564
The Desire of Ages
fellow disciples, the final decision had been made. He had passed the
boundary line.
Wonderful had been the long-suffering of Jesus in His dealing
with this tempted soul. Nothing that could be done to save Judas
had been left undone. After he had twice covenanted to betray his
Lord, Jesus still gave him opportunity for repentance. By reading the
secret purpose of the traitor’s heart, Christ gave to Judas the final,
convincing evidence of His divinity. This was to the false disciple
the last call to repentance. No appeal that the divine-human heart of
Christ could make had been spared. The waves of mercy, beaten back
by stubborn pride, returned in a stronger tide of subduing love. But
although surprised and alarmed at the discovery of his guilt, Judas
became only the more determined. From the sacramental supper he
went out to complete the work of betrayal.
In pronouncing the woe upon Judas, Christ also had a purpose of
mercy toward His disciples. He thus gave them the crowning evidence
of His Messiahship. “I tell you before it come,” He said, “that, when it
is come to pass, ye may believe that I AM.” Had Jesus remained silent,
in apparent ignorance of what was to come upon Him, the disciples
might have thought that their Master had not divine foresight, and had
been surprised and betrayed into the hands of the murderous mob. A
year before, Jesus had told the disciples that He had chosen twelve,
and that one was a devil. Now His words to Judas, showing that his
treachery was fully known to his Master, would strengthen the faith
of Christ’s true followers during His humiliation. And when Judas
should have come to his dreadful end, they would remember the woe
that Jesus had pronounced upon the betrayer.
And the Saviour had still another purpose. He had not withheld His
ministry from him whom He knew to be a traitor. The disciples did
not understand His words when He said at the feet washing, “Ye are
not all clean,” nor yet when at the table He declared, “He that eateth
bread with Me hath lifted up his heel against Me.”
John 13:11, 18
. But
afterward, when His meaning was made plain, they had something
to consider as to the patience and mercy of God toward the most
grievously erring.
Though Jesus knew Judas from the beginning, He washed his feet.
And the betrayer was privileged to unite with Christ in partaking of
the sacrament. A long-suffering Saviour held out every inducement