Law fixed if a slave was accidentally killed (cf. Ex. 21:32). That was about five weeks’ wages for an average worker, a modest amount—but it was enough to buy Judas. Matthew also wrote that Judas regretted his bargain, and eventually ended his own life. He wrote that Joseph “had become a disciple,” and that he gave Jesus, not just a tomb, but “his own new tomb.”

• Have you ever faced a situation that called on you to decide what your loyalty to Jesus isworth—one in which you could have a promotion, a relationship or some other reward if only you’d act in a way that betrayed your commitment to Jesus? If so, what did you do? In what ways, day by day, do you show your loyalty to Jesus as Lord?

• Judas and Peter—both failed Jesus. Yet Judas tragically ended his own life in despair, while a little over a month later, Peter boldly preached the risen Jesus (Acts 2). What made the difference? How can you find even your failures redeemed as Peter did? (If you ever feel, like Judas, that suicide is the only answer, get help!

From Grow.Pray.Study (GPS) The Church of the Resurrection--Weekly Guide