Emmanuel Lutheran Church

Mark 14:1-31

14 After two days it was the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. And the chief priests and the scribes sought how they might take Him by trickery and put Him to death. ² But they said, “Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar of the people.”

³ And being in Bethany at the house of Simon the leper, as He sat at the table, a woman came having an alabaster flask of very costly oil of spikenard. Then she broke the flask and poured it on His head. ⁴ But there were some who were indignant among themselves, and said, “Why was this fragrant oil wasted? ⁵ For it might have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and given to the poor.” And they criticized her sharply.

⁶ But Jesus said, “Let her alone. Why do you trouble her? She has done a good work for Me. ⁷ For you have the poor with you always, and whenever you wish you may do them good; but Me you do not have always. ⁸ She has done what she could. She has come beforehand to anoint My body for burial. ⁹ Assuredly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her.”

¹⁰ Then Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, went to the chief priests to betray Him to them. ¹¹ And when they heard it, they were glad, and promised to give him money. So he sought how he might conveniently betray Him.

¹² Now on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they killed the Passover lamb, His disciples said to Him, “Where do You want us to go and prepare, that You may eat the Passover?”

¹³ And He sent out two of His disciples and said to them, “Go into the city, and a man will meet you carrying a pitcher of water; follow him. ¹⁴ Wherever he goes in, say to the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says, “Where is the guest room in which I may eat the Passover with My disciples?” ’ ¹⁵ Then he will show you a large upper room, furnished and prepared; there make ready for us.”

¹⁶ So His disciples went out, and came into the city, and found it just as He had said to them; and they prepared the Passover.

¹⁷ In the evening He came with the twelve. ¹⁸ Now as they sat and ate, Jesus said, “Assuredly, I say to you, one of you who eats with Me will betray Me.”

¹⁹ And they began to be sorrowful, and to say to Him one by one, “Is it I?” And another said, “Is it I?”

²⁰ He answered and said to them, “It is one of the twelve, who dips with Me in the dish. ²¹ The Son of Man indeed goes just as it is written of Him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had never been born.”

²² And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.”

²³ Then He took the cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, and they all drank from it. ²⁴ And He said to them, “This is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many. ²⁵ Assuredly, I say to you, I will no longer drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”

²⁶ And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

²⁷ Then Jesus said to them, “All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for it is written:

²⁸ “But after I have been raised, I will go before you to Galilee.”

²⁹ Peter said to Him, “Even if all are made to stumble, yet I will not be.”

³⁰ Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you that today, even this night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times.”

³¹ But he spoke more vehemently, “If I have to die with You, I will not deny You!”

And they all said likewise.

On Sunday we read Jesus’ words from John 6:51 in which He said, “I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.” In John 6, Jesus spoke of the “spiritual” eating and drinking of His flesh and blood, which is faith that hears God’s Word, meditates upon it, applies it to oneself, and uses it support oneself in temptations and afflictions. This eating and drinking of Christ is necessary for salvation since it is faith, and faith alone justifies.

In the final reading for this week, we hear Jesus institute the Lord’s Supper in which He gives Christians His very body to eat and His very blood to drink. “Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them and said, ‘Take, eat; this is My body.’ Then He took the cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, and they all drank from it. And He said to them, ‘This is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many.’” The bread He gives them to eat is simultaneously His true body. The wine He gives them in the chalice is simultaneously His very blood. St. Matthew adds  the purpose of giving His body and blood. Jesus gives His body and blood “for the remission of sins” (Matt 26:28).

In churches that celebrate the Lord’s Supper according to Christ’s institution—including the public confession that Christ is bodily present in the bread and wine—those who believe these words receive the forgiveness of sins, new life strengthened by the Holy Spirit, and the promise of eternal salvation. If one partakes without true repentance and faith in Christ’s words—that is, without the spiritual eating of Christ’s word—he “eats and drinks judgment to himself” (1 Cor 11:29).

Jesus invites us each day to feast on Him through faith in His Word, and He gives His church His Supper by which the faithful may receive the not only His very body and blood, but with them all the benefits He earned in His suffering and death.

Let us pray: Grant, O Lord, that we may faithfully partake of You in Your Word each day and Your Supper as we have opportunity, for our forgiveness, salvation, and new life. Amen.

Matthew 27:39-66

³⁹ And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads ⁴⁰ and saying, “You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross.”

⁴¹ Likewise the chief priests also, mocking with the scribes and elders, said, ⁴² “He saved others; Himself He cannot save. If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him. ⁴³ He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ ”

⁴⁴ Even the robbers who were crucified with Him reviled Him with the same thing.

⁴⁵ Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land. ⁴⁶ And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”

⁴⁷ Some of those who stood there, when they heard that, said, “This Man is calling for Elijah!” ⁴⁸ Immediately one of them ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink.

⁴⁹ The rest said, “Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to save Him.”

⁵⁰ And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit.

⁵¹ Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split, ⁵² and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; ⁵³ and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many.

⁵⁴ So when the centurion and those with him, who were guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake and the things that had happened, they feared greatly, saying, “Truly this was the Son of God!”

⁵⁵ And many women who followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering to Him, were there looking on from afar, ⁵⁶ among whom were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.

⁵⁷ Now when evening had come, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus. ⁵⁸ This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be given to him. ⁵⁹ When Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, ⁶⁰ and laid it in his new tomb which he had hewn out of the rock; and he rolled a large stone against the door of the tomb, and departed. ⁶¹ And Mary Magdalene was there, and the other Mary, sitting opposite the tomb.

⁶² On the next day, which followed the Day of Preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees gathered together to Pilate, ⁶³ saying, “Sir, we remember, while He was still alive, how that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise.’ ⁶⁴ Therefore command that the tomb be made secure until the third day, lest His disciples come by night and steal Him away, and say to the people, ‘He has risen from the dead.’ So the last deception will be worse than the first.”

⁶⁵ Pilate said to them, “You have a guard; go your way, make it as secure as you know how.” ⁶⁶ So they went and made the tomb secure, sealing the stone and setting the guard.

Jesus’ death was accompanied by many signs, all of which teach us about the benefits of His death. The temple veil—which served as a divider between the holy place and the most holy place in the temple—is torn from top to bottom. This sign teaches us that the Levitical priesthood with its sacrifices and washings have ended because “with His own blood [Jesus] entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption” (Heb 9:12).

Then the earth quaked as a sign of God’s judgment against sin in the person of His Son Jesus. Jesus endures the wrath of God against sin because God “made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us” (2 Cor 5:21). By enduring God’s wrath for sin, there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus by  faith. Jesus opens the kingdom of heaven—a kingdom that cannot be shaken—to all who repent and trust in His atoning sacrifice for their sins. St. Paul encourages us, “Since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear” (Heb 12:28).

Finally, “the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many.” This resurrection of saints and their appearance to many testifies to the fact that not only will Christ rise from the dead, but on the Last Day He will call all people from their graves. Those who have not believed in Him will rise to everlasting punishment, while the saints—all who persevere in true faith unto death—will be raised to everlasting blessedness, righteousness, radiance, and glory.

Christ Jesus has obtained eternal redemption for all mankind. He forgives the sins of all who believe in Him and counts them righteous with His righteousness. There is, therefore, no condemnation for believers. He promises to raise them upon the Last Day even as He is risen from the dead.

Let us pray: We give You thanks, O Christ, for dying for our sins, enduring our deserved wrath, and for rising to life, to give us these benefits each day through faith. Amen.

Matthew 27:1-38

27 When morning came, all the chief priests and elders of the people plotted against Jesus to put Him to death. ² And when they had bound Him, they led Him away and delivered Him to Pontius Pilate the governor.

³ Then Judas, His betrayer, seeing that He had been condemned, was remorseful and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, ⁴ saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.”

And they said, “What is that to us? You see to it!”

⁵ Then he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed, and went and hanged himself.

⁶ But the chief priests took the silver pieces and said, “It is not lawful to put them into the treasury, because they are the price of blood.” ⁷ And they consulted together and bought with them the potter’s field, to bury strangers in. ⁸ Therefore that field has been called the Field of Blood to this day.

⁹ Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying, “And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the value of Him who was priced, whom they of the children of Israel priced, ¹⁰ and gave them for the potter’s field, as the Lord directed me.”

¹¹ Now Jesus stood before the governor. And the governor asked Him, saying, “Are You the King of the Jews?”

Jesus said to him, “It is as you say.” ¹² And while He was being accused by the chief priests and elders, He answered nothing.

¹³ Then Pilate said to Him, “Do You not hear how many things they testify against You?” ¹⁴ But He answered him not one word, so that the governor marveled greatly.

¹⁵ Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to releasing to the multitude one prisoner whom they wished. ¹⁶ And at that time they had a notorious prisoner called Barabbas. ¹⁷ Therefore, when they had gathered together, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release to you? Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?” ¹⁸ For he knew that they had handed Him over because of envy.

¹⁹ While he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent to him, saying, “Have nothing to do with that just Man, for I have suffered many things today in a dream because of Him.”

²⁰ But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitudes that they should ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus. ²¹ The governor answered and said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release to you?”

They said, “Barabbas!”

²² Pilate said to them, “What then shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?”

They all said to him, “Let Him be crucified!”

²³ Then the governor said, “Why, what evil has He done?”

But they cried out all the more, saying, “Let Him be crucified!”

²⁴ When Pilate saw that he could not prevail at all, but rather that a tumult was rising, he took water and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, “I am innocent of the blood of this just Person. You see to it.”

²⁵ And all the people answered and said, “His blood be on us and on our children.”

²⁶ Then he released Barabbas to them; and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered Him to be crucified.

²⁷ Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole garrison around Him. ²⁸ And they stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him. ²⁹ When they had twisted a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand. And they bowed the knee before Him and mocked Him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” ³⁰ Then they spat on Him, and took the reed and struck Him on the head. ³¹ And when they had mocked Him, they took the robe off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him away to be crucified.

³² Now as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name. Him they compelled to bear His cross. ³³ And when they had come to a place called Golgotha, that is to say, Place of a Skull, ³⁴ they gave Him sour wine mingled with gall to drink. But when He had tasted it, He would not drink.

³⁵ Then they crucified Him, and divided His garments, casting lots, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet:

³⁶ Sitting down, they kept watch over Him there. ³⁷ And they put up over His head the accusation written against Him:

THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

³⁸ Then two robbers were crucified with Him, one on the right and another on the left.

When Judas sees that Jesus was condemned, he confessed that he sinned by betraying innocent blood. When Pilate sees that the Jews cannot be swayed from their rage, he washed his hands in front of them and said, “I am innocent of the blood of this just Person.” The Jews, however, accept blame for Jesus’ blood and shout, “His blood be on us and on our children.”

While Judas and Pilate both recognize Jesus’ innocence, both attempt to distance themselves from it. Judas, consumed with sorrow, hangs himself in despair over what he has done.  Pilate, thinking to excuse his cowardice, distances himself from Jesus by attempting to abdicate his responsibility. While both are correct that Jesus’ blood is innocent, neither understand that Jesus’ blood is God’s blood. If they had believed this, Judas would have fled to Jesus in godly sorrow, seeking forgiveness, and Pilate would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

It is necessary to believe that Jesus was innocent, but it is also necessary to believe the words of the apostle, “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). Jesus’ blood—His innocent, bitter sufferings and death—cleanses from sin because it is God’s blood. Jesus is not a mere man. He is the Word of God who became flesh (John 1:14), “in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily” (Col 2:9). Jesus, as God in human flesh, sheds His innocent blood to pay for the sins of the world, so that all who daily repent and believe His death is the atoning sacrifice for their sins are cleansed from their sins and are counted innocent with Jesus’ innocence in God’s sight.

In our daily fight against sin, if we succumb to temptation, we must not fall into despair as Judas did, thinking our sin is beyond forgiveness. We must also beware of falling to pride and self-justification as Pilate did. Each day we are to repent of our sins because we believe what Judas and Pilate did not, that “the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.”

Let us pray: We give You thanks, dear Father, for the death of our Lord Jesus Christ. Cleanse us from our sins and grant us Your Holy Spirit that we may persevere in repentance and faith, and joyfully live in the Christ’s innocence. Amen.

Matthew 26:36-75

³⁶ Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples, “Sit here while I go and pray over there.” ³⁷ And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and He began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed. ³⁸ Then He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me.”

³⁹ He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.”

⁴⁰ Then He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “What! Could you not watch with Me one hour? ⁴¹ Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

⁴² Again, a second time, He went away and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done.” ⁴³ And He came and found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy.

⁴⁴ So He left them, went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words. ⁴⁵ Then He came to His disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. ⁴⁶ Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand.”

⁴⁷ And while He was still speaking, behold, Judas, one of the twelve, with a great multitude with swords and clubs, came from the chief priests and elders of the people.

⁴⁸ Now His betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “Whomever I kiss, He is the One; seize Him.” ⁴⁹ Immediately he went up to Jesus and said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” and kissed Him.

⁵⁰ But Jesus said to him, “Friend, why have you come?”

Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and took Him. ⁵¹ And suddenly, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword, struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear.

⁵² But Jesus said to him, “Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword. ⁵³ Or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelve legions of angels? ⁵⁴ How then could the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must happen thus?”

⁵⁵ In that hour Jesus said to the multitudes, “Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs to take Me? I sat daily with you, teaching in the temple, and you did not seize Me. ⁵⁶ But all this was done that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled.”

Then all the disciples forsook Him and fled.

⁵⁷ And those who had laid hold of Jesus led Him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled. ⁵⁸ But Peter followed Him at a distance to the high priest’s courtyard. And he went in and sat with the servants to see the end.

⁵⁹ Now the chief priests, the elders, and all the council sought false testimony against Jesus to put Him to death, ⁶⁰ but found none. Even though many false witnesses came forward, they found none. But at last two false witnesses came forward ⁶¹ and said, “This fellow said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and to build it in three days.’ ”

⁶² And the high priest arose and said to Him, “Do You answer nothing? What is it these men testify against You?” ⁶³ But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest answered and said to Him, “I put You under oath by the living God: Tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of God!”

⁶⁴ Jesus said to him, “It is as you said. Nevertheless, I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

⁶⁵ Then the high priest tore his clothes, saying, “He has spoken blasphemy! What further need do we have of witnesses? Look, now you have heard His blasphemy! ⁶⁶ What do you think?”

They answered and said, “He is deserving of death.”

⁶⁷ Then they spat in His face and beat Him; and others struck Him with the palms of their hands, ⁶⁸ saying, “Prophesy to us, Christ! Who is the one who struck You?”

⁶⁹ Now Peter sat outside in the courtyard. And a servant girl came to him, saying, “You also were with Jesus of Galilee.”

⁷⁰ But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you are saying.”

⁷¹ And when he had gone out to the gateway, another girl saw him and said to those who were there, “This fellow also was with Jesus of Nazareth.”

⁷² But again he denied with an oath, “I do not know the Man!”

⁷³ And a little later those who stood by came up and said to Peter, “Surely you also are one of them, for your speech betrays you.”

⁷⁴ Then he began to curse and swear, saying, “I do not know the Man!”

Immediately a rooster crowed. ⁷⁵ And Peter remembered the word of Jesus who had said to him, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” So he went out and wept bitterly.

“The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” We see this in all the disciples, but especially Peter. He is bold in spirit. On their way to Gethsemane, Peter tells Jesus, “Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You!” (v.35). Yet, he lacks the strength to watch even an hour with Christ. His spirit briefly revives when Judas arrives with an armed multitude to arrest Jesus, he drew his sword, struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear (see John 18:10). Yet when Jesus submits to arrest to fulfill the Scriptures, all the disciples—including Peter—forsook Him and fled. Instead of remaining with Jesus, “Peter followed Him at a distance to the high priest’s courtyard and sat with the servants to see the end.” When a servant girl—not a soldier—confronts Peter, he denies his Lord. Sin begets more sin, so one denial cascades into three. Peter, whose spirit had been so eager, lapsed into more and more sin because he let his sinful flesh’s desires reign over him.

Like Peter, our spirit—the inward man of faith which the Holy Spirit creates in us—is eager. We say with St. Paul in Romans 7:22, “I delight in the law of God according to the inward man.” But like Peter, we live in the sinful flesh, so that we can say along with Paul, “I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members” (Rom 7:23). Compared to the spirit God renews in us, our flesh is weak. But if we consent to the flesh’s desires, like Peter, we sin. And if we sin, we, too, should weep bitterly as Peter did, sorrowing over our sin, seeking forgiveness from God, with the desire to amend our lives. Like Peter, we comfort ourselves with the gospel that if we truly confess our sins, God “is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 Jn 1:9). The gospel fortifies our spirits so that we may be not only be eager and willing to confess Christ and live godly lives, it gives us the power to do so.

Let us pray: Heavenly Father, strengthen us with might in the inner man through Your Holy Spirit, so that we may not consent to the desires of the flesh, but, fulfill our spirit’s eager desire to live holy lives according to Your Word. Amen.