Judas Betrays Jesus

Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane; and he said to his disciples, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” He took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be grieved and agitated. Then he said to them, “I am deeply grieved, even to death; remain here, and stay awake with me.” And going a little farther, he threw himself on the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet not what I want but what you want.” Then he came to the disciples and found them sleeping; and he said to Peter, “So, could you not stay awake with me one hour? Stay awake and pray that you may not come into the time of trial; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Again he went away for the second time and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.” Again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. So leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same words. Then he came to the disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? See, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Get up, let us be going. See, my betrayer is at hand.”

The Betrayal and Arrest of Jesus

While he was still speaking, Judas, one of the twelve, arrived; with him was a large crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the elders of the people. Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man; arrest him.” At once he came up to Jesus and said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” and kissed him. Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you are here to do.” Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and arrested him. Suddenly, one of those with Jesus put his hand on his sword, drew it, and struck the slave of the high priest, cutting off his ear. Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its place; for all who take the sword will perish by the sword. Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve legions of angels? But how then would the scriptures be fulfilled, which say it must happen in this way?” At that hour Jesus said to the crowds, “Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest me as though I were a bandit? Day after day I sat in the temple teaching, and you did not arrest me. But all this has taken place, so that the scriptures of the prophets may be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples deserted him and fled.

Scripture:

"They will come and bind themselves to the Lord
in an everlasting covenant" (Jeremiah 50: 5) NIV

I bind unto myself today
The power of God to hold and lead.
His eye to wach. His might to stay.
His ear to hearken to my need.
The wisdom of my God to teach.
His hand to guide. His shield to ward;
The word of God to give me speech.
His heavenly host to be my guard.

I bind unto myself the name.
The strong name of the Trinity.
By invocation of the same
The Three in One and one in Three.
Of whom all nature hath creation;
Eternal Father, Spirit, Word;
Praise to the Lord of my salvation.
Salvation is of CHRIST the LORD.

Patrick, Apostle of Ireland

PALM SUNDAY

Scripture:

The next day the great that had come to the festival heard that Jesus was
coming to Jerusalem. So they took branches of palm trees and went out
to meet him, shouting,

"Hosanna!
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord-
the King of Israel!"

Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it; as it is written:
"Do not be afraid, daughter of Zion.
Look, your King is coming,
sitting on a donkey's colt"

His disciples did not understand these things at first; but when Jesus
was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been
written of him and had been done to him. So the crowd that been
with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from
the dead continued to testify. It was also because they heard that he
had performed this sign that the crowd went to meet him.
'The Pharisees then said to one another. "You see, you can do
nothing. Look, the world has gone after him!

What Does Palm Sunday Mean?

"Jesus chose to enter Jerusalem riding on a donkey a colt. There is no doubt it
was a deliberate symbol. Was it to poke fun at the pretentions of the powerful?
Would they be expecting the Messiah to ride a white horse into the city?

But it is the donkey that speaks most powerfully of the ministry of Jesus.
He always seemed to choose the weak and the lowly as the symbols of his calling.
The lamb and the sheep, the dove and the donkey are all weak and powerless creatures.

By his action, Jesus was saying something about power and powerlessness.
The humility of his action stands in contrast to the crowd's expectation of him
as a conqueror. In the entry to Jerusalem, God is identified with the poor rather
than the rich, with the humble against the proud, with those who love against those
who hate, with peace against war. All the virtues which we tend to see as weak are
the ones which he claims to be strong. He gives up power and in his powerlessness
shows the greater strength.

In many Bible commentaries, this event is described as "the triumphal entry".
This statement is a complete misnomer. It arose in medieval times when the church
was obsessed with temporal power.

The truth is lost if we associate this event with triumphalism. Jesus entered Jerusalem
with all the symbols of simple humility. His actions were a mockery of the things
the world associates with power.

But it is in his humility that real strength resides. In his weakness is our strength."

Ron O'Grady
Aotearoa/New Zealand
From: The Bible Through Asian Eyes

Scripture:

"You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and
then you see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.
(Matthew 7:5)

Have you ever noticed this: If you ask a question, or if someone asks
you a question to describe someone else, you almost always begin
with negative characteristics about that person. It really uncanny how
often that happens. It happened to me not long ago. I was asked to write
a recommendation for someone I knew. This as a personel recomendation
specifically asking about this persons characteristics. I noticed, as I
was writing, I was beginning, right off, to speak negative about this person.
This Matthew 7:5 verse immediately flashed in my mind. I thought, "Kim
you hypocite, do you honestly think with all the logs in your eyes, you
need to show the few specks in his eyes!" It was time to take a second
look at what I was doing. My question is this: Don't you think it's time
to take a second look at your relationships and the logs in your own eyes?

Prayer:

Oh Lord help me to take care of the logs in my own eyes, there are
many. God help me to always leave judgement to you. THANK YOU GOD
FOR BEING GOD.

Quote:

The true hypocrite is the one who ceases to perceive his deception, the one who lies with sincerity”

The pickle jar as far back as I can remember sat on the floor beside the
dresser in my parents' bedroom. When he got ready for bed, Dad would
empty his pockets and toss his coins into the jar.

As a small boy I was always fascinated at the sounds the coins made as
they were dropped into the jar . They landed with a merry jingle when
the jar was almost empty. Then the tones gradually muted to a dull
thud as the jar was filled.
I used to squat on the floor in front of the jar and admire the copper
and silver circles that glinted like a pirate's treasure when the sun
poured through the bedroom window. When the jar was filled, Dad would
sit at the kitchen table and roll the coins before taking them to the
bank.

Taking the coins to the bank was always a big production . Stacked
neatly in a small cardboard box, the coins were placed between Dad and
me on the seat of his old truck.

Each and every time, as we drove to the bank, Dad would look at me
hopefully.

'Those coins are going to keep you out of the textile mill, son.
You're going to do better than me. This old mill town's not going to
hold you back.'

Also, each and every time, as he slid the box of rolled coins across the
counter at the bank toward the cashier, he would grin proudly 'These are
for my son's college fund. He'll never work at the mill all his life
like me.'

We would always celebrate each deposit by stopping for an ice cream
cone. I always got chocolate. Dad always got vanilla. When
the clerk at the ice cream parlor handed Dad his change, he would show
me the few coins nestled in his palm. 'When we get home, we'll start
filling the jar again.' He always let me drop the first coins into
the empty jar. As they rattled around with a brief, happy jingle, we
grinned at each other. 'You'll get to college on pennies, nickels,
dimes and quarters,' he said. 'But you'll get there; I'll see to
that.'

No matter how rough things got at home, Dad continued to doggedly drop
his coins into the jar. Even the summer when Dad got laid off from
the mill, and Mama had to serve dried beans several times a week, not a
single dime was taken from the jar.

To the contrary, as Dad looked across the table at me, pouring catsup
over my beans to make them more palatable, he became more determined
than ever to make a way out for me. 'When you finish college, Son,'
he told me, his eyes glistening, 'You'll never have to eat beans again -
unless you want to.'

The years passed, and I finished college and took a job in another town.
Once, while visiting my parents, I used the phone in their bedroom, and
noticed that the pickle jar was gone. It had served its purpose and
had been removed.
A lump rose in my throat as I stared at the spot beside the dresser
where the jar had always stood. My dad was a man of few words, and
never lectured me on the values of determination, perseverance, and
faith. The pickle jar had taught me all these virtues far more
eloquently than the most flowery of words could have done.

When I married, I told my wife Susan about the significant part the
lowly pickle jar had played in my life as a boy. In my mind, it
defined, more than anything else, how much my dad had loved me.

The first Christmas after our daughter Jessica was born, we spent the
holiday with my parents. After dinner, Mom and Dad sat next to each
other on the sofa, taking turns cuddling their first grandchild. Jessica
began to whimper softly, and Susan took her from Dad's arms. 'She
probably needs to be changed,' she said, carrying the baby into my
parents' bedroom to diaper her. When Susan came back into the living
room, there was a strange mist in her eyes.

She handed Jessica back to Dad before taking my hand and leading me into
the room. 'Look,' she said softly, her eyes directing me to a spot on
the floor beside the dresser. To my amazement, there, as if it had never
been removed, stood the old pickle jar, the bottom already covered with
coins. I walked over to the pickle jar, dug down into my pocket, and
pulled out a fistful of coins. With a gamut of emotions choking me, I
dropped the coins into the jar. I looked up and saw that Dad,
carrying Jessica, had slipped quietly into the room. Our eyes locked,
and I knew he was feeling the same emotions I felt. Neither one of us
could speak. This truly touched my heart. I know it has yours as
well. Sometimes we are so busy adding up our troubles that we forget to
count our blessings.

Never underestimate the power of your actions. With one small gesture
you can change a person's life, for better or for worse.

God puts us all in each other's lives to impact one another in some way.
Look for Good in others.
The best and most beautiful things cannot be seen or touched - they must
be felt with the heart ~ Helen Keller

- Happy moments, praise God.
- Difficult moments, seek God.
- Quiet moments, worship God.
- Painful moments, trust God.
- Every moment, thank God.