The Last Days of Jesus' Mortal Mission

Overview of the Last Week of the Savior's Mortal Ministry

“The Last Days of Jesus' Mortal Mission” (pp.135-137, The Life and Teachings of Jesus and His Apostles)

Day 1:

Jesus arrived at Jerusalem. He secured a donkey and a colt, and rode through the city gates into Jerusalem. A “very great magnitude” who knew him to be “the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee” placed palm branches in his way and greeted him with a hosanna shout: “Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest.” (Matthw 21:9.)

Jesus went directly to the temple, and according to Mark, took note of what he saw and retired to Bethany for the night (Mark 11:11).

Day 2:

Early the next morning Jesus went again to the temple and made a decisive thrust calculated to challenge the Jewish religious leadership. He drove from the outer court area of the temple those who were trading and making money exchange from foreign currency. The money exchange was apparently sanctioned by the Jewish leaders; and by preventing the merchandizing, Jesus was in effect challenging their leadership. The issue was clear: Was the temple to be a place of worship of God or pursuit of gain? As he cleared the temple courts, he said, “It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.” (Matthew 21:13.)

Again that evening Jesus returned to Bethany.

Day 3:

Jesus' wrath in the temple raised the issue of authority, and the priests were not about to let the incident pass. As Jesus came to the temple the next day, the priests challenged him: “By what authority doest thou these things? And who give thee this authority?” (Matthew 21:23) Jesus responded by relating a series of parables that offended the religious leaders of the Jews. The scribes and the Pharisees challenged him again; Jesus openly denounced them and condemned them as hypocrites.

From this point on, Jesus did not teach the public, but only the Twelve.

Perceiving that Jesus had gained the upper hand in their confrontations, the Jewish leaders consulted again how they might bring about Jesus' death. They would have to more quickly before Passover to avoid a riot, however, since Jesus had become very popular with the Jewish people. How to bring about an arrest without provoking crowd reaction was the problem. An unexpected turn in events that took place abetted their plot. One of Jesus' own disciples offered to betray him.

Day 4:

Jesus well knew the plot. Jesus spent the day outside the city, perhaps at Bethany. The record of the gospel writers are silent on the proceedings of this day.

Day 5:

Jesus had arranged to commemorate the Passover meal in a home privately reserved for him and the Twelve. Following the Passover meal, Jesus introduced a new ordinance, the sacrament, which presaged his atoning sacrifice. He then prophesied of his death and indicated who would betray him.

After some instructions, Jesus offered his great intercessory prayer. The with the eleven (Judas had left), Jesus led them outside the walls to a familiar spot-Gethsemane. Then taking Peter, James and John with him, he went further into the Garden where he then left those three and went off by himself to pray (Matthew 26:36-39). There he pled with his Heavenly Father to “let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.” (Matthew 26:39). The cup did not pass and Jesus suffered “the pain of all men” (D&C 18:11), an agony so excruciating that it caused him to bleed at every pore.

Some time later he rejoined his apostles and indicated that his betrayer was at hand. While he spoke, an armed band led by Judas approached Jesus to seize him. Without resistance Jesus submitted. Jesus was brought to an illegal trial that night.

Day 6:

The Jewish leaders now faced another problem. They were not content that Jesus should be put to death; they also wanted to discredit him before his own people. To do this, the leaders arranged to have Jesus charged with two crimes. The first was blasphemy, a capital offense under Jewish law. He was unanimously convicted of this charge solely on the evidence that he had said that he was the Son of God. (Matthew 26:57-66). Such a conviction would discredit Jesus before the Jews, but the rulers knew well that they could not carry out the death penalty; only the Roman governor could pronounce this. Therefore, they had to find political indictment against Jesus. The surest means of securing this was the charge of sedition against the state, for he had claimed to be a “king of the Jews”. Though Pilate's examination found Jesus guiltless of the charge, the Jewish leaders had incited the crowd to “destroy Jesus”. (Matthew 27:20) Fearing a demonstration, Pilate gave in to the clamor to crucify Jesus, and the death sentence was pronounced.

And so Jesus was executed by the brutal Roman practice of crucifixion. Later that afternoon he voluntarily gave up his spirit. The next day, which began at sundown, was the Passover, and the Jewish leaders abhorred the idea that a man should remain on a cross on the Sabbath, particularly the paschal Sabbath. Before nightfall, Jesus' body was removed from the cross and buried in a sealed tomb by two revering disciples.

Day 7:

This was the Jewish Sabbath. Jesus' body remained in the tomb, but in spirit he ministered in the realm of the departed spirits. (1 Peter 3:18-20)

Day of Resurrection

Had the gospel ended with Jesus' burial, there would be no gospel story, no “good news”. The great message of these testators is that Jesus is risen and was seen again by many witnesses. On the first day of the week, the most memorable Sunday on history, Jesus Christ emerged alive from the tomb, and appeared before Mary. The testimony of these witnesses constitutes the gospel story.

“These are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.” (John 20:31)

Luke 10:1-24 "The Lord Appointed Other Seventy Also"

From reading Luke 10:1-24 I learned the Savior taught the Seventy that they must go into the world without fear and that they should travel without gear of any kind, money, or any of the day to day to keep them, and instead rely on the tender mercies of heaven to supply for their needs. So they left without worldly hindrances, and very interestingly, they were to rejoice not in the power they had over the wicked or the adversary, but that the heavens watched over them. They were to also bear testimony regarding the wicked in the cities they entered into.

This part is interesting. Comparing the 6^th Article of Faith, I think that in the Savior's teachings we see the organization of the Church before and after and we find it is really the same. Once again, we send missionaries with barely more than their suits into the field, we send the Seventy forth to do the Lord's will for the church, and they bear testimony of the wickedness of the world.

After reading the Guide to the Scriptures on the Seventy, I feel that the office of the Seventy is one that is a kind of apostolic missionary. The Seventy serves by being a witness of Jesus Christ, not necessarily as an apostle per se, but as one who has a special testimony, and is called to support the affairs of the church.

Matthew 14:22-23 Walking on the Sea

1. Review Matthew 14:22–33. Identify in writing what the reaction of the Apostles was when they first saw the Savior walking on the water toward them.

When the apostles first saw Jesus on the water, they were terrified and wanted to flee from the presence of Jesus. They saw Jesus as a ghost, or a spirit, because the act of water walking seemed to them a supernatural act outside what people could do normally.

2. What did Peter’s response indicate about him?

I thought Peter's response was very inspiring. Although afraid he was so wanting to join Jesus and show he had faith that he was willing to try and set aside his fear to come to his Master. I see this as an act of extreme faith in the face of fear.

3. According to Matthew 14:30, why did Peter begin to sink?

Unfortunately, Peter did maintain his focus. He became distracted by the tempestuous nature of the sea around him and felt like he was going to be destroyed.

4. What did Peter do when he began to sink? What word in the verses describes the expediency or the timing when Jesus responded to Peter’s request?

Peter felt like he couldn't keep up his faith or courage and called for help like many of us do when in a life-threatening situation. Jesus' response was immediate; he stretched forth a helping hand to Peter as soon as he called for Him. Note how as soon as the cry for help was made, the Lord was said to be there immediately, or immenently.

5. Read Doctrine and Covenants 88:67. Write a paragraph describing what principle from this verse relates to what Peter did to successfully walk on the water. How can this same principle be applied to your life to assist you in walking over the storms of life?

In regards to this question, I wanted to talk about the power of real faith. Not just faith like we usually talk about; I am talking about moving faith, the kind that Joseph Smith felt when receiving the First Vision. I think that kind of faith is almost unique, very focused, and pure. It is going into the moment with no assumptions on what to expect, and with great courage, with a desire to take strong action. I think if I want to have this kind of faith, I have got to have it with real clarity. To weather life with faith like this, I have to set aside my fears moment to moment, and forget about what I think I know, and only consider what I should be doing as God see's it. Then I can weather life's storms with real courage, and strong faith.

Matthew 11:1-19 & Luke 7:18-35 John the Baptist

In reading about John the Baptist certain questions were posed which I wanted to discuss in my blog today. These questions were first, what did the disciples of John the Baptist ask Jesus? They asked him, “Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?” Here John was looking for validation, trapped in prison he may have felt like his work perhaps was a failure. He also may have wanted to test the faith of those he taught. After reading through this, I thought about what 3 things I might have told to John when I saw him. I would have told him that Jesus was indeed the Savior. I would have told him that the things he showed us were the proofs from the scriptures as prophesied by hold prophets. And, I would have given my own testimony to John, seeing his suffering and worry in prison and wanting John to feel like his work was not wasted.

After reading the institute manual on John's motives for sending the disciples, I almost want to change my prior comments. Still, I think it must have been hard for John to decrease in prison, knowing his Master was out teaching others. John wanted his disciples to be converted to Jesus and not linger with him, knowing that he himself was not the redeemer, but simply a precursor.

In reading more about John the Baptist, it seems more and more that there was powerful testimony concerning John. Of John, the Savior said that none born of women was greater than John. Joseph Smith stated a few main points that establish John's greatness. First, no one has ever had the honor of a mission to prepare men for the coming of Jesus, than John. Second, no one was given the honor of baptizing the Savior. The last point I find very interesting: that John was the only legal administrator to the keys of the kingdom at that time, and so wrested the glory and honor from the Jews. They had only John to receive the saving ordinances, and so he alone held the right until his death. This constitutes an amazing set of events that one man fulfilled. Thinking about it that way, who could ever compare to the mission given to John?

In John 3:30 a simple statement is made here that is both profound and said: “He must increase, but I must decrease.” John understood that once his threefold mission was accomplished, his time on earth would dwindle. That, like Joseph Smith who came after him, John would one day know that his primary mission was complete, and his license on life would expire, and the world would likely come after him then with a vengeance. Both John and Joseph died in a prison, and both were slain for the jealousy of men, and out of fear. After thinking about this and considering myself, I can say I too could see life the way John did; living for the Savior, accepting that we each have a mission and may not be able to do more than accomplish it after giving what we had.

John 2. Water to Wine and Cleansing the Temple

Today, this post is centered on the miracle of the water into wine, and on the actions of Jesus cleansing the temple.  One of the key questions in John 2:4 is how we can understand why God calls His mother woman. In researching this question in the institute manual it first reminded me of when a woman came to Jesus and he used the term dog in describing the woman's state. Not offended, she responded that a dog may yet lick up the crumbs that fall from the master's plate, and she was blessed for her fortitude and honesty. What strikes me is the strong usage of words: never were these words, speaking to earnest individuals, used to deride or make mock of them, but were simply descriptive phrases that by contrary, were meant to be easily understood. In the institute manual, it points to a supreme honor, not woman, but Woman, or the supreme woman who is the mother of that man. It is seen as the title of supreme value and importance.
       The miracle of the water into wine itself is the first of the miracles Jesus did, and what makes it special is something I had not understood for a long time. In the verse 4 of John 2 it reads: "Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come." I never properly understood this phrase before. Now I understand it better. It is a gentle acknowledgement of help, a simple statement that a son who is truly humble might make, saying, what can I do to help you? The mother then orders the servants to do as instructed, and Jesus gives a simple task: to fill water pots with water and take them to the guests. At what point it became wine, we never know. But its quality was exquisite. How might those servants felt, tasting wine from ordinary water, possibly changed before their eyes, tasting most exquisite and delectable? Its an amazing moment to those present, humbling for the servants, and impressive to the guests. Its simplicity is especially apparent here: no words of obvious great import were spoken, just the direct command and they became wine. Simple, drawing one's mind to awesome nature of the universe we must work so hard in to make sub-par food, when God makes it perfect, seemingly without effort. Another important point is that it was filled from waterpots used in ritual purification. The symbolism is the sacred nature of the vessels: no mere pot was used, but the tools of purifying through water were the medium, citing one's need to be pure and holy and clean.
    The last event that I wanted to discuss was the cleansing of the temple. Its fairly short, and so tends to be passed up. But look at what Jesus did! He created a scourge of cords. Now this part is confusing, because it says he used it to drive them out, followed by their animals. Most people from reading this online state its a mistranslation. Rather, he drove the sheep and cattle out and then overturned the money table, ordering them to leave His sacred house. Reading through this, I personally agree with the alternate interpretation, that he did not intentionally hurt anyone, he just needed a way to get the animals out and then the men were sufficiently cowed, knowing their culpability, to leave on their own afterwards. I think even here, Jesus was not trying to be cruel, but it was a sacred place that needed to be made clean. Note his tenderness towards the doves, asking the men to take them out rather than driving them out. I think this scene was very real.