Parakalein

On Thursday of holy week, Jesus celebrates the passover meal with his disciples.  As they gather around the table they tell stories and Jesus shows them the servants towel and the servants truth.

When God created the word with intentional freedom, God simultaneously knew: he would need to sacrifice control of creation to allow for true freedom.  Then he would have to lead that very creation to the experience of the truth about life.   Letting go of trying to master destiny or control anything and just trust the unfolding of mystery created "living by faith  not by sight".  When we try to be loved, get loved we constantly frustrate ourselves and others.  When we are loving we enter into the free and sacred space for growth.

At the seder table Jesus was modeling the power of surrender and sacrifice as the way to experience inner peace and express transformational loving.  On the night he was betrayed he loved even the betrayer.  The betrayed would not betray the character of loving presence.  In a moment of time Judas eyes met Jesus's eyes.  The eyes of the betrayer met the eyes of the betrayed.  If it was me I would have said something like, "you rat, traitor, go and do what you have to do, look all of you he is the betrayer!".  In Jesus there was no desire to point a finger of accusation at Judas, no need to attack him, and no desire to shame him.  There was only grace in Jesus eyes toward him.  It is not that Jesus did not have the human response of hurt and anger it is just that he surrendered his human reaction to his divine discipline and proaction.  Judas felt shame, fear, and desired to get something happening.  He was not suspected by anyone.  Jesus had handed bread dipped in wine to everyone of the disciples.  No one saw anything but love emanating form Jesus to his betrayer.  The betrayed loved for he could not betray the essence of who he is, loving God! The eyes of the betrayed were filled with love and grace.

I was at the Epic Failure Conference and one of the speakers said that "Judas was the devil".  I commented that the scriptures indicate that the devil entered into him, not that he was the devil.  Any time I have felt a failure the devil has entered into my life to trip me up and present me anything but faultless.  The apparent failure of the cross, "He saved others himself he could not save" was transformed  into the power to love those who were rejecting, shaming, and heaping words of failure.  The one who was free of the burden of failure lived to believe in faith that saw all with eyes of grace. "Father forgive them for they do not know what they are doing".  A simple statement of profound grace.

The law of surrender and sacrifice is the prelude to living free of the fear of failure, rejection and shame, living the loving state of the kingdom of heaven.   The kingdom of God is within you.  Let it live out from within you.

On that dark night when Judas betrayed Jesus with a kiss, something happened inside Judas.  This was not unlike Peter who denied Jesus, and then felt deep shame and sorrow.  Both men felt the penetrating love and grace in the eyes of Jesus.  The difference in them was Peter was able to forgive himself the act of denial. Judas though sorrowful, could not receive the forgiveness of Jesus because in his head his failure was beyond forgiveness.  This is never true as there is nothing God's grace is not equal too.

No betrayal is beyond the love of the God who will not betray his loving nature no matter what the act.

God's healing grace is available.  The devil wants us to feel and stay defeated.  God invites us to remember that His Grace is made perfect in our weakest moments.  To God be the glory to us the good of God's goodness and love.