Betrayal

          It's not usually a good idea to assume things, but I'm pretty confident that I am safe in assuming that everyone who reads this has experienced, first hand, the sting of betrayal.  Maybe you've been "stabbed in the back" by someone you trusted.  Or maybe someone you counted on let you down in some way.  Regardless of how the situation may have played out, the result is always the same...hurt and disappointment.  It's the destination at the end of every road that begins with a betrayal.

          As we learned this week in Matthew 26, even Jesus, during his earthly ministry, wasn't immune to the dangers of betrayal.  The harsh reality of this broken and fallen world is that, inevitably, broken and fallen people will let you down.  It should come as no surprise to us that sinners do sinful things.  Let me remind us that we are not sinners because we sin, but rather, we sin because we are sinners.  It is not merely what we do, but rather, who we are.

          Jesus' model of ministry was that he invested in people.  The first thing he did upon embarking on his ministry journey was to call people to come along with him; Peter, James, John, Matthew, and others...even the man who would ultimately betray him, Judas.  Jesus was constantly interacting with people, sharing meals with people, even staying in the homes of people he met and ministered to.  Jesus was the ultimate people person.  He loved people and people loved him.  Yet, in Jesus' final days, he would ultimately find himself utterly alone.

          When he needed the support of his closest friends in the garden as he prayed, he found them sleeping.  A man who had traveled with him throughout his ministry, sold him out to the religious leaders for some silver coins.  When soldiers came to arrest him, the men who claimed they would give their lives for him scattered to save themselves.  When he was being beaten, mocked, and accused, his closest friend denied he even knew him.  And as he hung upon the cross, he suffered alone.

          Yes, Jesus certainly knew the bitter taste of betrayal well.  Jesus' problem was the same then as it is today.  When we put our hope and trust in people, they will let us down.  This isn't pessimism, it is reality.  Placing our hopes and expectations on a person, or people, is too great a weight for them to carry.  It isn't their fault really, people aren't capable of sustaining the pressure of that weight.  Eventually they will buckle under the load.

          Too often, we look to our spouses, friends, children, even our pastors, as functional saviors.  In many ways, we may not even realize we are doing it, but if we are willing to take a step back and be honest with ourselves, it's often how we live our lives.  We invest our hopes and dreams in other people.  Perhaps we look to other people for purpose, value, validation, or satisfaction.  When we do this, we are setting ourselves up to be left picking up the pieces when the mirage we have been hoping in eventually disappears.

          Jesus knew the limitations of what this world had to offer.  That's why he ultimately found his hope, meaning, and satisfaction in something bigger than this world...and we should too.  Only Jesus and the good news of his Gospel has the power to sustain the weight of all of our hopes.  When we place our trust in Jesus; find our value, meaning, and purpose in Jesus; and live our lives for Jesus, we find the sure foundation that we so desperately want and need.  Others may fail us, but Jesus never will.

          This doesn't make us bulletproof.  Other people still can and will let us down.  The betrayal that Jesus experienced, and the hurt that came with it was very real...and it is real for each of us as well.  That will be the narrative of this world until the day when all things are made new again.  However, when ourrelationship with Jesus is our ultimate relationship, we see our earthly relationships as what they truly are...opportunities to share and experience the transformational power of the Gospel.

In Grace,
Chris Morris

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Part 88 - Man's Sinfulness & God's Sovereignty

Questions discussed in this sermon:
1.  Why did Judas betray Jesus?
2.  How much was 30 pieces of silver?
3.  Is Judas responsible for his actions?