I.
Observation
A.
Outline
Plot to Arrest and Kill Jesus
(14:1-2)
Jesus Anointed at Bethany (14:3-9)
Judas Iscariot Betrays Jesus
(14:10-11)
The Passover Meal (14:12-26)
Jesus Predicts Peter’s Denial
(14:27-31)
Jesus Prays in Gethsemane
(14:32-42)
B.
Key Words/Phrases
Arrest, kill, perfume, burial,
betray, body, blood, fruit of the vine, fall away, deny, pray, watch, Father,
“what You will”, asleep, temptation
II.
General Analysis
1. Woman—poured pure nard on
Jesus’ head to prepare Him for His burial (3, 8)
2. Jesus—forgave Judas (by washing
his feet [Jn 13:1-5]); repeatedly warned His betrayer (Jn 13:11, 18, 21, 26);
told His disciples how He felt (34); asked them to keep watch and pray with Him
(38); fell to the ground and prayed to God (35)
3. Disciples—saddened (19);
determined to stand by the Lord (31); fell asleep (37, 40)
I.
Segment Analysis
1. It was a contrast between a
“beautiful thing” (6, NIV) and the hidden evil that would soon manifest itself.
2. Judas betrayed Jesus for 30
silver coins. He had been a thief, and Satan worked through his greed. He did
not confess his sins when Jesus gave him a chance to repent. Instead, he
plotted to hand Jesus over when no crowd was present.
3a. To them, the perfume’s monetary value was greater than its function.
In their eyes, Jesus was not important enough to spend that money on. They
self-righteously believed that they had a better use for the perfume and judged
the woman with their own values. In fact, they probably wished that they could
have the money themselves (cf. Jn 12:4-6). However, the woman used the perfume
as it was intended, and she used it on the best possible recipient—Jesus.
4. The woman’s deed was the only
one in the four gospel books that Jesus praised as “beautiful” (NIV) or “good”
(NKJV). It was evidence of her spiritual wisdom; she knew more about the Lord’s
suffering than the disciples did. The Holy Spirit worked through her faith to
prepare Jesus for His burial. Just as Jesus said, today we have much to learn
from the woman’s beautiful offering to Jesus Christ.
5. In both cases, God prepared the
materials beforehand. The disciples’ job was to obey and go, as the Lord
commanded. They did not doubt Jesus’ words and did not fear embarrassment for
asking a stranger for something. Because they obeyed without question, they
enjoyed the fruit of their labor (sharing Jesus’ glory when they entered Jerusalem; dining with Him
during Passover).
6. The sacrificial animal was
without defect. Similarly, our Lord Jesus was without sin. The lamb was
slaughtered, and its blood was put on the doorframe so that the people inside
would be spared. Like the lamb, Jesus became the sacrifice of atonement to
spare us from sin and death (Rom 3:25).
7. Jesus wanted Judas to know the
severity of his actions, and warned him clearly (Mt 26:25). The man who
betrayed the Lord would bear a sin so great that “it would have been good for
that man if he had not been born” (Mt 26.24). Prophecy must be fulfilled; Jesus
must be betrayed and crucified. However, God does not cause anyone to sin (Jas
1:13-15). The one who betrayed Him could not use prophecy as an excuse. Judas
bore the great sin and responsibility because it was his decision to go to the
chief priests.
8. The Passover meal had been a
symbol of the Hebrews’ salvation from Egypt. During the Last Supper, Jesus
revealed the deeper spiritual meaning behind it. His words were soon fulfilled
when He died on the cross. Today, the Passover has taken on a new meaning.
During the Holy Communion, the bread and the cup are Jesus’ body and blood.
When we eat and drink the Holy Communion, we have the promise of eternal life,
which was made possible through the suffering and death of Jesus Christ.
9a. Jesus made it clear that the Holy Communion is more than symbolism.
He did not say, “My body is like this bread” or “My blood is like this cup.” He
said, “This is My body” (22) and “This is My blood” (24). And He said clearly,
“Whoever eats My flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life” (Jn 6:54). This is
a spiritual mystery that we must accept by faith.
9b. remember Christ (Lk 22:19); proclaim His death; remember how Christ
shed His blood to forgive our sins (Mt 26:28); renew the hope of resurrection
and eternal life; await for the coming of the kingdom of God (25)
9c. This new covenant is the fulfillment of God’s promise in Jer
31:31-34, i.e. the forgiveness of sins, God’s acceptance of believers as His
own, and the inner workings of God in the hearts of His people. Through the
atoning blood of Jesus Christ, we have entered into a new relationship with
God.
10a. We praise the Lord for
raising us to sit with Jesus Christ (Ps 113:7-8). Jesus leads us out of sin (“Egypt”)
to the one true God (Ps 114:1; 115:3-7). Because Jesus died and was
resurrected, death no longer has power over us (Ps 116:3-6; Rom 8:34).
11a. When Jesus told the twelve
disciples, “One of you will betray me” (18), they seemed to assume that the
betrayal would take place further down the road; they had no idea that Jesus
would be arrested that very night (Jn 13:25-29). At that moment, it did not
seem possible that one of them would betray Jesus. In this case, although the
disciples did not have the spiritual wisdom to understand, at least they showed
spiritual maturity. They looked at themselves first (asking, “Is it I?” [19]) instead
of blaming each other.
However, when Peter said
emphatically, “If I have to die with You, I will not deny You” (31), each of
them followed suit. They were caught up in the moment and made promises they
could not keep. In not wanting to appear cowardly, disloyal, or, worse, like a
traitor, they lost the humility and the heart of self-examination that they had
in the Passover meal.
12a. He was confident in his own
strength. He was sincere, but did not know his weakness. He claimed that he
would die with Jesus. A few moments later, he fell asleep in Gethsemane.
Later, when he was questioned about Jesus, he emphatically denied that he knew
Jesus (Mk 14:71).
13. This was the only time recorded in the Bible when Jesus told His
weakness to His disciples. The bitter cup was too much for Him. His human
weakness was too much for Him to handle. He knew His closest disciples would
soon betray, deny, and desert Him. The people who cheered Him a few days before
would soon be yelling, “Crucify him!” To save us, He had to take on the sins of
the world upon Himself.
14a. their eyes were heavy (40);
they expected that Jesus would still be with them the next day; they did not
know that Jesus would be arrested soon
14b. Peter was the one who was so
sure that he would not fall away. He turned out to be the first to fall into
temptation to deny Jesus. Jesus had specifically warned Peter that Satan would
tempt him (Lk 22:31-32), and still Peter did not remain alert.
14d. Comfort, warmth, not aware of
surroundings; random, uncontrolled dreams; don’t remember the dreams when you
wake up.
Similarly, if we do not keep watch
(Mk 13:36-37), we would become blind to the signs of the times and God’s will
in our life. We would lose our sense of direction, swayed by false teachings
(Eph 4:14). We would rather hide in the world’s comforts, even though we know
it will end when Jesus comes again.
15a. Jesus came to see if they’d
learned their lesson, to see if they were alert and praying. In His most
distressing moment, Jesus needed His disciples to support Him, but He had none.
Even though they were physically there with Him, they had already deserted Him
emotionally and spiritually.
16a. The disciples either did not
take Jesus’ words to heart or did not have the power to overcome their physical
tiredness.
17. There are times when no one but God can help us. Not our friends,
not our spouse, not our earthly father and mother. God “is not far from each
one of us” (Acts 17:27). He is not apathetic to our needs. He is always ready
to listen to us and help us. We can tell Him everything, and trust Him like a
small child having complete faith in her parents. God loves us with a love that
is purer and greater than the love of our earthly parents (Mt 7:11). His Holy
Spirit lives in our hearts to guide and comfort us. Today, we too can cry to
Him, “Abba, Father!” (Rom 8:15-16)
18a. God the Father probably said
to Jesus as He did to Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is
made perfect in weakness” (2Cor 12:9). Through Jesus’ death, God would
decisively defeat sin and death (1Cor 15:55-57). After praying three times,
Jesus said to His disciples, “Rise, let us be going” (42), not “Rise, let us
flee!” Once He knew God’s will, He took action to face the persecution.
18b. If God’s answer is contrary
to our wishes, we must still obey and act accordingly, just like Jesus did. We
must believe in faith that He does not give us more than we can bear (1Cor
10:13). He loves us and makes all things work to our benefit (Rom 8:28).