Twenty-three years ago this week, i was standing on the top of Mt. Nebo in Jordan, looking over into the land of Israel. It was the view of the Promised Land that God had permitted Moses to see, just before He took him home. Though it was somewhat cloudy and foggy that morning, we were still amazed to look out over that panoramic view of the Promised Land, even to the sea beyond.

That morning in my quiet time, before we headed out, i had been reading in Malachi, chapter 1. The Lord had been reminding me to lift up my eyes to see what He is doing all around the world. “Truly, the LORD’s great power goes far beyond {our} borders”(Malachi 1:5). And as our group climbed that mount, God permitted us to see far beyond our borders – literally.

i am mindful that our Lord often gives us an opportunity to climb to a “mountaintop” in order to see and experience His majesty and His work in a new and different way. More often than not, it is not literally the top of a physical mountain, but it is an opportunity for Him to open our eyes to seeing afresh from His perspective. Too often, we become myopic – so caught up in our own circumstances and the activities in which we are engaged – that we lose sight of the bigger picture – the grander activity of our Almighty God. By His grace, He permits us to join Him at the top of a “Mt. Nebo” to refresh and reboot our perspective.

The man wanted to justify his actions, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus replied with a story: “A Jewish man was traveling from Jerusalem down to Jericho, and he was attacked by bandits. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him up, and left him half dead beside the road.“By chance a priest came along. But when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. A Temple assistantwalked over and looked at him lying there, but he also passed by on the other side.“Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion for him.Going over to him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him.The next day he handed the innkeeper two silver coins, telling him, ‘Take care of this man. If his bill runs higher than this, I’ll pay you the next time I’m here.’“Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits?” Jesus asked.The man replied, “The one who showed him mercy.”Then Jesus said, “Yes, now go and do the same.” (Luke 10:29–37)

Jesus wasn’t responding to a sincere seeker. He was responding to an “expert” in religious law who was attempting to test Jesus. There was no good motivation in the original question. But our Good Shepherd is able to take even what the enemy intends for his evil purpose and turn it for good. A question that was intended to trip up Jesus was masterfully turned into one of the greatest lessons for you and me as we continue our journey walking with the Master.

Then the meeting broke up, and everybody went home.Jesus returned to the Mount of Olives, but early the next morning He was back again at the Temple. A crowd soon gathered, and He sat down and taught them. As He was speaking, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in the act of adultery. They put her in front of the crowd. “Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the act of adultery.The law of Moses says to stone her. What do You say?”They were trying to trap Him into saying something they could use against Him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with His finger.They kept demanding an answer, so He stood up again and said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!” Then He stooped down again and wrote in the dust.When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman.Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, “Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?”“No, Lord,” she said.And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.” (John 7:53–8:11 NLT)

Your Bible translation may indicate that this passage was omitted from some of the early manuscripts. Augustine wrote that the reason for its omission was because of a prudish fear that it would encourage adultery. However, the passage, as we will see, clearly condemns sin; it doesn’t condone it.

As they were walking along, someone said to Jesus, “I will follow You wherever You go.” But Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place even to lay His head.” He said to another person, “Come, follow Me.” The man agreed, but he said, “Lord, first let me return home and bury my father.” But Jesus told him, “Let the spiritually dead bury their own dead! Your duty is to go and preach about the Kingdom of God.” Another said, “Yes, Lord, I will follow You, but first let me say good-bye to my family.” But Jesus told him, “Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:57–62 NLT)

Years ago, the Lord used a dear brother in Christ by the name of Bryan, to speak truth into my life. Bryan was at times my Paul and at others my Barnabas. i often heard him share a story that had great impact on my life. There was a man who owned a large beautiful land tract, comprised of 1,000 acres. One day, he made the decision to deed all but one acre of the land to a ministry, who in turn would use the tract as the site for a training and retreat center. As a condition of the deed transfer, he required that the ministry grant him the right of ingress and egress through the donated property to his one acre. Neither the man or the ministry thought the request was unreasonable in light of the man generously surrendering all of his property, except for this one acre. The ministry took possession of its 999 acres and constructed its training and retreat facilities on the property. It was a peaceful, out of the way site, that worked perfectly.

Having looked at the roster of the notables, let’s look at the one who is “despicable” — let’s look at Judas Iscariot. If you look up the name Judas in the dictionary, you will find “one who betrays another under the guise of friendship; a deceiver or traitor”. As a result, the name “Judas” is no longer a popular choice among parents determining the name for their bouncing baby boys. That wasn’t always the case. In the first century A.D. it was a name synonymous with honor, and therefore a very popular name (two of the twelve disciples were named Judas). The name was given in recognition of Judas Maccabaeus, one of the great generals in Jewish history. He and his followers defeated the Syrian armies in 165 BC, restored the religious rites and rededicated the Temple in Jerusalem. The Jews, through their observance of Hanukah, celebrate this victory to this day. Simon Iscariot named his son Judas in the hope that he would be a man of honor in the tradition of Judas Maccabaeus.