Lent Reflection, Day 16, March 18

When it was evening, he came with the twelve. And when they had taken their places and were eating, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me, one who is eating with me.” They began to be distressed and to say to him one after another, “Surely, not I?” He said to them, “It is one of the twelve, one who is dipping bread into the bowl with me. For the Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that one by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that one not to have been born.”
Mark 14:17-21

Additional Reading: Matthew 26:69-75

This warning of Jesus is a way out for Judas. It is a chance to stop what is about to happen. It is a moment to repent and turn from his intention. Jesus knows what Judas knows. He looks deep into Judas’ heart and declares Judas’ intentions before everyone in the room. There is no secret now. This warning is perhaps his greatest kindness to anyone on earth. With this warning, he offers the chance for Judas to change his mind.

This is the Passover meal. Jesus, taking the lead in the ceremonial meal, has just dipped the bread in the bitter herbs and the stewed fruit. It is that time in the meal when Jews recount the salvation story and their deliverance from the bondage of Egypt. The gesture and the dish are traditional signs of Israel’s suffering. Now, understanding this bigger picture of what was happening, do you see how the gesture of dipping the bread and the dish of bitter herbs symbolize the horror of Judas’ betrayal of Jesus? If he doesn’t stop himself from what he is about to do, he will freely take on the responsibility for Jesus’ suffering. Judas will be to Jesus what Egypt was to Israel.

But, like all betrayals, it doesn’t have to be. It can be stopped with a right response to a strong warning. Let us remember then, that the stern warnings that come to us in Scripture are not to keep us from some unrealized happiness in life. They are to keep us from being Judas to Jesus. From being Judas to the Body of Christ, the church. In this we discover that the warnings of God are perhaps his greatest kindness to us.

Prayer: Kind Father, many of us can feel like we have betrayed your Son times beyond number and feel like we cannot find our way home to your loving heart. Remind us of Peter finding his way home; impress us again with your unrelenting kindness. Amen.