Key Thought

Today's Prayer

Father, thank you for your forgiveness. Thank you for your patience. Thank you for long suffering kindness. Thank you for your overwhelming grace. I see these demonstrated in Jesus' willingness to submit to humiliation, abuse, and torture so that the very ones who hurt him could come to know you as their Father and find your saving grace. I know that same grace is given to me. I praise you and thank you in Jesus' name. Amen.

Today's Verses in Context

Then the soldiers with their commander and the Jewish guards arrested Jesus. They tied Jesus and brought him to Annas. Annas was the father-in-law of Caiaphas. Caiaphas was the high priest that year. Caiaphas was the one who had told the other Jewish leaders that it would be better if one man died for all the people. Simon Peter and another one of Jesus' followers went with Jesus. This follower knew the high priest. So he went with Jesus into the yard of the high priest's house. But Peter waited outside near the door. The follower that knew the high priest came back outside. He spoke to the girl that opened the gate for people. Then he brought Peter inside. The girl at the gate said to Peter, "Are you also one of the followers of that man (Jesus)?" Peter answered, "No, I am not!" It was cold, so the servants and guards had built a fire. They were standing around it and warming themselves. Peter was standing with these men. The high priest asked Jesus questions about his followers. He asked Jesus questions about the things Jesus taught. Jesus answered, "I have always spoken openly to all people. I always taught in the synagogues and in the temple area. All the Jews come together there. I never said anything in secret. So why do you question me? Ask the people that heard my teaching. They know what I said." When Jesus said this, one of the guards standing there hit him. The guard said, "You should not talk to the high priest like that!" Jesus answered, "If I said something wrong, then tell everyone here what was wrong. But if the things I said are right, then why do you hit me?" So Annas sent Jesus to Caiaphas the high priest. Jesus was still tied. Simon Peter was standing {at the fire}, keeping himself warm. The other men said to Peter, "Are you one of the followers of that man (Jesus)?" But Peter denied it. He said, "No, I am not." One of the servants of the high priest was there. This servant was a relative to the man whose ear Peter had cut off. The servant said,"I think I saw you with him (Jesus) in the garden!" But again Peter said, "No, I was not with him!" And at that same time a rooster crowed.

Related Scripture Readings

The group of people grew larger and larger. Jesus said, "The people that live today are evil. They ask for a miracle as a sign (proof) from God. But no miracle will be given as a sign to them. The only sign will be the miracle that happened to Jonah. Jonah was a sign for those people that lived in Nineveh. It is the same with the Son of Man. The Son of Man will be a sign for the people of this time. On the judgment day, you people that live now will be compared with the Queen of the South, and she will be a witness to show that you are wrong (guilty). Why? Because she traveled from far, far away to listen to Solomon's wise teaching. And I tell you that someone greater than Solomon is right here, {but you won't listen to me}! On the judgment day, you people that live now will also be compared with the people from Nineveh, and they will be witnesses to show that you are wrong (guilty). Why? Because when Jonah preached to those people, they changed their hearts and lives. And you are listening to someone greater than Jonah, {but you refuse to change}!

So let us try as hard as we can to enter God's rest. We must try hard so that none of us will be lost by following the example of those people who refused to obey God. God's word (message) is alive and working. His word is sharper than the sharpest sword. God's word cuts all the way into us {like a sword}. It cuts deep to the place where the soul and the spirit are joined. God's word cuts to the center of our joints and our bones. It judges the thoughts and feelings in our hearts. Nothing in all the world can be hidden from God. He can clearly see all things. Everything is open before him. And to him we must explain the way we have lived. We have a great high priest who has gone to live with God in heaven. He is Jesus the Son of God. So let us continue strongly in the faith we have. Jesus, the high priest that we have, is able to understand our weaknesses. When Jesus lived on earth, he was tempted in every way. He was tempted in the same ways that we are tempted, but he never sinned. With Jesus as our high priest we can feel free to come before God's throne where there is grace (forgiveness). There we receive mercy and kindness to help us when we need it.

"When a person listens to you, that person is really listening to me. But when a person refuses to accept you, that person is really refusing to accept me. And when a person refuses to accept me, he is refusing to accept the One (God) that sent me."