Yes, He Knows!Sample

BETRAYAL

He knows!

We say that we feel betrayed, " … my spouse promised on the day of our wedding that we would be together until death do us part, but I have been betrayed. He chose someone else and I can't get over it…”  Jesus knows betrayal. Judas Iscariot did the same to Him when he sold Jesus for thirty pieces of silver.  

“Then Satan entered Judas, surnamed Iscariot, who was numbered among the twelve” (verse 3). There you have it, my friends. 

I would venture to say that the spirit that was in Judas had been there all along. He was always the one who seemed slightly at odds with what was happening. Remember his reaction in John 12 when Mary washed Jesus’ feet with the costly perfume and dried it off with her hair? Judas complained because the money could have been put to better use. He simply never understood who Jesus was. In the end, it was money that enticed him to betray Jesus. 

At the Last Supper Jesus had said this would happen. He knew from the beginning that it would be Judas, yet He welcomed him into His inner circle. Jesus treated Judas in exactly the same way as He treated the other eleven. When He prayed for the disciples in John 17, Judas would have been included in that prayer. 

 Even when Judas betrayed Him, Jesus still loved him. 

When we are betrayed by those we trust and love, how do we react? Very often it is not how Jesus did. So many Christians walk around with bitterness in their hearts because they cannot forgive someone who has betrayed them. 

Forgiveness is not an option if you are a child of God—it is a prerequisite. Jesus says that if we want to be forgiven, we must forgive. The Word of God says that vengeance belongs to God.  

Spend some time today in God’s presence and ask His Holy Spirit to examine your heart. If there is bitterness in your heart toward someone who has betrayed you, ask the Spirit to reveal it to you. Then make a choice and forgive the person; pray for them and ask God to work in their lives. Don’t carry the burden any longer. Give it over to the Lord. 

My Father, the truth is sometimes so difficult to handle. Lord, You know the circumstances of my life better than anyone. You know what has happened to me, Lord. I ask You to forgive me for the bitterness that I have allowed to take root. I forgive those who have betrayed me and I give them to You. Amen