Jesus Arrested

Matthew 26:14-16, 47-56, Romans 3:23, Romans 5:18-21

Judas was one of the 12 disciples. He was a friend of Jesus and had built a deep and brother-like relationship. What becomes a very unfortunate series of events is that Judas betrays Jesus, and this ultimately leads to Jesus’ arrest and death. His charges were blasphemy.

Imagine if your very close friend betrayed you - maybe you have already experienced that. It’s painful, shocking, and can lead you to question your relationship and yourself.

In the midst of betrayal, you may think, ‘How did I miss this?!’ or ‘How could they?’. When Judas betrays Jesus, how does Jesus respond to him? You would expect one of the phrases I listed above. Instead, his response is:

“Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you came to do.” Matthew 26:50

Jesus calls him “friend.” Because Jesus is fully God and man, He knew exactly what Judas would do from the very beginning. This betrayal wasn’t surprising. Jesus STILL calls him friend, and his decision against Jesus didn’t change that. Often we can believe as followers of Jesus that our sin condemns us… and it is USED to. Sin has separated us from God, and it took a perfect sacrifice to reconcile us to the Father (Romans 3:23). Because of Jesus’ sacrifice, we no longer have to live in that distance but can walk freely and in unity with God (Romans 5:18-21).

What we must remember is that Jesus could have and can defend himself. God the Father doesn’t need our defense in order to be righteous or to be taken seriously. On his own and by His own accord, he is mighty and everlasting (Isaiah 9:6). The fact that he would leave himself defenseless against the crowd with swords and clubs is an act of selflessness in itself. He was defenseless for us in order to defend us against our sins.

The very thing that put him on the cross was the thing that he fought against; and won. Even though his arrest and betrayal looked like defeat, it was a true act of righteousness and victory.

What does it mean to walk in forgiveness toward those who have betrayed you?

What does it look like to believe that even when it looks like the worst-case scenario, God is still moving and working?