Institutes of Theology | Session 6 - New Testament Survey – The Public Ministry of Jesus Christ

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As we start this evening, I want you to think with me for a moment back to May of 2021. Think about what you were doing somewhere in that time frame, May 2021. And then I just want you to think for a moment about the significant major accomplishments of your life in the last three and a half years. It's a pretty short list, isn't it? For us, I mean, that's just the way it is. Three and a half years, you say, Tom, that's not very long. And you'd be right. But that's exactly how long our Lord's public ministry lasted. Last time we ended by looking at those 28 to 30 silent years when He was living a normal ordinary life like you and I live. Working, helping support a family as the oldest son in that family with after His dad died, teaching His siblings, helping to raise them, working, going to worship on Shabbat every week, going to the temple for three times a year for the festivals that were required. That was that quiet silent life. But everything our Lord accomplished in His work that He was sent to do, His teaching ministry, His passion, all of that accomplished in three and a half years. The time that has expired since May of 2021 to today. That's when our Lord served. Tonight, I want us to examine those unparalleled three and a half years.

We find ourselves in the middle of a survey of the New Testament. We have looked at the Old Testament and flying over the top sort of got our arms around it, and we want to do that with the New Testament tonight. Now we began last time by looking at the thirty ordinary years of Jesus Christ. And as I said, tonight, we want to look at the public ministry of Jesus. The public ministry of Jesus. 

So when exactly did His ministry begin? There are three major reference points in the Gospels. The first of them is in Luke 3 verse 1. We'll look at it in a moment, but it says there that John the Baptist began his ministry in the 15th year of Tiberius Caesar. Now Tiberius Caesar's rule had two beginnings. He became the sole ruler at his father's death, and when you add 15 years to that, it puts you in about 28, 29 AD. But he also became a co-regent with his father while his father was still living. If you add 15 years to that date, then you find yourself in the 26 to 27 AD time frame. I personally think that earlier date is more likely, that is the 26 to 27, and I'll show you why as this unfolds. 

The second sort of time frame or a reference point that we're given in the Gospels is in Luke 3:23, where we're told Jesus was about 30 years of age. Now, if we take that in its normal form, we would say that means Jesus was somewhere between 27, 28 and 32, 33, right? I mean, that's about 30. If you take his birth at around 5 BC., which is the latest it could be because you've got Herod dying in April of 4, and Jesus was alive before Herod died, you add 30 years to that, you're in the year 26 AD. 

The third frame of reference is we know that Jesus' ministry happened when the remodeling of Herod's temple was in its 46th year, according to John 2 verse 20. We know that work began in 20 or 19 BC. You add 46 years to that, and you find yourself in 26, 27 AD. So it appears, I think the evidence points, there are those who disagree, and you'll read those who do, but I think the evidence points toward 26, 27, which means—and I'll give you a timeline of Jesus' life in a moment—but that means the crucifixion and resurrection occurs in 30 AD., not 33 AD., as is often explained. And if you look at some of these dates, and you try to make that 33 AD work, it just doesn't flesh out in my mind, so it's not as defensible. Could be, it's possible, I'm not saying it absolutely didn't, but I think the evidence points toward this timeframe.

So what about the length of His ministry? That was the beginning of His ministry, but what about the length of His ministry? Now, let me just be honest with you. There are a number of different views about the length of Jesus' ministry. Surprisingly, there are some who say it was only about a year, others who say, no, it was four years. But the most widely held view is three-and-a-half-years based on the Biblical evidence. Now, this three-and-a-half-year chronology comes primarily from John's Gospel. John identifies at least three Passovers in Jesus' ministry, John 2:13, 6:4, and 11:55. Now, when you have that, you have a ministry that includes three Passovers, so you do the math, and you realize that it can't be a year, and it doesn't appear that it's four. You're looking at three to three-and-a-half-years as a likely model. 

Now, let me give you what that means practically. It means there are four periods in Jesus' ministry. The first period includes several months summer to spring, from His baptism to His first Passover. So, there's the half year. It happens on the front of His ministry, because if we're figuring His ministry based on Passover, then this is a half a year at the very beginning. The second period is the first full year between Passovers, which ends with a Passover that is apparently not in the Biblical record. There's some debate about that, but probably not. The third period is the second full year between Passovers. It ends with the Passover of John 6:4. Period four then is the final year between Passovers. It ends with the Passover of John 11:55. So, that's why you'll hear me and many others say Jesus' ministry was three-and-a-half-years. It's based on John's chronology, and it's based on the Passovers that are referenced in His gospel. 

Now, this means, if you take a look at that, it leaves you with a summary timeline of the life of Christ that looks like this. You have His birth in 5 or 6 BC. You have the death of Herod the Great in 4 BC. Then, if you do what I just showed you and do the math of those three sort of anchor points in the gospels, you have in 26 AD., in the spring, the beginning of John's ministry, the summer, the baptism of Jesus, the fall, the temptation, the 40 days of temptation, and then begins in the late 26 and the winter of 27, you have the end of John's ministry, the beginning of Christ's ministry, and then the spring is His first Passover of His public ministry. In 28, He calls the 12 apostles and names them apostles. (They've already been with them. We'll talk about that. They've already been under His ministry, but this is when He calls them and designates them as His apostles.) 

Then you have the Galilean ministry commences and fall, His first public rejection, His ministry of parables begins. Twenty-nine AD., you have the fall Galilean campaign and then the Judean ministry where He’s down in the area of Jerusalem. And then 30 AD., you have His ministry in and around Perea. April, if 30 AD is the year of His death, then we know the day. We know when Passover was. It was April 7th of 30 AD and the resurrection then would have been on April 9th. In May, early May, would have been the ascension, very early May, maybe even late April, depending on the year. But the ascension comes 40 days after the resurrection, according to Acts 1:3. And then Pentecost comes 50 days after the Feast of Passover, so it would have been in May of 30 AD. So that gives you a sketch of the timeline of Jesus. A ministry that probably began in the summer of 26 AD because of those anchor points that we just examined together.

Now, before we get into His life itself, let me recommend a resource to you that is a resource I use not every day, but every week. It's called A Harmony of the Gospels. A Harmony of the Gospels by Gundry, G-U-N-D-R-Y, and Thomas, Gundry and Thomas, A Harmony of the Gospels. Now, what it does is it takes the four Gospels, and it puts them in chronological form. So, you're reading the story from the first events that happen in the life of Christ to the last events with His ascension. And what it does is if only one gospel comments on that event, then you have a single column. If two gospels comment on that event, then you have two columns. If three gospels, you have three columns, and of all four, you have four columns. So, what it allows you to do is read through the life of Christ chronologically. I use this often. Read through the life of Christ chronologically and compare what the different gospel records say about that event if they all record it. So, you look at it. It's in the bookstore. I think you'll find it to be a really helpful resource anytime you want to study the life of Christ as we'll do tonight. 

So, we begin the Ministry of Christ not with Christ, but with the forerunner, the announcer, John the baptizer. Let me give you the circumstances. Let's go to Luke chapter 3, Luke chapter 3 verses 1 and 2, 3 as well. Here's the beginning.

Now in the 15th year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip was tetrarch of the region of Ituraea [and then you have the other political figures mentioned there. Look at verse 2] In the high priesthood, [here's the religious context.] In the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the Word of God came to John, the son of Zacharias in the wilderness, and He came into all the district around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sin. 

So here is where the ministry of Christ really launches, not his own ministry, but the one who would identify Him and who would be the forerunner. So in verse 1, you have the political circumstances when John began his ministry. It's just a great reminder that Jesus was a man of history. This happened when there were specific rulers reigning in that region. And then in verse 2, you have the religious context, these two men. Annas was like the godfather in ancient Israel. And his son-in-law, Caiaphas, was in power, but together they were a force. And Annas was the main force. That's when John began his ministry. 

Now John the Baptist at this point then, just like Jesus began His ministry, around what age? You can answer. Around 30. If there was only 6 months between their two conceptions, as Luke tells us, means John started his ministry, around 30. Now he was the first prophet for over 400 years. And God brings John the Baptist on the scene. What was his message? His message was the Messiah, and his kingdom is about to arrive. Repent and prepare for His coming. We're going to look at this in detail as we get a little further in Matthew. And then be baptized as a sign that you have repented and are awaiting the arrival of the Messiah. 

John's baptism was commanded as an outward sign of true repentance in the heart. So what was his baptism? John's baptism wasn't Christian baptism. Wasn't what you and I undergo after we become disciples of Christ. His baptism was essentially the baptism of a Jewish proselyte. In other words, when you came to be baptized by John, you were saying, I'm as far from being fit for the kingdom of the Messiah as a pagan Gentile. It's like I need to become a Jew all over again to really prepare for the Messiah who's coming. That was the baptism of John the Baptist. 

The overwhelming response of the people to him is recorded in Matthew 3, verses 5 and 6, “Jerusalem was going out to him, and all Judea and all the district around the Jordan, and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they confessed their sin.” And then Luke 3:15, “The people were in a state of expectation, and all were wondering in their hearts about John, as to whether he was the Messiah. So, there's this great pent-up sense of expectation that the Messiah is near. John announced that, and the people lived in expectation of it. 

Now, before we look at the life of Christ and begin to see it unfold, let me just show you a map of Palestine in New Testament times. You can see the area that's marked in green there. Judea is the main heart of it, Jerusalem, Bethlehem, other cities. Then, just north of that, you have in green still Samaria, the hill country in Samaria. Then up there in yellow at the top, you have Galilee, and you see Nazareth in the middle of that. You see the little lake, the Sea of Galilee there at the top. And then, the Jordan Rift runs down between the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea, some of the lowest places on earth as far as sea level. And the Jordan Rift Valley runs down between those two bodies of water, and travel was very frequent along that path. The Jordan Rift Valley was a common way to get from Galilee to Judea. The Hill Country was a little more difficult, because it was more mountainous, as you can see from the relief.  Now, on the east side of the Jordan Rift Valley, you'll see a couple of areas that factor in. One in yellow there is Perea. And then another is Decapolis. Decapolis means the ten cities. They were ten primarily Gentile cities. And Jesus will interact with all of that during His life in ministry. So that gives you sort of an overview of where Jesus goes. Most of His ministry has been in Galilee, in the north. But He also, as I showed you a moment ago, has significant ministry down in Judea at one portion of His ministry as well.

So let's then begin to walk through the life of Christ. Period one, as I told you, begins in the summer of 26 AD, runs to the Passover of 27 AD, length of about six to eight months, somewhere in that, late summer to Passover. And it is a time period of where Jesus begins His public life in ministry. It's a time of relative obscurity. He's not well known. The crowds are not yet gathering. 

It begins with His baptism in the late summer of 26. That's recorded in three gospels, in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. And why would Jesus need to be baptized? I just told you; John's baptism was a prepare for the Messiah. He's coming. And you are so far, as a Jew, from being ready for the Messiah, that you need to have a proselyte baptism, as though you're just entering the Jewish faith, and now you're preparing for the Messiah. Why would Jesus do that? Why did He come to be baptized? Matthew 3:15, Jesus answering John, when John says, I need to be baptized by You, which was true, Jesus said, “Permit it at this time, for in this way, it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness. And then he permitted Him.”

So there's generally the reason to fulfill all righteousness. But what does He mean specifically? How is He fulfilling righteousness? There are a number of explanations that are offered. I think the one that makes the most sense is Jesus was living in our place. In all of these years, He was living in our place. And you and I have never repented the way we ought to repent. We're just like those Jewish people that were preparing for the Messiah, who needed to repent of their repentance, as the Puritans used to call it. And Jesus vicariously repented for us. He underwent the baptism of repentance. That's what John the Baptist's baptism is called. Not because He needed to repent, but because you needed to repent. And you and I have never done it as we should. But Jesus did, in our place. In Christ, we have a complete Savior.

The second event, of course, is His temptation in the fall of 26. And this comes immediately after His baptism for a period of 40 days. It was initiated by God, Matthew 4:1. Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. Why? What possible reason would the Spirit have for putting Jesus in the place of temptation, like this? The purpose was to make clear His identity, His power, and His authority. Because you see, the lessons for us, and I love these, the three lessons from Jesus' temptation. Not going to spend a lot of time here, because again, we're getting to the temptation very soon in the next few months in Matthew's Gospel. But the lessons for us is, number one, temptation is not sin. Jesus was tempted in all points as we are, but there was no sin connected to that temptation. Now, there is a difference. His temptations were all external, because He didn't have any fallenness in Him. Our temptations are both external, but that external often appeals to our internal sinfulness. He didn't have temptation like that, but He did have external temptations. Temptation itself is not a sin. 

Secondly, Christ is qualified to be our Savior. You know, Adam, in the garden, he stood in our place, and he was in a paradise, and he sinned. For 40 days, Jesus was in the wilderness without food, and He didn't sin. He's qualified to be our perfect Savior, the only one qualified to stand in our place.

And thirdly, His temptation reminds us that victory over temptation is found in Christ. Hebrews 2:18, “Since He Himself was tempted in that which He suffered, He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted.” Men, I just want to ask you a question. Do you believe that? You know, a lot of guys act like, well, you know, I can't help my temptation and Jesus isn't either. Say, do you believe that His Spirit can do what He promised to do? And that is, gird your mind to say no to temptation as Jesus did. I just remind you that that is a lesson from Jesus' temptation. Hebrews 2:18 is very clear. He was tempted, He’s able to come to the aid. To the help of those who are tempted. I think our problem often is that we fall off on one side or the other. Either we think we have to do it all ourselves, or we think, well, here I am, you know, Jesus zapped me, and the real balance is both. I'm responsible to fight as hard as I can to put sin out of my life, and I am supposed to depend on the Lord Jesus Christ every moment as I do that. He said, apart from me, you can do nothing. So it's that balance. 

So His temptation. Then you have, after the temptation, of course, you have the beginning of His ministry, somewhere in the winter of either late 26, early 27 AD. Only John records the events of the first few months of Jesus' ministry. In fact, John 1:19 to 2:11, seems to be a record of the first week of Jesus' public ministry. It starts with John's answers to a committee of the Sanhedrin who shows up to ask him who he is. And he says, no, I'm not the Messiah. I'm just a voice announcing him. John says, I'm baptizing under the authority of the one who's coming. In chapter 1 verses 29 to 34, you have what one writer has called John's official statement made under the self-imposed oath he puts himself under concerning the identity of Jesus. Turn over to John 1. Again, remember this is the first week of Jesus' ministry. And here is his testimony. He says, “I'm not the Messiah.” Verse 25, verse 26, “there's coming one after me,” verse 27, “who's so superior to me, I can't even untie His sandals.” Verse 29, here's his testimony. The next day he saw Jesus coming to him, and he said, “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.” There's his redemptive work.

But who is he? Verse 30, “This is He on behalf of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who has a higher rank than I [now watch this] for He existed before me.’” Read Luke's Gospel, and who existed first purely at a human level? John did. He's saying Jesus is more than a human. And then he goes on to say, Verse 34, “I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God.” This is how Jesus' ministry begins. He's baptized, He’s tempted, and then you have this first week of His public ministry with John the forerunner saying, It's Him, it's Him, He’s here.

So then Jesus begins to gather His first disciples. These would be future apostles in John 1:35-51. Many other disciples of John accepted Jesus as Messiah, but I think these are mentioned here at the beginning of His ministry because later they become apostles. You have Peter and Andrew, Philip, John, Nathaniel, and possibly, I would say even probably James. He's not mentioned by name, but because he's John's brother, it's likely he was somehow involved in all of that. 

Then you have that follows His first public miracle, John 2:1-11, where He turns the water to wine. He demonstrates His deity for the first time. This is six days after the interview that John had with the committee from the Sanhedrin. Now, I make this point in the book on cessationism, and I just want to make it here again. God has performed miracles directly without men involved throughout human history. He still does that today. Of course, the most common miracle He performs today is regeneration, where He causes a dead sinner to come to life. But God can intervene directly anytime He chooses. But there were only three major periods in redemptive history when God gave men miracle-working power. Check me out, you'll find that it's true. The period of Moses and Joshua, Elijah and Elisha, and Christ and His apostles. Now, what was the purpose of miracles, including the ministry of Jesus? To vindicate the person's claims concerning himself and His ministry. And in the case of prophets, to validate their words, here's how Peter puts it on the Day of Pentecost about Jesus. Acts 2:22, “Men of Israel, listen to these words. Jesus the Nazarene was a man attested to you by God [How?] with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourself know.” Christ performed miracles, in some cases empowered by the Spirit, in other cases apparently at His own decision as the eternal Son of God to prove who in fact He was. This is His first miracle of, as you know, many. 

A miracle is when God chooses to forgo the natural process of the natural world and to intervene directly in a way contrary to the natural way things work, the natural laws we know of. In one sense, it's a hand in glove. I mean, think about water, water to wine. In one sense, God does that every day through a slow process in which rain falls to the earth, waters a grapevine, the ground absorbs, the roots absorb that water, the leaves absorb that water, and it goes through that plant, the water does, to ultimately produce wine: grape, juice, and then wine. And so, in one sense, it's what God does all the time, but with a miracle, He shortcuts that normal process and simply intervenes. Same thing with healing, but it's for a purpose. It's for this purpose. 

Jesus goes, then, to this first period ends with Jesus going to Jerusalem for Passover, number one, in John 2:13. So there, you have the first six, eight months of Jesus' ministry, that half year that we talk about, three-and-a-half-years. 

That brings us, then, to period number two, from Passover of 27 AD to Passover of 28 AD. This is the first full year of Jesus' public ministry. You have an early ministry of His in Judea, down in the south, near Jerusalem, about eight months. And then you have the beginning of the major thrust of His ministry, the major Galilean ministry, about the last four months of this first full year. It is a time of increasing popularity and favor with the people.

So what are the major events that occur during this first full year? Well, you have His early ministry in Judea, about the first eight months of this year. You have the first cleansing of the temple during the Passover season. You remember that's when Jesus drives out the money changers. And by the way, understand that it was Annas and Caiaphas and the other aristocratic power brokers at the very top of the political food chain in Israel who ran those businesses. It was a racket because, here's how it worked. 

When you came to Jerusalem to offer a sacrifice, you had to bring an animal that was unblemished. Well, sometimes it was frankly a pain to travel with an animal, so you would just bring money to buy an animal there in Jerusalem. Other times, you would bring your animal, but along the way, it would be damaged, or maybe it wasn't damaged, but the guy who was doing the inspecting, who's in on the business, says, sorry, look at this, this animal has a problem, but we have another lamb we can sell you. And they would sell them, but you'd say, well, here I have money to buy this lamb, and they'd say, oh, sorry, this is God's temple. You can't use that money here. That's Caesar's money. You've got to use temple money. So we'll exchange your terrible money for this godly money. Oh, and by the way, we're going to come out on the top of this exchange, but listen, it's for a good cause. It's for the temple. And this is how it went. It was a racket.

That's what Annas and the whole group ran, and that's what Jesus came in the middle of when He cleansed the temple and said, no, I'm not having any of it. And He said, this is my Father's house. You remember, He said that when He was 12, and He says it again as He begins His ministry. This is my Father's house. It's for a particular purpose. You are stealing from people. You've made it a den of thieves because He knew what was going on. That's how His ministry begins. And you remember, then they say to Him, so, by whose authority do You do this? And He said, I'll tell you the authority. If you destroy this temple, meaning the temple of His body, and it's raised again in three days, then you'll know that I have the authority to do what I'm doing. In other words, Jesus staked His entire claim to be the son of God on the resurrection. He said, you don't have to listen to anything I say or believe anything I do if I'm not raised from the dead in three days. But if I am, then I have absolute authority to do this. That's how He began.

That's followed by the interview with Nicodemus, where He talks about the new birth in chapter three, verses one and following, one through eight or so. It actually goes all the way through verse 21. I think the interchange continues. I don't think John picks up. I think you still have some of that interchange between Jesus and Nicodemus further into that chapter. And then Jesus joins with John the Baptist in John two through four, especially chapter three. So that's the early ministry in Judea. John the Baptist was down there, you remember, near Jerusalem. 

Then you have the beginning of the major Galilean ministry. This is the first full year of Jesus' ministry, from Passover of 27 to Passover of 28. This is about the last four months of the first year of His public ministry. It lasts a total of 18 months. But it begins with His rejection in Nazareth. You remember the story in Luke four. And as a result of that, Jesus relocated His ministry headquarters to Capernaum. It's a city on the northwest corner of the Sea of Galilee, a strategic city, a large city, and also with a trade route that ran through it. That's where Matthew set collecting taxes. It was a significant city. It's one of my favorite spots in Israel today. Maybe if we have time next week or next time we meet, I'll show you some photos of that area where Jesus served and ministered.

In that time period, He connects with His first four disciples. At this point, they're not apostles. He doesn't call them and send them as apostles yet. That comes a little later in His ministry, but He connects with the first four of them. Now, it's important to understand as you read the Gospels that there are various stages of Jesus' interaction with those men who would become His apostles. You have the earliest stage is their conversion or in the case of Matthew, for example, or their recognition of Jesus as the Messiah. I think several of those men in chapter one who were John the Baptist disciples were already true Old Testament believers. They already were preparing for the Messiah. That's why they were following John the Baptist. They were already believers, but when John introduced them to Jesus and said, He’s the son of God, He’s the Messiah, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, they believed John and began to follow Jesus. At this point, He begins then to collect followers. Later, these men, they will travel intermittently with Jesus. They'll listen to Him, they'll travel intermittently, but later, they go into ministry. They will leave their secular employment to follow Him exclusively. And we'll talk about when that is in just a minute.

In the midst of this, Jesus continues to perform public miracles. His message in the miracles is His deity, that He is in fact God, and also that He is the Messiah. His proof are these miracles. As proof of His claims, He performed miracles. Again and again, He says that. Read John 5, for example. He lays out the witnesses for His deity, and He says, the works that I do, you ought to believe because of the works that I do.

In this period of time, you have His first preaching tour of Galilee with the four disciples. It's recorded in Matthew 4, Mark 1, Luke 4. And in the same time period, you have the call of Matthew. And I think what happens with Matthew is different than these other men. He was apparently not connected to John the Baptist, was not an Old Testament believer, but he has heard, probably heard Christ because Jesus' ministry is in Capernaum. He has probably heard about, maybe even seen some of the miracles of Jesus. And undoubtedly, his heart's heavy under conviction, Jesus shows up and calls him. It's a powerful picture of what we call theologically the effectual call. He's sitting there collecting taxes, living his life, and Christ interrupts his life and says, Follow me. And he does. It's his conversion. It's when he comes to know the Messiah. This year ends with Jesus going to Jerusalem for Passover number two. It's either not in the biblical record or possibly it's John 5:1. There's disagreement among scholars about that. 

That brings us to period number three. Period number three, Passover of 28 AD to the Passover of 29 AD. This is the second full year of Jesus' public ministry. And this year, the entire year is His great Galilean ministry. It is a time of huge, immense popularity. This is when the crowds gather. This is when word has spread. People come from across the Jordan. You remember I showed you, Perea, Decapolis; they come from Syria; they come from Lebanon. They come from all over to see and hear Jesus and to be healed. They bring their loved ones to be healed. During this year, some of the major events, you have a confrontation with the Pharisees. This is when, this is the way it always works, right? People don't feel threatened until somebody's popularity begins to out shadow their own. And so this is when they began to get concerned about Jesus.

It's in the same time period that Jesus chooses the 12 out of His larger group of disciples to be His apostles. So again, they've already trusted in Him. They're already following Him. They've even traveled with Him on short-term ministry, if we could put it that way. But they've continued their normal jobs. And then Jesus now prays all night. And out of that larger group of disciples, He selects 12, whom He designates called Apostles, sent ones. They are His proxies, His legal proxies, who have authority to speak on His behalf, to represent Him, obviously to write on His behalf as well.

In the same period of time—well, let me stop here and comment on these sort of groups. When you look at the 12 or the Apostles, there are four lists, Matthew 10, Mark 3, Luke 6, and Acts 1. And in those four lists of the Apostles, you have three groups with the same four members. In other words, wherever you look, whichever one of those lists you look at, the names can move within their group, but they stay within their group. So you have three groups with the same four members. Group one is always Peter, Andrew, James, and John. And the same name heads each of the three groups. So in every case, the first group is headed by Peter, the second group is headed by Philip, the third group is headed by James of Alphaeus. And what you have in that group is a decreasing level of intimacy to Christ. You know, this is an important reminder. I mean, Jesus loved perfectly, but He didn't treat everyone exactly the same. Imagine if you were the other eight, or in some cases the other nine, when Jesus said, okay, you three, you four, you come with me, the rest of you stay here. It's a point we need to get in our heads that Jesus has a right to decide how we serve Him and to what level of notoriety, to what level of success or not. We just need to be faithful. That's His business to make those decisions. And He obviously did in the case of the Apostles. 

In this same period comes the most famous sermon that we have in our New Testament, the Sermon on the Mount. Now, I think the Luke 6, and we'll talk about this when we get there in Matthew, but I think the Luke 6 didn't happen at exactly the same time. But nevertheless, you have some of the same content. Just like I preach in different places, I'll preach the same sermon. Well, Jesus did that. And sometimes He'll circle back and He'll address an issue at another time and another place with the same group. And so you find that in the Gospel record.

In this time period, you also have His second preaching tour of Galilee recorded in Luke 8. He sends the apostles and He Himself goes as well. Now a significant change happens in His ministry in this period. He performed a miracle that proved Him to be the Messiah. He healed a demon-possessed man who is both blind and mute. But this is not how the Jewish leaders responded. The Jewish leaders accused Him of being in league with Satan. This is the official rejection of Jesus by the leaders of the nation. This, by the way, was the unpardonable sin.

You know, a lot of people ask me, you know, how do you know if you've committed the unpardonable sin? Well, personally, I don't believe this sin can be committed today because everything had to be this way. It had to be that there was absolutely no way legitimately to question that what was happening was the work of God. And then you, knowing that, had to say, no, it's not a work of God, it's a work of Satan out of pure selfishness and pride or envy because you wanted to hold on to your possessions or your place of influence or whatever it was. That's the unpardonable sin. It's when you knowingly, willingly reject Christ, when you know it's the truth because of your own sin. Now, I don't think it's as provable today as it was when Jesus walked the earth. I mean, nobody could look at Jesus, see His life, and conclude rightly that He wasn't what He claimed. And so it was unequivocal. It was clear. Today, I don't think that's true. 

So I personally don't think the Scripture permits anyone today, even an unbeliever, to commit the unpardonable sin because Jesus isn't here. But if they were to do that, if it's possible to commit the unpardonable sin, it has to be a) an unbeliever, b) it has to be someone who knows and is convinced of who Jesus is, and then who knowingly, willingly blasphemes Jesus in spite of that for their own sinful advantage. So it's not something that happens accidentally, is what I'm telling you guys. So don't worry about whether or not you've committed the unpardonable sin.

In this same period of time, another amazing thing happens. His mothers and brothers seek to take Him back to Nazareth. They show up according to Mark 3. They show up when they hear that what Jesus is doing, they hear about how His ministry is taking off in Capernaum, how wildly popular it is. Mary and the brothers show up for two different reasons. Mary shows up as a concerned mother about her son's health, and His brothers didn't believe in Him, and they even said, He’s crazy, He’s out of His mind. He has a messiah complex, all right? And so they show up to take Him back to Nazareth. The word that's used in Greek literally means to seize by force, to arrest, they were going to grab Jesus and take Him back to Nazareth. By the way, that is the same long day when the leaders rejected Him, when they committed the unpardonable sin and said He’s doing what He does by the works of Satan. Can you imagine? One day, the leaders of the nation reject you, your family rejects you. 

So, Jesus began to speak publicly in parables and privately explain them to the disciples. Again, Matthew 13, all those parables happens on that day, the same day that the leaders reject Him, say He’s under Satan's control, His family says He’s nuts and out of His mind. Jesus then begins to speak in parables and privately explain them to His disciples. He also teaches His disciples privately in parables as well, in this context. This is followed by another devastating blow, and that is His final rejection at Nazareth, when they want to kill Him. This is the rejection by His extended family and friends.

This period concludes with the 12 going out by twos, but Jesus going out alone in ministry, and it ends with Jesus not going to Jerusalem for Passover number 3 in John 6:4. This is the only Passover. Clearly, He doesn't go. He stays in Galilee, and this is when the feeding of the 5,000 happens.

That brings us to period number 4, Passover of 29 AD to the Passover of 30 AD. So, we're now to the last full year of Jesus' life in ministry, period 4 from Passover of 29 AD to Passover of 30 AD, again, the third full year of His ministry. And, as far as what happens during that time in contrast to the other years, it's a time of sinking popularity and His constantly choosing to avoid Jewish areas. This time, it marks the end of His Galilean ministry. I'm not going to go through all of those, but you can see some of the events that happened in those first one to two months as He ends his, that long period of time, some 18 months in the Galilean ministry. That is when He walks on water, stills the storm, confronts the superficial disciples who loosely attach themselves to Him, and then there's a defection, you remember, that takes place. This is the popular level rejection of Christ. So you've seen now in every category, from the leaders to His family, and even now among those who claim to be His disciples. It's a popular level rejection of Jesus.

He begins then intensely to train and prepare the Twelve. This is when He purposefully pours Himself into them. At this point, His method changes dramatically. As you see here on the screen, instead of crowds, He focuses mostly on His disciples in private. Instead of constant miracles, He actually downplays His miracles and tries to not let word of them out. Instead of open teaching, He resorts to parables. Instead of concentrating on Israel, He focuses more and more on the Gentile territories and cities around that area. This is when He goes to Syrophoenicia and heals the daughter of a Gentile there. He goes to Decapolis, that area across the Jordan and heals a deaf and dumb man, feeds the 4,000.

Then He comes back to Galilee for a short period of time. But then He goes to Caesarea Philippi. And Caesarea Philippi is one of those key events. It's up in the north. If you picture the Sea of Galilee, it's up in that area, not down in the south near Judea and Jerusalem. And for the first two-and-a-half-years of Jesus' ministry, He had not clearly, unequivocally predicted His coming death. But in Matthew 16, He does. He provides the first clear prophecy of His rejection, death, and resurrection. In fact, turn with me to Matthew 16. Because this is the area in Caesarea Philippi where Peter makes his great confession, Matthew 16:13. 

Now, when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, [and again, this was more of a Gentile region. In fact, it was a Gentile region.] “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, but still others Jeremiah, one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” And Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

And in light of that confession, Jesus promises then to build His church in verse 18. He says, “You are Peter, [a little stone], and upon this [bedrock of the confession you've made], “I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.” The idea is death itself won't overcome the church. This is a promise that the blood of the martyrs will be the seed of the church. As they kill Christians, it's not going to overpower. The gates of Hades, that's death. The gate to the grave is death. And He’s saying even that won't stop the march of my church. Death can't stamp out my church. And He promises then to build it. And then, notice verse 21, “From that time, Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes and be killed and be raised up on the third day.” And you know, you got to love Peter. He takes Him aside, rebukes Him, saying, God forbid, Lord, this can't happen. He turned to him and said, “Peter, get behind me, Satan. [You're doing the work of Satan right now.] You are a stumbling block to me, for you're not setting your mind on God's interest, but on man's.” And He goes on to say, the cost of discipleship means you got to be willing to take up your cross and follow me. And your cross, men, isn't your mother-in-law. Okay? He's saying, you got to be willing to give up your life just like I'm willing to give up My life to accomplish this mission. You got to be willing, for My sake, to renounce your life if necessary. So, it's the high-level demand of discipleship that comes on the end of His first real clear prediction of His rejection, death and resurrection. 

That brings you right into the transfiguration. The background is His prediction of His approaching death. I think the reason for the transfiguration is to be an encouragement. Jesus allows three of the disciples who are part of the inner circle to become eyewitnesses of His glory. And I think when you look at the transfiguration, and you see the unveiled glory of Christ in that moment, it's to encourage Christ Himself, as well as to strengthen the faith of the apostles for what's coming. 

So then, He goes to Galilee and the final departure. Now, the last thing that happens, this is as we finish up the life and ministry of Jesus. He's in and out of Jerusalem several times during those final six months. And John 7:30 summarizes those last six months. So the end of 29, the first several months of 30. They were seeking to seize Him, and no man laid His hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come. During these months, Jesus entered Judea three times. In the final six months, He entered Judea three times. First of all, He entered there for the Feast of Tabernacles, Jerusalem. It's recorded in John 7 through 10, in November of 29 AD. That's when the Feast of Tabernacles would have been. Then you have, He is going to Jerusalem for the Feast of Dedication, for Hanukkah, recorded in John 10, in December of 29 AD. And the third time is the most interesting of all, because Jesus, the last time He goes before the Passover, is He goes to Bethany to raise Lazarus. This would have been around February, a couple of months before Jesus' crucifixion.

Now, why is this significant? What's the point of the raising of Lazarus? Just think with me for a moment. Bethany was a town that was just two miles over the Mount of Olives from Jerusalem, just two miles away. And this is the first time in this last year of Jesus' life and ministry, really the only time in His entire ministry, when He intentionally, publicly displayed a miracle, intentionally made it dramatic in order to make a point. He staged this miracle to supply the entire nation with one last great final proof of His claims. It was six to eight weeks before Passover, and it happened right next to Jerusalem. And you remember the story. He hears that Lazarus is sick, but He doesn't go. He waits. Lazarus dies. He waits until Lazarus has been dead for four days, and then He shows up. And dramatically, you remember, the mourners are there. Mary and Martha were, and Lazarus were part of a wealthy family, and that's where Jesus often stayed with His disciples. They had obviously a large home. They were wealthy and influential people, and a lot of people come the two miles over the hill from Jerusalem who know them for the mourning over the death of Lazarus. They're all gathered there. Four days after His death, then Jesus shows up and dramatically goes to the edge of the tomb. You remember how many miracles Jesus sort of does on the sly? You remember how often He says, kick everybody out of the room and I'm going to do this? And other times He says, don't tell anybody? This is not like that. He stands at the edge of that tomb with all the mourners around, with all these wealthy, influential friends of Mary and Martha and Lazarus over the hill from Jerusalem, and He says, Lazarus, come forth! And Lazarus shows up at the entrance of the tomb, and they have to unwind the wrappings of the grave clothes, and He’s alive.

Guys, just think about that for a moment. Imagine if that was a member of your family. Jesus shows up, and He does that. What does He prove? He proves that He is the Lord of life, the Lord of death and the Lord of life. Now, why did this matter? Well, remember who runs that racket over the hill at the temple? Annas, Caiaphas, the Sadducees. Guess what the Sadducees don't believe? The resurrection. Jesus absolutely confronts them in a way that they cannot deny. And so, when this happens, Jesus performs this miracle in a dramatic fashion. He then leaves. 

He went to Ephraim after the raising of Lazarus, a town, a small town, just a few miles north of Jerusalem, where He waited with His disciples. Go over to John 11. John 11 and look at verse 54. John 11:54. “Therefore Jesus no longer continued to walk publicly among the Jews, but went away from there to the country near the wilderness into a city called Ephraim, and there He stayed with His disciples.” Remember, this is just six to eight weeks before the Passover, and He waits there. And as Passover draws near, several things happen. First of all, the Jewish leaders decide that Jesus has to go. Look at John 11:53. After the raising of Lazarus, they said, oh, He has to be the Messiah. Let's all believe in Him and follow Him. No. From that day on, they planned together to kill Him. Oh, and also Lazarus, the evidence. Two, they demanded that anyone who knew of Jesus' whereabouts turn Him over to the authorities. Look down at verse 57. “Now, the chief priests and the Pharisees had given orders that if anyone knew where He was, he was to report it so that they might seize Him.” So, in light of this whole scenario, the people wondered if Jesus would come to the Passover. Look at verse 55. “Now, the Passover of the Jews was near, and many went up to Jerusalem out of the country before the Passover to purify themselves. [They go early]. So, they were seeking for Jesus, and they were saying to one another, as they stood in the temple, ‘What do you think? That He will not come to the feast at all?’” Surely, He’s not going to come, not with an arrest warrant out, not with the intentions of the leaders. So, this is the anticipation that's built up. No one knew at this point where Jesus was. 

We know because we're told by the apostle that they left the raising of Lazarus and went just a few miles north to a little town called Ephraim, and they waited. They stayed there and waited for several weeks. But Jesus, while no one knew where He was, He was the chief topic of conversation. And when the time came for Passover, Jesus made His journey to Jerusalem for Passover number four, but He took a most unlikely route. Jesus takes a route that you would never imagine anyone taking, but He does so for very good reasons.

This is one of my favorite parts of the Gospel. Because although He’s close to Jerusalem, although He’s close to Jerusalem, He goes north. So He’s just north of Jerusalem. He's in this area in a little town called Ephraim. So it's Passover. You go to Jerusalem. So what's the most direct route between Ephraim and Jerusalem? Well, that seven-mile journey back down to Jerusalem. Jesus doesn't do that. Instead, He takes His disciples, and He goes north, up through Samaria, all the way to Galilee, somewhere here on the south end of Galilee, and He joins the other pilgrims coming from Galilee for the Passover, and He travels with them down the Jordan Rift Valley. And along the way, He’s performing miracles. He's teaching. He's making a very public demonstration, highly visible, confronting the Jewish leaders.

He travels along the Jordan into Perea, the yellow part there, just on the side of the Jordan, travels down the Perean divide there, down to and through Jericho. In fact, He spends the night in Jericho, at the house of a man He’s just saved, a man by the name of Zacchaeus. He's on His way to Jerusalem. Now, when He leaves Jericho, He travels to Bethany. But as they take that route, how many of you, just out of curiosity, have ever taken what's called the Jericho Road? You've actually been in Israel, and you've seen that rugged pass that goes from Jericho up to Jerusalem. Yeah, some of you experienced that. It's dramatic. The elevation changes dramatically over those miles. It's a full day's journey, and it's a hard day's journey if you're not riding in a car or bus. Of course, it's pretty hard then, too. It can be a little nerve-wracking. Now, they built this nice four-lane, maybe wider road, but before, it was this small little road, and the bus driver would, you know, the front of the bus would go out over nothing. It was a little nerve-wracking even then, but not so much today. 

But Jesus took that journey from Jericho, and He stops in Bethany on late Friday afternoon. John 12:1 says it was six days before Passover. Now, using the Galilean method, Passover began at sunrise on Thursday until sunrise on Friday. The Judean method was sunset Thursday to sunset Friday. That was kind of a pragmatic solution because that way they could spread out the Passover lambs over two days, Thursday and Friday, between Galilee and Judea. But this is how they reckoned time. So this allows for a Friday afternoon arrival in Bethany. Now, the rest of the group that Jesus is traveling with, the rest of the Galilean Pilgrims who've traveled with Him, heard Him teach, seen His miracles, heard Him confront the Jewish leaders, they hurry on past the little town of Bethany. There's no lodging there for them. They hurry on to Jerusalem and to get to their lodging before Sabbath began at sunset on Friday.

Now, as the crowds arrived in Jerusalem late on Friday, they brought two very important news items. Number one, Jesus was definitely coming to Passover. And two, He stopped just two miles over the Mount of Olives at the little town of Bethany at the home of, guess who, Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. Now, because of the travel restrictions on the Sabbath, that meant that Jesus would likely enter the city on Sunday morning. He couldn't travel on Friday night. All day Saturday was the Sabbath. It ended at sunset, but why would you go into the city after sunset on Saturday night? So, it built up the sense of anticipation. All these pilgrims have come. They've said, He’s coming, He’s coming, He’s coming. And that brings us to the Passion Week. A huge buildup of anticipation among the people for Sunday morning.

So, let's consider the Passion Week of Jesus. First, of course, you have Sunday, the day of demonstration. This is the day of the triumphal entry. Now, guys, be very careful here. What was the purpose of the triumphal entry? Well, let me tell you what it was not. It was not, as classic dispensationalism teaches, to offer Himself as Israel's king, and if they accepted Him to immediately set up His kingdom. What's the problem with that view? He came to die. That's what He said. In addition, on the way to Jerusalem, He taught the parable of the pounds, and the lesson behind that parable was to correct the idea that the kingdom of God would appear immediately. So He didn't come into the city to offer Himself as king in hopes that maybe they would accept Him, and He would set up His kingdom.

So what was the purpose then of the Triumphant Entry? It had two essential purposes. First of all, for Him to make the unequivocal claim to be Israel's Messiah. The prophet had written that the Messiah would enter the city this way. Zechariah 9:9, “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion, Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem, Behold, your king is coming to you. He is just and endowed with salvation, Humble and mounted on a donkey, Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” When a ruler came in war, he came on a charger. When he came in peace, he came on a donkey. Jesus is offering Himself, offering proof, I should say, of Himself as the Messiah.

Secondly, He was claiming to be the fulfillment of the Passover. In Luke 19:37 and 39, the multitudes cry out as Jesus rides into the city, down the Mount of Olives and into the city, they cry out Psalm 118:26. Well, that's part of the Hallel or praise Psalms, and those were sung after every Passover meal. Jesus is saying, “I am the Passover lamb.” There were many people there for different reasons. Some of His true disciples were there. Some were there just out of curiosity because of the hubbub that had been created by the pilgrims coming into town. Saying, Jesus is coming, He’s coming on Sunday morning. But His true disciples were among the crowd. So He enters the city, and you remember when He enters the city, He does a couple of things. He most importantly scopes out the temple to see what's going on there. And that sets the stage for Monday, the day of authority.

There are two major events that happen on Monday. The first is the cursing of the fig tree. You remember Jesus comes up; He sees a fig tree that is in blossom. It wasn't the season for mature figs, but that fig tree should have had those tiny little pagim, I think they're called, little like thumb-sized figs that you could eat, and there were none. And so Jesus pronounces a curse on the fig tree. This was not a tantrum by Jesus. This was a powerful lesson about what was happening just over on the hill where the temple was. He was saying that the religion of Israel, like that fig tree, was all leaves and no fruit. And so He curses it as an example of that.

And then there's the second cleansing of the temple when He makes that same point. This is mine to deal with and you have again made my Father's house a place where the Gentiles can't worship. The court of the Gentiles was supposed to be a place where the Gentiles, the nations could come and worship. You had the court of the priest next to the big edifice there, next to the altar, you had the court of the priest. Only the priest could go there. Then you had the court of Israel where the Jewish men could go. Then you had the court of the women where Jewish women could go. And then surrounding all of that was the court of the Gentiles, this massive area where the Gentiles could go. And there was a wall, you remember, that said, no Gentile passed this point on pain of death. But that was all intended for the Gentiles. Guess where Annas and Caiaphas set up all their money-making scheme? It's where the Gentiles were supposed to be able to come and pray. And Jesus says, this is supposed to be a house of prayer for all the nations. And look what you've done to it. 

Now this is a picture of Herod's Temple Mount. This is a recreation from a description of the time. This is a scale model that you can visit in the city of Jerusalem. It's very large but not full size. I mean the whole Temple Mount that I'm showing you there would be the size of maybe three or so of these tables put together. Or maybe four. But what you see there is what I was describing. That interior part is where the steps are and up. That's where you come to the Court of the Women and the other parts of the Temple. It was mammoth. That platform that Herod built is 35 acres. So that wide open area you see is 35 acres. The front of the Temple proper is 50 yards high. So it's a huge, huge structure. And Jesus cleanses the Temple, and He cleanses this area between the outer wall that you see in the foreground there and that inner wall that was where the Jewish people could go. The Court of the Gentiles is where all of these things were taking place.

That brings us, then, to Tuesday. Tuesday is a day of conflict. Jesus' authority is questioned. By what right do you do all these things? He gives parables attacking the Jewish leaders. He gives the parable of the two sons. You remember one who said, Yeah, I'll go. And the other said, No, I'm not going. And then the second one actually does repent and go, and the first one never goes. Because it's an illustration of the Jewish treatment of God's will. He gives the parable of the vineyard, the treatment of God's son. You remember He says he sent all these servants, and they beat them and killed them. And he said, Well, I'll send my son. Surely, they'll respect him. And they killed the son because they were envious to keep their position.

He was confronting them. Now, remember where this is happening, folks. This is happening on the Temple Mount I just showed you. And the Pharisees and the Sadducees are all there mingled in the crowd. And there are tens of thousands, probably hundreds of thousands of people milling around that 35-acre. And this is where Jesus is saying these things. It's not in private. It's on their ground. And then the parable of the wedding feast, which describes the treatment of God's salvation. You may be providing God a wedding garment, but I don't want to wear it. That's the message.

Also, that day, there are questions to ask of Jesus. There's the question about the tribute. There's the question about the resurrection from the Sadducees, who didn't believe in the resurrection, and they're just trying to make it look ridiculous. It's like, well, what happens, you know, if this series of events unfolds where, you know, you got all these multiple spouses, what's that going to look like in heaven?” And Jesus quotes the Pentateuch, which they did believe in, to show them how foolish their position was because God said, years after their death, I am the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, implying they're still alive. And so using their own Scriptures, He answers them, the greatest commandment is in this time, and then whose son is the Christ. 

Then you have the denunciation of the Pharisees. This is all happening on Tuesday. For these two days after the cleansing of the temple, Jesus essentially takes full control of the temple compound. We're told, John tells us He wouldn't allow people to come and go and carry things across. In other words, He said, no more of this taking and misusing this area that's intended for worship. So He’s there, He’s holding court, and in the middle of that, He denounces the Pharisees. Read Matthew 23. That happened on Tuesday of the Passion Week on the Temple Mount with tens of thousands of people around, and Jesus says, woe to you, woe to you. And He says, you are sons of hell, and you're making every proselyte you make a son of hell with you. You're a serpent. And on and on it goes in those denunciations that occurred in the temple courts. 

Jesus then walks from probably, let me go back and show you. You see that stoa, that portico on the far end of the Temple Mount. Probably it was in that area that Jesus is teaching. That's where teachers often would gather and teach their disciples and followers. And then Jesus leaves after the denunciation of the Pharisees. He walks across the court of the Gentiles and into the court of the women. And in the court of the women were these receptacles, these trumpet shaped receptacles for the collection of the offering. And Jesus sits down and watches the money that people are putting in. And in that context, you remember a widow comes up with her mites. It's all we're told she had left to live on. And she puts those coins in that treasury and walks away, and she has nothing left to live on. Now, my whole life, I used to think that story was about, look at how wonderful that was, the sacrifice. The story isn't criticizing her. It's criticizing the leaders of the nation, because God's heart is to take care of widows. God's heart isn't to take the last thing they have to live on. It's to provide for them. You see that in the New Testament, right?

The church is supposed to help widows. We help widows in our church, because that's the heart of God. What were they doing instead? I challenge you, there are two gospels where the Widows Mite story occurs. It occurs in Luke 21 and in Mark 12. And both of those accounts of the Widows Mite, guess what precedes it? A denunciation of the Pharisees as those who devour widows' houses. They take everything poor widows have left to live on. Guys, that happens in false religion across our country today and across the world. It happened then. And they devoured widows' houses. So Jesus sits down there near the temple treasury, the offering trumpet boxes, and He watches, and this poor widow who doesn't have anything left to live on thinks she has to do this. She's been compelled by the system to give everything she has to live on into the treasury, to somehow buy God's favor. That's what she's been told. 

Jesus gets up from the court of the women, and He walks out the front of the temple area and out toward the Mount of Olives, and He never comes back to the temple. And on His way up the Mount of Olives, the disciples ask Him about this beautiful temple, and He says, let me tell you something. Not one stone is going to be left upon another. What's He doing? He's pronouncing judgment on a system, a system that like the fig tree is all leaves and no fruit, and on a system that takes advantage of poor, desperate people to make money for the wealthy who enjoy their lifestyle. And He says, it's going to all be destroyed. And out of that comes what we refer to as the Olivet Discourse, Matthew 24 and 25, which announces the destruction of Jerusalem and the Second Coming. That's Tuesday. 

On Wednesday, you have a day of silence. Jesus rested. Nothing is told us in the Scriptures about what Jesus did that day, so we assume that He rested. There's nothing in the Word about it. The Jewish leaders, on the other hand, plotted. They decided, they met. Now, here's the sovereignty of God. They meet, you can read those passages. They meet and decide Jesus really does have to go, as we already decided several weeks ago, and He slipped into town. Remember, by staying in Bethany on the Sabbath, they couldn't go get Him. They couldn't travel that far on the Sabbath, so he'd set it up perfectly so He could come into town and not be in any way molested.” But they say, look, He’s got to go. We got to work this out, but not during the feast, because there'll be this huge uproar, because they had no way to get Him privately without all the crowd knowing. Remember, He’s teaching in front of tens of thousands of people, denouncing them, so they can't just show up and take Him. There'd be a riot that would break out, because many believed in Him. And so they say, we'll wait. We'll wait till after the feast. And in God's providence, at that very moment, Judas shows up. And Judas says, I'm willing to sell Him to you for 30 pieces of silver. Now, they knew they had a way, because it wouldn't be public. Judas could deliver Jesus in a more private setting, even though it was feast time. And so they agree, and that brings us to Thursday. 

Thursday is the day of preparation. Now, what's fascinating about the preparations by Peter and John on Thursday of the Passion Week is you remember how Jesus tells them to find the house where they're going to celebrate the Passover? He says, you know, you go into the town, you find this person walking with a water jug, you follow them, and when you get to the house, you say that the Lord is going to have the Passover here. Now, why would He do it that way? Now, either in His omniscience, He knew this would happen and was telling them, or probably not, but He could have set it up. But regardless, Jesus is telling Peter and John to do that. Can you think of why that would be important? Judas has already agreed to sell Jesus out. He's already agreed that He’s going to find a quiet, private moment when the Romans can come, the temple guard, along with the Romans, and take Jesus, what better time than when they were celebrating the Passover in the Upper Room? But Judas doesn't know where it's going to be because of Jesus prearranging that they're going to go, Peter and John are going to go into town, and they're going to follow a guy, and that's where the Passover celebration will be. So Judas cannot get word to the leadership about where that's going to unfold, so Jesus can enjoy the Passover with His disciples, so He can prepare them before it happens. But Judas does know that when they're in town, they often go to Gethsemane for prayer, and so you can see how it sets up. 

So you have the Passover preparations by Peter and John. They go, they do as Jesus said, they go and get a lamb, they take it to the temple, there it's slain in the afternoon, usually around 3 o'clock in the afternoon. They bring the meat of that lamb back to the place where they're celebrating the Passover, they prepare the lamb, the other things that have been a traditional part of the Passover Seder, and they prepare for Jesus and the others to arrive, which they do. So now Judas arrives with the others and cannot tell the leaders where Jesus is, where He’s celebrating the Passover.

So that's the Passover celebration. And you remember Judas leaves during the Passover celebration, now knowing where Jesus is going next, that they're going to Gethsemane, and that's the ideal place to deliver Him. And it's perfect for Jesus because now He can concentrate His training and preparation on those who are truly believers in Him, the 11 who are left. So you can read the bulk of what happens that night is recorded in John, John 14 to 17 on that Thursday night. Jesus teaches them, but then somewhere in that time in John 14 to 17, He transitions out of the Upper Room, and they head toward Gethsemane. There's a lot of debate about where the events of chapters 15, 16, and 17 happen. I put them here for you, I think, on the way to Gethsemane. Somewhere in there, you have the true vine and the ministry of the spirit. Maybe even as they were looking up at the temple because there was a massive vine leafed in gold on the front of the temple. Maybe that's where He gave that illustration. We can't be sure. But then I think probably near Gethsemane, you have the high priestly prayer of Christ in John 17.

On the way to Gethsemane, you also have the second prediction of Peter's denial. And then they arrive at Gethsemane, where you have the prayer and the agony over the coming separation from the Father. The disciples, of course, can't sleep because of sadness. And then Judas arrives. That brings us to Friday, the day of the crucifixion.

Now, let me walk you through this day. It's a remarkable day. It starts somewhere around 12 a.m. That's probably around the time after the Passover. Jesus prayed for an hour, we're told, by the Gospels after they got to Gethsemane, and so likely you have an arrest and a betrayal around 12 a.m. Jesus is arrested and forsaken. I got to give you one other little tidbit that happens in that context. You remember Jesus goes, when He sees Judas and the guards from the temple, the Jewish guards, and the Roman soldiers, Jesus steps out to meet them, and He says, whom do you seek? And they say Jesus of Nazareth, and He says, that's me. And remember, apparently, His glory is somehow allowed to be seen, and they fall to the ground. And He asks them a second time, whom do you seek? And they say, Jesus of Nazareth. And He says, then, I am he. Let these go. You know what Jesus is doing? You read that in context. He's protecting His disciples. They couldn't have—if they had been arrested at that moment, their faith may not have stood, but He’s guarding and protecting them. Even in His most difficult moment, He’s thinking of His disciples. He's protecting them from their faith failing. He prayed for Peter that his faith wouldn't fail, and He guards and protects His disciples, even in that moment. Whose name is on the arrest warrant? It's mine. Then let these go. 

After He’s arrested and forsaken, you have the first Jewish trial. This would have been around 1 a.m. It happens by Annas, who used to be high priest, the former high priest and father-in-law to Caiaphas, and apparently happens in the court of Annas' home. It appears that Annas and Caiaphas shared a common courtyard, as was common for families in that day. And so while Caiaphas is assembling a nighttime version of this Sanhedrin, Annas questions Jesus. It was illegal in every possible way. He asked Jesus essentially to incriminate Himself, but that's the first Jewish trial.

And then, you have at around 2 a.m., you have the second Jewish trial. This is an illegal trial. This is before Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin. It's in the house of Caiaphas. Jesus is here, condemned, mocked, and struck. But let me show you what the charge is. Turn with me to Mark 14. Mark tells us what happens in this second trial. Mark 14, verse 61. You remember, they keep trying to find people to give false testimony against Him, verse 56. Some did, but it didn't make sense, verse 59, that their testimony wasn't consistent. And so, the high priest, verse 60, “stood up and came forward and questioned Jesus, saying, ‘Do you not answer? What is it that these men are testifying against you?’ But He kept silent and did not answer. Again, the high priest was questioning Him.” Now, what happens here is they have tried to suborn perjury, they have tried to get false witnesses against Jesus. You know, hangers on, people wanting to climb the ladder, who are happy to do the bidding of these evil men. But there's nothing that's consistent. There's no way they can stick Jesus with a charge. And so, Caiaphas was both a brilliant and a brutal man, and he was a scheming politician type of guy. And here, he sort of spins the dice on this sort of full-frontal attack on Jesus. Jesus has been accused of all these things. He said nothing, and so he baits Jesus. He says, there in verse 61, “the high priest was questioning Him.” Matthew tells us he put Him under oath. He said, “‘I adjure You by the living God.’” So, Jesus, You're now under oath. Let me ask You this question. “‘Are You the Christ, the Messiah, the son of the blessed one?’ [Are You the Messiah, the son of God?]” I want to hear it from your own lips. You're under oath. And Jesus said, “I am.” But He’s not content with that. He adds from Daniel, “‘You shall see the son of man sitting at the right hand of power and coming with the clouds of heaven.’ Tearing his clothes, the high priest said, ‘What further need do we have of witnesses? You've heard the blasphemy. How does it seem to you?’ And they all condemned Him to be deserving of death.” This is what happens at 2 a.m. or shortly thereafter on that early Friday morning of our Lord's crucifixion.

Peter's denials, at least 3, possibly 4, before the 3 a.m. cock crowing occur. By the way, the third of 4 night watches from 12 to 3 a.m. was actually called cock crowing. Typically, a cock would crow near the beginning of this period and again toward the end of that window of time. That's what Jesus is saying is going to happen. Peter's going to deny Him. And so, in fact, it happens. 

It would have been illegal to have sentenced Jesus to death at night. So the Sanhedrin had to wait for the first light the next morning before they could formally condemn Him to death. However, after this second illegal Jewish trial during the night, they began to abuse Jesus. It's unclear in the context whether it's merely their servants or whether apparently some of these members of the Sanhedrin take their moment, take out their pound of flesh against Jesus in that night. 

After dawn—so by the way, Jesus is probably incarcerated there in the home of Caiaphas. Archaeologists believe that there was a holding cell there, and it's likely Jesus was held there. But regardless, sometime shortly after the break of first light, somewhere between 5 a.m. and 5:30 on that morning, there's the third Jewish trial. This is when the formal verdict is reached by the Sanhedrin. They condemned Jesus of blasphemy. Now those three Jewish trials are followed by three Roman trials. By the way, Judas' regret and suicide is in here. You remember, he comes when he sees Jesus is condemned formally at that third Jewish trial. That was on the Temple Mount. Josephus says they met in the chamber of Hewn Stone there on the Temple Mount. And they sat in a half circle, and Jesus would have been in front of them. They would have recited the same charges from the night before, pronounced Jesus formally guilty, condemned Him to death.

Judas sees all this unfold. He sees that Jesus has been found guilty, and he says, I've betrayed an innocent man. I don't want to do this. And they say, that's your problem. And Judas does something remarkable. If you read the record, he actually takes those 30 pieces of silver and he throws them into the sanctuary, that is into the holy place. He can't get into that huge edifice that is the temple proper, the holy place and the holy of holies, but he can stand near it. And when the door is open, he apparently hurls those coins and they go flying into the holy place, is the way it's described in the Gospel record. And then he goes and out of regret commits suicide. It wasn't repentance, it was regret for what he had done. 

Between 5:30 a.m. and 9 a.m. on that Friday, you have the three Roman trials unfold. The first Roman trial was before Pilate. And these trials that occur, you know, there are three Roman trials, they occur alternatively between the courtyard of the praetorium and this large Agora Marketplace just east of Herod's Palace. This is the city of Jerusalem in the time of Jesus. You'll notice where the large red arrow is pointing, that's the Palace of Herod. It was on the upper west side where it was high, caught the afternoon breezes off the Mediterranean. It's where all the wealthy lived. And that's where the Palace of Herod was. That's where Herod would have been staying. He'd come over from Caesarea on the coast for the feast. That's where Pilate would have lived as well. 

And so, they bring Jesus from over on the other side of the Kidron Valley in Gethsemane. They bring Him across the city over to the Palace of Herod. Now, this is the Praetorium, the Palace of Herod. That's what I just showed you on the map. This is a recreation of it. Again, part of the model that you can see when you go to Jerusalem. And you can see that there are two identical structures facing one another, separated by a courtyard. You ever wondered how in the world could they get Jesus back and forth between all these places in that short of time? Well, that's how. This is where it all transpired. So you have, staying in one side of that identical palace structure, you had Herod, and on the other side of it, you had Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor. But most of the trial took place just outside that palace. You see where the red arrow is pointing at an open marketplace that was called The Pavement. And so this is where you see Pilate out there, the crowds gather at the pavement. They deliver Jesus over to Pilate.

Pilate has some of the trial there, but then he takes Jesus aside, probably stepping out of The Pavement into the palace area, the courtyard of the palace area, and they're questioning Him privately. So it all happens right here in this part of the city. 

The second trial was before Herod Antipas. Again, he would have been just across the courtyard, staying in the other half of that magnificent palace. And he tries to get Jesus to do some tricks for him, basically, and then they mock Him, treat Him with contempt, put a gorgeous robe on Him. But here's the key. Pilate said, I don't find any fault in Him. He's innocent. Herod sent Him back to Pilate saying, I don't find any fault in Him either. He's innocent. Pilate quotes that in the Gospel record. That brings us to the third Roman trial before Pilate.

Now, let me make one other important point. What was Jesus convicted of to be deserving of death in the Jewish trials? Blasphemy. But something has to change for Jesus to be put to death. Two things actually have to change. The first thing that has to change is the venue, because the Jewish people, the Jewish rulers, the Sanhedrin couldn't put anyone to death.

That had to happen by the Romans. So it had to go from the Jewish court to the Roman court. That meant a second thing had to change, and that was the charge, because the Romans were not going to put Jesus to death on the charge of blasphemy. That's what they found Him guilty of. But when they deliver Him to Pilate, they come up with a new charge that He had not been convicted of because it was the charge that Pilate would have to give way to. And what was that charge? Sedition, treason. And so, that's what Pilate and Herod are ruling on. They're saying, He’s not guilty of sedition. We don't find Him guilty of that at all. He's innocent, He’s innocent, He’s innocent, three times. He's innocent.

So the third trial before Pilate, Pilate has Jesus scourged and mocked and beaten. The soldiers put a crown of thorns on His head, a purple robe on Him and then Pilate declares Him to be innocent. Don't you love that system of justice? He tries to release Him, but at the pressure of the Jews, of course, he surrenders Him to be crucified. On what charge? Herod and Pilate. On at least three occasions, and it appears in the Gospel record, between three and four times, Jesus is said to be innocent of the charge that He’s brought before the Romans for. And that's sedition or treason. So what is Jesus actually going to be put to death for? Blasphemy. Which only is legitimate if it's blasphemy.  So that brings us then to 9am.

9am on that Friday morning, we're told Jesus was crucified. I'm not going to go into a description of crucifixion. You know it was brutal. I'll just give you the short version. The short version is it was not a merciful death. It was a death meant to absolutely ridicule the prisoner. Sometimes they were affixed to the cross in ridiculous ways. Jesus would have been completely naked, and He was fastened to the cross in a way that His death would be a slow, painful one. Essentially, the death on the cross is suffocation. Your arms are stretched out either nailed as His were or tied. Your feet are affixed where your knees are slightly bent. Now, that seems like it's a mercy. It's not. It's to make your death linger, because what happens is you slump down on your arms and it compresses your lungs, and you can't get the breath you need. And so over time, you get this oxygen deprivation where you have to get oxygen. And so you pull up against your arms, you push against your feet to push up to get some air, and in so doing, you pull against those wounds, you rub your back against the raw wood of the cross, and this goes on hour after hour after hour until the person becomes so weak that they can no longer keep pushing themselves up, and they die of suffocation. That's what normally happened. It often took days for it to happen. 

Jesus is crucified at 9am on Friday. From 9am to noon, several things happened. The first saying from the cross, where Jesus says, “Father, forgive them.” I think Jesus had a forgiving heart toward all those who were gathered that day, but I think this prayer was specific. It was a prayer for certain people to be forgiven, and they were, as you'll see in a moment before this scene is undone. The soldiers gamble for His tunic. The soldiers put the charge above Christ's head, and all of the groups that are there mock Him. Thieves on the cross, the bystanders, the religious leaders, they're all mocking Jesus.

You know the irony of their mockery? How do you think the thief came to faith in Christ? I love this story. How did the thief come to faith in Christ? He heard about Jesus and Jesus claims through the mockery of the people gathered around. He said He’s the son of God. He said He’s the Messiah. He said He could save others, but He can't save Himself. And the Holy Spirit works on his heart, and he comes to faith through the mockery of the people gathered around the foot of the cross. The second saying, today you will be with me in paradise to that thief as he truly repents and trusts in Christ. The third saying, woman, behold your son. As I said last time, I think it's very possible that Jesus and His humanity didn't know that His brothers would come to trust in Him. And so He entrusts the care of His mom to John, one of His own. That's from nine to noon.

Then, of course, at noon there is supernatural darkness over that entire part of the world. It wasn't an eclipse. There's no three-hour eclipse. And from noon to three, nothing is recorded during most of those three hours. But near 3 p.m., several things happen. The fourth saying, my God, my God, why have You forsaken me? Which men tells us why Jesus was on the cross. He was separated from the Father in His humanity, as we would be separated from God for all eternity in our place. He was enduring the wrath your sins deserved. That's why He cried out, my God, my God, why have You forsaken me? That's a quote from Psalm 22. Why have You forsaken me? Two verses later, it says, for You are holy. That's the reason. The fifth saying, I am thirsty, shows His humanity. Sixth saying, it is finished. This is when He pronounces the work of redemption done. All He has to do is die. And the seventh saying, Father, into your hands, I commit my spirit. And all of those are said, those last two sayings are said with a loud voice that can be heard. What was the death of crucifixion? Suffocation. You don't have enough air even to breathe, much less to speak. And Jesus is shouting those with a loud voice, which says what about where He is physically? He's still physically strong. And so He surrendered up His spirit, we're told. He, no one, He says, takes my life from me. No one takes my life from me. I lay it down. Man, He laid His life down at 3 p.m. on that Friday for you.

Nobody took it. He gave up His spirit. The Passover lambs are being slain at the temple as the Passover lamb is dying on the cross. Several miracles occur in conjunction. The temple veil is torn from the top to the bottom, showing that access has been granted through Christ into God's presence. There's an earthquake. Tombs are open. And on Sunday, people will be raised after Jesus' resurrection from those tombs. And the centurion and his fellow soldiers are converted.

I love that miracle. I believe when they said, “This is the son of God,” and it says the others were saying it too. So the four soldiers of the crucifixion detail were the answer along with the thief on the cross to Jesus' prayer, Father, forgive them. They were converted.

From 3pm to sunset, the Jews requested the crucified be killed and taken away because of the Passover the next day. The Sabbath Passover, I mean. The soldiers broke the legs of the thieves, plunged a spear into Jesus' chest cavity. They knew He was dead. The soldiers knew that. They had already seen Him die. And so just because they were responsible to prove it, they thrust the spear. You know, you see those paintings with the little prick in Jesus' side. No, this was a spear thrust up into His chest cavity to pierce His heart to make sure He was dead. He was certifiably dead, and the Centurion testified to that to Pilate.

Joseph of Arimathea requested Jesus' body for burial. Then Joseph and Nicodemus prepared the body for burial with some 72 pounds of spices. Joseph placed Jesus in his own new tomb nearby in a garden. Some point again, maybe I'll get a chance to show you some pictures of this. A tomb hewn out of solid rock. Several women watched. They returned to their own homes and prepared additional spices for after the Sabbath.

On Saturday, you have the day of the Sabbath. This is what happened. The Sanhedrin requested that a Roman guard be stationed at the tomb. The tomb was inspected. A guard was put in place. The seal was set. And after sunset, ladies bought additional spices to bring them on Sunday. And Sunday, of course, is the day of the resurrection. A severe earthquake occurred, perhaps in conjunction with the resurrection. An angel descends and rolls away the stone, not to let Jesus out, but to let us in. There are five appearances on the day of His resurrection. That morning, to Mary Magdalene, and He gave a message to the disciples, the other women, this is when the guard went to the Jewish authorities trying to come up with a plan.

That afternoon, Jesus appears to Simon Peter, and late afternoon, to the Emmaus Road disciples, and then about 9pm., He just appears in the room where the 11 have gathered in Jerusalem. That is the 11 minus Thomas, so 10 technically. But now that Judas is gone, they're called the 11. 

So men, that is what happened in our Lord's life and ministry. And it's interesting that the Gospels are disproportionately composed of the last week of Jesus' life. Go to each of the Gospels and just look at them. Look at where the story of the last week of Jesus begins. So much of the Gospel record points to why He came and what He accomplished in His passion. This is the reality. 

And what's our response? You know it, but as we finish, look at John, John chapter 20, verse 30. John, who wrote the last of the four Gospels, ends the record of Jesus' life this way. Therefore, many other signs, Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book. But these have been written, so that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that believing, you might have life in His name. This is our Lord.

Let's pray together. Our Father, we are truly amazed by the Lord Jesus Christ. We're amazed at what You did through Him in those three-and-a-half-years of His ministry, at His wisdom, at His teaching, at the miracles that He performed. But Father, we are most overwhelmed, we're most overcome by the fact that He went to the cross voluntarily for us. No man took His life from Him, but He willingly laid it down to save His people from their sins. Lord, we thank you, and I pray that You would help our vision of Christ to grow, as we look at Him in the pages of Scripture, our love for Him to grow. We ask in Jesus' name, amen.