John 18 = Jesus Arrested and Peter Caves In
Bible Background: We have skipped over John 14–17, where Jesus continues teaching his disciples on what they’ll need to know for when he is no longer with them. Jesus also promises to send the Advocate, the Holy Spirit-who will be with them forever! And in chapter 17, Jesus prays to God on behalf of his followers here on earth. In chapter 18, the ‘passion narrative’ begins.
Digging Deeper: 1. Chapter 18 begins with Jesus and the disciples going out to a ‘garden’ (we presume, Gethsemane), a familiar place for them. There, Judas shows up with temple police and guards, and Jesus is arrested. Clearly, John shows that Jesus is fully in charge! He doesn’t resist. He’s looking out for the others, when he says “Let them go!” Peter, tries to stop the arrest from happening and cuts off the ear of one of the servants. Jesus tells Peter to put his sword away.
2. Jesus is bound and taken to the courtyard of the high priest’s home, first to be questioned by Annas, and then by Caiphas. Another disciple and Peter follow along. The other disciple uses his ‘connections’ to get Peter into the courtyard. For the first time, he denies that he is a follower of Jesus. (Where Jesus had said “I am he” to his arrestors, Peter insists “I am not!” With the powerful “I Am” statements in the Gospel of John, this is sad irony.
3. As Jesus is being questioned, he is still very much in charge. He questions them! He turns the subject around on them! Peter, however, is in over his head. When questioned two more times, he denies knowing/following Jesus. Then the rooster crows, as Jesus had forewarned Peter.
4. In John’s Gospel, Peter is not known as “The Rock”, but even in Matthew, Mark, and Luke, he caves in as well. His heart is in the right place. His courage falters. And fortunately, this is not what Peter is remembered for. He is remembered for being bold enough to speak up-even though sometimes he was impulsive. And he is remembered for how powerfully he preached and served and testified to Christ in the Book of Acts.
5. What’s a time when you have meant well, or spoken the right thing in a tough situation, and then could not follow through? Is our following Jesus vulnerable to this also? We say we believe in Jesus, we trust Jesus, we love Jesus, we’ll follow Jesus-but it is easier to “talk the talk” than to “walk the walk”. This does not make us failures. But it means we have growing to do in discipleship, and that one of the things we might need to pray for is ‘courage’, and another might be ‘fearlessness.’
6. Where are the other disciples? They have disappeared into the night, except for that one, unnamed disciple, who apparently does stay near Jesus, and is with Mary at the foot of the cross.
