43 Just as he was speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, appeared. With him was a crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priests, the teachers of the law, and the elders.

44 Now the betrayer had arranged a signal with them: “The one I kiss is the man; arrest him and lead him away under guard.” 45 Going at once to Jesus, Judas said, “Rabbi!” and kissed him. 46 The men seized Jesus and arrested him. 47 Then one of those standing near drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear.

48 “Am I leading a rebellion,” said Jesus, “that you have come out with swords and clubs to capture me? 49 Every day I was with you, teaching in the temple courts, and you did not arrest me. But the Scriptures must be fulfilled.” 50 Then everyone deserted him and fled.

51 A young man, wearing nothing but a linen garment, was following Jesus. When they seized him, 52 he fled naked, leaving his garment behind.

- Mark 14:43–52

This passage explores one of the most poignant and painful moments in the life of Jesus—his betrayal by a friend, his refusal to retaliate, and the abandonment he experienced from those closest to him. We see Jesus receive Judas’ kiss, endure Peter’s misguided attempt at violence, and watch as all his disciples flee into the night.

It’s a story that still speaks powerfully today. Many of us know the sting of betrayal, or the urge to take control when things fall apart. Some of us are carrying shame for the times we’ve run from responsibility, distanced ourselves from faith, or let fear dictate our choices. This passage invites us to see ourselves in the story—and more importantly, to see Jesus’ response.

Jesus does not lash out. He does not abandon his mission. He chooses the path of surrender, even when it costs everything. In doing so, he opens the door to forgiveness—not just for those in the garden that night, but for each of us.

Wherever you are in your journey—wounded, weary, or wandering—this message reminds us that grace is still extended. Jesus stayed so we could come home. Whether you’ve been betrayed, wielded the sword, or fled in fear, the invitation remains: come back to the One who never left.

They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.”

Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. “Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”

Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Simon,” he said to Peter, “are you asleep? Couldn’t you keep watch for one hour? Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
- Mark 14:32-38

There are two cups in Mark 14: the cup that all the disciples drink from—the cup of the new covenant—and the cup that Jesus will drink from. The latter is an Old Testament image representing God's judgment:

"Awake, awake! Rise up, Jerusalem, you who have drunk from the hand of the LORD the cup of his wrath, you who have drained to its dregs the goblet that makes people stagger." (Isaiah 51:17)

The idea of judgment as a cup to be drunk originates from the rebellion of Israel at the foot of Mount Sinai. While Moses is on the mountain receiving the Ten Commandments—which begin with the commands not to worship other gods or make idols—the people below are doing exactly that: making an idol and worshipping it. In response, Moses grinds up the idol, sprinkles the powder into the water, and makes them drink it. Symbolically, they are forced to consume the consequences of their idolatry.

Will we experience the consequences of our sin? No. At the heart of the Christian faith is the belief that Jesus takes upon himself the consequences of human rebellion. He drinks the cup of wrath so that those who trust in him do not have to. Instead, we are given the cup of grace—a gift that combines not receiving what we deserve (judgment) with receiving what we do not deserve (eternal life in the love of God).

While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take it; this is my body.”

Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, and they all drank from it.

“This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many,” he said to them. “Truly I tell you, I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”
- Mark 14:22-25

The seder feast dating back to the first Passover involved unleavened bread and wine. The bread reminded them of the haste they had to leave Egypt, the wine reminding them of the joy of liberation. Jesus made connections between his new Christian ceremony and the whole of the Hebrew past. Jesus lifted up something from their past (the Exodus) and extended it. He set up something new, something for the future (for the new community).

Even briefly looking at a few of the many themes that Jesus packed densely into this feast can be overwhelming. These things are there not with the expectation we will all understand everything immediately. It is a call to meditate on these words during the week, meditate on Easter, think of Jesus' passion so that as we come to the table our experience will become richer. This table is a place we can come back to again and again for a lifetime knowing that in every weekly cycle there will be another beauty to see, more depths to gaze at.

Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, ‘Take it; this is my body.’

We must stop and make ourselves aware of a sense of sacredness at this point, of something that must be treated with utmost respect, we must position ourselves properly to be in the presence of a holy God.

‘This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many,’ he said to them.

Here we have a link to a core theme of the Hebrew bible: covenant. This goes all the way back to the first pages of the bible, to Noah and Abraham, the people at Mt. Sinai and King David - a formal partnership between God and humanity.

The first Passover feast was celebrated before the Exodus, before the liberation of the people because their identity was to be the people who were liberated from slavery by Yahweh. This table is to form our identity. We become the people who participate in the feast. It must form our past and become our future.

Many years ago I read a Jewish saying and ever since it has stuck with me and become a formative part of my life. It goes “The Jews didn't keep the Sabbath, the Sabbath kept the Jews.” In other words the Sabbath formed their identity as the people who kept God’s Sabbath. And through this formation they endured. It is the same with this table. We need the table. It is through the table we are formed. We don't do God a favour by keeping this table. But the table forms Christ in us and keeps us.