And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. And Jesus said to them, "You will all fall away, for it is written, 'I will strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.' But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee." Peter said to Him, "Even though they all fall away, I will not." And Jesus said to him, "Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times." But he said emphatically, "If I must die with You, I will not deny You." And they all said the same. (Mark 14:26-31)
It's a strange little sentence Jesus says, buried in the middle of a story about death and denial. Facing betrayal, arrest, torture, and the cross, Jesus throws in one ray of hope: "But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee." Already, He is making plans for His resurrection.
Nobody seems to notice. Nobody asks Him what He means. Instead, Peter fixates on the bad news: that everyone is going to fall away from Jesus. The ray of hope is forgotten—for now.
And this is so human, isn't it? The grief and suffering in our lives is easy to see; the blessings are hard to remember. Maybe that's why Jesus had the angels repeat it on the day He rose from the dead: "But go, tell His disciples and Peter that He is going before you to Galilee. There you will see Him, just as He told you" (Mark 16:7).
This is the kindness of Jesus, that even when we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, He is with us. He will remind us of His salvation every time we forget it—until the day we need no reminding, because God's kingdom has finally come in all its fullness.
THE PRAYER: Lord, whenever I forget, help me to find hope again in You. Amen.
Reflection Questions:
* Do you tend to dwell on the dark or light side of things?
* Tell about a time when God used a small thing to comfort you or give you hope.
* When you are afraid, how do you seek God's strength?
Lenten Devotions were written by Dr. Kari Vo.
Today's Bible Readings: Numbers 15-16 Mark 14:54-72
To Download Devotion MP3 to your computer, right click here and select "Save Link As" or "Save Target As" or "Download Linked File As"