Read A Chapter A Day (RACAD) Matthew 27
Mathew 27 brings us to the climax of series of events that started with the arrest of Jesus in chapter 26. Jesus standing before Pilate brings Isaiah 53:7 to life as he opened not his mouth to defend himself against his accusers.
It also calls to mind, one of the Be- Attitudes of a disciple that Jesus preached on the Mount in Mt 5:5
Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth
For sure, the Lord’s example of meekness is on display in this regard and if unsure of what meekness means, we can take a cue from him as he instructed us in Mt 11:29 (Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; *for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls*)It is not stupidity to sometimes let go of
your right.
Another learning point is the case of Judas Iscariot after his betrayal. Looking through verses 1-4, one can infer that Judas did not weigh the outcome of his actions before he commited to selling off his master for 30 pieces of Silver. Realisation only dawned on him when he saw Jesus condemned and he regretted his actions. Unfortunately, his remorse and attempt at a redress was too late. He sought to appease his conscience by returning the money, but this only made matters worse for him. The chief priests further nailed his coffin by their response to him ……
“I have sinned,” he said, “for I have betrayed innocent blood.” “What is that to us?” they replied. “That’s your responsibility.”
This speaks volume brethren and makes more real the words of Paul in Acts 24:16 *And herein do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void of offence toward God, and toward men*
I agree with the scripture that as many as are led by the Spirit of God are the sons of God, but in our being led, our consciences also reveal to us the likely outcomes of our actions or the effect our actions will have on other brethren if we pay attention to it.This is important when we also call to mind that the end of the commandment is love out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned:(1Tim 1:5). Brethren under the guise of being led by the Spirit have brought strife, factions and divisions to the church because the voice of the conscience is muffled or outrightly ignored. By the time realisation dawns on them, it may be too late to undo what had been done. Consequences arising from such may leave indelible scars on the body or even loss of precious souls that were previously won for the Lord.
Borrowing from the words of the chief priests therefore, it is our individual responsibility to not only look at our own interest in any matter, but also on the interest of others. This is the mind of Christ as highlighted in Phil 2:5
