Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the Chief Priest, 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. Mat 26:14-16.
Judas, one of the apostles of Jesus Christ reached an ungodly agreement to betray his Lord for thirty pieces of silver. He set out to fulfil this evil agenda seeking for every available opportunity. He sought for opportunity. Today, many people are seeking for opportunity to commit sin and betray their Lord who gave up ALL to die on the cross for them. Let me say plainly that even when you do not seek for opportunity to do evil, Satan will always present one to you just like the Chief Priests presented one to Judas.
In every facet of life and the society, opportunities to commit sin abound in excess. Among ministers of the gospel, church workers, the political class, business men and women, the educated as well as the illiterate, the employer, the employee and the unemployed are all faced with the opportunity to compromise godly instruction, bend towards the devil and betray Jesus just for temporary, perishable things here on earth. The devil presents variety of choice for people to make. For Judas Iscariot, it was the opportunity to betray his Master for thirty pieces of silver. What is the thirty pieces of silver the devil is dangling before you and you find it very difficult to remove your eyes and emotions from it. Is it the promise of possible marriage from that young man the thirty pieces of silver before your eyes? Is the promise of giving you employment in a very lucrative establishment the thirty pieces of silver before you? Or is it the promise of giving you admission the thirty pieces of silver before you? Thirty pieces of silver means different things to different people. You know what exactly it means to you now.
The opportunity Judas sought then may be for some, the opportunity to steal money from the church offering bag, crusade fund, their master’s/mistress’ purse. It may also be the opportunity to enjoy some minutes or hours of immorality – adultery, fornication, masturbation etc. The devil may present the opportunity for malice, envy and jealousy, back-stabbing to gain favour, unhealthy competitive spirit and lying. Yet to others, the ungodly opportunities before them may be to seek for demonic power for false miracles and deceptive prophecies like one Simon who used sorcery and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one. He fell into the devil’s trap. He was conquered by the lust of the eyes, the pride of life and ungodly inordinate ambition for power.
What will be your decision with the devil’s opportunity to commit sin and betray your Lord. That is if actually Jesus is your Lord. Judas’ decision landed him at wrong side of eternity and he is lost forever and ever. On which side of eternity will your decision land you? At the right hand side of God or in the lake that burns unquenchable with fire and brimstone? Your decision now will determine your eternal destination. Do not end like Judas Iscariot. To avoid this (i)repent from all your sin (ii)renounce all sin (iii)receive Jesus as Lord and Savior (iv)reconcile with God and man (v) run away from all appearance of evil (vi) refuse the world and all it’s enticement (vii) reject every form of friendship with ungodly people. If you have taken this decision sincerely pray this simple prayer with me. Lord Jesus, I come helplessly to you. Wash away all my sins and write my name in the book of life. I accept you now as my Lord and Saviour in Jesus Name, Amen.
