Mateus 26
Warren Wiersbe · Citado em PreceptAustin
Mateus 26
Wiersbe - Only John identifies this woman as Mary, sister of Martha and Lazarus. She is found only three times in the Gospels, and in each instance she is at the feet of Jesus. She sat at His feet and listened to the Word (Luke 10:38–42+); she came to His feet in sorrow after the death of Lazarus (John 11:28–32+); and she worshiped at His feet when she anointed Him with the ointment (John 12:1+ff+). Mary was a deeply spiritual woman. She found at His feet her blessing, she brought to His feet her burdens, and she gave at His feet her best. When we combine the Gospel records, we learn that she anointed both His head and His feet, and wiped His feet with her hair. A woman’s hair is her glory (1 Cor. 11:15+). She surrendered her glory to the Lord and worshiped Him with the precious gift that she brought. It was an act of love and devotion that brought fragrance to the whole house. (Bible Exposition Commentary) Daniel Akin - This was done in full display of a room full of people. It was done against cultural convention as a woman normally would not approach a man in this setting except to serve him food. Mary cared not one wit for any of this. Jesus was her Lord and Master. She deeply loved Him and would have done anything for Him. And, she did not care who heard or saw. Her devotion to Him trumped all others. She wanted everyone to know the inestimable value she placed on Jesus. So she went public! No one could deny or doubt where her loyalty lay. Can the same be said for you and me?! A T
Mateus 26
Wiersbe summarizes this story of Mary's anointing Jesus... There were three consequences to her act of worship. First, the house was filled with the beautiful fragrance of the ointment (John 12:3+; also note 2 Cor. 2:15–16+). There is always a “spiritual fragrance” in that home where Jesus Christ is loved and worshiped. Second, the disciples, led by Judas, criticized Mary for wasting her money! It sounded so pious for Judas to talk about the poor, when in reality he wanted the money for himself! (John 12:4–6+) Even in the Upper Room, six days later, the disciples still thought Judas was concerned about helping the poor (John 13:21–30+). It is interesting that the word translated “waste” in Mark 14:4+ is translated “perdition” in John 17:12+ and applied to Judas! Judas criticized Mary for “wasting money,” but he wasted his entire life! Third, Jesus commended Mary and accepted her gracious gift. He knew the heart of Judas and understood why the other disciples followed his bad example. He also knew Mary’s heart and quickly defended her (Rom. 8:33–39+). No matter what others may say about our worship and service, the most important thing is that we please the Lord. The fact that others misunderstand and criticize us should not keep us from showing our love to Christ. Our concern should be His approval alone. When Mary gave her best at the feet of Jesus, she started a “wave of blessing” that has been going on ever since. She was a blessing to Jesus as she shared her love, and she was a blessing to her home as the fragrance spread. Were it not for Mary, her village, Bethany, would probably have been forgotten. The account of her deed was a blessing to the early church that heard about it and, because of the records in three of the Gospels, Mary has been a blessing to the whole world—and still is! The Lord’s prediction has certainly been fulfilled. Mary gave her best in faith and love; Judas gave his worst in unbelief and hatred. He solved the problem of how the Jewish leaders could arrest Jesus without causing a riot during the feast. He sold his Master for the price of a slave (see Ex. 21:32+), the basest act of treachery in history. (Bible Exposition Commentary) Immortal Deeds What this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her. — Mark 14:9+ Today's Scripture: Mark 14:1-9+ Which of your accomplishments do you think will be most remembered and valued by others? Sculptor Frank Eliscu might have guessed that his signature work would be the Cascade of Books outside the Library of Congress, or the Presidential Eagle in the White House. But the most coveted piece of his art is a small statue that can be held in one hand—the Heisman Trophy—awarded annually to the most outstanding college football player in the United States. The trophy was Eliscu’s first commission, completed when he was only 22. “It was not one of my best works of art,” he said, “but it turned out to be like the Statue of Liberty: not beautiful, but it’s dear to people’s hearts.” Mary of Bethany probably never guessed that she would be remembered for an act initially criticized as wasteful and inappropriate. After she poured a jar of very expensive perfume on Jesus, the Lord silenced the outcry against her by saying, “Wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her” (Mk. 14:9+). No service in itself is small, None great, though earth it fill; But that is small that seeks its own, And great that does God's will. —Anon. A life lived for God leaves a lasting legacy. Daniel Akin has chart depicting the striking contrast between Mary and Judas... MARY JUDAS A woman of no real standing A man and one of the apostles Gave what she could to Jesus Took what he could get for Jesus Blessed her Lord Betrayed his Lord Loved her Lord Used his Lord Did a beautiful thing Did a terrible thing Served Him as her Savior Sold Him like He was his slave Memorialized forever for her devotion Memorialized forever for his betrayal Akin concludes - Oh, how I want to be like Mary. But oh, how often it is that it is Judas who so readily appears when I look in the mirror. Only the gospel of my Savior is sufficient for my sin, sick soul I strongly suspect that were Mary, the unnamed woman of Mark 14, alive today, and we were to interview her and ask her the question, “What is your favorite Christian hymn?”, I strongly suspect she would say, “that’s easy. It was written in 1707 by Issac Watts. Why Charles Wesley reportedly said he would give up all his other hymns to have written this one. Mr.
Mateus 26
Wiersbe - Peter's self-confident boasting is a warning to us that none of us really knows his own heart (Jer. 17:9) and that we can fail in the point of our greatest strength. Abraham's greatest strength was his faith, and yet his faith failed him when he went down to Egypt and lied about Sarah (Ge 12:10-13:4). Moses' strength was in his meekness (Nu 12:3+), yet he lost his temper, spoke rashly with his lips, and was not allowed to enter Canaan (Nu 20). Peter was a brave man, but his courage failed him and he denied his Lord three times. "Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall" (1 Cor 10:12+, NKJV). (Bible Exposition Commentary)
Mateus 26
Wiersbe comments on watch and pray noting it is like saying "Pray with your eyes open"… The familiar phrase "watch and pray" goes back to when Nehemiah was leading the people in rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem and restoring the gates. The enemy did not want the holy city to be rebuilt, so they used fear, deceit, and every kind of ruse to hinder the work. What was Nehemiah's defense? "Nevertheless we made our prayer to our God, and because of them [the enemy] we set a watch against them day and night" (Neh. 4:9NKJV). Jesus (Mt 26:41+; Mk 13:33+), Paul (Col 4:2+), and Peter (1Pe 4:7+) commanded God's people to "watch and pray," to be on guard and pray with intelligence and alertness. We are soldiers in a battle and we dare not go to sleep while on duty. (Bible Exposition Commentary - Old Testament ) That you may not enter into temptation (peirasmos) - That is the Greek conjunction hina which usually introduces a purpose (or result) clause. The purpose (and the result) of watchfulness and prayer is that it builds a barrier against temptation that can easily wash into unwatched hearts which are suddenly overwhelmed. Temptation (peirasmos) is a neutral word and whether it is a temptation or a trial depends on our response. If a believer responds to a peirasmos in faith (which in the context of Mt 26:41+ = watching and praying prior to the peirasmos), he successfully endures a trial (and we call it just that -- a "trial" and not a "temptation") but if he falls into it, doubts God and disobeys, the trial becomes a "temptation" which can (and usually does) lead to sin. God allows "peirasmos" in our life not to make us sin but to make us more like the Savior.Not so with Satan as his encounter with our Lord illustrates. Matthew records that "Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted (peirazo - the verbal root of peirasmos) by the devil." (Mt 4:1+) The temptation of Jesus was morally neutral -- there was nothing inherently evil in offering Jesus bread (Mt 4:2-4+). The context however allows us to determine that the purpose of the testing was clearly for evil not good. Satan, the Evil one himself, used the "neutral" peirasmos in an attempt to induce Jesus to commit a sin. When peirasmos is used in a passage in which the context indicates it has to do with inducing one to sin, most modern Bible versions translate it as "temptation". To reiterate, when God is the agent, peirasmos is for the purpose of proving us, never for the purpose of causing us to fall. If it is the devil who tempts us even though it is the same Greek word, his nefarious purpose is to trip us up. In a sermon titled Faith Tested and Crowned (Ge 22:1-14+) Alexander Maclaren distinguished between being tempted and being tried or tested. He said that temptation "conveys the idea of appealing to the worst part of man, with the wish that he may yield and do the wrong. The latter (trial) means an appeal to the better part of man, with the desire that he should stand. Temptation says, 'Do this pleasant thing; do not be hindered by the fact that it is wrong.' Trial or proving says, 'Do this right and noble thing; do not be hindered by the fact that it is painful.'" In sum, peirasmos refers to all the trials, testing, temptations that go into furnishing a test of one's character. As J C Ryle said "Trials are intended to make us think, to wean us from the world, to send us to the Bible, to drive us to our knees." Spurgeon reflects on the oft overlooked value of temptation so that we can truly live out Jas 1:2+ "There is no temptation in the world which is so bad as not being tempted at all, for to be tempted will tend to keep us awake. Whereas, being without temptation, flesh and blood are weak. Though the spirit may be willing, yet we may be found falling into slumber. Children do not run away from their father’s side when big dogs bark at them. The howlings of the devil may tend to drive us nearer to Christ, may teach us our own weakness, may keep us upon our own watch tower, and be made the means of preservation from other ills." (Spurgeon, C. H. Satan, A Defeated Foe) THOUGHT - Mark it down that the Christian who is not alert to the enemy's attack is in for trouble. Don't misunderstand… we are not to look for a demon behind every bush. We are simply called to a continual state of spiritual alertness. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak (asthenes) - (See in depth discussion) The idea is on one hand we want to obey, but the problem is our flesh is weak. Spiritual eagerness is often accompanied by carnal weakness— a danger amply experienced by successive generations of Christians. -- D A Carson Phil Newton explains that in Mt 26:41+ Jesus presents a radical contrast between "the dignified desires of the human will ("the spirit") and the inherent physical weakness of the man ("the flesh") [Cleon Rogers, 60]. As we considered in the previous study (Mt 26:31-35+), the disciples failed to realize their own inherent weakness, but gullibly thought they were capable of achieving lofty goals in their own strength. Even in His humanity, though sinless, Jesus faced normal human weaknesses (Ed: But clearly His "weaknesses" were not contaminated by the "fallen flesh"). He had to eat, sleep, and rest. We find Him hungry, tired, and asleep. Now the feelings of sorrow, grief, and distress weigh upon Him physically and emotionally. When He told the disciples "the flesh is weak," He understood that weakness of the physical frame under the duress of sorrow and anguish. Yet in every way, Jesus Christ displayed strength as He depended upon the Father. He watched and prayed as one that would have felt much more intensity from sin and temptation than any of us, setting an example for us to do the same. Those mired in sin scarcely feel temptation. It is those that resist it, who seek to walk in holiness and purity that understand the intensity of temptation. So, Jesus Christ gave us two sentinels that guarded His earthly life in the face of temptation. (The Son Drinks the Cup)
Mateus 26
Wiersbe - Jesus was not wrestling with God’s will or resisting God’s will. He was yielding Himself to God’s will. As perfect Man, He felt the awful burden of sin, and His holy soul was repelled by it. Yet as the Son of God, He knew that this was His mission in the world. The mystery of His humanity and deity is seen vividly in this scene. (Bible Exposition Commentary) THOUGHT- Jesus gives us the perfect example to imitate that we too might pray not my will but Thine! Are you challenged?
Mateus 26
Wiersbe on crowd - The presence of such a large group of armed soldiers shows how little Judas really knew about the Lord Jesus. Did he think that Jesus would try to run away or perhaps hide somewhere in the Garden? Judas must have expected Jesus and the disciples to resist arrest; otherwise he would not have enlisted so much help. Perhaps he feared that Jesus might perform a miracle. Judas was deceitful; he was a liar just like Satan who entered into him (John 8:44+; John 13:27+). He defiled almost everything that he touched: his name (Judah = "praise"), the disciple band (Luke 6:13-16+), gifts given to Christ (John 12:1-8+), and the kiss. He even invaded a private prayer meeting, defiled it with his presence, and betrayed the Saviour with a kiss. "Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful" (Pr 27:6). (Borrow Be courageous) John does not describe the betrayal by a kiss but gives us more detail regarding the makeup of the crowd writing "Judas then, having received the Roman cohort and officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, came there with lanterns and torches and weapons. (John 18:3+). A Roman cohort (battalion) (Gk - speira) normally consisted of 600 men (1/10th of a legion), this number being so large because they were probably commanded to pick up this insurrectionist who claimed to be some kind of king. See James Stalker The Trial and Death of Jesus Christ-A Devotional History of Our Lord's Passion 1. THE ARREST Matt. 26:47–56+; Mark 14:43–50+; Luke 22:47–53+; John 18:1–11+. 2. THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL Matt. 26:57–68+; Mark 14:51–65+; Luke 22:54–71+; John 18:12–14, 19–24+. 3. THE GREAT DENIAL Matt. 26:69–75+; Mark 14:66–72+; Luke 22:54–62+; John 18:15–18, 25–7+. Matthew 26:48 Now he who was betraying Him gave them a sign, saying, “Whomever I kiss, He is the one; seize Him.” Whomever I kiss: 2Sa 3:27+ 2 Samuel 20:9,10+ Ps 28:3 Psalm 55:20,21 seize Him: Mk 14:44+ Related Passages: Mark 14:44+ Now he who was betraying Him had given them a signal, saying, “Whomever I kiss, He is the one; seize Him and lead Him away under guard.” Luke 22:48+ But Jesus said to him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?” JUDAS EXPLAINS THE BETRAYAL SIGN Now he who was betraying (paradidomi) Him gave them a sign (semeion), saying, “Whomever I kiss (phileo), He is the one; seize Him - The sign (semeion) was normally a sign of greeting adding to the bitter irony of the scene. Seize is the verb krateo in the aorist imperative calling for them to immediately and forcefully take hold of Jesus. Imagine taking hold of the Creator of the Universe! David
Mateus 26
Wiersbe - Someone has defined "kiss" as "the contraction of the mouth due to the enlargement of the heart." But not all kisses are born out of a loving heart, for kisses can also be deceitful. In the case of Judas, his kiss was the basest kind of hypocrisy and treachery....Judas used the kiss as a sign to tell the arresting officers who Jesus was (Matt. 26:48-49+). Jesus had taught in the temple day after day, and yet the temple guards could not recognize Him! (Borrow Be courageous) William
Mateus 26:41
Wiersbe comments on watch and pray noting it is like saying "Pray with your eyes open"… The familiar phrase "watch and pray" goes back to when Nehemiah was leading the people in rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem and restoring the gates. The enemy did not want the holy city to be rebuilt, so they used fear, deceit, and every kind of ruse to hinder the work. What was Nehemiah's defense? "Nevertheless we made our prayer to our God, and because of them [the enemy] we set a watch against them day and night" (Neh. 4:9NKJV). Jesus (Mt 26:41; Mk 13:33), Paul (Col 4:2), and Peter (1Pe 4:7) commanded God's people to "watch and pray," to be on guard and pray with intelligence and alertness. We are soldiers in a battle and we dare not go to sleep while on duty. (Bible Exposition Commentary - Old Testament) J C Ryle… Prayer the Best Remedy in Time of Trouble - First, let us learn that prayer is the best practical remedy that we can use in time of trouble. We see that Christ himself prayed when his soul was sorrowful: all true Christians ought to do the same. Trouble is a cup that all must drink in this world of sin: we are “;born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward” (Job 5:7); we cannot avoid it. Of all creatures, none is so vulnerable as mankind: our bodies, our minds, our families, our business, our friends, are all so many doors through which trial will come in. The holiest saints can claim no exemption from it: like their Master, they are often people of sorrow. But what is the first thing to be done in time of trouble? We must pray. Like Job, we must fall down and worship (Job 1:20); like Hezekiah, we must spread it out before the Lord (2 Kings 19:14). The first person we must turn to for help must be our God. We must tell our Father in heaven all our sorrow; we must believe confidently that nothing is too trivial or minute to be laid before him, so long as we do it with entire submission to his will. It is the mark of faith to keep nothing back from our best Friend: so doing, we may be sure we shall have an answer. “If it is possible” (verse 39), and the thing we ask is for God’s glory, it will be done: the thorn in the flesh will either be removed, or grace to endure it will be given to us, as it was to St. Paul (2 Corinthians 12:9). May we all store up this lesson against the day of need. It is a true saying that “prayers are the leeches of care.” Enter (eiserchomai) means to go or come into or enter into, literally (Acts 16:40) whereas in Mt 26:41 the sense is more figurative, specifically entering into a spiritual temptation. Solomon cautions us wisely… Do not enter the path of the wicked (cp Ps 1:1-note), and do not proceed in the way of evil men. Avoid (command) it, do not pass by it. Turn away (command) from it and pass on (command). (Pr 4:14, 15) Comment: And so in the present passage, the Lord Jesus instructs us that one way not to "enter the path of the wicked" is by continually watching and praying! TEMPTATIONS: TESTING TIMES Temptation (3986) (peirasmos from peirazo [word study] = to make trial of, try, tempt, prove in either a good or bad sense) describes first the idea of putting to the test and then refers to the tests that come in order to discover a person’s nature or the quality of some thing. Think of yourself as a tube of "spiritual toothpaste". Pressure brings out what's really on the inside! The context determines whether the intended purpose of the "temptation" is for good or for evil. We see this distinction in James chapter 1 where the first use of peirasmos refers to "trials for good" (as in 1Pe 1:6)… Consider it (aorist imperative ~ do it now once and for all!) all (wholly) joy ("whole joy", unmixed joy, without admixture of sorrow, not just "some joy" along with much grief! How is this possible? The Spirit produces His joy in you - Ga 5:22-note), my brethren, when (implies temptations are to be expected) you encounter (fall into the midst of so as to be totally surrounded by) various (poikilos - all "shapes and sizes" of) trials (peirasmos), knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. (Jas 1:2,3). From this passage we can see that God sends or allows tests (peirasmos) to increase the strength and quality of our faith and to demonstrate its validity. Every trial becomes a test of faith designed to strengthen the believer's faith, but if the believer fails the test by wrongly responding, then that test becomes a temptation or a solicitation to evil. Later James uses the related verb peirazo explaining that no one should say when he is tempted (peirazo), “I am being tempted (peirazo) by God”; for God cannot be tempted (apeirastos from a = without + peirazo = tempt > incapable of being tempted) by evil, and He Himself does not tempt (peirazo) anyone." (Jas 1:13-note) To summarize, if a believer responds to a peirasmos in faith (which in the context of Mt 26:41 = watching and praying prior to the peirasmos), he successfully endures a trial (and we call it just that -- a "trial" and not a "temptation") but if he falls into it, doubts God and disobeys, the trial becomes a "temptation" which can lead to sin. God allows "peirasmos" into our life not to make us sin but to make us more like the Savior. Not so with Satan as his encounter with our Lord illustrates. Matthew records that Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted (peirazo - the verbal root of peirasmos) by the devil. (Mt 4:1) The temptation of Jesus was morally neutral -- there was nothing inherently evil in offering Jesus bread (Mt 4:2, 3, 4). The context however allows us to determine that the purpose of the testing was clearly for evil not good. Satan, the Evil one himself, used the "neutral" peirasmos in an attempt to induce Jesus to commit a sin. When peirasmos is used in a passage in which the context indicates it has to do with inducing one to sin, most modern Bible versions translate it as "temptation". To reiterate, when God is the agent, peirasmos is for the purpose of proving us, never for the purpose of causing us to fall. If it is the devil who tempts us even though it is the same Greek word, his nefarious purpose is to trip us up. In a sermon titled Faith Tested and Crowned (Ge 22:1-14) Alexander Maclaren distinguished between being tempted and being tried or tested. He said that temptation conveys the idea of appealing to the worst part of man, with the wish that he may yield and do the wrong. The latter (trial) means an appeal to the better part of man, with the desire that he should stand. Temptation says, 'Do this pleasant thing; do not be hindered by the fact that it is wrong.' Trial or proving says, 'Do this right and noble thing; do not be hindered by the fact that it is painful.' In sum, peirasmos refers to all the trials, testing, temptations that go into furnishing a test of one's character. As J C Ryle said… Trials are intended to make us think, to wean us from the world, to send us to the Bible, to drive us to our knees. J. C. Ryle exhorts us to… settle it firmly in our minds that there is a meaning, a needs-be and a message from God in every sorrow that falls upon us… There are no lessons so useful as those learned in the school of affliction… (and be encouraged for) The tools that the great Architect intends to use much are often kept long in the fire, to temper them and fit them for work. Comment: The point is that testing will come, even as it did to Peter who cut off Malchus' ear and then proceeded to deny his Lord three times. The tests for Peter demonstrated his inability to withstand temptation in his own human strength. The tests always show us our insufficiency and inadequacy to live the "Christ life" and our desperate, constant need for God's grace and empowering presence in the Spirit of Christ. We cannot resist temptation in the weakness of our flesh. God never said we could! But He can and He always said He would! He can enable us to resist the temptation in His strength (Zech 4:6). When the tests/temptations come, may God's Spirit help us to recognize them, to humble ourselves, to surrender to His Spirit, to experience His all sufficient grace and to believe His promise that the Tempter must flee. TESTING/TEMPTING TIMES REFINING/PURIFYING TIMES Spurgeon's words on the value of trials/temptations in his personal life should encourage all of us to recognize and receive similar testing/tempting times in our lives as for our good and for God's glory.