Betrayed by Failed Expectations

No one names their children Judas.  No other name is more recognized as anathema than his name.    It's hard to sort out what to do with Judas.  He walked with Jesus, learned from him, saw the miracles, knew what Jesus was up to early on.  Yet when it came down to it he betrayed Jesus.
What's perhaps more amazing is that it doesn't surprise Jesus at all.

John 13:18-32 (NIV)
¹⁸ "I am not referring to all of you; I know those I have chosen. But this is to fulfill the scripture: 'He who shares my bread has lifted up his heel against me.'
¹⁹ "I am telling you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe that I am He.
²⁰ I tell you the truth, whoever accepts anyone I send accepts me; and whoever accepts me accepts the one who sent me."
²¹ After he had said this, Jesus was troubled in spirit and testified, "I tell you the truth, one of you is going to betray me."
²² His disciples stared at one another, at a loss to know which of them he meant.
²³ One of them, the disciple whom Jesus loved, was reclining next to him.
²⁴ Simon Peter motioned to this disciple and said, "Ask him which one he means."
²⁵ Leaning back against Jesus, he asked him, "Lord, who is it?"
²⁶ Jesus answered, "It is the one to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish." Then, dipping the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, son of Simon.
²⁷ As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him. "What you are about to do, do quickly," Jesus told him,
²⁸ but no one at the meal understood why Jesus said this to him.
²⁹ Since Judas had charge of the money, some thought Jesus was telling him to buy what was needed for the Feast, or to give something to the poor.
³⁰ As soon as Judas had taken the bread, he went out. And it was night.
³¹ When he was gone, Jesus said, "Now is the Son of Man glorified and God is glorified in him.
³² If God is glorified in him, God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once. 


Jesus borrows the language of David's Psalm written when David's closest advisor - Ahithophel - betrayed David as King...and when his betrayal was overturned Ahithophel also hung himself.  David wrote:
Psalm 41:9 (NIV)
Even my close friend, whom I trusted, 
he who shared my bread, 
has lifted up his heel against me. 


Jesus is "troubled"...not because of the betrayal, but because of Judas.  Why Judas?  What will become of you?
The disciples are "troubled"...they stared at each other...Who?  Why?  No?  Not Me!!!
Judas was unlikely.  He was from Kerioth, not Galilee.  His stature was one of a person of influence, maybe even wealth.  He kept the common purse that held the money they used in their travels.  He was entrusted with much, probably because he has experience in handling money.  Dr. Harry Ironside said of him:  "Judas was the real gentleman of all the teachers."
He was saavy...well mannered, the one that dressed nice, looked nice, knew when to speak and when not to...in other words, the one that most probably never suspected.

So, why?  Why did he do it?
It seems that Judas had come alongside of Jesus as a disciple as much for his own purposes as for Jesus'.  He was a nationalist, one who had political ties and political purposes in mind for Jesus.  There's a sense that he was excited about Jesus at first because as Messiah, Jesus would finally lead the nation in it's restoration, and the Romans would be overthrown!

THEN...THEN...it didn't happen.
Jesus started talking about going to Jerusalem...being arrested...dying...None of these fit into Judas' plans.  Judas didn't want a Messiah who would die for the sins of the world; he wanted a Messiah who would destroy the enemies, and therefore Jesus gradually lost Judas' favor.

EXPECTATIONS...we all have them.
We have expectations of our politicians, our teachers, our doctors and even grocery stores.
We have expectations of our spouses, our children, our parents.
We have expectations of our pastor, our elders, our church.
And when those expectations are not met we either have readjust them to fit reality; or, as I've seen way too many times, we become bitter, angry, withdraw, or lash out, leave, try to remove, and on an on we go.

Judas' expectations led him to betray...and for that Jesus was troubled.  "Judas, oh Judas, what could have been."  No one names their children after him.

Peace