Why did he do it? Why
did Judas betray our Lord? There are several
theories why. At one end of the theory
spectrum is a proposal that makes the case for Judas as he was working to build
a bridge between the Jewish leaders and Jesus. That Jesus had full knowledge of what Judas
was doing and rather than Judas betraying Jesus to the authorities, Judas was
betrayed by those authorities. At the
other end of the theory spectrum is the proposal that Judas betrayed Jesus
because Judas was a bad guy all along…a wolf in sheep’s clothing.[1]
Regardless of why he betrayed Jesus, Judas forever will be
remembered as a traitor.
One of life’s lessons I learned over time is to exercise
great care when trying to determine a person’s motivation for their actions and
to check my own motivations before acting.
Isaiah and Matthew invite us to recognize that the path to
holiness, our call as servants of the Lord, may be wrought with challenges or even
suffering. We learn that our efforts may be met with resistance and our words
may fall on deaf ears. We are reminded, especially
in light of Judas’ betrayal, to remain hope-filled and steadfast, to respond in
faith rather than with despair. It’s
another opportunity for us to recall God’s assurance of help in times of trouble.
Holy Week serves as a time to reflect on when our fears and weaknesses
have led us to inaction, to wrong action and bad choices, or even to turning away
from Jesus out of anger, hatred, greed, or pride. Perhaps this is an invitation to recall a time
when we have been challenged in our jobs or ministries; when we’ve experienced
anger or disappointment; felt unheard, been hurt or even betrayed by a friend. In these situations, look to the example of
Jesus for how to respond.[2] “He humbled himself, becoming obedient to
death, even death on a cross.” (Phil 2:8)
When we follow Jesus, we need to follow him diligently and
faithfully, wherever he leads us. We
need to pray for insight on what his plans are for us. As Abraham Lincoln once
said, “Sir, my concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern
is to be on God's side, for God is always right.”
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