Wednesday, March 15, 2017
Hebrews 10:23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.
CONTRASTING BETRAYAL WITH FAITHFULNESS
When you here the word betrayal, whom do you think of? During Lent, we think of Judas. To betray is, basically, to do evil to someone who trusts you. Judas' betrayal was very obvious. He was a trusted member of the twelve closest followers of the Lord Jesus. He betrayed the Lord by turning Jesus over to His enemies for thirty pieces of silver.
Our own betrayal of the Lord Jesus might not be as obvious. Like the disciples, we are the beloved of the Lord Jesus. And yet, with the psalmist we all must confess to God, "Against You, You only, have I sinned, and done this evil in Your sight" (Psalm 51:4). By sinning we have betrayed the innocent blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, for daily we turn our backs on Him by doing contrary to His will, committing those very acts that made it necessary for Him to suffer and die in our place.
Fortunately for us, and all sinners, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us, so that we have been forgiven. When Christ Jesus suffered and died upon the cross, He died to pay for the sins of ALL people. The Holy Spirit means exactly what He says through the apostle John, "the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from ALL sin" (1 John 1:7).
How's that for a contrast? Christ Jesus died to pay for Judas' betrayal; He died to pay for Peter's denials; Jesus died to pay for your sins, for my sins, for the sins of every single person who ever has lived, and who ever will live. It is as it has been written, "Christ Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the whole world" (1 John 2:2).
Our confession is that we are sinners and that the blood of Jesus Christ has cleansed us from ALL sin! And that is our hope of salvation because God is faithful. He keeps His promises, including the promise that He has forgiven our sins. He is God our Savior. "If we are faithless, He is faithful. He cannot deny Himself" (2 Timothy 2:13).
By our sins we are all guilty of betraying Jesus, for we have all gone contrary to His will. But in this contrast, our sin and Christ's faithfulness, we find the Law and the Gospel, man's sin and God's grace. Through our sin we have betrayed innocent blood, but through that innocent blood our sins have been forgiven by God from His undeserved love. What a contrast! He is God our Savior, and nothing, not even our unfaithfulness can change that. So don't give up hope like Judas. When you sin, cling to the confession of hope in Christ, made fast in God's faithfulness. He who called you is faithful. He keeps His promises.
