Did you have a model railroad set when you were a kid?

When I was a little boy my parents bought me a railroad set. It was neat to put the track together and see the train go around the figure eight — over the train trestles that came in the box. One of the most frustrating things about a model train is how easy it is for it to become derailed. It’s easy for it to get off the track.

In that way, a model train is a lot like human beings. It’s easy for us to get off track. Even Christians have trouble staying on the tracks that Jesus laid down for his followers. Let me give you a couple examples: The Spanish Inquisition. The Crusades. Neither of those embody true Christianity. They are examples of a people – people who professed to follow Jesus — getting off track. OK — that’s an understatement. They are examples of complete derailments of Christianity. Total train-wrecks.

We can say with certainty that these kinds of things are not in keeping with Jesus’ teaching and example. And you can find evidence for that many places — including our text today. We pick up the story in verse 50, where Judas is standing before Jesus, ready to betray him.

This podcast examines Jesus’ behavior in the Garden of Gethsemane — at his arrest — and helps us stay on track with what he desires.

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