OUR DAILY BREAD : "AND IT WAS NIGHT"

[cimi]

March 28
Thursday


"AND IT WAS NIGHT"

READ:
John 13:21-30
___________________

Having received
the piece of bread,
[Judas] then went out
immediately. And it was
night. __John 13:30
_______________________

During a business trip to Philadelphia, I attended an evening service on the Thursday before Easter__a service of Communion and Tenebrae (darkness) held in a small chapel lit by candles. Following the bread and the cup, a passage was read aloud from the gospel of John, one candle was extinguished, and we sang a verse from a hymn about Jesus' journey to the cross. This was repeated 14 times until the chapel was completely dark. In silence we knelt in prayer and then left one by one without speking.

The darkness of this type of service can remind us of the dark elements surrounding Jesus' death. Think of His last meal with the disciples (John 13:21-30) as he explained that one of them would betray Him. Only Jesus knew it was Judas. "Having received the piece of bread, [Judas} then went out immediately. And it was night" (v.30).

On the darkest evening of Jesus' life, He agonized in prayer in the Garden, faced a wrongful arrest, endured humiliation at the hands of religious leaders, and winced at Peter's denials. Yet He moved faithfully toward the cross where He would die for our sins.

Jesus endured darkness and death to give us light and life. Praise Him for wht He went through for us!
__David McCasland

See, from His head, His hands, His feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down;
Did e'er such love and sorrow meet,
Or thorns compose so rich a crown? __Watts
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Calvary reveals the vileness of our sin
and the vastness of God's love

**Today's Bible Reading __ John 13:21-30********

21 When Jesus had said
these things, He was
troubled in spirit, and
testified and said, "Most
assuredly, I say to you, one
of you will betray Me."

22 Then the disciples
looked at one another,
perplexed about whom He
spoke. 23 Now there was
leaning on Jesus' bosom
one of His disciples, whom
Jesus loved. 24 Simon Peter
therefore motioned to him
to ask who it was of whom
He spoke.

25 Then, leaning back on
Jesus' breast, he said to
Him, "Lord, who is it?"

25 Jesus answered, "It is he
to whom I shall give a piece
of bread when I have
dipped it." And having
dipped the bread, He gave it
to Judas Iscariot, the son of
Simon.

27 Now after the piece of
bread, Satan entered him.
Then Jesus said to him,
"What you do, do quickly."

28 But no one at the table
knew for what reason He
said this to him. 29 For some
thought, because Judas had
the money box, that Jesus
had said to him, "Buy those
things we need for the
feast," or that he should
give something to the poor.

30 Having received the piece
of bread, he then went out
immediately. And it was
night.

>>>>>INSIGHT<<<<

In the Scriptures, particularly John's gospel, night is not just a time
designation. John often used "night" and "darkness" metaphorically
to denote evil and a darkened spiritual condition (John 3:19; 8:12;
12:35,46; 1 John 1:5-7; 2:8-11). Jesus' betrayal and crucifixion was the"hour__when darkness reigns" (Luke 22:52 NIV). For 3 hours, from noon until 3 p.m., while Jesus hung from the cross, "there was darkness over all the land" (Matt. 27:45).