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"Betrayest thou the Son of Man with a kiss?" -
Luke 22:48
"The kisses of an enemy are deceitful." Let me be on my guard when the world
puts on a loving face, for it will, if possible, betray me as it did my Master,
with a kiss. Whenever a man is about to stab religion, he usually professes very
great reverence for it. Let me beware of the sleek-faced hypocrisy which is
armour-bearer to heresy and infidelity. Knowing the deceivableness of
unrighteousness, let me be wise as a serpent to detect and avoid the designs of
the enemy. The young man, void of understanding, was led astray by the kiss of
the strange woman: may my soul be so graciously instructed all this day, that
"the much fair speech" of the world may have no effect upon me. Holy Spirit, let
me not, a poor frail son of man, be betrayed with a kiss!
But what if I should be guilty of the same accursed sin as Judas, that son of
perdition? I have been baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus; I am a member
of his visible Church; I sit at the communion table: all these are so many
kisses of my lips. Am I sincere in them? If not, I am a base traitor. Do I live
in the world as carelessly as others do, and yet make a profession of being a
follower of Jesus? Then I must expose religion to ridicule, and lead men to
speak evil of the holy name by which I am called. Surely if I act thus
inconsistently I am a Judas, and it were better for me that I had never been
born. Dare I hope that I am clear in this matter? Then, O Lord, keep me so. O
Lord, make me sincere and true. Preserve me from every false way. Never let me
betray my Saviour. I do love thee, Jesus, and though I often grieve thee, yet I
would desire to abide faithful even unto death. O God, forbid that I should be a
high-soaring professor, and then fall at last into the lake of fire, because I
betrayed my Master with a kiss.
See Also:
Daily Devotional: Today With Jesus
Daily Devotional: My Utmost for His Highest
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