Luke 21; Mark 14:1–11
Jesus continued and talked about the coming destruction of Jerusalem (Luke 21:6) pointing out that all they see will be destroyed.
In the Mark passage, though, we see a stark contrast between the woman who anointed Jesus’ with an expensive oil and what Judas did. Judas the spy.
While those present criticized the woman for “wasting” such an expensive oil on Jesus (Jesus rebuked them for the criticism) Judas would betray Jesus for money worth about half the cost of the oil.
That Judas!! What a degenerate jerk. Selfish. Opportunistic. Sell out.
We would never betray Jesus, right? We would never exhibit the traits of Judas.
Robert Wurtz writes about Judas in The Spirit of Judas,
“I must emphasize that Judas Iscariot and others like him are blind to their own condition. Pride, arrogance, rebellion, envy, jealousy, hatred, greed, and a host of other sinful personality traits sear the conscience. The sins that a person goes on committing deceives them into believing they are a privileged character and can get by with almost anything they do…”
Now Judas was one who the Apostle John says “went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, so that it would be evident that they all are not of us.” 1 John 2:19. Judas was in the inner circle but was not a true disciple of Jesus. He was an impostor and he paid an eternal price, eternal damnation.
But we believers can sometimes exhibit the “spirit of Judas.” Pride, arrogance, rebellion, envy, jealousy, hatred, greed, and a host of other sinful personality traits” that sear the conscience.
Reflect on Spy Wednesday and repent of the various ways you reflect the “spirit of Judas” rather than the Spirit of our Lord.
