What image does the word "betrayal" bring to mind? How would you describe
the definition of the word to one who did not know what it meant? As I
considered the word "betrayed", I found that it means, "to deliver into
the hands of an enemy by treachery or fraud, in violation of trust, to
violate confidence by disclosing a secret or that which was entrusted;
to mislead or deceive." I think you have a good picture now of what it
is to be betrayed… Have you ever in your lifetime been dealt with as such?
Have you ever felt mislead by another person? How do you react when someone
you thought was very devoted to you suddenly violates your confidence
and shatters your world? Why does it hurt so much? What should you do
when you've been betrayed? Let's look at this topic today as we begin
our study with verse 18 of Judges 16…
And when Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent and
called for the lords of the Philistines, saying, Come up this once, for
he hath shewed me all his heart. Then the lords of the Philistines came
up unto her, and brought money in their hand.
This is a brief portion of the account of Samson and Delilah. She was
basically a prostitute and Samson had a weakness for female attentions.
Delilah had the ability to read Samson's emotions clearly, and she knew
precisely the moment that he had told her all of his heart; the instant
he had disclosed the secret of his strength to her. Samson had not told
any other human being this private information, and was very unsuspecting
of Delilah's ability and intention to betray him. Have you been where
Samson is? Perhaps at one time, or even several times you have let a particular
person see all of your heart and then later discovered that they had dishonored
your trust and instantly become a foe…
Psalm 41:9
Yea mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread,
hath lifted up his heel against me.
There have been several times in my life where I have entrusted all of
my heart with someone; a special person who shared an intimacy with me
that I thought would last forever. Yes, I thought my precious companion
and I would walk side-by-side forever and the blow of their heel against
me was devastating. How overwhelming it is to realize that a person you
deemed familiar must now be placed at a distance and labeled as one you
can no longer trust. Being betrayed is a shock to your nervous system
because you've let your guard all the way down, bearing your soul entirely.
You did not expect deceit, but loyalty to prevail in your relationship.
It most definitely hurts, and the pain travels deep into your soul, causing
you to change your view of people forever. What makes it harder to bear
is the fact that it is an individual you had looked to for guidance, love,
counsel, protection, and even worshipped the Lord together that has let
you down; perhaps even a close church family member…
Psalm 55:12-14
For it was not an enemy that reproached me; then could I have borne it:
neither was it he that hated me that did magnify himself against me; then
I would have hid myself from him: But it was thou, a man mine equal, my
guide; and mine acquaintance. We took sweet counsel together, and walked
unto the house of God in company.
How much easier it is to be attacked by an open enemy than a dear friend;
by someone who made their dislike obvious, not donated their kindness!
What must then be done in such a case? How do we escape so painful a problem?
Should evil be returned by evil when one is betrayed?
Micah 7:5-7
Trust ye not in a friend, put ye not confidence in a guide: keep the doors
of thy mouth from her that lieth in thy bosom. For the son dishonoureth
the father, the daughter riseth up against her mother, the daughter in
law against her mother in law; a man's enemies are the men of his own
house. Therefore I will look unto the Lord; I will wait for the God of
my salvation: my God will hear me.
Because sin is so rampant in this world, it affects, distorts, and perverts
every relationship, wouldn't you agree? Scripture teaches that a friend
cannot be trusted, nor can a leader be wholly credited. Cherished communications
are not even secure in one's most intimate relationships! In fact, family
members cannot be relied upon, for the Bible says even sons and daughters
can and will rebel, even a man's wife, and yes, even your husband might
betray you… Surely this is a dreary outlook to have on life, amen? Things
are pretty bad all over and stand to only get worse in the last days as
far as betrayals go…
Luke 21:16
And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks,
and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death.
Who then can be trusted??! How do you keep from losing hope while living
in this dark and wicked world?? The Bible says only the LORD can be fully
trusted! The word "Therefore" in Micah 5:7 which we read a few moments
ago, points our eyes toward God because the truth is, ALL of mankind has
the ability to fail us but our God will always and only remain the One
we can trust in completely! Ladies, we CAN endure the unrighteous behavior
of others through resting in the righteous character of our loving God!!
Are you carrying on in the face of your betrayals? Have you given up because
of sinful people and quit the Christian race, or will you place all your
expectations upon the Lord rather than mankind? Before our betrayals and
especially IN our betrayals, God wants us to look to Him. He wants to
make us wise, to teach us to give Him only all of our hearts. We should
not hide or keep back any part of ourselves from the Lord. It's time we
understood that HE is the safest place for our souls!
Psalm 62:5
My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him.
Ladies, we all know that Christ Himself was betrayed, but what was His
reaction? During the Lord's Supper, we often read this verse below of
Jesus which prompted me to begin this very study on betrayal....
1 Corinthians 11:23
For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you,
That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread:
Imagine that! The very same night, in which He was betrayed, Jesus was
found breaking bread - found still serving the Lord, still in the race
leading by example, still headed toward the goal of dying for sinners.
That was His reaction to betrayal and it should be ours as well! Think
about it… Judas spent three years with the Lord, listened to His Word
and even shared in His ministry, and then one day turned his back on Christ
and quickly became his enemy. Nevertheless, Jesus did not let Judas betrayal
distract Him, nor discourage Him, nor drive Him off the course to which
His heavenly Father called Him! Amen for such a strong example to follow!
Yet I wonder how many Christians are actually following Christ's example
of continuing to do right in the face of being betrayed… How
many have given up and walked away from serving the very Lord that never
quit on them?
Hebrews 13:5-6
Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such
things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake
thee. [6] So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will
not fear what man shall do unto me.
No matter what affliction we might be enduring, no matter what loss we
might have to bear, we can rest in the promise that God will never turn
His back upon us! Ladies, while we might be feeling sorry for ourselves
and thinking less of those that have betrayed us, let's remember that
we're ALL guilty of behaving in such a deceitful manner! You see, we've
ALL betrayed Christ at one time or another; Judas wasn't the only one....
Matthew 26: 14-16
Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests,
And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto
you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver. And from
that time he sought opportunity to betray him.
What caused Judas, a familiar friend to Jesus, to betray a man like Christ?
What causes US to betray Christ? What motives or feelings would prompt
anyone to betray a man like Jesus? I can only answer for myself, and the
motives and feelings are always selfish ones! I'm like Judas, and so are
you when it comes to being disloyal to Christ. Similarly, we are also
tempted by personal gain. We covenant with the devil for whatever it is
we want in exchange for betraying Christ!
John 13:2
And supper being ended, the devil having now put into the heart of Judas
Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him.
What a sick realization this is when we discover what takes place in our
hearts prior to betraying Christ! We sell out for self when all Christ
ever sold out for was us… Yet oftentimes we forsake our Savior for just
a single moment of pleasure and what a laugh the devil gets! For what
temporary thrills or situations have you turned your back on Christ at
one time or another? Ladies. we are as vulnerable to the same temptations
that snagged Judas. The Bible says from that time on, he sought opportunity
to betray Jesus. Likewise, the more you and I seek after our fleshly desires,
the easier it becomes to betray the Lord. Even still, we're just as capable
as Judas of pretending to serve Christ with our bodies while our hearts
are far from God…
Ezekiel 33:31
And they come unto thee as the people cometh, and they sit before thee
as my people, and they hear thy words, but they will not do them: for
with their mouth they shew much love, but their heart goeth after their
covetousness.
You see ladies, our behavior betrays our hearts, proving whether or not
we love and serve Christ sincerely. How does it make you feel to realize
that Judas apparently was at one time a very devoted follower of Jesus?
Maybe you were once or are currently. Nevertheless, Judas life is nothing
more than a picture of one who wasted his God-given opportunities, his
life, and ultimately his soul…
Matthew 27:3-5
Then Judas, which had betrayeth him, when he saw that he was condemned,
repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the
chief priests and elders, [4] Saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed
the innocent blood. And they said, What is that to us? see thou to that.
[5] And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed,
and went and hanged himself.
In closing, let's avoid making Judas' mistake over and over again in our
lives! He eventually cursed what he originally coveted and it brought
him great shame and anguish. Will you continue to betray Christ, dear
lady, or are you willing today to make a lasting covenant with the Lord
to keep serving Him and Him alone, no matter what? Purpose in your heart
today that there is nothing worth selling out for to the devil! Avoid
that downhill spiral only to end by strangling yourself with remorse…
Rather than becoming consumed with the deceitful behavior of others, consider
your own as a child of God. Though others may betray you, stay focused
on the faithfulness of the Lord and seek opportunities to remain loyal
to the only One who can and should be trusted wholeheartedly!
God Bless,
Pam
Isaiah 60:1&2
Copyright 2000 Pamela A. Iannello
Revised 2003
