Even my close friend, whom I trusted, he who shared my bread, has lifted up his heel against me. (Ps. 41:9)
Jesus quoted verse 9 when He and His disciples sat at the Last Supper. “I am not referring to all of you,” He declared. “I know those I have chosen. But this is to fulfill the scripture: ‘He who shares my bread has lifted up his heel against me’” (John 13:18).
Shortly after saying this, Jesus dipped a piece of bread in the dish and gave it to Judas Iscariot. They shared the bread, and then Judas went out and betrayed Jesus.
Stuart Briscoe talked about salesmen he had met who were convincing when they described their products. Yet a few months later, he discovered they were now working for their former competitors. When he asked them about their newfound enthusiasm for a product they previously considered inferior, he learned that their loyalty was more to their commission rather than to their product.
The apostle Paul described himself as “a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God” (Rom. 1:1). There was absolutely no question about where his loyalty lay. He was totally committed to Jesus and His gospel. Judas, on the other hand, sold his loyalty for thirty pieces of silver.
Where does your loyalty lie? In our actions, every day, without speaking a word, we declare our loyalty for or against Jesus.
Let’s be loyal to Christ in both word and deed.
Ron McClung works at his denomination’s world headquarters and lives in Fishers, Indiana, with his wife, Carol. They have two sons and nine grandchildren.
