OUR FATHER GAVE HIS ONLY SON TO REDEEM MANKIND AND NOW HIS TIME WAS AT HAND

The Lord Jesus, with the day of His suffering set for the next day, begins the final protocols that needed to be instituted before hand.

Starting with the Last Supper, the Lord was approached by His disciples about where to set up the passover meal.  He instructed them to go into the city and find a man who had the facilities and  been briefed beforehand and to tell him that the time had come and to provide the required space and victuals.

17 Now on the first day of the Feast of the Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying to Him, “Where do You want us to prepare for You to eat the Passover?”

18 And He said, “Go into the city to a certain man, and say to him, ‘The Teacher says, “My time is at hand; I will keep the Passover at your house with My disciples.” ’ ”

19 So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them; and they prepared the Passover.

Once it was evening, Jesus sat down with the twelve disciples and as they ate, the Lord Jesus broached the fact that someone in their midst was going to betray Him. This was a shock  to the group of men and they each began to try make it known the to the others  that they were not involved in treachery against Him. They all asked the Lord to testify that it wasnˋt they who were involved. 

The Lord announced that the one who dipped a piece of bread into the broth at the same time that He did was the one who was going to betray Him and that the person who was going to do it was better off never to have been born because of how agregious the act of betraying the son of man was.

Judas, knowing that it was he who dipped at the same time as Jesus, asked if it was he who was going to betray Jesus and Jesus answered that it was.

20 When evening had come, He sat down with the twelve. 21 Now as they were eating, He said, “Assuredly, I say to you, one of you will betray Me.”

22 And they were exceedingly sorrowful, and each of them began to say to Him, “Lord, is it I?”

23 He answered and said, “He who dipped his hand with Me in the dish will betray Me. 24 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 not been born.”

25 Then Judas, who was betraying Him, answered and said, “Rabbi, is it I?”

He said to him, “You have said it.”

Thus the sequence of events that led to the death of the Lord Jesus began in earnest and the identification of the person who would turn Jesus over into the hands of His enemies was the first of the steps.

Judas left the venue shortly after to fulfill his end of the agreement he had made with the religious leaders for thirty pieces of silver and by the next night, Jesus would be dead.

Have mercy on us O God.

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