This Month in Faith Is Action

loves thou me? 
Now when the evening was come, he sat down with the twelve. And as they did eat, he said, Verily, I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me. And they were exceeding sorrowful, and they began every one of them to say unto Him, Lord, is it I?”And He answered and said, He that dips his hand with me in the dish, the same shall betray me. The Son of man goes as it is written of him, but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed; it had been good for that man if he had not been born. Then Judas, which betrayed him, answered and said, Master, is it I? He said unto him, you have said” (Matt. 26:20-25).  

 

When He said, “you have said,” it was the same as saying, “Yes, it’s you.” But notice the disciples had addressed Jesus as “Lord,” but Judas said, “Master.” They would have been speaking Hebrew at the table and in Hebrew he said, “Rabbi.” Its root RABBAH means great, so the title Rabbi means great one, because in Jewish thinking, a teacher is the highest calling there is. However, “Lord” connotes personal surrender. When you say, “Lord,” you are saying, “All that I am, all that I have, I surrender to You.” Judas could not say that, because he had not surrendered his sin of covetousness. He had a covetous heart. We see this in John 12 where he was present when Mary, Lazarus’ sister, anointed Jesus’ feet, pouring out the precious, costly oil from her alabaster box worth lots of money. Judas said, “Hmm, that could have been used to give to the poor!” Jesus rebuked him: “Let her alone! She’s done this for me for my burial,” but the writer goes on to explain that it was not that Judas cared about the poor, but because he held the bag. He was the treasurer for Jesus and the disciples and was in charge of the gifts they received from Jesus’ supporters. Look how gracious Jesus is: He allowed Judas, the one with the covetous heart, to be the treasurer! He was saying, “Judas, I’m putting My trust in you.”  

 

Sometimes when you do this for a person that you know has a weakness, you are saying to them: “I have faith in you,” and this so inspires and encourages that person that they rise to the occasion. It becomes a way for them to overcome what ordinarily was a weakness. So Jesus entrusted Judas with the bag of money. But he didn’t care about the poor, because “he was a thief” (Jn. 12:5-6). This is why he could not call Jesus “Lord.” ...   Continue to read this month's message in it's entirety.

Sharon's Blog

He Loves Me-He Loves Me More!

 

How much does God love you and me? He loves us at least as much as He loves Jesus, because if He loved us any less, He would not have given Jesus to die for us! 

So my question is: How much does God love Jesus? 

God affirmed His love for Jesus openly and publicly to Him at significant times: 

At His Baptism—before being tempted of Satan in the wilderness, the Father spoke from Heaven: “This is my BELOVED Son in whom I am well pleased” (Matt. 3:17).  

 

On the Mount of Transfiguration when Moses and Elijah spoke to Him of His pending crucifixion. When Peter blurted: “Lord, let’s build three tabernacles here, one for Moses, one for Elijah, and one for you, God interrupted from heaven: “This is My Beloved Son in whom I am well pleased: Hear Him” (Matt. 17:5). 

When Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, the Jews sought to kill Him. At the same time, as the word of Lazarus’ resurrection spread, Greeks came “desiring to see Him.” Jesus knew by this that His hour of death was even closer, and He was troubled in His soul, saying, “Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour. Father, glorify thy Name.” Then there came a voice from heaven saying, “I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again” (John 12:21-28). 

 

 Jesus knew the Father was always with Him. He said to His disciples:

 

John 16:32: “The hour is come when every man will scatter and leave me alone; and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me.” 

John 8:16: “…I am not alone, but I and the Father that sent me.” 

John 8:29: “And He that sent me is with me: The Father has not left me alone…”!

Some might point out that on the cross, in His hour of greatest suffering, Jesus cried out with a loud voice, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matt. 27:46).... 

Continue on to this month's blog from Sharon...

 

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