When we last left Jesus on that fateful day that would change the world, we experienced a time of fellowship around the table in the Upper Room. Jesus and his disciples gathered to share in the traditional Passover feast that remembered how God rescued the people of Israel out of Egyptian slavery. It was an intimate time of fellowship and the last time all 12 of the disciples would dine with Jesus before his trial and crucifixion.

This morning, we pick up the journey to Golgatha sometime after midnight on Friday morning. Jesus and the disciples departed from the Upper Room sometime after the final hymn was sung in the Passover celebration. Now there are only 11 disciples around Jesus. Judas Ischariot abandoned the group, while they were still in the Upper Room, to continue his plot to turn Jesus over to the religious authorities. It won’t be long before the remaining 11 will also leave Jesus’ side.

For now, the disciples are with Jesus as they leave Jerusalem and head towards a familiar place. They walk to the Mount of Olives, which was a location of importance for Jesus’ ministry when he was in Jerusalem. Located near the town of Bethany, the Mount of Olives was where Jesus expressed his grief regarding Jerusalem’s plight. It was a place of teaching and where Jesus rested during his time in Jerusalem. Continue reading “In the Garden”