The evening meal was in progress, and the devil had already prompted Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus.
Today’s verse is in between the verses that say Jesus “loved his own” and the Father had “put all things under his power.” Jesus has love and has power. All power. Even so, Satan “prompts” Judas.
“Prompt” is an interesting word. It can mean “incite” or “suggest.” In school, I used to enjoy the opportunities for acting that came my way. My worst fear as an actor was forgetting my lines. Having someone to “prompt” me was a comfort. In today’s verse, the comfort was all Satan’s.
He was nudging Judas. “Remember…” he seems to be saying. Remember what? John does not detail how Judas went to the chief priests and negotiated a price for betraying Jesus. The other three gospels to tell that Judas sought out the opportunity to betray Jesus for money.
There is an important lesson here. Judas could have balked at this point. He could have turned back from what he had done. He could have chosen a different path. He could have confessed. But it would have been very hard. He had already let Satan into his heart. Who knows how long he had been nursing resentment toward Jesus? Who can know why he was tempted in the first place? John tells us that Judas was a thief. (John 12: 6) Could his decision to be unfaithful in a little thing have led to being unfaithful in a big thing?
Continue reading “Prompting – John 13: 2”