Scripture

Matthew 26:30-32 NLT

Then they sang a hymn and went out to the Mount of Olives. On the way, Jesus told them, “Tonight all of you will desert me. For the Scriptures say, ‘God will strike the Shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ But after I have been raised from the dead, I will go ahead of you to Galilee and meet you there.”

Consider

This passage follows the description of Jesus’ Last Supper with his twelve disciples. They each have experienced their master’s kneeling before them to wash the dirt from their feet and have received the bread and wine of the new covenant from their master’s hand. They’ve concluded their meal with a hymn, which scholars suggest was a hallel psalm—a song of praise—possibly Psalm 136, in which the refrain “his steadfast love endures forever” is repeated 26 times.

Imagine the deep fellowship and holy intimacy these disciples felt as they left the Upper Room together and set out for the Mount of Olives, possibly on their way to Bethany to pass another night. Then imagine the emotional sting of their beloved master’s next words: “I’m going to my death, and every one of you will desert me to save yourselves.”

Despite their protestations to the contrary, Jesus knew his disciples would fail him within the next few hours. Yet the words he spoke to them were hopeful and without condemnation. We can learn something about our Lord from the way he cared for his disciples in the face of their imminent desertion.

• Jesus forgave them before they even committed the offense. He demonstrated forgiveness that is truly unconditional and wholly motivated by his own love for them and acceptance of their human fallibility.
• Jesus reassured them that even their acts of desertion were not outside the sovereignty of the Father. By referring to the prophecy of Scripture, he helped them to see that God’s rule accommodates human failure and succeeds anyway.
• Jesus spoke of his death but also of his resurrection, as he had done on previous occasions. He was preparing his disciples for the dark days ahead when they would question their cowardly actions and wonder if they had spoiled the hope for the coming of God’s kingdom.
• Jesus promised to go ahead of them to Galilee and meet them there. Despite their sin, Jesus was willing to wait for them to catch up to him, to welcome them and restore their broken fellowship.
• Jesus believed the sincerity of their faith and that their desertion was a failure of courage, not of their devotion to him. The steadfastness of Jesus’ love for them would encourage them to be steadfast in their great call to make disciples of all the nations.

In those times when we know we have failed our Lord by the things we do or say, or by our failure to stand with him in the face of ridicule or persecution, we can be confident that our failures and mistakes are still within the benevolent sovereignty of God’s plan for our lives. Like those first disciples, we can be confident that Jesus waits ahead for us, already forgiving us and patiently waiting for us to catch up and renew our deep fellowship with him.

Pray

Lord Jesus, your steadfast love will hold me up when my sin threatens to pull me down into self-loathing and bitter regret. Help me to see you up ahead, waiting for me, ready with your forgiveness and the peace you promise for all who abide in you.

Reflect

Zechariah 13:7-9; John 16:28-33

Ponder

What would my steadfast love for another person look like? How would such love change my ability to forgive?