John 18:1 - 12

 John 18:1 - 12

We must never imagine for a second that Jesus was a victim of what happened that night. He was the master of all that transpired; do not feel sorry for Jesus.  Love and worship Him but do not think that he was the victim of all that transpired.

With a fear of rebellion Pilate releases a “cohort” to be put at the disposal of the arresting party. This represents 600 men. Not all would have been in the garden. At this point the garden would have been surrounded, checkpoints would have been along the roads and any crossroads secured. This Jesus of Nazareth wasn't going to disappear into the desert and raise an army.

With this massive contingent before and around Him Jesus demonstrates the real power of the situation. In response to asking whom they were looking for and they answered “Jesus”. Jesus tells them “I AM”. That is the personal name of God. At that moment the arresting party falls to the ground. This was not out of respect for the name of God. This was the might in the power of God's presence overwhelming men. It was a clear demonstration of who was in charge. Again Jesus asked who they wanted? Again they answered “Jesus”. No one in this party could claim that they were unaware of Jesus' Divinity; they had just experienced it. 

There is another point for us here.  Faced with such odds we have to respect the misguided courage of Peter, he had no chance of winning and he knew it, but perhaps we could buy time, cause a distraction and give Jesus a running start. But let’s not miss the point that it is as the arresting party is recovering themselves that Peter strikes, he hits them when they are all weak. Makes sense in terms of a fight. But like us Peter is using the Divine moment for his agenda. It is as if Peter is attempting to co-op the encounter with Christ to accomplish his plan for Jesus. Believe it or not that is not the last time that this happens. In fact we often see the work of God stolen by men to accomplish their own program. But like Peter and the arrest team we are without excuse; we have seen the resurrection,

“Lord never allow me to use Your Kingdom for my purpose.  AMEN”