March 24: Jesus Announces Judas’ Betrayal
♫ Music:
Day 31 - Friday, March 24
Title: JESUS ANNOUNCES JUDAS’ BETRAYAL
Scripture: John 13:18–30
“I am not speaking about all of you—I know the men I have chosen. But let this scripture be fulfilled—‘He who eats bread with me has lifted up his heel against me’.
From now onwards, I shall tell you about things before they happen, so that when they do happen, you may believe that I am the one I claim to be. I tell you truly that anyone who accepts my messenger will be accepting me, and anyone who accepts me will be accepting the one who sent me.”
After Jesus had said this, he was clearly in anguish of soul, and he added solemnly, “I tell you plainly, one of you is going to betray me.”
At this the disciples stared at each other, completely mystified as to whom he could mean. And it happened that one of them, who Jesus loved, was sitting very close to him. So Simon Peter nodded to this man and said, “Tell us who he means.”
He simply leaned forward on Jesus’ shoulder, and asked, “Lord, who is it?”
And Jesus answered, “It is the one I am going to give this piece of bread to, after I have dipped it in the dish.” Then he took a piece of bread, dipped it in the dish and gave it to Simon’s son, Judas Iscariot. After he had taken the piece of bread, Satan entered his heart. Then Jesus said to him, “Be quick about your business!”
No one else at table knew what he meant in telling him this. Indeed, some of them thought that, since Judas had charge of the purse, Jesus was telling him to buy what they needed for the festival, or that he should give something to the poor. So Judas took the piece of bread and went out quickly—into the night.
Poetry & Poet:
“Nocturne”
by Li-Young Lee
That scraping of iron on iron when the wind
rises, what is it? Something the wind won’t
quit with, but drags back and forth.
Sometimes faint, far, then suddenly, close, just
beyond the screened door, as if someone there
squats in the dark honing his wares against
my threshold. Half steel wire, half metal wing,
nothing and anything might make this noise
of saws and rasps, a creaking and groaning
of bone-growth, or body-death, marriages of rust,
or ore abraded. Tonight, something bows
that should not bend. Something stiffens that should
slide. Something, loose and not right,
rakes or forages itself all night.
JESUS ANNOUNCES JUDAS’ BETRAYAL
A dear friend of mine has recently given me a beautiful painting of The Last Supper. Like the one by Mykola Mochan, who “believes humans are contradictory creatures.” We see the conflict in the painting. Yet I never realized the angst among the disciples until now. They are having a Passover meal together (Lk. 22:7-8). This was a time for self-reflection, making restitution and confession. Before the meal, Jesus announces someone at the table will betray him. They begin to question who the traitor is, and Jesus confirms it is Judas Iscariot. According to Scripture, Judas oversees the money bag and questions Mary’s waste of costly perfume as she anoints Jesus with oil. Judas asks why the oil was not sold and the money given to the poor, not for his genuine concern for the unfortunate, but because he was a thief and pilfered the money in his care (John 12:1-6). Greed was Judas’ idol.
As evidence of his self-indulgence, Judas plots with the chief priests to betray Jesus and he agrees to the blood money (Mt. 26:14-16). The artist Cornelia Parker names her art, Thirty Pieces of Silver, because of the “Biblical references that allude to money, betrayal, death, and resurrection.” That same night, Judas betrays Jesus with a kiss. The deeds of darkness are usually done at night. This spiritual warfare is illustrated in the poem Nocturne. Lee captivates the reader and draws them into a sense of impending fear and confusion. The poet exemplifies scraping of metal pushed about by the wind. Then there’s someone right outside the door prowling in the dark. Is it someone, nothing, anything, or something? Human, animal, or spirit? Metal wings? Sounds like a demon to me. This creepy being rakes or collects things and forages, looking for food all throughout the night, suggesting a ravenous hunger. Nocturne uses alliteration with a series of words beginning with “s.” “Something stiffens that should slide” or slither. This imagery reminds me of Satan who roams the earth seeking someone to devour (I Peter 5:8, Gen. 3:15).
The song by Pas Neos, The Accuser Comes to Judas, reveals another characteristic of the devil who accuses us day and night before our God (Rev. 12:10). I find it so interesting that Jesus chose Judas even though He knew of his impending betrayal. We know this was done to fulfill Scripture. However, it is God’s will that none should perish but instead come to repentance (2 Pet. 3:9). Nevertheless, ultimately it is our choice to accept or reject Him.
Judas rejects Jesus. Even after, Jesus the High Priest (Heb. 4:14-16) washes his feet and the Bread of Life (Jn 6:35) hands him the morsel of bread dipped in the wine. Jesus made every effort to allow for Judas to confess and repent. Jesus is in “anguish of soul” as He mentions the betrayal of his disciple because he is the Good Shepherd who leaves the ninety-nine to go after the one that is lost. Judas never had a saving knowledge of Jesus and we know that because he is called the “Son of perdition” in John 17:12, which literally means wasteful or eternal damnation. Judas was remorseful but not repentant for his sin (Mt. 27:3-10).
Remorse is primarily sorrowful for the consequences of our sins but drives us away from God, leaving us feeling guilty and leads to despair and often suicidal ideation. On the other hand, Repentance is sorrowful for sinning against the holiness of God and draws us toward Him in humility. Judas only had remorse and ended up hanging himself after trying to give back the bribery blood money to the chief priests (Mt. 27:3-10). It’s not surprising the Bible tells us, “The thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy but Jesus comes to give us abundant life (Jn 10:10).” Choose life today. Jesus is knocking at the door of your heart. Will you invite Him in?
Prayer:
Praise and glory belong to You alone, everlasting Father. Save me from the pit of despair. I have tried to do life on my own and I’m tired, weak and worn out. I am desperate for You. I surrender-my will, my ways, my agenda. Take all of me. I believe You are who you said You are-the Savior of the world- who while I am still sinning, You chose to die for me. For the joy set before You, You endured the cross. I am your joy! You rejoice over me with singing. The thoughts You have of me are good and outnumber the sand on the seashore. When I awake You are there. Nothing is hidden from Your sight because You are the Alpha and Omega, the Firstborn over all creation and yet You take notice of me. I receive You today as You knock on the door of my heart. Come in. Please, I beg of you! Forgive my sins past, present, and future and write my name in the Lamb’s Book of Life. Seal me and fill me with the power of the Holy Spirit so I can work out my salvation with fear and trembling. More of You and less of me. In the name of Jesus, my Lord and Savior, from this day on and forevermore, until You come to take me home to be with You. Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty.
To You alone be glory forever and ever, Amen.
Tammy Henderson, MSN, RN
Former Assistant Professor of Nursing and Alumna
Biola University
For more information about the artwork, music, and poetry selected for this day, we have provided resources under the “About” tab located next to the “Devotional” tab
About the Translation of the Bible for the 2023 Lent Project:
J.B. Phillips New Testament Translation of the Bible
J.B. Phillips (1906-1982) was well-known within the Church of England for his commitment to making the message of truth relevant to today's world. Phillips' translation of the New Testament brings home the full force of the original message. The New Testament in Modern English was originally written for the benefit of Phillips' youth group; it was later published more widely in response to popular demand. The language is up-to-date and forceful, involving the reader in the dramatic events and powerful teaching of the New Testament. It brings home the message of Good News as it was first heard two thousand years ago.
https://www.biblegateway.com/
About the Artwork #1:
The Last Supper
Mykola Molchan
2010
Oil on canvas
In this depiction of The Last Supper by Ukrainian artist Mykola Molchan, Judas is featured prominently in the foreground. We observe Judas as he turns his back to Jesus and the other disciples after Christ has announced that one among them is a traitor. The artist captures the disciples in various states of bewilderment and disbelief after hearing this troubling pronouncement. The light in the painting is generated by the figure of Christ, but Judas has made the fateful decision to walk away from the light into the shadows.
About the Artist #1:
Mykola Molchan (b. 1976) is a Ukrainian artist. From 1987 to 1991, he attended an art school in the Ukraine, studying at the A. Erdel Uzhhorod School of Applied Art (1991–1995) and then at the Lviv Academy of Fine Arts (1996–2002). He completed his M.A. studies (2004) and subsequently became a teacher of drawing at the Lviv State College of Decorative and Applied Arts. Since 2013, he has also been a lecturer at the department of monumental painting at Lviv National Academy of Arts and since 2021 he has been a lecturer at the Department of Art Glass.
https://iconart-gallery.com/en/artists/mykola-molchan/
About the Artwork #2:
Thirty Pieces of Silver (detail)
Cornelia Parker
1988–1989
Over a thousand flattened pieces of silver hung by copper wire
Tate Modern
Parker’s installation Thirty Pieces of Silver comprised over a thousand flattened silver objects including plates, spoons, candlesticks, trophies, teapots, and trombones—each object ceremoniously crushed by a steamroller at the artist’s request. She then arranged the transformed silver artifacts into thirty disc-shaped groups that she suspended from the ceiling by hundreds of fine wires, levitating them just above the floor. The title alludes to Judas Iscariot's betrayal of Jesus in return for thirty pieces of silver.
https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/parker-thirty-pieces-of-silver-t07461#:~:text=Thirty%20Pieces%20of%20Silver%20comprises,steamroller%20at%20Cornelia%20Parker's%20request.
About the Artist #2:
Cornelia Ann Parker, OBE, RA (b. 1956) is a British visual artist, known for her sculpture and installation art. She received her M.F.A. from Reading University, Berkshire, England, in 1982. Parker is currently honorary professor at the University of Manchester and honorary fellow of Queen Elizabeth Hall, Oxford. Parker is known for large-scale, often site-specific installations that ruminate on themes of destruction, transformation, consumerism, and the fragility of existence. Her engagement with the fragility of existence and the transformation of matter is exemplified in two key works: Dark Matter (1991), a reconstruction of an exploded army shed suspended as fragments “reconstructing” the moment of explosion, and Heart of Darkness (2004), the formal arrangement of charred remains from a forest fire. In 1997 at the prestigious Turner Prize exhibition at the Tate Modern, Parker exhibited Mass (Colder Darker Matter, 1997) by suspending the charred remains of a church in Texas that had been struck by lightning.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornelia_Parker
About the Music: “The Accuser Comes to Judas” from the album Who Do You Say I Am?
Lyrics:
Peace, peace - just be silent.
Sleep, sleep - as before.
Greed, greed - you can't fight it.
Each man has his price - I found yours.
I said, seize (and you agreed).
I said, deceit, (and you agreed) just take (and you agreed).
I called you fake.
I called you slave.
Wait, wait - each piece in place.
Stay, stay - it unfolds.
Sold, sold - thirty pieces.
Was it worth the price?
I've been working you for ages.
Every workman's worth his wages.
Pushing buttons, vetting vices, subtle nudges, compromises.
Only a little leaven and you kept letting me in, letting me in.
It became less about the price, when you let the enemy in on the inside.
He loves you, though He knew what you were up to.
And His love is easily the thing that most hurts you.
He loves you.
He loves...
Run, run, run!
Beware the wave that comes to sweep you away.
Put some distance between you two - cast it off.
Run, run, run!
But you can't escape the fatal flaw.
You can wash your hands but that blood won't budge...
About the Composers: Caleb Culver, Eric Owyoung, and Bob Powers
Caleb Culver is the award-winning songwriter of “Reckless Love” and a worship pastor at Radiant Church, in Kalamazoo, Michigan.
https://watershedmusic.com/artists/caleb-culver/
Eric Owyoung is a composer, producer, artist, and songwriter. He is classically trained in composition, conducting, vocal performance, and choral music. After a season of work in classical music, he expanded his repertoire and toured for over a decade as the lead singer, songwriter, and producer of a rock band signed under EMI. His signature sound includes a wide range of styles from ambient rock to cinematic orchestral. Eric’s diverse sonic range comprises emotional themes, epic trailers, intimate acoustic vocal songs, guitar-driven rock, world music, and more. He is passionate about creating transformative moments through sound and is known for incorporating a wide variety of instruments in his work. Eric’s music has been used for feature films and television such as Grey’s Anatomy, 90210, One Tree Hill, Oprah’s Big Give, Wildfire, Heartbeat, If You Really Knew Me, 16 and Pregnant, The Clapper, Hedgehogs, and The Case for Heaven.
https://ericowyoung.com/
Bob Powers is an American Grammy Award–winning and multi-platinum record producer, audio engineer, composer, arranger, performer, and music educator. He attended Webster College, where he studied music theory. He also studied classical composition and conducting, alongside playing his own contemporary music. He subsequently obtained a M.A. in jazz from Lone Mountain College. Powers stayed in California between 1975 and 1982, scoring music for the PBS Emmy Award–winning television series Over Easy and writing music for broadcast advertising. Powers has contributed music for advertising campaigns for companies, including the American Cancer Society (Emmy Award winner), AT&T, Casio, Coca-Cola, Elizabeth Arden, Hardee's, Hertz, Intel, Mercedes-Benz, Purina, and the USPS. Powers is currently an arts professor in the Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Power
Performers: Bob Powers and Caleb Culver
Currently one of the most played tracks on Cross Rhythms radio is the song "City of the Great King" by Pas Neos, which in English is translated as “All Things New.” Pas Neos is a particularly appropriate name for Bob Powers and Caleb Culver, who have been finding an ever-growing audience for the duo's experimental electronic music since the group's formation in 2009. Pas Neos began their recording career in 2009 with an independent self-titled EP. Culver and Powers have had years of experience on worship teams at the renowned International House of Prayer in Grandview, Missouri. In 2011 IHOP's Forerunner Records released the duo's first full-length album, Who Do You Say I Am?. Speaking about the album, Culver said, "Our music is primarily God-focused and is rooted in the Bible. We strive for musical creativity because we believe that Jesus-centered music should be the most creative and enjoyable music on the planet." https://www.crossrhythms.co.uk/articles/music/Pas_Neos_Depicting_Bible_stories_with_groundbreaking_electronic_music/57636/p1/
https://www.geeksundergrace.com/music/bands-havent-heard-pas-neos/
About the Poetry and Poet:
Li-Young Lee (b. 1957) is an Asian American poet. His maternal great-grandfather was Yuan Shikai, China’s first Republican president, who attempted to make himself emperor. Lee’s father, who was a personal physician to Mao Zedong while in China, relocated his family to Indonesia, where he helped found Gamaliel University. In 1959, the Lee family fled Indonesia to escape widespread anti-Chinese sentiment and, after a five-year trek through Hong Kong and Japan, they settled in the United States in 1964. Li-Young Lee attended the University of Pittsburgh, the University of Arizona, and the State University of New York at Brockport. Lee’s writing has been influenced by classic Chinese poets, such as Li Bai and Du Fu. Lee’s poetry is noted for its use of silence and, according to poet Alex Lemon in the Minneapolis Star Tribune, its “near mysticism” which is nonetheless “fully engaged in life and memory while building and shaping the self from words.” Though sometimes described as a supremely lyric poet, Lee’s poems often use narrative and personal experience or memories to launch their investigations of the universal.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Li-Young_Lee
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/li-young-lee
About Devotion Author:
Tammy Henderson, MSN, RN
Former Assistant Professor of Nursing and Alumna
Biola University
Tammy Henderson’s clinical interests include evidence-based research, infection prevention, and the value of suffering and spiritual care at the bedside. Her current research interests include burn support and code white preparedness. Her teaching focuses on medical surgical, pediatric, critical care nursing, and preceptor/leadership. She taught in the B.S.N. program. Her classes this year include Medical Surgical Theory and Clinical for Pediatric and Advanced Medical Surgical. She utilizes current research in her teaching to include best practices for infection prevention, hand hygiene, and hospital-related infections. She integrates her faith in the clinical setting and the importance of spiritual care, pain, and suffering in relation to God's Word.