Betrayed for Me

GE Greer, all of us, even Jesus's closest disciples have abandoned him. Ultimate failure of the human race has been put on display. Jesus has been nothing but loyal to us for the right price. All of us so amount we abandon the one who never abandon us. Let this sink in shooters represents you with proctored career. I'm your host Molly bit of edge and we are so glad you're back with us today as we begin a new teaching series titled instead of me going to walk through the dramatic events leading up to Jesus's death on the cross before we get started today. Special announcement.

We here at Summit life have a strong desire to make an impact for Jesus in the country of Ukraine. So for this week only 50% of every dollar given to Summit life will be used to provide food, shelter, medical care, clothing, and relocation assistance as well as prayer and counseling and Levine Ukraine and other nearby cities and Poland.

Stay tuned for more information at the end of our program or visit Jeannie Greer.com right now and join with us. Let's join Pastor Jeannie Greer for a message. He titled trade for me. Thankfully I met my wife a lot of exams and there is still one that I have to take annually that I do not like at all. It is the physical. There are numerous reasons that I don't like it you are over 40 will probably understand some of those but one of the main reasons that I don't like the annual physical is the blood test. I don't mind a little prick in the drawing the blood's not that part that I hate.

I just don't like the suspense of waiting for what those results show because I know enough people to know that I might feel fine I feel awesome I feel healthy and sprightly and younger and but that blood test can reveal that even though I feel fine. Things may not actually be fine for the reason I share those things is because were to spend several weeks looking at the events leading up to the crucifixion to see how through these events that lead up to the crucifixion. God is doing an examination on the human soul is the gospel of Matthew, which is where were going to be, but you have a Bible. I encourage you to take that out and out open at the Matthew 26 border to see how the gospel of Matthew tells the story use of the arrest in the trial of Jesus in such a way that we see that it is really the human race that is on trial it looks it looks like Jesus is on trial but you learn to see God's eyes. Jesus is not on trial. It is the human race that is on trial and we are the ones that are being examined during the trial of Jesus. You see, we should see ourselves in the stories and as we see ourselves will get a bigger picture a better picture of who Jesus was why he had to come and why he had to do what he did. Matthew 26 or first exhibit is Judas, Judas and his story starts in a very unusual place. Matthew 26 verse six. While Jesus was at Bethany at the house of Simon the leper. Evidently this is a leper that Jesus said cleansed previously and so now it's going to party for Jesus. The woman who approached him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume.

Other gospel accounts tell us that this woman was Mary who was the sister of Lazarus who was the guy.

But Jesus had raised from the dead. Jesus was very close to their family and she felt very grateful to him and love for him so she poured this alabaster very expensive perfume on his head as he was reclining at the table when the disciples saw it, they were indignant why this waste. They asked you this kind of perfume was a family treasure. It was kept in a in a sealed alabaster container that had no lid. The only way to get into the perfume was to literally smash it so you can open it one time and that was it usually was never open.

It was just handed down from generation to generation.

As a family inheritance. The text tells us that this perfume was worth 300 denarii. I which is something like $10,000 today. Personally I've never seen a $10,000 bottle of perfume.

If you have reason to my wife about it, but I guess I'll just be nervous all the time about breaking it out. Open it well this woman, she smashes the things she pours it on Jesus's hair and on his feet while the disciples begin to object it says. In fact, I'll tell you I learned something this time around, you know the stories are very familiar to me because I literally have grown up around them, but as I was studying for this one. I learned something that I just never seen, and that is that this objection right here where and where they say this might've been so for a great deal given to the poor.

Matthew says that all of them were the ones asking this reason I pointed out is because other accounts say that Judas was the one who actually voiced this and always thought Judas was the one who made the objection. Evidently evidently it was the common consensus of the group and Judas was simply the one to express this kind of righteous indignation that this money had been wasted in this way, bursting aware of this, Jesus said to them, why are you bothering this woman. She's done a noble thing for me.

You always have the poor with you, but do not always have me now really quick. When Jesus says that he is not discouraging their care of the poor same like a you can't do anything that you change properties they might as well not even try not know his whole ministry taught us to care for the poor. What he is telling them is this is a very unique moment and you're not going to have me for very long, and you should be taking advantage of it by pouring out this perfume on my body. This woman has prepared me for burial. Truly I tell you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her now remind the disciples that he saw talking to the very ones that are going to be proclaiming the gospel in the world submissively what he is saying to them is every time that you tell the story from now on you're going to be recounting how smart and insightful and perceptive she was and how dumb you work. Verse 14 then one of the 12. The man called Judas Iscariot went left that group and went to the chief priests and said what are you willing to give to me if I hand Jesus over to you so they weighed out for him 30 pieces of silver, which is about $7500 in today's terms for 16 and from that time forward he started looking for a good opportunity to betray him. You see, the Jewish leadership didn't want to arrest Jesus in public because he was so popular with the crowds.

It would've started a riot so they needed to be able to arrest him privately. When nobody was around. Evidently Jesus was very secretive about where he was in private for a couple reasons why just wanted to avoid arrest and secondly he probably just needed some space to get away from the crowd so that he could he could rest but bottom line is they did know where he was when he wasn't in public and so they needed somebody on the inside to tell them so that they could arrest him privately will. Meanwhile, Jesus and his disciples have found a private place to celebrate the Passover as her Judas rejoins them there in this private chamber.

Verse 21 while they were eating, Jesus looks up and says truly I tell you one of you will betray me deeply distressed. Each one began to say to him, surely not. I Lord high.

Let's talk here for just a minute about Judas. Sometimes Christians in church have this idea that Judas was this sinister presence among the disciples with shifty eyes a little horns, poking out the top of his head. You know he hissed when he taught the parcel tone. He was the shady disciple who slipped out after dark to smoke weed filled dirty jokes and Jesus went around, but but that is a totally wrong picture Judas notice when Jesus said somebody would betray him.

No, look at each other and say well obviously it's Judas.

Everybody knows that no nobody suspected him at all. Judas was in fact one of the most respected of all the disciples, how do we know that we know that because he was the one elected by the other disciples to carry a purse, and you don't choose a shady guy to be your accountant. Judas had genuinely believed that Jesus was the Messiah will talk about that more in a minute. So when Jesus tells them somebody's gonna betray him. They all start to look around and say, surely the Lord is not. I he replied the one who did his hand with me in the bowl. He will betray me. The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But woe to the man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed, it would've been better for him if he never even been born. Now you might wonder how this did make a C.

John's account of this, by the way Cecily dipped it in the hands at the Judas same thing said here basically the one who shares with rev me is betray me nicely that they will monitor might not know at that point, like Dodge, Judas, you know. Evidently there was a lot of conversation going on around the table like today get 12 guys on the table. There's nobody listened anybody else.

I thought of the one person is a lot of conversation and evidently Jesus says this just loud enough for one or two people to hear and Judas, who was one of those who heard Jesus say this is betray her. He replied, surely not. I Rabbi Jesus response to him you have said it. Judas may have asked this question, by the way, because he was still trying to work up the courage or wondering if you had the courage to follow through with this. He may have said, Lord, is that I because he's just trying to see what Jesus knew that any rate, when Jesus says this Judas gets up from the table and he leaves immediately to go and get the soldiers to come back and ambush Jesus not what I want to do is want to do two things with the story of Judas today.

The first is I want to try to show you the Judas represents all of us. Judas is not just this loan villain out there that were supposed despise and hissed because he's such an evil man give it Matthews to tell the story in a way to show us that Judas is you and Judas is me. Secondly, I want to explore with you why it is that Judas betrayed Jesus and then want to try to show you how people still do that today pretty much for the same reasons that Judas betrayed Jesus.

Okay, first of all why do I say that Judas represents us well you can see it and how the story is told Matthew does things like show you. As I pointed out that all the disciples had the same reaction of discuss when the woman pours out this perfume on his feet.

Judas is not alone in this lease as representing all of the disciples when Jesus tells the disciples that somebody will betray him. He presents it more as a question. They even say we have a traitor in our midst. And there he is know he leaves out the who deliberately the word he uses for betray means to hand over or to sell, Jesus is basically saying to them, one of you was gonna sell me out for the right price is a you look into your heart. What is the price at which you would sell me. They understood Jesus's question because notice how shaky and uncertain. Their response is verse 20 through the like. Surely, Lord.

It's not.

I agree commentators say the way the question is phrased implies a decided lack of confidence you should almost read that phrase as Lord if not I is it is actually me Jesus goes on to tell them it's not just one of you that is going to sell me out verse 31, all of you will fall away, they may not have each sold out Jesus for 30 pieces of silver, but none of them is going to go all the way with Jesus.

Every single one of them has a price whereby they will walk away from him and see. The point is a price is a price reminds me of the story that I heard years ago attributed to Winston Churchill story goes that Churchill is trying to make a point anyone should never compromise with evil and it was a newspaper reporter who was a very fierce adversary of his was a lady who kept accusing him of being an extremist and a warmonger and he was a lead England into war and so finally exasperated Churchill says to the woman he says man, the king offered you 100 million pounds to sleep with them. Would you do it again, about four minutes of 100 million pounds. Yeah, there's not much I wouldn't do for hundred million pounds. He said probably yes. Mr. Churchill said he said well if I offer you 50 pounds would you sleep with me. She said, been discussed.

Mr. Churchill on not a prostitute and he replies it with all due respect, man. We've already established what your identity is.

I just wanted to know your price. Now I've got strong reasons to believe that that story is made up also. But it still makes the point the price is right. Listening to some it might. Jeannie Greer in a message titled trade for me.

As I mentioned earlier today, we are raising funds to send to Levine Ukraine to provide financial relief for those in need to give us a call today at 866-335-5220 or go online to Jeannie Greer.com and share the help of the gospel tangibly to those in the greatest need right now. Now let's rejoin Pastor JD. In today's now. The question being asked of these disciples is what is your price look into your hearts, and ask Judas may betray Jesus spectacularly for 30 pieces of silver. But each of them will do it. Eventually all of them will walk away Peter who is the most outspoken among them will cave and end up denying that he never even knew Jesus so again Judas's betrayal is presented as a question to you.

What is your price when I lived overseas and I was in a missionary in a Muslim country had a situation where I thought that our presence there was going to end in prison. I thought it may end in bodily harm, and might possibly ended one of us dying. There was that we brought in a short-term team of missionaries while was there about distribute Bibles in the region of tagalong store really short on they provoked a riot right, of course, of 3000 people that on the police ended up rescuing these guys and for friends of mine and put them in prison that the mob variety mob. Both of their cars burn them to the ground and were demanding that they release my four friends so that they could kill the I was put under a type of house arrest because they didn't have any proof that I was connected but everybody kinda knew I probably was and so they put me under house arrest and it led to one of the worst two or three, four days of my life because in that kind of your loneliness of just been under house arrest. I remember saying to God I don't want to do this. I just want to go all. I'm tired of this. I didn't sign up for this. I am not sure why I'm here to you just get me out of this and send me home. Here is the irony of that. I was very committed to Jesus was a missionary for goodness sake of not liking the top of the chain. I was university level back before we left. We done this little ceremony where we really get your stick never did this via campfire and you don't know your stick in the fire symbolic of the fact that you're letting your life be burned up.

Jesus meant I did with everybody else.

And like yours must echo in the fire else and I decided to follow Jesus. You know the world behind me, the cross before me no turning back, no turning back the number with me so I will follow. I think as loudly as anybody that night, going tell you guys when things because you don't know this is one thing to stand in the group around a campfire and sing that song that I'm going to give up my life for Jesus. It's quite another when you think people to show up and take you up on that offer, and I what was happening and that moment is one of the lowest times I've ever been spiritually because God revealed I had a price I point at which my commitment to Jesus stopped for the lowest points of ever been in a God use that to begin to rebuild me spiritually from that broken place. The point is, I was just like the disciples I had a price I could talk a big game I could talk a big game, but when you peel away the layers I had a price. The question is, what is your price. You see, you might be willing to follow Jesus when it is convenient for you, but at what point do you stop, for example, maybe you downplay your commitment to Jesus in front of your friends you want to be a Christian, your church, but your teenager yellow note in front your friends because they might mock you or think of you. A strange or maybe assistant area of your life that you just don't want to let God have control of yet. Maybe God has told you to go somewhere and do something on a mission trip. Or maybe one of our church plants and you are resisting him.

Maybe God is called one of your children to do something like that. If you don't want to let them go. Maybe God is convicted, you have of something like your music habits are your entertainment habits are a certain relationship that you really should not be in and you don't want to give it up. I mean, maybe it's it's it's getting baptized right. Maybe it's getting baptized that you give your here it is, like, I don't really know what you know like I know that you were always on my getting baptized but I just just inconvenient and messy and wet. Not only want to do that and what an ironic thing for your commitment to Jesus. The point of inconvenience that your price for some of you, you know that she should be living with your your your boyfriend or your girlfriend in Reno that you should be sleeping together but this is not a lifestyle that you want right now she really keep doing it. Note the God to be okay with it. Some of you know that you work too much. You neglect your family. You never take a Sabbath. Maybe God call you put him first in your finances and trust him with the tide generous giving in your resisting him. Maybe it's simply committing to the church right a lot of people that are disorder sitting on the sidelines and you know what deep down you know that church is not just an event you're slow to show up at occasionally and can hear religious peptalk you know that your spouse to be a part of the community, but we really get down to it that just feels overcommitted to you and it feels messy and it feels cumbersome and you like the freedom that goes with noncommittal, so it is going to gonna hold on to what's convenient you not to do what you know God wants you to do whatever it is that your price that's for your commitment to Jesus stopped and you sell them out right your point of commitment stops at a certain point. What is that price all of us have one or all of us have had one remark tells the story of all these disciples forsaking Jesus which ends up happening a couple hours later in the garden Gethsemane. Mark tells a story. He adds a curious small but I think very important detail. Mark 1451 and the young man followed him that his follow Jesus after his arrest with nothing but a linen cloth about his body. It's because it's his pajamas. He been sleeping when Jesus was arrested and they seized him, but he let the linen cloth and ran away naked. Now here's a question. Why include that detail in this story to reasons. I think I want. It's interesting and anytime you're told the story were somebody runs the wood naked you always have got included a delay to write some guy run through our church service, naked and somewhat ask you later how our church was it is nothing new.

The sermon, but Juergen include the detail about the guy running through naked so that's one of the reasons but second, and more importantly, many commentators think that in this running fleeing young naked man is a picture right of the entire human race. A metaphor for the whole human race. Here we got a naked man fleeing from the garden Gethsemane. You might remember that Adam and Eve had fled from the garden of Eden naked fleeing from the presence of God is what we have in this image is a picture of the whole human race. All of us, even Jesus's closest disciples have abandoned him the ultimate failure of the human race has been put on display. Jesus has been nothing but loyal to eyes, but for the right price.

All of the sell amount we abandon the one who never abandon us. So again let this sink in Judas represents you.

Sure, maybe you haven't actually done what you just did, but that's probably just because you were put in the same situations. He was in under the same pressures missing the stuff in your heart and my heart is the same as what was in Judas as art using the Bible teaches us that the reason some of us turn out better than others has more to do with the restraining grace is that God puts into our lives, then it does some inherent goodness in us, sometimes when I hear the stories of people who really messed up their lives. Some of them ended up in prison and then I hear them talk about the pain and the dysfunction, and sometimes abusive. They went through growing up I always find myself wondering that had I grown up in similar conditions.

If I wouldn't have made the exact same decisions.

I am not trying to excuse their crime and not trying to say that they're not accountable for. I'm just saying that God put so many graces and privileges in my life that I had absolutely nothing to do with and cannot take any credit for.

I had parents who love me. I had good examples of character lived out before me. I never faced the kind of poverty or discrimination that pushes some people to extreme action. I was taught the word of God from my childhood.

These were all gifts of grace to me, for which I cannot take one iota of credit do I really have reason to boast, because of them say you and a friend decided to rob a bank and on the way to rob the bank you stop by another friend's house and the friends that I might let you do that grabs both of you by the shirt you're the friend wriggles free and ripped the shirt goes off and robs the bank but you are remain held by your branding you will let you go when you're whimpering goes in Las Vegas arrested continue really boats later about not having committed the crime know because what was in your heart was and what was in his heart was in your heart. It was your friends restraining grace and kept you from doing it. That's what God has done for the book graces the sin of my heart, growing into fruition and destroying me know. Even with all of these graces even with all of those and I still had a price whereby I soon got the nearest neighbor because of the RC Jesus because of how committed he is to your listening to stomach life with pastor and author Jeannie Greer. We are always grateful for your support in this ministry that today would like to expand our reach in a new way for this week only 50% of every dollar given to Summit life will be given to one of our trusted partners on the ground in Ukraine used to directly provided food, shelter and medical care, clothing, and relocation assistance as well as prayer and counseling in the city of Libby Ukraine with the recent invasion of Russian forces Ukrainian Baptist theological seminary review, BTS has halted classes and it's now providing humanitarian aid to people who are fleeing west toward Poland through the city of Levine. Most of them are women and children you BTS volunteers are caring for their physical, spiritual and emotional needs, and in this moment of crisis you BTS is a trusted partner of Summit life capable of providing essential relief and committing to serving Christ by serving others as you know Summit like stripes to give more than 10% of our total gifts to church planting and missions each year. In fact, in 2021, we were able to stretch that to nearly 15% because of your generosity. This is right in line with our mission of supporting the global church, this time in a very hands-on way that brings both relief to suffering, as well as displaying hope of the gospel in the midst of chaos. It's easy to donate when you give us a call eight 663-3550 T training to say thank you for your gift about Summit life and the relief effort praying and send you a copy of our newest devotional resource, listener 10 divisions from the parables of Jesus after Jeannie Greer that never again fixate training you can get online Greer.com I'm not even if it's inviting you to join us again tomorrow on my