Though All Fall Away – Matthew 26:26-35

I have a blog called Ask the Pastors. People ask questions for a pastoral response, and one question I have gotten over and over again in one form or another is, “Will God forgive me for breaking my vow not to commit such and such sin again?” And the answer is yes, He will. But what I also have to tell these questioners is that the way to avoid sin is not to vow to not do it again, with the threat of breaking that vow and losing God’s forgiveness standing over it. This is simply an attempt to shore up our will power to avoid sinning. It doesn’t work and that is not the purpose of vows.

Jesus, in essence, has to expose this same will power approach in his disciples. They swear they will not abandon him when he is arrested, but he knows they will.

Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”

And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. Then Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.” Peter answered him, “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away.” Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” Peter said to him, “Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you!” And all the disciples said the same. (Matthew 26:26-35 ESV)

Though John 13 doesn’t tell us when during the supper Judas left, it seems likely Judas has gone before the remarks by Jesus about the bread representing his body and the wine his blood for forgiveness.  Matthew doesn’t say that Jesus is instituting a new ritual for his disciples (only Luke has Jesus saying “Do this in remembrance of me” ch. 22) though it certainly has become that before he wrote this.  The mention of covenant certainly refers to the New Covenant of Jeremiah 31, which promised forgiveness and fits with Passover, in which forgiveness of sins via sacrifice means death passes over those trusting in that sacrifice.  Roman Catholics would have us believe that when Jesus says the bread and wine are his body and blood that the disciples are ingesting he means this literally, though this makes no sense prior to his sacrifice being made and his ascension to heaven.  Jesus certainly means they represent him symbolically.

As they make their way from the upper room in Jerusalem across the valley east to the Mount of Olives the original humility of the disciples when they asked Jesus if they were the one who would betray him now turns to emotional declarations that they will not desert him when he is stricken.  Peter especially is confident that he will not fall away from Jesus.  Jesus predicts that he will. 

This is just like us.  We feel in our hearts that we love Jesus supremely and yet at times we fail at even the simplest of obediences to him.  He says, “If you love me you will obey me,” but we fail in our self-professed love.  He understands.  But still he asks for more than we can give in ourselves.  We need the humility that asks for his empowerment to love him as we should. Bravado doesn’t cut it.