SUPERNATURAL
TEXT: So Judas, having procured a band of soldiers and some officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, went there with lanterns and torches and weapons. Then Jesus, knowing all that would happen to Him, came forward and said to them, “Whom do you seek?” They answered Him, ”Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus said to them, “I am He.’:.. They drew back and fell to the ground. So He asked them again, “Whom do you seek?” And they said, ”Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus answered, “I told you that I am He. So, if you seek Me, let these men go.” (John 18:3-Sa, 6b-8)
There is one part of the story in Gethsemane that gives me the creeps. It’s the bit where Jesus says, “I AM,” and the soldiers trying to arrest Him pull back and fall to the ground. Why? Because Jesus has just used the Name of God, “I AM”-and He’s done it about Himself. The simple power in that Name blows them backward.
I wonder how they felt, trying to arrest Him after that. I would have been scared spitless. Arrest someone with divine power-arrest God Himself? And yet, somehow they managed it-after Jesus ordered them to let the disciples go free.
If there’s anything in this whole story that should tell us who Jesus is, this is it. He is God Himself. He is God come into our world to save us, setting us free at the cost of His own life-and rising again on the third day.
WE PRAY: Lord, I know that You are God. Thank You for becoming my Savior. Amen.
——————— Reflection Questions
• Do you think any of the soldiers had nightmares afterward?
• Do you think they reported this to their superiors, the chief priests?
• Why do you think Jesus made such a point of letting them know whom they were dealing with?
Responses