Dealing With Betrayals

This prayer sermon (I coined that phrase 16 years ago) visits this bad character defect that can harm you and your personality physically and spiritually. Let’s deal with it.

Luke 22: 1-6

New International Version

Judas Agrees to Betray Jesus

22 Now the Festival of Unleavened Bread, called the Passover, was approaching, 2 and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were looking for some way to get rid of Jesus, for they were afraid of the people. 3 Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve. 4 And Judas went to the chief priests and the officers of the temple guard and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus. 5 They were delighted and agreed to give him money. 6 He consented, and watched for an opportunity to hand Jesus over to them when no crowd was present.

Betrayal. One of the most difficult things to handle and accept as a human being and more importantly a child of God is betrayal. What is betrayal?

Betrayal is one someone you have put in a position of trust in your life, decides to usurp the position and use it to do things that will have a very negative outcome for you. A spouse who goes to have an affair outside their marital home has betrayed the other spuse and the marriage. A former worker who goes to use information about their former place of work to attempt to destroy the former employer has betrayed that trust. Someone who betrays others is commonly called a traitor or betrayer.

Why is betrayal so painful?

Betrayal by people you care about hurts because it destroys your self-esteem. If you're to get over this pain, it may be a require readjusting your values

Betrayal is such a hurtful thing that it has medical connotations

Betrayal trauma occurs when the people or institutions on which a person depends for survival significantly violate that person' s trust or well-being

Why do people betray?

The first is excessive ambition, greed, jealousy, lust or passion. Betrayal is a lapse or failure in character of the person perpetrating the act. When a person cannot control or is overcome with these vices, he/she is liable to betray. ... A person may feel that to save another person's life/soul it's ok to betray him. The third reason could be because people like to prove how smart they are. Or they just want to hit back or hurt the other person.

Betrayal starts with an evil thought. This is from an unclean spirit: jealousy, envy, hatred, lust, greed. Its origin is never good. The example of Jesus at the beginning of this sermon bears this out. “Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve.”

The basis is Satan. It is never from a good origin. So, it is a spiritual issue that must be dealt with in a spiritual way. Unfortunately, it brings forth evil in the physical realm and the consequences can be devastating.

There are so many examples of betrayal in the Bible;

Jacob Deceived by Laban Genesis 29: 25-26

24 Laban also gave his maid Zilpah to his daughter Leah as a maid. 25 So it came about in the morning that, behold, it was Leah! And he said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Was it not for Rachel that I served with you? Why then have you deceived me?” 26 But Laban said, “It is not the practice in our place to marry off the younger before the firstborn

Jacob betrays Esau to take their father’s (Isaac’s) blessing Genesis 27:34-36

34 When Esau heard the words of his father, he cried out with an exceedingly great and bitter cry, and said to his father, “Bless me, even me also, O my father!” 35 And he said, “Your brother came deceitfully and has taken away your blessing.” 36 Then he said, “Is he not rightly named Jacob, for he has supplanted me these two times? He took away my birthright, and behold, now he has taken away my blessing.” And he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?

Delilah betrayed Samson the prophet Judges 16:18

“When Delilah saw that he had told her all that was in his heart, she sent and called the lords of the Philistines, saying, “Come up once more, for he has told me all that is in his heart.” Then the lords of the Philistines came up to her and brought the money in their hands.”

Joab betrayed Abner’s trust and killed him 2 Samuel 3;26-27

26 When Joab came out from David, he sent messengers after Abner, and they brought him back from the well of Sirah; but David did not know it. 27 So when Abner returned to Hebron, Joab took him aside into the middle of the gate to speak with him privately, and there he struck him in the belly so that he died on account of the blood of Asahel his brother