Leaning against Jesus, she asked him, "Lord, who is he?" Jesus answered: "It is the one to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it on the plate." Then, dipping the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas, son of Simon Iscariot.
John 13:25-26 (NIV)
Picture it; the disciples were eating their last meal with Jesus. Suddenly, He announced that one of them would betray Him. I am sure they could not believe what they were hearing. Which of them would betray their beloved Master? All of them loved Him. They had all left their families to follow Him.
John, the youngest of all, was sitting next to Jesus. Peter told him to ask Jesus who the traitor was. It is peculiar that although Jesus did not want to reveal Judas' sin to the group, He confided this secret to John. Jesus told him that the traitor was the one He would give the piece of bread that He would dip in the plate.
I do not think I could have kept that secret. I probably would have tried to stop Judas, but that would have done nothing except betray Jesus' trust. We know that John did not do that. He was trustworthy. He was so reliable that even though John was young, Jesus left His mother in his care.
Let us self-evaluate for a minute today. Are we trustworthy? Can our friends trust us with their secrets? The Bible asks us to bear one another's burdens (Galatians 6:2), but sometimes it is hard to trust God's people. Christians who tell what they promised to conceal hurt many people.
Many do not even trust their Pastors because they have betrayed them in the past, but that needs to change. Since we can only change ourselves, I want to invite you this week to take a moment to reflect. If we are the kind of people who cannot keep secrets, let us consider the consequences of betraying people. Let us ask the Holy Spirit to help us mature.
Being someone people can confide in is a great blessing. If you cannot keep a secret, surrender that weakness to God, and ask Him to transform you. If, on the other hand, you are trustworthy like John the Apostle, keep guarding people's backs, and I pray the Lord rewards you for your faithfulness to Him and your loved ones.
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