervened the people from town found the demoniac "sitting there, clothed and in his right mind" (Mk. 5:15). It was this, not the dead swine that shocked and terrified them! Besides that, when Jesus left, the demoniac moved from the isolating tombs and back into town with his neighbors and friends. He was no longer alone and separated from people.
2. This is also an excellent text to emphasize the inherent evangelistic responsibility/ privilege of those who have been delivered by God. Jesus' instruction to the rescued man is something every believer should follow: "Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you" (Mk. 5:19).
84 3. Contextually, all of Mark 5 is a testament to the fact LAND OF THE GERASENES that Jesus cares about all people. He delivered a Gentile demoniac, he healed a perpetually unclean Israelite woman, and he raised a 12-year-old girl from the dead!
1. More than that, the immediate text highlights the lengths to which Jesus would go to deliver just one person!
In the Old Testament, the land More needs to be said about the 4th point. Did you ever east of the Sea of Galilee was notice that the stormy crossing of the Sea of Galilee is how called Bashan (Joshua 21:27, Jesus got to the demoniac (Mk. 4:35-41) and that upon Amos 4:1). By New Testament helping him, Jesus got right back into the boat and returned to Capernaum on the other side of the sea? Jesus didn't just get times, this area and the land a into a boat one day for the sole purpose of miraculously little southward was called the demonstrating his divine power over creation. In Mark's land of the Gadarenes or the account, he made a round trip boat-ride for the sake of one l a n d o f t h e G e r a s e n e s , demon-oppressed Gentile. What does it say about Jesus that depending on the Bible he was willing to do that? translation (Mark 5:1; Luke 8:26). Steep cliffs characterize Making the connection between Christ's stormy crossing of this eastern shoreline. During the sea to reach one person reminds us of Matthew 23:15 but the afternoon, sunlight reflects in reverse. In that verse, Jesus rebuked the scribes and off of these cliffs to provide a Pharisees for traveling "over sea and land" to make a single, beautiful view across the sea. hypocritical proselyte. But flip that verse around. If people with the selfish motives of the Pharisees were willing to go to such impressive lengths to impact someone, then to what measures should someone with genuine, loving motives go to deliver someone? The healing of the demoniac is a real-life example of Jesus' parable of the lost sheep (Lk. 15:1-7) in which he tells the story of a shepherd, who out of his great concern for the well-being of a single, lost sheep was willing to go to extraordinary lengths to safely bring it back to the fold. The deliverance of the Gerasene demoniac was an incredible sign of the gracious length to which our powerful Lord will go to deliver someone from oppression!
JESUS MIRACULOUSLY FED 5,000 PEOPLE Several of Jesus' miracles were meant to help people recognize his divinity: from the healing of the paralytic and forgiving his sins (Matthew 9:1-8) to his supernatural control over the wind and the sea (Mk. 4:35-41). Another sign that highlighted the divinity of Jesus was his miraculous feeding of thousands of people following the death of John the Baptist and the return of the apostles from their limited commission (Mt. 14:13-21; Mk. 6:30-44; Lk. 9:10-17; Jn. 6:1-14).
85 The text informs us that Jesus wanted to get away by himself and also provide some downtime for the apostles after the busyness of traveling the area teaching and performing miracles. To accomplish that he got into a boat to sail to a different shore on the Sea of Galilee. Luke specifies that they went to a desolate place near the town of Bethsaida (Lk. 9:10), the birthplace of Andrew, Peter, and Philip (Jn. 1:44). However, by the time He arrived, the crowds seeking him had raced around the lake and arrived ahead of him. Out of selfless compassion, he spent all day teaching until it grew too late to secure food for such a large number of people.
Jesus briefly conversed with the apostles to help them understand the impossibility of their situation: "We have no more than five loaves and two fish…" (Lk. 9:13). The apostles BETHSAIDA were instructed to sort the crowd into smaller groups and have them sit. After he looked into heaven and blessed the meager meal, Jesus continued breaking the food into pieces for the apostles to distribute until everyone was completely satisfied, and twelve baskets of food were left over!
The miraculous signs of Jesus pointed to various things: some demonstrated his power over quality (turning water to The city of Bethsaida was wine), some his power over nature (calming the storm and along the northeast corner of walking on water), and this miracle demonstrated Jesus' the Sea of Galilee. Although divine power over quantity (multiplying little into much). More than that John helps us understand that the Jewish followers the exact location of the city of of Jesus believed that miraculously providing food was Bethsaida is often debated, evidence that the prophet who was to come like Moses, most historians generally another Israelite leader who helped "provide" food, had agree that the large nearby arrived (Jn. 6:22-35; Dt. 18:15; Acts 3:22)! plain is the probable location where Jesus fed the 5,000. This The miraculous feeding of thousands was a sign that pointed area not only matches the to both the divinity of Jesus and the fulfillment of a millennia- geographical descriptions in old prophecy about the arrival of a Moses-like deliverer. the Bible, but it also would easily support the large group If you had been present in Galilee during the ministry of of people. Jesus, would you have understood what the miraculous signs of Jesus revealed about him, or would you have focused on the physical benefits of the miracles themselves?
86 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of the two miracles Jesus performed in Galilee with what you studied today. Have your impressions changed at all? If so, how?
2. What details from these two miracles stand out to you the most? Why?
3. Understanding that the miracles of Jesus were signs pointing to truths about him, contextually, what did each of these signs indicate?
87 APPLICATION Not everyone who initially witnessed the miraculous signs could see past their "miraculous" nature to comprehend what they actually indicated about Jesus. Let's consider the responses Mark reported of the healing of the demoniac. When Jesus stepped out of the boat, the demons residing within the man recognized Jesus for who he was and addressed Him as the "Son of the Most High God"! Yet then they begged him to allow them to stay in the country. They didn't benefit in any way from their understanding of who Jesus was. Likewise, when the local townspeople heard the report of the herdsmen, they rushed to the scene and witnessed the transformed demoniac firsthand. Yet, they were terrified and begged Jesus to leave them! They acknowledged that something supernatural had occurred. Still, instead of trying to make sense of it, they rejected the person who had enough power to save a neighbor they had been powerless to help. Finally, there was the response of the demoniac himself who begged to accompany Jesus as he prepared to sail away. What a powerful example! The one who had been delivered wanted to leave behind everything familiar to him and stay close to the Deliverer! At that time, Jesus told him to remain behind to tell everyone what God had done for him. Of those three responses, which have you chosen? Have you begged to continue on your way like the demons? Like the neighbors, have you fearfully begged Jesus to leave you alone with what is familiar? Or have you been delivered by Jesus and desire nothing other than to stay close to Him? Take a moment to write a prayer expressing your desire and your response to the miraculous signs you have studied today, and if necessary, communicate your repentance for your past responses, expressing your commitment to faithfully believe in who Jesus is.
88 LESSON FIFTEEN Miraculous Signs in the South
Watch Following the Messiah episode 6 (13:42 min. - 29:58 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about the blind man Jesus healed and the raising of Lazarus. What details do you remember?
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
89 DISCUSSION The gospel of John highlights seven incredible “I am” statements that Jesus made (6:35; 8:12; 10:9; 10:11; 11:25-26; 14:6; 15:5), as well as a selection of seven miracles that He performed. Those miracles are all contained within the first eleven chapters. John’s goal was not to be exhaustive, but to provide his readers with the substantial highlights of Jesus’ life and ministry so that “you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (Jn. 20:31). Let’s study the final two dramatic miracles from Jesus’ Judean ministry.
RESTORING SIGHT TO A MAN BORN BLIND After Jesus had a lengthy confrontation in the John 8 about who his Father was, which led to an attempted stoning, he was in Jerusalem with his disciples when they came across a man who had been born blind.
Revealing the prevailing religious understanding that physical maladies were a direct consequence of someone’s sin, the disciples asked Jesus who had sinned to cause this man's blindness, the man or his parents. Jesus used the question to explain that illness is not always a punishment from God, but then he affirmed that God would act in a way that would bring him glory no matter the circumstances (Jn. 9:3). Recognizing the man’s disability, Jesus healed him in a very tactile way. Creating a salve, He rubbed it on the man’s eyes and told him to go the Pool of Siloam to wash.
The rest of John 9 reveals the various responses people had to the miraculous healing, including his neighbors (Jn. 9:8-12) and the local Pharisees (Jn. 9:13-34). When the formerly blind man acknowledged his belief in Jesus, Jesus revealed that he was the one who healed him. The blind man had “seen” by faith what the sighted Pharisees willingly “blinded” themselves to: the truth about Jesus.
During the time of King Hezekiah, in an attempt to keep THE POOL OF SILOAM Jerusalem's water supply from being captured by the Assyrians, a tunnel was dug underneath the Eastern Hill which allowed the water flowing from the Gihon Spring to pool up inside the city walls. This tunnel is commonly called "Hezekiah's Tunnel" and water continues to flow through the tunnel today.
During the first century, this pooling of water was beautified, surrounded by stone steps, and eventually became known as the Pool of Siloam. Jewish men entering the temple would go through a process of ritual bathing. This could have taken place in the Pool of Siloam.
90 RAISING LAZARUS FROM DEATH The final miracle of Jesus’ ministry that John recorded TOMB OF LAZARUS involved the Bethany siblings: Mary, Martha and Lazarus. Early in chapter 11, the sisters sent word to Jesus that their brother was sick, yet he intentionally waited to begin traveling to them, knowing that the illness would lead to death, giving opportunity to glorify God and pointing to his own divinity by raising Lazarus from death (Jn. 11:4). Jesus did not arrive until four days after Lazarus' death. “The general belief was that the spirit of the deceased hovered around the body for three days in anticipation of some possible means of reentry into the body. But on the third day it was believed that the In the Arab city of al-Eizariya body lost its color and the spirit was locked out. Therefore the (modern day Bethany), there is a small rock cave that is spirit was obliged to enter the chambers of Sheol (the place accessible via a small passage of the dead). The passing of the third day, therefore, signaled way with uneven stone steps. the conclusion of the last modicum of hope for the mourners.” This cave marks the traditional 16 location of the tomb of Lazarus. When Jesus approached the town of Bethany on the eastern crest of the Mount of Olives, Martha met him first with the Sacred to both Christians and thought that the time for Him to intervene had passed, “Lord, Muslims, the tomb of Lazarus has gone through a number of if you had been here, my brother would not have died” (Jn. changes over the centuries. 11:21). Closer to the house when Mary found him, she While there is no definitive tearfully echoed her sister’s words, “Lord, if you had been proof of the authenticity, this here, my brother would not have died” (Jn. 11:32). Shortly site has been recognized as after this Jesus wept, and some of the bystanders questioned the location of this miracle of his timing and ability, “Could not he who opened the eyes of Jesus since the 4th century. the blind man also have kept this man from dying?” (Jn. 11:37).
It seems that John is trying to help his audience understand that Jesus was “deeply moved in his spirit” and “greatly troubled,” not over the death of Lazarus, but over the lack of faith from those around him. It troubled him that this close to his death and resurrection, after all of the “I AM” statements and miraculous signs, people still doubted who he was and what he was able to do.
More disheartening than the immature faith of those around Lazarus was the hard-hearted response of the chief priests and Pharisees who plotted to kill both Jesus and Lazarus in order to maintain their power (Jn. 11:49-53; 12:9-11).
16 Borchert, G. L. (1996). John 1–11 (Vol. 25A, p. 354). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers. 91 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of the healing of the blind man and the raising of Lazarus. Have your impressions changed at all? If so, how?
2. What details about these two miracles stand out the most to you? Why?
3. When you reflect on the Pharisees’ inability to see Jesus for who he really was, what do you think got in their way? What can obstruct our comprehension of who the Spirit reveals Jesus to be?
4. When you reflect on the various responses to the miraculous sign of Lazarus’ resurrection, what similarities do you see between yourself and the sisters, or the mourners, or perhaps even the scribes and Pharisees?
92 APPLICATION "Jesus wept."
Growing up, I remember learning the Bible trivia about John 11:35, the shortest verse in the Bible. It only has two words! Over the course of my life as a disciple, my comprehension of these words has changed over time.
Initially, I remember hearing and thinking that the words revealed the tender, compassionate, human heart of Jesus as he mourned Lazarus' separation from his loved ones. My thought was that even though Jesus knew that death was not the end for Lazarus, as he witnessed the grief of Martha and then Mary, it led him to display grief over their loss of a physical relationship. This understanding was a comfort to me as I worked through the grief of losing two of my sons at very young ages.
However, after more closely examining the immediate context and studying the use of the phrases "deeply moved in his spirit" and "greatly troubled" (Jn. 12:27; 13:21), I currently believe that Jesus weeping was not an expression of mourning over the death of Lazarus, but rather it was his expression of hurt and frustration that those so close to him still had not matured in their faith to the point of recognizing the power of God in their midst!
Have there been times when you failed to recognize God working in the midst of your life? Or times you failed to see Jesus for who he truly is? Does Jesus weep as you fail to acknowledge him in your life? Take a moment to write a prayer seeking God's forgiveness, and make a list of the times when God was at work. Make a list of the things God has revealed about Jesus.
93 LESSON SIXTEEN No One Taught Like Jesus!
Watch Following the Messiah episode 7 (0:00 min. - 09:45 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about the teachings of Jesus.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
94 DISCUSSION If you were to ask the average person on the street what the primary purpose of Jesus was during his ministry, you might hear a variety of answers. However, Jesus himself explained what he was about during his ministry. After an early morning prayer, Jesus started traveling through the towns of Galilee and said, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out” (Mk. 1:38). Jesus came to speak the words of God (Jn. 12:49) with the goal of helping his audiences respond in faith to God. When people heard Jesus teach, it wasn’t like hearing any o t h e r s c r i b e o r R a b b i . T h e astonished listeners in Jerusalem CHURCH OF THE BEATITUDES understood that “he taught as one who had authority” (Mk. 1:22 & 27). Let’s spend some time studying Jesus’ most popular sermon and one of his most well-known methods of teaching.
JESUS’ SERMON ON THE MOUNT The Sermon on the Mount, delivered on the hillside north of the Sea of Galilee, near Capernaum, contains teachings that
Located on a hill just north of even non-religious people today are familiar with: teaching the Sea of Galilee, the Church children to practice the “Golden Rule,” using well-known of the Beatitudes sits on the phrases like “love your enemy,” “you are the light of the traditional location where Jesus world,” “judge not lest you be judged,” “ask, seek, knock,” spoke the Sermon on the “you will know someone by their fruits,” etc. In many Mount. This site has been instances, these phrases have been so disconnected from recognized as the location of the context of the sermon that it is easy to assume that this event since the fourth Jesus was just another teacher of social morals. However, century. Jesus did not come simply to make people less immoral but While the exact location is not rather to transform them from the inside out as they came to known, this site does fit the belong to the spiritual kingdom of God (Mt. 5:3, 8, 9, 10, 16, geographical features we read 19, 20; 6:33). about in the Bible. At the conclusion of His sermon, the As Jesus concluded his sermon, he made some startling text tells us that Jesus "came claims that help us understand that his teaching was to down from the mountain" and accomplish more than the creation of an earthly utopian "entered Capernaum" (Matthew society. Before the illustration of the wise man building his 8:1,5). While standing at the house on the rock, Jesus described a judgment scene where Church of the Beatitudes, it is easy to look along the shore some people will stand before Him expecting to be received and see the ruins of ancient because of the many things they did “in the name of Jesus.” Capernaum just below the hill Instead, they will be rejected for their failure to submit to his to the southeast. teachings.
95 “21 Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness’” (Mt. 7:21-23).
Jesus made three shocking claims in this paragraph! 1) COVE OF THE SOWER Jesus is the one who will be pronouncing judgment! 2) Being with Jesus is the goal that we all should pursue, and it is the goal we all will fall short of if we simply live our own way (“depart from me”). 3) Faithful submission to the teachings of Jesus is the basis by which all will be judged.
In the final moments of the sermon, Jesus issued a challenge and a warning: those who hear his words and faithfully submit to them will weather the storms of life and the judgment to come, while those who refuse to faithfully On the northern side of the Sea of Galilee is a small inlet of water submit will experience catastrophic failure when they protruding about 100 yards into encounter the same storms (Mt. 7:24-27). the shore. This is commonly referred to as the Cove of the Surely Paul Earnhart was correct when he summarized the Sower and marks the traditional Sermon on the Mount: “Jesus’ discourse upon a Galilean location where Jesus got into a mountainside is in reality no mere sermon. It more boat and pushed out from shore approximates a manifesto of the kingdom of God. There is to speak to the crowd. more to Jesus’ teaching than this, but here we feel the very During the first century, there heartbeat of kingdom truth, and we will neglect it at our were at least sixteen harbors peril.” 17 located around the perimeter of the lake. So, it would have been TEACHING IN PARABLES common to find yourself near As Jesus’ earthly ministry progressed, he began utilizing docked boats. parables as a method of teaching. Parables are short stories that illustrate important truths. The disciples questioned Regardless of where Jesus was, He took advantage of His using parables, because to some, they appeared to be surroundings to proclaim the polarizing. Jesus explained, “For those whose hearts are message He came to Earth to tell already hardened, parables conceal, even as they reveal the people. new truths for those who are more receptive” (Blomberg’s paraphrase of Matthew 13:12-13).18
17 Earnhart, Paul (2009). Invitation to a Spiritual Revolution. Chillicothe: DeWard Publishing.
18 Blomberg, C. (1992). Matthew (Vol. 22, p. 212). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers. 96 The first parable Matthew and Mark record for us is the foundational Parable of the Sower, in which Jesus describes a scene that most people in Galilee would have quickly recalled in their mind’s eye. A sower went out to sow, and he did so indiscriminately. Seed flew through the air and landed on four different types of soil: a hardened path, rocky ground, thorn-covered soil, and finally good, clear earth. Each soil responded in varying degrees to the seed that had landed on them. From outright rejection (the hardened path) to initial acceptance that led to rejection (the rocky and thorny grounds), only the good soil received the seed, endured, and produced different degrees of fruit.
Those who originally heard the authoritative teaching of Jesus had to evaluate themselves to recognize which of the four soils accurately described them and whether they would allow God to soften their hearts to receive the words of Jesus. Every person in every generation who has sought Jesus since then has needed to do the same. At this moment, which soil are you?
97 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Jesus’ sermon on the mount and the Parable of the Sower? Have your impressions or appreciation changed at all? If so, how?
2. Find 2-3 verses from the Sermon on the Mount that convict you or challenge you the most right now (Matthew 5-7). Why did you select these verses? Be ready to share with the class.
3. As you read the Parable of the Sower, which soil more closely describes your heart right now? What are some of the “deceitful riches” or “desires for things” that can try to crowd the gospel out of your life? What have you found to be effective in “weeding” those distractions out and keeping them under control?
98 APPLICATION There is so much substance to the teachings of Jesus! It challenges and stretches our faith every time we study them, no matter what our age or maturity. There is something for everyone all the time.
It is important to point out that Jesus never intended for His disciples to turn into bespectacled academics. He intended for His followers to be convicted, to repent, and to live greater lives of faith after encountering His teachings. The invitation of the sermon on the mount presents us with a choice: will we listen and faithfully submit or not?
Consider the two men in the illustration of building their houses.
• Both men built a house (built a life) and made a decision about what they built that house (life) upon. • Both men experienced an incredible storm. This is true of both believers and non-believers. Everyone faces difficulties in this life, and everyone will face the judgment-seat of Jesus. • One of the men did well because he chose and built wisely. One of the men did poorly because he chose and built foolishly.
What will you build your life on? Will you listen and do what Jesus teaches?
Take a moment to write a prayer to God, thanking Him for the teachings of Jesus. Humbly evaluate how receptive your heart is to His instruction. Write out your commitment today to be more receptive and faithfully submissive to His teachings, and seek to bear the fruit that comes with that submission.
99 LESSON SEVENTEEN Teaching Along the Way
Watch Following the Messiah episode 7 (09:45 min. - 28:04 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about the teaching methods of Jesus.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
100 DISCUSSION Every student of Jesus should be amazed at how naturally he turned everyday moments into teaching moments. He might have been on the road with His disciples, or alongside them in their boats, sharing a meal, or observing a woman giving her offering at the temple, yet what he saw were opportunities to teach. Jesus was the perfect example of what Moses told the Israelites to do in (Deut. 6:6-7): "And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise." He was always on the lookout for opportunities to help His disciples grow and mature.
Not only did Jesus try to help the disciples grow, but He also looked for opportunities to engage others and help them come to faith! Let's look at four examples of when Jesus taught during the mundane moments and found teaching opportunities that others missed.
THE PARABLE OF THE GOOD SAMARITAN In response to a lawyer who questioned Jesus to test Him and justify himself by limiting who he thought he had a responsibility to, Jesus taught the famous parable of the Jewish man who was accosted and left for dead on the side of the road (Lk. 10:29-37). In the story, both a priest and a Levite intentionally passed the wounded man, ignoring his condition and feeling no compassion or responsibility to help. The hero of the parable was a Samaritan who compassionately rescued the wounded man, bound his wounds, and paid someone in Jericho to tend to the man's needs until he returned. Jesus concluded by turning and asking the lawyer a question: "Which of these three… proved to be a neighbor?" The answer was obvious. It was the Samaritan. Jesus' point was that we ought to help anyone that we have the opportunity to help! Our "neighbor" is not determined by our geographic proximity to them, but by our ability and opportunity to compassionately serve.
“GOING DOWN FROM Jesus begins His parable about the Good Samaritan by saying that JERUSALEM TO JERICHO” a man was "going down from Jerusalem to Jericho.” Have you ever thought about what that means? The city of Jericho sits directly east of Jerusalem. So, how could this man be going down? We might normally equate someone going "down" if they are going south. However, in the Bible, "up" and "down" geographically refers to elevation, not direction.
Jerusalem is located in the Central Mountain Range at an elevation of approximately 2700 feet above sea level. Conversely, Jericho sits in the bottom of the Jordan Rift Valley at approximately 800 feet below sea level. So, with an elevation drop of about 3500 feet, this man truly was going "down to Jericho.”
101 TEACHING AT JACOB'S WELL
Earlier in His ministry, around the time of John the Baptist's JACOB'S WELL arrest by Herod Antipas (Mt. 4:12), Jesus traveled north back to Galilee, taking the most direct route through Samaria. Some have speculated that Jews of the first century typically avoided this route to bypass the land of the Samaritans. Yet, there appears to be little historical evidence that this was the case. What was common was to avoid contact and interaction with Samaritans. In either case, Jesus chose to be in the country of Samaria and stop outside a Samaritan town, knowing that He would have opportunity to interact with In the basement of an Eastern Orthodox Church in the someone who would come to believe in Him, even though modern-day city of Nablus, sits she was a Samaritan woman of questionable morals (Jn. an ancient well. Long held 4:1-7)! tradition claims that this is the actual hole in the ground There are many lessons and applications to make from John which was dug by Jacob's men 4, but think about the teaching opportunities that came up in the book of Genesis. from this "pit stop": By drawing water from the • Jesus challenged the woman's understanding of the well, a visitor can participate in an interesting experiment. nature of acceptable worship (Jn. 4:21-24). When Jesus speaks to the He challenged the disciples' prejudice regarding who • Samaritan woman, she makes a was "worthy" to receive the good news of the kingdom comment about how deep the of heaven (Jn. 4:27), and He lived for opportunities to well is. By pouring your drawn serve (Jn. 4:34). water back down into the well, • Jesus kept bringing the conversation back to who He you can listen to 4-5 seconds was, and it led to many people in the town believing in of complete silence before you Him (Jn. 4:29, 42)! hear the splash against the surface of the water at the bottom of the well. The well How many times do we miss everyday opportunities truly is deep, just as it is —"chance" encounters—to teach others? How often does our described in the Bible. prejudice lead us to miss opportunities God has placed right in front of us?
TEACHING USING A ROMAN COIN Not only was Jesus a master of teaching using everyday opportunities, but He was skillful at using ordinary objects to make a point! During the final week before His arrest and crucifixion, a disciple of the Pharisees insincerely flattered Jesus and asked a politically and religiously loaded question (Mt. 22:15-22)! How Jesus answered might lead to an arrest by the Romans or a riot by the Jews: Should the Jews pay taxes to their Roman "oppressors"? On the spot, Jesus quickly requested a coin and asked whose inscription was on it. Who did the coin "belong to"? Since it was a coin of Rome and
102 specifically the emperor whose image and title was stamped on it, they should pay what was required.
Not willing to leave His answer short, Jesus took it a step further and challenged the Pharisees by telling them they should also give God what He was due! Immediately their minds should have jumped to passages such as Mic. 6:8: "He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?" Jesus' response seemed to make some of them rethink what they were doing and how inconsistent their behavior toward Jesus was since they slowly stopped testing Him and went their way. Jesus was phenomenal about quickly using simple items and thoughtful questions to help people understand the truth.
TEACHING AMONG THE GENTILES Throughout His ministry, Jesus repeatedly taught that His time needed to be focused on God's people of Israel (Mt. 10:5-6; 15:24). As the promised King of Israel, the Anointed One of Israel, Jesus did spend the majority of his life attempting to reach the hearts of the Jews. However, as the Savior of the world, He also knew that the blessings of His sacrifice would benefit all people who would come to call on God through His name! We see this theme throughout the Gospels and confirmed in the writing of the New Testament Epistles:
• Lk. 2:29-32 - "Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel." • Jn. 3:16 - "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." • Rom. 5:18 - "Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men." • Gal. 3:27-29 - "For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek… • Eph. 2:13 - "But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ."
Even though Jesus' primary focus was on Israel until their rejection of Him, salvation would be made available to all. Therefore, it makes sense that Jesus paved the way with moments in which He taught and interacted with Gentiles in the towns of Samaria and the Decapolis (Mt. 4:23-25; Mk. 7:31). Paul would repeat that pattern during his missionary journeys. Whenever possible, he would preach first in Jewish synagogues until he was rejected. Then his focus would turn to whoever would listen (cf. Acts 13:5, 14, 42-48).
Jesus was truly an outstanding teacher who looked for opportunities whenever and wherever they presented themselves! Anyone seeking to do the same has a fantastic example to follow by learning from Jesus. 103 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Jesus as a teacher with what your impressions are now. Have your impressions changed at all? If so, how?
2. Pick one verse from the Parable of the Good Samaritan that stands out the most to you. Why? Be prepared to share it in class.
3. Pick 1-2 verses from John 4 that convict you and challenge you the most. What are they? What prejudices do you see in yourself that could be getting in the way of opportunities to teach or serve someone else? What can you learn from Jesus about overcoming those?
4. What stands out to you most from Matthew 22:15-22? What was Jesus’ main point in the text? As a teacher, what can you learn from this text?
5. As teachers, what should we learn from Jesus speaking in the cities of the Samaritans and Gentiles?
104 APPLICATION As the oldest of seven children and homeschooled, as well, I am impressed and humbled by the skill my parents developed to teach people with such a variety of personalities and learning styles. Some of us learned simply by reading and writing: give us a book, some paper and writing utensils, and we were good! (Guess which learner I was.) Some were more tactile learners: they needed to get their hands on things and get messy. Some learned best with verbal instruction, so books on tape were a blessing when we found them! No matter which style came most naturally to us, our parents had to try all of them to reach the highest percentage of us. They also learned the value of repetition!
Have you ever considered that God and Christ are skilled teachers? They know there isn't one style of communication that will get the job done, so they employ them all. They speak, they write, they act —they go above and beyond what is necessary with the hope of reaching the largest number of people! Jesus spoke in synagogues, by the side of the road, and he used "silly" props like coins. His methods were always appropriate to the venue, but He taught in ways to reach as many people as possible.
What grace that Jesus was so skilled at teaching learners as slow and as stubborn as us! But that also leaves us without excuse. We can't say that our failure to believe or comprehend is due to a fault on God's part to "speak my learning language."
Take a moment to write a prayer of thanks for how skillfully and graciously Jesus has taught us, and let's commit as teachers to learn to do the same.
105 LESSON EIGHTEEN The Last Week: Triumphal Entry
Watch Following the Messiah episode 8 (00:00 min. - 8:55 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about the triumphal entry of Jesus.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
106 DISCUSSION As you read the gospels, you'll notice that each author intentionally slows down and begins providing more and more details the closer they come to the final week of Jesus' life. The clearest example of this is in John, in which the last nine chapters out of twenty-one are all about the final week! It makes sense. While Jesus lived a perfect life and fulfilled all righteousness, he ultimately came to earth to offer his life as an atonement for sin. His death, burial, and resurrection are quite literally the fulcrum of all history. Therefore, it is only fitting that the moments leading up to his redeeming sacrifice be given greater attention in the Bible than other events in his life.
JESUS APPROACHED JERUSALEM FROM ZACCHAEUS' HOUSE During his life, Jesus made the trip to Jerusalem dozens, if not more than one hundred times. His family would have made the trip three times a year for the annual feasts. Imagine singing the Psalms of Ascent (Ps. 120-134) with your fellow pilgrims as you made your way up the hills to Jerusalem and finally saw the temple rise to meet you at the peak of the Mount of Olives, "I was glad when they said to me, 'Let us go to the house of the Lord!' Our feet have been standing within your gates, O Jerusalem" (Ps. 122:1-2)! Usually, it was a joyous occasion for a child of Israel to approach the City of David, but this journey would be different for Jesus because of how the week would end, and He knew it.
Before arriving in Jerusalem, Jesus traveled through Jericho, where he met and instructed Zacchaeus, the diminutive and repentant tax-collector (Lk. 19:1-10). While at Zacchaeus' house, he taught a parable about being a productive servant while a master made a journey to a far-away land, foreshadowing his imminent departure and promising his eventual return!
When he left Jericho, Jesus began the nearly 18-mile long journey to Jerusalem, climbing almost 3,300 feet of elevation along a beautifully barren landscape (this is the very road that he used for the setting of the Parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10). As Barry Britnell pointed out, when people are traveling any distance on foot during an increase of elevation, a conversation is difficult, and most are focused on the task at hand and catching their breath. Put yourself in Jesus' place and imagine what may have been going through His mind as He made this possibly silent journey for the last time before his betrayal, arrest, and crucifixion.
JESUS' TRIUMPHAL ENTRY All during the ministries of John the Baptist and Jesus, the people of Israel had been looking for the long-awaited and prophesied King!
• Jesus' kingship was announced to Mary by Gabriel (Lk. 1:32). • It was over Jesus' role as king that Herod the Great felt threatened and sought to kill him as an infant (Mt. 2:1-4).
107 • At Jesus' baptism (Mk. 1:11), when God used the words of Psalm 2:6-7 to confirm his Son, they also MOUNT OF OLIVES confirmed his kingship, "'As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill.' I will tell of the decree: The Lord said to me, 'You are my Son; today I have begotten you.'" • After feeding the 5,000, the crowd was so excited over what he had done, Jesus understood that they were about to try to force his coronation: "Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain Rising above the city of by himself" (Jn. 6:15). Jerusalem sits the beautiful hill called the Mount of Olives. It While the spiritual nature of Jesus' kingdom was not clearly was named so due to the large number of olive trees which understood even by his disciples until after his ascension used to cover it centuries ago. (Acts 1:6-7), Jesus truly was the prophesied king (Lk. 23:1-5; Acts 2:29-36)! Today, the Mount of Olives is known for the large number of As Jesus entered Jerusalem, the throngs of people in town Jewish tombs which can be for the Passover anticipated that he would finally claim his seen from miles away. lineage and establish a new era for the Jewish people (Lk. 19:28-40). In excitement, they celebrated his entrance into The Jewish people began the city with songs of adoration and covered the streets to burying their dead on this mountain nearly 3,000 years make a path for his humble steed. All of this fulfilled ago. Today, there is in excess centuries-old prophecies (Zech. 9:9; Hab. 2:11) and harkened of 100,000 tombs that wrap to the past kings of Israel (2 Ki. 9:13). As the hard-hearted around the western and Pharisees objected to what was being done, Jesus rebuked southern flanks of the hill. them by explaining that if these people were silent, then even cold, hard stones would acknowledge the obvious: the King had arrived!
JESUS WEPT FOR JERUSALEM As exciting as it must have been to participate in and witness the triumphal entry, Jesus had a moment that seemed out of place. He wept. His tears were not tears of joy; they were tears of sorrow. He cried over a future judgment that would soon take place against the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and many people would be lost because they did not recognize the truth about Jesus and the truths that he taught (Lk. 19:41-44)! He warned those who would listen about a time when Rome would come against the city and tear down Herod's magnificent temple. Judaism would never be the same, and it hasn't been. Amid the joy and the noise and the crowds, I wonder who noticed the tears fall from Jesus' face as he passed them? To commemorate the moment, there is a church built on the Mount of Olives called Dominus Flevit, which is Latin for "The Lord Wept."
108
After taking a moment to mourn, Jesus focused again on the task at hand and made his way through the joyous crowd to the temple mount, where he would spend the better part of his week reaching out to people whose expectant cheers would soon turn to murderous taunts.
DOMINUS FLEVIT About halfway up the western side of the Mount of Olives, you can enter a courtyard of the Dominus Flevit church. “Dominus flevit” is Latin for "the Lord wept,” and the structure sits on the traditional location where Jesus wept over the city of Jerusalem.
The current building, which was built in the 1950s, was designed by an Italian architect to resemble the shape of a tear drop.
109 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Jesus’ triumphal entry with what you saw in the episode and read in the Biblical text. Are there any differences? What are they?
2. What do you think was going through Jesus’ mind as he made the journey from Jericho to Jerusalem? If you were in his place what do you think would be going through your mind?
3. After watching the episode and reading the text, select 1-2 verses from Luke 19:28-40 that stand out the most to you. Be prepared to discuss them in class.
4. Typically, when someone is going through or anticipating a difficult time they are focused on themselves. What does it say to you about Jesus that, during his triumphal entry, he was thinking about others to the point that he wept?
110 APPLICATION Being willing to face hard things has always been a rare quality, especially when you may face the difficulty alone. We admire men and women from history who have endured through adversity, however unexpected the trial may have been.
However, what is known as Jesus' triumphal entry marked the last week of his life, and what he was about to endure was not unexpected. Besides the specific predictions of his impending death and resurrection (Mt. 16:21; 17:9, 23), there is a powerful sentence in Lk. 9:51 that reveals Jesus knew full-well what he was about to experience, yet he still made up His mind to move toward it. "When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem." What would compel someone to move toward the place where they would experience known pain and rejection?! Love. "We know love by this, that he laid down his life for us…" (1 Jn. 3:16).
It is right to be inspired by men and women of history who endure hardship, especially when they endure it with grace and mercy. But if anyone deserves our loyalty, admiration, and praise, then it is Jesus, the King of Kings, who willingly walked toward rejection and death for all of us!
Take a moment to write a prayer of thanks to God for Jesus and his willingness to face rejection and death out of love for us.
111 LESSON NINETEEN The Last Week: At The Temple
Watch Following the Messiah episode 8 (8:55 min. - 14:19 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about the time that Jesus spent at the temple during His final week.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
112 DISCUSSION What do you say to loved ones as you prepare to leave them? Before we had the capability to place international phone calls, before we had texting and email, what do you think immigrants to a new country said to family and friends as they boarded a boat? I imagine that Jesus felt something similar as he taught at the temple the week leading up to his crucifixion. His opportunities to communicate face to face with these people were coming to an end. As he traveled back and forth from Bethany to Jerusalem, I’m sure he felt a sense of urgency and frustration. We can’t review all of his teachings from that week, but let’s look at some highlights.
JESUS CLEANSED THE TEMPLE This was not the first time Jesus cleansed the temple. The first time is recorded in Jn. 2:11-12 shortly after he had performed His first miracle in Cana. Now, three years later, he again chased those engaging in selfish profiteering from the place where people were supposed to be seeking restoration and communication with God (Mk. 11:15-19). Put yourself in Jesus’ shoes: he selflessly came to town to serve everyone burdened down with guilt over their sin, and he entered his Father’s house and saw all of these businessmen selfishly taking advantage and oppressing the people he came to save! His anger and response were appropriate and just.
JESUS’ AUTHORITY WAS CHALLENGED Sometime during Jesus’ teaching at the temple that week, a delegation from the Sanhedrin confronted Jesus over the manner of his entrance into Jerusalem, the way he chased the moneychangers from the temple, and the public teaching he was doing (Mk. 11:27-33). They asked, “By what authority do you do these things?!” The term “authority” is an important theme in the gospel of Mark and was used to describe Jesus’ nature. It was with authority that he taught (Mk. 1:22, 27). It was by his divine authority that he forgave sins (Mk. 2:10). He had the authority to cast out demons and then gave his disciples the same authority (Mk. 3:15; 6:7).
Instead of answering them directly, Jesus used a culturally normal response by countering with a question, “Was the baptism of John from heaven or from men?” His question included all of John’s teaching, even his testimony of Jesus at His baptism. By using the term “heaven,” he was asking if it was divine, i.e., authoritative.
As the Sanhedrin representatives felt the pressure of everyone waiting to hear their answer, they evaluated their possible responses like chess moves. What answer would allow them to save as much face as possible and retain some of their power? Instead of assessing which answer was most truthful, they shamefully and dishonestly said, “We don’t know.”
113 What they did by claiming ignorance on such a vital topic WHAT IS THE TEMPLE? removed them from a position of authority!19 If they could not answer such a simple question, then they were not in a place to question Jesus.
THE PARABLE OF THE TENANTS As the hostility toward Jesus intensified, he taught a parable trying to get their attention to see that they were rejecting the greatest gift God had ever sent and that there would be severe consequences for it. He compared them to unfaithful The answer to the question "What tenants who would be judged by their landowner when he is the temple?" seems easy. It is returned (Mk. 12:1-12). t h e b u i l d i n g w h i c h w a s constructed for worship to God. PROPHECY OF DESTRUCTION Many times in Scripture, that is the correct answer. However, there are One of the consequences of rejecting Jesus would be the other times in the Gospels and in eventual destruction of Jerusalem and the temple by the the book of Acts in which the term Romans (Mt. 24)! Jesus provided them with apocalyptic "the temple" is used to refer to the warnings using the language of Daniel and Ezekiel. entire temple complex.
PARABLE OF THE TALENTS Fo r i n s t a n c e , w h e n J e s u s "cleansed the temple,” he did not To further prepare His disciples for his departure (his overturn tables in the actual ascension), Jesus taught the parable of the talents (Mt. building. (Commerce such as this 25:14-30). A time was coming when he would not be bodily would never have been allowed present with them like he had been, yet they still needed to inside the building.) More likely, be active and using the teachings and gifts he had given this event took place in the Court them to glorify God and prepare for his return. There are four of the Gentiles, which was the quick things we can note from this parable. large courtyard surrounding the temple building. • Not everyone has the same number of talents. “To one Similarly, when the apostle Paul he gave five talents, to another two, to another one…” was accused of taking a Greek • The master compassionately distributed the talents into the temple, they were based on the ability he knew each servant possessed probably not referring to the —no more, no less. “…he gave…to each according to actual building. They were his ability.” probably accusing Paul of taking • The return on the servants’ labor varied. “Here I have the man past the soreg, a small made five more…here I have made two talents dividing wall between the Court of more…” the Gentiles and the Court of the Jews.
19 Brooks, J. A. (1991). Mark (Vol. 23, p. 188). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers. 114 • What the master cared about was faithful labor based on a hopeful expectation of his return! “Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received my own with interest.”
Let’s summarize the final days of public teaching that Jesus did at the temple.
• He taught the importance of God’s holiness. • He reestablished that he had all authority. • He wished that everyone would accept him, but prophesied judgment on those who did not. • He warned of a severe and impending judgment against the city of Jerusalem and those who remained in it. • He taught that his disciples should faithfully use the gifts he compassionately and wisely gives as they look for his return with hope.
115 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Jesus’ teaching at the temple with what you saw in the episode and read in the Biblical text. Are there any differences? What are they?
2. Which of Jesus’ temple mount teachings stand out most to you? Why? Be prepared to discuss in class.
3. When do you struggle to respect the holiness of God?
4. In what ways can we fail to respect the authority of Jesus and substitute our own?
5. What are some of the “talents” that God has wisely and compassionately given to you? How are you appropriately using those talents for His glory? What fears may keep you from using them?
116 APPLICATION From the time he was twelve, Jesus felt the great responsibility to be in his Father’s house, teaching people and helping them grow closer to God (Lk. 2:41-52).
Teachers have the responsibility to evaluate the maturity and needs of their students and do their best to address those needs. We are always asking ourselves questions like these: “What gaps do my students have in their understanding?” “Are there any failures in application or follow-through?” “How can I communicate this in a way that will reach them?”
In every age, there are those who teach only to attain power or control over someone. Their motives are insincere (Phil. 1:15-18). The religious leaders of Jesu’s time seemed to be especially self- serving, manipulative and hypocritical, hence the seven woes Jesus pronounced on them in Mt. 23:1-36. Into this culture of shallow and empty self-promotion, the clear and insightful instruction of Jesus blew through the land like a refreshing breeze. People finally comprehended God’s will, and grew in their love and devotion to him!
Even though his time of public ministry was quickly coming to an end, Jesus selflessly made use of every available moment he had at his disposal to help others grow in their relationship with God. Take a moment to write a prayer of thanks for the selfless and sincere teaching that Jesus did, especially during such an emotionally and spiritually trying week. Make sure to also thank God for the teachers in your life who follow Jesus’ example of sincere and sacrificial instruction.
117 LESSON TWENTY The Last Week: The Passover Meal
Watch Following the Messiah episode 8 (14:20 min. - 26:07 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about the Passover, especially Jesus’ final Passover meal with the disciples in the upper room.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
118 DISCUSSION I cannot think of any other festival or feast more integral to the Jewish faith than the Passover. It was a feast designed to help every participant remember the incredible deliverance from bitter hardship and ultimately death that God accomplished at the cost of the lifeblood of a lamb. Before we spend time examining the final Passover of Jesus, let’s go back and review the first Passover.
THE EXODUS: THE ORIGINAL PASSOVER The origin of the Jewish feast of Passover began at the end of their centuries- long bondage in Egypt. The culmination of the 10 plagues against the hard- heart of Pharaoh was the death of the firstborn sons (Ex. 12:21-27). To preserve the lives of the firstborn of Israel, God instructed the families to provide the blood of a lamb on the doorposts of their homes instead, while they ate a simple and hastily prepared meal with elements that would remind future generations of WHAT IS UNLEAVENED BREAD? the bitter oppression they were being delivered from.
Whenever I read Exodus, I imagine being present the night that the angel of death passed over Egypt. I imagine that I would have tried to keep myself awake all night, listening for what noise I could hear, straining to hear if the door would creak, wondering if the blood on the lintel would keep at bay whatever was causing the mournful cries of the Egyptians.
In the morning I believe relief would have washed over me as Unleavened bread is a term that I concluded that God indeed had spared all the firstborn in is used to represent any bread our family! Relief would have turned to joyful celebration as that is baked without the use of my family took to the road to finally make our way out of rising agents like yeast or sour Egypt, since Pharaoh had finally decided to stop rebelling dough. against God’s instruction and agreed to set us free. For centuries, Jewish people consumed unleavened bread in I imagine for the children who lived through the Exodus, had their observance of the Passover survived the wilderness, and had eventually taken possession meal. Consequently, this was the of the land of Canaan, the Passover would have had such same type of bread Jesus ate tremendous significance. Each year during the meal, when with his disciples on the night he the master of the feast recounted the great deliverance that was betrayed and arrested. God had accomplished that night, I imagine his eyes getting a far off look as he relived the memories of that night. The In modern times, many people use unleavened bread in their Passover was a national deliverance to be sure, but to the remembrance of the sacrifice firstborn of that generation it was incredibly personal (Ex. that Jesus made for all mankind. 13:8). God accepted the life-blood of the lamb on the lintel instead of their lives. 119 THE LAST PASSOVER OF JESUS The Gospel’s timelines make clear that Jesus' final meal was the actual Passover itself (Mt. 26:17-19; Lk. 22:7-13). The disciples spent the day preparing the feast. Instead of leaving Jerusalem and traveling back to Bethany as He had the rest of the week, Jesus stayed in town for the meal.
JESUS LED THE PASSOVER MEAL WHAT IS FRUIT OF THE VINE? That final evening with the disciples was filled to the brim with teaching, prayer, and song (Lk. 22:14-16). There are several things that took place during this meal. From a bird’s-eye view, we will point out a few for your further study:
• Jesus washed the disciples’ feet, reminding them to serve one another (Jn. 13). • He discretely identified Judas as His betrayer and told him to go out and do it (Jn. 13:21-30). "Fruit of the vine" is a generic • Jesus predicted that Peter would deny Him before the term referring to fruits that are night was over (Jn. 13:36-38). grown on the vine but has come • He actually had to disrupt an argument between the specifically to refer to grapes. apostles about which of them would be greatest in Jesus’ new kingdom (Le. 22:24-30)! Due to the climate in Israel, grapes are grown all over the JESUS CREATED A NEW MEMORIAL country. Vineyards can be found from Galilee and the Golan As historically rich as the Passover was, after the feast Jesus Heights all the way south to took some elements of the meal and gave them new Ashdod. significance (Lk. 22:17-20)! He took some of the bread and one of the cups and urged the disciples to eat and drink, Before the conquest of the land, saying that the bread symbolized His body which was given the spies returned to the for them and that the cup represented His blood which would Israelites bearing clusters of be poured out for the forgiveness of sins (Mt. 26:28)! He told grapes that were so large that them to do these things in remembrance of Him. they needed to be carried between two people. Most likely, these grapes came from the area After Jesus’ ascension the disciples of the first century would of the Shephelah (the small area gather on the first day of the week to remember Jesus and His between the Coastal Plain and sacrificial death by partaking of these simple foods of the the Central Mountain Range). Passover that had taken on fresh meaning (Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 11:17-34; 1 Cor. 10:16-17). Similar to the generation of Israelites who celebrated the Passover firsthand, these early disciples were remembering their Passover Lamb whose life was given in order to deliver them from sin and death! Believers of every generation follow the instruction of Jesus and the example of the early disciples by gathering together each first day of the week to partake of these symbols and remember the Lamb who delivered us! 120 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Jesus’ final Passover meal with what you saw in the episode and read in the Biblical text. Are there any differences? If so, what are they?
2. What do you imagine the first Passover would have been like to experience as a firstborn child?
3. If you had been one of the disciples, how do you think you would have responded to the new direction Jesus took with the bread and the wine after the Passover meal?
4. What do you think about some of the other things that happened that night when you place them back in the context of a Passover meal that Jesus was connecting to his death, e.g. the lesson about service, foretelling Peter’s denial, and having to graciously defuse an argument over “greatness”?
121 APPLICATION I am confident that as Jesus traveled to the temple every morning of the week leading to his death, his mind must have frequently gone to the connection between the Passover hustle and bustle and what he was about to endure. Everyone in town would have seen and heard the increased number of lambs being selected, presented, and prepared for the meals at the end of the week. Remember when his cousin John introduced him?
"Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world" (Jn. 1:29)!
As he heard the Shema of Deuteronomy 6 declared daily and witnessed the Levitical sacrificial system at work, Jesus knew that all of it foreshadowed the sacrifice he was about to make.
"1 For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered every year, make perfect those who draw near…10 And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all…12 But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God…" (Heb. 10:1, 10, 12).
More than that, I am confident that as Jesus walked the temple grounds which his ancient ancestors knew as Mount Moriah (2 Chr. 3:1), his mind went further back to a day when a God-fearing father climbed the very same mountain with his long-awaited and deeply-loved son with the sole intention of offering him to God (Gen. 22:1-10). On that day, God spared the life of Abraham's son, Isaac, by providing a ram instead. I am confident that Jesus understood during that Passover week; he was the ram God would provide. Salvation and deliverance would be made at the cost of God's beloved Son.
So Abraham called the name of that place, "The Lord will provide"; as it is said to this day, "On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided" (Gen. 22:14).
Take a moment to write a prayer of thanks to God for the sacrificial offering of Jesus, our Passover lamb!
122 LESSON TWENTY ONE The Final Day: Gethsemane
Watch Following the Messiah episode 9 (00:00 min. - 8:07 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about Jesus’ time in the Garden of Gethsemane leading up to His arrest.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
123 DISCUSSION The life and ministry of Jesus were saturated with prayer! Think about all of the references we have regarding Jesus’ prayer life:
• Luke 5:16 - After performing miracles, Jesus withdrew to a desolate place to pray. • Luke 6:12 - Before revealing who he had selected as apostles, Jesus spent an entire night in prayer. • Mark 6:45-46 - After hearing about the death of John the Baptist, Jesus went up a mountain to pray. • Luke 11:1 - After finishing a prayer, one of the disciples asked him to teach them to pray.
It should not come as a shock that in the hours leading up to his arrest that Jesus spent time pouring himself out before God, wrestling with what was about to happen. In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus taught that one of the functions of prayer is not just that we beseech God to change his mind, but that communicating with God helps bring our will in line with God’s as we reason with him, “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” (Mt. 6:10).
Jesus’ prayers in the Garden of Gethsemane are a special and unique glimpse into a personal and vulnerable moment between Father and Son. Jesus never prayed in such a way to draw attention to himself! He actually taught against such prayers, “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward” (Mt. 6:5). To have the words of such a private and intimate moment is to witness Jesus in his “prayer closet” in anticipation of a painful moment. As we study Jesus’ time in the Garden of Gethsemane, let’s approach it with the honor and reverence that such a moment deserves.
JESUS’ AGONIZING PRAYER IN THE GARDEN After concluding their time together in the upper room with praying on behalf of the apostles and all believers (Jn. 17), Jesus led the disciples out of town across the Kidron Valley to the foot of the Mount of Olives. Matthew and Mark called the place “Gethsemane” (Mt. 26:36; Mk. 14:32), which is a transliteration of two Hebrew words that mean “oil press.” John informs us that the place was a garden (Jn. 18:1). Two of the Gospels reveal that Jesus had developed a habit of visiting this garden to the point that Judas expected him to be there (Lk. 22:39; Jn. 18:2). Jesus’ purpose was to pour himself out in prayer to his Father (Mk. 14:32-42; Lk. 22:39-46).
This prayer in the garden gives us a peek at the paradox of the Incarnation. We see Jesus’ humanity wrestling with what his divinity knew was in the process of happening.
124 • He asked his friends to assist him and “watch with CHURCH OF ALL NATIONS him” in prayer. Jesus pulled Peter, James, and John aside to accompany him a little farther than the rest and asked them to be alert and petitioning God on his behalf. Although each time he came back to them, his friends had fallen asleep.
• Mark used strong language to describe Jesus’ agony. J e s u s i s d e s c r i b e d a s “ g r e a t l y distressed,” “troubled,” and his soul was “very sorrowful, even to death.” Located on the bottom of the western slope of the Mount of • Jesus’ posture for these prayers was to throw Olives, the Church of All himself before God on the ground. Nations sits on the traditional location of the Garden of • Jesus pleaded with his Father three different times Gethsemane. to avoid something he called “the cup.” In the Old Testament, the image of a cup being drunk or poured The current building was out was an image of someone receiving the just constructed in the early 1900s judgment of God for their rebellion and wickedness. and sits on the ruins of a 4th century Byzantine basilica and Psalm 11:6 - Let him rain coals on the wicked; fire and a 12th century Crusader sulfur and a scorching wind shall be the portion of chapel. The centerpiece for the their cup. building is an exposed piece of Psalm 75:8 - For in the hand of the Lord there is a bedrock. This bedrock is called cup with foaming wine, well mixed, and he pours out the "Rock of Agony" and, according to tradition, is the from it, and all the wicked of the earth shall drain it location where Jesus prayed down to the dregs. on the night he was arrested. Isaiah 51:17 - Wake yourself, wake yourself, stand up, O Jerusalem, you who have drunk from the hand of the Lord the cup of his wrath, who have drunk to the dregs the bowl, the cup of staggering. Jeremiah 25:15-17 - 15 Thus the Lord, the God of Israel, said to me: “Take from my hand this cup of the wine of wrath, and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it. 16 They shall drink and stagger and be crazed because of the sword that I am sending among them.” 17 So I took the cup from the Lord’s hand, and made all the nations to whom the Lord sent me drink it: Since Jesus was personally sinless and undeserving of a “cup of wrath” (1 Pet. 2:22; Heb. 4:15; 1 Jn. 3:5), we can conclude that in the crucifixion Jesus was about to experience the just wrath of God that was due everyone else, and his preference was not to experience that (cf. 2 Cor. 5:21; 1 Pet. 2:24)!
• The third time he prayed, his sweat became like large drops of blood. Jesus’ agony was so intense regarding the impending crucifixion, and everything the just wrath of God entailed,
125 his sweat became like great drops of blood (Lk. 22:44)! The intensity of his prayers grew to the point that the capillaries within the sweat glands were rupturing, and blood was coming out with the sweat (the condition is known as hematohidrosis)! The condition would have made His skin extra tender and more sensitive. • In the end, Jesus submitted to his Father’s will, ready to face Judas and the crowd of arresting soldiers. After each prayer, Jesus humbly volunteered that if avoiding the cross was not possible, then he would submit his will to the Father’s. After strenuously beseeching God for hours, it was clear to Jesus that the only way
forward within the will of God was to rise and face the KIDRON VALLEY crowd of people Judas was leading to the garden.
BETRAYAL & ARREST IN THE GARDEN John 18:1-11 1 When Jesus had spoken these words, he went out with his disciples across the brook Kidron, where there was a garden, which he and his disciples entered. 2 Now Judas, who betrayed him, also knew the place, for Jesus often met there with his disciples. 3 So Judas, having procured a band of soldiers and some officers from the chief priests and the Between the Eastern Hill Pharisees, went there with lanterns and torches and where the Temple Mount is weapons. 4 Then Jesus, knowing all that would happen to located and the Mount of him, came forward and said to them, “Whom do you Olives is the Kidron Valley. seek?” 5 They answered him, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus said The valley begins just north of to them, “I am he.” Judas, who betrayed him, was standing Jerusalem and then descends with them. 6 When Jesus said to them, “I am he,” they drew through the Wilderness of 7 back and fell to the ground. So he asked them again, Judea before emptying into “Whom do you seek?” And they said, “Jesus of the Dead Sea. Nazareth.” 8 Jesus answered, “I told you that I am he. So, if you seek me, let these men go.” 9 This was to fulfill the word During the time of Jesus, the that he had spoken: “Of those whom you gave me I have lost valley was about 50 feet not one.” 10 Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and deeper than it is today. struck the high priest’s servant and cut off his right ear. (The Rubble and debris from the multiple times that Jerusalem servant’s name was Malchus.) 11 So Jesus said to Peter, “Put has been destroyed has been your sword into its sheath; shall I not drink the cup that the pushed into the valley and has Father has given me?” caused the floor of the valley to be raised. From his vantage point in the garden, Jesus would have been able to see Judas and the crowd leave Jerusalem and cross Visitors to Jerusalem today the Kidron Valley by watching their lanterns and torches move have the opportunity to dig in the inky darkness. We should remember that at other times through this debris to find in his ministry, Jesus easily walked away from or through artifacts which date back thousands of years. large crowds of people completely unscathed (Lk. 4:29-30; 126 Jn. 10:39). Even when the crowd intended to coronate him, Jesus was able to go where he needed to go (Jn. 6:15). But after committing himself to God’s will, Jesus was going to follow the Father’s plan through to the end. Similar to when he “set his face toward Jerusalem” (Lk. 9:51), he rose from prayer and roused the sleeping disciples and invited them to meet Judas with him.
In a miraculous act that literally took the crowd aback, Jesus reaffirmed who he was and that he was not a fleeing fugitive while interceding for the disciples and securing their safety (Lk. 22:52-53). We know from the synoptic Gospels that Judas identified Jesus to the arresting authorities with the sign of a friend’s kiss (Mt. 26:48-49; Mk. 14:44-45; Lk. 22:47-48).
In his zeal to defend Jesus, Peter attacked Malchus and cut off one of his ears! Jesus immediately reattached the severed appendage and simultaneously rebuked Peter (Lk. 22:49-51) and told him that if God wanted to intervene, he would send legions of angels to his aid (Mt. 26:53).
To give both the arresting crowd and his disciples a better perspective of their roles in the events that night, he tried to remind them that all these things had been prophesied and was happening “that the scriptures might be fulfilled” (Mt. 26:54, 56).
However, at the sight of Jesus being led away by the crowd, all of his disciples fled (Mt. 26:56; Mk. 14:51-52), and the longest night of Jesus’ life was just getting started.
127 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Jesus’ night in the Garden of Gethsemane after watching the video and studying the Biblical text. Are there any differences? If so, what are they?
2. What aspect of Jesus’ prayers in the garden stand out the most to you? Why? Be prepared to discuss in class.
3. If you had been one of the disciples that Jesus asked to stay alert and pray with him, how do you think you would have done? What did Jesus compassionately understand about his request (see Mt. 26:41)?
128 APPLICATION “In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence” (Heb. 5:7).
I am a firm believer in Paul’s description of the incarnation of Jesus (Phil. 2:5-7)! But there will always be a part of the paradox of Jesus being Emmanuel (God with us) that escapes us. Sometimes I think I take the humanity of Jesus for granted and forget that he was “tempted in every way like we are” and that he “learned obedience through suffering” (Heb. 4:15 & 5:8). Then God provides vivid reminders.
For instance, when I read of Jesus’ night of agonizing prayer in Gethsemane as he sought to avoid God’s cup of wrath, the reality of his humanity haunts me because I can relate to Jesus’ desire to avoid pain. I can relate to Him begging with his Father. I can also relate to being told no.
He pleaded with his Father for a different option. He asked his friends for assistance. He did it all so sincerely and earnestly that capillaries began bursting in his skin. However, when he understood God’s answer, he picked himself up off the ground and stood in place. He watched the lanterns and torches drawing closer and was ready to face the most unfair trial in all of human history because it’s what God called him to, and it’s what we needed him to do.
God values people who approach him with reverence regardless of the answer they receive. People, who when all is said and done will close their prayer by saying, “Not my will, but thine, be done.”
Take a moment to write a prayer of thanks to God for sending a Savior that can relate to us and our weaknesses. Thank Jesus for being relatable, and for giving us a real example of what it looks like to submit our will to God’s.
129 LESSON TWENTY TWO The Final Day: Jewish Trials
Watch Following the Messiah episode 9 (8:08 min. - 19:02 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about Jesus’ trial before the Jewish authorities.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
130 DISCUSSION In the midnight hours following his arrest at Gethsemane, Jesus was rushed from one carefully choreographed meeting to another as the Jewish leaders of the day raced to finally eliminate someone they perceived as a blaspheming threat to their positions of power. In this lesson, we will focus on the proceedings that took place before Jesus was turned over to the Roman authorities.
TRIAL #1 - BEFORE ANNAS, THE FATHER-IN-LAW OF CAIAPHAS The high priesthood of Israel was an office that was meant to be held until the man serving died. But with the Romans in charge of Israel, they used it as an office of honor to be passed around. When Luke historically identified the beginning of John the Baptist's ministry, he acknowledged that two men held the office of the high priest (Lk. 3:2). The palace of Ciaphas was the first place Jesus was taken after his arrest in Gethsemane (Jn. 18:12-14, 19-24).
From their vantage point atop the palace, the two high priests would have been able to track the progress of the crowd by watching the movement of the torches and lanterns as they ascended the Mount of Olives and then retraced their steps back into town and then up the hill near their home. When Jesus arrived at the palace, he was first brought to Annas, where he was asked all sorts of questions about his followers and his teaching. Jesus rightly pointed out that everything he did was public and above-board! Nothing that he did or taught warranted this clandestine interrogation. After an angry officer hit Jesus for not answering how they had hoped, Annas realized he was not getting anywhere and sent Jesus to his son-in-law.
INTERLUDE: PETER'S DENIALS OF JESUS It's impossible to study the trials of Jesus without addressing Peter's foretold denial of him. Jesus had warned Peter that he would do it. He even informed him that Satan desired to have Peter, but Jesus had prayed personally for Peter's faith to endure what was about to happen (Lk. 22:31-34).
Peter and another disciple who knew the high priest and some of his household followed the arresting crowd from a distance and entered the courtyard unhindered to where a coal-fire had been started (Jn. 18:15, 18). As Jesus was meeting with Annas, one of the servant girls questioned Peter's relationship with the Nazarene, who had been brought in that night (Mt. 26:69-70). Someone else asked him, and Peter again denied knowing Jesus (Mt. 26:71). But between his Galilean accent and a relative of the man he had attacked at Gethsemane recognizing him, Peter's denial intensified to the point of taking an oath to try to convince those around him of his lie (Mt. 26:73; Lk. 22:54-62; Jn. 18:26-27).
It was at the moment of Peter's third denial of Jesus that Peter heard a rooster crow, and Luke dramatically explained that Jesus was being moved through the palace (either between his meeting
131 with Annas and Caiaphas or on his way to the dungeon). WESTERN HILL Jesus then made eye-contact with his friend. With the dreaded weight of guilt over his deceit and lack of faith, Peter broke down in sobs and ran away (Mk. 14:72; Mt. 26:75).
Something significant to notice is how Peter's proximity to Jesus changed the more he denied him. Initially, Peter was in the courtyard (Mt. 26:69), but after his first denial he "went out to the entrance" (ESV) or "out to the gateway" (TNIV) (Mt. 26:71) where he was questioned twice more until he eventually "went out" and left the palace all together (Mt. The city of Jerusalem consists 26:75). From the courtyard to the gate, to completely outside of a number of hills and valleys. —Peter's rejection of Jesus took him away from the Lord in During the first century, the more ways than one! Western Hill is where many of the elite would have lived. This TRIAL #2 - BEFORE CAIAPHAS, THE HIGH PRIEST would have included people like Annas and Caiaphas. There are questions about whether Jesus' time in front of Caiaphas was officially a Jewish trial or merely a hearing (Mk. Knowledge of the geography 14:53-65). Either way, the Gospel authors clearly describe a of Jerusalem is important to biased, unfair, unjust evaluation of an innocent man! Trials understanding key details of were not to happen at night. Witnesses were supposed to the story of Jesus. When he was only provide honest testimony. According to later Jewish arrested, he and his disciples tradition in the Mishnah, verdicts in capital cases could not be w e r e i n t h e G a r d e n o f reached until the second day, which meant a trial could not Gethsemane. That area is located on the eastern side of commence on the eve of a Sabbath. 20 the Kidron Valley at the base of the Mount of Olives. But we should not be surprised to see the opponents of Jesus breaking laws in order to eliminate him. The Biblical text The Scriptures simply tell us made plain that from the beginning that these were not that Jesus "was led to Annas.” sincere, humble, God-fearing men. When they first went out What they do not tell us was to see what John the Baptist was about, he correctly that this would have been a compared them to vipers (Mt 3:7)! In John 8, when Jesus very difficult walk under the rebuked them for their refusal to accept him. He called them circumstances. With his hands and feet bound, Jesus would children of the devil because they did the works of the devil have had to walk across the (Jn. 8:40). These men had hired Judas to betray an innocent Kidron Valley, up and over the man to death (Lk. 22:3-6)! Eastern Hill, across the Central Valley, and then up the Western This group of men was not seeking the truth; they Hill. It is amazing what Jesus were "seeking testimony against Jesus to put him to did for all of us. death." They wanted Jesus dead. They couldn't get their false
20 Brooks, J. A. (1991). Mark (Vol. 23, p. 240). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers. 132 CHURCH OF ST. PETER IN witnesses to agree. It looked like their plan was falling apart GALLICANTU until Caiaphas finally asked Jesus if he was the anointed Messiah, the Son of God. With a simple confirmation from Jesus, the crowd ignored all of the miraculous signs that pointed to His Sonship. They ignored the years of teaching he had done in their synagogues and from town to town. In an emotional outcry, the hearing condemned Jesus to death.
INTERLUDE: JESUS WAS HELD AT CAIAPHAS' HOUSE UNTIL MORNING O n t h e We s t e r n H i l l i n One of the things we may not give much thought to is the fact Jerusalem, there is a building that Jesus spent downtime in between some of the trials. which sits on the traditional After his interview with Annas and hearing/trial before location of the house of Annas Caiaphas and the elders, Jesus was turned over to men who and Caiaphas. It is named the C h u r c h o f S t . Pe t e r i n kept Jesus in custody (Lk. 22:63-65). Gallicantu. "Gallicantu" is Latin for "cock's crow.” This location In the foundational floors of The Church of Saint Peter in memorializes Peter’s responses Gallicantu, in Jerusalem, which is the traditional home of as he was being questioned Annas and Caiaphas, there is a stable that has signs of being about his association with converted into holding cells with an area for flogging and Jesus. restrained prisoners. There is also a Jewish ritual bath (mikvah) that had been retrofitted into a solitary confinement There is some validity to the pit where prisoners would have been lowered into through a site, as a number of first- century mikvahs (purification cylindrical hole in the ceiling by a rough shoulder harness. bathing pools) have been found on the property. These While there are few Biblical details about everything that would only be owned by happened to Jesus during the waning hours of the night as he people of high authority within waited to face the Sanhedrin, it is easy to imagine that he the Jewish government. would have received the kind of treatment for which such a cruel place as the dungeon of Gallicantu was designed.
TRIAL #3 - BEFORE THE SANHEDRIN At this point in the proceedings, Jesus' formal appearance before the Sanhedrin was a mere formality. All of the important inquiries and meetings had taken place the night before. This trial was an abbreviated show so that they could rush Jesus across town and manipulate the Roman authorities into sanctioning and executing the death sentence they had pronounced on Jesus before they had even begun (Lk. 22:66-71; Jn. 11:49-53).
Luke 23:1 1 Then the whole company of them arose and brought him before Pilate.
133 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Jesus’ Jewish trials with what you saw in the episode and read in the Biblical text. Are there any differences? What are they?
2. What part of Jesus’ interrogation by Annas stands out the most to you? Why? What do you think about Jesus’ response to Annas’ questions?
3. What part of Peter’s denial stands out the most to you after studying it this time? Why?
4. What do you imagine was going through Jesus’ mind as he waited for the morning to come?
134 APPLICATION In the ritual-bath-turned-isolation-pit in the dungeon of Caiaphas' palace, there is a small podium in the darkest corner holding up a well-worn 3-ring binder with Psalm 88 translated into dozens of languages. What visitors are being asked to do when reading the Psalm is to put themselves in Jesus' place after he has received the death sentence from Caiaphas and the rest of the Jewish leaders. The majority of His disciples abandoned him during his arrest in the garden. He was able to make eye-contact with Peter right after the rooster crowed. Peter had denied him and run away in tears. Before being left to the darkness of the pit, the soldiers keeping watch over him had roughed him up. It is not long now before his final day would begin with the rising of the sun. Until then, he waited…alone.
Psalm 88:13-18 13 But I, O Lord, cry to you; in the morning my prayer comes before you. 14 O Lord, why do you cast my soul away? Why do you hide your face from me? 15 Afflicted and close to death from my youth up, I suffer your terrors; I am helpless. 16 Your wrath has swept over me; your dreadful assaults destroy me. 17 They surround me like a flood all day long; they close in on me together. 18 You have caused my beloved and my friend to shun me; my companions have become darkness.
Take a moment to write a prayer expressing your gratitude for Jesus and what he was willing to endure because of your sin even before he made it to the cross.
135 LESSON TWENTY THREE The Final Day: Roman Trials
Watch Following the Messiah episode 9 (19:02 min. - 31:45 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about Jesus’ trials before Pilate and Herod.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
136 DISCUSSION After being awake for 24 hours, praying with such intensity that capillaries burst and he sweated blood, enduring the unfair arrest and multiple nighttime trials of the high priestly family, being beaten by the guards of Caiaphas, Jesus was then rushed through an abbreviated trial by the Sanhedrin. With a guilty verdict, he was led away to Pilate the Roman Procurator, who was likely staying at Herod the Great’s palace complex on the west side of town.
TRIAL #4 - THE FIRST TRIAL BEFORE PILATE When the elders presented Jesus to Pilate, they didn’t hesitate to accuse Him with methodical dishonesty (Lk. 23:1-5). The initial charge was “forbidding us to give tribute to Caesar,” which any clear-thinking person in the crowd would have corrected if they thought back to earlier in the week when the Pharisees’ disciples had tested Jesus regarding that specific topic. His answer had been “render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s” (Mt. 22:15-22). The accusation that Pilate latched onto was Jesus’ alleged claim to being a king. Royal rivals were not tolerated! But after a more extended discussion in private about the nature of Jesus’ kingdom and truth, Pilate came out and declared to the anxiously waiting crowd that he found him innocent (Jn. 18:33-38). Not yielding, the leaders of the people accused Jesus of causing dissension from his home region of Galilee to Jerusalem.
King Herod constructed a grand palace on the western side of the HEROD'S PALACE city of Jerusalem. From that vantage point, he would have been able to look out in all directions across the region.
When visiting Jerusalem this is the location where Pontius Pilate and Herod Antipas would have stayed. The location would not only have given them the luxury that they were accustomed to, but it also would have provided increased accessibility when the people needed them.
One can see this accessibility in action during the trials of Jesus. Even though it was early morning (8-9 AM) when Jesus was initially brought before them, they were ready to hear the accusations.
TRIAL #5 - JESUS INTERVIEWED BY HEROD ANTIPAS Upon learning that Jesus was from Galilee, Pilate believed he found a way out of the whole mess by sending Jesus to Herod Antipas, who was staying just across the courtyard (Lk. 23:6-12). Within Herod the Great’s Palace complex, there were several large dwellings. While Pilate would have chosen the grandest for himself, Herod Antipas would likely have used another.
137 Herod was excited when he heard that he would finally meet HEROD ANTIPAS Jesus in person. He had been looking forward to this day! Remember that this is the same Herod who had arrested Jesus’ cousin John the Baptist for speaking against his immoral marriage. Although he had kept John alive out of respect for his character and curiosity over his teaching (Mk. 6:19-20), eventually, it was by his authority that John was cruelly killed (Mk. 6:27-29).
Because of what he had heard about Jesus, Herod desired to Herod Antipas was one of the see for himself if all the stories were true, and he expected to sons of Herod the Great and see some great marvel or to be entertained by the miracle- was the ruler of the regions of working cousin of John. However, Jesus would not indulge Galilee and Perea. Normally, he him, and when Herod’s mood soured, he and his soldiers would have been ruling from humiliated Jesus, dressing him up in royal clothes and Tiberias, but being the political parading him back to Pilate. figure that he was, he had come to Jerusalem to be near TRIAL #6 - JESUS’ FINAL TRIAL WITH PILATE the people. during Passover.
If I were Pilate, my stomach would have lurched when I Jesus knew that he would not realized that the issue of Jesus’ guilt had again been brought get a fair trial before Herod back to me (Mt. 27:15-25). There was the advantage that Antipas. Herod Antipas was the Herod had not found the man guilty either, but the Jewish man who had John the Baptist crowd was pushing even harder for a guilty verdict as it grew beheaded. And it was the same later in the morning. More people were awake and would man whom Jesus had referred have heard the news and rushed to see what was going on. to as "that fox" (Luke 13:32). Wanting only to see Jesus For Pilate, this had to be settled immediately. perform a miracle and after realizing that Jesus would not Between all four gospels, we learn of Pilate’s desperation as appease him by doing so, he did everything short of actually killing Jesus to appease H e r o d A n t i p a s q u i c k l y the jealous priests and scribes while allowing Jesus to live. dismissed Jesus and had Him led back to Pilate. • He attempted to free Jesus without declaring him innocent, using his annual tradition of releasing a convicted prisoner. He even stacked the deck by giving them the option of the meek carpenter from the north or a convicted blasphemous and murderous zealot (Mk. 15:6-15; Jn. 18:38-40). I am sure Pilate was horrified when they chose the zealot!
• Pilate received word from his wife that she had suffered in a dream about Jesus. She begged her husband to let him go (Mt. 27:19).
• Next, Pilate sent Jesus to be flogged and mocked by his Roman soldiers, hoping that this punishment would satisfy the increasingly agitated crowd (Jn. 19:1-16). It didn’t.
138 • Realizing that all of their pretense of fairness and flattery had not worked, the crowd threatened Pilate with the potential charge of treason! If Jesus was set free, then Pilate was no friend of Caesar (Jn. 19:12-16). He had exhausted every possible idea he could think of both to spare Jesus and appease the crowd. Beaten, he capitulated. In one of the most famously impotent gestures of all time, Pilate made a public display of literally washing his hands during the sentencing of Jesus. While the act was undoubtedly ineffective in removing any moral guilt, it did communicate to the people present that the crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth was not what Pilate would have done if not under the machinations of the Sanhedrin and the impossible political pressure they had exerted.
With his hands likely still moist with clean water but his heart feeling the weight of his crime, Pilate couldn’t even bring himself to utter the words he had heard chanted all morning. “See to it yourselves,” is what he said (Mt. 27:24). And with those words, Jesus was turned over to the soldiers for crucifixion.
139 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Jesus’ trials before Pilate and Herod with what you saw in the episode and read in the Biblical text. Are there any differences? What are they?
2. What part of Jesus’ Roman trials stand out the most to you? Why?
3. What do you think about Herod and Pilate after learning more about them today? If you were in Pilate’s position, what kinds of things do you think you might have felt? Why?
4. At the end of the day, what appears to have been the most important thing to Pilate?
140 APPLICATION Despite all of Pilate’s efforts to free Jesus and the frustration that he felt by the behavior of the Sanhedrin and riotous crowd, Pilate and the Jews were all more alike than he probably realized. Whatever amount of desire he had to do what was right, Pilate caved in because his desire to preserve his power was stronger. • He wished to satisfy the crowd, so he freed Barabbas instead of Jesus (Mk. 15:15). • When he was losing control of the people, he finally gave in to crucifying Jesus (Mt. 27:24). However, Pilate wasn’t the only one making decisions based on misplaced desires that day. The Sanhedrin, Peter, Judas, the disciples, the crowds, and the soldiers were making choices, too!
And in the midst of such a sinful maelstrom—created beings desperately clinging to their temporary fiefdoms—was Jesus. He was making decisions throughout the day, too. He repeatedly decided to respond meekly or not at all as deceitful accusations were hurled against Him (1 Pet. 2:23). Instead of clamoring for rights that he legitimately had (Phil. 2:6-7), he entrusted himself to God, who sees and judges justly (1 Pet. 2:23).
Take a moment to write a prayer of thanks for Jesus maintaining his desire to please God amid suffering, and commit to following the example he has given us (1 Pet. 2:21).
141 LESSON TWENTY FOUR Jesus’ Death
Watch Following the Messiah episode 10 (00:00 min. - 04:55 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about the crucifixion of Jesus.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
142 DISCUSSION As we noted in Lesson 5, each Gospel writer slowed down and provided more detail the closer they got to the death of Jesus. At this point, they begin creating a chronology that can be reverse-engineered by the hour that Jesus was placed on the cross, 9:00 AM (Mk. 15:25). I’m sure that for the exhausted and abused carpenter’s son, time seemed to slow to a crawl as well.
THE ROMAN GUARDS MOCKED JESUS (BETWEEN 6:00 AM AND 9:00 AM) Once Pilate washed his hands of Jesus, he turned him back over to the palace soldiers, who quickly began to mock the alleged king (Mt. 27:27-30). Ripping the blood-encrusted clothing from his shredded back, they mimicked Herod’s antics and covered him in the elite color of purple while giving Him perverse replicas of royal authority: a simple reed for a scepter and painful thorns for a crown. When they were done with their amusement, they put him back in his regular clothes and took him out to be crucified.
THE ROAD TO GOLGOTHA (SHORTLY BEFORE 9:00 AM) It was customary for victims of crucifixion to carry their own “patibulum,” the horizontal wooden beam, to the actual site of the crucifixion. Considering Jesus’ physical condition, it makes sense that the soldiers would need to enlist the aid of a healthy man to get the job done (Jn. 19:16-17; Lk. 23:26-33). Jesus had been awake for over 24 hours. He had experienced extreme blood loss from the prayer in the garden, the multiple beatings from both the Jewish and Roman guards, and especially the flogging.
Continuing to think of others instead of himself, Jesus warned the women who followed that there were difficult days close at hand that would affect all of them, referring again to the impending judgment against Israel (cf. Mt. 24).
We’re told that Jesus was accompanied by two other prisoners that day who were also under sentence of death, and they were led to the place called “The Skull.” Mark tells us that the Aramaic name for the site was Golgotha (Mk. 15:22). (The Latin word for skull is “calvariae/calvary.”) It is possible that the location had this name because it looked like a skull.
The Gospels are merciful when describing what happened when the three men arrived at Golgotha. The first-century readers knew all too well what it meant when they heard the words, “there they crucified him.” Their well-informed imaginations and personal experience filled in the blanks. They could all too easily envision the prisoner’s hands and feet being spiked through to the wood, which would then be lifted upright and jarringly dropped into the holes to keep the crucified suspended in the air as a warning and spectacle for everyone to see. 143 VIA DOLOROSA
Once Jesus was condemned by Pilate, he was led out to be crucified. The walk that Jesus took between his sentencing and His crucifixion is sometimes referred to as the "Via Dolorosa". "Via Dolorosa" is Latin for "The Way of Sorrows". Identifying the actual path that Jesus took is difficult. To do so, you need to have answers to the following questions:
• What is the location of Jesus' trial before Pilate? • What is the location of Jesus' death?
If you can answer those two questions, then it is possible to determine the path that Jesus walked. But, finding correct answers to those questions is difficult. Consequently, the path of the Via Dolorosa has changed over the centuries.
Currently, the Via Dolorosa begins just west of the Lions' Gate in the Muslim Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem. It ends in the Christian Quarter at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Let us look at these two end points.
Since the fourth century, it has been agreed that the site of Golgotha is currently where the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is located. During the first century, this location was a rock quarry outside the city walls. So, that end of the Via Dolorosa is probably correct.
The starting point is a bit more difficult. The current Via Dolorosa makes the assumption that Jesus' trial before Pilate took place in the Antonia Fortress, a military barracks located on the northwest corner of the Temple Mount. This might be correct.
However, it seems more reasonable that Pilate was probably located at the royal palace, which sat on the western side of the city. This is because of three reasons:
• At that time of the morning (7:30-8:00), Pilate would have still been at the palace. • Pilate's wife had the ability to warn Pilate about a dream she had about Jesus. She would have been located at the palace. • Since Herod Antipas was also in Jerusalem, he would have been staying at the palace as well. This would have made it easier for Pilate to send Jesus over to Herod Antipas for questioning.
Therefore, it is more probable that Via Dolorosa should begin on the western side of the city where Herod's palace was located and then ended near the current location of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. However, we need to remember that the direction Jesus walked is not near as important as the fact that he made the walk for all of us.
144 JESUS’ FIRST THREE HOURS ON THE CROSS (9:00 AM - 12:00 NOON) With the prisoners on their crosses, the hard work of the ROMAN TIME VS JEWISH TIME soldiers was done, and all they had to do now was wait. So Jesus began the excruciating process of trying to breathe. He had to push with his legs and pull with his shoulders, shoving his thrashed back against the cross, every time he exhaled. Meanwhile the soldiers callously gambled to see who would take ownership of Jesus’ garments, and spectators and soldiers alike shouted insults and taunts to a man struggling and gasping for air (Lk. 23:23-43). If that weren’t enough, the robbers on both sides of him also expended precious energy While all Scripture is true and accurate, sometimes there are and air to make fun of him (Mt. 27:44), until one of the thieves passages that can cause us to had a change of heart. He was convinced of Jesus’ scratch our heads. One such innocence, and he breathlessly encouraged the other robber passage has to do with the to stop and asked Jesus to remember him. timeline of Jesus' trials and crucifixion. Anyone who looked up to watch Jesus exert himself just to take a breath would have seen the sign above his head, upon Mark 15:25 tells us that "it was which Pilate had written: “This is the King of the Jews.” John the third hour when they is the only writer to explain that the Jews took issue with the crucified him.” However John 19:14,15 seems to indicate that wording of inscription and went back into town to demand that Jesus was still being tried at the it be corrected to say, “This man said he was king of the sixth hour. So, which is correct? Jews.” However, after their tremendous disrespect for him, Pilate refused to back down on what the sign communicated The answer lies in realizing how (Jn. 19:20-22). the time is recorded. Matthew, Mark, and Luke were using THREE HOURS OF DARKNESS Jewish time, which started counting time at sunrise. (12:00 NOON - 3:00 PM) Therefore, the "third hour" After three hours on the cross, the whole land went dark (Mk. would be around 9:00 in the 15:33-37)! I imagine that the mood at Golgotha reflected the morning. John, on the other somber change in lighting. I imagine that everyone’s attention hand, was using the Roman was focused on the figure of Jesus as he hung cross, system of counting time which started at midnight. Therefore, hovering between life and death. Everyone was waiting to the "sixth hour" would have see what would happen, straining to hear what he would say. been very early in the morning. For three hours, the sun hid its light until Jesus cried out, (There is also something to be quoting from the opening of Psalm 22. There are two s a i d f o r h o w h o u r s a r e common explanations of the long-debated statement: 1) accounted for, but that topic Jesus quoted the line from the Psalm referencing the entirety will be left for your own study.) of the Psalm, relating to the writer’s desperation and eventual
145 confidence in God’s presence or, 2) that as our sin-offering, in some way Christ experienced a separation from his Father while on the cross. Sincere and thoughtful students of the Bible have differed over what Jesus meant by this phrase for a long time. Whether Jesus did experience separation from God or only felt like it, it was heart-wrenching for those who observed it. It was after this statement that they believed some intervention was needed and rushed to provide him with some sour wine. Mercifully, after uttering one last loud cry, Jesus of Nazareth breathed his last (Mt. 27:50; Mk. 15:37).
At the death of the One who made all things, the created world responded! The curtain between the holy place and the holy of holies was torn apart from top to bottom as Jesus became the new way into the presence of God. There was an earthquake, and rocks were split (Mt. 27:51)! Even a Roman centurion who was keeping watch over Jesus and was likely used to witnessing death was amazed at the passing of Jesus and stated what the jealous and hard-hearted Jews refused to believe, “Truly this man was the Son of God” (Mk. 15:39)!
146 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of Jesus’ crucifixion with what you saw in the episode and read in the Biblical text. Are there any differences? What are they?
2. What part of Jesus’ crucifixion stands out most to you? Why?
3. If you had been part of the crowd following Jesus from Pilate’s to Golgotha, how do you think you would have responded to the warning of impending judgment? Would you have taken it seriously? Why or why not?
4. What are your impressions of the two robbers and their interaction with Jesus?
5. There are some strong convictions regarding Jesus’ final cry to God quoting Psalm 22. Regardless of whether Jesus actually was separated from God in some way or merely felt like he was for a time, how should it make us feel that our sin put him in that position?
147 APPLICATION In application, let’s think about two facts:
#1 Air is essential to life. Recounting the creation of Adam at the beginning of Genesis, the Bible uses the phrase, “the breath of life” (Gen. 2:7). Have you ever been present with someone in the final moments of their life? Absolutely no one knows the exact moment of their final breath. All you can do is wait and watch. As the breathing becomes more sporadic, you wonder which breath will be the last.
#2 It is impossible to speak without the movement of air. When Paul explained that the Bible is inspired, he used the wording, “God breathed” (2 Tim. 3:16-17). He meant that the breath of God moved during inspiration because God spoke! Try it. Place your hand a couple of inches from your mouth and try to say, “Hello” or “I love you” without any air leaving your lungs. It just isn’t possible.
With those two facts in mind, think back again to Jesus on the cross and remember that ultimately, His inability to breathe contributed to His heart failing. His lack of breath killed Him. Why is this so important? Despite how painful and difficult it was to simply breathe, Jesus expended precious energy and air to speak! Since He did, we should pay close attention to what He thought was important enough to say. Take a moment to prayerfully read over Jesus’ final words before His death. Take notice of the context, and make notes about what you learn from them about how to use your breath when you speak.
1. “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Lk. 23:34). 2. “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise” (Lk. 23:43). 3. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” 27 Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother” (Jn. 19:26-27)!
4. “I thirst” (Jn. 19:28). 5. “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me” (Mt. 27:46)? 6. “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit” (Lk. 23:46)! 7. “It is finished” (Jn. 19:30).
148 LESSON TWENTY FIVE Jesus’ Burial & Resurrection
Watch Following the Messiah episode 10 (04:56 min. - 11:40 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about Jesus’ burial and resurrection.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
149 DISCUSSION Most of the disciples were in hiding. A few were on the fringe of the crowd waiting until the end to see what would happen. His mother was close, finally comprehending what old Simeon had said during Jesus' presentation at the temple as an infant, "Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed" (Lk. 2:34-35). Her heart was certainly feeling the pain of watching the torturous death of her son. But death was not the end of the story for Jesus, it was the pinnacle! His death was necessary as he made atonement for sin, but not being personally guilty of sin, death would not be able to claim him forever.
PILATE VERIFIED THE DEATH OF JESUS (BETWEEN 3:00 PM AND 6:00 PM ) Jesus died faster than anyone expected. Typically Roman crucifixion was an intentionally prolonged process. Since it was the day before the Sabbath, the Jews requested that Pilate give authority to accelerate the death of all three crucified men by breaking their legs so they would no longer be able to breathe.
Jesus was spared this final indignity because they realized he had already expired. Instead of breaking his legs, a soldier pierced his side to verify death (Jn. 19:31-37). Any Roman soldier would have done this because the penalty for allowing a condemned man to escape his sentence was for the soldier in charge to be put to death instead.
People have long theorized that Jesus simply "swooned" upon the cross, that he didn't really die. At the conclusion of Lee Strobel's interview with Alexander Metherell, M.D., PH.D., he asked if there was any possible way he could have survived, and Dr. Metherell responded, "Absolutely not… Remember that he was already in hypovolemic shock from the massive blood loss even before the crucifixion started. He couldn't possibly have faked his death, because you can't fake the inability to breathe for long. Besides, the spear thrust in his heart would have settled the issue once and for all. And the Romans' weren't about to risk their own deaths by allowing him to walk away alive." 21
JOSEPH OF ARIMATHEA BURIED JESUS (BEFORE 6:00 PM) I imagine that Annas, Caiaphas, and the Sanhedrin began dispersing with a sense of morbid satisfaction that their "blasphemous adversary" had finally been silenced. His humiliating death had seemingly both reestablished their authority and set an example to anyone who dared threaten the balance of power.
21 Strobel, Lee (1998). The Case for Christ (p. 201). Grand Rapids: Zondervan 150 Despite what he had just witnessed, Joseph of Arimathea, a respected member of the council "took courage" and went to Pilate to request the body of Jesus so it could receive a proper burial instead of potentially being thrown into the Hinnom Valley, the local garbage dump with its continually burning fires (Mk. 15:42-47).
Pilate granted Joseph's request, and Jesus' body was hastily yet respectfully wrapped in linen and placed within a new tomb (Lk. 23:53), and a large stone was rolled into place to secure the entrance. Some of the women discretely made sure to note the location of the tomb so that they could return later.
THE JEWS POST GUARDS AT THE TOMB (BETWEEN FRIDAY AFTERNOON AND SATURDAY AFTERNOON) With a night's sleep to help clear their minds, the members of the Sanhedrin realized their work was not done (Mt. 27:62-66). Recall some of Jesus' precise predictions of resurrection: FIRST CENTURY TOMBS "From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised" (Mt. 16:21).
"And as they were coming down the mountain, Jesus commanded them, ‘Tell no one the vision, until the Son of Man is raised from the dead’" (Mt. 17:9). Generally, we bury our dead by digging a hole vertically down “As they were gathering in Galilee, Jesus said to them, into the ground, but first ‘The Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands century burial practices were of men, and they will kill him, and he will be raised on different. At that time people the third day.’ And they were greatly distressed” (Mt. were buried horizontally into 17:22-23). tombs. These tombs usually consisted of an interior room Afraid that his disciples would try to perpetuate an elaborate with small niches around the charade by stealing the body, they went back to Pilate again. It perimeter in which bodies would be laid. appears that Pilate was done with them and told them to make it as secure as they could, apparently providing them with some When not in use, the doorway of his soldiers (since they were accountable to Pilate later on). of the interior room would be Stationing soldiers to stand guard, they also secured the tomb closed off to the outside by by placing material on the stone with a Roman seal that would means of a stone which could break if someone tried to move it. be rolled into and out of place.
151 I find it incredibly ironic how active these religious leaders were on the Sabbath when they were so concerned with Jesus' activity on the same day (Mk. 3:1-6; Mt. 12:1-2).
THE WOMEN FIND THE EMPTY TOMB (BEFORE DAWN ON SUNDAY) While the Sanhedrin rushed around town securing the tomb on the Sabbath (in as dignified a manner as possible, I am sure), the disciples of Jesus quietly mourned their loss. In another instance of irony, it was Jesus' opponents who recalled the predictions of resurrection. The disciples do not seem to anticipate it.
After appropriately waiting for the Sabbath to end, the two Marys make their way back to the tomb with embalming spices so they could finish the task of burying Him (Mk. 16:1). While on the way, there was an incredible earthquake, and by inspiration we're told that the cause of the quake was an angel of God who came down from the sky and rolled the stone back! At the sight of the angel, the guards were immobilized by fear (Mt. 28:1-8). When the women arrived at the tomb, they were invited to investigate and see that Jesus' lifeless body was no longer there because he had arisen! The angel gave them a message for the disciples to meet Jesus in Galilee, so they rushed from the garden to pass on the miraculous news!
PETER AND JOHN RACE TO THE TOMB Initially, when the disciples heard that Jesus' body was no longer in the tomb, they did not believe that he was raised (Mk. 9:11). Eventually, Peter and John started racing to the garden to investigate for themselves (Jn. 20:2-10). They kept pace with each other for a while, but John pulled ahead. Breathlessly entering the tomb, he saw the linen cloths lying and face cloth folded up by itself. I love the profound sentence describing Peter catching up to John as he entered the tomb and discovering it empty, "and he saw and believed."
152 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of the burial and resurrection of Jesus with what you saw in the episode and what you read in the Biblical text. Are there any differences? What are they?
2. How do you imagine Jesus’ mother may have felt as Jesus’ death was confirmed with the spear thrust?
3. What do you think about the Sanhedrin busily securing the tomb on the Sabbath?
4. What part of the tomb being found empty stands out the most to you? Why? Be prepared to discuss in class.
5. If you had been with the disciples when the women arrived to tell them that they had found the tomb empty, how do you think you would have responded?
153 APPLICATION As the day of preparation drew to a close and the Sabbath began, think about the various perspectives people had on the events of the day: • The members of the Sanhedrin: they had firmly reestablished their position of power. They just needed to make sure no one removed the body from the tomb. • Pilate: The events of the day would have rattled him. Even though he had ignored the advice of his wife, he had defused a potential riot and survived another trip to Jerusalem. He also had networked and made a valuable ally in Herod Antipas. • The disciples: they would have been in mournful hiding. Their master, the Messiah of Israel, lay cold and motionless in a tomb. This was not what they were expecting at the beginning of the week as the city celebrated his arrival. They were confused and scared. • The women: Those faithful, devoted disciples, regardless of what they understood about resurrection or the nature of Jesus' kingdom, they were going to make sure that their master received a proper burial. Then on Sunday, the ground shook, the stone was moved, and Jesus was raised! From that point on, everything, EVERYTHING changed! As Peter would soon explain to a crowd of perplexed people on the day of Pentecost, "God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it" (Acts 2:24).
154 LESSON TWENTY SIX Jesus’ Appearances & Ascension
Watch Following the Messiah episode 10 (11:41 min. - 26:32 min.) by scanning the QR code with the camera on your mobile device.
PERSONAL NOTES: Before watching the episode, brainstorm with your group for a few minutes and share what you recall about the post-resurrection appearances and ascension of Jesus.
In the remaining space below, record any personal notes or questions that come to your mind as you watch the episode.
155 DISCUSSION The death of Jesus was gut-wrenching, but he was not the only person in history to experience crucifixion. Yet, the graceful and honorable way that he endured such a death is a powerful example for every believer when they face persecution. Additionally, the death of Jesus would mean nothing if it weren't for the resurrection! Dr. Gary Habermas, Ph.D., M.A., B.R.E., powerfully made a case for the historicity of that the Biblical accounts of the post-resurrection appearances as well as the verbal "creed" of 1 Corinthians 15:3-8 stating the resurrection was accepted and used as early as two to eight years after the events!22 Quoting Carl Braaten, Dr. Habermas shared, "Even the more skeptical historians agree that for primitive Christianity…the resurrection of Jesus from the dead was a real event in history, the very foundation of faith, and not a mythical idea arising out of the creative imagination of believers."23 With the resurrection being the lynchpin of the Christian faith (1 Cor. 15:14-20), let's examine the sequence and significance of the post-resurrection appearances.
JESUS' APPEARANCES IN JERUSALEM (THE DAY OF THE RESURRECTION)
Appearance #1 - Mary Magdalene John 20:11-18 11 But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb. 12 And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. 13 They said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him." 14 Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. 15 Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?" Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away." 16 Jesus said to her, "Mary." She turned and said to him in Aramaic, "Rabboni!" (which means Teacher). 17 Jesus said to her, "Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, 'I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'" 18 Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord"—and that he had said these things to her.
Appearance #2 - Mary, Salome & Joanna Matthew 28:1, 8-10 1 Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb…8 So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and
22 Strobel, Lee (1998). The Case for Christ (p. 230). Grand Rapids: Zondervan
23 Strobel, Lee (1998). The Case for Christ (p. 240). Grand Rapids: Zondervan 156 ran to tell his disciples. 9 And behold, Jesus met them and said, "Greetings!" And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me."
Appearance #3 - Simon Peter Luke 24:33-35 33 And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem. And they found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, 34 saying, "The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!" 35 Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread.
Appearance #4 - Cleopas and a companion Luke 24:13-35 13 That very day two of them were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, 14 and they were talking with each other about all these things that had happened. 15 While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. 16 But their eyes were kept from recognizing him. 17 And he said to them, "What is this conversation that you are holding with each other as you walk?" And they stood still, looking sad. 18 Then one of them, named Cleopas, answered him, "Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?" 19 And he said to them, "What things?" And they said to him, "Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, a man who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, 20 and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him. 21 But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things happened. 22 Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning, 23 and when they did not find his body, they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive. 24 Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see." 25 And he said to them, "O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?" 27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. 28 So they drew near to the village to which they were going. He acted as if he were going farther, 29 but they urged him strongly, saying, "Stay with us, for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent." So he went in to stay with them. 30 When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. 31 And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight. 32 They said to each other, "Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?" 33 And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem. And they found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, 34 saying, "The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!" 35 Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread.
157 Appearance #5 - The eleven disciples (without Thomas) Luke 24:36-43 36 As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, "Peace to you!" 37 But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit. 38 And he said to them, "Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39 See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have." 40 And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. 41 And while they still disbelieved for joy and were marveling, he said to them, "Have you anything here to eat?" 42 They gave him a piece of broiled fish, 43 and he took it and ate before them.
It is thrilling to imagine Jesus appearing to various disciples all around Jerusalem following his resurrection! Imagine believing that your Messiah had been killed, buried in a tomb for three days, and then have him appear and comfort you in a garden, or appear to you as you raced down the street to tell someone else about the empty tomb, or have him travel with you out of town and help you understand why his death had to happen in the first place. Jesus' death was not the end of his reign, but the beginning!
Nothing but the resurrection of Jesus can explain why his disciples increased in number AFTER that Passover. Nothing but the resurrection can explain why his disciples were willing to die preaching his gospel. Nothing but the resurrection can explain how some of his fiercest critics would convert to Christianity (1 Cor. 15:8-11)!
JESUS' GALILEAN APPEARANCES (8 DAYS AFTER THE RESURRECTION)
Appearance #6 - The eleven disciples (with Thomas) John 20:26-29 26 Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you." 27 Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe." 28 Thomas answered him, "My Lord and my God!" 29 Jesus said to him, "Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."
Appearance #7 - Seven disciples at the sea of Galilee John 21:1-14 1 After this Jesus revealed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias, and he revealed himself in this way. 2 Simon Peter, Thomas (called the Twin), Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples were together. 3 Simon Peter said to them, "I am going 158 TABGHA fishing." They said to him, "We will go with you." They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. 4 Just as day was breaking, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. 5 Jesus said to them, "Children, do you have any fish?" They answered him, "No." 6 He said to them, "Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some." So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in, because of the quantity of fish. 7 That disciple whom Jesus loved therefore said to Peter, Located on the northwestern "It is the Lord!" When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, shore of the Sea of Galilee is he put on his outer garment, for he was stripped for work, and the small village of Tabgha. threw himself into the sea. 8 The other disciples came in the This area marks the traditional boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from the location of the events of John land, but about a hundred yards off. 9 When they got out on 21 in which a risen Jesus eats land, they saw a charcoal fire in place, with fish laid out on it, breakfast with his disciples on and bread. 10 Jesus said to them, "Bring some of the fish that the shore. Tabgha is never 11 mentioned in the Bible, but its you have just caught." So Simon Peter went aboard and location is only a little more hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, 153 of them. And than a half mile west of although there were so many, the net was not torn. 12 Jesus Capernaum. There is little said to them, "Come and have breakfast." Now none of the doubt that Jesus frequented disciples dared ask him, "Who are you?" They knew it was the this area while he preached in Lord. 13 Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, the synagogues of Galilee. and so with the fish. 14 This was now the third time that Jesus was revealed to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.
Jesus had made arrangements to meet the apostles back in Galilee, where they had spent so much of their time together over the last three years. They were going back to their towns. They were going back to their families. It was in the rural setting of Galilee that Jesus met with his friends to help restore their faith and draw them close to him again.
Thomas had not been present when Jesus first appeared to the disciples in Jerusalem on the day of his resurrection (Jn. 20:25). When the others had excitedly told him about it, he had declared that he would not believe unless he had a similar opportunity as they did to feel his body and verify his identity (Lk. 24:38-39). Jesus provided him with just such an opportunity eight days later.
Another disciple who needed special attention and compassion was Peter. Jesus had appeared to him before the other apostles on the day of his resurrection. However, in his understanding, Jesus knew that Peter still carried guilt over denying and abandoning him at Caiaphas' house. Jesus waited until Peter had returned to fishing and went out with some of the others one night. Jesus repeated the miracle of the catch of fish, in which Jesus originally called Peter to greater service (Lk. 5:1-11). John recognized Jesus and told his friends who it was instructing them. After reliving his Master's call
159 and not willing to wait for the boats to turn around, Peter threw himself into the water to swim to shore where they found breakfast ready for them. When the meal was over, Jesus talked with Peter providing him with three opportunities to affirm his love for him and three times instructing him to care for Jesus' followers (Jn. 21:15-17). Jesus even warned Peter ahead of time that he would die a prisoner, but to follow Jesus and his example (Jn. 21:18-19).
JESUS' GALILEAN APPEARANCES MOUNT OF OLIVES (A FEW WEEKS AFTER THE RESURRECTION)
Appearance #8 - Disciples and gathering at the mountain Matthew 28:16-20 16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given The eastern side of the city of to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, Jerusalem is guarded by the baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of Mount of Olives. Separated by the Kidron Valley, the the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have Mount of Olives rises about commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end 400 feet higher than the city. of the age." Views from the top are some of the most recognized in the Appearance #9 - James world. 1 Corinthians 15:7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. The Mount of Olives was named because of the olive Before heading back to Jerusalem in the days leading up to groves that once dotted the landscape on the western Pentecost, Jesus assembled one more time with his apostles in side of the hill. Those olive Galilee to encourage them and to instruct them to help as trees have now been limited many people as possible join them in submitting to and to a small area at the base following Jesus. n e a r t h e G a r d e n o f Gethsemane. JESUS' ASCENSION AT THE MOUNT OF OLIVES The mount is mentioned in (40 DAYS AFTER THE RESURRECTION) both the Old and New Testaments. In 2 Samuel Appearance #10 - The disciples 15:30, King David traveled Acts 1:6-12 barefooted up the Mount of 6 So when they had come together, they asked him, "Lord, will O l i v e s , w e e p i n g a s h e you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" 7 He said to attempted to get away from a coup occurring in Jerusalem. them, "It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power Jesus crossed the top of the when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my Mount of Olives many times during his visits to Jerusalem. witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." 9 And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10 And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, 11 and said, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven." 12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day's journey away.
Less than seven weeks earlier, Jesus had crossed over the top of that mountain and entered Jerusalem as a cheering crowd praised his arrival. A lot had happened in the intervening weeks! Now Jesus walked the side of the mountain as his disciples asked questions about his kingdom. Was it finally time?! Ever patient, Jesus told them it was not their place to know the timing for everything. He also told them to wait in Jerusalem for the Holy Spirit and told them they would be witnesses for Him starting in Jerusalem.
As he finished speaking, he rose into the sky until a cloud obscured him from their sight. I can only imagine what it must have been like to watch him leave, but these men had seen Jesus appear in a locked room and walk with them without revealing his identity. I can understand them continuing to stare into the heavens waiting to see if he would reappear. It was only after two angels spoke that they lowered their eyes to earth and traveled back into town, meditating on the promise the angels had given them: "This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven."
161 QUESTIONS 1. Compare your first impressions of the post-resurrection appearances with what you saw in the episode and read in the Biblical texts. Are there any differences? What are they?
2. Which of the appearances stands out most to you? Why? Be prepared to discuss this in class.
3. If you had been one of the disciples when Jesus appeared how do you think you would have responded?
4. Compare your first impressions of Jesus’ ascension with what you saw in the episode and read in the Biblical texts. Are there any differences? What are they?
162 APPLICATION There is no way to overstate the impression that Jesus of Nazareth made on the lives of those who followed him!
Not many weeks after the ascension, Peter and John were arrested for healing and preaching in the name of Jesus and were brought before the same Sanhedrin that had convicted and killed their Lord. After hearing their defense, the Jews were astonished "when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus" (Acts 4:13).
To encourage the Christians in Thessalonica, the apostle Paul reminded them of a promise he had received from the Lord! "14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. 15 For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words" (1 Thess. 4:14-18).
Our desire is that everyone is prepared and expectantly looking forward to the return of Jesus. For that to be true, they need to hear the good news about Jesus, believe that he is the Son of God who died for them (Jn. 20:30-31; Heb. 11:6), and then verbally confess him as their Lord (Rom. 10:9-10). Those who seek forgiveness in Jesus repent of the sin that required his death and live a changed life (Lk. 3:10-13) that is a result of dying to sin and self with Jesus in baptism (Rom. 6:5-6).
Take a moment to prayerfully review how God would want you to respond to his Son. Will you believe the inspired gospel accounts of his life, death, and resurrection?
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