Be Forgiven, Be Redeemed

April 7, 2020

Tuesday of Holy Week

In the Gospel today once again Jesus uses the phrase, “Amen, Amen, I say to you….”  We saw last Thursday that this is a phrase that indicated the importance of what was to come next.  It is like an exclamation point saying, “Pay Attention!”  The two times it is used in this reading are:

“Amen, amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me.”

“Amen, amen, I say to you, the cock will not crow before you deny me three times.”

Jesus is reclining at the table with his Apostles and eating a meal with them.  The tension in the room must have been high.  They all know the unrest that now surrounds Jesus and that there are plots to kill him.  There is no doubt the disciples love Jesus.  They have followed him for three years and have seen, “the best of times and the worst of times.”  The worst of times are just around the corner. Jesus knows that the Apostles don’t seem to yet grasp the intensity of the situation.

When he says, “Amen, Amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me.”  The disciples don’t know who he is talking about.  Even as Jesus sends Judas off, to betray him, the disciples are still unaware of Judas’ intention.

The second time he says, “Amen, amen, I say to you, the cock will not crow before you deny me three times.” He is speaking directly to Peter.  Peter has just proclaimed with vehemence his willingness to follow Jesus, even to his death.  He is fiercely loyal to Jesus.

Judas and Peter are both at a crossroad.  The passage says Satan entered into Judas and he went out to betray Jesus.  We must remember that Satan comes at us usually at our weakest points and nudges us towards evil and away from God. Judas held the purse for the disciples, so money was his soft spot.  

Peter, all through the Gospels has been surrounded by a lot of bluster.  He sees himself as braver than he is.  Remember when he tried to walk on water with Jesus.  He took a few steps but then fear caused him to sink into the water.  That same fear, his soft spot, is what will control his words and actions on this night. 

It is easy to judge these two men.  But, as we know, hindsight is 20/20.  We know the whole story.  We can see the mistakes they made and most often, we judge harshly.  

These men were in the middle of what was going on, they didn’t have the ability to know how the story would end.  Today we know how the story ends.  Today we know there is a resurrection.  Yet sometimes our weakness controls our actions too.  We are not always as faithful as we want to be.  We, in our own bluster, believe our strength to be greater than it is.  We are all weak, we are all sometimes less than we want to be.  We all sin.  

The decisions these two men made to betray and deny Jesus aren’t the most important part. What is most important is what they did next.  How they responded when they had to look at themselves and Jesus eye to eye and know their failing.

Judas fell into absolute despair when he realized what he had done. His anguish was, no doubt, the result of unimaginable pain and sorrow.  He was consumed by his despair.  He then turned away from Jesus and his message of forgiveness and love and took his own life.

Peter responded differently to his failure.  No doubt his sorrow was as great as Judas’.  But instead of turning inward and allowing his despair to swallow him, he turned to the Lord.  There is the beautiful story after the resurrection of Jesus meeting Peter on the seashore and Peter proclaiming his love.  Peter is forgiven, redeemed, and missioned to lead the Church.

Rather than judging the actions of these two men, we must learn from them.  When we fail, and fail we will, turn to Jesus not away from him in shame.  Turn to Jesus and grasp His hand.  Be forgiven, be redeemed.