WEDNESDAY April 16, 2025

Jesus’ Hour Had Come

“The hour has come; behold, the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand.”
Mark 14:41-42

In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus agonized in prayer. His hour had come––the time of His suffering. The magnitude of what He was about to face caused Him to pray even more intensely: And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground (Luke 22:44). Through the power of prayer, Jesus would be able to endure all that would happen to Him.

Judas, one of the Twelve Disciples, became Jesus’ betrayer. He approached with a band of soldiers with weapons. Among them were the officers from the Chief Priests and Pharisees. Judas’ disloyalty is written in Psalm 41:9: Even my own familiar friend in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, has lifted up his heel against me.

Judas had the same opportunity to know the love of God and follow Jesus, but he chose another path––betrayal. Consider the pure heart of our Lord toward all those who belong to Him:

Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that His hour had come that He should depart from this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end (John 13:1).

Jesus loved all His Disciples, even Judas. His love has no end––it is an everlasting love (Jeremiah 31:3). He loves all people, but in His love, He calls sinners to repentance: “...I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (Mark 2:17 KJV). Those who respond to His love and repent are called His own––they belong to Him.

Although Judas walked with Jesus, he was not saved––he was not one of Jesus’ own. Instead, He willfully chose to reject Jesus’ love and mercy and betrayed Him. His was a sad end. What will be your end?

The reason we have this inner conviction that death is not the end––and that Heaven exists––is because we were created in the image of God.
~Billy Graham~

For more from Raul Ries, please visit SomebodyLovesYou.com!