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This week we are completing our study of Chapter 18. Please read verses 18:22-43 every day this week and, if possible, use a different translation each day, asking God to open your eyes to fresh revelation from His Word.
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Luke 18:31-34 (NIV)
‘Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, “We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. He will be turned over to the Gentiles. They will mock him, insult him, spit on him, flog him and kill him. On the third day he will rise again.” The disciples did not understand any of this. Its meaning was hidden from them, and they did not know what he was talking about.’
Have you ever heard the phrase “Been there, done that and bought the T-Shirt”?
It’s quite an old phrase now and is indicating that the speaker knows all about a particular situation. For example, if someone were to tell me how difficult it is to practice scales on the piano, then having been learning to play the piano for many years, I could answer “Been there, done that and bought the T-Shirt”. By saying this, I’m informing the person that I know exactly what they’re going through because I’ve been through that exact same thing. I can not only sympathise with their position, but I can have an empathy with them because of our shared experiences.
There could well be something similar going on in our verses today. The context of these sad, sad verses is the disciples’ declaration that they have left everything and followed Jesus. They are making Jesus aware of the sacrifice that they are making for the Saviour. As I pointed out yesterday, Matthew’s gospel also indicates that the disciples were enquiring about what they would get in return for their sacrifice.
Jesus’ response wasn’t exactly “Been there, done that and bought the T-shirt”, but He is certainly giving them an indication of what kind of sacrifice He Himself was going to make very soon. Jesus briefly catalogues some of the things that He will endure and surely this would have made the disciples take stock of their own position and it would have put their ‘sacrifice’ into perspective. We will in future devotions look in detail at the crucifixion of Jesus but suffice to say here that the manner of His death was truly horrific.
Throughout the gospels, there are predictions about the suffering, the death and the resurrection of Jesus. It is clear that Jesus could have given precise details of every part of those predictions but chooses not to. Here in this passage in Luke, Jesus gives a little more indication of the kind of suffering He was to endure. I don’t know why Jesus keeps the information at a superficial level, but I can almost sense the increasing level of anticipation for the dreadful events. Jesus is the Man of Sorrows and as He sees the moment coming closer, instead of retreating, He ‘sets His face as flint’ and with sheer determination walks toward the impending onslaught of Satanic powers.
The disciples could not understand any of it and I don’t claim to know why the meaning was hidden from them. All I know is that after their fulfilment, God’s Spirit brought all of this back to their minds and by doing so, made their remembrance of this wonderful Saviour even more sweet. He was going to lay down His life for the world. The disciples were keen to know what they would get out of their sacrifice. What was Jesus going to gain from His? The Scripture is clear ‘Who for the joy that was set before Him, endured the cross’. His sacrifice was going to bring ‘many sons to glory’. Take a few moments today to thank Him that you are one of those sons! His sacrifice was for you!
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