Day 11 :: Sheath Your Sword
Then Jesus told him, “Put your sword back in its place, because all who take up the sword will perish by the sword. Or do you think that I cannot call on my Father, and he will provide me here and now with more than twelve legions of angels.”
Matthew 26:52-53(47-55)
Throughout history, countless amounts of time, energy and money has been put into developing weapons. From primitive daggers, to bows and arrows, to guns, to tanks, to aircraft, to nuclear weapons, to drones and cyber warfare. Whoever gets the better weapons, and the bigger army wins the arms race, and gains the upper hand in conflict.
After his prayers in utter anguish, Jesus’ enemies came to arrest him, led by Judas, who betrayed him with a kiss. He had warned his disciples that this moment was coming, and now it was here.
The disciples foolishly thought that meant they needed to defend their master.
They saw Judas and his entourage: ‘A large mob with swords and clubs.’ It must have been an intimidating sight, the mob marching onwards, with the fire of their torches lighting the darkness. It’s understandable that the disciples thought they had a fight on their hands.
One of the mob grabbed Jesus to arrest him, and in a moment of gut reaction Peter grabs his sword and slices the guys ear off.
Matthew doesn’t mention Peter by name, but John 18:1-11 tells us it was him, and Luke 22:47-53 depicts Jesus healing the man’s ear with a touch of his hand.
Why did Peter have a sword?
Did he aim for the guy’s ear and hit it precisely, or was he a terrible swordsman swinging aimlessly?
Was he ready for war to instate Jesus as King, or was he lashing out in fearful self-defence?
None of these things are clear sadly…
But what Jesus made plain was that it wasn’t necessary. With a sharp rebuke Jesus tells him to stop and put his sword away.
If he really needed soldiers to defend him, he could have called on reinforcements. A roman legion had 6000 soldiers. Jesus told his friends he could have called on 12 legions, 72000 angels! It makes Peter and his wee swinging sword pale into insignificance.
Jesus needed no defence.
Peter didn’t need to take things into his own hands.
Jesus, the Almighty God who took on flesh, was laying down his life so his people might be saved. No earthly power would be strong enough to kill him unless he was cooperative. No crazed mob or well drilled army could stand against his heavenly hosts of angels.
He was arrested, but not overcome. The cross may have looked like weakness, but only Jesus was strong enough to bear that burden of God’s wrath.
Peter’s problem was his blinkered thinking. He only thought in earthly terms. He only saw the immediate difficulty of swords and clubs. He thought he needed to prove his own strength.
“Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.”
Psalm 20:7(ESV)
We’re not called to any kind of arms race. We don’t need to fight to look the best, have the greatest gear, or impress anyone with our own strength. We don’t need to prove ourselves.
In fact, it’s in our weakness that the Gospel shines the clearest. We are spiritually poor and needy, but we trust the one who is mighty. In our weakness, we can prove that Jesus is strong as we trust in his salvation and live by his Spirit.
Passages to read: Matthew 26:47-55, Mark 14:43-52, Luke 22:47-53, John 18:1-11
A thought to remember: Jesus needed no defence.
A question to ask: Where might we be tempted to look for strength, and how can we trust in Jesus’ strength?
A song to sing: Jesus Strong and Kind