“…I’ll tell you the place I like to read about Judas because I think he was within a hairs breath of being changed by Jesus’ love for him. It’s over in John’s gospel at the last supper and Jesus was saying in deep agitation of the spirit. “In truth I tell you one of you is going to betray me”. And the disciples looked at one another in bewilderment. “Who could he be talking about?”. And one of them, “the disciple whom Jesus loved” a humble term that John used to describe himself was sitting by Jesus and Simon Peter leaned over and whispered.”Ask Him who He means”. And John, as he reclined, leaned over toward Jesus and just as cool as he could , like it really wasn’t a big deal or anything like that said, “Who is it?”. You know you have to be calm in situations like that when you’re asking a question you’re dying to know the answer to and yet you want to look like you are just mildly interested.
Jesus said, “it is the man to whom I give this piece of bread after I have dipped in the dish”. So it must have been fairly obvious when he handed the bread to Judas. Then he said to Judas, “Whatever you feel you must do, go ahead now and do it”.
Now here’s the interesting part to me. Here was this small group of thirteen people eating supper in a small room and Jesus spoke to Judas in such a quiet tone that when he left he room the next verse says that no one else at the table knew why he left or what Jesus meant. They supposed he had gone to pay for the meal or make some arrangements about giving to the poor.
Jesus, in the last hours before His deepest agony and travail, within hours of an excruciating death was still making quiet, kindly entreaties to his betrayer. If it had been you or me, we would probably have probably said to the others, “There he is, the dirty fink, after all I’ve done for him. He’s the one. He’s headed out right now to finish the deed. He never has really understood or really been one of us. But just before he goes I want the other eleven of you to look at him. I want you to see what a betrayer looks like- we ought to shave his head or something. See him, low down betrayer. He’s the one. You can leave now.. go on .. beat it!”
But quietly he said, “if you must, if you’re in so deep, you cant’ turn back- go ahead and don’t prolong your suffering. I believe with all my heart if Judas had said “it’s too late to stop it now, but I am so sorry and miserable-would you forgive me?” there would be a story in the gospel about a Judas whose life would have been different because Jesus loved and cared right to the end. I believe that if Judas had come to the cross the next day when Christ was so nearly dead, He coudlnt’ have spoken. His eyes would have said to Judas, “It is okay, you are forgiven” and that look of love would have changed the life of Judas forever.
Jesus chose the power of love and believed in it’s ability to change the hearts of man.
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