- Robert D Turvil
Jesus, Judas and that last Passover meal
Description:
Jesus knew that Judas was going to betray him long before that final meal, yet let himself be captured. He chose to save us, not himself.
What's amazing is the way Jesus behaved towards Judas at the Last Supper. He knew the man was going to betray him long before that final meal, yet almost encouraged him to nip off and do the dirty deed.
Others were there
All Jesus had to do was say to the other disciples, hey fellas, see this friend of ours, Judas: he’s going to sell me out to the chief priests so I can be arrested when no one much is about. Had he said this (or similar words) the other disciples might very well have been somewhat annoyed with Judas and taken retaliatory action themselves. But no. Jesus kept the secret. Even so, he could still have pulled the rug from under Judas’ plan by not going to the Garden of Gethsemane where he and the disciples had been spending their nights. He could easily have gone elsewhere, but he didn’t. What he did do was pray. Sadly for them, the other disciples were so tired they fell asleep and missed the powerful intimacy of Jesus’ final prayers as a free man.
Jesus accepts
There’s more that could be said about what Jesus might have done but didn’t. What really matters to us is what he actually did. He fully accepted his Father’s will. He understood that by sacrificing his own earthly life, he would become the way, the truth and the life for countless millions of people.
Victory
Death couldn’t hold him as it holds sinners – for 'the wages of sin is death'. He never sinned himself, though he took on the sin of the whole world as he suffered on the cross. Having obeyed and stuck to his Father's plan to the bitter end, Jesus was resurrected and proved it by appearing to over 500 people in all sorts of situations over the next 40 days. Faith in Jesus and his resurrection means that we too can share eternal life with and in him.