One of the Twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests, and said, "What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?" They paid him thirty pieces of silver, and from that time on, he looked for an opportunity to hand him over. ( Mt 26:14-16)
God is good all the time.
In today's Gospel passage, the apostles experience chilling waves at Jesus' comment that one of them would betray him. So, distressing to them was the announcement that it prompted each one to ask Jesus: "Surely it is not I, Lord?"
Jesus, foreseeing his passion and death, which he was poised to embrace out of obedience to his father's will and love for us, contrasted his faithfulness with the infidelity of his betrayer.
Notice something in their questioning. The apostles questioned Jesus one by one: Surely it is not I, Lord? But when Judas got his turn, he asked, surely it is not I, Rabbi?
You see, if Jesus is a rabbi to Judas, then it easier to sell him for thirty pieces of silver because he was just like any of the other rabbis. He placed a price on his relationship with the teacher, which the others never did because nothing was comparable to a faithful relationship with the Lord. They denied him, but their heart was with him; so, they quickly realized their mistakes and came back to him.
Thus, a lot comes down to the vision we have of our love relationship with God. If Judas were not an apostle, the chief priest and his cronies would never legitimately bargain with him to gain access to Jesus. Being an apostle made it a big deal, and they leveraged it.
It can be so with us today! If we are Catholic Christians, then how we sound and behave before family, friends, and in public matters; for people leverage our faith, particularly if they see that we are willing to dilute it.
Sometimes, it's a mere gratification of selfish desires and passions, lies told to make us feel better before others, cheating, reneging or renegading to protect our interest and status, etc., that make us sell short our faith and love for Jesus.
If we are to remain faithful to the Lord and our faith, we need to define our relationship with the Lord well; either Jesus is our Lord over everything else or becomes just like anything else.
Prayer blessings: Lord, help me during this Holy Week to see things differently and understand what your death and resurrection truly means to me.