The Time Has Come Week 2
The Time Has Come Week 2
Easter 2026: Quitting on Jesus
John 13:18-30
March 8th, 2026
3 General Observations on Quitting
1. Satan is an oppositional opportunist. He will try to leverage any angle and situation to get between us and Jesus.
2. Quitting creeps; quitting doesn’t happen overnight.
3. Nothing creeps up on Jesus. Jesus is never caught off guard by our emotions. He can flip those moments into movement.
John 13:18-30 (NIV) 18 “I am not referring to all of you; I know those I have chosen. But this is to fulfill this passage of Scripture: ‘He who shared my bread has turned against me.” 19 “I am telling you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe that I am who I am. 20 Very truly I tell you, whoever accepts anyone I send accepts me; and whoever accepts me accepts the one who sent me.” 21 After he had said this, Jesus was troubled in spirit and testified, “Very truly I tell you, one of you is going to betray me.” 22 His disciples stared at one another, at a loss to know which of them he meant. 23 One of them, the disciple whom Jesus loved, was reclining next to him. 24 Simon Peter motioned to this disciple and said, “Ask him which one he means.” 25 Leaning back against Jesus, he asked him, “Lord, who is it?” 26 Jesus answered, “It is the one to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.” Then, dipping the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. 27 As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him. So, Jesus told him, “What you are about to do, do quickly.” 28 But no one at the meal understood why Jesus said this to him. 29 Since Judas had charge of the money, some thought Jesus was telling him to buy what was needed for the festival, or to give something to the poor. 30 As soon as Judas had taken the bread, he went out. And it was night.
John 1:4,5 (NIV) 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
In Christ, darkness is a moment not an ending.
Take heart in your current setting – Jesus doesn’t even spare Himself temporary pain in order to achieve a greater outcome!
Why would a trusted disciple quit Jesus?
• Disappointment
• Disillusionment.
Judas loved the idea of Jesus, but was severely disappointed in Jesus.
Satan’s M.O. is to lure you away from Jesus and then shame you for being there!
How does quitting creep? How do I keep quitting from creeping up on me?
1. Misunderstand Jesus. Commit to know the Jesus of the Bible.
Judas only thought he knew Jesus. Judas doesn’t miss Jesus for a lack of exposure, he missed him due to a lack of conforming.
Avoiding disappointment with God is dependent on a Biblical understanding of God.
How does quitting creep? How do I keep quitting creeping up on me?
1. Misunderstand Jesus. Commit to know the Jesus of the Bible.
2. The weight of worship fades. Guard and elevate your worship.
• Mary’s action revealed Jesus’ great worth.
• Judas’ reaction reduced Christ-following to mechanics and not heart abandonment.
• Judas’ reaction revealed his lens of discipleship as self-serving not God worshiping.
How does quitting creep? How do I keep quitting creeping up on me?
1. Settling for familiarity and not forging. Commit to know the Jesus of the Bible.
2. The weight of worship fades. Guard and elevate your worship.
3. Don’t get stuck in disappointments. Followership is forged through disappointments, not derailed by them.
Being familiar with Jesus is no substitute to being forged into the likeness of Jesus!
John 16:33, “In this world you will have trouble but take heart for I have overcome the world.”
Romans 5:1-5 (NIV) Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.
Where are you with Jesus? Are you disappointed? Are you disillusioned? What are you doing to do now?
1. Satan is an oppositional opportunist. He will try to leverage any angle and situation to get between you and Jesus.
2. Quitting creeps; it doesn’t happen overnight. Stop the creep today.
3. Nothing creeps up on Jesus. Jesus is never caught off guard with our emotions and He can flip those moments into movement.