Jeremiah 3:11

 Jeremiah 3:11 says, And the LORD said unto me, The backsliding Israel hath justified herself more than treacherous Judah.  God's people were divided into two nations at this time, and God called Israel backslidden, and yet said they tried to justify themselves more than Judah, which He called treacherous.  It doesn't matter how many divisions there are in those who call themselves God's people but who have never allowed Jesus Christ to be their Savior and Lord.  They are either backslidden or are dealing treacherously with God.  Verse twelve declares, Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the LORD; and I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you: for I am merciful, saith the LORD, and I will not keep anger for ever.  God told Jeremiah to go to the backsliding people of people of Israel and call on them to return to Him.  To have been backslidden implies that the people of Israel at one time had a relationship with God, but had forgotten it.  God told Jeremiah that if they would return to Him that His anger would not come on them, and reminded them that He was a merciful and patient God.  This has not changed.  God stands ready to forgive us if we backslide today, and it is because of His great mercy that we have hope to begin with.  Verse thirteen adds, Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against the LORD thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers under every green tree, and ye have not obeyed my voice, saith the LORD.  God told Jeremiah to tell the people that in order to know His mercy they had to first acknowledge their sins, which were widespread.  In order to know God's mercy, we must first acknowledge our sins.  Verse fourteen declares, Turn, O backsliding children, saith the LORD; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion:  Verse fifteen adds, And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.  God said that those who would return to Him, even if it was only one of a city or two of a family, that He would give them pastors according to His own heart who would feed them with knowledge and understanding of God.  God still gives us pastors today to do the same thing, if they listen to Him and put their faith in Him.  Verse sixteen continues, And it shall come to pass, when ye be multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, saith the LORD, they shall say no more, The ark of the covenant of the LORD: neither shall it come to mind: neither shall they remember it; neither shall they visit it; neither shall that be done any more.  God said that when the people were restored to Him and multiplied and increased in the land that they would no longer remember the things that guided them in the wilderness, because they would have a personal relationship with God that did not depend on going through priests or anything else.  Verse seventeen states, At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the LORD; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the LORD, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their evil heart.  This refers to the church according to Matthew Henry, after Jesus came to restore people to God.  Verse eighteen adds, In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers.  The people of God are united through Jesus Christ.  Though this was a prophesy concerning a physical reuniting of the people of Israel and Judah, it is also a prophesy concerning all who come to God by faith in Christ.  Verse nineteen concludes, But I said, How shall I put thee among the children, and give thee a pleasant land, a goodly heritage of the hosts of nations? and I said, Thou shalt call me, My father; and shalt not turn away from me.  God said when the people asked how this was possible that it was so because of the people once again recognizing Him as their heavenly Father,  The same is true today.

Jeremiah 3:1

 Jeremiah 3:1 says, They say, If a man put away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man’s, shall he return unto her again? shall not that land be greatly polluted? but thou hast played the harlot with many lovers; yet return again to me, saith the LORD.  God once again compared the people of Israel and their relationship with Him to a man and his wife.  God said if a man put away his wife and she married another man and then returned to him, would not the land be polluted because of this, and yet God said Israel had played the harlot with may other gods and then professed to return to Him again.  We cannot just jump in and out of a relationship with God at our own desire.  Verse two declares, Lift up thine eyes unto the high places, and see where thou hast not been lien with. In the ways hast thou sat for them, as the Arabian in the wilderness; and thou hast polluted the land with thy whoredoms and with thy wickedness.  God called on the people of Israel to look to the high places and show Him where they had not been unfaithful to Him.  If we have been unfaithful in our relationship with God, He will make us aware of it.  Verse three adds, Therefore the showers have been withholden, and there hath been no latter rain; and thou hadst a whore’s forehead, thou refusedst to be ashamed.  God said because of the people of Israel's unfaithfulness that He was no longer blessing them materially, and they refused to be ashamed of their actions.  Verse four asks, Wilt thou not from this time cry unto me, My father, thou art the guide of my youth?  God then asked if they would not once again call out to Him, the God and Guide of their youth.  When we find ourselves allowing the things of this world to come between God and us, we need to cry out to Him for forgiveness once again.  Verse five adds, Will he reserve his anger for ever? will he keep it to the end? Behold, thou hast spoken and done evil things as thou couldest.  The people of Israel might attempt to blame God for being angry with them, but they were not accepting the fact that the responsibility for God's anger with them was because of their actions.  We can never blame God if He has withdrawn His protection from us, but must look at our own actions instead.  Verse six declares, The LORD said also unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done? she is gone up upon every high mountain and under every green tree, and there hath played the harlot.  God asked Jeremiah if he had seen what the people of Israel had done, playing the harlot with false gods on all the high places.  They were not just failing to follow and worship God, but were actively worshipping false gods for all the world to see.  We, as followers of Christ, need to make sure that we never in any way chase after false gods, whatever they may be, and we certainly better never do so for all the world to see.  Verse seven adds, And I said after she had done all these things, Turn thou unto me. But she returned not. And her treacherous sister Judah saw it.  God said even after the people of Israel did these things that He called on them to return to Him, but they would not, and the people of Judah, the rest of God's chosen people were the same.  God will always call on people to repent, and He will especially call on His people to repent if they have strayed away from Him.  Verse eight continues, And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also.  God said when He put away the people of Israel that the people of Judah did not learn from this, but that they turned their backs on Him as well.  We should learn from others who have strayed away from God and not make the same mistakes that thy have made.  Verse nine says, And it came to pass through the lightness of her whoredom, that she defiled the land, and committed adultery with stones and with stocks.  God told Jeremiah that by worshipping false gods that His chosen people had defiled the land.  Verse ten adds, And yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah hath not turned unto me with her whole heart, but feignedly, saith the LORD.  God again told Jeremiah that the people of Israel and Judah had turned away from Him with all their heart.   

Jeremiah 2:23

 Jeremiah 2:23 says, How canst thou say, I am not polluted, I have not gone after Baalim? see thy way in the valley, know what thou hast done: thou art a swift dromedary traversing her ways;  God asked the people of Israel how they could say that they had not chased after false gods.  If God accuses us today of chasing false gods, we  can be certain that we have and there really is no sense in denying it.  The Holy Spirit will convict us when we do.  Verse twenty-four adds, A wild ass used to the wilderness, that snuffeth up the wind at her pleasure; in her occasion who can turn her away? all they that seek her will not weary themselves; in her month they shall find her.  The people were compared to a wild ass seeking her own pleasure who could not very easily be turned from her desires.  When we are caught up in the lusts of the world, it is not easy to turn us away. without the power of God to overcome those lusts.  Verse twenty-five says, Withhold thy foot from being unshod, and thy throat from thirst: but thou saidst, There is no hope: no; for I have loved strangers, and after them will I go.  God called on the people to not give in to these lusts, but they said there  was no hope because they already had.  We need to realize that as long as we are alive that God will call us to repentance, and there is never a reason to feel hopeless.  Verse twenty-six declares, As the thief is ashamed when he is found, so is the house of Israel ashamed; they, their kings, their princes, and their priests, and their prophets,  God said that the house of Israel, from their governmental leaders to their spiritual leaders were found out in their idolatry, and should be ashamed just as a thief who is caught.  Of course, it is possible that a thief might avoid being caught, but when we sin against God we always will be and this should cause us to be ashamed when we do.  Verse twenty-seven adds, Saying to a stock, Thou art my father; and to a stone, Thou hast brought me forth: for they have turned their back unto me and, not their face: but in the time of their trouble they will say, Arise, and save us.  God said the people of Israel had attempted to make gods of the things of this world, and then asked them in time of trouble when they called on these false gods if they could save them.  Salvation is only possible by accepting Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, and no matter what else we worship in the world it can never save us.  Verse twenty-eight asks, But where are thy gods that thou hast made thee? let them arise, if they can save thee in the time of thy trouble: for according to the number of thy cities are thy gods, O Judah.  God again asked His people, who were His in name only, where the false gods that they made were in times of trouble.  God said they had made as many false gods as there were cities in Judah.  No matter how many things we put our faith in instead of God, they will never save us.  Verse twenty-nine adds, Wherefore will ye plead with me? ye all have transgressed against me, saith the LORD.  God asked why the people of Judah would plead with Him when they had transgressed against Him.  Too often we call out to God in times of trouble because we have not been true to Him in times of prosperity.  Verse thirty declares, In vain have I smitten your children; they received no correction: your own sword hath devoured your prophets, like a destroying lion.  God said that He had smitten the people of Judah in vain, because they refused to listen to His prophets, killing them instead.  God will let us know today when we are chasing after false gods, yet too often people would rather kill His prophets than to listen to them.  Verse thirty-one adds, O generation, see ye the word of the LORD. Have I been a wilderness unto Israel? a land of darkness? wherefore say my people, We are lords; we will come no more unto thee?  God asked the people of Israel if He had become unknowable to them.  They may have been going through the motions of worshipping God still, but they did not have a real relationship with Him.  Verse thirty-two continues, Can a maid forget her ornaments, or a bride her attire? yet my people have forgotten me days without number.  I believe that God was basically saying that it should have been impossible for the people of Israel to forget Him because of all that He had done for them, but they had.  It should be impossible for us as followers of Christ to forget what He did for us, but we too often allow the things of the world to come between God and us.  Verse thirty-three asks, Why trimmest thou thy way to seek love? therefore hast thou also taught the wicked ones thy ways.  God said not only had the people of Israel turned away from Him, but they had encouraged others to do so as well.  It is bad enough for a person to turn away from God, especially those who call themselves His people, but it is even worse to lead others away from God.  Verse thirty-four adds, Also in thy skirts is found the blood of the souls of the poor innocents: I have not found it by secret search, but upon all these.  God said that the blood of others was on the people of Israel, and that it did not take a secret search to find this out.  They were open in their disobedience to God.  Verse thirty-five declares, Yet thou sayest, Because I am innocent, surely his anger shall turn from me. Behold, I will plead with thee, because thou sayest, I have not sinned.  The people of Israel professed their innocence, but God professed their guilt.  Verse thirty-six adds, Why gaddest thou about so much to change thy way? thou also shalt be ashamed of Egypt, as thou wast ashamed of Assyria.  Verse thirty-seven concludes, Yea, thou shalt go forth from him, and thine hands upon thine head: for the LORD hath rejected thy confidences, and thou shalt not prosper in them.  God said that the people were disappointed in their choice of gods, since they could put no confidence in them, and that since God had rejected them for their idolatry, they could not go forth with confidence in Him.  As long as we are faithful to God, we can put our confidence in Him, but if we go chasing after other gods, there is nothing to put our confidence in.

Jeremiah 2:13

 Jeremiah 2:13 says, For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.  God said that His people committed two evils.  The had forsaken Him, the source of living water, and had hewn out cisterns that could hold no water.  Through our faith in Christ, we are God's people and have a source of living water, and anytime we look to our own knowledge and ability to live life successfully, we are likewise committing two evils.  We can either put our faith in God or the world, but we cannot do both.  Verse fourteen asks, Is Israel a servant? is he a homeborn slave? why is he spoiled?  Like the people of Israel, we are children of God, and not servants of the world.  We are born again into the family of God, but do we allow ourselves to become spoiled feeling that we are better than everyone else and that God must bless us?  Verse fifteen states,  The young lions roared upon him, and yelled, and they made his land waste: his cities are burned without inhabitant.  Other countries had come to power over the people of Israel because they weren't following God.  Having seen the power of God over all their foes, the people of Israel were once again afraid of the forces of the world.  Verse sixteen adds, Also the children of Noph and Tahapanes have broken the crown of thy head.  God gave two examples of when the people of the world have defeated His people.  Verse seventeen declares, Hast thou not procured this unto thyself, in that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, when he led thee by the way?  Through Jeremiah, God asked if the people of Israel had not brought this upon themselves by refusing to obey Him.  If we are being defeated by the world today as Christians, it can only be because we have failed to put our faith in God totally.  Verse eighteen says, And now what hast thou to do in the way of Egypt, to drink the waters of Sihor? or what hast thou to do in the way of Assyria, to drink the waters of the river?  God asked His people what they had to do with the practices of worship of other people.  We cannot obey God and allow any other false worship practices to come into our lives.   Verse nineteen declares, Thine own wickedness shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove thee: know therefore and see that it is an evil thing and bitter, that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, saith the Lord GOD of hosts.  God said that the wickedness of His people would correct them and reprove their backslidings.  The fact that that people of Israel had turned their back on God had led to their being defeated.  If we as followers of Christ turn our back on God, then we should not be surprised that the world often defeats us.  Verse twenty adds, For of old time I have broken thy yoke, and burst thy bands; and thou saidst, I will not transgress; when upon every high hill and under every green tree thou wanderest, playing the harlot.  God reminded the people of Israel that He had set them free and that they had promised to be obedient to Him, but now they were worshipping false gods on every high hill.  Though our salvation is secured by God Himself, we cannot allow the things of this world to become more important to us than God is.  Verse twenty-one continues, Yet I had planted thee a noble vine, wholly a right seed: how then art thou turned into the degenerate plant of a strange vine unto me?  God said that He had made Israel His people and asked how they could then follow after strange gods, becoming an unproductive vine to Him.  We may need to ask at times if we have become unproductive for God because we refuse to obey His word and follow after the world instead.  Verse twenty-two concludes, For though thou wash thee with nitre, and take thee much soap, yet thine iniquity is marked before me, saith the Lord GOD.  God told the people of Israel that no matter how much the went through physical cleansing rituals that they remained spiritually unclean.  All the religious practices in the world will not cleanse us spiritually if we are being disobedient to God.

Thanksgiving

 I will pause briefly from the book of Jeremiah for Thanksgiving Day.  This has been a really bad year in many respects, but if you are alive, you still have reason to be thankful I believe.  The first Thanksgiving Day had came at a time when life was really tough and people were divided between those coming to settle America and those who were already here, but they came together to celebrate.  We in America have had a rough and divisive year, but I believe that we need to pause, come together and celebrate our blessings.  Of course, I believe this is really true for Christians, those who have put their faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.  No matter how bad things are going here, God is still in charge and He expects His people to put their faith in Him and worship him even in the hard times.  This Thanksgiving, let us joyfully celebrate the blessings of God.

Jeremiah 2:1

 Jeremiah 2:1 says, Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying,  Verse two adds, Go and cry in the ears of Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith the LORD; I remember thee, the kindness of thy youth, the love of thine espousals, when thou wentest after me in the wilderness, in a land that was not sown.  God's word once more came to Jeremiah and told Him to go and to remind the people of Jerusalem about their promises made to Him in the wilderness.  God had lead them out of Egypt, and sustained them in the wilderness, and they made a covenant with Him to obey His word.  When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, He leads us out of the wilderness of sin and commands us to go and share the gospel with all those that we can.  Verse three continues, Israel was holiness unto the LORD, and the firstfruits of his increase: all that devour him shall offend; evil shall come upon them, saith the LORD.  God had Jeremiah to remind the people of Jerusalem that they were the first fruit of His people.  The people of Israel were not called so that they would be the only ones who were God's people, but to be the first of His people and to spread His word to all the world.  Verse four declares, Hear ye the word of the LORD, O house of Jacob, and all the families of the house of Israel:  God called for all His people to hear Him, even if they were divided as a nation.  All of God's people need to hear Him today, even if we a separated in some earthly way.  Verse five adds, Thus saith the LORD, What iniquity have your fathers found in me, that they are gone far from me, and have walked after vanity, and are become vain?  God asked those who were supposed to be His chosen people what iniquity their fathers had found in Him that had caused them to become vain, or self centered.  We need to make sure that we never become vain about our relationship with God.  Verse six states, Neither said they, Where is the LORD that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, that led us through the wilderness, through a land of deserts and of pits, through a land of drought, and of the shadow of death, through a land that no man passed through, and where no man dwelt?  God said that His people, who He had delivered from Egypt and all the dangers they encountered afterward, no longer sought Him.  God has delivered us from the power of sin and death if we are followers of Christ, and we can never begin to be complacent in our faith if we are to be successful in our walk with God.  Verse seven adds, And I brought you into a plentiful country, to eat the fruit thereof and the goodness thereof; but when ye entered, ye defiled my land, and made mine heritage an abomination.  God said that He gave His people an abundant land, and that they made their heritage an abomination.  Verse eight adds, The priests said not, Where is the LORD? and they that handle the law knew me not: the pastors also transgressed against me, and the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked after things that do not profit.  God said even the religious leaders had stopped following His word and had gone after false gods.  We can never afford to allow false gods to come between God and us.  Verse nine declares, Wherefore I will yet plead with you, saith the LORD, and with your children’s children will I plead.  God said that He would still plead with His people and their children to come back to Him.  God does not give up on people easily.  Verse ten continues, For pass over the isles of Chittim, and see; and send unto Kedar, and consider diligently, and see if there be such a thing.  God called on the people of Israel to look at the other nations around them.  Verse eleven concludes, Hath a nation changed their gods, which are yet no gods? but my people have changed their glory for that which doth not profit.  God said these other nations who worshipped false gods had not changed them for other gods.  There are many nations around the world today who worship false gods, and they seem at times to be more devoted to their gods than we as Christians are to the One true and Living God.  Verse twelve declares, Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very desolate, saith the LORD.  God said that even the heavens should be astonished at the fact that His people had turned away from Him.

Jeremiah 1:11

 Jeremiah 1:11 says, Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a rod of an almond tree. God's word came to Jeremiah, asking him what he saw.  The first thing Jeremiah had to do was recognize the word of God when it came to him, and so must we.  What Jeremiah saw was nothing unusual.  Jeremiah said he saw the rod of an almond tree.  Verse twelve states, Then said the LORD unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I will hasten my word to perform it.  God told Jeremiah that he had seen well, and then God added He would hasten His word to perform it, which I believe meant to bring down the rod on His people,  Verse thirteen says, And the word of the LORD came unto me the second time, saying, What seest thou? And I said, I see a seething pot; and the face thereof is toward the north.  God's word came to Jeremiah a second time asking him what he saw.  This time Jeremiah saw a seething pot with the face to the north.  Verse fourteen declares, Then the LORD said unto me, Out of the north an evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land.  God then told Jeremiah what the seething pot represented.  God was going to allow a great evil from the north to come upon the people of Judah.  Verse fifteen adds, For, lo, I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the LORD; and they shall come, and they shall set every one his throne at the entering of the gates of Jerusalem, and against all the walls thereof round about, and against all the cities of Judah.  God said that he was going to allow Jerusalem and all the cities of Judah to be defeated.  We need to be aware of signs that we are falling out of God's will as His people today, and if we see such signs, we need to repent and return to following God's will.  Verse sixteen continues, And I will utter my judgments against them touching all their wickedness, who have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, and worshipped the works of their own hands.  God said that this was His judgment against His people who had abandoned Him and worshipped false gods.  We cannot allow ourselves to stray away from God's will and start to worship false gods as followers of Christ.  Verse seventeen says, Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee: be not dismayed at their faces, lest I confound thee before them.  God then told Jeremiah to get up and tell the people what God had told him and to not be dismayed by their faces.  If we are to be successful in presenting the gospel today, we cannot allow ourselves to be dismayed by the way the people of the world may look at us.  Verse eighteen  declares, For, behold, I have made thee this day a defenced city, and an iron pillar, and brasen walls against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land.  God basically told Jeremiah that he didn't need to be afraid, because God would protect Him.  The same is true for us today as followers of Christ.  The world can never defeat us spiritually if we only remain true to God and proclaim His word as He leads and empowers us to do.  Verse nineteen adds, And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee.  God told Jeremiah that the people of the world would fight against him, but that they would not prevail.  God make this same promise to us today.  We can be bold in our faith because God is with us to protect us, even through a physical death.

Jeremiah 1:1

Jeremiah 1:1 says, The words of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah, of the priests that were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin:  We first have Jeremiah identified as the son of Hilkiah, who was of the priests of Anathoth.  As a part of a priestly family, Jeremiah had been authorized and appointed to teach the people of Israel as Matthew Henry states it, but God added to that authority.  As followers of Christ, we are a part of the priesthood of believers and are appointed to share the gospel with everyone, but some are called for a more specific purpose in sharing the gospel, such as pastors and evangelists.  Verse two states, To whom the word of the LORD came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign.  We are then told that the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, and when this was historically.  If we are going to proclaim God's word today as Christians, we must first make sure that what we proclaim has come from God, and if it is from God, it will be consistent with His written word, the Bible, and will point people to Christ and will glorify God.  Matthew Henry says that with Josiah, a young king and Jeremiah a young prophet working together that we would have expected the people of Israel to reform, but they didn't.  Verse three adds, It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.  Jeremiah continued to prophesy through the reigns of two more kings, unto the carrying away of Judah.  Matthew Henry points out that Jeremiah continued to prophesy after that, but at that point many of His prophesies were fulfilled.  Even if we see the prophesies of God being fulfilled today, we are still to witness for Christ.  Verse four declares, Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,  Then verse five adds, Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.  God told Jeremiah that even before his conception that God had a purpose for him.  God said Jeremiah was sanctified and ordained a prophet even before he was born.  I believe that God has a purpose for each individual born today, but most will never fulfill His purpose because they refuse to accept His authority.  We can certainly attest to the sanctity of every child that is formed in the womb from what is said here.  Verse six proclaims, Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.  Having been commissioned by God, Jeremiah first offered an excuse as to why he could not do what God had called him to do.  When we know what God has called us to do today, do we begin to offer excuses as to why we cannot?  Verse seven declares, But the LORD said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.  God basically told Jeremiah to not look at who he was but to look to Who God is.  We need to do the same today and go where God sends us and do what He calls us to do.  Verse eight adds, Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD.  Just as Jeremiah was told to fear not the faces of the people because God was with him. so does He promise us today.  We need to boldly do what God calls us to do.  Verse nine continues, Then the LORD put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.  Jeremiah said that then the LORD put forth His hand, touched his mouth, and said that He had put His words in Jeremiah's mouth.  We as followers of Christ must put our faith in God to provide us with the ability to speak His word today.  Verse ten concludes, See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.  God then stated what Jeremiah was to do.  God said He set Jeremiah over the nations and kingdoms, to root out the evil in them and to plant the word of God.  We as Christians when we are following God's will for our lives have authority over all earthly rulers.  We must always put God's kingdom first.

Review 3

 After Jesus called his disciples and started his ministry, He performed many miracles for which the multitudes began to follow Him.  They were looking for an earthly leader who could meet their physical needs, as He did when He fed and healed them.  We need to look not for a Savior Who meets our physical needs and desires, but for One who meets our spiritual needs.  The only thing that Jesus ever promised us about physical or material things was that we are to take up our cross daily, or die to physical desires, and that He would meet all our needs.  Jesus never promised to give us everything that we saw and desired.  Jesus spent time alone to pray to His heavenly Father, and so must we if we are to be able to be successful in following the will of God.  Jesus taught us that we are not to worship simply for the praise of people.  No matter how much we give, if we are doing it so that we receive the praise instead of God receiving the praise, it is spiritually worthless.  Jesus had very little use for those who were supposed to be the religious leaders of the Jews, and they had no use for Him.  We need to be careful that we do not begin to follow the teachings of religious leaders today instead of following the will of God.  The disciples, who were the closest to Jesus physically still had ambitions based on physical results.  They wanted to be closest to Jesus in His kingdom, which they still thought would be an earthly kingdom then, but when the time came to prove their devotion, they could not even pray with Him for an hour and they abandoned Him after His trial.  Though Peter took up the sword to defend Jesus when He was being arrested, He did so for all the wrong reasons and denied even knowing Jesus after His arrest.  Some people throughout the ages have made strong professions of faith and followed after Jesus as long as everything was going their way, only to abandon Him when real times of trouble come.  We saw that given the choice between a bad sinner and Jesus that the world will often choose the bad sinner instead of Jesus.  Though there are many other things that the book of Matthew teaches us, the final thing that I will mention is the most important.  Jesus came to earth to live to show us how we are to live and He died to bring us salvation if we put our faith in Him as Savior and Lord.  Death could not defeat Him and the grave could not hold Him, and the same is true of us if we follow Jesus as our Savior and Lord.  We will next look at the book of Jeremiah.

Matthew Review Continued

 As we continue to review, we see that Jesus began to call His disciples, which we are today if we are Christians.  Jesus called simple men from different walks of life to follow Him, and He still does today with the men and women He calls to salvation.  Then, Jesus went to John the Baptist to be baptized, setting the example for us.  John said that he needed to be baptized by Jesus, and not Jesus by him.  Like John, we may at times try to question Jesus, but like John we need to simply learn to listen to and obey Him.  We also saw God's endorsement of the baptism, and He will endorse ours today if we have put our faith in Jesus as our Savior and Lord.  Some of John's followers were jealous of Jesus, just as some religious leaders are jealous of Jesus today.  They were more interested in their own position than they were in Jesus.  We know that the Devil tempted Jesus after Jesus' forty days of fasting in the desert, when the Devil thought that Jesus would be at His weakest.  We can be certain that the Devil will tempt us with all kinds of things if we put our faith in Jesus and he will tempt us when we are at our weakest point of temptation.  Jesus answered the Devil by referring to scripture, which the Devil himself quoted out of context.  We need to answer the temptations of the world by referring to God's word, but we need to make sure that we aren't using God's word to accomplish our own objectives.  We also see that great multitudes of people began to follow Jesus, but most were following Him for the wrong reasons.  Many people today profess to follow Jesus as long as they are getting what they want from Him, but never really accept Him as their Savior and Lord.

Matthew Review

We will review some of the things that we learned from the book of Matthew.  We learned that Jesus was of the lineage of David, just as the word of God had said He would be.  God's people had been looking toward the birth of the Messiah for years.  Jesus was born of a virgin, Mary, just as had been foretold.  This was not some scientific act, but a miracle from God.  We might claim that it is scientifically possible for a virgin to have a child today, but it can never be done without the involvement of a man in any way.  For a child to be created, it requires a man and a woman.  Then, we see that God leads wise men to Jesus, and that if they are truly wise they will come to Him.  Everyone is called, or led, to Jesus, but only those who are wise will come to Him.  We are also taught that we are not going to be able to find Jesus by going to government officials or worldly leaders.  As a matter of a fact, we may often find our that the governmental officials are more out to destroy the gospel than they are to promote it, just as it was with the wise men.  Wise men will not be deceived, though, and will listen to God in every situation.  Also, wise men will bring gifts to Jesus, not to salvation but to show their reverence for Him.  We also learned that God will warn us when we are in danger spiritually if not necessarily physically, and will always protect us.  Mary and Joseph had to leave where they were physically to be safe, and we may have to today, but only if God tells us to. We are not always led out of harm's way as we know from the lives of the disciples.  We then learned of the forerunner of Jesus, John the Baptist, who came to tell the people of Israel to prepare for the coming of the Messiah.  John knew that he was not the Messiah, even though some people would have made him to be.  We today as followers of Christ are the forerunners of the second coming of Christ and must call on people to prepare for His second coming.  We will never be the Messiah, the Savior of the world, and we can only call for people to accept the One Who is, Jesus Christ.  Like John the Baptist, we must be willing to lay down our life in order to do so.

Matthew 28:11

 Matthew 28:11 says, Now when they were going, behold, some of the watch came into the city, and shewed unto the chief priests all the things that were done.  While the women were on there way to tell the disciples what had happened, the guards went to the chief priests to tell them what had happened. For them, this was not good news.  Many people today on hearing the gospel refuse to believe it, and for them it is not good news.  Verse twelve declares, And when they were assembled with the elders, and had taken counsel, they gave large money unto the soldiers,  The chief priests and elders assembled together and decided to pay the guards a large sum of money.   The religious leaders of God's chosen people were willing to do anything to discredit Jesus.  Verse thirteen adds, Saying, Say ye, His disciples came by night, and stole him away while we slept.  The guards were paid to tell everyone that Jesus' disciples came and stole His body while they slept.  Now, it had better have been a large sum of money, since sleeping on guard duty was not a good thing for a soldier to admit to.  Verse fourteen continues, And if this come to the governor’s ears, we will persuade him, and secure you.  The religious leaders told the guards that if this report got back to the governor that they would protect them.  I am not sure how they thought they would be able to do this, since they were not in power over the governor, but it just shows how far they were willing to go to discredit Jesus.  People today may tell us that we are safe if we don't believe in Jesus as our Savior and Lord, but if they do it will be based on a lie.  Just as the religious leaders were not in charge of what happened at the resurrection, neither is anyone today.  The resurrection is real, and no amount of money or lies will change that fact.  Verse fifteen states, So they took the money, and did as they were taught: and this saying is commonly reported among the Jews until this day.  The guards took the money, and the Jews, God's chosen people, believed the lie, and I guess they still do today as a group of people.  Verse sixteen declares, Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them.  While the chief priests and elders were attempting to discredit Jesus, the eleven remaining disciples went where He told them to go through the angel speaking to the women.  We, as followers of Christ, can only go where Jesus tells us to go, or else we will be buying into the lies of the world.  We can never afford to allow money or the teachings of religious leaders that are not in accordance with God's word to come between God and us.  Verse seventeen adds, And when they saw him, they worshipped him: but some doubted.  This is still talking about the eleven disciples, and it says when they saw Jesus, they worshipped Him, but some of them still doubted.  We cannot be an effective Christian if we have doubt about Who Jesus really is.  Verse eighteen declares, And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.  Jesus spoke to the disciples, and that would include those of us today who have accepted Him as our Savior and Lord though His written word, and told them that all power in heaven and earth was given to Him.  Jesus had not and never will be defeated.  Verse nineteen adds, Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:  That was the commission for the eleven disciples then and for us today as followers of Christ.  We are to go everywhere and share the gospel and baptize those who accept it in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost, the One God Who is manifested in three different ways.  This does not mean that there are three different Gods, but only One.  Verse twenty-nine concludes, Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.  Once someone has accepted Jesus as his or her Savior and Lord, his or her  work in sharing the gospel has not ended.  We are then to teach those who accept Him to observe all that Jesus has taught.  Then there was a promise made that Jesus will be with us until the end of the world.  Nothing will ever separate those who put their faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord from Him.

Matthew 28:1

Matthew 28:1 says, In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre.  Toward dawn on the day after the Sabbath Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Jesus came to the tomb.  Even though Jesus had continually told His disciples that he would rise again, they were not there.  We may hear about the resurrection of Jesus, but until we come by faith to see if it is true or not, we will never find salvation.  Even though the two Marys came for the wrong reason, they still came to where they thought Jesus would be.  Verse two declares, And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it.  While they were there, a great earthquake occurred, but this was not what open the tomb.  An angel of the Lord rolled back the stone sealing it and sat on the stone.  The stone was not rolled away to let Jesus out, but to let the women see in.  Jesus was no longer constrained by physical limitations, and today, when we accept Him as our Savior and Lord, we are indwelled by the Holy Spirit Who is likewise not constrained by physical limitations.  Verse three adds, His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow:  I believe that we can simply say that the angel was an awesome sight.  Verse four says, And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead men.  The guards who had been assigned to guard the tomb basically fell down in fear.  Verse five declares, And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified.  The angel told the two women to not be afraid, that he knew they were there seeking Jesus.  When we come seeking Jesus today, we do not need to be afraid.  Jesus did not come to punish us but to offer us forgiveness and salvation.  Verse six adds, He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.  The angel proclaimed the good news to the women- He is not here, for He has risen.  This is the message that we share with the world today.  Jesus died for our sins, but He rose again to bring everlasting life to those who put their faith in Him.  Verse seven declares, And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead; and, behold, he goeth before you into Galilee; there shall ye see him: lo, I have told you.  The angel told the women to go quickly and tell the disciples that Jesus had risen and would meet them in Galilee.  They then had to decide whether to believe the angel or not, just as every person must choose whether or not to believe in the resurrected Jesus today.  Verse eight states, And they departed quickly from the sepulchre with fear and great joy; and did run to bring his disciples word.  The two women left the tomb with joy and went quickly to tell the disciples what had happened.  We should be just as anxious to go and tell others about Jesus when we accept Him as our Savior and Lord.  Verse nine declares, And as they went to tell his disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, All hail. And they came and held him by the feet, and worshipped him.  On the way to tell the disciples the good news, the women met the resurrected Jesus and fell at His feet and worshipped Him.  They did not question if it was Jesus or not, but recognized Him and worshipped Him.  This is what each individual must do in order to be saved.  We must first recognize Jesus as the resurrected Lord and then worship Him.  Verse ten states, Then said Jesus unto them, Be not afraid: go tell my brethren that they go into Galilee, and there shall they see me.  Jesus told the women to not be afraid but to go and do what the angel had told them to do.  We may not have an angel come to us and tell us what to do today, but we have the Bible, God's written word, that tells us that we are to go and tell everyone about Jesus.

Matthew 27:54

Matthew 27:54 says, Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God.  When the soldiers watching Jesus saw the earthquake, were afraid and said that Jesus was truly the Son of God.  We may not feel an earthquake, but until we accept Jesus as our Savior and Lord we better be afraid, because He truly is the Son of God and the only way to salvation.  Verse fifty-five states,  And many women were there beholding afar off, which followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering unto him:  Verse fifty-six adds, Among which was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s children.  Many women who had followed Jesus from Galilee, including Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of Jesus, and the mother of James and John were watching from afar off.  Still, even if they were afar off, they still cared what happened to Jesus.  Verse fifty-seven says, When the even was come, there came a rich man of Arimathaea, named Joseph, who also himself was Jesus’ disciple:  Verse fifty-eight adds, He went to Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be delivered.  When evening came a rich man from Atimethaea named Joseph came to Pilate and begged him for the body of Jesus.  Evidently the eleven remaining disciples who were closest to Jesus were not concerned with what happened to His body.  We should never allow events to keep us from being close to Jesus, but we never have to worry about anything happening to Him physically.  Verse fifty-nine continues, And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth,  Joseph took the body of Jesus and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth.  We need to remember all that had happened to Jesus right before and during His crucifixion and realize that His body was a mess, but Joseph still took charge and prepared the body for burial.  Verse sixty concludes, And laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock: and he rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre, and departed.  Joseph then laid the body of Jesus in his own tomb, which he had carved out of rock, and rolled a stone in front of it.  When we hear someone say that God has promised them certain things in this world as followers of Christ because He wants them to be happy, we need to remember that Jesus had neither a home or even His own tomb here, and that He was beaten and crucified.  Verse sixty-one states, And there was Mary Magdalene, and the other Mary, sitting over against the sepulchre.  Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Jesus were sitting against the tomb.  They still had not abandoned Jesus, even though they really did not understand what had really happened at this time.  We should never abandon Jesus even when we do not fully understand what is happening in our life at all times.  Verse sixty-two declares, Now the next day, that followed the day of the preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees came together unto Pilate,  That morning, the chief priests and Pharisees came to Pilate, still concerned with insuring that Jesus remained in the tomb.  Verse sixty-three declares, Saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver said, while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again.  The chief priests and Pharisees remembered what Jesus said about rising again the third day.  These religious leaders called Jesus a deceiver.  We better hope that as followers of Christ that we never begin to view Jesus as a deceiver, because if we do, then we have never truly accepted Him for Who He is, the Savior of all who put their faith in Him.  Verse sixty-four adds, Command therefore that the sepulchre be made sure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night, and steal him away, and say unto the people, He is risen from the dead: so the last error shall be worse than the first.  The chief priests and Pharisees asked Pilate to make sure that he tomb was secure for three days so that the disciples could not come and steal Jesus' body and claim that He had risen.  They did not know it, but their actions would offer further proof that Jesus had indeed risen from the dead by insuring that when His body was gone that no one truthfully could claim that the disciples had stolen it.  The best laid plans of those who attempt to discredit Jesus will always ultimately fail.  Verse sixty-five declares, Pilate said unto them, Ye have a watch: go your way, make it as sure as ye can.  Pilate told them that they had their watch, or troops to guard the tomb and then told them to go and make the tomb as secure as they could.  Verse sixty-six adds, So they went, and made the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone, and setting a watch.  The tomb was sealed and the guard was set, which insured that no one would get in, but did nothing to keep Jesus there.  People of the world may take all kinds of actions to discredit Jesus, but they will never keep Him in the tomb.  He has risen, and is the only way for anyone to become a part of the everlasting family of God.

Matthew 27:38

 Matthew 27:38 says, Then were there two thieves crucified with him, one on the right hand, and another on the left.  Two thieves were crucified along with Jesus, one on each side. Though they were suffering the same fate, there was a difference.  They were guilty.  Verse thirty-nine states, And they that passed by reviled him, wagging their heads,  People passing by reviled Jesus and shook there heads at Him in judgment.  People continue to do the same thing today, literally if not physically.  Verse forty adds, And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross.  The people still failed to understand what Jesus meant when He said that He could destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days and didn't realize that He was in the process of doing just that.  Jesus did not need to come down from the cross to prove that He was the Son of God, but needed to remain there to prove that He was by His obedience to His Father.  Verse forty-one declares, Likewise also the chief priests mocking him, with the scribes and elders, said, Verse forty-two adds, He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him.  It was bad enough that other people mocked and reviled Jesus, but so did the chief priests and elders.  They said if Jesus could save others, let Him save Himself and come down off the cross and they would believe in Him.  What they failed to realize was that Jesus was on the cross to sacrifice Himself for the sins of everyone, making salvation possible.  Had Jesus come down from the cross, we would all be without hope.  Verse forty-three continues, He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God.  These religious leaders then attempted to tell God how to act.  They said in effect if Jesus was the Son of God then God would save Him.  We should never attempt to tell God what to do, no matter the situation, but must simply put our faith in Him.  Verse forty-four says, The thieves also, which were crucified with him, cast the same in his teeth.  We are told that at one time both thieves were mocking Jesus, but we know that one accepted Him before he died.  As long as we draw breath, there is hope of redemption.  Verse forty-five states, Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour.  For three hours, there was darkness in the daytime.  There has never been a darker period in the history of the world spiritually than when Jesus was on the cross, because He was taking on the sins of all the world, past, present and future at that time.  Verse forty-six declares, And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?  At the ninth hour Jesus called out asking why His God had forsaken Him.  I don't believe that we can even imagine how Jesus felt at this time.  Verse forty-seven says, Some of them that stood there, when they heard that, said, This man calleth for Elias.  The people still did not understand what Jesus was saying, with some believing that He was calling on Elijah.  Verse forty-eight states, And straightway one of them ran, and took a spunge, and filled it with vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink.  Someone put a sponge filled with vinegar on a stick and offered it to Jesus to drink.  I am not sure if this was an act of compassion or simply an attempt to prolong the suffering of Jesus, but I believe it was probably the latter.  Verse forty-nine says, The rest said, Let be, let us see whether Elias will come to save him.  The rest of those gathered there told the one who was offering Jesus the sponge filled with vinegar to let Jesus be and see if Elijah would save Him.  Verse fifty declares, Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost.  Jesus then cried in a loud voice and gave up the ghost.  I believe that in this case, that was a very accurate statement.  Until Jesus willing died, or gave up the ghost, His mission was not complete.  We need to be thankful that Jesus was willing to die for our sins and did not come down from the cross.  Verse fifty-one declares, And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;  The veil of the temple which separated man from God was torn from the top down, the earth quaked, and the rocks were spilt.  I believe that this was God showing that He was indeed still in charge and that what Jesus died changed everything.  People would now have access to God not behind the veil the in the temple, but everywhere through the sacrifice of Christ on the cross.  Verse fifty-two declares, And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose,  The graves were open, and the bodies of the saints arose.  One day, the graves will open and we will all be resurrected to everlasting life.  Verse fifty-three adds, And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.  These saints who arose from the dead went into the city and were seen by many, so we know it was not the same as the resurrection at the second coming of Christ, because those who have accepted Jesus Christ and Savior and Lord will no longer be seen on the earth.

Matthew 27:27

 Matthew 27:27 says, Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the common hall, and gathered unto him the whole band of soldiers.  There was a whole band of soldiers gathered around Jesus, but that would not have been enough if He had chosen not to go.  No matter how much opposition we face in our walk with Christ today, as long as we continue to put our faith in Him it will never be enough to overcome us spiritually.  Verse twenty eight adds, And they stripped him, and put on him a scarlet robe.  Then soldiers then attempted to humiliate Jesus, stripping Him and putting a scarlet robe, the color of royalty, on Him.  Verse twenty-nine continues, And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand: and they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying, Hail, King of the Jews!  Then, they platted a crown of thorns and put it on Jesus' head, put a reed in His right hand, bowed their knee before Him, and mockingly proclaimed Him King of the Jews.  They did this all to mock Jesus by putting the signs of royalty on Him, but what they didn't know was that they were correct.  Someone may mock Jesus today, but He is the King of the Jews, and one day every knee will bow to Him for real.  Verse thirty adds, And they spit upon him, and took the reed, and smote him on the head.  They spit on Jesus and beat him on the head with a reed.  People are still mocking and spitting on Jesus spiritually today, and yet like with those in that day, He still died for them and they can find forgiveness and salvation if they only believe in Him.  Verse thirty-one concludes, And after that they had mocked him, they took the robe off from him, and put his own raiment on him, and led him away to crucify him.  After mocking Jesus, they took off the robe and put His own clothes back on Him, but they did not change the fact that He is the King of the Jews, and of all who put their faith in Him.  Verse thirty-two states, And as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name: him they compelled to bear his cross.  The soldiers found a man from Cyrene named Simon and compelled him to carry the cross of Jesus.  Still, he could only physically carry it and could never carry the redemption that would be made available by Jesus.  We may attempt to physically carry the cross of Christ today, but can never carry His cross.  The cross of Jesus brought salvation, and even if we do as we are told to do and take up our cross daily, it can only mean dying to self and not dying for all of humanity.  Verse thirty-three adds, And when they were come unto a place called Golgotha, that is to say, a place of a skull,  They crucified Jesus at Golgotha, the place of the skull.  Verse thirty-four continues, They gave him vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when he had tasted thereof, he would not drink.  They attempted to give Jesus a drink of vinegar mixed with gall, but He tasted it and would not drink it.  Verse thirty-five declares, And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots.  The soldiers, after crucifying Jesus, cast lots for His clothes, which also fulfilled a prophesy about the Messiah.  I am sure that these Roman soldiers did not say to themselves that they must do this to fulfill a prophesy.  Verse thirty-six adds, And sitting down they watched him there;  The soldiers then begin to watch Jesus, I believe to see what He was going to do.  It is never enough to just watch Jesus to see what He might do to prove that He is the Savior, but we must put our faith in the fact that He is without any physical signs.  Verse thirty-seven concludes, And set up over his head his accusation written, THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.  What the soldiers meant as a mockery with the sign over His head  proclaimed the truth of Who Jesus really is.  No matter how much people attempt to mock and discredit Jesus today, they will never change Who He really is, and that is the Redeemer of all.  Of course, even though Jesus died to redeem all, unless we individually put our faith in Him, we will not receive the benefit of that redemption.

Matthew 27:11

 MAT27:11 says, And Jesus stood before the governor: and the governor asked him, saying, Art thou the King of the Jews? And Jesus said unto him, Thou sayest.  When the governor asked Jesus if He was the King of the Jews, Jesus simply replied that that was what the governor said.  Ultimately, everyone has to decide this for them self.  Jesus isn't going to force anyone to believe that He is the Son of God, the only Savior there is.  Verse twelve adds, And when he was accused of the chief priests and elders, he answered nothing.  When the chief priests and elders made their accusations, Jesus remained silent.  God does not always silence nor dispute those who lie about Him.  Verse thirteen asks, Then said Pilate unto him, Hearest thou not how many things they witness against thee?  When Jesus remained silent, Pilate asked if He did not hear what the religious leaders were saying about Him.  Sometimes today we may question if God hears all that is being said, but but we can be certain that even if there is no response that He does.  Verse fourteen declares, And he answered him to never a word; insomuch that the governor marvelled greatly.  When Jesus didn't say a word, the governor marveled.  Verse fifteen says, Now at that feast the governor was wont to release unto the people a prisoner, whom they would.  There was a custom at the feast for the governor to release a prisoner, and Pilate saw this as an opportunity to not make a decision about Jesus.  We may not want to, but even if we decide to not make a decision about Who Jesus really is, we have already made a decision.  Just ignoring or attempting to get around the question will not exempt us from the result   Verse sixteen adds,  And they had then a notable prisoner, called Barabbas.  There was a notable prisoner there named Barabbas.  Verse seventeen declares, Therefore when they were gathered together, Pilate said unto them, Whom will ye that I release unto you? Barabbas, or Jesus which is called Christ?  When the people were gathered together, Pilate offered them a choice of having either Barabbas or Jesus released.  Pilate likely felt that he was going to be spared making a decision about Jesus, feeling that the Jews, God's people, would chose Jesus over Barabbas.  Verse eighteen adds, For he knew that for envy they had delivered him.  Pilate knew that Jesus was there because the Jews had delivered Him out of envy.  Verse nineteen states, When he was set down on the judgment seat, his wife sent unto him, saying, Have thou nothing to do with that just man: for I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him.  Pilate's wife told him to have nothing to do with Jesus, because she had suffered many things in a dream because of Jesus, but she really could not keep Pilate from making a decision, just as no one today can keep anyone else from making a decision about Jesus.  Every one will decide that Jesus either is or is not the Savior.  Verse twenty declares, But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitude that they should ask Barabbas, and destroy Jesus.  The chief priests and elders, the religious leaders of the day, persuaded the people to choose Barabbas.  It is sad when anyone rejects Jesus, but it is even sadder when those who profess to be His people do so.  Verse twenty-one states, The governor answered and said unto them, Whether of the twain will ye that I release unto you? They said, Barabbas.  When the governor gave those who were supposed to be the people of God a choice, they chose Barabbas over Jesus.  Verse twenty-two asks, Pilate saith unto them, What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ? They all say unto him, Let him be crucified.  After the people chose to have Barabbas released, Pilate then asked what they wanted him to do with Jesus, and they said crucify Him.  The choice of what to do with Jesus is one that each individual must ultimately make.  Verse twenty-three says, And the governor said, Why, what evil hath he done? But they cried out the more, saying, Let him be crucified.  Pilate then asked the people what Jesus had done, and they responded by simply saying to crucify Jesus.  Verse twenty-four declares, When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it.  When Pilate saw that he could not change the mind of the crowd, he attempted to remove the responsibility for the fate of Jesus from himself by symbolically washing his hands, but it is not that simple.  Pilate was still the one who made the decision, even if he attempted to pass off the responsibility, just as every person is personally responsible for whether or not he or she accepts Jesus today.  Verse twenty-five says, Then answered all the people, and said, His blood be on us, and on our children.  The people answered correctly that the blood of Jesus would be on their hands, but that did not make Pilate free from his responsibility.  Verse twenty-six concludes, Then released he Barabbas unto them: and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.  Pilate released Barabbas and had Jesus scourged and delivered Him to the Jews to be crucified.  Doing what the crowd wanted did not release Pilate from the fact that it was still his choice, and we will all be held accountable for our decision about Jesus.

Matthew 27:1

Matthew 27:1 says, When the morning was come, all the chief priests and elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death:  As morning dawned, all the chief priests and elders took counsel against Jesus.  These were the religious leaders of that day, and they were united against Jesus.  No matter what religious leaders may say today, even if they are united, if they are against Jesus and what He did on the cross, which is to provide the only way to salvation, then they are wrong.  Verse two adds, And when they had bound him, they led him away, and delivered him to Pontius Pilate the governor.  They bound Jesus, thinking that they were in control of the situation.  The only way that they were able to bind Jesus was because He allowed them to.  By our lack of belief in Jesus today, He in effect allows us to bind Him.  After binding Jesus, they took Him to Pilate, the governmental leader.  Some people look to the government today to attempt to bind the gospel of Christ.  Verse three declares, Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders,  Judas saw what was happening to Jesus and repented for what he had done, attempting to return the money he had betrayed Jesus for.  I believe this tells us that his intent was never honorable, and he could not undo what he had done simply by returning the money.  I am not sure if he repented to God or just repented, or changed his mind, about what he did.  I do know that if he truly repented and put his faith in Jesus that he would have found forgiveness.  Verse four adds, Saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood. And they said, What is that to us? see thou to that.  Judas said to the religious leaders that he had sinned and shed innocent blood.  This does not necessarily say that Judas now believed that Jesus was the Messiah, but that he did believe that Jesus was innocent of what He was being charged with.  They asked Judas how this concerned them.  They had what they wanted are were not concerned with Judas or whether he thought Jesus was innocent or not, so they did not take the money back.  Verse five declares, And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself.  Judas took the pieces of silver and threw it at their feet and went out an hanged himself.  I personally believe that had Judas really repented and asked God for forgiveness that he would have then gone to see what was going to happen to Jesus and would have stood with the other disciples afterward.  Feeling sorry about what we have done without asking God for forgiveness is not enough.  Verse six adds, And the chief priests took the silver pieces, and said, It is not lawful for to put them into the treasury, because it is the price of blood.  Though the religious leaders had given Judas the money, even after he threw it at their feet, would not keep it, because they said it was blood money.  I believe that if they felt that what they did was God's will that they would have had no problem taking the money back.  Verse seven states, And they took counsel, and bought with them the potter’s field, to bury strangers in.  The chief priests took counsel and decided to buy a potter's field to bury the dead by using the thirty pieces of silver.  This was appropriate I believe, since the religious leaders themselves were spiritually dead.  Verse eight says, Wherefore that field was called, The field of blood, unto this day.  This potter's field was called the field of blood.  Though it was probably not their intention, it was bought with money that led to Jesus shedding His blood on the cross.  Verse nine adds, Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of him that was valued, whom they of the children of Israel did value;  Verse ten concludes, And gave them for the potter’s field, as the Lord appointed me.  I am sure that the religious leaders did not do this so that they could bring about the fulfillment of a prophesy about Christ, since they did not accept Jesus as the Messiah, but they fulfilled the prophesy anyway.

Matthew 26:67

 Matthew 26:67 says, Then did they spit in his face, and buffeted him; and others smote him with the palms of their hands,  The people who had recently welcomed Jesus into the city now began to beat Him and spit on Him.  People too often claim to accept Jesus as their Savior, and when He doesn't turn out to be everything that they hoped for, they turn their back on Him.  Verse sixty-eight adds, Saying, Prophesy unto us, thou Christ, Who is he that smote thee?  Not only did the people physically abuse Jesus, they began to mock Him, implying that when He had been prophesying that He had not been telling the truth.  We can either accept what Jesus said as the truth, or we in effect are mocking His word.  Verse sixty-nine declares, Now Peter sat without in the palace: and a damsel came unto him, saying, Thou also wast with Jesus of Galilee.  Peter was now sitting outside the palace when a young woman stated that he had been with Jesus.  After we accept Jesus as our Savior and Lord today, would people be able to tell by the way that we live our life that we have been with Jesus?   Verse seventy says, But he denied before them all, saying, I know not what thou sayest.  Peter made his first denial of Jesus, telling the young woman that she did not know what she was talking about. Verse seventy-one adds, And when he was gone out into the porch, another maid saw him, and said unto them that were there, This fellow was also with Jesus of Nazareth.  Peter moved physically a little  farther away from Jesus, and was once again accused of having been with Jesus.  It was not the physical distance that was the problem, but the spiritual one that was.  Verse seventy-two adds, And again he denied with an oath, I do not know the man.  Peter denied Jesus for the second time, this time a little more firmly than the first.  Sometimes, if we begin to deny Jesus, our denials may become even more emphatic if we have not known Him spiritually as our Savior and Lord.  Verse seventy-three declares, And after a while came unto him they that stood by, and said to Peter, Surely thou also art one of them; for thy speech betrayeth thee.  Though Peter had attempted to further distance himself from Jesus, he was accused for the third time of having been with Jesus, and was told that his speech betrayed him.  Peter's physical speech may have identified him as a follower of Christ, just as a persons words today may, but like Peter at that point, they may not have accepted Jesus spiritually.  Verse seventy-four adds, Then began he to curse and to swear, saying, I know not the man. And immediately the cock crew.  For the third time. Peter denied knowing Jesus, this time cursing and swearing as he did so.  Immediately, the cock crowed.  Verse seventy-five proclaims, And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly.  Peter had evidently been so focused on himself that he had forgotten what Jesus had told him was going to happen, but when the cock crowed, he remembered and wept bitterly.  When we finally accept Jesus. we should weep bitterly at the fact that we had denied Him before.

Matthew 26:57

 Matthew 26:57 says, And they that had laid hold on Jesus led him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled.  Jesus was brought before the high priest, in the presence of the scribes and elders, or the religious leaders of Israel in that day.  They would contend to know more than Jesus did, and we need to make sure that we never begin to put what we want to believe ahead of what God's word says.  Verse fifty-eight adds, But Peter followed him afar off unto the high priest’s palace, and went in, and sat with the servants, to see the end.  Peter was no longer boldly declaring his undying faith, but was following at a distance.  We are not told that the other disciples even still followed at a distance.  We should never attempt to follow Jesus at a distance or to be a secret disciple, but we should boldly follow Him if we do and let the world know that we do.  Verse fifty-nine states, Now the chief priests, and elders, and all the council, sought false witness against Jesus, to put him to death;  The religious leaders sought false witnesses in order to put Jesus to death.  They had no real charge to bring against Jesus, so they had to seek false testimony.  There will never be a way to discredit Jesus based on the truth, so if anyone attempts to, it will have to be based on lies.  Verse sixty adds, But found none: yea, though many false witnesses came, yet found they none. At the last came two false witnesses,  Though the religious leaders were looking for a false witness, and many came, they were having a hard time finding something believable to charge Jesus with.  Verse sixty-one declares, And said, This fellow said, I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to build it in three days.  Two witnesses finally came who said that Jesus said He could destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days.  They did not understand what He really meant.  If we attempt to discredit Jesus, it will have to be based on a failure to understand what He really has said.  Verse sixty-two adds, And the high priest arose, and said unto him, Answerest thou nothing? what is it which these witness against thee?  The high priest asked what the witnesses were saying against Jesus, and He did not respond.  If we have false things to say against Jesus, He may simply allow us to do so without any real response.  Verse sixty-three declares, But Jesus held his peace. And the high priest answered and said unto him, I adjure thee by the living God, that thou tell us whether thou be the Christ, the Son of God.  The high priest demanded by the living God that Jesus tell them whether or not He was the Christ, the Son of God.  Jesus has already given us all the proof that there will ever be that He is the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the living God.  We simply have to accept this or not.  Verse sixty-four declares, Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.  Jesus told the religious leaders that the proof that they would have was when they saw Him sitting on the right hand of power and coming in the clouds.  In other words, it would be at His second coming that people will know beyond a doubt that Jesus is indeed Who He claimed to be.  Verse sixty-five states, Then the high priest rent his clothes, saying, He hath spoken blasphemy; what further need have we of witnesses? behold, now ye have heard his blasphemy.  The high priest accused Jesus of blasphemy and said they no longer needed witnesses.  Sometime, people today may attempt to discredit Jesus by misinterpreting His words. but as Christians, we had better hope that we are not the ones doing so.  Verse sixty-six adds, What think ye? They answered and said, He is guilty of death. The high priest asked the people, or at least the scribes and elders, what they thought, and they said put to put Jesus to death.  If we do not accept Jesus as our Savior and Lord today, then we are putting His sacrifice to death in our life.  It is of no meaning if we do not accept His gift of salvation.

Matthew 26:47

 Matthew 26:47  And while he yet spake, lo, Judas, one of the twelve, came, and with him a great multitude with swords and staves, from the chief priests and elders of the people. Even as Jesus was speaking about the time being near for Him to be betrayed, one of the twelve disciples came with a multitude who had drawn swords and staves and were sent by the chief priests and elders.  Verse forty-eight states, Now he that betrayed him gave them a sign, saying, Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he: hold him fast.  Judas had given them a sign to look for so that they would know Who to arrest and he warned them to hold Jesus tight.  The sign was to be the One Judas kissed.  I believe Judas may have wanted to avoid being known as the one who betrayed Jesus by not just coming out and saying saying out loud which one of the others was Jesus.  At times, we may betray our relationship with Christ and hope that others do not find out, but even if they don't, we will never fool God.  Verse forty-nine continues, And forthwith he came to Jesus, and said, Hail, master; and kissed him.  When Judas came to Jesus, he hailed Jesus as Master, and then he betrayed Him.  Judas' words sounded good, but his actions were what were important, just so it is with us.  Verse fifty declares, And Jesus said unto him, Friend, wherefore art thou come? Then came they, and laid hands on Jesus, and took him.  Jesus called Judas friend and asked him why he had come.  This would have been Judas' opportunity to confess his betrayal.  Instead, Judas stood by while the multitude took Jesus.  If we do betray our relationship with Jesus, He will still call us friend and give us an opportunity to repent.  Verse fifty-one states,  And, behold, one of them which were with Jesus stretched out his hand, and drew his sword, and struck a servant of the high priest’s, and smote off his ear.  One of Jesus' disciples, Peter we know from another gospel account, drew his sword and cut off a part of the ear of one of the servants of the high priest.  Peter was always quick to act, but often he was not following God's will but was acting out of his own ego we might say.  If we make a bold action for God, we need to first make sure that it is what God wants us to do.  Verse fifty-two declares, Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.  Jesus told Peter to put away his sword and warned him that those that live by the sword would die by the sword.  I don't believe that this means that we are never to fight against evil, but that when we do take up the sword that we had better be sure that what we are doing is in accordance with God's will.  Verse fifty-three adds, Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?  Jesus asked Peter if he did not think that Jesus could pray and the Father would send twelve legions of angels to protect Him.  Jesus was here to sacrifice Himself for the sins of mankind, and He did so willingly.  Verse fifty-four continues, But how then shall the scriptures be fulfilled, that thus it must be?  Jesus then asked Peter if He called for the angels to rescue Him, how could the scriptures concerning the Messiah be fulfilled.  Verse fifty-five says, In that same hour said Jesus to the multitudes, Are ye come out as against a thief with swords and staves for to take me? I sat daily with you teaching in the temple, and ye laid no hold on me.  Jesus asked the multitude if they came against Him as thieves with swords and staves when He sat daily in the temple teaching.  Jesus had not been hiding Who He was nor where He was, and He doesn't today.  Verse fifty-six states, But all this was done, that the scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled. Then all the disciples forsook him, and fled.  This was done to fulfill the scripture.  Then, we are told that the disciples forsook Jesus and fled.  If we are a follower of Christ, and things begin to get tough because of that fact, how will we react?  Will we stand firm or forsake Jesus and flee? 

Matthew 26:36

 Matthew 26:36 says, Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder.  After declaring that they would never forsake Him, Jesus came to Gethsemane and asked the disciples to sit while he went to pray.  Verse thirty-seven adds, And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.  Jesus took Peter, James and John on with Him a little farther.  Jesus began to really feel the heaviness of what awaited Him, and was very sorrowful.  I believe that we sometimes forget that Jesus was a man in every aspect of what this means, and the choice was still His to make about dying on the cross or not.  Verse thirty-eight declares, Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.  Jesus told Peter, James and John that He was sorrowful even to the point of death and asked them to wait where they were and watch with Him.  There was no one attempting to physically attack Jesus, and all these three were asked to do was wait and watch with Jesus.  We may at time declare how strong we are in the Lord and yet fail in the simplest of tasks that He calls us to do.  When the disciples declared their undying loyalty to Jesus they were speaking from their own strength and not from the leadership and strength of God.  Verse thirty-nine adds, And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.  Jesus went a little farther by Himself, fell on His face praying and asked if there was any other way for people to be saved to let that happen.  I believe that we sometimes fail to understand that this was a real request by Jesus and not just some empty prayer.  Verse forty states, And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour?  When Jesus returned to the disciples, He found them asleep.  Jesus asked Peter, who was always so bold, if he could not watch with Him for even an hour.  How often might we be found to be spiritually asleep in the world today, unable to remain alert for God even when nothing bad is even going on at the moment?  Verse forty-one adds, Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.  Jesus told Peter, and James and John as well, to watch and pray that they might not enter into temptation.  This is still a warning to us toady.  If we begin to follow in the flesh, we may fail spiritually.  Verse forty-two says. He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.  Jesus went away alone again, and repeated His petition to the heavenly Father.  When we have a great concern today, we need to bring it to our heavenly Father.  Verse forty-three declares, And he came and found them asleep again: for their eyes were heavy.  When Jesus returned to the three disciples, He found them asleep again because their eyes were heavy.  They were relying on physical strength and not spiritual power.  When we attempt to do things for God by our physical strength alone, God may find us spiritually asleep.  Verse forty-four adds, And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words.  Jesus left them asleep this time and went again to pray, praying the same thing again.  Hopefully Jesus will not leave us spiritually asleep today, but will awake us when necessary.  Verse forty-five continues, Then cometh he to his disciples, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, take your rest, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.  When Jesus returned to the disciples, He told them to sleep on because the hour was at hand for Him to be betrayed.  Verse forty-six concludes, Rise, let us be going: behold, he is at hand that doth betray me.  Jesus then told them to rise and for them to be going because the one who was going to betray Him was at hand.  Jesus had accepted what was about to happen, and now He knew that there was no other way for mankind to be redeemed to God.  We want to be with those standing with Jesus and not with the ones who betray Him.

Matthew 26:26

 Matthew 26:26 says, And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.  Jesus took the bread that they were eating, blessed it and told the disciples to eat it, that this was His body.  He did not state that it literally became His body somehow as some people believe, but I believe meant that it represented His body instead.  There is nothing supernatural or miraculous that happens to the bread when we observe the Lord's Supper, but it simply symbolic.  Verse twenty-seven states, And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it;  Verse twenty-eight adds, For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.  Jesus took the wine and blessed it and told the disciples to take it and drink it all.  As with the bread, the wine did not become the actual blood of Christ but was symbolic the blood of Christ.  Jesus told the disciples that His blood, represented by the wine, was His blood for the new testament between mankind and God.  When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, we have to accept all that this means, and that is that He gave His body and His blood to bring forgiveness of sin to all who would believe in Him.  Verse twenty-nine declares, But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.  Jesus said He would not drink any more of the fruit of the vine until He did so in His Father's kingdom.  Jesus time on earth was coming to an end.  Verse thirty adds, And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives.  Once they had completed this first communion meal, they sang a hymn and went out to the Mount of Olives.  Once we have completed the observance of the Lord's Supper, then we are to go out and continue to work for God and His glory.  Verse thirty-one declares, Then saith Jesus unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad.  Jesus warned His disciples that they would be offended by what was about to happen to Him and scatter.  The disciples were still looking for an earthly kingdom to be ushered in by Jesus, and they were looking to be a part of the leadership of that kingdom.  We should never attempt to follow Jesus for earthly benefits, but must follow Him by faith no matter what happens in this world.  Verse thirty-two adds, But after I am risen again, I will go before you into Galilee.  Jesus said that after He had risen again and the disciples had scattered that He would gather them again into Galilee.  The only difference then was that the disciples would then know Who Jesus really was.  We today must acknowledge Who Jesus really is in order to be saved.  Until then, we are just like sheep scattered without a shepherd.  Verse thirty-three says, Peter answered and said unto him, Though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended.  Peter boldly proclaimed that even if everyone else denied Jesus that he would not.  Peter was speaking from self pride and not from actual faith.  Verse thirty-four declares, Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.  Jesus told Peter that not only would He leave but that He would deny Him three times before morning.  When we act out of self pride we set ourselves up for failure in our relationship with Christ.  We must always listen to what God tells us and follow His direction to be successful in His kingdom, and even then we must do it through believing in Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.  Verse thirty-five states, Peter said unto him, Though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee. Likewise also said all the disciples. Peter said that Jesus was wrong, and then all the disciples agreed with Peter.  We must never think that we know more than God does, but must simply come to Him through a saving knowledge of Christ.

Matthew 26:14

Matthew 26:14 says, Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests,  Judas, one of the twelve disciples who had been the closest to Jesus went to the chief priests.  We may find that some of those today who claim to be closest to Jesus never really were.  Verse fifteen adds, And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver.  Judas asked the chief priests what they would give him to deliver Jesus to them.  Today, we sometimes hear that Judas was simply attempting to get Jesus to show the world Who He really was, but he Bible never even hints at this.  Had Judas been doing this, he would have not been negotiating for a price to betray Him.  Too many times material things become more important than to someone than a real relationship with Jesus Christ.  Verse sixteen continues, And from that time he sought opportunity to betray him.  After getting the money to betray Jesus, Judas began to look for an opportunity to do so.  Again, I believe that had Judas simply been trying to force Jesus' hand, he would have simply done so immediately without looking to do so without being found out.  Verse seventeen says, Now the first day of the feast of unleavened bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying unto him, Where wilt thou that we prepare for thee to eat the passover?  On the first day of the feast, the disciples came to Jesus asking Him where they should prepare for the Passover meal.  If we have questions about anything, especially about worship services, we need to go to God for the answers.  Verse eighteen declares, And he said, Go into the city to such a man, and say unto him, The Master saith, My time is at hand; I will keep the passover at thy house with my disciples.  Jesus told the disciples to go into the city to a certain man and tell him that Jesus' time was at hand and that He and His disciples would keep the Passover at his house.  We are not even told what the man's name was, but he played an important part in the life of Jesus.  The world may never know our name and what we have done for Jesus, but still we must simply be obedient to His plan for our life.  Verse nineteen adds, And the disciples did as Jesus had appointed them; and they made ready the passover.  The disciples did as Jesus instructed them, and so did the man whose house they went to.  Verse twenty states, Now when the even was come, he sat down with the twelve.  That evening, Jesus sat down for the Passover meal with the disciples.  This would have seemed like any other Passover meal.  Verse twenty-one declares, And as they did eat, he said, Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me.  During the meal, Jesus told the disciples that one of them would betray Him.  This is something that we as professed followers of Christ never want to hear, and if we have a real relationship with Him, we never should have to worry about it happening.  Verse twenty-two adds, And they were exceeding sorrowful, and began every one of them to say unto him, Lord, is it I?  The disciples were very sorry, and all began to ask if he was the one.  Verse twenty-three declares, And he answered and said, He that dippeth his hand with me in the dish, the same shall betray me.  It would seem that this somehow set Judas apart from the others, but I believe that Jesus was saying that it was one of the disciples.  If they had a common pot, all would have been dipping in with Jesus it would seem to me.  Verse twenty-four adds, The Son of man goeth as it is written of him: but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! it had been good for that man if he had not been born.  People today may not physically betray Jesus, but the warning is still just as real.  Woe to him by whom the Son of Man, Jesus Christ, is betrayed.  Verse twenty-five declares, Then Judas, which betrayed him, answered and said, Master, is it I? He said unto him, Thou hast said.  Judas asked Jesus if it was him, not because he didn't know this, but to see if Jesus did I believe.  We know if we have betrayed Jesus, and we don't need to ask Him if we have.  Jesus replied to Judas, "Thou hast said."  Jesus did not state outright that it was Judas, but let him know that He knew it was.