Wednesday
of Holy Week, March 31, 2021
Now Jesus was deeply troubled, and he exclaimed, “I tell you the truth, one of you will betray me!” The disciples looked at each other, wondering whom he could mean. The disciple Jesus loved was sitting next to Jesus at the table. Simon Peter motioned to him to ask, “Who’s he talking about?” So that disciple leaned over to Jesus and asked, “Lord, who is it?” Jesus responded, “It is the one to whom I give the bread I dip in the bowl.” And when he had dipped it, he gave it to Judas, son of Simon Iscariot. When Judas had eaten the bread, Satan entered into him. Then Jesus told him, “Hurry and do what you’re going to do.” None of the others at the table knew what Jesus meant. Since Judas was their treasurer, some thought Jesus was telling him to go and pay for the food or to give some money to the poor. So Judas left at once, going out into the night. John 13:21-30
When you’re very familiar with a story, having read it many
times before, you can miss some important phrases. This morning they jumped off the page to grab
me by the heart and throat.
Satan entered into him…is a chilling reminder of how someone who chooses to believe
in Jesus can turn on a dime if their belief is mixed with self-serving. Judas was the treasurer, and being too close
to the money was too much of a temptation for him. (This, by-the-way, is not a blanket
indictment of those who handle the financial necessities of church
organizations. I have known, and worked
with treasurers of many churches – my own father included…mostly they are
humble, honest, and only willing to serve God).
I believe Judas let the growing purse influence his understanding of God’s
Kingdom. He idolized the cash flow, and
it began to pave the way for Satan to open his heart’s door.
So Judas left at once, going out into the night. Going out into the
night wasn’t just describing the time after the sun went down in the sky, but how
the light of Christ’s love was forsaken in favor of following after the purse.
The fact that Judas was still with Jesus at the Last Supper indicates
he still had a choice. Scripture records
that Jesus offered the piece of bread after dipping in the bowl, a sign of
friendship and an offer of shared intimacy between close friends. Taking the bread was the response of welcome,
and shared joy. This was the choice
Judas made to betray Jesus. His actions
declared love for Jesus; his heart was counting on filling the purse with 30 pieces
of silver.
And this is the danger for any of us who openly bear the name
of disciple; our hearts are not hardened bastilles, they are vulnerable. Our compassion makes us so, willing to be
servant, helper, doers of good. Satan is
more than willing to use that against us.
This is why we are cautioned to be on guard, vigilant against the evil Satan
wants to carry into the open doors of our hearts.
Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. 1 Peter 5:8
Most of us would not name a child “Judas”. The name carries too much weight of betrayer,
or not-to-be-trusted. As
such, when we hear that name, it is too easy to simply think of the despised cheat. We miss the greater threat we each face, understanding
that we are also following the same master and subject to the same temptation
as Judas.
· It may be the purse, like Judas
· It may be ambition like James and John wanting inner-circle
privilege
· It may be cowardice to witness like Peter, denying his Master
at trial
It could be any of our little weakness proclivities that
Satan knows how to exploit and nurture into full-blown betrayal.
Is there any wonder we are called to a daily walk, a moment-by-moment
conversation with our God that never really puts an “amen” to the end of
our prayers…but remains an open line of
short accounts?
For You Today
A good check on how close to being
Judas, (for any of us), is to set an hourly alarm reminder to
consider if we’ve been on the alert to share Christ with someone, or thinking
of that person who needs a word of encouragement, or if we’ve been mindful of
God’s leading in every area of our life and relationships.
[1] Title Image: By Nikolai Ge, Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation©
