True Freedom

At some point in our lives, it is likely that many of us have had or will have an encounter with a “Judas.” Perhaps we have been a “Judas” to someone. My definition of “Judas” in this writing refers to a person who appears to be your friend, yet the intent of their heart towards you is anything but good. And as a result, they betray you. For whatever reason, this person allows jealousy, insecurity, fear, greed or some other destructive emotion to take over them. Their heart yields to this emotion, and sooner or later betrayal is birthed.
It is true that I have hurt people in my life-something I am not proud of. It is also true that I have been hurt. Sometimes I have hurt others intentionally, while at other times it was unintentional. The same thing rings true for those who have hurt me. Just recently, I experienced a sour case of betrayal such as I never have before. One thing is certain, no matter how you are betrayed, it hurts. It hurts even worse when you had no intention of hurting the other person, nor did you have any negative feelings towards that person. Without a warning, you were hit by their action. You were left standing to say, “I cannot believe this.”
One of my small Webster Dictionaries defines betrayal as: To be disloyal or unfaithful; to deceive. In the New Testament Gospels, Judas betrays Jesus for thirty pieces of silver. He had been a “disciple” of Jesus, following Him and going with Him just like the other eleven disciples. He acted one way around Jesus and the other disciples, but in his heart there was evil. Of course, Jesus knew what would take place, but we have no clue that the person who we think is our friend has evil intentions towards us.
Sometimes this is difficult for the human mind to understand. Because betrayal hurts deeply, it can cause those who have been hurt to have negative emotions well up inside of them. It is important that we not let these negative emotions become catalyst for our actions, or reactions. We must give this hurt to Christ and allow Him to help us heal.
While dealing with this incident, God has shown me some interesting things about how to handle betrayal. The way we handle this is completely contrary to how our flesh wants to handle it, but it is the best way. Here are a few things that God as shown me. Applying these to your life will bring you to true freedom.

Pray: Ask God to help you forgive this person and to guard your heart against bitterness. I have often heard of bitterness described as spiritual cancer. Just as cancer “eats” away at our physical bodies, bitterness “eats” away at the spiritual man. Harboring bitterness will prevent you from having true joy, peace and happiness in your life. Proverbs 4:23, Ephesians 4:31-32 & Hebrews 12:15

Love: Loving this person does not mean that we go out of our way to flatter them. However, if or when the opportunity arises, we should demonstrate love towards them and bless them. Matthew 5:43-48

Repayment: Do not repay this person with revenge. Do not repay evil with evil, or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you might inherit a blessing. I Peter 3:9 (NIV)

Forgive: We are to forgive others because Christ forgave us. Matthew 6:12-15

It is true that being betrayed by someone hurts. Applying the above steps does not make what that person did right, but that is not the issue. As Christians we have the ability to live free from the stronghold of bitterness, and we should desire to live lives that demonstrate such freedom. Forgiving others will open the door for this to happen. Forgiving others provides the opportunity to experience God’s grace in bountiful ways. Forgiving also provides us with the opportunity to approach God’s throne in prayer with a clean heart that is free from bitterness and unforgiveness.

Forgiveness=True Freedom.

“Linger too long in the stench of your hurt and you will smell like the toxin you despise.”
Author unknown

“Harboring bitterness is like slowly drinking poison while waiting for the other person to die.” Author unknown