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In Christ, Mark
In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy
word.
Then one of the Twelve—the one called Judas Iscariot—went
to the chief priests and asked, “What are you willing to give me if I deliver
him over to you?” So they counted out for him thirty pieces of silver. From
then on Judas watched for an opportunity to hand him over. Matthew 26:14-16
Then Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve, went to the chief
priests to betray Jesus to them. They were delighted to hear this and promised
to give him money. So he watched for an opportunity to hand him over. Mark 14:10-11
Now the Festival of Unleavened Bread, called the
Passover, was approaching, and the chief priests and the teachers of the law
were looking for some way to get rid of Jesus, for they were afraid of the
people. Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve. And Judas
went to the chief priests and the officers of the temple guard and discussed
with them how he might betray Jesus. They were delighted and agreed to give him
money. He consented, and watched for an opportunity to hand Jesus over to them
when no crowd was present. Luke 22:1-6
This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks
be to God.
Betrayal has been a part of the human experience for as
long as sin has been around as people over and over again have violated the
trust of another.
Maybe it comes in a marriage when one partner learns that
their partner has been unfaithful.
Maybe it happens when someone promises you something only
to break that promise.
Possibly it could come when you tell someone something in
confidence and they fail to keep it a secret.
Or as we see in today’s devotion, a person could be
betrayed by someone who was considered a friend and confidant. For in looking
at these three scripture passages from the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke,
we find that even Jesus suffered betrayal, one that was the greatest ever.
Then one of the
Twelve—the one called Judas Iscariot—went to the chief priests and asked, “What
are you willing to give me if I deliver him over to you?” So they counted out
for him thirty pieces of silver. From then on Judas watched for an opportunity
to hand him over. Matthew 26:14-16
Then Judas
Iscariot, one of the Twelve, went to the chief priests to betray Jesus to them.
They were delighted to hear this and promised to give him money. So he watched
for an opportunity to hand him over. Mark 14:10-11
Now the Festival
of Unleavened Bread, called the Passover, was approaching, and the chief
priests and the teachers of the law were looking for some way to get rid of
Jesus, for they were afraid of the people. Then Satan entered Judas, called
Iscariot, one of the Twelve. And Judas went to the chief priests and the
officers of the temple guard and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus.
They were delighted and agreed to give him money. He consented, and watched for
an opportunity to hand Jesus over to them when no crowd was present. Luke
22:1-6
This Wednesday of Passion Week is often referred to as
Spy Wednesday because of the illicit actions of Judas Iscariot, one of Jesus’
twelve disciples. Think about that for a moment. One of Jesus’ closest
followers, one who had traveled with Jesus through thick and thin, one who was
trusted so much that he was given the responsibility of being treasurer or the “keeper
of the money bag” (John 12:6).
Given this, how ironic is it that Judas would betray his
Master over 30 silver coins?
So what happened to Judas? What led him down the road of
wickedness and into the annals of history as being the greatest betrayer ever?
Well, if we turn to the scriptures we find the answers
for in the passage from Luke, we learn this:
Then Satan entered
Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve.
We don’t think as much about evil spirits influencing our
hearts and minds as we do the Holy Spirit but it’s clear here that Satan
entered into Judas and from that point on, we know nothing good happened. All
three Gospels are in agreement on what happened next because Judas went to the
chief priests and the officers of the temple guard (mentioned in Luke only) to
discuss how he might go about betraying Jesus. There was complete intent in
Judas’ actions and he his inquiry must have been welcome words to the chief
priests as well as the teachers of the law who had been looking for some way to
get rid of Jesus. In fact, Mark’s account tells us that they were “delighted”
to hear what Judas was saying.
Well, we get a feeling from these passages that both
parties, Judas and the chief priests, were in agreement about getting rid of
Jesus. There was only the matter of how much the chief priests were willing to
pay and in Matthew, we find Judas asking:
“What are you
willing to give me if I deliver him over to you?”
The offer to Judas was thirty pieces of silver paid up
front. All Judas had to do was make good on his part of the bargain and find an
opportunity to hand Jesus over to the Jewish religious authorities. Luke tells
us that Judas was careful not to pick a time and place where there would be a
crowd of people as the Jewish leaders did not want to incite a riot in
Jerusalem.
And so the stage was set for Jesus’ arrest, the first
step on the road to His trial, conviction, and crucifixion. Judas would prove
himself unfaithful to the very Lord who had been nothing but faithful to him
and do so for a mere 30 silver coins.
What I find interesting about all this is that it beckons
back to Jesus’ first formal teaching during the Sermon on the Mount. You may
recall Jesus saying these words:
“Do not store up
for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where
thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven,
where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and
steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
“No one can serve
two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be
devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”
Matthew 6:19-21, 24
A lot of people like to try and look at the amount Judas
took to betray Jesus and put a price on what he did but I think that misses the
mark on what was really happening here. Obviously, Judas’ heart wasn’t centered
on Jesus as His treasure but rather money in general. He obviously had a
passion for currency and that was why he was the treasurer but can we see where
danger can enter in when we start to place too much of our attention on the
treasures of earth. Those treasures become the most important thing to us and
accordingly our hearts get tethered to them.
Judas had a choice, just like every person does. He had a
choice between two masters: God and money. He made the mistake to choose and
serve money, and as soon as he did, he opened the door for Satan to come in and
influence his heart and actions, actions that resulted in the greatest betrayal
ever.
Given all this, I’ll close with a few questions:
Where does your loyalty lie?
Are you worshiping and serving God or money?
What is your treasure in life?
If we’re going to avoid failing and falling as Judas did,
we simply must give our fullest devotion to Jesus, worship and serve God and
God alone with all our heart and soul and mind, and make Jesus our one and only
treasure so that our heart might be fully in Him.
When we do that, when we completely dedicate ourselves to
Jesus, then we can be assured that we will always do the right and righteous
thing, always faithful to the One who saved us while avoiding the mistake of Judas
who allowed his love of money to lead him down the road of betraying His Lord.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
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