All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night

 

 Then Jesus said to them, "All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for it is written:

'I will strike the Shepherd,

And the sheep will be scattered.'

 "But after I have been raised, I will go before you to Galilee."  Peter said to Him, "Even if all are made to stumble, yet I will not be."  Jesus said to him, "Assuredly I say to you that today, even this night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times."  But he spoke more vehemently, "If I have to die with You, I will not deny You!"  And they all said likewise. 

 

Then they came to a place which was named Gethsemane; and He said to His disciples, "Sit here while I pray."  And He took Peter, James, and John with Him, and He began to  be troubled and deeply distressed.  Then He said to them, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death.  Stay here and watch."  He went a little farther, and fell on the ground, and prayed that if it were possible, the hour might pass from Him.  And He said, "Abba, Father, all things are possible for You.  Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will but what You will."  Then He came and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, "Simon, are you sleeping?  Could you not watch one hour?  Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation.  The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."  Again He went away and prayed, and spoke the same words.  And when He returned, He found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy; and they did not know what to answer Him.  Then He came the third time and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and resting?  It is enough!  The hour has come; behold, the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners.  Rise, let us be going.  See, My betrayer is at hand."

 

- Mark 14:27–42 

 

Yesterday we read that, on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they killed the Passover lamb, His disciples said to Him, "Where do You want us to go and prepare, that You may eat of the Passover?"  And He sent out two of His disciples and said to them, "Go into the city, and a man will meet you carrying a pitcher of water; follow him.  Wherever he goes in, say to the master of the house, 'The Teacher says, "Where is the guest room in which I may eat the Passover with My disciples?"'  Then he will show you a large upper room, furnished and prepared; there make ready for us."  So His disciples went out, and came into the city, and found it just as he had said to them; and they prepared the Passover.  In the evening He came with the twelve.  Now as they sat and ate, Jesus said, "Assuredly, I say to you, one of you who eats with Me will betray Me."  And they began to be sorrowful, and to say to Him one by one, "Is it I?"  And another said, "Is it I?"  He answered and said to them, "It is one of the twelve, who dips with Me in the dish.  The Son of Man indeed goes just as it is written of Him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed!  It would have been good for that man if he had never been born."  And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed it and broke it, and gave it to them and said, "Take, eat; this is My body."  Then He took the cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, and they all drank from it.  And He said to them, "This is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many.  Assuredly, I say to you, I will no longer drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God."  And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

 

Then Jesus said to them, "All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for it is written:  'I will strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.'  But after I have been raised, I will go before you to Galilee."  Peter said to Him, "Even if all are made to stumble, yet I will not be."  Jesus said to him, "Assuredly I say to you that today, even this night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times."  But he spoke more vehemently, "If I have to die with You, I will not deny You!"  And they all said likewise.  Jesus quotes from the prophet Zechariah (see Zechariah 13:7).  Jesus makes another prophecy of His own regarding His disciples, and especially St. Peter, that they all will be made to stumble "because of Me" this night.  For St. Peter in particular, Jesus also has very detailed words, that "even this night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times."

 

 Then they came to a place which was named Gethsemane; and He said to His disciples, "Sit here while I pray."  Gethsemane means "oil press," and it is the name for this orchard of olive trees which is at the foot of the Mount of Olives.  Jesus has intentionally come to a place known to his disciples, including his betrayer Judas.  See John 18:2.

 

 And He took Peter, James, and John with Him, and He began to  be troubled and deeply distressed.  Then He said to them, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death.  Stay here and watch."  He went a little farther, and fell on the ground, and prayed that if it were possible, the hour might pass from Him.  And He said, "Abba, Father, all things are possible for You.  Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will but what You will."  Then He came and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, "Simon, are you sleeping?  Could you not watch one hour?  Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation.  The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."  Again He went away and prayed, and spoke the same words.  And when He returned, He found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy; and they did not know what to answer Him.  Then He came the third time and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and resting?  It is enough!  The hour has come; behold, the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners.  Rise, let us be going.  See, My betrayer is at hand."  Abba, my study Bible explains, is the Aramaic familiar form for Father.  It's equivalent is "Papa," and it indicates Christ's intimacy with God the Father.  This cup refers to His impending death.  In accordance with Christ's divine nature, my study Bible says, He goes willingly to His death.  But as a human being, He wishes He could avoid it, as it is the mark of humanity to abhor death.  He prays that if it were possible, it would be taken away from Him.  My study Bible calls this abundant proof of His human nature.  At the same time, nevertheless, He is without sin and completely subjects and unites His human will to the Father's divine will.  

 

 In the context of today's reading, and yesterday's reading and commentary in which the focus was betrayal, perhaps it is a good idea to extend that commentary and consider, from today's reading, the effects of sin.  Sin doesn't happen in a vacuum.  It is not simply a one-time act which has no extended effects and is forgotten about.  Even when we repent of our sin, sin can still have continuing effects in our world and upon others, and within community.  A father who commits a crime, and goes to prison -- even doing his time and fully repenting of the crime -- still has effects upon his children and family because of the consequences of the sin.  The children grow up with a missing father, and they will have to reconcile themselves to the reasons he was gone from them.  There might be extended problems with money, with support for a family and a spouse.  We can imagine the possibilities.  In terms of the theology of the Orthodox Church, this is how the problem of "original sin" is viewed.  Subsequent generations are not guilty of the sin, but they are faced with the consequences of the sin, and must cope with the conditions created by the sin they're not responsible for.  This is how the "fallen world" is understood.  So, let us take a look once again at this sin of betrayal by Judas, and consider the long-term secondary effects of his act.  Of course we know of Christ's Crucifixion to come.  We know, as Jesus predicts in today's reading, that the disciples will be made to stumble this night.   This word for "made to stumble" is literally to scandalize in the Greek (from σκανδαλίζω/skandalizo), which is a word that derives from a hunter's trap; i.e. to "trip up."  They will all stumble because of Him, He says.  But even as Jesus goes to the garden of Gethsemane deliberately, knowing He will be betrayed by Judas this night, He is prepared for the effects of betrayal, and predicts to the disciples that they will "fall away" from Him (another possible meaning of skandalizo).  This falling away is a stumble or sin itself on the part of the disciples, but Christ understands the effects of what He is walking into, and as they return to Him they will be forgiven.  So Judas' betrayal has the effect of striking the Shepherd, and scattering the sheep, as it says in the quotation from Zechariah.  The effects of betrayal are a falling away of trust, as the disciples with few exceptions will go into hiding, and even St. Peter will turn away through his own denial of Christ, as prophesied also by Jesus in today's reading.  Simply from its immediate effects, we can see that one sin leads to others in its effects and the hardship and broken relationships and communion it brings to others.  We know the crowds will be induced to shout for Jesus' death, another sin made possible because of Judas' betrayal, and a rather notorious murderer will therefore be freed in Christ's place, despite Pilate's efforts at His trial (Mark 15:11-13).  Judas himself, of course, will in turn be betrayed in a sense by those whom he has served.  He will commit suicide as a result of his act, unable to find repentance and forgiveness in his remorse without Christ (Matthew 27:3-5).  These are simply the immediate effects of Judas' sin of betrayal.  Of course, the long-term effects are far-reaching and even continue with us until this day.   The most significant  thing to remark upon is perhaps that God takes all things and turns them to God's purposes, in that the spectacular failure of the Crucifixion is in His Resurrection and victory over death for all of us.   As St. Paul writes, "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose" (Romans 8:28).  But we cannot say that this extraordinary outcome of salvation for all the world is the effect of Judas' sin, but rather it is the effect of the work of God that turns all things to God's purposes.  When we think about committing any kind of sin, taking a short cut, thinking that somehow our plans might work better than seeking God's way, or that we can manipulate our way into a better world or outcome, we should consider the effects of sin we cannot control nor predict.  Outcomes are seldom under any person's full control.  For this reason, we seek God's will in all things, we try to grow in discipleship and discernment and prayer, we put all things in the hands of God -- and we know that forgiveness comes with repentance, and a return to our Lord is the way to salvation even midst those negative effects.  Jesus advises the disciples, "Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation.  The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."  This is the way through extreme difficulties.  Let us face all things with Him.  St. Paul will come to write, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" (Philippians 4:13).  Let us follow in our own struggle for faith.