Woe to that Man!

We have now moved to Thursday morning of Passion Week.  We are one day away from the crucifixion of Christ on Friday.

 

Remember from last week that Jesus was at the home of Simon the Leper.  He lived in Bethany. 

 

Today’s message is entitled, “Woe to that Man” and is found in Mark 14:12-21.

 

 

1. The Preparation for the Passover, Mark 14:12

12 Now on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they killed the Passover lamb, His disciples said to Him, “Where do You want us to go and prepare, that You may eat the Passover?”

 

Verse starts with a little of confusion as to when the first day of Unleavened Bread was.  However, Mark clears up the dating matter with “when they killed the Passover lamb.”  This was clearly Thursday.

 

Jesus’ disciples then asked Him where He wanted them to go to prepare the Passover meal in order to eat.  Even though we mentioned this last week, I think it is prudent for us to remember what was the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread.  See Exodus 12:1-17 and Exodus 12:29-32.

 

1 Now the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, 2 “This month shall be your beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to you. 3 Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying: ‘On the tenth of this month every man shall take for himself a lamb, according to the house of his father, a lamb for a household. 4 And if the household is too small for the lamb, let him and his neighbor next to his house take it according to the number of the persons; according to each man’s need you shall make your count for the lamb. 5 Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats. 6 Now you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month. Then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at twilight. 7 And they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel of the houses where they eat it. 8 Then they shall eat the flesh on that night; roasted in fire, with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs they shall eat it. 9 Do not eat it raw, nor boiled at all with water, but roasted in fire—its head with its legs and its entrails. 10 You shall let none of it remain until morning, and what remains of it until morning you shall burn with fire. 11 And thus you shall eat it: with a belt on your waist, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. So you shall eat it in haste. It is the Lord’s Passover.  12 ‘For I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord. 13 Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.  14 ‘So this day shall be to you a memorial; and you shall keep it as a feast to the Lord throughout your generations. You shall keep it as a feast by an everlasting ordinance. 15 Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall remove leaven from your houses. For whoever eats leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel. 16 On the first day there shall be a holy convocation, and on the seventh day there shall be a holy convocation for you. No manner of work shall be done on them; but that which everyone must eat—that only may be prepared by you. 17 So you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this same day I will have brought your armies out of the land of Egypt. Therefore, you shall observe this day throughout your generations as an everlasting ordinance.

 

29 And it came to pass at midnight that the Lord struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of livestock. 30 So Pharaoh rose in the night, he, all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where there was not one dead.  31 Then he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said, “Rise, go out from among my people, both you and the children of Israel. And go, serve the Lord as you have said. 32 Also take your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and be gone; and bless me also.”

 

 

2. The Identification of the Place, Mark 14:13-16

13 And He sent out two of His disciples and said to them, “Go into the city, and a man will meet you carrying a pitcher of water; follow him. 14 Wherever he goes in, say to the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says, “Where is the guest room in which I may eat the Passover with My disciples?”’ 15 Then he will show you a large upper room, furnished and prepared; there make ready for us.”  16 So His disciples went out, and came into the city, and found it just as He had said to them; and they prepared the Passover.  17 In the evening He came with the twelve.

 

Again, it was Thursday morning according to verse 12.  Passover would have begun at 6 PM or sundown on Thursday and continued until 6 PM or sundown on Friday. 

 

Because the Passover Meal had to be taken inside the city walls, verse 13 says that Jesus sent two of His disciples into Jerusalem.  Luke 22:8 tells us that it was Peter and John. 

 

As they entered the city gate, they would see a man carrying a water jar.  That probably sounds common and arbitrary, but it actually was very unusual. 

 

Women normally carried the water jars, and men carried wineskins.  Therefore, a man carrying a water jar would stick out like a sore thumb. 

 

When they saw him, they were to follow.  He would lead them into a house owned by a man who would show them a furnished upper room upon their request. 

 

Some may be wondering how all this was accomplished.  Was this all a product of Jesus’ omniscience or were all of these events prearranged? 

 

I don’t know that it matters a great deal.  However, either is possible, but I think the prearrangement is more likely.  I think Jesus knew the owner of this house and even prearranged the man carrying the water jar.  This conclusion would also be supported with the title of “The Teacher” used in verse 14.

 

Church tradition says this was Mark’s father’s house.  Regardless, Peter and John made these arrangements in Jerusalem.

 

Evidently, according to verse 17, Peter and John then went back to Bethany and reported on their findings and came back to Jerusalem with Jesus and the others for the meal they had prepared.  What did that involve?

 

1. First cup of red wine mixed with water;
2. Ceremonial washing of each person’s hands symbolizing the need for spiritual and moral cleansing;
3. Each person present then passed around a bowl of bitter herbs to eat which was symbolic of the slavery in Egypt;
4. Second cup of wine along with the explanation of the Passover;
5. Singing of the Hallel (Psalms 113-118);
6. Eating the Passover lamb and unleavened bread;
7. Third cup of wine.

 

 

3. The Declaration of the Perfidy, Mark 14:18-21

18 Now as they sat and ate, Jesus said, “Assuredly, I say to you, one of you who eats with Me will betray Me.”  19 And they began to be sorrowful, and to say to Him one by one, “Is it I?” And another said, “Is it I?”  20 He answered and said to them, “It is one of the twelve, who dips with Me in the dish. 21 The Son of Man indeed goes just as it is written of Him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had never been born.”

 

The word “perfidy” means an act or an instance of disloyalty.  If you’re like me, that is a new word for you.

 

Close to 6 PM on Thursday evening or at least after sundown, the twelve disciples and Jesus were in the upper room.  According to verse 18, they sat and ate. 

 

They would have been reclining on large pillows similar to bean bag chairs with small tables for their drinks and meal.  Then Jesus dropped a bombshell of an announcement. 

 

He spoke of a perfidy or an act of betrayal, but no one knew who He was talking about except Him and Judas.  However, Jesus began to give at least three clues. 

 

First, he was one of the Twelve according to verse 18.  Second, he was eating with them at that moment.  Third, according to verse 20, he would dip his bread at the same time as Jesus. 

 

At this point, let’s turn to John 13:23-27.

 

23 Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved.  24 Simon Peter therefore motioned to him to ask who it was of whom He spoke.  25 Then, leaning back on Jesus’ breast, he said to Him, “Lord, who is it?”  26 Jesus answered, “It is he to whom I shall give a piece of bread when I have dipped it.” And having dipped the bread, He gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. 27 Now after the piece of bread, Satan entered him. Then Jesus said to him, “What you do, do quickly.”

 

In verse 21, Jesus reminded the disciples that even His death would be a fulfillment of prophesy and God’s perfect plan.  We also know that Judas’ betrayal was fulfillment of prophesy.  However, that’s not the point of this text.

 

 

Conclusion

The main point of this text is this.  The only person responsible for Judas’ rejection of Jesus is Judas.  It may be hard for me and you to reconcile the fulfillment of prophecy with personal responsibility, but that is exactly what Jesus said in 14:21. 

 

Woe to that man who would betray Jesus.  It would have been better if he would have never been born because hell is going to be bad.

 

Today, each person is solely responsible for what he or she does with Jesus.  If you accept Him, that is a personal decision.  If you reject Him, that is a personal decision.  Don’t blame anybody else for your decision.

 

Remember these warnings from Hebrews.

 

Hebrews 9:27, 27 And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment…

 

Hebrews 10:29-31, 29 Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. And again, “The Lord will judge His people.” 31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

 

Today, the decision is yours.  Will you receive Jesus or reject Jesus?  Will you love Jesus or loathe Jesus?  Will you say yes to Jesus or no to Jesus?