Betrayal and Redemption

Didn't we all at one point or another sell Jesus for thirty pieces of silver? That question may sound offensive, but the thought came to me in prayer today. The Holy Spirit invited me to reflect on my own role in history, and as a human I am not much different than anyone else. One thing humanity is, is corrupted. We live in a fallen world and are influenced by powerful invisible forces that seek our demise. Nothing makes this more clear than the betrayal of Jesus by one of His own apostles. But, when we look at the gospels, that was not the only betrayal. Fear and weakness came over His followers. This is evidenced in many scenes; one that comes to mind is the inability of the apostles to stay awake in the garden and pray while Jesus went to pray (Matt. 26:36-46). He gets frustrated after needing to wake them three times. We see a final show of strength later when Jesus is still among them, and Peter cuts off a soldiers ear (Mark 14:47), but as we see later, Peter does not maintain that allegiance when His Master is taken (Luke 22:56-60). When we accept Jesus as our Savior we accept that we too crucified Him by our sin. We betrayed Him by our selfishness, by our pride, by our ambition, and in our own personal weaknesses. At this repentant realization we are saved, and at that same time we can see that the sacrifice Jesus made for us is priceless and never loses value. When we are still of this world everything is transactional, but in a world of transactions the values are constantly fluctuating. What we hold dear in the world today may have zero value to anyone just a few years from now. Our redemption, on the other hand, will never waiver. The love God has for us is realized through that saving grace supplied by Christ. In Jesus name I give thanks and praise!

AMEN