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Jesus is Betrayed
3-14-10
Text:
John 13:21-30
● I
begin with a confession that this story is bigger than
me and will require a lifetime to mine the depths of its significance
and meaning.
● The
story of Easter always brings one thing into clearer perspective for me…
the vulnerability of God.
“Vulnerable”, by definition, means ‘capable of being mentally and physically
wounded.’ Vulnerability is what happens when you fully extend yourself… it’s
love totally exposed. It helps to dispel the myth of a remote and
untouchable deity.
It speaks of full disclosure. It
suggests that in the willingness to offer yourself completely, love may not
be reciprocated--- the other might not love you back.
● It
demonstrates that love is not as fragile as we had assumed; that it is
actually the most compelling force in the world.
Because
it’s not love that is so unpredictable, it is “we” who are so fickle. We
find it almost impossible to be devoted (singleness of heart; choosing one
thing) because there are too many distractions, so many options, such a
strong emphasis on self-fulfillment.
Love is just too hard, sometimes.
I guess I’m saying that Jesus felt the pain of crucifixion long before he
went to the cross.
I’m
certainly not attempting to belittle the horror and torture of what such a
death must have been like, but simply suggesting that the pain that Jesus
experienced was not purely physical. It was, in essence, the pain of
discarded love.
Arguably, there is no human ache or anguish as devastating as betrayal.
It necessitates relationship. It presumes shared life-experiences and
trust (both of which take time) and then
‘gives over’ what’s been
entrusted for personal gain.
It’s even more painful than hatred because it comes to us under the pretense
of love
(“I
thought you loved me? I thought we were friends?”).
It
relies heavily on appearance; on creating the illusion of commitment.
Betrayal’s greatest asset is it that you often don’t even see it coming.
And, even when you do see it coming, it’s no less painful.
● You
can’t prepare for it, because preparing for it would require that you would
be holding something back, and love knows nothing of partial-commitments.
It’s why love makes you vulnerable…
it won’t allow you to hold anything back. That type of “guardedness”
inevitably prevents intimacy (closeness).
● Judas
is probably one of the most menacing figures in literature. He is always
portrayed as ‘dark’ and ‘sinister’ and ‘conniving’; always the clear
antagonist.
What do we know about Judas?
-
Chosen
as one of the (12) closest to Jesus.
-
Entrusted with the treasury. Gifted
organizationally; likely a degree in accounting and finance.
-
Eventually colludes with the dominating powers
of the
Temple in order to secure Jesus’ arrest.
-
His name
is infamously synonymous with
betrayal
and treason (rivaled only by
“Benedict Arnold”). - He’s a man who died as tragically as he lived.
●
Historically, the question on all of our minds has been
“why?”
But evil
isn’t like that, is it? It doesn’t offer us a clear and reasonable
explanation to validate our actions. It just never seems to make sense.
●
I think it’s hard to understand this episode without some knowledge of
Jewish life in the first-century A.D.:
“Domination systems”
were the norm in ancient times, especially in agrarian cultures
(agricultural). It was
a way of organizing a society which
had (3) characteristics:
1.
Politically oppressive---
the many were
ruled by the elite few--- those with power and great wealth (always
associated). Ordinary people had no voice. As an example of the tyranny
displayed, in 4
B.C., when Herod died, some Jews saw that as an opportunity to rebel against
Roman rule. Josephus tells us that the result was that 2,000 Jewish men were
crucified at one time.
2.
Economic exploitation---
historians
estimate that between
one-half and two-thirds of
all of the profits from the agricultural production went into the bank
accounts of the wealthy few through heavy taxation.
3.
Religious validation---
the Temple leaders,
although not thrilled with Roman rule, thought it best to compromise with
the Romans in order to preserve their own lives and maintain their place of
power.
In these cultures, the systems were justified with religious language. The
people were told that the King was given the right to rule by God, in fact,
that he was a ‘son of God’ and that this social order was a reflection of
the way he wanted things done in his kingdom. In other words,
they used God (or religion) to
justify their injustices.
●
Judas expected Jesus to become the Messiah, the person to lead the revolt
against Rome and finally free them from their oppressors.
● But,
Jesus seemed to be talking more about going to Jerusalem to be ‘handed over’
to the authorities rather than overthrowing them.
This wasn’t the revolutionary
rhetoric they expected. Some felt that Judas did it to ‘force Jesus
hand’, so to speak. Surely the arrest and trial would be enough to prod
Jesus into action.
● I
guess what strikes me most and probably makes me the most uncomfortable
about the story is the disciple’s reaction to Jesus declaration,
“One of you will betray me” (vs.22).
No finger pointing, no confirming nods…
only a room filled with potential
betrayers.
I’m convinced that betrayal is not incidental, but the result of a lifetime
of disregard; the natural outcome of a lifestyle that consistently chooses
something other than Jesus.
Nobody just wakes up one morning and decides that they’re going to
‘trash’ their wedding vows or
“toss their friend under the bus.” No one just spontaneously decides that
“today’s the day I’m going to forfeit
my soul!”
It’s the often public culmination of a long series of private indiscretions
or ‘secret sins.’
The word ‘betray’ literally means ‘to
give over’ or ‘to be fully ripe’.
Betrayal is fully-developed compromise.
It’s the fruit you should expect when compromise is full grown.
The
disciple’s response? “It isn’t me, is
it?”
Their
responses offer us the first signs of any clear self-reflection.
Notice that the only one who couldn’t
recognize and admit the possibility was Judas himself?
(“Surely, not me, Lord!”)
Only someone who has truly come to appreciate how susceptible they are to
sin’s influence and only
someone who has experienced the irrational grace of Jesus can hesitatingly
ask such a question.
“It’s
not me, is it, Jesus?”
It’s only when you sense that it might be you that you will be able to
appreciate what it meant for Jesus to share a meal with Judas and even wash
his feet.
The message of grace is lost on us until we are willing to confront our
propensity toward sin/evil. Only then will there be hope for repentance and
a desire for a better future.
David
said, “… my sin is always before me”
(Psalm 51). That doesn’t mean that God kept rehearsing David’s sin and
wanted to ensure that he would never forget, but that David realized that,
although forgiven, sin was always as near as his willingness to yield to it.
I have discovered that to admit such vulnerability is not a weakness,
but actually a strength, because it helps to prevent self-deception.
● Let me
reiterate (2) thoughts:
In every story we encounter, the
spotlight is never on human failure or brokenness, but on God’s stubborn
love and determination to win back our hearts with kindness [there’s nothing
remarkable about sin].
God has
nothing to offer those who think they can do life without him. Experiencing
God, in any capacity, requires that I posture myself to receive and God
cannot provide me with that which I am unwilling to accept.
Perhaps one of the most powerful exhibitions of Jesus’ mission and message
was his tenacious love for even those who would either reject, deny, or
betray him.
“Father, forgive them…”
I wonder who he was thinking about? Peter? The other disciples? His own
family? The religious leaders? Judas?
●
To forgive is not to make light of the offense, but to name it; identify is
as offensive and painful and then absorb the pain of the offense upon
yourself in order to make reconciliation possible.
Why forgive?
Forgiveness was part of the “pattern” (example) Jesus provided that we were
to follow. It’s not just a ‘command’, but a ‘way’ that leads to truth--- the
way things really are; the things were really meant to be.
Why forgive?
Because when it comes to suffering, forgetting is better than remembering
and wholeness is better than brokenness; the experience of love is better
than the pain of betrayal.
●
I have to believe that, based on his actions, the inner-turmoil for Judas
must have become unbearable. The most agonizing response he could have
anticipated was the one that he got from Jesus:
“Friend, what you’ve come to do, do
it quickly” (“Just do it; this has got to be eating you up inside.”)
It’s the unexpected response of love which doesn’t make sense but always
gets our attention.
We almost want to hear Jesus say,
“You loser. I should have never
chosen you in the first place. I knew you were a waste of my time from the
beginning… this just confirms my suspicions!”
“Had Judas not met a sudden death (identified by Matthew as suicide), might
we must assume that he, too, with all of the others, would have been
welcomed back into relationship and community?”
Greater than betrayal or denial is despair (hopelessness)… the determination
that you are somehow beyond forgiveness.
“But God is so rich in mercy; he loved us so much that even though we were
spiritually dead and doomed by our sins, he gave us back our lives again
when he raised Christ from the dead—only by his undeserved favor have we
been saved---“
Ephesians 2 |
