“I am not saying these things to all of you; I know the ones I have chosen. But this fulfils the Scripture that says, ‘The one who eats my food has turned against me.’ I tell you this beforehand, so that when it happens you will believe that I Am the Messiah. I tell you the truth, anyone who welcomes my messenger is welcoming me, and anyone who welcomes me is welcoming the Father who sent me.”
John 13:18-20 NLT
In these verses today, Jesus quoted part of a verse from Psalm 41:9, “Even my best friend, the one I trusted completely, the one who shared my food, has turned against me.” This was a psalm written by David at a chaotic time in his realm, during his son Absolom’s rebellion. David seemed to have an illness, and there was much plotting going on, even by his trusted friend and advisor Ahithophel – the account is in 2 Samuel 16. But Jesus also saw this scripture as a prophesy of His betrayal by Judas. Jesus told His disciples about this so that they would be forewarned when it happened. And He adds the assurance that this is one more occasion underpinning His claim to be the Messiah.
There were many Scriptures in the Old Testament that foretold the coming of the Messiah, Scriptures that were interwoven within the warp and weft of Jewish religious society. The problem for them was that there were two types of prophesy, some about Jesus’ first coming and others about His second, so from the two the preferred picture emerged of a victorious King vanquishing the enemies of Israel and forming an eternal and autonomous Kingdom where the Jews would live in peace. The Jews looked for a natural physical Kingdom, but Jesus came to establish a spiritual Kingdom where people would live free of sin and wickedness.
We pilgrims are Christ’s messengers, carrying the Gospel’s torch wherever we go. And by so doing we fulfil the Scripture left us in Matthew’s account of the Great Commission – “Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”” There are those, of course, who try to wriggle out of their obligation to make disciples because they claim that this was aimed at the first disciples, those who became the Apostles. But they all died in spite of Jesus saying that He would be with them until “the end of the age”. That phrase in itself implies that the work of making disciples continues from one generation to the next, while we indeed wait for the current age to come to an end. We live in a season of God’s grace, but it won’t last forever.
Dear God. We willingly look for opportunities to share Your Good News of the Kingdom with those who You have chosen. Please help us as we fulfil Your commands in our generation. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Being a Pilgrim 