DIVINE SOVREIGNTY AND HUMAN RESPONSIBILITY
TODAY’S SCRIPTURE
In the evening Jesus arrived with the Twelve. As they were at the table eating, Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, one of you eating with me here will betray me.” Greatly distressed, each one asked in turn, “Am I the one?” He replied, “It is one of you twelve who is eating from this bowl with me. For the Son of Man must die, as the Scriptures declared long ago. But how terrible it will be for the one who betrays him. It would be far better for that man if he had never been born!”
Mark 14:17-21 NLT
TODAY’S THOUGHT
Did Judas have a choice in betraying Jesus? I’ve heard some propose that Judas was a pawn in the plan of God and did not have a choice. Yet, in our passage today it is obvious Judas had a choice. The betrayal of Jesus was a combination of divine sovereignty and human responsibility. That is the way much of life happens. God has a plan and design for each of us, but we must choose to be a part of it. Our human will never be violated for the will of God. Judas made a choice to betray Jesus. If he had chosen otherwise God’s plan could have been completed through other means. It should be noted that Judas was obviously a complicated man. When Jesus announces to the twelve that one of them will betray Him the other eleven did not all turn to Judas and say, “It has to be Judas.” They had chosen Judas to be the treasurer of the group. He oversaw the money bag. No one considered Judas to be any different than the rest of the group. Yet, Judas was living a double life. Somewhere in time Judas opened the door for greed and selfishness. That seed began to grow until it dominated everything in his life. He had kept this hidden for over three years—now it was about to be exposed. Be sure your sins will find you out. There is nothing hidden that shall not be revealed. The secrets sin we allow in our lives will evidentially be revealed. We must confess and repent early in the process, so the sin doesn’t dominate us.
TODAY’S PRAYER
Holy Spirit please show me anything in my life that has the potential to block Your work in and through me. Help me live a life above question.
“Scroll down to share what you feel God is saying based on today’s reading.”