Proclamation:
“So Judas came to the garden, guiding a detachment of
solders and some officials from the chief priests and the Pharisees. They were carrying torches, lanterns and
weapons. Jesus, knowing all that was
going to happen to Him, went out and asked them, ‘Who is it you want?’ ‘Jesus of Nazareth,’ they replied. ‘I am He,’ Jesus said. And Judas the traitor was standing there with
them. When Jesus said, ‘I am He,’ they
drew back and fell to the ground.” John
18:3-6 (NIV)
Explanation:
These words were recorded by the
Apostle John under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God. In this chapter, John records the events
which occurred in the garden by the brook of Cedron. It documents His betrayal by Judas, His
arrest, His trials, and the three times that Peter denied knowing Him. Here, Jesus responds to the soldiers and the
religious leaders who had come to arrest Him.
Jesus approached them and asked them who they were looking for, and they
responded, “Jesus of Nazareth.” When
Jesus replied, “I am He,” they were all knocked backwards by His words and fell
to the ground. They were not harmed and
got up, then He asked them again who they were looking for and they gave the
same reply. (John 18:7)
Application:
There is power in the words of God. When Jesus, The Christ, spoke and said “I am
He,” all those who were against Him were knocked backwards and fell to the
ground. They did not fall forward to
worship Him; they fell backwards in fear and dismay. However, because of their disbelief, their hard
hearts were not changed and they approached Him again to arrest Him. Non-believers are not changed by acts of
God. They frequently come up with some
earthly reason to explain the occurrence and continue in their non-believing sinful
ways. They do not give God credit for
the things that He has done. As
believers, we need to acknowledge the presence of God in our lives (Proverbs
3:6) and give Him praise for the things which He had done. (2 Samuel 7:21,
Isaiah 25:1, and 1 Chronicles 17:19)
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