Scripture

“And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Observation

The eleven disciples go to the mountain in Galilee where they see Jesus and worship him.

Jesus gives them the Great Commission. He has been given all authority on earth; therefore the disciples are to go and make disciples of all the nations. They are to baptise in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. They are to teach their disciples to obey all of Christ’s commands.

He will be with us always, even to the end of the age.

Application

We are to go to the world and make disciples of all nations. That doesn’t mean that I personally have to go to all the nations. But it does mean that I have to go to whatever nation God has called me to.

I have no sense that God is calling me to go anywhere geographically, other than where I am right now. To go into the world for me means that I find ways of going into my community, connecting with unbelievers and not just the saints.

The promise of Jesus is that wherever we go to fulfil that commission, He will always be with us. Whether it is remote Australia, a big city, or a small town, Jesus is always with me. When He sends me for short-term mission trips overseas, He is with me there also.

There are some religions that believe that different territories belong to different gods. We see that in parts of the Old Testament. But Jesus is Lord of all the earth.

There are no places that are more or less sacred than other places. Some places are put to holy uses, and some places are put to evil purposes. But Jesus is the Lord of every place.

Prayer

Thank you Lord for this promise that you are always with me. Help me to shine your light in the dark places. Amen.

Scripture
“Don’t be afraid!” he said.” I know you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen.”

Observation
Mary Magdalene and the other Mary go to the tomb early Sunday morning. Suddenly there is an earthquake, and an angel of the Lord comes and rolls aside the stone in front of the tomb entrance. The guards faint from fear at the sight of the angel.

The angel speaks to the women and gives them the amazing news that Jesus is no longer dead. They are to go and tell the disciples, and they will meet Him in Galilee .

The women run from the tomb full of fear and joy. Jesus meets them on the way. They fall down and worship Him.

Meanwhile, the Pharisees bribe the guards to say that they fell asleep and the disciples came and stole the body.

Application
The death and resurrection of Jesus are amongst the most attested historical facts of the ancient world. Many have tried to disprove the resurrection, but no one has succeeded .

We might think of alternative explanations for the reports of jesus’ resurrection. One that is suggested in this passage is that the disciple stole the body while the guards slept. In any military organisation, sleeping while on duty is a great offence, and in the Roman army this would incur the death penalty. Nobody would willingly own up to this.

The disciples would later suffer great torture and death. If they had faked the resurrection, surely at least one of them would have admitted it. Yet they remained consistent and unwavering in their preaching that Jesus is alive.

Some have speculated that Jesus did not really die on the cross. While in the cooler conditions of the cave, they say He revived and convinced everyone that He had died and was alive again. Yet the injuries suffered in crucifixion, not to mention the spear to His side, would not get better in three days. Jesus’ body was badly broken on the cross. The resurrection narratives all describe Jesus as full of life.

Jesus really did rise from the grave. He died for our sins, and then God raised him to life as a sign of the eternal life we will all inherit with him.

Prayer
Hallelujah! What an awesome miracle this is! Praise God! Amen.

Scripture

“So we request that you seal the tomb until the third day. This will prevent his disciples from coming and stealing his body and then telling everyone he was raised from the dead! If that happens, we’ll be worse off than we were at first. “

Observation

Joseph of Arimathea, a follower of Jesus, asks Pilate for Jesus’ body. He takes it to his own new tomb and seal the entrance with a great stone.

The next day, the Sabbath, some of the leading priests and Pharisees go to Pilate. They are worried that the disciples will fake a resurrection, so they asked Pilate to seal the tomb. They fear that reports of Jesus being raised from the dead would undermine their positions.

Pilate orders some guards to seal the tomb and guard it.

Application

The Jewish leaders were terrified at the possibility that Jesus could be raised from the dead. They knew that He had often said that He would die, but on the third day He would rise again.

These leaders did not believe that Jesus would really come back to life, but they did believe that the disciples could steal the body and declare that he was risen.

It is tragic to be so locked into fear and unbelief that you have to take precautions to prevent God from intruding on your fear.

In reality, as these people would find out, you can’t keep God out of the world. If the Lord has determined to do something, no person can prevent it, no matter how powerful they seem.

God the Father was determined to set the human race free from sin. No man could have prevented Jesus’ death on the cross on the cross, and no man could prevent could prevent Jesus’ resurrection on the third day.

So we rejoice that Jesus that Jesus has purchased our eternal salvation.

Prayer

Lord God, Heavenly Father, I praise you for your gift of eternal salvation bought for me at the cross. Amen

Scripture
Then Jesus shouted out again, and he released his spirit.

Observation
Jesus is on the cross. At noon, darkness covers the land for three hours. Jesus calls out, “My God, why have you abandoned me?”

Jesus shouts again and releases His Spirit. At that moment, the curtain in the temple is torn from top to bottom, there is an earthquake, and many godly people are raised from the dead.

The centurion overseeing the crucifixions declares, “This man is truly the Son of God.”

Application
Jesus should never be seen as a victim of the crucifixion at the hands of human beings. He willingly went to the cross out of love for all humanity.

Jesus did not die on the cross due to the horrendous physical injuries he experienced. No, he “released his spirit.”

While many observers taunted Jesus with the demand to save himself by coming down from the cross, there was a very different goal in view. Jesus could have easily released himself from the cross. He could have summoned angels to come and minister to Him.

It was Jesus’ voluntary submission to death, despite being the Immortal son of God, that bought our salvation .

Jesus died to give us life.

That is the simple exchange of the Cross .

His death is my life.

His suffering is my atonement.

His humiliation is my vindication.

Prayer
Lord, words are not enough to express my love to you, nor to respond to your love to me. Thank you. Amen.

Scripture

“He saved others,”  they scoffed, “but he can’t save himself! So he is the King of the Jews, is he? Let Him come down from the cross right now, and we will believe in him!”

 Observation

The soldiers mock Jesus. They dress him up as a king, with a scarlet robe and a thorny crown. They mock Him and beat Him. Then they take him to Golgotha to be crucified.

They nail Jesus to the cross then gamble for his clothes. They sit around to guard him. A sign is hung above his head that says “Jesus, King of the Jews”

People passing by mock Him and demand He prove His identity by coming down from the cross. The leading priests and teachers of the law join in this mockery. Even the revolutionaries crucified with Jesus ridicule him.

Application

This would be the absolute lowest point for the Son of God. He is abandoned by his friends and mocked by everyone around him. He is treated like dirt at this point.

The Jewish leaders say,” He saved others, but He can’t save Himself.”  They even claim that if he gets off the cross, they will believe. But they have witnessed countless miracles and healings, even people raised from the dead, and it was not enough to convince them. Even when Jesus himself came back from the dead, they would not believe in him.

How hard of heart does a person have to be to reject all of this evidence?

This is a key to understanding people. It is not about signs and wonders, but about the heart. There are people who have experienced miracles, but remain indifferent to the Lord. Others just take a few words of explanation and they receive the Lord with passion and excitement. To those who refuse to believe, nothing will ever be enough proof.

So the Lord laid down His life for all who will receive His grace – even though it seemed a majority would reject Him.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, thank you for enduring the suffering, torment, and abuse of the cross. Thank you that you love me so much! Amen.

Scripture

Pilate saw that he wasn’t getting anywhere and that a riot was developing. So he sent for a bowl of water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s blood. The responsibility is yours.” And all the people yelled back, “We will take responsibility for his death – we and our children.”

Observation

Each year the governor releases one prisoner to the crowd. Pilate gives the crowd the choice between Jesus and Barabbas, a notorious criminal.

Pilate’s wife send a message to him, pleading for him to release Jesus, whom she says is innocent.

The crowd calls for Barabbas to be freed and Jesus to be crucified. Pilate then dramatically washes his hands, and says,” I am innocent of this man’s blood.” The crowd calls out that they and their children will take responsibility for His death.

Jesus is sent to be flogged and crucified.

Application

Pilate paints himself as a victim in the dispute over Jesus. He sees that Jesus has committed no crime, but out of fear, he hands Jesus over to be flogged and crucified.

The Jewish leaders and the crowd, on the other hand, call for the blood guilt to be on themselves and their children.

Every single person that has ever lived shares in the guilt over Jesus’ death. We have all sinned and fallen short of God’s standard. It is for this reason that Jesus came and died. Only people who have never sinned are truly free of the guilt over Jesus’ death.

But God graciously forgives all of our sins because of the blood of Jesus. Hallelujah! He is the one who sets is free from sin, once and for all.

Prayer

Thank you Jesus for dying for me. Thank you for your forgiveness. Amen.

Scripture

When Judas, who had betrayed him, realised that Jesus had been condemned to die, he was filled with remorse. So he took the thirty pieces of silver back to the leading priests and the elders.

Observation

The priests and Elders take Jesus to Pilate, the Roman governor .

When Judas realises that Jesus is going to die, he is filled with remorse. He takes the payment for his betrayal back to the priests and elders. He tells them “I have betrayed an innocent man.”

Judas throws the coins down in the temple and goes out and hangs himself. The priests pick up the coins, and they decide to buy a Potter’s field to use as a cemetery. This fulfils the prophecy in Zachariah 11:12-13.

Pilate questions Jesus, asking him, “Are you the King of the Jews?”Hhe replies, “You have said it.”

The priests and elders bring their accusations against Jesus, but He makes no response, much to the governor’s surprise.

Application

Judas is filled with remorse, but he does not repent of his sins.

Remorse is about feeling bad for my actions, but not necessarily about seeking God’s forgiveness, nor turning away from sin. Lots of people feel guilt at times, but they do not turn that guilt into repentance. They fail to connect their sin to God’s law and God’s mercy.

If Judas had repented, he would have been forgiven by Jesus. He did not have to hang himself; he could have experienced the abundant life that comes from following Christ.

The contrast with Peter is very clear. Peter denied he even knew Jesus. but he repented, and Jesus welcomed him back into the fold. But for Judas, there was no way back because he did not repent.

Prayer

Jesus, thank you for the assurance that no sin is too big for you to forgive as long as I repent. Amen.

Scripture

Peter swore, “A curse on me if I am lying – I don’t know the man.” Immediately, the rooster crowed.

Observation

While Jesus is undergoing a show trial, Peter is in the courtyard outside. A servant girl says to him, “You were with Jesus the Galilean.” Peter denies this.

Later, another servant girl tells the people standing around that Peter was with Jesus. Again Peter denies it.

Later still, a group of people together accuse Peter of being a disciple of Jesus. He denies this with a curse. Then the rooster crows, and Peter goes away weeping bitterly .

Application

Peter calls down a curse on himself to emphasise the fact that he is not lying – even though he is, in fact, lying.

A curse is a kind of negative prayer that invites and and empowers demons to bring misfortune, illness, and other forms of suffering into a person’s life.

It can be simple words, like a mother saying to a child, “You will never amount to anything.” It can be more elaborate, as in Peter’s self curse.

Sometimes curses spoken by our ancestors can flow down through the family tree to influence us.

The good news is that Jesus is greater than any curse. His blessings overcome the curses and the malevolence of satan.

All we need to do is break every curse in the name of Jesus. Hallelujah!

Prayer

Father, thank you that Jesus has broken every curse in my life. I just claim that blessing now. I break every curse in my life in the precious name of Jesus. Amen

Scripture

Jesus replied,“You have said it. And in the future you will see the Son of Man seated in the place of power at God’s right hand and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

Observation

Judas comes with a crowd of armed men. He kisses Jesus, according to a pre-arranged signal. The men arrest Jesus. One of the disciples waves a sword, slashing off the ear of the High Priest’s servant. Jesus tells him to put away the sword. He then meekly goes away with the guards.

Jesus is taken to the home of Caiaphas the High Priest. The priests and the high council try to find witnesses who will lie about Jesus. Finally, they find two men who declare that Jesus had said He was able to tear down the Temple and rebuild it in three days.

Jesus then tells them He is the Messiah and that he will come on the clouds of heaven. The High Priest tears his clothes and says “Blasphemy!”

They decide that Jesus is guilty and deserves to die.

Application

The phrase “coming on the clouds of heaven” is an expression that means to judge a people. In this case, Jesus is saying that these priests will recognise that He is the Messiah when He comes in judgement against the Jewish religious system. This happened in the year 70, when the whole of Jerusalem, and the Temple in particular, were destroyed by the Roman legions.

Recognising Jesus as the Messiah is not a matter of opinion or a religious preference. Jesus is, in fact, the Son of God whether we want to believe it or not. He will judge these who resist or oppose His rule .

If Jesus really is the Son of God, the only rational response is to worship Him as such an to determine to obey Him. This is called becoming a disciple or being born again.

Everyone will see the Son of Man seated the right hand of God. Those who acknowledge him as Lord will be raised to life. But those who reject him face everlasting torment.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, you truly are the Son of Man. I praise you and I worship you. Amen.