Abandoned

This is the First Mustang Pulpit Podcast, a podcast of the weekly preaching and teaching at First Mustang.! Thank you for joining us. Lord, we declare today that you are a holy God and our hearts submit to you.

May the songs that we have sung and the prayers we have prayed and the scripture we have read now be lived out in our lives and our hearts and our thoughts and attitudes. We submit ourselves to your goodness, to your sovereign rule.

We submit ourselves to the authority of your word where you have revealed your heart and mind to us that we could know you in spirit and in truth. Lord, I pray that the evidence of that would be that for the next few moments we join our hearts together with Bibles open, listening, seeking to hear not simply from a preacher this morning, but more than that, to hear from you as your word is read and explained.

I pray that you would, to the work of your spirit, protect us from distractions or from being a distraction to others.

That we would approach your words, that we would approach your word today with great reverence, seriousness, and passion.

That our hearts would be aligned with your will, our mind engaged, and that we would not only seek truth today, but we would do so with a heart that truly loves your son.

In his name we pray. Amen. I have been to the Garden of Gethsemane a couple of times.

It is truly one of my most prized memories. To be in the Garden of Gethsemane, to read scripture there, to have sung songs and hymns of worship, to have read the word and to have preached the word in the Garden of Gethsemane, is quite a sobering experience.

One of the things that strikes me when I've been able to be a part of worship in the Garden of Gethsemane, is that just on the other side of the Garden today, is a road where vehicles and buses hurriedly and noisily pass through.

And it strikes me the times I've been there because it seems like where we are in the Garden of Gethsemane is such a significant place, it just feels like everything else should hush in reverence.

To read about our Savior praying, to read about our Savior being betrayed, being arrested, and then led to trial and soon after to crucifixion, to see and read of that taking place in the Garden, and to stand in the Garden of worship, and to just notice how much distraction is going on, just feels a bit of dissonance in your soul.

Until you remember that the climactic event in the Garden of Gethsemane, which we read about today in Mark 14, took place at a time when Christ was praying and preparing to lay down His life, and yet all around Him were people who simply did not care about His life or His message.

He will be inundated by a mob seeking only to arrest Him and take Him off for crucifixion. This garden is both a special place because of what takes place and a tragic place.

As we looked at last week, Jesus has been praying with His disciples. Judas has left to do the work of preparing to betray Jesus.

Jesus has asked His disciples to watch and to pray. It's late on Thursday night. Jesus is praying to His Father. He is in agony, He says.

His soul is sorrowful even to death. Verse 34 says, And these disciples who are called to watch and to pray, that they may not enter into temptation, instead slumber.

Jesus three times goes and says, Why are you asleep? Can you not stay awake to pray, to do spiritual work, to labor with me in the battle for even just an hour?

And that brings us today in Mark 14 to verse 41. He came the third time and said to them, Are you still sleeping and taking your rest?

It is enough. The hour has come. Throughout the Gospels, there is this phrase where Jesus would say, It's not my hour yet, or His hour has not yet come.

Jesus is not going to die one second before it was the Father's will. He is not going to die any other way besides what has been decreed by the Father.

And what we see happening is that in Jesus' life, everything had a purpose, everything had a time, and it's all been hinting at His hour.

It's not yet His hour. Speaking of this climactic event of when Christ would ultimately lay down His life as a sacrifice for our sin, and when you get to verse 41, it is now His hour.

The hour has come. Make note first in verses 41 to 43, the son of perdition, the son of perdition, speaking of one who will betray and face judgment, verse 41.

Jesus says, The son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise. Let us be going.

My betrayer is at hand. They've been in the garden praying. They've left the upper room, crossed the Kidron Valley, up there on the Mount of Olives to the Garden of Gethsemane, where they've spent the last hour, Jesus in prayer, the apostles mainly in sleep.

Judas, who had been dismissed from the upper room, left to go make arrangements to enact their plan to find Jesus. It was Jesus' custom to go to the Garden of Gethsemane.

He doesn't hide from that. He knows, Judas knows, that's where he will be, and sure enough, now the betrayer is at hand. Verse 43, Immediately, while he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a crowd of swords and clubs from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders.

The chief priests and the scribes and the elders make up the Sanhedrin, the supreme court of the day in their land. The chief priest would be the high priest, that is Caiaphas.

Any former living high priest, that would include Annas. Family leaders from the families of the high priest. The scribes were teachers of the law.

the elders were laymen, leaders of cities and towns. So the mob that comes to attack and accuse and arrest Jesus represents the Sanhedrin.

These are the leaders of the people. We know from John's gospel there were Roman troops who accompanied them. John 18.3 says it was a cohort.

The language, the wording that's used in the gospels refers to a term that can refer to a group of people anywhere from 200 to maybe as many as 600 people.

We don't know for sure how many people are with them but it's a massive group. The leaders of the Jewish people are there, the leaders of the Roman authorities are there.

They are fully armed. The soldiers of the cohort have a sword that they carry. And so in the garden you have Jesus and 11 disciples, not 12 because Judas had already left to betray.

So you have Jesus and the 11, 12 total there and now here come hundreds of men to the garden. They have torches, they have clubs, and they have swords.

Now you may wonder why are so many people apart? Why are so many men needed to come and carry out this act? Remember, it was just a couple of days ago in that week when Jesus has gone to the temple and shut down all that was going on.

There were maybe as many as 200,000 people in that temple area when Jesus by himself shut it all down. They've seen his power, they've witnessed his authority, and they're concerned.

So they take not a small group, a large mob to go and arrest Jesus. And it's so ironic here that in a day where there was such conflict between Jew and Gentile, what you see are the Jewish leaders and the Gentile leaders choosing to get along splendidly because they have a common desire.

They oppose Jesus. John 18 12 says that they came carrying lanterns and torches. It's nighttime.

It's just before midnight Thursday night. Their assumption is that we're going to find out where he is thanks to Judas, the insider, they were able to know that Jesus would very likely be in the garden of Gethsemane because that was his custom.

And so their thought is when he sees Jesus coming, he surely is going to run. And when he runs, he's going to be trying to hide behind the rocks or the trees, trying to find some kind of place in the hills to go.

And so they're going to need their torches and their lanterns to be able to find him. It will all be unnecessary though. He's not hiding.

the Bible tells us the swords belong to the Romans, the clubs belong to a group known as the temple police. So you've got religious authorities, political authorities, Jewish authorities, Roman authorities, all of them gathering here.

They want to arrest Jesus away from the people to make sure there's no riot, but just in case things go bad, an absolute pandemonium breaks out, they are prepared.

They've got their swords, they've got their clubs, they're ready to deal with anyone, including Jesus, who may try to run or fight. Jesus says, my betrayer is at hand, the son of perdition, Judas himself.

That leads us to verse 45, and we see a second thing, and that is the sign of betrayal. There's a very specific sign that has been arranged.

It says, starting in verse 24, now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, the one I will kiss is the man.

Seize him and lead him away under guard. This is a pre-arranged sign, a pre-arranged signal.

The idea is Judas has told the authorities, I know where he's going to be. This is where we always go. The crowd's going to come with him.

It's dark. They're carrying lanterns and torches to help them to see. they don't want to arrest the wrong person. Judas says, I know him.

I'll recognize him. I'll show up and I will go and I will give him a kiss of affection, a kiss of friendship. I will try to disarm Christ and the apostles so they don't think that something untoward is happening but the one that I kiss on the cheek will be the one that you will know is the one to arrest.

Verse 45, he came and he went up to him at once and said, Rabbi, and he kissed him. And Judas turns a sign of affection into a sign of betrayal.

And with that, we won't read the name of Judas again in the Gospel of Mark. But we do know what happens to him.

We'll talk about in the coming weeks. Jesus, after he's arrested, is going to go through a series of trials. trials. And at the end of that third trial, that third Jewish religious trial, where he is accused of blasphemy, claiming to be the Son of God, Judas is going to hear that Christ has been convicted.

He knows what is coming. Matthew 27 tells us that Judas will be filled with sorrow, not repentance, but sorrow.

He will then go and hang himself and take his own life. It's a tragic, tragic end. what happens next, we get from the Gospel of John, John 18 specifically.

It's the third thing I want to show you, and it's the show of authority. Let me just read to you what happens in John 18. Then Jesus, knowing all that would happen to him, came forward and said to them, whom do you seek?

In other words, Jesus, the Gospel of John is clear that Jesus knows what's happening here. He's not tricked. He wasn't out-schemed.

He wasn't overwhelmed with power. It's not that he missed a clue. Jesus, knowing all that would happen to him, he went to the guard and knowing what would happen to him.

He steps forward. Here's Judas, who has embraced him to identify who they're supposed to arrest. Here's this intimidating mob, not to Jesus, but to everyone else who would have seen it.

Jesus doesn't try to avert them. He doesn't try to run from them. His hour has come. So, he says, whom do you seek? John 18, verse 5, they answered him, Jesus of Nazareth.

And here, Jesus responds this way, I am he. I am.

The covenantal name of God. Jesus says, I am. And when he says that, hearkening back to Exodus 3, 14, where God revealed himself to Moses as the one who says, I am who I am, they fell to the ground.

It's this unbelievable scene. This mob of men coming in this display of power and might and authority and intimidation when Jesus steps forward and simply says, I am.

All the men, all the powerful men, the ones carrying the swords and the clubs and the torches and the lanterns, they fall down.

This is unspeakable authority that Jesus has. one of the tragic things of this whole episode is it tells us Judas who betrayed him was standing with them.

Judas in the garden is standing right next to Christ. You could not physically be closer to salvation than Judas was.

You could not physically be any closer in proximity to the Son of God than Judas was. He's right next to him.

Yet he is unconverted. by this point Judas has fully aligned himself with the enemies of Christ and now he is simply doing in body what his heart has already done and that is turn away from Christ.

Jesus says I am he they drew back and they fell to the ground. And you know what's important to see here?

There are likely close to as many people in this sanctuary today right now in this service as there would have been in the mom that came to arrest Jesus.

It would be we can't know for sure but it would have been something close to this. And when Jesus steps forward facing this huge crowd and says whom are you seeking and they say Jesus of Nazareth and he says I am and they all fall let me tell you what this was this was not only a sovereign display of power this was at the same time a gracious final invitation to the mom why is it that the entire mob would fall over at just the name of Jesus this is a preview of what the bible tells us is coming for all of us one day when every knee will bow philippines!

describes it as every tongue confessing that Jesus Christ is Lord not unto salvation once you have died that's it yet even those who rebel against the gospel will have a moment where they acknowledge that Christ is Lord and they will not be forced to do it as much as they will not be unable to not do it because that's what the authority of Christ does it overwhelms you and even here as these four five hundred men maybe six hundred men start to pick themselves up from the ground and dust themselves off and look around and regather their club and regather their sword and regather their lantern and try to once again appear powerful and strong and intimidating even then they recognize and they realize this man has an authority unlike anything we've ever seen in our life this is a final invitation to a group of rebels to say you are in a losing battle if you oppose me and yet they will not repent repent it may be in your heart today you have heard the gospel so many times and I want you to hear me clear this morning if your strategy is to put off and ignore the gospel assuming that one day down the road you will convince your heart to repent you are making a foolish and tragic choice hearts that deny become hardened and calloused why would you assume that after time and again and again of denying and rebelling that you would do something different this show of authority if we were able to watch it would be so mesmerizing we would struggle to describe it it leads to a fourth thing that we see and that is the sword of revenge back to

Mark's gospel verses 46 and 47 the sword of revenge and they laid hands on him and seized him but one of those who stood by drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his ear John 18 tells us this was Peter who took out a sword he had carried with him and struck the ear of Malchus we've looked at this before in other settings but in case this is new to you of understanding the details here and you're wondering to yourself why in the world in this scene why is Peter trying to cut off the ear of Malchus just understand he wasn't aiming for the ear he's aiming for the head he's aiming for the neck probably what happened is he aimed for the neck

Malchus turned his head and probably the sword ricocheted off of a helmet he would have been wearing and in so doing ended up cutting off his ear Peter's goal was not to de-ear Malchus it was to behead Malchus so while we look at Peter's life and see all kinds of things that are imperfect and we just looked at Jesus talking to Peter and he is sleeping when he should be praying we looked a couple of weeks ago Jesus foretells prophesies of the denial of Peter Peter is soon going to be at his worst moment but I'll say this for him he was willing to fight for Jesus now just a couple of hours later he'll deny that he even knows it but in this moment he at least is willing to fight for him now it's a bit of a confusing study to wrap your mind about what's going on with

Peter because apparently just a few minutes ago Peter was so weak he couldn't stay awake and pray fast forward just a few minutes and he's got a sword swinging for heads that reminds me a lot of ourselves doesn't it one moment we're lazy we're negligent we're distracted we're sinful the next moment we're filled with boldness and fight one moment you're loving your spouse honoring your spouse serving your spouse and the next moment selfish demanding your own way one moment you're in the word you're reading you're praying you're confessing sin you're studying you're worshiping you're singing you're memorizing scripture the next moment your eyes behold things they should not see with sinful thoughts racing through your minds that have no place being in the mind of a believer were a lot like

Peter he was sleeping and he woke up and he was swinging a sword Luke 22 tells us that when this happened Jesus then touched the ear of Malchus and healed him John 18 11 he tells Peter put the sword away and can I just remind you brothers and sisters today that our weapons as God's people are not swords and clubs our weapons are preaching and prayer our weapons are not sassy social media rebuttals our weapons are the proclamation of the word and prayer with the

Lord and there are so many people that call themselves believers that at times are so ready to swing their sword and yet sleep when they should be in prayer here's a question why didn't the hundreds of men gathered there why didn't they just kill Jesus in the garden why wouldn't hundreds of men who have come to arrest Jesus with just nothing more than the goal to put him to death anyway and if they needed a little bit of covering because it would be legal for them to have done so surely they could say well one of his own defenders swung at the head of one of our guys and I just want to remind you it wasn't prophesied that Jesus would die by a sword or that he would die by being beat up and trampled it was told that

Jesus would be lifted up on a cross in fact Jesus is depicted of being crucified before the act of crucifixion came to be known in human history Jesus is not ultimately dying at the hands of these men this is the eternal plan of God to save sinners which leads us to a fifth thing I want you to see this morning that is the scriptures fulfillment the scriptures fulfillment verse 48 Jesus said to them have you come out as against a robber with swords and clubs to capture me in other words Jesus is saying what's the purpose of the mob what's the purpose of the swords and the clubs they are not only unnecessary they are useless if

Jesus will allow them to arrest him no weapon will be needed if Jesus would not allow it no weapon would be adequate he's saying to them do you see how foolish this is all it took was the statement of I am to drive you all to the ground you come at me like I'm some kind of a robber or thief verse 49 day after day I was with you in the temple teaching and you did not seize me but let the scriptures be fulfilled Isaiah 53 speaks of this 700 years before the event in the garden of Gethsemane the psalms speak of this a thousand years before the garden of

Gethsemane took place let the scriptures be fulfilled this is the fulfillment of God's word and it leads to one final thing I want to show you in verses we're in verse 51 verse 50 I'm sorry the scattering of the apostles scattering the apostles verse 50 and they all left him and fled they all left him and fled the apostles run it was just maybe two hours ago that night in mark 14 27 where Jesus said you will all fall away for it is written I will strike the shepherd and the sheep will be scattered verse 51 a young man followed him with nothing but a linen cloth about his body and they seized him but he left the linen cloth and ran away naked the disciples run away this unnamed young man has left as well we don't know who this man is there are actual fairly compelling reasons to think this man in verse 51 may be mark himself we don't know for sure what we do know is that everyone who was there that was with him has fled which means

Jesus is now all alone with his accusers the next thing that happens we'll look at next Sunday Lord willing it'll be the beginning of the trials of Jesus but I want us to conclude this morning with just three quick things that I want to make sure you understand number one the death of Jesus was both necessary and voluntary it was necessary payment for sin had to be made and it was voluntary he did not die because he was tricked or overwhelmed he laid down his life number two the work of the cross for us is both humbling and hopeful the work of the cross is both humbling and hopeful humbling because what we see is

Jesus dying in our place a death that we deserved as sinners we are worthy of judgment and it is humbling for us to recognize that Christ is having to have our sin poured out upon him as 2nd Corinthians says he who knew no sin became sin for us but not only is it humbling it is hopeful hopeful because if Christ has paid our sin in full then all who are covered by his grace have no condemnation to fear it's paid in full and then third the salvation of God is both free and costly the salvation of God is both free and costly if

I were to ask you what did salvation cost you the answer is nothing this is the free gift of God if I were to ask you what did salvation for you cost Jesus it cost him everything he lays down his life he absorbs on his own back the payment for our sin the wrath of God poured out on the son it cost him everything so our salvation is both free for us and costly for heaven now here's the good news today if you know that you're a sinner which the Bible says we all are if you would recognize today your need for salvation which the Bible says we all have here's the good news Christ has done everything you need done there is no work you can do to add to it there is no payment you can give to improve it

Ephesians 2 says we are saved by grace through faith and not of ourselves lest any man should boast you heard today two beautiful testimonies of the gospel in the baptistry you heard two different expressions of the same gospel truth that we are sinners deserving of judgment but God rich in mercy sent forth his son Jesus Christ to pay for our sin that we who would believe in him shall be saved this day you have heard the gospel sung you have heard the gospel read from scriptures you have heard two faithful testimonies of the gospel from those being baptized and this day you have heard the gospel preached the question for you this morning is what will you do with it will you be like the mob who just opposes

Christ and wants to silence him will you be like Peter and show strength in some ways and rebellion and others will you be like Judas and just play the game so everybody else assumes you're a believer but in your heart though you are physically close you are a million miles away or would you say this morning God have mercy on me a sinner God I know that I've sinned I know the wages of my sin is death but I believe in the work of your son I believe he lived a perfect life I believe he was crucified

I believe he rose again and! by grace I ask you to forgive my!

sin my hope and my prayer for you this day is that in the hearing of the gospel you would submit yourself to his authority acknowledge and confess your sin and believe with all your heart in the only one who can save our God and Father we thank you today for the work of your son we give you praise for the work that you have done we recognize our sinfulness and our unworthiness but also acknowledge that by grace through faith you save those who call upon the name of your son we pray that would happen even this day it's in his name that we pray amen two quick things before you leave number one if you have a question about how to know

Christ or how to walk with Christ or you're a believer but you just need help in growing with the Lord whatever your need or your prayer may be guest or member would you please take out that connection card in your bulletin let us know your need sanctuary we would love to pray with you if you would need so we would love to sit down with you with a Bible that's open and take time to walk you through the scriptures and help you any way that we can and then secondly as Jeremy mentioned we've got evening service tonight starts at five o'clock we're studying through the book of first Thessalonians we've got choirs for children and for teenagers for those who are a part of that and for adults or anyone who's not in one of those choirs you are invited and welcome to come back and join us tonight we'll sing together you're going to hear a testimony about our moms group learn more of how the

Lord is at work through that group for our moms and our church and then we'll be studying through from Jun to up to that all are good in there are there are there are there are there are there are there are there are there are there are there are there are there are there what are there are there are here Thank you.