Latest / A Chapter a Day Bible Reading / April 17 - John 18

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April 17 - John 18 · A Chapter a Day Bible Reading

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  Hello friends, it's Sean here. It's Thursday, it's Maundy
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  Thursday, it's the 17th of April and here we are remembering that
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  day where as we have been for the last week, up in that upper
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  room with Jesus and his disciples.
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  This is the day where we remember that happening.
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  And as though by some kind of miraculous event of incredible
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  forward planning. Thank you to Pete and the team.
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  Today's Bible reading does take us upstairs and then it takes us
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  out into the night to see the events of that Maundy Thursday
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  evening play out. And friends, even though this is
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  hard to read and hard to hear, as we hear Jesus going through
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  this terrible ordeal, this, this is the pivotal story of the
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  universe. You can't overstate it.
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  This is the story where the eternal God of the universe
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  executes his plan to save us. Wow.
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  Let's read this remarkable story together as we read together
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  John chapter 18. After saying these things, Jesus
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  crossed the Kidron Valley with his disciples and entered a
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  Grove of olive trees. Judas the betrayer knew the
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  place because Jesus had often gone there with his disciples.
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  The leading priests and Pharisees had given Judas a
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  contingent of Roman soldiers and temple guards to accompany him.
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  Now with blazing torches, lanterns and weapons, they
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  arrived at the olive Grove. Jesus fully realised all that
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  was going to happen to him, so he stepped forward to meet them.
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  Who are you looking for? He asked Jesus the Nazarene.
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  They replied, I am He, Jesus, said Judas, who betrayed him for
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  standing with them. As Jesus said I am he, they all
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  drew back and fell to the ground once more.
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  He asked them, Who are you looking for?
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  And again they replied, Jesus the Nazarene.
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  I told you that I am he, Jesus said, and since I am the one you
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  want, let these others go. He did this to fulfil his own
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  statement. I did not lose a single one of
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  those you had given me. Then Simon Peter drew a sword
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  and slashed off the right ear of Malchus, the high priest slave.
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  But Jesus said to Peter, put your sword back into its sheath.
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  Shall I not drink from the cup of suffering the Father has
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  given me? So the soldiers, the commanding
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  officer and the temple guards arrested Jesus and tied him up.
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  First they took him to Annas, since he was the father in law
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  of Caiaphas the high priest. At the time.
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  Caiaphas was the one who had told the other Jewish leaders
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  it's better that one man should die for the people.
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  Simon Peter followed Jesus, as did another of the disciples.
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  That other disciple was acquainted with the high priest,
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  so he was allowed to enter the high priest's courtyard with
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  Jesus. Peter had to stay outside the
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  gate. Then the disciple who knew the
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  high priest spoke to the woman watching at the gate, and she
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  let Peter in. The woman asked Peter, You're
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  not one of that man's disciples, are you?
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  No, he said, I am not. Because it was cold.
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  The household servants and the guards had made a charcoal fire.
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  They stood around it, warming themselves, and Peter stood with
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  them, warming himself inside. The high priest began asking
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  Jesus about his followers and what he had been teaching them.
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  Jesus replied. Everyone knows what I teach.
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  I have preached regularly in the synagogues and the temple where
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  the people gather. I have not spoken in secret.
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  Why are you asking me this question?
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  Ask those who heard me. They know what I said.
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  Then one of the temple guards standing nearby slapped Jesus
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  across the face. Is that the way to answer
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  though, I priest? He demanded.
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  Jesus replied, If I have said anything wrong, you must prove
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  it. But if I'm speaking the truth,
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  why are you beating me? Then Anas bound Jesus and sent
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  him to Caiaphas the high priest. Meanwhile, as Simon Peter was
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  standing by the fire, warming himself, they asked him again.
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  You're not one of his disciples, are you?
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  He denied it, saying No, I am not.
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  But one of the household slaves of the high priest.
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  A relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off asked, Didn't
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  I see you out there in the olive Grove with Jesus?
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  Again? Peter denied it, and immediately
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  a rooster crowed. Jesus.
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  Trial before Caiaphas ended in the early hours of the morning.
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  Then he was taken to the headquarters of the Roman
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  governor. His accusers didn't go inside
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  because it would defile them and they wouldn't be allowed to
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  celebrate the Passover. So Pilate, the governor went out
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  to them and asked, What is your charge against this man?
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  We wouldn't be handing him over to you if he weren't a criminal,
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  they retorted. Then take him away and judge him
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  by your own law, Pilate told them.
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  Only the Romans are permitted to execute someone.
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  The Jewish leaders replied. This fulfilled Jesus prediction
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  about the way he would die. Then Pilate went back into his
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  headquarters and called for Jesus to be brought to him.
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  Are you the King of the Jews? He asked him.
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  Jesus replied. Is this your own question or did
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  others tell you this about me? Am IA Jew, Pilate retorted.
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  Your own people and their leading priests brought you to
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  me for trial. Why?
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  What have you done? Jesus answered.
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  My Kingdom is not an earthly Kingdom.
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  If it were, my followers would fight to keep me from being
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  handed over to the Jewish leaders.
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  But my Kingdom is not of this world, Pilate said.
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  So you are a king, Jesus responded.
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  You say I am king. Actually, I was born and came
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  into the world to testify to the truth.
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  All who love the truth recognise that what I say is true.
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  What is truth? Pilot asked.
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  Then he went out again to the people and told them he is not
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  guilty of any crime. But you have a custom of asking
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  me to release 1 prisoner each year at Passover.
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  Would you like me to release this king of the Jews?
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  But they shouted back, no, not this man, we want Barabbas.
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  Barabbas was a revolutionary Jesus.
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  It's almost without words that we read this with nothing to say
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  but just awe for all that you went through out of love for us.
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  And I can't help but feeling shame that I, like Peter so many
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  times in my words and behaviours, deny you by the way
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  I live. And that is the nature of our
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  humanity, that this is what we do.
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  Oh Jesus, forgive us, draw us back into you and replace our
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  weak flesh with your strong spirit, our broken and selfish
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  human nature with the fruits of your spirit, that we can always
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  be pointing back to you. Jesus, we are humbled by your
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  obvious acts of love for us in this Easter story.
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  So change our hearts today as we reflect on all that you did for
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  us so that we can just once again, with fresh awareness,
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  know the enormous magnitude of your love for us.
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  So we come before you in awe and wonder at all that you do, and
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  pray all of this in your name. Amen.