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The hour had come. It was very late. Jesus had led the disciples to a garden called Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives so He could pray … and they could pray with Him. Well, He had led almost all His disciples. Earlier that night, Judas had abruptly gone out from the upper room while Jesus was still speaking … apparently sent on an errand by the Master. There had been no sign of him since then.
They had all feasted well—perhaps too well—on the delicious Seder meal they had eaten earlier. Throughout the meal and the hours that followed, Jesus had taught them a lot! It was almost as if He was endeavoring to prepare them something … but they weren’t quite sure what that was. They were tired from listening and from trying to make sense of what He had said. So when they sat down on the luscious green grass in the garden in the stillness of the night, their bodies gave in to their need for rest. One by one they fell asleep.
The disciples were unaware that a teenage boy had secretly followed them to the garden and was hiding in the bushes. Here is his account of the night:
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“I was jolted awake by a loud commotion. Concerned, I peered through the bushes surrounding my hiding spot. It was still pitch black, but I could make out a large group of men with torches advancing up the path from the city.
“‘There they are, just up ahead!’ one of them yelled.
“Surely, this boisterous crowd was not seeking Jesus or His disciples at this time of night! As they drew closer, I realized the throng included Roman soldiers, temple guards, priests, and other men carrying clubs. Then, the face of the man who appeared to be the leader came into focus. It was Judas Iscariot!
“What did they want? Was Judas leading these men to come protect Jesus? And if so, why did he need protecting?
“I did my best to stay hidden as they passed by. If word got back to my mother I had spent the night in the Garden of Gethsemane, she would certainly be angry. I hadn’t really planned to stay this long. I was just curious about what Jesus and His disciples were going to do, so I followed them. Unfortunately, I fell asleep.
“Apparently, Jesus’s disciples had been sleeping too, but they quickly roused as the soldiers unsheathed their swords. Fear crossed the disciples’ faces when temple guards threatened them with their spears and other men brandished their clubs. It became obvious this mob was not here to protect Jesus!
“‘Centurion, tell a few of your men to remain here with these,’ Judas called out. ‘Jesus is farther up the hill. The rest of you follow me as I approach Him.’
“I glanced up the knoll and spotted Peter, James, and John standing a short distance from Jesus.
“Judas walked up to Him and loudly exclaimed, ‘Rabbi!’(1) He greeted Jesus with a kiss—as if he hadn’t seen the Master in a long time—though they had been together earlier that night at supper. Judas was extending a formal greeting for a respected teacher and mentor in contrast to the way Jesus and the disciples usually greeted one another.
“‘Judas, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?’(2) Jesus responded.
“Betray! I couldn’t believe my ears! Judas was one of Jesus’s closest disciples. He had been entrusted with managing the treasury of Jesus and the disciples—as meager as it was. Surely he wasn’t seeking to harm the Lord!
“But what happened next confirmed my worst suspicions. The captain of the guard told the temple guards to arrest Jesus. A man standing near the Lord acted like he was going to swing his club at the Master. Peter immediately drew his sword against the man and struck him on the right side of his head. I’ll never forget the sound of that man’s blood-curdling scream.
“Jesus looked at His disciples and shouted, ‘No more of this! Put away your sword. Don’t you realize that I could ask My Father for thousands of angels to protect us, and He would send them instantly?’(3)
“Then I witnessed the most miraculous sight. Jesus reached out and touched the wounded man’s ear. Immediately, the man felt the side of his head and realized Jesus had healed him. He dropped his club and knelt before the Lord.
“The disciples began to scatter in different directions. Peter and John ran up the mount, while the rest scurried down the hill away from the city. I couldn’t believe the disciples were abandoning Jesus! What should I do? How could I possibly help Jesus? I looked around and discovered I was the only one left on the mount with Him.
“What would the mob do if they spotted me? Would they arrest me? I panicked and decided to run. But in my haste, I failed to see the Roman soldier standing nearby and crashed right into him.
“‘What have we here?’ he asked with a menacing snarl as he grabbed me by the back of my tunic. ‘A boy hiding in the bushes! Where do you think you are going, boy? The others seem to have gotten away, but you’re not going to escape so easily!’
“A burst of adrenaline gave me additional strength, and I kicked the soldier in the shin as hard as I could. Caught by surprise, he momentarily loosened his grip, providing me with an opportunity to escape. With the soldier still holding on, my tunic ripped at the seam, and I literally ran out of my clothes. I did not care I was running naked down the hill. All I knew was I needed to get far away from that place and that mob.
“Eventually, I realized no one was pursuing me; Jesus must be the only one they were interested in. I was immediately overwhelmed by the reality of what I had done. Just like His trusted disciples, I also had deserted Jesus. I had followed Him up the hill because I wanted to be one of His disciples. But instead of standing by His side, I had run away in fear.
“I fell to my knees and wept in shame. After a while, I realized I needed to get home before the sun came up. I decided to sneak back up the hill to look for my clothing. The garden was abandoned except for my torn tunic lying in the path.
“I quickly put it on as best I could and headed home. I may have escaped the soldiers, but I would not escape my mother’s wrath. However, that was the least of my concerns at the moment. Jesus’s followers must quickly be alerted to what had taken place, and my mother would know what to do. The religious leaders had not hidden their hatred for Jesus. There was no imagining what they were planning to do next!”
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Many of us are like this unlikely witness. Perhaps we’ve been drawn to Jesus out of curiosity. We haven’t followed Him to the garden where He was betrayed and arrested, but perhaps we too have watched from a “safe” distance trying to figure out what to do next.
God had great plans in store for this young man. He eventually went on to write a Gospel that bears his name—the Gospel of Mark. He has great plans for you as well. Most often, God chooses to use ordinary men and women to accomplish His extraordinary work. That teenage boy had no clue that night how God was going to eventually use him … and i would venture, neither do we. All we need to be is surrendered to Him and willing to be used … just like that unlikely witness.
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You can read about this teenage boy in the fourteenth chapter of the Gospel of Mark.
A major portion of this post is taken from chapter 1 of my newest book, A Follower Called Mark, which released yesterday on Amazon. i invite you to read the rest of his story, some of which you may know, and the remainder that could have been. For more information about the book, click here.
(1) Mark 14:45
(2) Luke 22:48
(3) Luke 22:51; Matthew 26:52-53
Copyright © 2024 Kenneth A. Winter All rights reserved.
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