Hello my ‘Walking with Jesus’ friends,
Today is Wednesday, of what some people call ‘Holy Week’, the Wednesday between Palm Sunday & Easter. I wonder if Jesus was beginning to sense time was ‘running out’ for Him on Wednesday of that historic Passover/Easter week in which He was finally crucified but then rose from the dead?
Jesus is God the Son, thus Jesus fully understood the human race saving mission God the Father had sent Jesus to earth to accomplish. He knew it would be most impactful if it occurred on Passover weekend. The growing tension between Jesus and the religious leaders in Jerusalem was obvious. But unseen to anyone else, the growing tension between Jesus and Satan was getting explosive!
Matthew, one of the disciples, was eyewitness to it all, and he writes this in His record of the life and ministry of Jesus Christ: “Jesus said to His disciples, ‘As you know, the Passover is two days away – and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified.” As much as these disciples did NOT want to hear Jesus speak this way, nor did they even want to try and understand it, Jesus kept reminding them of what He knew was coming.
Matthew tells us the religious leaders “…schemed to arrest Jesus secretly and kill him. But not during the Passover festival or there may be a riot among the people.” (Matt. 26:1-5) Can you see the tension growing and the schemes brewing in Jerusalem, my friends?
But unknown to the disciples, this growing tension was happening among them, for Judas Iscariot was in great turmoil. Dr. Luke writes: “Then Satan entered Judas, one of the Twelve. Judas went to the chief priests and officers of the Temple guard and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus. They were delighted and agreed to give him money. He consented and watched for an opportunity to hand Jesus over to them…” (Luke 22:3-6)
What do you see in this my friends? We don’t know exactly WHY Judas was disappointed with Jesus or perhaps felt disenfranchised, but clearly the Holy Spirit wants us to understand Satan was very busy and had found Judas’ troubled heart to be a place where Satan could work, tempting Judas to contemplate even betraying Jesus to those who obviously wanted Him dead!
When Luke uses the phrase “Satan entered Judas” I think it’s a horrible picture of what the apostle Paul wrote to Christians in Ephesus a few years later: “In your anger do not sin. Do not give the devil a foothold… and do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God.” (Eph. 4:26,27,30)
Have you discovered friends that anger, bitterness, unforgiveness, and similar attitudes can harden our hearts and actually invite the influence of the devil who delights in drawing our wounded, hard hearts to develop destructive action plans and then actually take action! Do you see how that deeply grieves the Holy Spirit who tries to alert us to our hardening hearts or awaken us to how we are drifting spiritually away from God and toward the darkness?
Do you recall a few days ago we caught a glimpse of Judas’ hard heart when at the dinner party at the home of Martha, Mary & Lazarus, Mary poured perfume on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair, and Judas criticized her in front of everyone? (John 12:1-5) John gave us the commentary that Judas was keeper of the money bag but sometimes helped himself since he was a thief! (John 12:4-6)
Have you noticed there are some early warning signs when people are coming under attacks of the dark kingdom and actually being drawn away from God? When someone speaks critically, or shames another person, or has a very short temper fuse and lashes out in anger… those are a few of many early warning signs of spiritual trouble. Finally, Judas succumbed to the influence of Satan and he went to a secret meeting with religious leaders he knew wanted Jesus dead. In that meeting Matthew tells us Judas was offered 30 pieces of silver for betraying Jesus, and his traitorous deal was struck.
Through the rest of Wednesday and Thursday, evidently Judas watched and listened carefully to everything Jesus said, scheming to find the right time and right place to betray Jesus to those who wanted Jesus silenced. Luke tells us Jesus sent Peter and John into Jerusalem to find the place where Jesus and His disciples could celebrate the Passover meal together. Similar to how Jesus had sent two disciples, perhaps these same two, to find the donkey colt, Jesus gave them very specific instructions and thereby proved again that He was God the Son, knowing everything and seeing the future clearly.
Jesus told them: “Go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover. As you enter the city a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him to the house that he enters, and say to the owner of the house, ‘the Teacher asks: where is the guest room where I may eat the Passover with My disciples.’ He will show you a large room upstairs all furnished. Make preparations there.’ Luke then wants to be sure we understand it happened, so Luke added this commentary: “They left and found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover.” (Luke 22:7-13)
My friends, can you see the spiritual battle raging? Satan is powerfully tempting Judas, and Judas succumbed to the temptation and now Satan has been leading Judas to continue his scheme to betray Jesus, by looking to devise a plan. Meanwhile, Jesus remains focused on continuing to teach His disciples about His total trust in His Sovereign Father and also Jesus’ full knowledge of all things.
Now watch this. If Jesus could give Peter & John such specific instructions about meeting a certain man and going to a particular house and preparing the upper room for their Passover, don’t you suppose Judas should have realized Jesus could also fully discern what was going on in Judas’ heart? Jesus knew all about the meeting Judas had with the chief priests, and Jesus even knew about the 30 pieces of silver in his pocket! But there’s no evidence Judas recognized it.
Let’s pause right here friends, and let’s do some soul searching on this Wednesday before Maundy Thursday and Good Friday and dark Saturday and Easter Sunday. How is your soul? What’s the condition of your heart and your mind? Should we pray together the prayer of Psalm 139:23,24 “Search me O God and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts; See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
I urge you to find a quiet place, close your eyes as you listen to this powerful song built on Psalm 139, sung by a blind woman who calls us to ask God to search our hearts. What if Judas had prayed this song in the hours before Maundy Thursday?
Today’s Scripture: Luke 22:1-13.
Choose below to read or listen.
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
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Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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