Good morning…
“I hate to be the one to tell you, but she really doesn’t like you, Sue,” one friend said to me about a person I actually considered an important friend.
“She’s talking badly about you,” another woman said at a different time and place.
Of all of the mixed emotions I have wrestled with this Lenten season, one of the hardest things for me to process has been feeling abruptly turned on by a friend. I took this hurt in my heart to the communion rail during our meaningful Maundy Thursday service. From the bulletin, we read, “We gather tonight to recall the story of the night Jesus was betrayed.”
Betrayed. That word held hands with my hurting heart.
Now, up in the middle of this dark night, I remember back to an article someone had sent me earlier in the week. She had no idea I was privately wrestling with feelings of betrayal.
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The Crushing Impact of Betraying and Being Betrayed by Scott Salls
In Matthew 26:14-16, we are told of how Judas approaches the chief priests and negotiates to betray Jesus for a price. Later, in verses 47-50, he follows through with his plan, greeting Jesus with an ironic kiss—a symbol of affection twisted into a weapon of manipulation, deception, and betrayal.
Betrayal often comes in familiar clothing. Sometimes, it’s not the obvious enemy who injures us but the close friend, the confidant, the one we trusted with our hearts, stories, struggles, weaknesses, and failures. Perhaps you’ve felt it—the sting of a friend who turned away when you needed them to walk alongside you, the colleague who assassinated your character, or the family member who chose personal ambition at work over connection at home.
The Psalmist understood this pain when he lamented, “If an enemy were insulting me, I could endure it; if a foe were rising against me, I could hide. But it is you, a man like myself, my companion, my close friend” (Psalm 55:12-13). Judas’s betrayal of wasn’t just a transaction—it was the ultimate heartbreak. He had walked with Jesus, shared meals with Him, witnessed His miracles. And yet, for thirty pieces of silver, he turned against the very One who loved him most.
Betrayal is one of the deepest wounds a human heart can endure. Think of a spouse who vows lifelong faithfulness, only to be found in the arms of another, shattering years of trust and commitment in a single act (or multiple acts) of infidelity. Consider the devoted caregiver who has sacrificed nights, weekends, and personal time for a suffering individual or family, only to be pushed away without mercy. Years of dedication and loyalty are discarded as if they never mattered. Or imagine discovering that a friend or colleague you’ve always supported has secretly been spreading a bad report against you. The pain cuts even deeper when it comes from someone you believed was your friend, but was actually “in it” with you until they decided you were no longer useful to them.
Betrayal leaves deep scars, shaking the very foundation of trust.
Judas’s betrayal of Jesus carried a similar, but cosmic sting. He had walked with Jesus, shared meals with Him, witnessed His miracles. And yet, for thirty pieces of silver—which was also the going rate to purchase a slave—he turned against the very One who loved him the most.
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“Jesus, himself, felt the full force of the world’s ugly meanness,” said another friend yesterday.
Might it be enough for me to be seen, understood, and led forward by the One who turned painful betrayal into an eternal blessing for all of us who hurt?
…Sue…
P.S. To follow Jesus’ journey to abundant, everlasting life for all, please consider joining us at Northside Church. We will offer five worship opportunities on Easter Sunday morning. The 8:30, 9:00, and 11:15AM services will be live-streamed and archived online.
Traditional Worship
Sanctuary
8:30, 9:45, and 11:15AM
Contemporary Worship
Faith & Arts Center
9:00 and 10:30AM
