Good Morning Friends,
“Early in the morning, all the chief priests
and the elders of the people came to the decision to put Jesus to death. They
bound him, led him away and handed him over to Pilate, the governor. When Judas,
who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse
and returned the thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the elders. ‘I
have sinned,’ he said, ‘for I have betrayed innocent blood.’ ‘What is that to
us?’ they replied. ‘That’s your responsibility.’ So Judas threw the money into
the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.” (Matthew 27:1-5)
As soon as Jesus was condemned to death, Judas
realized what a horrible wrong he had committed, an innocent man was going to
die. There is something bold and brave and positive about what Judas did then,
he went to the leaders of the Jews, returned the coins, and confessed his
wrong. Perhaps he was hoping they would realize they had been wrong to condemn
Jesus. But the leaders weren’t interested in what was right or wrong, only in
taking care of their problem, in getting rid of Jesus.
Failing to set right what he had done wrong,
Judas gave up. He gave up trying to help Jesus. He gave up on life. What he had
done was too horrible to even go on living!
But it wasn’t! No sin is too great to exceed
God’s capacity to forgive. Judas turned to the leaders of the Jews, but they
couldn’t help Judas’s problem. Judas wouldn’t turn to the One who could help. If
he had, he would have found forgiveness and compassion, not condemnation.
God would have forgiven Judas. No matter what
our sin, God will forgive us, too. Don’t despair and run from the only One who can
really help. Don’t run from Him, run to Him!
His, by Grace, Steve
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