And while they were eating, he said, "Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me." And they became greatly distressed and began to say to him one after another, "Surely not I, Lord?" ~Matthew 26:21-22
“Surely not I, Lord?” This rhetorical question of the disciples may echo our response to this night. Surely we did not betray Christ. And yet, in many ways we are all betrayers of Jesus. There are times when we all deny, abandon, or betray our Lord, times when we opt for what we know instead of trusting God. We often read and hear the teachings of Jesus, but we do so with a grain of salt. “Do not judge”, yes but there are some people who are just …wrong. “Take up your cross and follow me”, yes but what if I get hurt or lose my reputation? “Do not worry about tomorrow”, yes but I have real things to worry about. “Love your enemy”, yes, but surely Jesus did not mean terrorists. Everyday we compromise the gospel in little ways, sometimes in ways we don’t even realize, and thus everyday we betray Jesus. Every time we rely on so called “common sense” over and above the Gospel we declare “My will be done!” Every time we try to assert our power over God’s, we refuse His cup. Thus outlines our struggle. We struggle to see God’s will above and beyond our own and to follow that will; To trust in God even when such trusting does not make rational or cultural sense; To trust in God even if it mean losing our own life.
~Pastor Eric
“Surely not I, Lord?” This rhetorical question of the disciples may echo our response to this night. Surely we did not betray Christ. And yet, in many ways we are all betrayers of Jesus. There are times when we all deny, abandon, or betray our Lord, times when we opt for what we know instead of trusting God. We often read and hear the teachings of Jesus, but we do so with a grain of salt. “Do not judge”, yes but there are some people who are just …wrong. “Take up your cross and follow me”, yes but what if I get hurt or lose my reputation? “Do not worry about tomorrow”, yes but I have real things to worry about. “Love your enemy”, yes, but surely Jesus did not mean terrorists. Everyday we compromise the gospel in little ways, sometimes in ways we don’t even realize, and thus everyday we betray Jesus. Every time we rely on so called “common sense” over and above the Gospel we declare “My will be done!” Every time we try to assert our power over God’s, we refuse His cup. Thus outlines our struggle. We struggle to see God’s will above and beyond our own and to follow that will; To trust in God even when such trusting does not make rational or cultural sense; To trust in God even if it mean losing our own life.
~Pastor Eric
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