If you’re a believer in Jesus, then I pray that you are knowing and practicing what Jesus said were the two most important commandments, Mark 12:30-31 “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. This is the first commandment. And the second, like it, is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these.”
Jesus said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever; the Spirit of Truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.” (John 14:15-18)
Having that truth established, let’s take a look at some of the things that were going on in the hearts and minds of the disciples that closely walked with Jesus while He was here on earth. There are many situations that they went through that could be pointed out, but here we will take a look at some examples that happened right before He was crucified. In these situations we can be sure that times were getting more difficult for them to cope with and understand according to their own perspectives.
In Mark 14:3-11, we enter a scene where they were having dinner at the house of Simon the leper. In comes a woman with an alabaster flask of very costly oil of spikenard. She broke it and began to pour it upon Jesus. The beautiful fragrance filled the room, but something else filled the room as well; let’s just say that it wasn’t as sweet smelling ! It would have been great for all of them to take pause and reflect on the two most important things that mattered most to Jesus concerning our obedience. (The above mentioned commandments)
But reading on in verses 4-5 we find, “But there were some who were indignant among themselves, and said, “Why was this fragrant oil wasted ? For it might have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and given to the poor.” And they criticized her sharply.” We know that Jesus defended her actions and pointed out to them that she did what she could, and that wherever His gospel was preached in the whole world, what she had done would also be told as a memorial to her. She was anointing Him for His assignment of the cross, by giving her most love filled ointment of worship to Him. She gave no regard to what the people around her might think. Her actions showed who she loved most.
Then in verses 10-11, we see that Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, went out from this scene to the chief priests, to betray Jesus to them. Let’s remember here that Jesus washed the feet of Judas as well as the other disciples. When pure acts of honoring Jesus and His love are on display, you can be sure that the purely evil intentions of any other hearts will also come into manifestation. Judas was offended, and promptly went out led by Satan to do his bidding.
We can remind ourselves also that when Jesus gave the power and authority to His disciples to go out and do miracles, Judas was included as one of those twelve, yet allowed the enemy access to his heart. In all sincerity, I cannot believe that Judas never was a follower of Jesus. Jesus called him His friend when he came to the garden with the kiss of betrayal.
Now let’s go to what I consider to be some of the most sobering scriptures in the New Testament. If you are of the foundational biblical precepts that support the doctrine: Once you’ve given your heart to Jesus and been saved, your salvation is secure… Or if a person turns away from the Lord, they never were saved…
I would encourage you to take pause after reading this article, and seek God’s word. It says that He is the Spirit of truth, and by the Truth we can know Him and be set free.
In Mark 14:27-31 we hear Jesus speaking a truth to His disciples that they all denied !
“Then Jesus said to them, “All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for it is written: I will strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.” That is a very sobering revelation, for these were His closest followers. Let’s remember that He was not abandoning them.
When I’m thinking and praying about the brothers and sisters in Christ who God provides for me to walk with, am I going to be found faithful like Jesus was to those relationships, even when they stumble ? Or will I want to preserve myself and run from them ? Will I be evaluating and discerning these circumstances and relationships through the eyes and perspective of His heart, or my own wisdom that cautions me because of past experiences ?
When the disciples were going through these circumstances, they had Jesus physically beside them, but now we have Jesus spiritually within us, by the abiding presence of Holy Spirit.
Peter said, “Even if all are made to stumble, yet I will not be.” Jesus replied, “Assuredly, I say to you that today, even this night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times.” But Peter spoke more vehemently, “If I have to die with You, I will not deny You !” And they all said likewise.
Now it’s obvious here that Jesus is being very precise about what’s going to happen, but they were not comprehending it clearly.
If we take a moment to fast forward, we can look at the scene where Jesus encounters Peter with the probing question that matters so much to Him. What did He ask him ? Three times He said, “Do you love Me ?” (John 21:15-19) He’s showing Peter his own heart, and where His perspective is. Then He tells Peter to, “feed My sheep” with His kind of love.
Now let’s go back to the scene in Mark. Jesus takes Peter, James, and John with Him to the garden of Gethsemane to pray. (Mark 14:32-42) Jesus asked them to watch and pray with Him. He was very honest and transparent about what He was experiencing. He was a confident leader who could be transparent in the presence of His disciples. Verse 34 says, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch.”
Now if we were to see ourselves placed in this scene, it would be nice to believe that we would hear and feel the anguish of our best Friend’s heart, the Shepherd of our hearts, and would diligently be determined to stay there with Him through it.
Yet, when He came back to them three different times, each time they were sleeping. He specifically spoke to Peter upon returning the first time saying (verse 37-38) “Simon, are you sleeping ? Could you not watch for one hour ? Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” I’m reminded here of another passage that speaks of how Holy Spirit will provide a way of escape for us in times of temptation. But we will be held accountable for whether or not we are seeking His counsel and receive that provision.
(1 Corinthians 10:12-13)
While still in the garden, we read on to see how Judas, the betrayer of Jesus, brought a great multitude with swords and clubs, coming from the chief priests, scribes, and elders. Peter is physically wide awake now, but dulled in the spirit. I say that with the utmost respect and complete understanding, for I have found myself in the same condition on more than one occasion; believing that my defense of Jesus and trying to help Him out so fervently somehow put me in good standing with Him, but not seeking the perspective through His eyes or what His responses would be in the heated moment. Jesus’s heart was again on display as He healed the one that came with the mob to arrest Him. Oh to be like Him !!
Here in Mark 14:50, I find one of the most heartbreaking verses in the Bible. “Then they ALL forsook Him and fled.” Can we say here then that none of them were truly followers of Christ ? Of course not. Did they have a choice as to whether they would come back and continue walking with Him; after He returned from the dead, gave the promise of sending His Holy Spirit, and then ascended into heaven ? Of course they did. God never takes away our choices. He set that in motion as His pure act of love, in the garden of Eden. He wants us to love Him back, voluntarily; In every situation, every circumstance, every decision, all the time.
So, the question now is… Is my love and devotion to Him going to bring me to the fulfillment of Mark 12:30-31 ? Do I truly understand this kind of love that Jesus put on display for all of us ? 1 Corinthians 13 is a good place to grow in our understanding of His love.
Prayer: Holy Spirit, You have promised to guide us into all truth. I pray that by Your power and presence, You shine the light on the very core of our beings. Reveal to each one of our hearts, the true intentions and motivations that are seated there. Rather than fleeing from You, help us to run to You. We give You permission to strip us of every superficial allegiance that pertains to following You and Your perfect will, just as what happened to the young man following You, mentioned only in Mark 14:51-52. “Now a certain young man followed Him, having a linen cloth thrown around his naked body. And the young men laid hold of him, and he left the linen cloth and fled from them naked.”
Help us to completely surrender to Your ways that are higher than ours so that You can cover us in Your purity. Your perfect love casts out all fear, Lord, so teach us to walk in it with confidence. We yield our hearts to the full exposure that’s necessary to get us to see how wretched, miserable, poor, and naked we are without You. (Revelation 3:17-21) Help us to welcome how beautiful this exposure is in the spirit, in bringing us to be clothed in Your righteousness. (Isaiah 61:10-11)
Help us to not run away in self protection from relationships You have ordained within the body of Christ, but rather come to the garden of Your heart; and there, together gain Your perspective, responding in support and prayer for one another. Help us to catch the little foxes that would come to spoil the vine, for our vines have tender grapes, where You are bringing new wine, and fruit to the body of Christ. (Song of Solomon 2:15)
We come bowing low before You as You know every detail; You don’t miss anything. Reveal everything for what it truly is, and grant to us the ability to be honest with ourselves and others. Create in us clean hands and a pure heart. We desire to not quench, grieve, or insult You Holy Spirit. Teach us how to be an image bearer of Christ, so that when people see us, they don’t have a distorted view of who You are. Teach us to be the living epistle of 1 Corinthians 13.
Make Yourself at home, rearrange all the furniture and fixtures; sweep out every corner, and turn on Your lights in every room.
Go into our closets and show us what garments to remove that would defile us. Strip us of all filthy rags of self righteousness. Dress us in Your clean white linen garments that has been washed in Your blood.
We give You the deed to all the property; to remove anything that You know is not necessary, and would only bring destruction to us.
We take our positions at the gates, vowing to be Your watchmen on the walls.
Our spirits are willing. We commit ourselves to surrender any fleshly weaknesses to Your resurrection power that works so mightily within us.
Whatever it takes Lord, do that. Thank You for Your steadfast love. We vow to become steadfast in You, becoming like trees of righteousness planted by the rivers of living water, whose leaves never wither, bearing fruit in every season, no matter what comes our way. (Psalm 1:1-3)
By the baptism of Your Holy Spirit and Fire, we will endure to the end, even as Your disciples did back then.
(2 Timothy 2:1-13)