April 9 | Value
Read Mark 14:1-11
It wasn’t about the money. We know from Matthew that Judas betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver. But I don’t think he did it for the money.
In Mark, Judas decides to betray Jesus after Jesus responds to the worship of the woman at Simon - the leper’s house. Judas decides to betray Jesus after Jesus normalized extravagant and foolish (in the world’s eyes) waste. Judas decides to betray Jesus after Jesus says he has been anointed for burial.
For the woman, it wasn’t about the money either. It was about love, adoration, worship. Jesus had changed her life, so she owed him everything. The cost of the perfume was nothing compared to what she owed Him. It wasn’t about the money.
Judas wasn’t in it for the money. He betrayed Christ, because he couldn’t square his expectations for the Messiah with the person of Jesus.
I wonder how often we, too, are tempted to abandon our faith because following Jesus doesn’t look like we thought it would, or because we’ve bought into the world’s ideas of “success.”
Today, let’s confess where we have been tempted to give up our faith because of our expectations. Let’s ask God to help us trust and cling to Him in worship, even when we don’t understand.