The time
is near.
Before
the start of Passover is the first day of Unleavened Bread.
"Traditionally, the day before the Festival begins is the day when the
last chametz ["yeast,
leaven"] must be removed from the house and burned, and from that moment
on the only bread found in the house will be matzah ["unleavened bread"]. [i] (Exodus
12:15-20)
By 6 pm
on Thursday, Passover would commence. Another way to look at it would be... "Friday"
began on "Thursday" at 6 pm. The Temple in Jerusalem was beyond busy,
as lambs were being brought to the slaughter.
"The
worshipper must slay his own lamb, thereby, as it were, making his own
sacrifice. But in Jewish eyes, all blood was sacred to God, because the Jew
equated the blood and the life. ...Between the worshippers and the altar were
two long lines of priests, each with a gold or silver bowl. As the lamb's
throat was slit, the blood was caught in one of these bowls, and passed up the
line, until the priest at the end of the line dashed it upon the altar." [ii]
After the
carcass was flayed and parts of the lamb were extracted, the worshipper would
carry the lamb home to be roasted.
In the
Passover countdown, the disciples knew preparations must happen; hence, their
question to Jesus, "Where do you
want us to go?"
What
follows indicates Jesus was leaving nothing to chance. He sent two disciples from
his inner circle to the city (which Luke
22:8 reveals as Peter and John).
"...a man carrying a jar of
water will meet you;..."
Seems
rather straightforward, right? Not so much when carrying a jar of water was the
responsibility of a woman. Seeing a man with a water-pot on his shoulder
was like a flashing sign no one could miss.
"...; follow him, and wherever
he enters, say to the owner of the house,..."
For two
trusted disciples to follow someone to see a person they didn't know meant Jesus
was in the know. And the owner knows Jesus as "The Teacher."
Did
You Know...?
Some
theologians believe "the owner of
the house" was the writer, Mark. Later in the evening, when Jesus and
the disciples left the house, Mark accompanied them to the Garden of
Gethsemane.
After
stating what "the Teacher"
asks, the owner "will show you a
large room upstairs, furnished and ready. Make preparations for us
there."
"The
larger Jewish homes had upper rooms. Such houses looked exactly like a smaller
box placed on top of a bigger box. The smaller box was the upper room, and it
was approached by an outside stair, making it unnecessary to go through the
main room." [iii]
Everything
had been pre-arranged. Peter and John "found
everything as he had told them."
Time
passes. It is now after 6 pm, and Jesus and the disciples have taken their
places in the upper room. Although it is marked as a Passover, the writer of
the Gospel glosses over essential details of the meal. Instead Mark cuts to the
quick.
"Truly I tell you, one of you
will betray me, one who is eating with me."
The jaws
of the disciples had to have dropped. "What are you talking about?"
"What do you mean?" "No way, no how!" "Surely, it
couldn't be me!" "None of us would do that!"
Through
all of the astonishment and dismay, Jesus confirms their fear. How horrible to hear
such bewildering news. That one of your own trusted band would even think to commit
such an act.
Interestingly,
none of the disciples pointed accusations at the treasurer, who wasn't from
Galilee. None of them had a clue as to what Judas had set into motion (yet
still had to follow-through).
Even more
interesting is... Jesus could've stopped Judas in his tracks, in that very
moment and in that very room. Can you imagine what would've occurred if Jesus
had said, "Judas will betray me"?
Yet, Jesus
shared with all of them, "...woe to
that one by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that
one not to have been born."
Judas has
been made out to be a person of darkness, born to betray Jesus. That's why
Jesus let him do it. Judas was damned forever from the outset.
Consider...
* Jesus
didn't name Judas.
* Jesus
provided an opportunity for Judas to not follow-through with his plan.
* Jesus
warned Judas about the consequences of such a choice.
To the
man eating a meal with Jesus, a choice was given. Either "follow me and
God" or "follow yourself." It is an example of free will.
All of us
are responsible for the choices we make. In the decision-making though, do we
include God in the mix?
NEXT
"My
body; my blood"
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