Jesus, Judas and Accusation

Judas is the most famous betrayer in history. Leading up to Good Friday I’ve been thinking about the relationship of Jesus Christ the Son of God and the man who turned Him over to the enemy who wanted to destroy Him.

This part of the Bible always makes me cry. Jesus was betrayed by one of his close personal friends. Judas was not just part of the crowd following Jesus from town to town. Judas was someone Jesus spent day in and day out with for 3 years. Judas knew Jesus’ heart like few others did. Judas had even given up everything to follow the Call. These men were friends. They ate together, hung out together, saw God move together. How could a man that close to the Son of God betray a friend…with a kiss? Every year this question gets me.

Lately, however, I’ve been pondering a point I didn’t pay attention to previously. The gospels point out that Jesus really knew all along that Judas was going to betray Him. It did not come as a surprise. It was not just revealed to him at the Last Supper. For 3 years Jesus chose to share his life with someone he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt would turn Him over to be beaten, mocked, scorned, humiliated and ultimately killed.

Jesus was 100% right and was utterly and completely wronged by this friend. There was no miscommunication here, no misunderstanding. Yet Jesus chose to walk side by side with His betrayer. He stood and took it while He was spat upon and falsely accused by someone He was laying His life down for. One of His best friends denied he even knew Him not once, but 3 times. This did not come as a surprise to Jesus either. Jesus was fully man. All of these things absolutely hurt. And being right did not make the them less painful. Probably everything in Him rose up and wanted to respond. But He stood in silence. And was falsely convicted. And was put to death. And as He breathed His dying breath He felt forsaken. The pain of it all was so overwhelming that a perfectly sinless man who knew His purpose in life was to die for all mankind felt, just as He was about to accomplish everything His life had been for, that maybe it was all for naught. Talk about despair. Everything He was and believed in was publicly mocked and it really looked like He was a fraud when He died. All of the accusations looked true.

But looks were deceiving
But accusations were false
But life conquered death

And yet even today there are clearly 2 camps. Those who believe Him and believe He was vindicated and those you do not and believe he got His just deserves. After 2000+ years His name is not YET cleared in large parts of the world.

Accusation is just accusation. Accusation is not truth. Maybe God will vindicate the accusations, maybe He will not. That is His business not ours. Our business is to let God defend us and to work His purposes and plans from whatever He brings us to. If He brings us to it, He will see us through it.