Anchor My Faith

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Author: Stephen Weller
721 words, 4 minutes read time

The Defense of Peter

Scripture: Matthew 26:50, 52; Luke 22:49, 51; John 18:10

In the previous lesson we watched Jesus control the crowd that came to arrest him as he identified who he was. In this lesson Jesus voluntarily turns himself over to them to be arrested.

^{Mt 26:50} Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you came to do.” Then they came up and laid hands on Jesus and seized him. ^{Lk 22:49} And when those who were around him saw what would follow, they said, “Lord, shall we strike with the sword?” ^{Jn 18:10} Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant and cut off his right ear. (The servant’s name was Malchus.) ^{Lk 22:51} But Jesus said, “No more of this!” And he touched his ear and healed him.

Jesus then speaks to Judas, who was standing next to him, calling him a friend, tells him to do what he came to do. At this point they came up and laid hands on Jesus and seized him. This prompted the disciples to react and they asked Jesus if it was time to strike to with the sword. Impetus Simon Peter didn’t wait for a response, draws his sword and aims for the head of the high priest’s servant and nearly missing managed to cut off his right ear. (I find it interesting that if you get your ear cut off by a fisherman named Simon Peter, you get your name recorded in Scripture.)

Jesus responds to the question, “Lord, shall we strike with the sword?” by saying, “No more of this!” It is not clear if Jesus took the original ear and reattached it or created a new ear, but either way he healed the servant and managed to do it even after being seized by those who arrested him. Clearly Jesus was unique in how he controlled the crowd, yielded himself to them when he was ready, and under arrest managed to meet the need of one of those who came to arrest him. Surely, there had to be some in the crowd who noticed what had taken place and had to consider its meaning.

^{Mt 26:52} Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its place. For all who take the sword will perish by the sword.

Jesus is still in control and instructs Peter to put his sword back in its place and explains that all who take the sword in an attempt to advance or impose God’s will on others through violent means will perish by the sword. In the western culture many are guilty of applying verbal pressure to persuade an unbeliever to pray the sinner’s prayer, thinking that if they pray they automatically become saved. I ask you where God’s grace is in that.

When I ministered in China, I had a Bible study that was prospering and had in attendance a person who was unsaved but very desires to learn more until one day a western missionary came to visit and discerning that this person was unsaved, took her aside at the end of the study, while I talked with others, and offended her through words trying to convinced her to pray the sinners prayer. She was so hurt that she never returned. I later learned that she left her job and went to another city to live just to get away from such a hurtful experience. I saw so much damage being done by westerners who came to share their faith and wanted immediate results and as a result destroyed work that has been in progress for months and even years. I actually feared those who came from the west more than the authorities in China because of the damage they caused to ministry work.

Conclusion

It was time for the arrest and under the control of Jesus it was allowed to take place. Nothing was going to happen without Jesus granting it. We will see later that they did not take his life on the cross. Even the time of his death was under the control of Jesus, for when his work was finished by his drinking the cup of God’s wrath, he said, “It is finished!” and surrendered his life.