(Matthew 20:17-19)
17 As Jesus was about to go up to Jerusalem, He took the twelve disciples aside by themselves, and on the road He said to them, 18 “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn Him to death, 19 and they will hand Him over to the Gentiles to mock and flog and crucify, and on the third day He will be raised up.”TODAY'S TAKEAWAY:
- verse 17 ("He took them aside...")
The Lord wants a close personal relationship with us, to converse with us, privately as well as publicly.
- verse 18 ("Behold...")
The Lord tells us everything that we need to know about the future and His plans, which helps prepare us for the "right now". While He tells us just the right amount, to help us trust Him with confidence, the Lord doesn't share everything with us about the future, because He wants us to learn to trust Him more in our daily lives. After all, Christianity is all about having that close relationship with Him, and going to Him for all our day-to-day, minute-to-minute stuff! For absolutely everything! It's the most perfectly loving "need to know" basis. So anytime we need to know something, He is right there with us, ready to have a conversation with us!
- verse 18 ("we are going to...")
The Lord God will not only direct our paths, but He will always be right there with us. Notice that they were all going to Jerusalem, together, but only the Lord was going to suffer and die and rise again.
- verse 18 ("the Son of Man will be...")
The Lord talks about Himself in the third person, which, after really thinking about it, is a way to say what He wanted to say with humility. On so many levels, Jesus was and is our perfect example to follow. Even though Jesus is God, Himself, by not saying "I - will be...", in the way that Jesus does say it, He is giving all the glory to the Lord God!
- verse 18 ("the Son of Man will be...")
The Lord does the impossible FOR us, not only taking our place in death to pay for all sins, but in His resurrection, He provides the way to be reconciled to Him, so He can live through us and do life with us, for anyone who accepts His gift of salvation.
- verse 18-19 (the chief priests, scribes and Gentiles...)
The Lord doesn't sugarcoat things. He wants us to know that there is sin, injustice and forces in this world, which are all trying to work against God and His plan.
- verse 18-19 ("He will be raised up")
The Lord lets us know of His plans, so that we can understand that even though there are struggles, there is absolute hope. Because Jesus had victory over death, when we repent, we die to sin and have victory over death, obtaining certain hope that is eternal life in Jesus.
The Lord does not leave us in the dark! He is the Light. And He is the Way, the Truth and the Life! Because He is Love, and because He desires that we have a close, personal relationship with Him, He makes this all possible!!!
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