"Then Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve, went to the chief priests to betray Jesus to them. They were delighted to hear this and promised to give him money. So he watched for an opportunity to hand him over."
- Mark 14:10–11 (NIV11)
What was it about Jesus that led one of his twelve disciples, Judas Iscariot, to betray him?
According to Jesus Christ Superstar lyricist Tim Rice, Judas loved what Jesus was teaching, but he had never quite grasped who Jesus was. In "Judas' Song" from Jesus Christ Superstar, Judas tells Jesus: "You've started to believe the things they say of you. You really do believe this talk of God is true. And all the good you've done will soon get swept away. You've begun to matter more than the things you say."
While Tim Rice's lyrics offer us an intriguing insight into Judas' motivation for betraying Jesus, the only thing we actually do know about Judas from the Gospel of Mark is that there came a point when Judas reached his "last straw". That "last straw" that broke the camel's back. That "last straw" that caused Judas to give up on Jesus. According to both Mark and Matthew, that "last straw" was actually an alabaster jar of expensive perfume. Jesus had allowed this uninvited woman to anoint him with it. Now maybe Judas, as treasurer (John 12:6), was upset that this donation of precious perfume was being used frivolously instead of feeding the poor. Maybe it was Jesus' suggestion that sometimes the most pragmatic option is not necessarily the best: "The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me" (Mark 14:7). Or maybe, if the lyricist Tim Rice is correct, it was because everything about this act of anointing Jesus was about Jesus rather than his teachings. It was about providing Jesus, with an anointing befitting the Messiah before his death and burial.
As a Christian and pastor, I have spent the last 42 years of my life seeking to study, understand and follow the teachings of Jesus Christ. Yet, if Jesus is only my teacher and mentor, then I, like Judas, would be but one disappointment - one last straw - away from rejecting Jesus. But if I follow Jesus because of who he is, as Son of God, Messiah (i.e. Christ), Saviour, and Lord of my life, then my faith can endure, for my faith is sustained by the crucified and risen Christ himself rather than his teachings alone. He is not only my teacher, my mentor, my friend. He is the Messiah, the Crucified God, the risen and now enthroned King of heaven and earth, my Saviour and Lord.
Prayer:
Loving God, open our hearts to receive not merely the teachings of Jesus but Jesus himself; for we long to be in relationship with you through him who died on the cross for us that we might live eternally in relationship with him. Amen.
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