Seeds for 02/13/2024 - Matthew 26:50b-54

Scripture: Then the men stepped forward, seized Jesus and arrested Him. With that, one of Jesus’ companions reached for his sword, drew it out and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear.

“Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him, “for all who draw the sword will die by the sword. Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and He will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? But how then would the Scriptures be fulfilled that say it must happen in this way?”

Observation: That one of Jesus’ disciples cut off the ear of the servant of the high priest is a detail included in all four Gospels—Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. John alone identifies this sword-swinging disciple as Peter. Mark is traditionally identified as a close associate of Peter, from whom he got his source material for writing his Gospel about Jesus, which in turn became a significant source for both Matthew and Luke in writing their Gospels. Assuming this is true, one can imagine Mark neglecting to identify Peter as this disciple (perhaps he’s got enough dirty laundry hanging out already!). In any event, we have this detail about the man’s ear being cut off by a disciple of Jesus in two unrelated sources (John and Mark), strengthening the detail’s historical reliability and also fortifying the essential elements of the hours prior to the crucifixion.

That bit of Bible nerd observation aside, what else do we see that is noteworthy for our walk with the Lord?

Once again, even during his arrest, Jesus is correcting His disciples’ misconceptions about His kingdom. Rather than fight the arrest, Jesus is willing to submit to it. The irony is that Jesus has immeasurably greater defenses at His disposal that a single sword swung by a sleepy disciple. Yet He holds back in order to stay on course to the cross. This scene reminds me of the opportunity and ability Jesus had to eschew the dreadful death that awaited Him and that He remained faithful anyway.

Also, the scene moves from the prayer directly to the arrest. So, we get the idea that Jesus’ raw honesty in prayer to the Father over this part of His mission did indeed accomplish the deep level of surrender that Jesus offered as He knelt time after time after time in the garden. Having softened His heart to the Father, His will was now steeled for the calling that lay ahead.

Application:

• What else might the Holy Spirit be speaking with you about in the text today?

Prayer: Lord, keep my eyes fixed on the faithfulness of Jesus, that I may know the fullness of His strength and sacrifice. Amen.

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“But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.” (Matthew 13:23)

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