Author's Note: Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! I greatly appreciated all of the encouraging words in your reviews. It is good to see so many of you following 1 Thessalonians 5:11, "Therefore encourage one another and build up one another, just as you also are doing." In today's chapter, Penny comes face to face with Jesus, and witnesses the arrest in the Garden. So, on with the story!
John Mark's House, Thursday 6 April A.D. 30, 7:30 PM
John Mark, Peabody, Sherman, and Penny were gathering the bread and wine to take upstairs to the upper room for the Passover feast.
"Here, Penny," John Mark said. "You and Sherman take the bread, and Peabody and I will pour the wine. And whatever you do, serve quickly and quietly; not a sound. It must be as if we don't exist."
"Got it," Penny responded as she and Sherman took the baskets of bread from John Mark and the four made their way to the upper room. "Who are we serving anyway? We've been preparing all this food and I don't even know who it's for."
"My Master and his disciples are celebrating the Passover feast beyond this door. Of course if I were older I would be numbered with them," John Mark began to explain as they reached the door to the upper room.
"What Master are you talking about? I keep hearing that word get thrown around and- Wait a minute, your Master and His disciples?" Penny asked, as it slowly began to dawn on her.
"Surely you must know of Him. Everyone in the land has heard of Him," explained John Mark, somewhat surprised by her confusion.
"I-I'm not s-sure Who you're talking about," Penny said.
"Oh, you MUST know! I'm talking about Jesus, the Christ, our Messiah!"
"Jesus? You're telling me that Jesus is on the other side of this door?"
"Yes! What an honor for us. My mother and I are believers like yourself. Just imagine, serving Jesus HERE!" John Mark said excitedly. "But come, we must take in the bread and wine," he said as he opened the door. As they walked into the room, the four servers heard parts of the ongoing conversation.
"This very night, you will all fall away on account of Me," Jesus was saying. The room erupted with cries of denial as the disciples tried to say they would stay with Jesus.
"Come on, Penny," Sherman whispered. "We have to take the bread to the Master at the head of the table."
"That's the Man on the donkey!" Penny realized and whispered back as the two made their way to the head of the table.
"Yes, the Messiah!" Sherman whispered excitedly. "Let's go!"
"Even if all fall away on account of You, I will never fall away," Peter was saying to Jesus. "I am ready to go with You to prison, to the death!"
"I tell you Peter, today, yes even tonight before the rooster crows twice, you will deny that you even knew Me three times," Jesus replied sadly. "Ah, the bread and wine," He said as Penny and Sherman reached the head of the table. "Thank you." He turned back to His disciples. "Take. Eat. This is My Body..."
"Come on, Penny," Sherman whispered, motioning back toward the door.
"I want to stay," she whispered back.
"We can't! This is a very important time for them. Come," Sherman whispered and she followed him. After the four had left the room, Penny was visibly stunned.
"Are you alright Penny?" Sherman asked concerned.
"Did you see Him? He took the bread from me," Penny slowly said.
"Well that was our job!" Sherman chuckled.
"But, He looked-He looked at me. His-His eyes. He-He never-I mean, I never-I-I," Penny stammered.
"My words exactly!" Peabody exclaimed as he overheard the conversation. "There's just something about Him that draws you in. Especially for the disciples. Most of them were fishermen before Jesus found them," he continued. "But they didn't make a lot of money fishing."
"How do you know that?" Penny asked.
"By looking at their NET income!" Mr. Peabody replied with a smirk. Penny groaned at the terrible pun, while Sherman chuckled before saying, "I don't get it."
"Never mind," Mr. Peabody replied. "Come, we have more work to do."
John Mark's House, Thursday 6 April A.D. 30, 10:00 PM
Sherman and Penny were having their dinner downstairs while John Mark and Peabody tended to business in the upper room. Penny was eating ravenously.
"My word, Penny, I guess YOU were hungry!" Sherman commented.
"I've never done as much physical labor in my life as I've done over the past day and a half!" Penny replied as she took a drink of water. "Sherman, I've been thinking about it. Trying to remember what happens next with Jesus. I-I thought I knew the story but I don't." Sherman's face became a little sad.
"You'll find out soon enough," Sherman replied.
"I-I've never seen anything, anyone like Him," Penny continued. "When He looked at us, it felt like…"
"It felt like He was looking inside us," Sherman prompted.
"Yeah! Yeah, that's how it felt. Like-Like He was looking inside of us, but it was more than that. It was like He was looking inside of us, but looking with…oh, I don't know," said Penny exasperated.
"Love, Penny," John Mark explained as he entered the downstairs dining room. "When He looks, it's as if He looks with a very sweet love. Like being held close in a soft warm blanket."
"Can we go back upstairs? I think…I'd like to see Him again," Penny asked John Mark. "I promise not to talk, I just want to look at Him," she added quickly.
"We could, but you won't see Him," John Mark answered.
"I won't? Why not?" Penny asked confused.
"Because they've gone by now," John Mark explained. "Peabody is bringing down the last of the dishes as we speak."
"They're gone?!" Penny asked, suddenly realizing the implications.
"Yes," John Mark replied. "After the feast they planned to go to Gethsemane to spend the night. There's a garden there-"
"John Mark!" Penny cut him off.
"What's wrong?" John Mark asked.
"Don't you know? Don't you understand?!" Penny exclaimed.
"No, what should I understand?" John Mark asked confused.
"The Garden of Gethsemane! Come on, we have to go! Sherman, go get Peabody!" she exclaimed as she began tugging on John Mark's robe.
"Right!" Sherman dashed out of the room.
"But why?" John Mark asked, now thoroughly confused.
"It's an emergency! Believe me! You have to show us where the garden is!" And with that, the four dashed out of the house.
Garden of Gethsemane, Thursday 6 April A.D. 30, 11:00 PM
"Slow down, Penny!" Peabody called as she raced ahead of the other three.
"We have to find them! Why's it so quiet? Did we miss them?!" Penny exclaimed.
"No, they said they'd be here the entire night," John Mark explained as the four stopped to catch their breath. "Over there! See, the disciples are sleeping. Now, please, tell me why you're so panicked!"
"Where's Jesus? I don't see Jesus," Sherman commented.
"Maybe He's sleeping in another part of the garden," Peabody said as he looked around.
"Come around this way, but quietly!" John Mark beckoned. "I do not understand your panic, but I do not wish to disturb the Master's sleep."
"Do you see Him?!" Penny asked anxiously as the time travelers followed John Mark.
"Uhhh…yes!" John Mark replied. "There He is. He's praying."
"I have to warn Him! I have to talk to Him!" Penny started toward Jesus, but Peabody covered her mouth and pulled her back.
"Hold on Penny," Peabody said aloud, but then he whispered in her ear, "History must play out as recorded."
"But Mr. Peabody, they're going to arrest Him!" Penny whispered back.
"I know," Peabody whispered sadly. "I don't like it any more than you do. But it is necessary." Suddenly, a commotion erupted behind them. Jesus had moved back over to His disciples and was speaking to one of them, the one surrounded by what appeared to be guards from the Jewish Temple.
"Judas, you have betrayed the Son of Man with a kiss," Jesus said sadly.
"I don't believe it! Judas!" Peter exclaimed as he drew his sword and swung it at one of the Temple servants. The servant ducked, and Peter only managed to cut off his right ear.
"Put the sword into the sheath," Jesus rebuked Peter. "The cup which the Father has given Me, shall I not drink it?" Then Jesus touched His hand to the servant's severed ear and when He removed it…
"Did you see that Sherman?! He healed his ear!" Penny exclaimed to Sherman.
At that moment, the leader of the Temple guards approached Jesus. "Jesus of Nazareth, by the authority of the Sanhedrin, you are under arrest!"
"No! You can't do that!" Penny yelled as she escaped Mr. Peabody's grasp and she and John Mark ran toward the guards.
"Get back! Both of you!" yelled one of the guards. When they didn't get back, the guard took his club and swung it at both of them, managing to land a blow to both of their heads and knock them to the ground. The guards then took Jesus away and the disciples scattered, leaving only the four in the garden.
"NO!" Sherman yelled as he ran up to Penny. "Penny, speak to me! Are you alright?!" he asked as he cradled her head in his lap.
"Mmmm…" was the only response he got initially.
"Come on, Penny! You have to be alright! Say something!"
"I love you, Shermannn…" she muttered in a quiet, groggy, practically unintelligible voice.
"What? I can't understand you, Penny! Come on, say something!" Sherman was really beginning to panic when…
"Oh, OH! OW! What happened?!" Penny exclaimed, finally coming to and rubbing her head.
"Oh, praise God!" Sherman yelled before explaining. "You tried to stop the Temple guards and one of them clubbed you on the head. Come on, we have to go find where they've taken Jesus." By this time Peabody had tended to John Mark, and the four made their way out of the garden.
Author's Note: Well, it looks like Penny might be starting to open up a little bit. Will Penny and the rest be able to find Jesus, and what will happen if they do? The only way to find out is to keep reading!