What would motivate Judas to betray the Son of God? Theories abound. Many reconstruct a supposed political radicalism. Perhaps he was disenchanted by Christ’s non-violence. Judas, we imagine, had been hoping for an uprising and was so disappointed by Christ’s way of peace that he sold Him out. That’s a fascinating supposition. But it’s both […]
If ever there was a man who could call himself the elect of the elect, it was Judas. He was not only Jewish, he was, in all probability, from the tribe of Judah. Certainly his name means “Judah” – which refers not simply to the southern kingdom of Israel but also to the royal tribe […]
My teenage years were haunted by Gethsemane. For a serious-minded 14 year old, this was the ultimate display of godly devotion. Here was Christ leading the way in the school of prayer – showing us how to “give it all up for God.” In desperation He prostrates Himself before the Father, He pours out His […]
It was the original poisoned chalice. Just minutes after pouring wine into a cup of blessing, Jesus prays to His Abba, Father regarding a very different cup: “Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder. And he took with him […]
It’s one of the first sounds a baby will make. ‘Ma ma ma ma’. Or ‘Ba ba ba ba’. Which is why, in so many languages, the proud parents take their babbling children to be speaking their names. ‘Mama’ or ‘Amma’ is a very common word for ‘mother’. And ‘Papa’ or ‘Baba’ is similarly common […]
The mission of Christ’s life was His death. It was His ‘glory’, or His ‘hour’ as He kept calling it. And on the night before He died He instituted a meal to commemorate this central act of His coming. Incredibly, Jesus did not mainly set Himself forth as the Host of this meal (although He […]
Every Sunday for 2000 years ministers of the gospel have been repeating this phrase. All over the world, Christ’s people gather to eat the bread and drink the wine and they hear these words: And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and […]
War memorials the world over record these words from Jesus: Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. (John 15:13) In the context of a war memorial we might picture a brave soldier taking a bullet for another. Or perhaps throwing himself on a grenade, or […]
Last time we saw the incomparable enormity of Jesus. He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. If we want to see God we must look no further but only at Jesus. For, as He says, “The Father is in me and I am in the Father.” (John 14:10) While we are still reeling […]
— “That’s the way.” — “Aint that the truth.” — “This is the life.” How do we tend to speak of the way, the truth and the life? For us, ‘the way’ is usually a technique or learned habit. In the ‘religious realm’ we might think of lengthy pilgrimages and ritualised approaches to God. For […]
