A Betrayer

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF LUKE

A BETRAYER

Luke 22:20-23

20 In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you. 21 But the hand of him who is going to betray me is with mine on the table. 22 The Son of Man will go as it has been decreed, but woe to that man who betrays him."  23 They began to question among themselves which of them it might be who would do this.

NIV

There is a little more, in fact a lot more detail about this betrayal by Judas in John’s account but the fact remains, Judas did betray Jesus. The fact is also that Jesus knew he would do it, and that God had a plan all along for this to happen. Now should we say that God determined Judas to be a bad man, a betrayer? Then we would have to leap to the fact God has determined some to be saved and some to perish and he has already decided who would be so than we have no choice in the matter. That is the position some take using a few examples in the scripture, perhaps only three, Pharaoh, Esau and Judas. Yet we should not get distracted by this sort of discussion for it does not lead to a life lesson. What we should focus on is that fact that Judas was one of the twelve, a beloved disciple of Jesus, who Satan used to accomplish the will of God. This also serves to prove Satan does not know everything, for if he did, he would not have prompted Judas to have Jesus arrested so the Jews could have him killed. If Satan knew the plan of God, that Jesus’s death on the cross served to free men from death, from the grip of Satan, he would have prevented, at all costs, having Jesus go to the cross.  Should we examine that it might be possible for us to betray Jesus? Surely we love him and perhaps as much or even more than Judas did before Satan used him. There has been arguments that Judas thought he was helping Jesus by what he was doing, but that cannot be supported in scripture. Yet could we in some way betray Jesus? How would that look? Would committing some sin be a form of betrayal? If that were the case all believers would be betrayers. So what would a betrayal look like? Could not going forth into the world to spread the good news be a form of betrayal? If we never personally told anyone about Jesus, about the good news, would we be in effect betraying him? Would living a secluded life, separate from those awful sinners betray Jesus? Would living among the world, engaging in the same behaviors of the world, not the awful sinful stuff, like murder, rape, armed robbery, adultery, or such, but just living in the same everyday manner as those good people of the world who have spiritually refused to accept Jesus, be a form of betrayal? This would look like living for self-gain, self-dependency, self-satisfaction, self-centered, self, self and more self. Even taking pride in our self-righteousness might serve as a form of betrayal. Whenever we center our lives on self, we are in some way betraying the work of Christ in our lives. Yes he gives us that choice to accept him or not, but once we have accepted him, once we applied his blood to our hearts, then we no longer live, but he lives in us. We cannot deny or betray his power within us, he has to be the center of us. We become Jesus to others. What they see in us, hear from us has to be Jesus, not us. If we look like them, act like them, speak like them, live like them with all the same goals and ambitions to promote self, where is Jesus? Jesus came to save that which was lost, should we be anything less? If it was God’s plan for Judas to betray Jesus, then it is also God’s plan that we stand up, speak up and share the good news. If we are not about our Father’s business, then perhaps we are betraying his plan for our lives. We cannot afford to do that, any form of betrayal is unacceptable.