Now
Judas, who betrayed him, also knew the place, because Jesus often met there
with his disciples. So Judas brought a
detachment of soldiers together with police from the chief priests and the
Pharisees, and they came there with lanterns and torches and weapons. Then Jesus, knowing all that
was to happen to him, came forward and asked them, “Whom are you looking for?”
John 18:2-4
We
began last Wednesday with the first words that Jesus speaks in John’s Gospel,
“What are you looking for?” We end our
first week with the last sentences Jesus speaks before his betrayal and arrest.
What
are you looking for? Whom are you
looking for? Between those two questions
lie Jesus’ entire public ministry in the Gospel of John. Those two questions are the book ends of his
ministry in John’s Gospel, and they are the book ends of our first week.
Jesus
asks this question not once, but twice in John 18. He was in the Garden of Gethsemane, and Judas
brought a detachment of soldiers and police from the chief priests and the
Pharisees. They had lanterns and torches
and weapons. Jesus asked them “Whom are
you looking for?” After they stepped
back and fell to the ground, he again asked them, “Whom are you looking
for?” They arrested him, bound him, and
brought him to trial.
The question brought him death.
Just
a few days later, after Jesus’ death and entombment, Mary went to Jesus’
tomb. She was devastated by what had
happened. Her tears were streaming down
her face, and because of her weeping she wasn’t able to see Jesus, now
resurrected from the dead. She had no
idea that the One who was standing right in front of her is exactly the One she
was looking for.
Jesus,
now eternally alive, said to her, “Woman, why are you crying? Whom are you looking for?” (John 20:15)
Then Jesus spoke her name, she recognized him, and her tears of sorrow
turned into tears of joy.
The question brought her life.
Whom
are you looking for on your journey through Lent? Maybe you know the betrayal that Jesus
experienced when he asked this question of the soldiers. Maybe you know Mary’s feeling when life seems
to be spinning out of control and you don’t know where to turn.
Lent
this year is a time to pause and turn and face Jesus, who wants to speak your
name. He died on the cross with your
name on his lips. He wants to speak your
name and to invite you into a relationship with Him.
Whom
are you looking for? Jesus. Pure and simply, Jesus.
Questions to ponder:
- As we end this
first week of devotions, think of the questions you asked yourself last
Wednesday. What are you looking for
in this journey through Lent?
- Mary had the
most amazing “aha!” moment in her life when Jesus spoke her name. What has been your best “aha!” moment
when you were filled with joy or excitement?
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