Lesson 18
Religion vs Relationship.
"By now it was early morning, and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness they did not enter the palace, because they wanted to eat the Passover." John 18:28
Read John Chapter 18
So this is part of my quirkiness and I ask you to bear with me in this chapter.
Jesus has finished praying and is met by an armed mob ready for battle, coming to arrest Jesus and take him away with them to the High Priest. Peter draws his sword, cuts off a guys ear (don't think he was aiming for the ear!) and Jesus let's himself be arrested. Peter denies being associated with Jesus 3 times, the rooster crows and meanwhile Jesus is interrogated by the religious leaders as well as the Roman governor, Pilate. And no one can find a charge against Jesus! Go figure!
So what am I focusing? Well, I think God has a sense of humor and wanted us to see something rediculous in the scripture above. The Jewish leaders have been plotting for a way to kill Jesus, but have no right to execute him so they are trying to get the Romans to do their dirty work.............and they wanted to avoid "ceremonial uncleanness!" I think this might just be a case of "Cant see the Wood for the Trees!" Jesus used another phrase "you strain out a gnat but swallow a camel" (Matt 23:24) lol. They wanted to eat the Passover, so they wanted to be clean...but they didn't mind having an innocent man murdered. The Son of God, Murdered. Now before we get all uppity and start pointing a finger at the religious leaders, maybe we need to stop and take a look at ourselves in the mirror. I know I do! How often have I become so focused on one thing, and felt so right and justified, been wrong and missed the Big Picture....and most likely hurt someone else in the process.
If you didn't have a little chuckle with my sense of humor, hopefully you will have read something else in Chapter 18 that was worthwhile.
Some questions to ask.
1: What did it mean to be unclean? Try Leviticus 5:2-3 for a possible answer.
2: In what ways can you be focused on one thing and miss the Big Picture?
3: If you've been a Christian for a while, are you following laws, rules and regulations...or Jesus?
4: What's one thing about Jesus that challenges your current lifestyle? Pray for God to transform you.