Reading Through John Devotionals – Week 16
See all Devotionals: https://graceforohio.org/category/reading-through-john-devotionals/
Day 106
“Judas, having procured a band of soldiers and some officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, went there with lanterns and torches and weapons. Then Jesus, knowing all that would happen to him, came forward and said to them, ‘Whom do you seek?’ They answered him, ‘Jesus of Nazareth.’ Jesus said to them, ‘I am he’ … They drew back and fell to the ground.” John 18:3-6 (ESV)
The gospel writers all cover similar events from Jesus’ life, but each highlights particular details and aspects of Jesus’ identity. One of John’s intentions was to establish Jesus’ supremacy and victory over the very circumstances that were meant to degrade and humiliate Him. Consider Jesus’ arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane: He surrendered willingly, but authoritatively, revealing His majesty as Savior of the world. Once, people had tried to force a king’s crown upon Jesus, and He had withdrawn because He knew that worldly kingship was not His destiny (John 6:15). Here, when the soldiers came to force a cross upon Him, He knew all that would unfold. They were surely expecting to have to search far and wide for this notorious Galilean carpenter. Instead, here He was, willingly surrendering, with a majesty in His voice, a look in His eye, and a bearing about His person that contributed to the magnitude of the moment. No wonder they “drew back and fell to the ground.”
When Jesus surrendered Himself to those who would treat Him as a blasphemer and a criminal, He did not deny who He was. In fact, He used language that communicated His divine identity and authority. Jesus used the phrase “I am” not only to tell the soldiers He was Jesus of Nazareth but also to identify Himself as the one who had appeared to Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:14). This was the same phrase that had, months earlier, seen Him nearly stoned (John 8:58-59) for it was a clear claim to be the self-existent, living God.
Now here is this God, stepping forward to stop His friends’ resisting and allowing His enemies to kill Him. Why? As Christ came forward in the garden, He was not only protecting His disciples but also providing for His people. He stepped forth as the substitute for sinful humans, as the fulfillment of all that had long been anticipated. He knew exactly what He stepped toward: “Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18).
In His combination of willing surrender and divine authority, Christ took the next step toward the cross where His sacrifice won our salvation. He did not run from the cross but rather walked resolutely toward it. And He did that for you.
It is a thing most wonderful,
Almost too wonderful to be,
That God’s own Son should come from heaven,
And die to save a child like me.
- How is God calling me to think differently?
- How is God reordering my heart’s affections—what I love?
- What is God calling me to do as I go about my day today?
Day 107
“My kingdom is not of this world … You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” JOHN 18:36-37 (ESV)
What will you do with Jesus? On the morning of what is now known as the first Good Friday, the Jewish religious authorities took Jesus to continue His trial before Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor. We can see in the details of the Gospel accounts how God sovereignly orchestrated all of these events. The Jews’ determination to secure Christ’s death by crucifixion would actually fulfill God’s plan from eternity. God had also planned Christ’s interaction with Pilate. As they stood before one another, Pilate asked significant questions about Jesus’ identity and authority. These questions formed an examination with eternal ramifications—an examination we all must make. Consider how the hymn writer puts it:
Jesus is standing in Pilate’s hall—
Friendless, forsaken, betrayed by all;
Hearken! What meaneth the sudden call?
What will you do with Jesus?
Pilate believed he was holding an examination on a purely intellectual, natural level. But answering the question “Who is Jesus?” is always a spiritual, supernatural matter. Jesus wasn’t a political king, as Pilate believed, but the heavenly King. He essentially told Pilate, My kingdom doesn’t find its origin in this world. The concern of My kingdom is the spiritual transformation that is brought about in the hearts of My people. The reason why I was born as a King was to testify to God’s truth. But Pilate, blind in his unbelief, had already made up his mind. Jaded and disdainful, he sought to avoid the fundamental question we all must ask: “What will I do with Jesus?” But in trying not to answer, he nevertheless gave his answer: I shall reject His claim on me and His rule over me, and therefore, His offer to rescue me.
What will you do with Jesus?
Neutral you cannot be;
Someday your heart will be asking,
“What will He do with me?”
Neutral you cannot be. You will either live under Jesus’ rule or you will not. So do not close your Bible in the morning and then live as though this world and its concerns and kings are all that is or all that matters. Do not proceed as though Jesus has no place or interest in your life in this world. He stood friendless and forsaken before Pilate so that you might be welcomed as His friend into His eternal kingdom. There is no option of neutrality—but why would we want there to be?
- How is God calling me to think differently?
- How is God reordering my heart’s affections—what I love?
- What is God calling me to do as I go about my day today?
Further Reading: John 18:15-40
Day 108
“Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, ‘Behold the man!’” JOHN 19:5 (ESV)
There Christ stood—His head pierced with a crown of thorns, dressed up in another’s clothes, forced to hold a reed as a scepter, all in mockery of His kingship—as the Roman governor Pilate declared to the jeering crowd, “Behold the man!” While he spoke those words with scorn in mind, they were ironically appropriate; there stood the Savior of the world, arrayed in unparalleled humility, adorned with a lavish love for the world.
We have much to learn from Christ’s example. As the humble King endured royal ridicule and the “pre-death death” of brutal flogging, He did not utter a word of self-defense. And for what did they condemn Him? For healing a woman who was crippled for 18 years (Luke 13:10-13)? For bringing back to life the widow of Nain’s dead son (Luke 7:11-17)? For bringing Lazarus forth from the grave (John 11:1-44)? For taking children on His knee and encouraging His disciples to understand that “to such belongs the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 19:14)? On what basis did Christ’s accusers find it in themselves to abuse Him in this way? There could be none. But they did it anyway.
When our humble Lord remained silent during His numerous trials, Pilate took offense and felt disrespected. There is great irony here, as this Roman governor attempted to pull rank on the King of the universe! And all the while, that King did nothing to assert His authority or save His own life. He humbly suffered an unjust trial, spoke truth when asked questions, and walked forward even unto death, all on our behalf.
I ask myself: Do I truly see this man who stands before Pilate, who stands before the crowd, who stands before me? This is not some helpless individual who can do nothing for Himself. This is God incarnate.
Do I understand why He went down this road of humiliation? “Oh, the love that drew salvation’s plan”[1]—love and salvation for you and me! Two millennia ago, there stood a sorry spectacle outside the governor’s palace, in part because Jesus had our names before His gaze—names He had graven on the palms of those hands that would be pierced by the cruel nails (see Isaiah 49:16).
May we never be like the riotous crowd, mocking Christ’s humility, nor like Pilate, looking for Christ to be impressed with us. Instead, behold this man in all His humility— holding this reed, bearing this crown, wearing this costume, hanging on that cross—and see Him beckoning. Behold the man, and know beyond all doubt that His love for you knows no end.
- How is God calling me to think differently?
- How is God reordering my heart’s affections—what I love?
- What is God calling me to do as I go about my day today?
Further Reading: Isaiah 52:13-15 & Isaiah 53
Day 109
“When the chief priests and the officers saw him, they cried out, ‘Crucify him, crucify him!’ Pilate said to them, ‘Take him yourselves and crucify him, for I find no guilt in him.’ The Jews answered him, ‘We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die because he has made himself the Son of God.’ When Pilate heard this statement, he was even more afraid.” JOHN 19:6-8 (ESV)
Whose praise will you live for?
When Christ was put on trial before Pilate, the Roman governor repeatedly declared His innocence, and yet he paired his declarations with dreadful acts against Him.
Pilate said, “I find no guilt in him,” and then handed Jesus over to be brutally flogged, a beating so intense that it sometimes caused gashes and lacerations where veins, arteries, and internal organs would be exposed.
Pilate said, “I find no guilt in him,” and then let the soldiers humiliate Jesus with a mock coronation, placing a crown of thorns upon His head, dressing Him up, and scornfully “worshiping” Him.
Pilate said, “I find no guilt in him,” but did he release Jesus? No, he surrendered Jesus to a vicious execution squad to be killed.
There was never a more tormented individual that met Christ than Pilate. Here was a man of great power but who lacked the courage to stand by his convictions. Here was a man of great success but who compromised, showing himself under the trappings of his position to be a coward. Here was a governor who was governed by his own weaknesses.
We cannot be passive or indecisive regarding who Christ is to us. Is He the Savior, or is He no one? To abstain from a decision about this, as Pilate sought to do, is to abstain from Christ altogether.
Pilate stands as a challenge to each of us. His conduct compels us to ask ourselves: In what situations do I, like Pilate, know the right thing to do in some way and yet fear what other people will say if I do it? Are there ways in which my words or conduct are governed more by the expectations and reaction of others, or by considerations of wealth, position, or promotion, than by the commands of Christ?
Let’s not compromise on our position regarding Christ. If we let the opinions of our colleagues, our neighbors, or our families concern us too much, we may find ourselves giving up forgiveness, peace, heaven, and Christ Himself in exchange for an easier life now. Instead, let’s be brave.
Look again at Christ: flogged, mocked, and killed out of love for you. Then look at those who, perhaps vociferously, or perhaps politely, scoff at His truth. Who would you rather offend? Whose “well done” would you rather hear?
Christ is beckoning us to Him so that we might go out and live for Him. Will you come, and will you go?
- How is God calling me to think differently?
- How is God reordering my heart’s affections—what I love?
- What is God calling me to do as I go about my day today?
Further Reading: JOHN 19:1-16
Day 110
“Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross. It read, ‘Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.’” JOHN 19:19 (ESV)
As Jesus was crucified upon the cross, a sign was inscribed and erected over Him, proclaiming Him to be “the King of the Jews.” While this sign was meant as a taunt, it declared a truth for all to witness: Jesus was and is indeed King! Yet it also should prompt us to ask ourselves: Do I really live as though Jesus is King of my life?
Scripture tells us that the sign was written in three languages—Aramaic, the language of most first-century Jews in and around Jerusalem; Latin, the official language of the Roman Empire; and Greek, the popular language of commerce and culture (John 19:20). In these three languages, witnesses from all across the known world were able to read that Jesus was King. Upon reading the sign, the whole world had to make their choice about who Jesus was to them.
We see a microcosm of that world—and ours—in the range of characters throughout the story of Jesus’ death. In Pilate, we see the proud, indecisive, calculating politician. In the soldiers nailing Christ to His cross, we see those focused on carrying out routine business. In those who mocked the Lord, we see people whose only interaction with the divine is to sneer at Him. In the crowd of passive onlookers, we see those who have no interest at all in eternal matters. But then, amid the darkness, on a neighboring cross we see a desperate and dying thief look to the Savior for hope—and find it. And in Jesus’ nearby family and friends, we see sorrowful but faithful followers standing by Christ and His claims and witnessing His burial in a tomb that would soon be empty.
All these people saw the sign: Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews. All of them saw the man on the cross beneath it. Whether hateful or hopeful, all beheld this historic event, and all had to reconcile it and the personhood of Christ with their own lives. As the sign hung proclaiming Christ’s kingship, Jesus hung proclaiming the most powerful love the world has known.
The question remains: What are we to do with this love? Each of us can find a face in the crowd with whom we identify, be it one of the proud, the passive, or the faithful. All of us are confronted with the life-changing person of Jesus Christ.
How do the cross and the empty tomb affect your relationships, your work, your purpose, or your identity? If Jesus reigns over you, His death and resurrection change everything about the way you live and the meaning of your life. There is hope for eternity and purpose for today in looking at this man and agreeing with that sign. “Jesus is King”—of the Jews and the Gentiles, of the entire world, and of your life and mine.
- How is God calling me to think differently?
- How is God reordering my heart’s affections—what I love?
- What is God calling me to do as I go about my day today?
Further Reading: LUKE 23:32-56
Day 111
“When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, ‘It is finished,’ and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.” JOHN 19:30 (ESV)
The events surrounding Jesus’ death were largely routine motions of Roman jurisdiction. The trials, the beatings, the humiliating procession, and the painful crucifixion were all a part of business as usual for soldiers involved in executing criminals. What wasn’t routine, though, was the darkness that descended over the whole event in the middle of the day (Matthew 27:45), as though God had closed His eyes on the sorrowful scene. This was both a routine execution and the greatest turning point in all eternity.
What made it so important was the identity of the man hanging on the middle cross: none other than God incarnate. Our minds should never cease to be amazed by this:
Well might the sun in darkness hide,
And shut its glories in,
When Christ, the mighty Maker, died
For man the creature’s sin.
Scripture does not place much emphasis on Christ’s physical sufferings on the cross. He surely did suffer grievous physical pain, but “the sufferings of his body were nothing to the sufferings of his soul; these were the soul of his sufferings.”[2] Jesus fully experienced all of the pain and agony of being separated relationally from God the Father—physically, mentally, and spiritually. Whatever you face in your life, know that Jesus has gone through worse, and therefore, understands how you feel. Not only that, but also the unimaginable anguish He endured was for you. Only when the time was right did Christ triumphantly proclaim, “It is finished”—tetelestai: the debt is satisfied and done with.
Christ’s crucifixion is often portrayed with the cross erected high above the onlooking crowd. In reality, though, once the cross was lowered into its setting, His feet were likely very close to the ground. In the same way, Christ’s life, death, and resurrection do not stand high above our lives, but intimately, close to them. No, Jesus’ death was no ordinary death, but rather a death that promises to give, through faith, true life. Everything changes when we consider all that took place on that cross and say to ourselves:
Wounded for me, wounded for me,
There on the cross He was wounded for me;
Gone my transgression, and now I am free,
All because Jesus was wounded for me.
- How is God calling me to think differently?
- How is God reordering my heart’s affections—what I love?
- What is God calling me to do as I go about my day today?
Further Reading: JOHN 19:17-42; LUKE 15:11-32
Day 112
“Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, ‘I have seen the Lord.’” JOHN 20:18 (ESV)
What turns fear to faith?
After Jesus’ crucifixion, the disciples were in complete shambles, dejected and huddled together in fear of persecution. One of them, Judas, was already dead by suicide. Another, Peter, had caved in under pressure and denied Jesus, their leader and teacher, whom they had witnessed being brutally killed. Their hopes and dreams had seemingly died along with Him. Yet just weeks later, this same dejected bunch were on the streets of Jerusalem boldly declaring Jesus as the resurrected Messiah. What turned these men from craven fear to courageous faith? What can make the same change in us? Only the risen Jesus.
The disciples’ Jewish background led them to believe that the Messiah would appear and remain forever. This initially caused them to be crushed by Jesus’ death, for it seemed to mark utter defeat rather than glorious victory. Their shift to confidently proclaiming Jesus as Messiah after His death has only one possible explanation: they must have seen the resurrected Jesus. If they had not, they would have just fondly, or perhaps bitterly, remembered Him as their beloved teacher—but nothing more. What possible forgiveness and hope can be found in a dead man? But with a risen Messiah, suddenly everything changes.
The Bible tells us in firsthand accounts that the disciples encountered the risen Christ (see for instance John 20:11 – 21:23). Some make the argument that the disciples hallucinated only “seeing” Him because of their all-consuming faith. But remember, they didn’t initially have faith in a resurrection! In fact, Scripture tells us that they sat behind locked doors in fear and disappointment (20:19). And even if they had imagined a risen and reigning Christ, they probably wouldn’t have imagined a Jesus who cooked and ate fish on the beach, who still had scars from His brutal death, and who walked the streets and encountered them in numerous ways. Nor would they have portrayed themselves as so cowardly or included the reports of women (whose testimony was not considered valid in that culture). Rather, they would have presented themselves as the brave and prominent figures who first discovered the empty tomb. Any kind of alternative explanation for the empty tomb demands even more “faith” than trusting in what has been revealed to us in the word of God.
The resurrection changes everything. We must consider the facts surrounding Jesus’ return from the dead, but we must also consider the glorious good news that it offers us. Without the literal bodily resurrection of Jesus, Christianity is worthless; “Your faith is futile” (1 Corinthians 15:17). But since Jesus has indeed risen and is indeed reigning, then in Him is forgiveness that can be found in no other, and in Him is a future hope like no other. Have you, with the eye of faith, seen the Lord risen and reigning? Then you will, like Mary and like the disciples, see your doubt-filled fear turn to trusting faith as you boldly proclaim this hope to your own heart and to this fearful world.
- How is God calling me to think differently?
- How is God reordering my heart’s affections—what I love?
- What is God calling me to do as I go about my day today?
Further Reading: JOHN 20:1-18
Day 113
“He showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.” JOHN 20:20 (ESV)
The first Easter did not look like a typical Easter celebration.
Before Jesus’ resurrection was discovered, the day was marked by tears, devastation, and bewilderment—not joy, hope, and praise. The disciples were gathered out of fear, to protect one another, not to sing “Christ the Lord is risen today, Alleluia!”[1] They sat in sadness; their story had come to a grinding halt with the next page blank.
Or so they thought.
The Bible does not attempt to deny or idealize the grief felt by Christ’s followers after His crucifixion. They didn’t understand what had happened, and they certainly didn’t know what would happen next. Their sadness reveals humanity’s limitations in knowing the bigger picture. Despite the Old Testament prophecies and Jesus’ own foretelling of His death (Mark 8:31; 9:31; 10:33-34), John’s gospel tells us that they “as yet did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead” (John 20:9). They didn’t understand that when Jesus said from the cross, “It is finished” (19:30), He was not expressing defeat but declaring victory.
This victory meant resurrection. And as the resurrected Savior came to the disciples in their darkness, fear, and sadness, He brought transformation. Their unbelief turned to belief and their sadness to gladness. That gladness was rooted in the fact that they understood that Jesus had risen from the dead. Their faith and their future returned and were rooted in this wonderful reality. The darkness of their despair made the light of the resurrection all the more glorious.
If you are looking for a god that will just make you glad, you shouldn’t look for the God of the Bible. He does make us glad—more so than anyone or anything else—but He often starts by making us sad. We are saddened by this broken world, saddened by our own sin, saddened that on the cross Jesus died for our wickedness, disobedience, and disinterest. It is only through truly feeling such sorrow that we can fully understand the gladness that comes with our account being settled, our debt being paid, and our wrongs being forgiven.
We can know the gladness of a love that loves us even though we are not worthy of it— that loves us when we don’t want to listen. What kind of love is this? It is the love of God for men and women, for you and me! Today, look away from yourself and look at Him. This is love, and when we know we are loved in this way, we are able to see the healing in the harm and that sadness can be the soil in which eternal gladness grows. About which part of your life—perhaps a part full of pain, or regret, or anxiety—do you need to hear this today? Remember that whatever you are walking through, it remains true that Christ the Lord is risen. Hallelujah!
- How is God calling me to think differently?
- How is God reordering my heart’s affections—what I love?
- What is God calling me to do as I go about my day today?
Further Reading: JOHN 20:19-31
Happy Easter!
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See all Devotionals: https://graceforohio.org/category/reading-through-john-devotionals/