Service and Betrayal

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Service and Betrayal

Service and Betrayal
John 13:1-2

1 Now [de] before [pro] the feast [heorte] of the passover [pascha] , when Jesus [Iesous] knew [eido] that [hoti] his [autos] hour [hora] was come [erchomai] that [hina] he should depart [metabaino] out of [ek] this [toutou] world [kosmos] unto [pros] the Father [pater] , having loved [agapao] his own [idios] which [ho] were in [en] the world [kosmos] , he loved [agapao] them [autos] unto [eis] the end [telos] .
2 And [kai] supper [deipnon] being ended [ginomai] , the devil [diabolos] having now [ede] put [ballo] into [eis] the heart [kardia] of Judas [Ioudas] Iscariot [Iskariotes] , Simon's [Simon] son, to [hina] betray [paradidomi] him [autos] ; KJV-Interlinear

1 Now before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He should depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end. 2 And during supper, the devil having already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray Him, NASB

As we view the various attitudes of the people surrounding Jesus, we need to recall the attitude that the disciples had with regard to the use of the expensive perfume Mary used to wash Jesus feet and head. We know from Matthew and John, that she performed her little ritual two nights before Passover and six days before Passover respectively. From that we deduce that she probably did this nightly as she knew that the time was very near for Jesus departure from this world. Lord knows that Jesus has told everyone this, on several occasions.

Judas expressed his displeasure of the use of the 'expensive' oil and was mimicked by the disciples as we see in the following verses. Judas's displeasure was phony and just a cover up for his real desire to have the oil for himself to sell and get the money. The disciples were just ignorant of the truth of reality. The oil meant nothing in the long run. Oil can be sold sure, but its benefit is short lived at best. What people really need is spiritual growth and a real life in accordance with what God wishes for us. God is able to overcome any circumstance that mankind can find himself in. Any circumstance!

John 12:4-5
4 But Judas Iscariot, one of His disciples, who was intending to betray Him, said, 5 'Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii, and given to poor people?' NASB

Matt 26:8-9
8 But the disciples were indignant when they saw this, and said, 'Why this waste? 9 'For this perfume might have been sold for a high price and the money given to the poor.' NASB

Now the devil did not stop by and give Judas a sales pitch. Judas did not even speak with the devil. But all lies in this universe began with Satan. He is the father of lies. Beginning with Eve in the Garden, he influenced her through an indirect approach using the serpent. He deceived her because she was not paying attention to the content of her conversation with her pet serpent.

So Satan deceives mankind through deception. We have many religions, philosophies, and theories in this world and they all (if you go back far enough in history) originated directly or indirectly with Satan. Mankind in his infinite imagination just takes old ideas and just forms new ones out of them.

Judas was not interested in what Jesus had to teach. He was only interested in his own advancement and profit. Judas was influenced by his sin nature. He saw the writing on the wall, presuming that the Pharisees were going to get rid of Jesus what with all of the street gossip of an impending arrest (if anyone knew of the whereabouts of Jesus).

We have already studied in Matthew that Judas has already made his bargain, and was just looking for an opportunity to turn Jesus over to the authorities when the crowds were not around to interfere with the arrest (and not around to witness it).

Now one more reminder. The Feast of Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread occur together in sequence (one after the other). The Passover is a one day celebration, and on that day will Jesus Christ be crucified. But the next feast is the Feast of Unleavened Bread which will last for seven days, the first three of which Jesus will be in the grave and then resurrected. God will complete His work, whereas man cannot do that which God must do for man.

Adam was given clothes of animal skins after leaving the Garden (animal sacrifices representing the sacrifice of the savior promised from the seed of the woman). Moses wrote down a more involved procedure for the sacrifices of Passover, which included the day and time of the sacrifices (between the hours of noon and three o'clock in the afternoon). Daniel foretold the birth date and the date of death of the Messiah.

Now Jesus is here with the very hour of His crucifixion drawing close. Some recognize it or sense it (Mary), while others remain clueless as to what this was all about (the disciples - 'Lets go out and cure some folks and eat fishes and bread!').

Now are people really any different today? Of course not. Too few recognize or consider their spiritual lives have any value, and even if they acknowledge it has a value, that acknowledgment has no genuineness behind it. Lip service is one thing. Pursuing a daily study program is quite another.

In order to be successful in ones spiritual life you have to do the following. Commit yourself to a daily study (no exceptions, no days off). Commit yourself to staying in fellowship (self evaluation and appropriate and timely confession to God the Father). Understand what you learn. Ponder what you learn. Apply what you learn to your daily life and how you interact with others. Be obedient to the principles God teaches (don't compromise).

Memorize Bible verses - set up a list of verses to memorize and commit yourself to learning them. This will help you keep Gods Word close to the front of your thoughts. It will help you to stabilize your life. Be patient. The spiritual life is not a fast food, drive through service, but a lifetime commitment.

Expect failures and pressures in life. It is the devils world. Trust in God. Look to your past and see if God has ever let you down. Are you still alive? Are you still here? And finally, pray ... a lot!!!!!