Luke 22:47-65 (New Living Translation)
47 But even as Jesus said this, a crowd approached, led by Judas, one of the twelve disciples. Judas walked over to Jesus to greet him with a kiss. 48 But Jesus said, “Judas, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?”
49 When the other disciples saw what was about to happen, they exclaimed, “Lord, should we fight? We brought the swords!” 50 And one of them struck at the high priest’s slave, slashing off his right ear.
51 But Jesus said, “No more of this.” And he touched the man’s ear and healed him.
52 Then Jesus spoke to the leading priests, the captains of the Temple guard, and the elders who had come for him. “Am I some dangerous revolutionary,” he asked, “that you come with swords and clubs to arrest me? 53 Why didn’t you arrest me in the Temple? I was there every day. But this is your moment, the time when the power of darkness reigns.”
54 So they arrested him and led him to the high priest’s home. And Peter followed at a distance. 55 The guards lit a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat around it, and Peter joined them there. 56 A servant girl noticed him in the firelight and began staring at him. Finally she said, “This man was one of Jesus’ followers!”
57 But Peter denied it. “Woman,” he said, “I don’t even know him!”
58 After a while someone else looked at him and said, “You must be one of them!”
“No, man, I’m not!” Peter retorted.
59 About an hour later someone else insisted, “This must be one of them, because he is a Galilean, too.”
60 But Peter said, “Man, I don’t know what you are talking about.” And immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed.
61 At that moment the Lord turned and looked at Peter. Suddenly, the Lord’s words flashed through Peter’s mind: “Before the rooster crows tomorrow morning, you will deny three times that you even know me.” 62 And Peter left the courtyard, weeping bitterly.
63 The guards in charge of Jesus began mocking and beating him. 64 They blindfolded him and said, “Prophesy to us! Who hit you that time?” 65 And they hurled all sorts of terrible insults at him.
I. Remember what’s at stake (vv. 47-53)
• Jesus expects us to
• Knowing
•
• Moments of impact can be missed with eternal consequences due to
• Church leaders and people can become weapons for
II. Quitting makes cowards of us all (vv. 54-60)
• Cowards quit on truth by
•
• Cowards sit in the shadows of
• Understanding a person’s trauma saves us from the cowardice of
III. Get over what you’re under (vv. 61-65)
• Enablement loves
•
• The Holy Spirit
• Weeping is an essential part of
• We get over what we are under when we
TAKE OFF
1. GTKY question: What is the best costume you have ever worn? (either as a child or as an adult)
2. How did last week’s Take Away about growth in public or private prayer go?
TEXT
1. After reading the passage or listening to the Sermon on this text, what general thoughts and insights do you have?
2. Who was leading the crowd that approached Jesus (v. 47) and why is it so significant that he greeted Jesus with a kiss? What is amazing about Jesus’ response (v. 48)?
3. From versus 49-53, Compare and Contrast the disciples’ response to Judas and the Crowd vs Jesus’ response. Why did the disciples respond as they did as compared to how Jesus responded?
4. At the end of this story, it says Peter wept bitterly (v. 62). List the things in this entire passage that Peter did that eventually lead him to weep bitterly. Where did Peter go wrong?
TAKE AWAY
We can react to circumstances and challenges in our own flesh or respond to them in the spirit by seeking God’s assistance and guidance in prayer. What can you do this week to respond to circumstances in prayer rather than leaning on your understanding?