Video to come.
Morning Message Texts: Matthew 26: 14-16 & 27: 1-10
Judas Agrees to Betray Jesus
14 Then one of the Twelve—the one called Judas Iscariot—went to the chief priests
15 and asked, “What are you willing to give me if I deliver him over to you?” So they counted out for him thirty pieces of silver.
16 From then on Judas watched for an opportunity to hand him over.
Judas Hangs Himself
1 Early in the morning, all the chief priests and the elders of the people made their plans how to have Jesus executed.
2 So they bound him, led him away and handed him over to Pilate the governor.
3 When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders.
4 “I have sinned,” he said, “for I have betrayed innocent blood.” “What is that to us?” they replied. “That’s your responsibility.”
5 So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.
6 The chief priests picked up the coins and said, “It is against the law to put this into the treasury, since it is blood money.”
7 So they decided to use the money to buy the potter’s field as a burial place for foreigners.
8 That is why it has been called the Field of Blood to this day.
9 Then what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: “They took the thirty pieces of silver, the price set on him by the people of Israel,
10 and they used them to buy the potter’s field, as the Lord commanded me.”
Morning Message:
It is Palm Sunday again, a time for us to celebrate with Jesus and his disciples as we recall his triumphal entry into Jerusalem. We enjoy the celebration, but we are reminded that it was short lived and that’s why this is not just Palm Sunday but also Passion Sunday. There is a story in the Old Testament about a talking donkey. I don’t want to get into the whole story, but maybe you could look it up when you go home. (homework). The point of the story is that the donkey could see danger that his rider wasn’t aware of. It made me think about Jesus riding in on a donkey. If this donkey could speak, he might have said, “Don’t go.” The people are shouting Hosanna which means, save us we pray, the donkey might have been yelling, save yourself Jesus.
We must remember that Jesus came meekly on a donkey, but by no means did He come weakly. This was the mission of His life. This was the reason He left the glory of heaven and became human like us. This is His passion, and we need to share in it and allow His passion to move us to be passionate followers of our Savior. Jesus didn’t just simply ride in on a donkey and say, “Here I am, crucify me, let’s get this over with.” There were so many lessons that He would leave this week for His disciples, anyone who would choose to follow Him. In Luke’s gospel, the very next thing that Jesus does after arriving in Jerusalem is go into the temple, chase out the money changers, and upset the tables. Passion for His Father’s house. They had attached a price to worship, not a direct price, but in order to worship you had to buy from them. What is our price? Worship must be free.
We will talk about the Last Supper on Thursday. Let’s move to the betrayal by Judas. The question in my mind is why, after walking with Jesus for three years, did he decide to betray him? Judas was stung by Jesus’ rebuke over the expensive oil. In John 12 Judas objected to the expensive oil being poured on Jesus, and Jesus, in not so many words, told him to put a sock in it. Judas also was one who thought that Jesus should lead an uprising against the Roman empire. He wanted God’s Kingdom now, and Jesus said that was not the way. More importantly, Judas had a price. His faith was only until he received a better offer. Thirty pieces of silver is the price specified in Exodus for a slave accidentally gored to death. It wasn’t a lot of money, but it was enough. Somewhere in his mind, this amount was worth the risk of losing his Savior. I don’t believe that he ever thought that it would lead to death. Judas believed that it would force Jesus to do things his way, and that was his price. What is your price? Well, my faith is not for sale! That is the statement that all of us would make, but is it true.
Let’s ask the question another way. What is more important to you than your faith? Your family, friends, maybe your job. If your life or the life of a member of your family depended on you renouncing your faith, what would you do? These are really tough choices and very extreme. I hope that we never have to make such a choice in this nation, but understand that there are Christians all over the world that have had to make that choice. I can’t imagine.
I want to read some quotes from Deitrich Bonhoeffer. He was a German Lutheran pastor and theologian who was executed for his resistance against Hitler’s Nazi regime. There was a movie made about him. I did not see it, but I heard it was very enlightening. He said, “Silence in the face of evil is itself evil: God will not hold us guiltless.” I heard something in these words that I couldn’t shake. Sometimes, the price of our faith is silence. We see things and hear things that are wrong according to our faith, and, instead of speaking out against the evil we think that we can just ignore it, go about our lives and act like it isn’t happening. God will not hold us guiltless.
One additional Bonhoeffer quote, “Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.” I am reminded of a quote, and I will not get it completely right or remember who said it. “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” Alexei Navalny, a Russian patriot and freedom fighter, murdered on February 16, 2024, by Putin’s regime, often quoted this. The statement serves as a reminder that apathy, neutrality, or laziness in the face of evil is functionally equivalent to supporting it. Many pastors are terrified right now. Why? Because their sheep are beginning to realize how weak, woke, compromised, and silent they’ve been against evil in the name of love and cheap grace. I have a whole list of things here, but let me just focus on what I think is the most ridiculous one, transgenderism. The silence on the churches’ part on this issue and, in some cases, the outright support by an entire denomination, has cost the church its moral credibility. Why are pastors and churches terrified now? They are terrified that people might start to leave when they discover the truth and, more importantly, take their money with them. I’m not afraid because I have never compromised what I believe in to appease anyone. I noticed this on my Presbyterian calendar March 31st, Tuesday of Holy Week, they are celebrating it as Transgender Day of Visibility. I guess that’s their price. Well, I for one refuse to pay it.
Imagine how Jesus feels after all He’s done for us. I wonder about poor Judas. Where did his soul end up? He betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver, but when he realized his sin, he gave it back. In a very real sense, he was sorry for his sin and he repented. I think that Jesus forgave him. Yes, he took his own life because he could not live with himself for the sin of selling his faith, but he tried to make it right. What is your price? What means more to you than your relationship with Jesus? We all make bad choices, even when it comes to our faith. God will forgive us and allow us the opportunity to choose again.
In Christ’s Love and Peace,
Pastor Bob
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