Life Recovery Bible - Flipbook - Page 52
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capture Jesus secretly and kill him. 5 “But
not during the Passover celebration,” they
agreed, “or the people may riot.”
Jesus Anointed at Bethany
6
Meanwhile,
Jesus was in Beth
a
ny at the
home of Simon, a man who had previously
had leprosy. 7 While he was eating,* a woman
came in with a beautiful alabaster jar of expensive perfume and poured it over his head.
8
The disciples were indignant when they
saw this. “What a waste!” they said. 9 “It
could have been sold for a high price and
the money given to the poor.”
10
But Jesus, aware of this, replied, “Why
criticize this woman for doing such a good
thing to me? 11 You will always have the poor
among you, but you will not always have
me. 12 She has poured this perfume on me to
prepare my body for burial. 13 I tell you the
truth, wherever the Good News is preached
throughout the world, this woman’s deed
will be remembered and discussed.”
Judas Agrees to Betray Jesus
14
Then Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve disciples, went to the leading priests 15 and asked,
“How much will you pay me to betray Jesus
to you?” And they gave him thirty pieces of
silver. 16 From that time on, Judas began looking for an opportunity to betray Jesus.
The Last Supper
17
On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus
and asked, “Where do you want us to prepare
the Passover meal for you?”
18
“As you go into the city,” he told them,
“you will see a certain man. Tell him, ‘The
Teacher says: My time has come, and I will eat
the Passover meal with my disciples at your
house.’” 19 So the disciples did as Jesus told
them and prepared the Passover meal there.
20
When it was evening, Jesus sat down at
the table* with the Twelve. 21 While they were
eating, he said, “I tell you the truth, one of
you will betray me.”
22
Greatly distressed, each one asked in
turn, “Am I the one, Lord?”
23
He replied, “One of you who has just eaten
from this bowl with me will betray me. 24 For
the Son of Man must die, as the Scriptures declared long ago. But how terrible it will be for
the one who betrays him. It would be far better
for that man if he had never been born!”
25
Judas, the one who would betray him, also
asked, “Rabbi, am I the one?”
And J esus told him, “You have said it.”
26
As they were eating, J esus took some bread
and blessed it. Then he broke it in pieces and
gave it to the disciples, saying, “Take this and
eat it, for this is my body.”
27
And he took a cup of wine and gave thanks
to God for it. He gave it to them and said, “Each
of you drink from it, 28 for this is my blood,
which confirms the covenant* between God
and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice to
forgive the sins of many. 29 Mark my words—
I will not drink wine again until the day I drink
it new with you in my Father’s Kingdom.”
26:7 Or reclining.
26:20 Or Jesus reclined.
26:28 Some manuscripts read the new covenant.
26:6-13 This woman expressed her love for Jesus the best way she knew how. The disciples
criticized her wastefulness, but Jesus commended her action. There will always be someone who
thinks we are foolish for expressing our gratitude to God. But we should continue to praise him
because he is the one who is working our recovery, and it gives us a chance to tell others what
God has done for us. God loves our praise.
26:14-16, 20-25 Judas thought he could hide his dealings with the chief priests, but Jesus saw
right through his false front. Jesus discreetly yet openly made Judas aware that he knew exactly
what was going on. Judas, however, passed up an opportunity to confess his actions and restore
his relationship with Jesus. When we are confronted with our sins, will we do as Judas did and
deny our involvement, or will we use the chance to turn to God?
26:26-28 Through the Last Supper, Jesus communicated why he came to earth to die on the cross.
His body would be broken, like the bread, so we could receive continued spiritual sustenance. His
blood, represented by the wine, was the eternal payment for our sins. When we acknowledge Jesus
as the Lord of our lives, we become members of his body, forgiven because of his blood. There are
no restrictions based on race, sex, occupation, or past failures. All who look to Jesus are forgiven
through the blood he shed on the cross.
26:31-75 Like Peter, we often go through stages as we give in to our weaknesses. First we claim
that we will never fail in a certain way (26:31-35). Then we do what we promised we wouldn’t do
(26:56, 69-74). Next we realize that we have failed miserably (26:75). From there we have two
options: We can work to overcome our weakness and learn from the experience, as Peter did; or
we can wallow in our sins and never grow spiritually, as Judas did (27:5).
