Mark 11:1-19, So It Begins, Dr. John B. Carpenter

Mark chapter 11 be reading from verses 1 to 19 here the word of the Lord Now when they drew near to Jerusalem to Bethphage and Bethany at the

Mount of Olives Jesus sent two of his disciples and said to them go into the village in front of you and immediately as you enter it you will

Find a colt tide on which no one has ever sat Untie it and bring it if anyone says to you

Why are you doing this say the Lord has need of it and will send it back here immediately and they went away and found a colt tide at a door outside in the street and they untied it and Some of those standing there said to them

What are you doing and tying the colt and they told them what Jesus had said and they let them go and They brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it

And he sat on it and many spread their cloaks on the road and others spread leafy branches

That they had cut from the fields and those who went before and those who followed were shouting

Hosanna Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord blessed is the coming kingdom of our father

David Hosanna in the highest and He entered Jerusalem and went into the temple and when he had looked around at everything as it was already late

He went out to Bethany with the twelve on the following day when they came from Bethany He was hungry and seeing in the distance a fig tree and leaf

He went to see if he could find anything on it when he came to it He found nothing but leaves for it was not the season for figs and he said to the it may no one ever eat fruit from you again and his disciples heard it and They came to Jerusalem and he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple and he overturned the tables of the moneychangers and the seats of those who sold pigeons and he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple and when he was teaching them and saying to them

Is it not written my house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations but you have made it a den of robbers and the chief priests and the scribes heard it and Were seeking a way to destroy him for they feared him because all the crowd was astonished at his teaching

And when evening came they went out of the city May the Lord bless the reading of his

Holy Word Well, it was the summer of 1978 and we had just moved to Seminole County, Florida North of Orlando our new house was a ranch style house meaning just one story is on ground level the garage as you approach the house was on the right side and Then if you're going through the garage

There's a door there you go in just near the laundry room the kitchen to your left With sliding glass doors leading out to the porch then further to the left through the kitchen is the living room

Also with sliding glass doors going out to the porch Then a hallway on the left side of the living room with a hallway leading down to the four bedrooms

The house was L shaped kind of L Bedrooms are sort of with the extension of L with a master bedroom at the end of the hall also with sliding glass doors and all of it leading to the back where there was a porch and an overhang over the porch and Then a pool about 40 feet long.

I guess peanut shaped With a wider kind of shallow end on the left side if you're coming in through the house and the deep end with a diving

Board on the right side pools used to have diving boards back then because we weren't scared to death of everything the pool deck of course all around was

Concrete and just off the edge of the pool deck So on the other side of the pool from the house was a tree

The backyard beyond that was not large about a quarter acre With two parallel trees sort of parallel to each other and to a fence

There was a wooden privacy fence on either side about eight feet tall With alternating vertical board one board on one side of a horizontal board and then another board on the other side

So you could kind of see a little bit of the neighbor's yard from an angle at the end of the backyard of the back Of the backyard was a brick wall about five feet tall with purposely alternating bricks

Alternating with empty spots So there were brick and the empty slot which means you could sort of see through the wall

It was easy to climb over which is convenient for me because I often did climb over it Like a ladder slots to put your feet in beyond the wall.

The other side of the wall was a four -lane road Then across from that road were more houses which are facing secondary roads off to the right and to the left from our house you could see the sides of the house and their front of backyards and Between the houses backyards are coming away from our to our direction for our house

Whether it's a path a paid path I like the Danville Riverwalk between the backyards of houses where walkers and cyclists could go down there

That's the scene on a warm summer afternoon during our first swim in our brand new pool in our brand new house a

Thunderstorm came on us. We later learned that that was just typical Thunderstorms come almost like clockwork about three every afternoon in Central, Florida We thought we ought to get out of the pool

It turned out to be a very good idea. And so we were standing on the porch under the overhang

Right beside the pool waiting for the storm to pass when suddenly a flash and a bang

Lightning struck that tree just on the other side of the pool deck about ten yards from where I was standing part of the lightning went from the tree to the edge of the pool taking out a chunk of concrete about the size of a basketball and There were pieces of concrete later found on the roof of our house immediately ran in to the house and So began our four years in the

Orlando area Now I just told you a story that happened 47 years ago

One that I don't believe I've ever told in such detail To anyone sense and one common argument skeptics of Christianity often make is that they say well the

Gospels were written So many years after the events after Jesus that no one can remember what happened that long ago

Like 30 or 40 years ago. No one can remember that far back I heard a non -christian say basically that just about a week

So ago, the Gospels are separated by too much time from the facts that they relate to be reliable I suppose that argument works on college kids.

Can you imagine remembering what happened 30 years ago now if you're in your 20s? Maybe that sounds like an impressive argument

You think remembering what happened 30 years ago is just impossible. Well, if you're 20, I guess it is impossible, but it's not

Mark was probably written no later than 80 70 perhaps as early as 80 50

Saw even some skeptics say it's written that early but even skeptics all of us all of them put it before 70 probably about the year 65

Which is probably the year when Peter was martyred He was killed by Nero which means about 30 years after these things happened now imagine

Not only were these amazing events that we're talking about here in Mark and the other

Gospels these amazing events that left an indelible imprint on their minds like a lightning strike

Also these disciples kind of unlike me nearly getting hit by lightning

We're constantly talking to each other about these things we're constantly reminding each other over and over again

They were constantly be telling these stories to each other to their children To new people that wanted to know about them if one of them started to misremember what happened

Others were there who could correct them? Hey, remember when Jesus came into Jerusalem on a horse and people were shouting hallelujah

Peter would go no No, no, he came in on a donkey and they were shouting Hosanna. Oh, yeah, you're right Remember how he first came into the temple during that last week and immediately started to clean out them

The merchants of the money changers and Bartimaeus would speak up and say no first he came and looked around He cleansed the temple on the next day.

I saw it myself so even if we don't count The supernatural help of the

Holy Spirit which we should count But even if we even if we leave that aside the idea that they just kind of forgot what happened only 30 years before 30 years ago for us is 1995

We were living in Ethiopia in 1995 until September 2nd 1995 Do you want me to tell you any more detailed stories from?

1995 to prove that how easy it is to remember stuff from that long ago that short time ago

I should put it do you really want any more? Right the flight from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia eventually

Singapore, but we had to change planes in Bangkok I watched two movies on the way One was Jumanji the original

Jumanji mind you with Robin Williams The second was an Australian comedy called murals wedding was actually better than Jumanji.

It's pretty good. You want any more? We arrived in the Bangkok Airport, right? There was this big conference you win conference about to happen in Beijing and so people were coming from Africa to China and changing planes like us in Bangkok Airport And there was one lady from Africa that I could tell that she approached an escalator had never seen the escalator before in her life

And she was having a hard time figuring out how to get on it and how to work it

They're lucky. I try not to laugh but it was kind of comical What anymore

I could just I could bore you all day long with stuff from 1995 now So the idea that the

Gospels are unreliable because they were written 30 years before That's just ridiculous really

Now here in Mark 11, we see the reliable story probably maybe told by Peter To mark in Rome where he's a prisoner of how the last week of Jesus's ministry began

This is how it begins. We see first it begins with Hosanna's second it begins with cursing and finally it begins with Missions Well, Jesus is approaching

Jerusalem coming through these towns on the outskirts of Jerusalem Bethpage and Bethany. That's just on the

Eastern side of Jerusalem as you're coming from Jericho over the hill there called the Mount of Olives he's on the verge of Jerusalem and he wants to make a grand entrance

He wants an entrance that will provoke the response that he wants. So he sends to notice the little detail about to Yes, it's there it's like whoever telling this remember yeah, we're two disciples he said

He sends him up ahead He says in verse to go into the village in front of you and immediately as you enter You will find a colt tied on which no one has ever sat untie it and bring it so specific so detailed

There's no hint that Jesus arranged the donkey owner for a fresh young donkey to ride, you know Enterprise rented donkey

Contacted haven't have a donkey for me set up there. You made a reservation No, if he had done that if you just arranged with somebody for a donkey there, he would have said something like No, I I've made an appointment.

I've got a reservation to have a donkey right there. He better keep his promise He better keep his reservation here

He doesn't say anything like that. He says with certainty What is going to happen? Notice how certain

Jesus is About where the donkey is and where it's gonna be. He doesn't say I arranged for a guy to put one there

He says you will find it now in James 4 we're told not to say with certainty what we think will happen

I'm going to Outback Steakhouse for lunch You never know that may be what you think now

But the time you start heading there you can get delayed you can something could come up You could decide to go for Chinese food instead.

You never know Hey, you can say I'm planning to go but you just never know but here Jesus says you will find a donkey right there a

Colt -tied it will be a young donkey which no one has ever sat on before that was important the law that an animal devoted for a sacred purpose

Not have been used for a common purpose before not to be a regular animal So here it is animals never been used for anything before It's just waiting for Jesus to use it for the first time

He also knows that when they start to untie it someone nearby is gonna ask them whether what are you doing with your? Untying our donkey and so he tells them say the

Lord referring to himself Has need of it and he will bring it back here immediately The Lord has need of it because he's using it to get the reaction he wants

In verse 4 the two disciples go on ahead and find everything just as Jesus said They said what

Jesus told them to say and brought back a colt and a colt there means any any young male

Beast of burden and the Bible is even used of a cult of a camel donkey or horse I think in English we use is usually of a horses

But here it's used of a young male donkey and Jesus does this for two reasons first a king coming on a donkey was a sign of a peace communicates peace

So he's not Muhammad on a war horse out to conquer He's coming on a gentle steady

Donkey second it is to fulfill the prophecy of Zechariah chapter 9 verse 9 rejoice greatly

Oh daughter of Zion shout aloud. Oh daughter of Jerusalem. Behold. Your king is coming to you righteous and having salvation is he humble and mounted on a donkey on a colt

The foal of a donkey Jesus is saying that he's the king That's what he's saying by this act of riding the donkey and and so Jerusalem rejoice and They do people put their cloaks on the donkey serves the saddle for Jesus.

Jesus sits on it riding the donkey regally peacefully Into Jerusalem while many in the crowd in verse 8 spread their cloaks

On the road so they could come on a carpeted path Others took leafy branches as specifically says that they had cut from the field those these little details

They had cut from the field someone like Peter saw people cutting branches off of trees like palm branches out in the fields and they bring in and putting them before Jesus and doing that was recreating an

Historical scene people knew what they were doing. They were recreating a scene from their own history from about 160

BC when Simon Maccabee entered Jerusalem and it says in their history He entered Jerusalem with praise and palm branches

Because a great enemy had been crushed and removed from Israel So the branches showed they hoped that this was the beginning of a revolution

Now to make that clear the people both in front of him and behind him are shouting Hosanna Save now from Psalm 118 verse 25 save us we pray

Oh Lord Oh Lord, we pray give us success But they didn't mean save us from our sins

Save us from the wrath of God because we're sinners They meant save us from the

Romans Start a revolution and expel those Roman invaders like Simon Maccabee had done 160 years before They shouted blessed is he who comes in the name of the

Lord the very next verse in Psalm 118 They're celebrating because they believe that Jesus is bringing they say the coming kingdom of our father

David Remember just last week Bartimaeus had announced that Jesus was the son of David He's the one who fulfills the promise to David to have an eternal

King here. Finally. The long wait is over they believe and He is bringing

Jesus is bringing that coming King. It's coming right now. They think what Jesus that's why he's on that donkey

He's telling us he's bringing the kingdom by riding on the donkey. He's making that point the coming kingdom of our father

David So it begins with celebration and with more hosannas in the highest

Now miss all the celebration and excitement the disciples forgot what Jesus had told them Well, we looked at just last week probably for them just a few days before The son of man would have to suffer and die drink the cup of God's wrath be immersed in affliction

Be the ransom for God's people They probably thought at that moment All these people coming putting their cloaks and their palm branches in front of Jesus and shouting hosanna

Celebrating calling for him to save us bring in your kingdom at that moment.

The disciples probably thought we are Unstoppable We've won

We have all these supporters look at it. Almost the entire city is out praising him and greeting him like a conquering hero

It's like a lot of churches today think that if they can get people to attend to celebrate to pack their events

Respond to their invitations that they can get numbers They've won they're successful But the disciples here are about to see and Churches today will see that simple celebration is not discipleship

Enthusiasm is not faith The same people who are happy and shouting hosanna for Jesus one day can within just a few days

Be shouting crucify him against Jesus It begins with Jesus entering

Jerusalem triumphant celebrated coming into the temple notice in verse 11. He comes into the temple.

It says He looked around This is probably

Peter in the mid -60s, maybe earlier retelling what he saw I remember Like it was yesterday

Jesus coming into the temple and He looked around He inspected the place

Like he was a king Coming into his domain Jesus chose to begin this last week with celebration

With hosannas He knew that his coming on a young donkey would be understood would be interpreted as a claim on the throne and it would be celebrated as such the people were hungry for a

Revolutionary and they thought Jesus was saying I am that one. I am that King They thought they were ready for a new

David to put them back on top again no longer under the thumb of a Gentile Empire, but free and Supreme and Jesus let them celebrate

He even encouraged them to celebrate he instigated the celebration by choosing to come in on that donkey

Signaling to the people I am the king, but first he has to be a ransom and gather his people from all nations but it begins with celebration

It also begins second with a curse And I don't mean a bad word profanity,

I mean putting curse on someone or something here on a whole disappointing unfruitful nation

You know the Old Testament ends in the very last verse of the very last book

Malachi Is saying that he will come God will come and strike the land

With a curse and so the last week of Jesus begins

With him doing that very thing and he portrays that in an encounter with a fig tree in verses 14 to verse 12 to 14 the next day after Looking around Jesus on his way back to the temple

Back there to do new things, but he's hungry first He's fully human so he needed to eat like anyone else and he sees in it in verse 13 says he saw it a distance

Notice that little detail again. Just a little detail somebody remembers many years later Otherwise, this wasn't a tree that was just on his way on his on the direct route from where he was staying east of Jerusalem To the temple there was happen to be this fig tree right on the path

Now he saw it from a distance. So we had to walk out of his way to go to this fig tree And it was spring and the tree was full of leaves was looking

From from afar it looked like it was fruitful It's it was full of leaves.

So it must be pigs in there, too Now sure, it was not the season for figs yet It tells us that right there, but he had hoped that maybe this tree was the exception after all it was blooming leaves

And so he walks out of his way to this fig tree. He's hoping for breakfast But when he got to it, he found nothing the leaves

And so he curses it in verse 14 may no one ever eat fruit from you again

At the end of verse 14 his disciples heard it Mark source probably

Peter told Mark we heard him say it The words are still ringing in my ears like it was yesterday

He cursed that tree After seeing there was unfruitful now this shows

What he is about to do Jesus is coming to the temple like Malachi chapter 3 verse 1 says the

Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple He's coming expecting fruit if he doesn't find any he will curse it

He will curse that whole religious establishment so that it will be destroyed and that's what he did and it was destroyed less than 40 years less than a generation

After this, but don't think well, that's just for them As though they're cursed because they're unfruitful

But grace lets us be unfruitful and we'll get away with it Jesus here shows us the dangers of having an outward appearances full of leaves but without fruit

People who profess faith, but do not have transformed lives are like a fig tree with leaves

No figs. What good is it? The Lord will come suddenly Expecting fruit and if he doesn't see any

If all he sees is What looks like it should be a fruitful trip, but no fruit. All he sees is empty religious practices without good works

Well that the tangible results of genuine faith fruit

Christ like character loving Steadfast love keeping your commitments doing justice

Especially for the least of these two centuries ago slaves today the pre -born walking humbly with your

God humble prayer regular Bible reading devout church participation, so If he doesn't find that Then there's a curse so examine yourself whether you are bearing good spiritual fruit

The Lord is coming to his temple expecting good fruit. If he doesn't find it. He usually issues the curse and we wither

So it begins With a curse on the unfruitful Finally it begins with missions starting in verse 15

Says they meaning Jesus and his disciples come back to Jerusalem He enters the temple that he had inspected the day before It's a few days before Passover And so the place would have been just teeming with people like an old mall from the 90s just before Christmas Remember that the chief priest who controlled the temple had arranged over the last few years to allow vendors into the temple

Compound itself to sell their wares including money changers to do their thing All you business people can figure out why well, they would do that Right income in that this rent money

Instead of having people exchange their money and there's by their sacrificial animals or whatever else they needed out in the market

Let them do it right in the temple compounds temple complex itself Now, of course the vendors are gonna have to pay some rent or commission or kickbacks to guess who

The chief priest so these chief priests are probably getting rich off of this racket But that's not really what is wrong with this.

Jesus doesn't condemn them for making rent money What's wrong is that in order to let the vendors set up their booths and their tables on the temple grounds?

something Has to be crowded out and That was the court of the

Gentiles the Gentiles were crowded out this area around the sanctuary In the middle and the perimeter of the temple area work, which was for the

Gentiles Put our marketplace there the priest said Now the temple had a small sanctuary in the middle with a curtain off area called the

Holy of Holies We're only the chief priest went once a year and then a holy place outside of that For the priest to do their sacrifices and their washings and then outside of that was

Israel's court For the Jewish men to come offer their sacrifices then outside that was the women's gate which is for the women

Israelites to come and do what they can do and then there's a barrier a Wall with a warning sign on it.

No Gentiles enter playing on pain of death and then out there out Beyond that is the court of the

Gentiles where Gentiles Were supposed to come they could they could come and they could pray and worship there

So there was a spacious Plaza the whole temple area was very spacious and large and the spacious Plaza Called the court of the

Gentiles and the chief priest thought well, you know, we don't really care about the Gentiles They can go to hell as far as we're concerned we're going to use their court as a vendors mall and Oriental Bazaar Why not a one -stop shopping center for everything an

Israelite might need for visiting the temple Well, then Jesus shows up after seeing how the

Gentiles area had been turned into a mall. He decides to change that He doesn't consult the priest

He just takes it on to himself as though he has all the authority He just decides that he's going to turn the court of the

Gentiles back to its missionary purpose And so he acts like he's the

Lord of the temple Because he is So he began it says to to drive out

Those who sold and those who bought in the temple now the verb there For drive out is literally to cast out to throw out like a bouncer throws out troublemakers out of a bar

Jesus makes the decision about the court of the Gentiles and then he does the bouncing himself now apparently

Jesus was a physically Imposing impressive man, you can just gather that from this

Notice he doesn't say anything about the disciples helping him here Not as though Jesus and the disciples did this the disciples apparently just looking on probably stunned

Or too timid to take part and no one fought back either. This is just something again about What Jesus was like physically apparently so intimidating when he needed to be that people thought

They better not resist him This is not a fight. I can win and Jesus all by himself throws out the business people and the customers out

Notice is both both those who sold and those who bought Anyone doing business in the temple was told to leave

Or they were ushered out or if necessary they were thrown out

He overturned literally he flipped over the tables of the money changers

Otherwise, he didn't just said, you know say you got a minute to leave and gather up the things and give it to that He flipped it over.

So coins were flying everywhere They were like the money changes were likely scurrying on the ground to pick up their scattered coins

Before Jesus picked them up by the scruff of the neck and threw him out the door that the chairs of those selling pigeons

That's the sacrifice especially for poor people. They also were flipped over probably often

With them still in it Then in verse 16, he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple that's the way that's but he would not allow it

You're just trying to walk through that place Carrying some load delivering something.

Uh -uh And some people were carrying their Packages maybe bags of grain or furniture or lambs or whatever

Their grub hub or door dash delivery people taking their things through the temple It's a shortcut after all temple ground is a large

And if you need to get to the other side, you just go in through one gate Through the court of the

Gentiles and you go out another gate on the other side It's a very nice shortcut

Now if they distracted Gentile worshippers while they were just going through it like that Well, so what who cares about them or at least that's what they used to do

Until that day when Jesus stood in front of them Looking stern and they thought They take one look at him and decide that they didn't want to mess with him and so they

Would take the long way around And he explains why in verse 17 quoting

Isaiah chapter 56 verse 7 My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations

Notice the purpose It's the purpose of the temple for all nations

Nations The Israelites worship wasn't being interfered with think of that here The Israelites could do their worship thing that they weren't crowded out

The priest probably even argued that they had made it even more convenient for them Now Israelites didn't have to go out to the market to get what they needed

Everything was just outside the little wall separating the Israelite area from the Gentile area It was the

Gentile area that was made into a bazaar, but who cares about them? Jesus comes and says

I do The Lord does The temple was supposed to be not just for Israelites, but to serve missions for reaching people from all

Nations so that they would know and Seek the

Lord in the New Testament. All right, the church is God's temple now not the building.

I don't mean the building is God's temple. I mean the church the gathering of his people The body of Christ is his temple.

That's his house on earth That's where God lives on earth and just like the temple here. It's not merely supposed to serve the convenience of God's people is to be missionary is to bring all nations to Know and pray to the

Lord so for us now our building is Not the temple

But we are and we own this building and our building reminds us to be a for all nations For all kinds of people not only thinking of what is convenient for us what serves our needs

We think of how we can get all kinds of people From all nations the word

Greek there is ethnos ethnicities That is people of all races all origins

Our thought should not just be well, how can we have a place? Convenient for us to meet for worship, but how can we get all kinds of people to pray to the

Lord? Well here Jesus cleanses the temple Like he owns the place because he does and Then he taught them explaining why he did it my house

This is my house. He's implying She'll be called a house of prayer for all nations Jesus made it possible for the

Gentiles to worship there again for them to be able to come and hear and pray To the

Lord Jesus begins his way to the cross. How's it begin? By returning the temple's ability to serve all kinds of people

Jesus made possible the worship of the Gentiles at the Feast of the Passover, which celebrated the redemption of God's people

Because here Jesus shows that God's mission has always been about finding worshipers from all nations

That was always supposed to be the purpose of the temple. It's not necessarily just new with the New Testament with a

Great Commission Here with the temple itself for all nations. Jesus said

Despite that fact you you Israelites you priests have made it a den of robbers a cave of marauders

You made it into a gang hideout You made it in a place just about making money

For making a profit just for ourselves who cares about the Gentiles and for Jesus that was perverse now

It's fine to make money in his place Jesus doesn't cleanse the whole city of Jerusalem a Business he didn't claim the whole world of it, but he shows that there is a holy place where business stops

For us that's a place in time that's when we meet a place in our lives where we stop

Applying merely just to get a little richer Chase one more dollar It's where we seek first the kingdom of God and pray

The verse 18 the chief priest of the scribes the professional religious people almost certainly getting rich off of these vendors

And so they look at Jesus doing this and they I mean nothing they think he's cutting into our profit

It's also violating our authority they thought They saw this and they were not happy They didn't care if the

Gentiles didn't have a place to see God They hated Jesus's message about a God who had a mission for all nations.

Not just theirs They hated Jesus for challenging their authority for coming into the temple and taking over like he owned the place.

So they plotted to destroy him Their plot was provoked by Jesus's cleansing of the temple now, of course, they could have ordered their temple guards to go and arrest

Jesus right then But they were afraid of the people the people were amazed and astonished at Jesus He's so bold to come into the temple like that throw out the sellers of the buyers

Stop delivery men in their tracks. Tell them to go back He was so bold to return the court of the

Gentiles to a place where people could pray He declared my house and he sounded like he really meant the my

She'll be called a house of prayer for all nations And they thought yeah, Isaiah does say that And the priest turned it into a farmer's market

They were hanging on his every word so the priests were afraid the people would riot if they arrested

Jesus and the priest seed and plotted for a way to kill him and So it begins

There for first full day in Jerusalem at the temple Then the disciples returned with Jesus to his lodging place that evening they're amazed at what

Jesus had done that day Unforgettable 30 years later

Peter was probably telling Mark in a cell in Rome images seared into his brain

That he had told others over and over again since then how Jesus foretold exactly

Where a young donkey would be how Jesus rode into Jerusalem so regal and inspiring to shout

Inspiring people to shout Hosanna and how people were cutting off tree branches to lay them before him

Reenacting that triumphant moment from their history of a successful revolution Calling for Jesus to lead another one how

Jesus strode into the temple that first evening and looked around Surveilling the place like he was in charge of it and how he saw the next day

Green fig tree from afar. He went out of his way to go to it hoping for fruit finding none

He cursed it and how he came to the temple hoping to find the fruit of righteousness And instead finding a den of robbers and he threw people out he turned over tables he stood in the way of delivery men pointing them to go back how he returned the temple to his missionary purpose and Looking back on it

That's how it all began That's what incensed the priest so they decided to kill him and Jesus knew that they would do that He knew that that would be the reaction

Just like he knew the people of Jerusalem would respond to him coming in an old donkey with celebration and shouts of Hosanna He knew that would happen looking back on it

Peter thinks 30 years later with all these vivid memories Jesus knew exactly what would happen.

He was in control the entire time He was fulfilling His mission now will you fulfill yours?