Audio Download

Matthew 26:1–35 The Woman With the Alabaster Box Who Anointed Jesus

[Study Aired December 1, 2025]

Today’s study looks at the plot to kill Jesus, the woman with the alabaster box of ointment who anointed Jesus at Bethany, Jesus confirming Judas as the one to betray Him, the last supper with His disciples and Jesus’ prediction of Peter denying Him three times.

The Plot to Kill Jesus

Mat 26:1  And it came to pass, when Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said unto his disciples, 
Mat 26:2  Ye know that after two days is the feast of the passover, and the Son of man is betrayed to be crucified. 

Jesus finishing all the sayings in verse 1 means that all we need to know about His coming with the spirit of His mouth and His brightness and His appearing with His angels, which heralds the kingdoms of this world becoming the kingdoms of Lord and of His Christ, has been made known to us. The fact that in verse 1 it was stated that all these sayings were directed to His disciples, lets us know that it is the Lord’s elect, symbolized by the disciples, who are given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of Heaven. 

Mat 13:10  And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? 
Mat 13:11  He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. 
Mat 13:12 For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.  

The feast of the Passover commemorates the time that the Israelites were in Egypt where every male was to kill a lamb and use the blood of the lamb to smear the door post of their abode. As a result, the Lord will pass over their houses as He destroys the Egyptians. It symbolizes the beginning of our salvation as the blood of Jesus atones for our sins. 

Exo 12:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, 
Exo 12:2  This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you. 
Exo 12:3  Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house: 
Exo 12:4  And if the household be too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house take it according to the number of the souls; every man according to his eating shall make your count for the lamb. 
Exo 12:5  Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats: 
Exo 12:6  And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening. 
Exo 12:7  And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it. 
Exo 12:8  And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it. 
Exo 12:9  Eat not of it raw, nor sodden at all with water, but roast with fire; his head with his legs, and with the purtenance thereof. 
Exo 12:10  And ye shall let nothing of it remain until the morning; and that which remaineth of it until the morning ye shall burn with fire. 
Exo 12:11  And thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the LORD’S passover.
Exo 12:12  For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD. 
Exo 12:13 And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. 

The lamb to be killed by every man is Christ. It is for our sins that Jesus came to die for us. It is therefore important to note that the plotters wanted to kill Jesus during the feast of Passover. This emphasizes the point that Jesus was indeed the lamb that was killed by the people of Israel with the blood smeared on the doorposts of their houses and the flesh roasted with fire for food.

Joh 1:29  The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. 

The flesh of the lamb must be roasted with fire and eaten at night. This is to let us know that we cannot separate the judgment of the Lord (roasting with fire) from His words. As we are being given insight into the mysteries of the kingdom of God, we are being judged to conform to His image.

Mat 13:21 Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.

Mat 26:3  Then assembled together the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders of the people, unto the palace of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas, 
Mat 26:4  And consulted that they might take Jesus by subtilty, and kill him. 
Mat 26:5  But they said, Not on the feast day, lest there be an uproar among the people. 

The categories of people mentioned here in verse 3 represent the leaders of the church system in Jesus’ days. It implies that we were all involved in the death of our Lord Jesus since we were part of the church system of this world or Babylon. This does not mean that the people of this world were not part of this plot to kill Jesus. In Psalm 2, we are shown that the heathen were also involved in killing Jesus. Thus, every human being (every man) from Adam to date is guilty of the blood of Jesus.  

Psa 2:1  Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? 
Psa 2:2  The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying, 
Psa 2:3 Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. 

Jesus Anointed at Bethany

Mat 26:6  Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper, 
Mat 26:7  There came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat.

Bethany was a village around the Mount of Olives and was about two miles from Jerusalem. Simon had probably been healed by Jesus, and the feast was held in his house. Bethany means house of dates or house of misery. The fact that Jesus was at the house of misery sums up the life of Jesus during His sojourn here on earth. He was indeed the man of sorrow acquainted with grief. 

Isa 53:3  He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 
Isa 53:4  Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 
Isa 53:5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

As He is, so are we. Our lives here on earth cannot be described as easy going. We are to complete what remains of Christ’s sufferings with the view of doing this on behalf of His body, the church.    

Col 1:24  Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church: 

The woman with the alabaster box of very precious ointment represents the church of the Lord’s elect. The pouring of the oil on Jesus’ head signifies His rulership over His elect first and later, in an age to come, this rulership will be manifested outwardly as the kingdoms of this world become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ. 

1Sa 10:1  Samuel took a flask of olive oil, poured it on Saul’s head, kissed him, and said, “The LORD has anointed you to be ruler of his people Israel. You will rule his people and save them from all their enemies. This will be the sign that the LORD has anointed you to be ruler of his people. 

What the woman did imply was that our resources in this life as His elect must be spent on affirming the Lord’s rulership in our lives. It is also important to note that Jesus was at this point about to offer His life for our sake and that of the world. He needed the assurance that His work here on earth had not been in vain. God therefore used the church (the woman) to assure Jesus of the reward set before Him – to rule His people. This incidence was therefore to strengthen our Lord Jesus to be able to bear the cross for the salvation of the whole world. 

Heb 12:2  Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Heb 12:3  For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds. 
Heb 12:4 Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin. 

It is also instructive to note that it was while Jesus sat at meat that He was anointed with oil. This indicates that our gathering together in His name to learn of Him is where we are assured of our reward of ruling the kingdoms of this world with our Lord Jesus Christ through what every joint supplies. 

Eph 4:16  From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.  

Rev 2:26  And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations: 
Rev 2:27 And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father. 

Mat 26:8  But when his disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying, To what purpose is this waste? 
Mat 26:9  For this ointment might have been sold for much, and given to the poor. 

It is important to note that the disciples in this case were not converted yet, and therefore they were operating with the carnal mind. As we are aware, the carnal mind or worldly wisdom is enmity against God and cannot please the Lord.  

Rom 8:6  For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. 
Rom 8:7  Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. 
Rom 8:8 So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. 

The carnal mind has a show of worldly wisdom, but is of no value when it comes to stopping the indulgence of the flesh.  

Col 2:20  If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations— 
Col 2:21  “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” 
Col 2:22  (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings? 
Col 2:23  These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh. (ESV)

Mat 26:10  When Jesus understood it, he said unto them, Why trouble ye the woman? for she hath wrought a good work upon me.
Mat 26:11  For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always. 

The church of the Lord’s elect, represented here by the woman, is the one that is doing good work upon the Lord in this age. Doing good work upon the Lord means giving our brothers and sisters in the Lord what it takes to become overcomers through the Lord’s words. 

Mat 25:40  And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

However, it is we, the Lord’s elect, who are always facing criticism from our brothers and sisters in the church system of this world or Babylon for not impacting our societies with good works. Here in verse 11, the Lord is turning our focus from spending our resources in this life on feeding and clothing the world. The Lord saying that we do not have Him always in verse 11 is another way of saying that we have a short life span in this age to be able to please the Lord in order to become an overcomer. 

Job 14:1  Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble. 
Job 14:2 He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down: he fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not. 

Psa 39:4  LORD, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is; that I may know how frail I am. 
Psa 39:5 Behold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth; and mine age is as nothing before thee: verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity. Selah. 

Mat 26:12  For in that she hath poured this ointment on my body, she did it for my burial. 
Mat 26:13  Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached in the whole world, there shall also this, that this woman hath done, be told for a memorial of her. 

As stated in verse 12, the work of the church of the Lord’s elect (the woman) is pouring oil on the Lord’s body for His burial. The Lord’s body is the church, and the burial here is the death of the flesh. 

Eph 1:22  And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, 
Eph 1:23 Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.    

We anointing the Lord’s body is the same as the Lord anointing us through what every joint supplies. This means that the role of the church is to anoint us with oil for the burial of the flesh. That is to say that it is through what every joint supplies that the Holy Spirit empowers us to understand the Lord’s words and to endure the Lord’s judgment of our old man, resulting in the death of our flesh. 

Joh 16:13  Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. 

1Co 10:13  There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. 

In verse 13, we are told that wherever the gospel is preached in the whole world, what the woman had done shall be told as a memorial of her. As we have indicated, the woman here is the church of the Lord’s elect. What this implies is that the gospel is preached through the church by what every joint supplies. Without the church, there is no gospel. 

Eph 3:9  And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:
Eph 3:10  To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, 
Eph 3:11 According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord: 

Eph 4:11  And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 
Eph 4:12  For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: 
Eph 4:13  Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 
Eph 4:14  That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; 
Eph 4:15  But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: 
Eph 4:16 From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.  

Judas to Betray Jesus

Mat 26:14  Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests, 
Mat 26:15  And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver. 
Mat 26:16  And from that time he sought opportunity to betray him.

Here we see Judas, one of the disciples of Jesus, betraying Him for thirty pieces of silver. In the account of Luke, we are made aware that the reason for Judas betraying Jesus was that he was possessed by Satan. 

Luk 22:3  Then entered Satan into Judas surnamed Iscariot, being of the number of the twelve. 
Luk 22:4  And he went his way, and communed with the chief priests and captains, how he might betray him unto them. 
Luk 22:5  And they were glad, and covenanted to give him money. 
Luk 22:6 And he promised, and sought opportunity to betray him unto them in the absence of the multitude.  

It is important to note that Satan’s possession does not happen all of a sudden. As we yield to sin, we are gradually setting ourselves for Satan to have a stronghold within us. In the case of Judas Iscariot, he was described as a thief who helped himself to what was put in the money bag of the disciples. This flaw of the love of money is the opportunity that the devil exploited to cause Judas to betray Jesus for a fee of thirty pieces of silver. That is why we are admonished by the Lord to refuse to give the devil any foothold. The “foothold” is a small opening that can be expanded, leading to further spiritual compromise.      

Joh 12:4  But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was about to betray him), said, 
Joh 12:5  “Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” 
Joh 12:6 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. 

Eph 4:26  Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 
Eph 4:27  and give no opportunity to the devil. 
Eph 4:28  Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.
Eph 4:29 Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. 

The Passover with the Disciples

Mat 26:17  Now on the first day of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Where will you have us prepare for you to eat the Passover?” 
Mat 26:18  He said, “Go into the city to a certain man and say to him, ‘The Teacher says, My time is at hand. I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples.’” 
Mat 26:19  And the disciples did as Jesus had directed them, and they prepared the Passover. 
Mat 26:20  When it was evening, he reclined at table with the twelve. 

The feast of unleavened bread is a seven-day feast where the Israelites were required to put away leaven out of their houses. 

Exo 12:15  Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses: for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel.
Exo 12:16  And in the first day there shall be an holy convocation, and in the seventh day there shall be an holy convocation to you; no manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be done of you. 
Exo 12:17 And ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread; for in this selfsame day have I brought your armies out of the land of Egypt: therefore shall ye observe this day in your generations by an ordinance forever.  

As we are aware, the Lord told His disciples to “beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees”, which spiritually signifies the doctrines of the Pharisees and Sadducees. The Lord reclining at table with His disciples for the feast of unleavened bread shows that after acknowledging our role in the death of Christ (the significance of Passover), we are to feast on the word of the Lord alone and in so doing, we let go of the doctrines of men. 

Mat 17:5  While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him. 

Mat 26:21  And as they did eat, he said, Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me. 
Mat 26:22  And they were exceeding sorrowful, and began every one of them to say unto him, Lord, is it I? 
Mat 26:23  And he answered and said, He that dippeth his hand with me in the dish, the same shall betray me. 
Mat 26:24  The Son of man goeth as it is written of him: but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! it had been good for that man if he had not been born. 
Mat 26:25  Then Judas, which betrayed him, answered and said, Master, is it I? He said unto him, Thou hast said. 

We must remember that Judas was with the disciples even when many of the Lord’s disciples deserted Him. It is therefore not about how we begin, but how we end in this race, is the matter.   

Joh 6:66  From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him. 
Joh 6:67  Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away? 
Joh 6:68 Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.

1Co 10:11  Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. 
1Co 10:12 Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.  

As Paul said, if we are to win the prize, then we must learn to forget those things that are behind us and focus on what lies ahead. Through the Lord’s enabling, we should let go both of our successes and defeats and focus on what lies ahead.

Php 3:12  Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.
Php 3:13  Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, 
Php 3:14  I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. 
Php 3:15 Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in anything ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you.  

The Lord’s Supper

Mat 26:26  And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. 
Mat 26:27  And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; 
Mat 26:28  For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. 

Jesus taking the bread, breaking it and giving to His disciples means that it is the Lord who open up His word for us to understand. That is the same as being given the key of David to understand the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven. This is a privilege given to only a few (the Lord’s elect).

Isa 22:22  And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open. 

Rev 3:7  And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth; 

Jesus told the disciples to eat the bread which represents His body. We are also reminded that Jesus told His disciples to eat His flesh and drink His blood. To be granted to eat the flesh or the body of Jesus means to be given the understanding of the word of the Lord.

Joh 6:53  Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. 
Joh 6:54  Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. 
Joh 6:55  For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. 
Joh 6:56 He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. 

To drink of the cup of His blood means recognizing that we are guilty of the blood of Christ and all the prophets. In the case of Jesus, the shedding of His blood was for our sins. 

Rev 16:5  And I heard the angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast judged thus. 
Rev 16:6 For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy. 

Luk 11:49  Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and persecute: 
Luk 11:50  That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation; 
Luk 11:51 From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation. 

Mat 26:29  But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom. 
Mat 26:30  And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives. 

Jesus saying that He will not drink of the fruit of the vine again until that day when He will be with His disciples in His Father’s kingdom is to remind us of the marriage feast of the lamb when He will come with His elect as the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ. 

Rev 19:6  And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. 
Rev 19:7  Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. 
Rev 19:8  And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. 
Rev 19:9 And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.

It is instructive to note that Jesus, together with His disciples, sang a hymn. Singing a hymn is a form of worship. In spite of the ordeal He was about to go through, He worshipped God. This is to show us the way of victory, which is to worship the Lord in His holiness irrespective of the situation we find ourselves in.

Psa 100:2  Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! 
Psa 100:3  Know that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. 
Psa 100:4  Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! 
Psa 100:5 For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations. 

After singing a hymn, Jesus went to the Mount of Olives, where He was remembered for his anguished prayers in the Garden of Gethsemane before his arrest, and where he wept over Jerusalem. 

Jesus Foretells Peter’s Denial

Mat 26:31  Then Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ 
Mat 26:32  But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.” 
Mat 26:33  Peter answered him, “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away.” 
Mat 26:34  Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” 
Mat 26:35  Peter said to him, “Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you!” And all the disciples said the same. 

We have all fallen away at a certain point of our walk with the Lord during our time in the churches of this world. As we have seen from the word of the Lord, falling away is a necessary evil we must experience before we are given to know Christ. Jesus telling Peter that he would deny Him three times is to let us know that falling away is part of the process of spiritual maturity through the Lord’s judgment of our flesh (the significance of the number three). 

2Th 2:3  Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; 
2Th 2:4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. 

2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: 

We can see from these verses that the reason that we must fall away is that the Lord wants to reveal to us the man of sin or the flesh in our lives so that when He comes to judge us, we shall see His judgment as a necessary tool for the destruction of our old man or flesh. It is therefore through this process of His judgment that we can worship the Lord acceptably. The scripture which Jesus quoted to support the fact that His disciples will fall away is as follows:

Zec 13:7  Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones. 
Zec 13:8  And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the LORD, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein. 
Zec 13:9  And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God.

It is worth noting that after the fall away, Zechariah talked about the third part (that is, the elect) going through fire to be refined. This confirms why we must fall away at a certain point of our walk with Christ. 

Unfortunately, when we are of the flesh (the man of sin sitting in our temple), just like Peter and the rest of the disciples at that stage of their walk, we think we have what it takes to serve the Lord. It is indeed a privilege to be judged by the Lord in this age!!

Rom 11:33 O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! 
Rom 11:34  For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor? 
Rom 11:35  Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? 
Rom 11:36 For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory forever. Amen.