A Slave and His Master – Betrayal

 

 

“Truly, truly, I say to you, that one of you will betray Me…Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in Him.” (John 13:21 and 31).

 

If the slave is not greater than his master, (Jn. 13:16, 15:20), then since Jesus was betrayed we ought not to think it strange when we are betrayed, nor should we hesitate to embrace the Cross of Christ when we are betrayed, for are we not called to know the koinonia of His sufferings?

 

However, let me hasten to add, that betrayal carries a particular pain and sorrow in its cup that touches the depths of our souls – and I suppose we carry its scars just as Jesus carries the print of the nails. To be admitted to the “fellowship of the betrayed” is not something anyone ought to aspire to, nor is it something that we should glory in – for betrayal is beyond words and is costly – both to the one who is betrayed and to the one who is the betrayer.

 

“For it is not an enemy who reproaches me, then I could bear it; nor is it one who hates me who has exalted himself against me, then I could hide myself from him. But it is you, a man my equal, my companion and my familiar friend; we who had sweet fellowship together walked in the house of God in the throng.” (Psalm 55:12 – 14).

 

In his Inferno, Dante reserves the depths of Hell for traitors. Barbara Reynolds describes Dante’s depiction of the city of treachery thusly:

 

“It is a freezing of all human bonds, of kinship, loyalty to country or party, hospitality, and gratitude for benefaction.”

 

We may contrast betrayal with the love of God, “This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you. Great love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:12 – 13).

 

Betrayal sacrifices others, God’s love sacrifices itself.

 

Consider that not only does Jesus wash the feet of Judas, His betrayer, but that in the midst of this betrayal Jesus continues to love and serve His disciples. That is, Jesus continues to focus on loving His friends, and in loving His friends who were in His immediate presence, He is loving us who will come to know Him (John 17:20; Heb. 12:1 – 2).

 

When we are betrayed, the pain and uncertainty and surprise is so great, the threat is so unexpected, that the betrayal can absorb our attention and energy to the exclusion of all else, to the exclusion of loving others. The betrayer can loom larger than anyone else in our lives. Yet should anyone be larger than God in our hearts and minds and souls? Is not Jesus Christ our Lord, does He not remain Lord of all?

 

Judas’s betrayal did not alter Jesus’ commitment and obedience to the Father, in fact, if anything it confirmed and highlighted it.

 

“Now My soul has become troubled; and what shall I say, ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? But for this purpose I came to this hour.” (John 12:27). The “hour” that Jesus speaks of includes the great betrayal.

 

When Judas leaves the Upper Room to consummate his betrayal of Jesus, Jesus says, “Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in Him; if God is glorified in Him, God will also glorify Him in Himself, and will glorify Him immediately.” (John 13:31 – 32).

 

The Betrayal plays a role in the glorification of the Father and the Son – then and now.

 

Peter writes, “If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you…Therefore, those also who suffer according to the will of God shall entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right.” (1 Peter 4:14 & 19).

 

In the midst of being betrayed, Jesus continues to commit Himself to the Father, trusting that the betrayal is in the Father’s plan for glorification and for the salvation of others. Likewise we also, when we are betrayed, are called to continue our commitment to our Father and Lord Jesus, trusting in the Holy Spirit to fill us and rest upon us as we walk through the betrayal; trusting God to use the betrayal for His glory, for our glorification in Him, and for the blessing of others.

 

We must not allow betrayal to distract us from loving and serving others, we must not allow betrayal to make us bitter and vindictive. In the midst of betrayal, we ought to embrace our call to follow Jesus Christ and to take up our cross and follow Him (Mark 8:34 – 38) and to view betrayal as an opportunity to allow the Cross to work within us for the glory of God. Is the slave above his or her Master?

 

This, my friends, is one of the differences between a spiritual child and an adult – a child sees betrayal as all about himself, while an adult offers betrayal to the Father for His glory. A child tells everyone about the betrayal, an adult only speaks what is necessary, when it is necessary. Indeed, to the adult betrayal is an element in the pilgrimage of the Cross. Indeed, the adult realizes that at one time he (or she) played the role of Judas himself – for we were all enemies of God at one time.

 

None of this lessens the pain and anguish of betrayal, and the more we have trusted the betrayer the deeper the pain. I recall a time when an employee who I had poured myself into and opened many doors for betrayed me. I could not believe what she had done. Even though my eyes told me the truth of the betrayal, my heart could not accept it – until I had another trusted employee review and confirm the theft – only with this additional confirmation could I accept what my mind told me was true.

 

I have also experienced betrayal within the professing church, and I will frankly say that this scar tissue remains with me – I am writing about something I have experienced. There is perhaps no pain like the pain of betrayal by professing Christians, by brothers and sisters (other than betrayal within marriage and family).

 

But here is the thing, no matter the degree of betrayal, no matter its results, we are still called to serve Christ and others, we are to embrace the Cross, we are to love – and we are to wash the feet of Judas well as the feet of Peter. We are not better or greater than our Master, and we ought to be thankful that Jesus trusts us enough to call us into the fellowship of those who have been betrayed…for we know that the Father will be glorified, that Jesus Christ will be glorified, and that we…individually and as Christ’s Body, will be glorified in the Trinity.

 

If you are bitter about a betrayal in your own life, please meditate on our Lord Jesus Christ and what we see in Him in the midst of the great Betrayal by Judas. Are you greater than your Master?

 

How might you allow Jesus to walk with you and speak to you?

 

Please ask your Father for grace to forgive the betrayer(s) – let us not forget that we are to forgive others as we desire God to forgive us (Mt. 6:12; Eph. 4:32).

 

Let us guard against the trap of closing ourselves off from others because we have been betrayed – let us rather embrace the Cross and the comfort of our Father and love and serve others out of our broken vessels (2 Cor. 4:7 – 12).

 

After all, life is about Jesus Christ…and if we are to find ourselves, our destiny, we must lose ourselves in Him.