Preparing for the Cross: Sovereignty, Anointing, and Betrayal

Devotional

Day 1: The Judge Who Knows His Sheep by Their Love

Jesus’ final teaching before the cross reveals a sobering truth: eternal judgment hinges not on grand moral achievements but on tangible love for His people. The sheep are marked by selfless care for fellow believers, while the goats—whether outright rejecters or religious pretenders—are exposed by their indifference. This love for “the least of these” isn’t earned but flows from hearts transformed by grace. Those who belong to Christ will be recognized by their reflection of His sacrificial love, a love that smells like costly perfume and endures beyond earthly applause. [38:45]

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left.” (Matthew 25:31–33, ESV)

Reflection: Where do you see your love for Jesus most clearly reflected—in religious routines or in practical care for His people? How might your actions toward a struggling believer this week reveal your heart’s true allegiance?

Day 2: Sovereignty in the Shadows of Human Plans

Religious leaders schemed to avoid Passover chaos, but God’s unseen hand overruled their timelines. Every failed plot against Jesus—from Herod’s massacre to Nazareth’s cliff—proved His authority over history’s clock. Even their “no” to a Passover execution became His “yes,” fulfilling prophecies etched in Israel’s feasts centuries earlier. Trusting this sovereignty means resting when plans unravel, knowing the Lamb’s hour is always punctual. [52:26]

“Then Moses called all the elders of Israel and said to them, ‘Go and select lambs for yourselves according to your clans, and kill the Passover lamb. Take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood. None of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning. For the Lord will pass through to strike the Egyptians, and when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you.’” (Exodus 12:21–23, ESV)

Reflection: What current delay or disruption feels like a human “no” to you? How might God be shaping it into His divine “yes,” aligning your story with His eternal purposes?

Day 3: Breaking Alabaster to Smell Like Worship

Mary’s jar of nard shattered not just perfume but cultural norms and personal dignity. Her act—wasting a year’s wages to anoint a soon-dead teacher—made no sense to pragmatists like Judas. Yet Jesus immortalized her “foolish” worship, linking her fragrance to the gospel itself. True devotion often looks wasteful to outsiders but leaves a lingering scent of eternity. [01:00:23]

“Mary therefore took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.” (John 12:3, ESV)

Reflection: What practical concern (time, money, reputation) most often hinders your wholehearted worship? What would it look like to “waste” yourself on Jesus this week in a way that leaves His fragrance on your life?

Day 4: The Traitor Who Unlocked God’s Timeline

Judas’ betrayal wasn’t a divine improvisation but a predetermined piece in salvation’s puzzle. His greed and disillusionment became the backdoor key to Passover’s fulfillment. While religious leaders feared riots, God used their covert plot to center history on a cross. Even rebellion serves the Redeemer’s calendar. [01:16:22]

“Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, ‘What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?’ And they paid him thirty pieces of silver. And from that moment he sought an opportunity to betray him.” (Matthew 26:14–15, ESV)

Reflection: When have you seen God use someone’s sinful choice to advance His good purposes? How does this truth reshape your view of present disappointments or betrayals?

Day 5: Communion as Rebellion Against Forgetfulness

Weekly bread and cup rebel against our tendency to treat the cross as a historical footnote. These elements scream: “He really bled! He really rose! He’s really returning!” Just as Passover blood marked Israel’s homes, communion marks our hearts—not with paint but with proclamation. Every crumb declares the Lamb’s victory over time-bound schemes. [01:28:56]

“Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, ‘Take, eat; this is my body.’ And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.’” (Matthew 26:26–28, ESV)

Reflection: What ordinary moment this week could become an act of rebellion against spiritual forgetfulness? How might physically pausing for gratitude (even without elements) reorient your heart to eternity’s timeline?

Sermon Summary

Matthew 26 opens after Jesus has finished the Olivet Discourse, where Jesus says that when he comes back, he comes back as judge. Jesus will separate sheep and goats, and that is good news for his sheep because the judge is the one who died in their place. Jesus measures love for him by love for his people, and the goats are exposed not merely by evil things done, but by the good works toward his people that were never done.

Jesus then tells the disciples for the fourth time that he is going to die and rise again, and this time he gives the exact time: Passover. Matthew places that word right beside the little meeting at Caiaphas' house, where the chief priests and elders plan to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him, but not during the feast. God’s sovereignty says otherwise. All through Jesus’ life, men tried to kill him and could not, because it was not his time. Herod tried to kill the child in Bethlehem, Nazareth tried to throw him off a cliff, the Jews picked up stones, and every plan failed. Now the leaders decide not to kill him during Passover, and God says, yes, now.

Passover matters because Jesus is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. The Old Testament feasts were types, yearly pictures pointing forward to Messiah. Passover said that something had to die to save God’s people, and Christ fulfills it as the true Passover Lamb. Unleavened Bread points to his sinlessness, Firstfruits to his resurrection, Pentecost to the Spirit writing the law on hearts, and the remaining feasts look ahead to his return, judgment, and God dwelling with his people forever.

Matthew then places Mary’s worship right next to Judas’ betrayal. Mary comes with a pound of expensive perfume, worth a year’s wages, and pours it on Jesus. The disciples call it waste, but Jesus calls it beautiful. Mary understands what the boys still do not understand: Jesus is going to die, and she prepares him for burial. Mary is only named three times in Scripture, and every time she is at the feet of Jesus. Her worship holds nothing back, even shame, and she ends up smelling like her worship.

Judas sees that same act and goes to sell Jesus for thirty pieces of silver. Judas had fooled everybody but Jesus. His betrayal is wicked, real, and responsible, yet it also serves the definite plan and foreknowledge of God. Communion then declares that Jesus really is the Passover sacrifice, the sinless one whose blood pays the penalty, wipes away sin, and calls his people to keep growing in holiness until he comes.

Key Takeaways

1. God says when it is time God’s sovereignty is not merely God stopping evil plans. God’s sovereignty also overrules human hesitation when the appointed hour has come. The leaders say, “not during Passover,” and God says, “during Passover,” because the Lamb had to die when the lambs were being sacrificed. [52:26]
2. Mary smelled like her worship Mary’s devotion was not careful, calculated, or image-managed. Her costly perfume filled the house, touched her own body, and marked her with the fragrance of what she had poured out on Jesus. True worship leaves evidence on the worshiper, because love for Christ cannot stay sealed in the alabaster flask. [75:04]
3. Judas fooled everyone but Jesus Judas stood among the twelve, carried the money bag, heard the words, saw the miracles, and still remained a goat. Religious proximity can fool disciples, churches, and even close friends, but it cannot fool Christ. The final separation of sheep and goats will reveal what was always known to Jesus. [80:27]
4. Communion declares the Passover Lamb Communion is not a bare ritual or a weekly habit with no weight. The bread and cup declare that Jesus truly took on flesh, truly died, and truly shed blood as the only answer to sin. The table calls believers to gratitude for justification and humility in the ongoing process of being made holy. [84:41]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[37:59] - Father's Day and Matthew 26
[38:26] - Jesus Returns as Judge
[42:41] - Matthew's Final Section Begins
[43:12] - Jesus Predicts Passover Crucifixion
[47:07] - Earlier Plots Against Jesus
[51:42] - God's Sovereignty Over Their Plans
[53:35] - The Feasts Point to Messiah
[55:55] - Jesus Fulfills Passover
[59:43] - A Traitor Creates the Opportunity
[60:00] - Mary Anoints Jesus at Bethany
[64:18] - John Names Mary and Judas
[70:27] - Lazarus, Grief, and Resurrection
[76:22] - Judas Sells Jesus for Silver
[81:20] - Communion and the Passover Lamb

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

Matthew 26:1-16
When Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples, “You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.” [43:12]
Then the chief priests and the elders of the people gathered in the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, and plotted together in order to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him. [43:36]
But they said, “Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar among the people.” [43:45]
Now when Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, a woman came up to him with an alabaster flask of very expensive ointment, and she poured it on his head as he reclined at table. [01:00:07]
And when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste? [01:00:18]
For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor.” [01:00:23]
But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a beautiful thing to me. [01:00:28]
For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me. In pouring this ointment on my body, she has done it to prepare me for burial. [01:00:32]
Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.” [01:00:44]
Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests [01:16:25]
and said, “What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?” And they paid him thirty pieces of silver. [01:16:31]
And from that moment he sought an opportunity to betray him. [01:16:41]

Matthew 25:31-46
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. [38:26]
Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. [38:43]
And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. [38:45]
Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. [38:49]
For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, [39:25]
I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ [39:35]
Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? [40:27]
And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? [40:33]
And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ [40:33]
And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ [40:37]
Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. [40:45]
For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, [40:50]
I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ [40:57]
Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ [41:03]
Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ [41:19]
And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” [41:52]

John 12:1-8
Six days before the Passover, Jesus therefore came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. [01:04:20]
So they gave a dinner for him there. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those reclining at table with him. [01:05:56]
Mary therefore took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. [01:06:02]
The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. [01:06:10]
But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was about to betray him), said, [01:06:15]
“Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” [01:06:34]
He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it. [01:06:40]
Jesus said, “Leave her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of my burial. [01:06:50]
For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me.” [01:07:02]

Observation questions

In Matthew 26:1-5, what two different plans are placed side by side at the start of the chapter—what does Jesus say is about to happen, and what do the chief priests say they do not want to happen during the feast? [52:26]
In Matthew 25:31-46, what specific kinds of actions are mentioned as marks of the sheep, and what failures expose the goats?
In John 12:1-8, what details show how costly Mary’s act was, and how did the room and even her own body become marked by that act of worship? [01:15:17]
In Matthew 26:14-16 and John 12:4-6, what do we learn about Judas’s words, his motives, and his next steps after Mary anoints Jesus? [01:08:05]

Interpretation questions

Jesus says he will be crucified at Passover, while the leaders say, “Not during the feast.” What does that contrast reveal about God’s sovereignty over both evil plans and human hesitation? [52:26]
Jesus calls Mary’s act “a beautiful thing” and says she prepared him for burial. What does her response suggest about the kind of faith that actually hears and believes Jesus’s words? [01:08:41]
Matthew places Mary’s worship next to Judas’s betrayal. How does that contrast help explain the difference between sheep and goats, especially when both can be physically close to Jesus? [01:15:54]
Communion declares the death of Christ until he comes. How does seeing Jesus as the true Passover Lamb deepen the meaning of the bread and cup? [01:24:58]

Application questions

Jesus measures love for him by love for his people. Where is there a real opportunity right now to care for a brother or sister in Christ—not in a vague way, but in a concrete way that has been easy to avoid? [39:39]
God says when it is time. Where has there been frustration because life is not moving on a preferred timetable, and what would it look like to trust God’s timing there instead of trying to force an outcome? [52:56]
Mary held nothing back in worship. What would “breaking the flask” look like in this season—time, money, reputation, comfort, privacy, or something else? What has been hardest to place fully before Jesus? [01:14:35]
Mary smelled like her worship. If devotion to Christ leaves evidence, what fragrance has daily life been giving off lately—gratitude, trust, holiness, anxiety, resentment, image management? [01:15:04]
Judas stayed close to Jesus for a long time and still remained false. Are there places where religious activity has become a cover for an unsubmitted heart? What would honest repentance look like there? [01:20:47]
Communion is a declaration that Jesus really took on flesh, really died, and really shed blood for sin. How can that truth move communion from routine back into gratitude, humility, and worship? [01:23:00]
Believers are justified fully in Christ and are also being made holy day by day. In this current season, what is one area where growth in holiness needs to become more intentional and less casual? [01:25:42]

Sermon Clips

64s

“They tried to kill him time and time again, they just were not able to because it wasn't his time. But notice this fascinating thing. I just love I love discovering these little things in scripture and just reflecting on who our God is. They all gather at Caiaphas' house. Yeah? And they make a plan. Hey, we gotta kill this guy, we're not gonna do it during the Passover because that's gonna create problems for us. So we've seen throughout Jesus' life and ministry that they've plotted and planned to kill him time and time again, and it's God's sovereignty that says it's not time. they actually decide not to kill him, and God's sovereignty says, yes, it's time. I mean, just just clearly, we are shown that this this is not man's plan. This is God's plan.”

80s

“Jesus intentionally delayed so that Lazarus would die, so that he could come and raise him from the dead. Let me ask you a question. Does Jesus know he's going to raise Lazarus from the dead? And this is the account of when we read Jesus wept. You don't miss that that's who our God is. He knows he's going to raise Lazarus from the dead, but he loves Mary and Martha, and they are heartbroken, and they are weeping, and he weeps because he knows he's gonna raise him from the dead, but he loves them and this is who your God is. you are heartbroken, he is heartbroken. He understands. He doesn't just say, buck up little camper and get over it. I've already died and and set your freedom forever and gained your inheritance and your eternity with me forever. he loves you. And so he weeps.”

76s

“He knew Judas was never going to truly believe. He knew Judas was never going to truly repent. He knew Judas was never going to truly submit to Jesus as the Lord and savior that Jesus says he is, so he used him for his sovereignty to create this opportunity. He was influenced by Satan for God's purposes and he shows here's a truth that we have talked about that you know that I emphasize again. When Jesus comes back, he's going to separate the sheep from the goats, and then at that judgment time when he does that separation, it is going to made be made clear for for many people, probably for the first time, who was really a sheep and who was really a goat because you can't fool Jesus. You can fool us, but you can't fool him. And Judas for three years during that ministry fooled everybody but Jesus.”

67s

“And he says when he goes to the cross, when you believe in him, all of your sin is nailed there with him. That his blood shed pays the price for the wrath that you were due. He takes it upon himself. He satisfies God's wrath. He pays the penalty that you owed. He says, believe in me and you will be saved and your sins are wiped away. You're at once made perfect, reborn, and yet we celebrate communion every week and we pray every week because we are also in a process of being made holy. You know, it doesn't always fit together that justification and sanctification that we are at once made perfect, that we are justified not through any of our own good works, that we didn't earn it, that we don't deserve it, that we can't pay for it. He did. He has satisfied it. All of our sins are forgiven, and yet we're still in a process of becoming more holy.”

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Why did Jesus die specifically at Passover?

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Why did Mary anoint Jesus with expensive perfume?