When evening came, He was
reclining at the table with the Twelve. While they were eating, He said,
“I assure you: One of you will betray Me.” Deeply distressed, each one
began to say to Him, “Surely not I, Lord?” He replied, “The one who
dipped his hand with Me in the bowl—he will betray Me. The Son of Man
will go just as it is written about Him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of
Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been
born.” Then Judas, His betrayer, replied, “Surely not I, Rabbi?” “You
have said it,” He told him.
Insights: These verses today shock,
amaze and stun me. The shock comes from
the fact that a man who has spent three years, with very few breaks, was about
to betray the Savior of the world. The
amazement comes from the fact that Jesus was willing to forgive him all the way
up to his departure from the room. Even
in these words, “You have said it,” there is a spirit of forgiveness being
extended. The stunned state comes from the disciples themselves. They do not doubt Jesus’ statement that one
of them will betray Him, but rather they begin to wonder if each of them is the
betrayer. I think there is a warning in
these verses for us as well. We must
always have the humble spirit of the disciples and be willing to say, “Surely
not I, Lord?” In other words, we need to
be willing to recognize the deceptive nature of our old sinful heart. We need to understand that we are capable of
betraying our Lord with our sin at any moment.
It is for this reason we need to put as many safeguards in our life as
possible. We need accountability
partners. We need mentors. We need to have daily quite times. We need to worship corporately. All of these things help us remain faithful
in our relationship with Christ Jesus.
What is absolutely crucial in our pilgrimage with Jesus is if we do
falter and betray our Lord, we need to quickly repent and turn our face toward
Him. We need to allow Him to restore to
us the joy of our salvation and strive with even more devotion after holistic
union with Jesus.
Questions:
- Does your heart ever betray your relationship with
Jesus?
- Have you ever wondered how our betrayal affects Jesus?
Prayer: O Jesus, Your forgiveness is amazing and overwhelming. I do not desire to betray my heart regarding
my love for You. Yet, Lord, I know I
do. So, please convict my heart and
bring me quickly to repentance and restoration with You. Amen.
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