Many people have experienced betrayal. It is a painful part of our human lives and often it leaves deep hurt. The collapse of a relationship because we have been betrayed leaves us with little courage for new relationships. Today we see how Jesus was painfully betrayed by one in his inner circle of friends. Note how Judas willingly sells Jesus for thirty pieces
of silver – the price of a slave in Exodus 21: 32. Note too that even after Judas has betrayed the Lord to the chief priests and agreed to sell Jesus he still asks Jesus, ‘It’s not me, is it, Rabbi?’ Judas seems to feel no guilt and is thick-skinned enough to put the question to Jesus. Jesus must have felt the pain of this betrayal. One whom he had hand-picked as a disciple, taught, laughed with and spent so much time with now sells him out. Jesus knew that he was to die and now not only does he
need to deal with this approaching horror but also with the fact that a close friend is about to sell him.
Life may often throw ‘curved balls’ at us. Things do not always go as we had planned and people we trust let us down. We may wonder why Jesus chose Judas if he knew Judas would betray him – could Jesus have made a mistake in choosing him to be a disciple? In order to show us just how much God loves us Jesus experiences the pain of betrayal. He experiences our pain and shows us that despite
this, it is still possible to live in communion with God and love deeply.
Perhaps the key to understanding how Jesus manages to do this is found in the prophet Isaiah. Continuing yesterday’s theme of being called from the womb and set apart for mission, Isaiah explains what it is that keeps us going when, like Jesus, we are deeply betrayed. We cannot seem to escape the fact that all this is dependent on our ability to keep God at the centre of our lives. The
prophet explains, despite all that we might have to endure, physically and emotionally, the only way through it all is to cling to God – ‘the Lord Yahweh helped me’ Further on the prophet says ‘the one who vindicates me is near … the Lord Yahweh will help me’.
The betrayals and pain of our own lives may compromise our ability to love and accept love. They may lead us to want to give up living altogether. We may want to escape. If we keep our gaze fixed on God, a God who never gives up, and allow this God to be at the centre of our lives we will experience resurrection after pain. Jesus was faithful to God and so we watch him and see how pain leads
to the resurrection. We are invited, by God, to experience resurrection in our lives too.
Have I been painfully betrayed or have I betrayed another?
How did I (or am I) coping with the pain of betrayal?
