Betrayal, False Arrest, Abandonment

By:  Dale Weckbacher

Text:  Mark 14:43-52

Mark 14:49-50

Day after day I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not seize me. But let the Scriptures be fulfilled.” ⁵⁰ And they all left him and fled.

(ESV)

According to President Trump, we will remain under the recommendations of social distancing and not having social gatherings of 10 or more people through April 30.  President Trump also said there will be an increase in deaths in the United States over the next couple of weeks from the coronavirus.  (1)  While this is not good news, we must be appreciative of a leader who honestly tells people what to expect so they can make the necessary preparations.  My prayer is that people make smart preparations and not preparations based upon panic and fear. 

During this crisis, the practices of social distancing and not having large social gatherings make medical sense as they limit the potential spread of the virus.  In addition, we must also wash our hands and use hand sanitizer as well as keeping surfaces clean where the virus can live for an extended time.  However, lengthy isolation from others can have an emotional and spiritual effect on our lives.  In a study of prolonged isolation during prolonged space missions, researchers proposed two hypotheses for their study, either the crewmembers learn to align their self-concept with fellow crewmembers and work together as a team or there is no alignment creating tension.  (2)  The objective during any period of prolonged isolation must be alignment around some common goal, objective, or belief for people to work together with a minimum of tension.  For those in isolation due to the coronavirus, this common belief should be a belief in our loving Heavenly Father who sent us His Son, Jesus to die for our sins so our hearts can be filled with the Holy Spirit, giving us peace throughout isolation. 

Jesus’ betrayal, false arrest, and abandonment indicate he relates to our feeling all alone during a crisis, giving us hope as we turn to God who relates to our feelings of isolation.  While isolation because of the coronavirus does not involve betrayal, false arrest, of abandonment, the emotional feelings of isolation remain the same.  Jesus isolation involved,

1)      Betrayal by a trusted friend (Mark 14:43-44) – Judas, one of the twelve had been with Jesus during the three and one-half years of His ministry.  During that time, he would have witnessed the many miracles performed by Jesus as well as hearing the teachings of Jesus.  Since Judas had the moneybag for Jesus’ ministry, we can surmise his motivation may have been greed, and why he betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver (John 13:21-30).  However, Judas's greed soon turned to regret as he realized those to whom he betrayed Jesus had intentions of having the Romans execute him (Matthew 27:3).  Even though Jesus knew Judas would betray him, betrayal by one that had been with him throughout his ministry and one Jesus trusted with the moneybag would have caused feelings of isolation due to betrayal

2)      False accusations by well-educated people who should have known who Jesus was (Mark 14:44-45) – The crowd accompanying Judas consisted of representatives from the chief priests, scribes, and elders.  This indicates that those behind the seizure of Jesus were well educated religious leaders who devoted their lives to the study of Scripture.  As such, they should have realized Jesus was Messiah.  His birth was unique for Jesus was born of a virgin in Bethlehem (Isaiah 7:14; Micah 5:2).  His lineage would be from Abraham, the tribe of Judah, and David as the heir to David’s throne (Genesis 12:3; 22:18; 49:10; 2 Samuel 7:12-13; Isaiah 9:7).  Jesus' teaching would be in parables (Isaiah 6:9-10; Psalm 78:2-4).  The highly educated religious scholars of Jesus' time should have recognized who he was but their eyes were blinded, another fulfillment of prophecy (Isaiah 6:10; John 12:40).  The questioning of one’s status by peers that should recognize their abilities leaves one isolated.  However, Jesus knew one thing the religious leaders did not recognize.  When Jesus referred to destroying the Temple and rebuilding it in three days, He was not referring to the building, but Himself.  The ultimate revelation of Jesus as the Messiah is his conquest of death through His resurrection. 

3)      Abandonment by His closest friends (Mark 14:50-52) – While isolation due to betrayal by trusted friends or false accusations by peers hurts, isolation due to abandonment by friends is perhaps the most hurtful.  The especially hurtful abandonment is Peter's denial, the ultimate in abandonment (Mark 14:66-72).  However, even those abandoned by Jesus, except for Judas who hanged himself, received forgiveness and became the leaders of the early church. 

Please join me in prayer for those affected by this crisis and for those forced to live in isolation from connection with their community due to social distancing.

Dear Lord Jesus, we come to you in faith knowing that you hear the prayers of your people.  While we are restricted in our face-to-face interactions with those in our communities, nothing can take us away from interaction with you in prayer.  I pray for those sick with the coronavirus and pray for their quick healing.  Give the healthcare workers who are treating the sick protection and wisdom and give those working on a vaccine and a cure for this disease special wisdom.  Also, be with our federal and local leaders and give them wisdom.  May they put politics aside and cry out to you for wisdom in this time of crisis.  Also, be with us as we practice social distancing and live under stay-at-home orders.  We thank you Lord for technology that allows us to connect virtually at a distance but also look forward to the time when we can return to connecting face-to-face.  May we not spiritually distance ourselves from you Lord but during this time draw closer to you.  In Jesus' name, Amen.

If you are reading this and have not prayed to accept Jesus as your savior, I invite you to pray with me now because Jesus is not subject to any stay-at-home order and stands at the door of your heart, knocking.  The question is will you pray and let him in? 

Dear Lord Jesus, I know I have sinned (Romans 3:23) and know that the penalty for my sin is death (Romans 6:23).  I ask you to forgive me of my sin and cleanse me as you promise in your Word (1 John 1:9).  I believe you died, spent three days in the grave, and resurrected from the dead and now declare you Lord of my life.

May God bless and be with everyone reading this post. 

1. Re, Gregg. Trump says coronavirus 'peak in death rate' likely in 2 weeks, extends social-distancing guidelines through April 30. www.foxnews.com. [Online] Fox News, March 29, 2020. [Cited: March 30, 2020.] https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-coronavirus-briefing-death-rate-social-distancing.

2. Vadim I. Gushin, Vladimir A. Efimov, Tatiana M. Smirmova, & Nick Kanas. SUBJECT'S PERCEPTION OF THE CREW INTERACTION DYNAMICS UNDER PROLONGED ISOLATION. Researchgate.net. [Online] Aviation Space and Environmental Medicine, November 27-28, 1995. [Cited: March 30, 2020.] https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Vadim_Gushin/publication/13644049_Subject's_perception_of_the_crew_interaction_under_prolonged_isolation/links/5493f1d80cf25de74db50b66/Subjects-perception-of-the-crew-interaction-under-prolonged-isolation.pdf.