Matthew 27:1-10

Be Still: Lord, quiet the noise within me that I may hear your voice. Amen

Read: Matthew 27:1-10

When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders. 'I have sinned,' he said, 'for I have betrayed innocent blood.' (v3-4)

Encounter: In this week’s readings we have seen the build-up to not one but two betrayals. Judas and Peter both, in their own way, turned their back on Jesus, and today’s reading focuses on Judas at the moment regret and guilt hit him.

Judas tries to return his payment, but it is too late. The pleasure of sin is fleeting, but its consequences eternal.

Judas’ response is heartbreaking. Wrongly believing there was no way back for a sinner, he concludes that his failure meant his life was over – ‘he went and hung himself’. Contrast Peter in the aftermath of his betrayal of Jesus: John's Gospel (ch 21) records him running to meet the resurrected Jesus, where he finds forgiveness and a renewed calling. Peter would be used powerfully by God – and we are still benefiting from his transformation.

Judas was not wrong that sin warrants death. But in next week’s readings we meet the one who would hang on a Roman cross. It was not his sin that led him there but the sin of the whole world: Peter’s, Judas’, mine, yours. As Jesus hung there, he cried, not for our condemnation, but for our forgiveness.

Jesus did not die because of Judas. He died for Judas. The same forgiveness Peter received was open to him as well. We can only imagine what his story might have been.

Each of us has areas where we fall short of God's standards. The temptation is to deal with it ourselves, to sink into despair or self-condemnation. If that's you, I want to urge you to run to the one who died for you. Jesus waits for you with forgiveness and grace.

Apply: Bring any regret, shame or the sense that you have ‘gone too far’ into the light of Christ. Tell him honestly where you are. His heart toward you is forgiveness, not condemnation.

Devote: Lord Jesus, you know I have made mistakes. Help me not to turn inward or run away, but to run towards you. Meet me with the same mercy you showed Peter and write the story you desire to tell through my life.