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“‘They All Left Him and Fled’”
The disciples certainly do not look good in Matthew 26.
In Bethany a woman takes an alabaster vial of expensive perfume and begins to anoint the head of Jesus (26:7). This was a generous and selfless act, but the disciples criticize her actions (26:8-9). Jesus told them to leave her alone. They criticize a woman for her lavish treatment of Jesus and yet one of their own number agrees to betray Jesus (26:14-16). Judas is identified as one of the twelve (26:14, 47) to highlight the treachery of his act. For a mere thirty pieces of silver, Judas is willing to hand over Jesus to those who want to kill Him.
The one time in the chapter that the disciples appear as obedient is in 26:17-19. Jesus tells them to prepare the Passover and they do just as He instructs them.
Jesus warns His disciples of their spiritual weakness. Jesus tells His disciples that one of them will betray Him (26:20-25). Each of the disciples wonder if he is the guilty party. Then Jesus says that all of the disciples will forsake Him later in the night (26:31-32). Peter begins to protest, saying that he would never fall away (26:33). Peter is wrong and Jesus tells him that before morning light he will deny three times that He even knows Jesus (26:34). However, Peter is not the only one who claims that he would never deny Jesus, all the disciples affirm their loyalty in the same way (26:35). They will never deny Jesus!! I do not know how the disciples go from wondering if they were the betrayer in 26:20-25 to boldly affirming that they would never forsake Him in 26:31-35. But, their questioning of the themselves was more accurate than their bold affirmations of loyalty.
Jesus is deeply grieved (26:37-38) as He goes to the garden of Gethsemane to pray. He even expresses this to His three closest disciples and begs them to “keep watch with Me” (26:38). As Jesus prays fervently and tearfully (Hebrews 5:7), the disciples sleep (26:40, 43, 45). Jesus asks Peter, who had most vocally affirmed his fidelity to Jesus minutes earlier, “So, you could not keep watch with Me for one hour?” (26:40). The disciples are willing to die with Jesus, but they cannot stay awake with Him in the garden? Jesus knows they face great temptations and they will never be able to defeat them, if they do not fervently pray.
Judas, one of the twelve, approaches in the garden to betray Jesus. He uses a sign of affection, a kiss, to betray the one who had been so good to Him (26:47-49). When His disciples see what is happening, one draws His sword to fight for Christ (26:51). Though this is misguided, this is the most heroic act of the disciples in this chapter. They are willing to fight and defend Jesus against arrest. But when Jesus tells them to put up the sword because He must fulfill the words of Scripture (26:52-54), then all the disciples left Him and fled (26:56). All the disciples (26:56) are now doing the very thing that they said that they would never do (26:35).
Peter wants to know what is happening with Jesus. He follows at a distance and gains an entrance into the courtyard of the high priest (26:58). While Jesus acknowledges His identity before the most powerful men in Judaism (26:63-66), Peter denies Jesus before those who have no political clout. A servant girl was one whose sex and occupation showed her lowliness in this society (26:69), but Peter is even afraid of her and refuses to acknowledge that He is a disciple (26:69-70). As the accusations that Peter is a disciple continue, Peter's denial of this charge becomes increasingly more adamant. Twice he states that he does not even know Jesus (26:72, 74) and twice the text says that he denied Him (26:70, 72). Remember that Jesus said this would happen (26:34-35), but Peter denied it. Peter is doing the very thing that Jesus said he would do (Deut. 18:21-22).
The disciples criticize the kindest act done toward Jesus. They do not pray when they need to pray. The disciples brag about their loyalty but show none of it in the moment of crisis. They are willing to fight when they need to surrender. They run away in fear when they need to stand strong. The disciples get with a hostile crowd and they deny that they even know Him. These are men who have spent three years with Jesus. They have seen His miracles. They have heard HIs teaching. They have eaten at His table. They are the closest men on earth to Him, but when He is in trouble they all run away and abandon Him.
What are we to learn from this?
The failures of the disciples makes the picture of His love shine more brightly. He eats with His betrayer (26:20-25). He sings with those who will forsake Him (26:30) . He assures them that after their denial, He will see them again in Galilee (26:32). He is mocked, falsely accused, and ultimately killed for them all. If His disciples act in this manner, how much worse is the world? Yet Jesus dies for them all. “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins” (26:28). The love of God is demonstrated in the trial and the death of Jesus (Romans 5:6-8).
The love of God is indicated in His willingness to forgive them. Jesus said that He would confess the one who confesses Him and deny the one who denies Him (10:32-33). Peter does the unthinkable and denies Jesus (26:34-35, 70, 72). Is their any hope of forgiveness? Has he committed the unpardonable sin? Even the one who denies Him, can weep (26:75), repent, be forgiven, and be given another chance to confess Him.
Does the picture of the disciples sound familiar to you? I think if you look at them carefully, you will see yourself. They are representative of all of us as the followers of Jesus. We sin and fall short often in the very same ways. This picture of the disciples should convict us of our sins and lead us to “weep bitterly” over them. Then we must cast ourselves on His mercy for our forgiveness. May God have mercy on us all. Ω
Bro. Peeler writes from Brandon, FL.
