"When it was evening,
He came with the twelve. And when they had taken their places and were eating,
Jesus said, 'Truly I tell you, one of you will betray Me, one who is eating with
Me.' ... When they had sung the hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. And
Jesus said to them, 'You will all become deserters; for it is written, 'I will
strike the shepherd and the sheep will be scattered.' But after I am raised up,
I will go before you to Galilee" (Mark 14:17-28).
One would betray You.
All would desert You. Yet, You shared Your last meal with them, even as Your
very Body and Blood with them (v. 14:22-24). You loved them and forgave them.
Then You encouraged them to keep the faith and hold fast to the hope within
them.
Though we can be
faithless, You are always faithful. Though we can so often give in to our fears
and failures, You are always giving of Yourself and forgiving of our sins. In so
many ways we so often betray You or desert You in the weakness of our human
flesh. We so often find it hard to always stand by You and continue to fully
follow You on the journey of Your cross and ours. Peter protested that he would
(v. 14:29). But in the end, he could not (v. 14:66-72).
Forgive us, Lord. Like
Peter and all the others, our spirit is strong, but our flesh is weak (v.
14:38). Our good intentions abound, but our commitment often waivers. Despite
their failure to endure to the end, there was another day for Your disciples (v.
16:7). And for us on this side of the cross, every day is another day to repent
of every failure of the day before and arise in newness of life by the mercy and
power of Your grace to choose to follow You again. "The steadfast love of the
Lord never ceases, His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning;
great is Your faithfulness" (Lamentations 3:22-23). Praise You, O God, for
loving us so. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy
Hays
My friends, God bless you in your journey with Jesus during this
Holy Week of remembering His journey to the cross.
Be empowered, equipped, and encouraged to fulfill your destiny
in Christ!
Tommy & Sylvia Hays | Messiah
MinistriesHealing from the Inside Out
