one step: Matthew 26.6

Then he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me”…  And he came to the disciples and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter, “So, could you not watch with me one hour? Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

The pain and difficulty involved with death on the cross to pay for the sins of the world was not lost on Jesus. Scripture tells us that the grief of it was enough to kill Jesus.* Think about the greatest emotional pain that you have ever experienced. I would estimate that the pain that you have endured in this life is no small thing. Perhaps you wanted to die. Maybe you felt like you would. Jesus explains here that His grief was enough that it actually could kill Him.*

Maybe you can relate to this level of pain. Maybe you can relate to Jesus when He looked for His friends to help Him through a difficult time, and they weren’t there for Him. To face death on the cross, to endure the emotional torment of its looming approach, and then to feel abandoned by friends in time of need… that’s a lot.

I’m in awe of the grace of Jesus in this moment. Despite this horrific circumstance, Jesus is understanding. He understands that no matter how much His disciples want to be there for Him, they are human, and humans get tired. How could Jesus be so understanding? How could He overlook something that many of us would receive as insult on top of injury? In His lowest moment, those closest to Him were not there for Him.

While Jesus hoped that the cross could be avoided, He only asked His Father to avoid the pain of the cross if God’s will could still be fulfilled.* Jesus was concerned about the Kingdom of God and God’s people more than His own pain. In the face of the pain, Jesus, even fully human, did not let go of the perspective of heaven.

Sometimes when we fail or others fail us, we can be so consumed in the pain that we lose the perspective of heaven. We forget that we are human and flawed and so are those around us. Giving grace to others may sometimes be as simple as allowing others to be human. Extending grace to ourselves may be just as simple. Simple isn’t alway easy, though.

The consequences of the humanity of the disciples is that they were not up and watching as Jesus asked. They did not pray for Him during that time. They missed an opportunity.

Succumbing to our humanity has consequences, and it risks hurting others. Despite these realities, Jesus knows and loves us.

Today, take a step.

Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to remember your humanity. Perhaps God wants you to receive His perspective on yourself or others. Maybe He wants you to know that He understands the pain that you are going through. Perhaps He wants you to know that He is with you watching and praying. Maybe He wants you to extend some grace to someone very human.

Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.

Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus. Take a step today… just one is fine.

Feel free to comment at the bottom of this page! We would love to hear from you!

*Leon, Morris, The Gospel According to Matthew. Pillar New Testament Commentary (Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1992), 666–672, and Keener, C. S., Matthew (Vol. 1, Mt Mt 26:31–56).) (InterVarsity Press, 1997).

one step: Matthew 26.5

 Then Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.” Peter answered him, “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away.” Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” Peter said to him, “Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you!” And all the disciples said the same.

All of the disciples agreed that they would never deny Jesus. Such a thing was unthinkable in light of all that they had experienced with Jesus. The highs and lows of ministry, the heart of His teaching, the countless meals, and the many laughs and talks that they enjoyed together seemed all too weighty to allow for a betrayal.

Yet, Peter did deny Jesus multiple times in the same evening. How could this be?

Fear.

Fear can act as a vicious, merciless master in our lives. When fear of anything other than God creeps in, and we open our ears to it, we will do whatever it tells us. We are all guilty of this.

In the moments leading up to the denial of Peter and the well-intended promises of faithfulness of the other disciples, Jesus does not push them away or abandon them. He welcomes them to join Him in prayer (Matthew 26:36). This is an incredible moment.

In my life, I have recoiled from the betrayal or perceived betrayal of others. Seeing and feeling what they did, I hid my heart from them and punished them with silence and withdrawing my affection. While this behavior may be understandable to some or in certain circumstances, it isn’t the example that Christ gives us. Knowing what they will do, and even after they deny Him, Jesus invites the disciples into intimacy.*

No matter what you have done or have not done for Jesus, Jesus desires intimacy with you today. He wants to welcome you into deep conversation, prayer, and time alone with Him. The forgiveness of Jesus extends to us all no matter what we have done or are about to do.

Today, take a step.

Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to forgive someone in your life. Perhaps He wants you to talk to Him about how you process and react to betrayal. Maybe today God wants you to step in closer to Him despite what you have done. Perhaps He wants you to hear His call of intimacy with Him today.

Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.

Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus. Take a step today… just one is fine.

Feel free to comment at the bottom of this page! We would love to hear from you!

*Leon, Morris, The Gospel According to Matthew. Pillar New Testament Commentary (Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1992), 663–666, and Keener, C. S., Matthew (Vol. 1, Mt Mt 26:31–46).) (InterVarsity Press, 1997).

one step: Matthew 26.4

When it was evening, he reclined at table with the twelve. And as they were eating, he said, “Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me.” And they were very sorrowful and began to say to him one after another, “Is it I, Lord?” He answered, “He who has dipped his hand in the dish with me will betray me. The Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born.” Judas, who would betray him, answered, “Is it I, Rabbi?” He said to him, “You have said so.”…

This somber moment in the intimate circle of friendship that Jesus created reminds us of the difficulty of community. The greatest teacher, leader, and friend that has ever existed experienced the brutal pain of betrayal and rejection. Jesus’s knowledge of the betrayal of Judas neither lessens its sting nor its severity.

Maybe you have experienced betrayal or rejection in a Christian community. Maybe you saw it coming, or maybe you didn’t. The pain and injustice of moments such as these can cause us to run from engaging in community with other Christians, but let us not forget that Jesus wasn’t even impervious to this sort of experience.

There is something else that we see in this moment, however. We see that though Jesus knew of the betrayal, and even though God was using the sin of Judas to accomplish a greater goal according to His purpose, it did not excuse the sin or condone the act.*

How often are we hurt by others or experience loss through the pain of death and hear these words, “well, it will all work for the good”? Or, “one day you will see how this will work best for you”? The sinful betrayal of Judas was not an isolated incident (Peter denied Jesus as well), but it was real. Though God used it for the good of all of mankind, it did not excuse the event.

Can God use your pain for your good? Yes. Can God use loss and trauma and turn it for positive outcomes in your life? Yes. Does that mean it doesn’t hurt? No. Does that mean that justice dies with an end that justifies the means? No.

Sadly, we as humans can hurt each other, and we do far too often. Jesus knows your pain, and while He can turn it for your good, it’s worth grieving.

Today, take a step.

Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to acknowledge the pain you have experienced. Perhaps God wants you to bring the pain to Him. Maybe He wants you to forgive those who have hurt you. Perhaps God wants to speak to you about others that you have hurt.

Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.

Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus. Take a step today… just one is fine.

Feel free to comment at the bottom of this page! We would love to hear from you!

*Leon, Morris, The Gospel According to Matthew. Pillar New Testament Commentary (Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1992), 653–662, and Keener, C. S., Matthew (Vol. 1, Mt Mt 26:17–30).) (InterVarsity Press, 1997).

one step: Matthew 26.3

Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, “What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?” And they paid him thirty pieces of silver. And from that moment he sought an opportunity to betray him.

What would it take for you to betray Jesus?

For Judas, it seemed to take only thirty pieces of silver, the price of a slave at the time.* There was more to the story, however. Some think that Judas might have grown impatient, thinking that Jesus had the power to overthrow the Romans but that He lacked the motivation. Betraying Jesus would place Him in a position where He would have to act. Others think that Judas was bent on a violent overthrow of the Roman oppression, and upon finding out that Jesus had other intentions (namely, death on a cross), he betrayed Jesus out of disappointment. The third popular thought is that Judas may have become disillusioned by the reality that Jesus was doomed for death and had “failed" to save the Jewish people (in this line of thinking, Judas would measure failure as an inability to remove Roman oppression). His disillusionment led Judas to betray Jesus to save Himself.*

Whatever the true motive of Judas, I must first ask the Holy Spirit if these motives have existed in my heart (the Holy Spirit always tells me the truth… I’m apt to lie to myself). Second, I must ask Him how I have reacted when those motives have existed.

How many times have you and I had an expectation that Jesus would remove something from our lives and He didn’t? How many times did we think that Jesus is the kind of Savior who busts down doors on our behalf? How many times have not liked the path of Jesus and gone another way? How many times have we missed the thing that Jesus is doing? How do we respond?

It’s easy to quickly say, “oh, I’ve never betrayed Jesus.” I know that I’ve closed my heart to Him when feeling disappointed that the miracles I wanted didn’t come as I hoped. I know that I haven’t shared Him with others when the door has been wide open. I know that I have listened to the advice of the enemy rather than to the words of Christ. Are these things not betrayals?

We can respond to the realization of our own betrayal like Judas, attempting to pay for our sin by reimbursement (he ended up throwing the money back in the faces of the Pharisees) and by self-punishment (Judas killed himself in response to his betrayal). I have unsuccessfully attempted to pay back God and punish myself through self-loathing. These things are not necessary.

Confession is. We must recognize that Jesus is Lord and King and that His ways are higher than our ways and are right and good even when we don’t understand them. We must completely change the compass of our thinking to align to His, and we must be patient with ourselves and with God when that takes time.

Today, take a step.

Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to ask Him about your heart toward Him. Perhaps He wants you to ask Him if you have betrayed Him in some way. Maybe He wants you to ask Him if your expectations of Him were not met. Perhaps He wants to you to take some time to see things from His perspective.

Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.

Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus. Take a step today… just one is fine.

Feel free to comment at the bottom of this page! We would love to hear from you!

*Leon, Morris, The Gospel According to Matthew. Pillar New Testament Commentary (Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1992), 650–652, and Keener, C. S., Matthew (Vol. 1, Mt Mt 26:14–16).) (InterVarsity Press, 1997).

one step: Matthew 26.2

Now when Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, a woman came up to him with an alabaster flask of very expensive ointment, and she poured it on his head as he reclined at table. And when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste? For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor.” But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a beautiful thing to me. For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me. In pouring this ointment on my body, she has done it to prepare me for burial. Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.”

How many of the issues in your life and my life stem from a brokenness or sin that came down through the generations? These difficulties may look like destructive patterns or bents toward doing certain things wrong. They plague us and sometimes avoid our notice because they are “the way things have always been.” God wants to speak to you about these things. He wants to interrupt the cycle of defeat and hurt that has tormented generations in your family line. He wants to invite you and I into the new legacy of healing and wholeness that Jesus offers. Rest assured, it’s a work that He can do!

So what does this have to do with the woman who anointed Jesus? Maybe you have thought about generational issues before, and maybe you have received some healing in this area. But conversely, have you stopped to think about the generational good that you enjoy? In my family, a sense of humor, a hard work ethic, and a desire to serve the Lord has been passed down through the generations. These gifts are a legacy worth carrying on; they are a blessing to my family. But, what good are these things?

We learned from Jesus in Matthew 25 that talents were to be invested for the Kingdom in His parable of the ten talents, but what of our legacy gifts?

Scholars believe that the great value of the oil that the woman (identified as Mary from Bethany in the Gospel of John) pours on the head of Jesus indicates that it may have been a generational heirloom.* In the moment of her anointing Jesus, she wasn’t just pouring out something of wealth that belonged to her. She was pouring out the wealth of her family. Think about the extravagance of that gift!

Generations upon generations may have held onto this treasure for a special occasion, and this was it. The disciples may have expressed disapproval of the use of the monetary value of the gift, but the legacy value of the gift was not lost on Jesus. Only Jesus could see the true beauty of the gift, and it made the moment of anointing that much more special.

There are things in your life that have value. The truth is that those around you and even those who know you may see some of that value. You may see that value as well, though to a greater degree. Jesus sees in you and in the gift even more, and only He can appreciate the true value. When we give all that we are and all that we have to Him, we are giving Him a treasure.

Scholars tell us that in the time of Jesus, anointing of the head with oil of a guest was not unheard of. Anointing the head with precious, costly oil from India passed down for generations in preparation for the greatest act of love in eternity… that was unheard of.*

Today, take a step.

Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to give Him what you have. Perhaps there are things in your life or gifts and talents that God wants you to give to Him today. Maybe He would like to show you the real value of who He made you to be. Perhaps He wants to show you the legacy gifts of your family.

Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.

Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus. Take a step today… just one is fine.

Feel free to comment at the bottom of this page! We would love to hear from you!

*Leon, Morris, The Gospel According to Matthew. Pillar New Testament Commentary (Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1992), 646–650, and Keener, C. S., Matthew (Vol. 1, Mt Mt 26:6–13).) (InterVarsity Press, 1997).