RE Verse reading–Mark 14:10-11, 17-21, 41-50 (day one)
“So when he (Judas) came, he went up to him (Jesus) at once and said, ‘Rabbi’ and kissed him. Then they laid hands on him and arrested him.” (vs 45-46) Did Judas think Jesus was naive? Did he actually believe that the Lord would be fooled by such a pretense of friendship? That Jesus would conclude that Judas was innocent, that the guards had found Jesus and identified him without his help? Perhaps, Judas was trying to say (as we sometimes do) “I still have great respect for you.” “Nothing personal.” Trying vainly to separate what he was doing from his heart. It won’t work. Not for Judas. Not for us. “There is nothing covered that will not be revealed and hidden that will not be made known” (Matthew 10:26) Try as we might to hide, who we are and what we do with Christ stands in the open for all to see. No secrets. Nothing is hidden.
Luke 22 says “Satan entered Judas…and Judas went to the chief priests and the officers of the temple guard and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus.
As to what Judas was thinking… who knows. As to what Satan was thinking… and still thinks… it is pretty clear. He comes but to kill, steal and destroy and he will work through those who claim to be your friends if he can get them to let him. He loves to cause lose, lose situations by turning friends against one another. God is for unity…. so he is for the opposite.
I have discovered that although you cannot always be at peace with everyone, you can always still take the relationship to the Lord, pray for them, pray for reconciliation and pray that His forgiveness would someday be seen through your life/actions toward them. The thought that someday things will be seen for what they are can bring much comfort in such relationships.