On Fellowship Group Hopping

I’m involved in two of our church’s Fellowship Groups on a regular basis. But I’m taking time this month and next to visit groups I don’t normally attend. What a blast! If you are not in a group, I’d encourage you to find one. If you are in a group, I’d encourage you to pop in on another group once in a while for a surprise visit. (Don’t bail out on the group you’re committed to. Just go hang out with some new people for a change.) It’s a lot of fun! You get to know new people and there’s usually some good food involved.

At one of the groups I visited this week, somebody shared something in the Bible study time that really gave me new insight into the goodness of Christ.... The groups are studying the passage in Matthew 26 where Jesus tells the disciples that one of them will betray him. Nobody guesses that it is Judas. Here is what K.C. shared that really blew me away: “Nobody could tell from Judas’ outward behavior that he was a traitor. But here’s the astonishing thing – nobody could tell this from Jesus’ behavior either. Even though he had known all along that Judas would betray him, he never treated Judas differently from anyone else.”

Isn’t that amazing!? I had never thought of that. Even though Jesus knew that Judas was going to do him in, no one ever caught whiff of it. They never sensed any coldness or distance in Jesus’ attitude toward Judas. I don’t think this is because Jesus was a really good actor and was able to fake that he liked the guy. I think it is because, even though Jesus knew what his friend would do to him, he loved him anyway. He loved Judas perfectly in spite of his sin. What a great Savior we have. If he could love Judas that way, who apparently never really came to faith in the Lord, imagine how much he loves us, whose hearts truly have been brought to believe.