SEEDS OF BETRAYAL
SCRIPTURE
Greatly distressed, each one asked in turn, "Am I the one, Lord?"
-Matthew 26:22 (NLT)
Betrayal is a subtle visitor--until it isn't. On the night Jesus was betrayed, only he saw the darkness lurking. He gathered with his disciples to eat the Passover meal. Jesus always used every moment to open hearts to the truth. He took the towel and basin and washed his disciples' feet. Peter, outspoken as always, protested the inappropriateness of his Master acting like a servant. Jesus looked into Peter's eyes and helped him realize this washing was not just about dirty feet. It was an invitation to surrender more of Peter's raw and misguided enthusiasm.
Judas was also there with dirty feet and misguided assumptions. Jesus gave Judas the same opportunity for surrender that he gave the other disciples. However, seeds of betrayal had already been growing. We saw them at Mary and Martha's house when Mary washed Jesus's feet with expensive perfume and Judas called it waste. It was betrayal hidden behind logic and reason.
We also must ask what seeds of betrayal might be buried in our own lives. Where do we use logic to identify mission and minis-try? Where do our needs or insecurities betray the call of Jesus? Where do we follow him with reticence? Where have we allowed Jesus to wash our feet but not our hopes and dreams? A heart that burns for Jesus willingly and honestly allows Jesus to bring any hint of betrayal to the surface, where we can reject it. The issue isn't ranking its severity; the issue is rejecting the seed so it does not grow.
We don't usually put ourselves in the same category as Judas. However, his betrayal didn't start on the night of Passover. It started with an attitude, an interpretation, a rationalization, and many secrets.
The important question we ask as we journey toward the cross is whose response we will choose--Peter's surrender or Judas's betrayal. Unlike Judas, we still have time to choose surrender.
BURNING QUESTIONS
1. Where do you resist Jesus's call to surrender, and how is that a form of betrayal?
2. Where are you vulnerable to developing a seed of betrayal, and how can you eliminate it?
AFFIRMATION
I refuse to grow a seed of betrayal because betrayal ultimately turns on me.
PRAYER FOR TODAY
Faithful Lord, may my obedience demonstrate a disgust for betraying you in any way.
SCRIPTURE
Greatly distressed, each one asked in turn, "Am I the one, Lord?"
-Matthew 26:22 (NLT)
Betrayal is a subtle visitor--until it isn't. On the night Jesus was betrayed, only he saw the darkness lurking. He gathered with his disciples to eat the Passover meal. Jesus always used every moment to open hearts to the truth. He took the towel and basin and washed his disciples' feet. Peter, outspoken as always, protested the inappropriateness of his Master acting like a servant. Jesus looked into Peter's eyes and helped him realize this washing was not just about dirty feet. It was an invitation to surrender more of Peter's raw and misguided enthusiasm.
Judas was also there with dirty feet and misguided assumptions. Jesus gave Judas the same opportunity for surrender that he gave the other disciples. However, seeds of betrayal had already been growing. We saw them at Mary and Martha's house when Mary washed Jesus's feet with expensive perfume and Judas called it waste. It was betrayal hidden behind logic and reason.
We also must ask what seeds of betrayal might be buried in our own lives. Where do we use logic to identify mission and minis-try? Where do our needs or insecurities betray the call of Jesus? Where do we follow him with reticence? Where have we allowed Jesus to wash our feet but not our hopes and dreams? A heart that burns for Jesus willingly and honestly allows Jesus to bring any hint of betrayal to the surface, where we can reject it. The issue isn't ranking its severity; the issue is rejecting the seed so it does not grow.
We don't usually put ourselves in the same category as Judas. However, his betrayal didn't start on the night of Passover. It started with an attitude, an interpretation, a rationalization, and many secrets.
The important question we ask as we journey toward the cross is whose response we will choose--Peter's surrender or Judas's betrayal. Unlike Judas, we still have time to choose surrender.
BURNING QUESTIONS
1. Where do you resist Jesus's call to surrender, and how is that a form of betrayal?
2. Where are you vulnerable to developing a seed of betrayal, and how can you eliminate it?
AFFIRMATION
I refuse to grow a seed of betrayal because betrayal ultimately turns on me.
PRAYER FOR TODAY
Faithful Lord, may my obedience demonstrate a disgust for betraying you in any way.
Posted in Lent