Read: Exodus 29:1-30:10, Matthew 26:14-46, Psalm 31:19-24, Proverbs 8:14-26

Then one of the Twelve—the one called Judas Iscariot—went to the chief priests and asked,
“What are you willing to give me if I deliver him over to you?” So they counted out for him thirty pieces of silver.
From then on Judas watched for an opportunity to hand him over.
(Matthew 26:14-16)

Relate: Robert Walpole is considered the first Prime Minister of England. Many others more famous would serve in that office. Some to shame (especially most of the recent ones), and some to glory (anyone ever heard of Winston Churchill?) But it was under his guiding hand that the root causes of the turbulent previous century were fully put to rest. He took two incredibly different houses known for both frequent internal squabbles and deep-seated hatred of each other and turned them into the Parliament we know today. Some have argued that had he been in power a few decades later, that minor kerfuffle in the New World often referred to as the “American Revolution” would never have happened. How was he able to bring such a diverse and intransigent group together? You don’t have to look far to find that answer. Not only was he the Prime Minister from 1721-1742, but he also served as the First Lord of the Treasury over those very same years. He had easy access to the British Empire’s pocketbook, and as he told Baron Glower (later known as Lord Privy Seal), “I know the price of every man in this house except three.” Five decades after his death a biography would change that quote to: “All those men have their price.” But that wasn’t quite catchy enough and AF Robbins in The Gentleman’s Magazine would quote him as saying “Every man has their price.”

React: We know Judas’ price. Thirty pieces of silver. At least, that was what they were willing to pay. But since we know from John’s gospel that Judas regularly helped himself to the group’s funds, they might have been able to go lower. But what about you? What about me? What would it take to get us to turn our back on Jesus? What is your price? The technical value of that silver runs somewhere between 100-400 US dollars depending on the weight of the coins. But we also know that in Judas’ day, it was equivalent to four months’ wages for a skilled laborer. So the real value would fall closer to around $25k-$30k If Mr Beast were to hand you a briefcase with $30k if you were to deny Christ, would you take it? What about a million? If not, what is your price? After all, “every man has a price.” Don’t they?

Interestingly enough, the man who is commonly credited with this saying would probably disagree. After all, what he seemed to be telling another rising star in British politics was that there were three men in the House of Commons who he didn’t think could be bought. Everyone else had a lever, be it bribery or blackmail, that could move them in your direction. But those three… who knows? Their character seems unimpeachable and their constancy unwavering. Would such be said of me. If I truly understood both the depth and depravity of my sin and the price Christ paid to buy my freedom then I would not be able to be bought. After all, the price for my redemption was the death of God. Who could outbid that?

Respond:

Dear God,
I thank you so much for the price You have paid for me. I am so unworthy. I am so undeserving, but You paid the price beyond imagination to purchase my freedom. Help me to know, to truly understand this right to the depths of my being so that I could not be bought. Let there be no price high enough, no temptation lucrative enough, that I would sell myself back into slavery by denying You. Let me ba a man who cannot be bought. Because I am already owned by another.
Amen