Avoid a Misplaced Trust – Toni Babcock
At the Last Supper, Jesus said to his disciples, "Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me" (Matthew 26:21b KJV).
Imagine his disciples pondering the grim reality. Mere association with Jesus was no guarantee of being a part of His kingdom. They began to question among themselves who the traitor might be. Nothing self-righteous was evident in this scene. Instead, there was an earnestness among them when asking the painful question, "Lord is it I?" These were no self-flatterers ready to grab onto a false hope. They wanted to know their faith and commitment to Jesus was real, and they were not afraid to ask themselves the hard question. They didn't fall back on the deeds they had accomplished in His name, or trials they had overcome, or any exclusive religious affiliation they had with Jesus in order to rule themselves out. They appeared to understand "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?" (Jeremiah 17:9 KJV) At least all except for Judas Iscariot.
In comparison, neither do our religious affiliations prove anything, for without Jesus Christ we "can do nothing" (John 15:5 KJV ). Personal faith must be fixed on a personal Savior if we would ever hope to yield the fruit of righteousness. Fellowship with other members of the body of Christ is imperative of course, but in matters of saving faith, we must learn to hang up our particular religious affiliations and hang onto Christ alone. May God give us the courage to examine what we truly believe, and the joy of a settled knowledge of who we are in Christ, trusting He died for our sins and rose again, so we might turn from our sin and live anew in Him.
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