Matthew 26:47-56

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47 While He was still speaking, behold, Judas, one of the twelve, came up accompanied , by a large crowd with swords and clubs, who came from the chief priests and elders of the people. 48 Now he who was betraying Him gave them a sign, saying, ``Whomever, I kiss, He is the one; seize Him.'' 49 Immediately Judas went to Jesus and said, ``Hail, Rabbi!'' and kissed Him. 50 And Jesus said to him, ``Friend, do what you have come for.'' Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and seized Him. 
51 And behold, one of those who were with Jesus reached and drew out his sword, and struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his ear. 52 Then Jesus said to him, ``Put your sword back into its place; for all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword. 53 ``Or do you think that I cannot appeal to My Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelve legions of angels? 54``How then will the Scriptures be fulfilled, which say that it must happen this way?'' 

55 At that time Jesus said to the crowds, ``Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest Me as you would against a robber? Every day I used to sit in the temple teaching and you did not seize Me. 56 ``But all this has taken place to fulfill the Scriptures of the prophets.'' Then all the disciples left Him and fled.

Matthew simply tells us that one of the disciples drew a knife and, prepared to resist to the death and to sell his life dearly, wounded a servant of the High Priest. When John tells the same story (Jn 18:10), he says that the disciple was Peter, and the servant was Malchus. The reason why John names Peter, and Matthew does not, may simply be that John was writing much later, and that when Matthew was writing it was still not safe to name the disciple who had sprung so quickly to his Master's defence. This was a courageous move by Peter, not just an impulsive one. He was willing to take on the mob alone.

Here is a perfect illustration of Jesus' struggle of "not-my-will-but-yours" now applied with respect to Peter. Jesus' arrest and subsequent death are all part of God's will to deliver all mankind. Although Peter was good-intentioned, he was working for the wrong side. 


This is why we must keep disciplining ourselves to wait on Jesus to lead out BEFORE we take over! I struggle with this every day! I get caught up in making things happen for God rather than waiting on Him to do those same things His way. What's interesting is that doing it my way always takes so much energy, stress with a little worry thrown in, all maybe not even producing the desired results. That's the natural way of doing life! His way usually is so much easier, seems so right and almost normal AND the results are beyond our wildest imaginations. That's the supernatural way of doing life!

I think this has a lot to do with Jesus' approach to everything. You see, Jesus calls His disciples into REST, not to be STRESSED. How's that working for you?