Betrayal Revealed

     Have you ever been betrayed?  Has someone taken one of your secrets and revealed it to begin a rumor?  Or have you given the wrong person your trust and feel like a fool for caring?  We have all felt betrayed at least once in our lives.  It becomes a defining moment in a person's life.  When the betrayer is revealed, how do you react?
     Judas had Satan inside him pushing his buttons.  It was actually a pretty tragic story for Judas as well as Jesus, but most of our betrayers do not have the excuse that Satan made them do it.  Judas went to Jesus' enemies to give them information for money.  Judas was never spiritually forgiven because he felt bad, but never repented.
     Jesus knew what Judas was doing and yet He let Judas enjoy the Last Meal with the group of true friends.  What Jesus did at this meal became a reverent for the Christian faith.  Jesus also prayed over Peter specifically to not fall into Satan's hands after his betrayal that would happen later that night and that his faith be strengthened.  Peter's betrayal needed to happen or he too would have died.  It would have taken away from Jesus and the work that Peter still had to do.
     Do you not think that Jesus was tempted to react in a human way?  I am sure He wanted to run away and avoid the pain and loneliness.  Instead, He prayed.  When everyone else fell asleep, He prayed.  As Judas was coming with the enemy, He prayed, but He also confronted Judas to let Judas know that He knew.
      When Peter cut the ear off a soldier, before running away with the others to live, Jesus healed the soldier.  Later when Peter betrayed Him, He just looked at Peter.  Peter felt it bitterly and basically repented without words.  Jesus did what was best for everyone else at the expense of Himself.

Luke 22