A Word of Underserved Favor | Matthew 26:55-56 | December 7, 2024

[00:00:00] Real Truth Daily This is Daily Truths with Dave Ahlman

[00:00:07] Hey everybody, welcome back to Daily Truths. When we mess up, when we flee God's commandments, when we break His Word, when we do what He tells us not to do, we do exactly the opposite. How does Jesus react?

[00:00:22] In Matthew 26, remember the disciples are all with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, and all of a sudden a detachment of folks come and arrest Him, and they're ready to take Him away.

[00:00:35] And then we pick up this verse, verse 55 of Matthew 26,

[00:00:39] At that hour, Jesus said to the crowds,

[00:00:43] Have you come out as against a robber with swords and clubs to capture me?

[00:00:48] Day after day I sat in the temple teaching, and you did not seize me.

[00:00:53] But all this has taken place, that the scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled.

[00:00:58] Now listen to this, folks.

[00:01:02] Then all the disciples left Him and fled.

[00:01:07] My goodness.

[00:01:08] Didn't Jesus tell them He was going to rise from the dead?

[00:01:11] Didn't Jesus say all this has to happen in order that the scriptures might be fulfilled?

[00:01:17] Didn't they realize that if He really wanted to escape, He could, and everything would have been fine?

[00:01:22] So why did they leave?

[00:01:24] Why did they flee?

[00:01:25] And by the way, all 12 of them did.

[00:01:28] And only two made a cameo appearance in the next 72 hours.

[00:01:32] And had Jesus not risen from the dead, I think they permanently would have gone incognito.

[00:01:37] Oh, we never knew Him.

[00:01:38] We don't know what that was about.

[00:01:40] We followed Him for three years, but you know, we were misled.

[00:01:43] And we're going back to our occupations.

[00:01:45] I mean, they all fled.

[00:01:47] They all took off at a moment of time of need for Jesus.

[00:01:50] They said, we're out of here.

[00:01:52] We're gone.

[00:01:53] We're fleeing.

[00:01:54] We don't know Him.

[00:01:57] Now, here's the big question for our devotion today.

[00:02:01] What did Jesus say 72 hours later when He saw them after He rose from the dead?

[00:02:08] Okay.

[00:02:09] Let me tell you a little story about two of my granddaughters that went to Shields with Beth and I.

[00:02:14] And Shields is a big, sporty goods store in Loveland.

[00:02:18] It is huge.

[00:02:19] And so I was just sitting there watching them and all of a sudden they took off.

[00:02:23] They just left.

[00:02:24] They just fled.

[00:02:26] Right.

[00:02:27] And they were gone for like 25 minutes.

[00:02:31] And we had to, we had to put their names on a, on a, you know, a sounding thing, you know,

[00:02:38] Hey, would so-and-so come back?

[00:02:40] You know, meet your grandparents at the Ferris wheel.

[00:02:43] And we had to put that on the PA system three times.

[00:02:47] And finally, after the third time they came in my heart, Oh my goodness.

[00:02:50] All kinds of stuff went through my mind.

[00:02:52] I thought, Oh my goodness.

[00:02:54] They could have been apprehended.

[00:02:55] You know, that maybe somebody kidnapped them.

[00:02:57] Oh my goodness.

[00:02:58] What happened to them?

[00:02:59] And finally, after 25 minutes, they come skipping to the Ferris wheel.

[00:03:03] And what was my response?

[00:03:05] Not good.

[00:03:10] I let them have it.

[00:03:12] Right.

[00:03:13] My response.

[00:03:14] I mean, it was over the top, right?

[00:03:15] It was way, way over reaction for what had happened, but I want him to know, Hey, you

[00:03:20] can't do that.

[00:03:20] This is a public place.

[00:03:21] Hey, something could happen.

[00:03:22] That was really bad.

[00:03:23] All that kind of stuff.

[00:03:24] But my response probably wasn't the best.

[00:03:29] So we go back to our story and the disciples have fled Jesus.

[00:03:33] And we fast forward 72 hours.

[00:03:36] Right.

[00:03:37] And he comes to them that morning on Easter Sunday morning when he rose from the dead.

[00:03:43] And what were his first words to his disciples?

[00:03:46] Did he say, man, oh man, why did I choose you guys?

[00:03:50] Or did he wag his finger at them and say, what in the world were you thinking?

[00:03:54] Or, uh, come on, you guys, you knew I, I said, I was going to rise from the dead.

[00:03:58] Did he reprimand them?

[00:03:59] Let them have it.

[00:04:00] Wag his finger and all that kind of stuff.

[00:04:01] No, you probably don't know this.

[00:04:03] Maybe you do, but his first words to his disciples after he rose from the dead were these.

[00:04:10] Peace be with you.

[00:04:13] My undeserved favor for you is given to you.

[00:04:19] Reconciliation, love, pardon, forgiveness.

[00:04:23] It's all for you.

[00:04:25] My brothers, peace be with you.

[00:04:30] Now, my friend, when we flee God's ways, when we walk away from his commandments, Jesus comes to us.

[00:04:38] And here's the thing.

[00:04:39] I go back to that story in Shields.

[00:04:41] Those girls were repentant.

[00:04:43] They felt so bad and they were bringing their repentant heart to, to Beth and I.

[00:04:47] And they said, oh, we messed up.

[00:04:48] We're so sorry.

[00:04:49] We, but you know what?

[00:04:50] I just overlooked that and let them have it.

[00:04:53] Jesus knew that the disciples felt incredibly guilty those 72 hours for doing what they did.

[00:05:00] And so he came to them and he gave them not a word of reprimanding.

[00:05:04] And I told you so.

[00:05:05] And why were you guys messing up?

[00:05:07] And what were you thinking?

[00:05:08] No, he gave them a word of peace.

[00:05:12] When we flee God's ways, when we walk away from his commandments, he comes to us not with a word of reprimanding, condemnation, judgment, ridicule, scorn, rebuking, but rather grace.

[00:05:28] He says, peace be with you.

[00:05:32] The same peace I earned for you at the cross is yours.

[00:05:42] I love to know that my savior Jesus died and shed his blood on that cross for me and then triumphed over the grave through his incredible death, defeating resurrection so that I could be at peace with God.

[00:05:56] And what I say about myself, I say to you too, when you mess up, when you walk away, when you flee the commandments of God, this is what Jesus says to you, looking at your repentant heart and affirming faith in Jesus.

[00:06:09] He says, peace be with you.

[00:06:13] And Jesus says, my peace, I leave with you.

[00:06:17] My peace, I give unto you, not as the world gives, do I give unto you.

[00:06:21] So let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

[00:06:26] That peace is yours today.

[00:06:31] Jesus' words to the disciples when they fled was, peace be with you.

[00:06:37] And he says the same thing to you today.

[00:06:43] Just rejoice in that.

[00:06:45] Go about your activities today, knowing that all is well in the eyes of God, because Jesus gives you his peace.

[00:06:52] Have a great day in the Lord Jesus Christ.

[00:06:55] And that is today's Daily Truth.

[00:06:58] Thank you for tuning in to Daily Truths with Dave Allman.

[00:07:01] Pastor Dave Allman is the pastor of Mount Hope Church in Boulder, Colorado.

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