The Danger of Unmet Expectations

“The Danger of Unmet Expectations”  Palm Sunday

Message @ Jericho Ridge– Sun, March 28, 2021 (Series: Disillusioned)

Hello, friends.  Welcome into this online space for a time of learning and exploration together. My name is Brad. I’m part of the teaching and leadership team here at Jericho Ridge. 

And today I want to ask you: When was the last time you bumped up against unmet expectations? My guess is that most of you are likely thinking “every single day, Brad!” 

Sometimes unmet expectations are minor – your try a new chip flavor that you think will be amazing like Pringles Baconator and it turns out to taste like burnt hotdogs and give you indigestion. Or you buy something new and it doesn’t’ quite live up to the hype that the sales person gave you.  Or you expect that people will put their dirty dishes in the dishwasher and yet there they sit on the counter day after day!!   

Unmet expectations come to us in all shapes and sizes. And one thing to pay attention to, especially in the high challenge season we are living thought right now, is that the larger our expectations are, the larger our feelings and experiences of disappointment will be when something doesn’t happen that we were expecting would happen. 

For example, you might have expectations to get into a certain university and it doesn’t happen and that impacts the trajectory of your life.  Or you expect you’ll get that job or that big sale and no matter how hard you hustle, someone else lands it.  Or you are in a relationship that you thought was heading and in certain direction and then as unmet expectations mount, it begins to unravel, sometimes after years of being together.   Unmet expectations can be crippling and lead us to very dark places.   

We’re in a series right now at Jericho entitled “Disillusioned: what to do when you doubt”.  And we’ve been exploring the notion that doubt is largely neutral – it’s what you do with your doubts and questions that really counts.  And so today, we’re going to look at an example of expectations that were not met and the tragic consequences that had not only on the lives of others, but also the life of the individual in question.  We’re going to be looking at the story of Judas Iscariot. 

In the gospels, which are the 4 accounts of the life of Jesus in the New Testament, Judas is first introduced to us as one of the twelve followers who Jesus invited to apprentice with Christ as a travelling rabbinical figure in the first century Palestine. 

We don’t know a ton about Judas’ background but scholars do think that he was part of a movement of political revolutionaries who were working in any and every way that they could to overthrow the Roman empire who had occupied and oppressed the Jewish people for centuries. 

Ancient history teaches us that Rome was a cruel task master and so there were many revolutionaries at this time period.  Many first century scholars believe that Judas threw his lot in with Jesus hoping to force Jesus to instigate a populist uprising against Roman oppression.  Judas likely saw Jesus as having the potential to lead a kind of religious protest movement that would result in massive numbers of people following Him and rising up against Rome, resisting taxation and military oppression and finally resulting in a self-governing autonomous Jewish state.    

And so Judas Iscariot must have felt a strong sense of anticipation on that first Palm Sunday as the crowds gathered in throngs outside the city gates of Jerusalem.  And they began to chat ‘Hosanna!  Hosanna!” which was more of a political statement than a religious one.  The chant mean “Save us!”  The palm branches where not just a nice piece of décor. The ancient Jews understood the palm branch as a symbol of victory.  A symbol of triumph over oppression.  And so as people waved their branches and shouted their hosannas, it is helpful to think of Palm Sunday more of a political protest march than a tame, Children’s storybook kind of moment.

This was fists in the air for many, saying “finally!  This the King who has come to grant us victory over the Romans!” Save us, Jesus, Save us!!” 

And I can picture Judas Iscariot thinking to himself “yes! This is our moment!  Jesus is going to do what other revolutionaries could not do… He will bring liberation and justice and peace!  I am so glad I threw my lot in with him!” 

And if we keep reading the gospel accounts of the last week of Jesus’ life that we are commemorating and celebrating this week as Christians, once they enter Jerusalem, Jesus doesn’t start busting up Roman legion skulls or calling for the crowds to arm themselves and take up offensive positions.  No.  He enters the temple and He teaches about the pouring out of the power and presence of the Holy Spirit.  He challenges not the Romans, but the religious leadership.  He doesn’t stand up to political overlords, he stoops down and washes the feet of his disciples. And all of this must have infuriated Judas.  His expectations, all of his hopes, over 3 years of his life invested into this “Jesus as political revolutionary project”,  is all seemingly lost to him now. 

I have a sympathy for Judas here.  I know that is not popular to say, in that his name has become synonymous with betrayal and subterfuge.  But Judas was a man who had expectations of Jesus and to be very fair to him, they were not met.  We’ll talk more about this coming Friday in our online city-wide gathering and on Easter Sunday, but Jesus did, in fact come to Jerusalem that final week of his earthly life to save people but not in the way that Judas expected.  And not in the way that perhaps anyone expected. 

And as Judas’ level of disillusionment grows and grows, we get this picture into Iscariot’s actions and his heart on the final night of Jesus life.  This would have happened on what we call Maundy Thursday, the night before Good Friday.  In John 13, Jesus gathers his disciples in an upper room for a Jewish traditional meal to celebrate the Passover. That time when God delivered God’s people from oppressive slavery in Egypt centuries before.  And as they share the meal and the evening together, Jesus lets his disciples know that he is going to be betrayed and die.   

Turn with me in your Bibles or on your devices to John 13, I’ll be reading starting in verse 21 from the New Living Translation:

“Now Jesus was deeply troubled, and he exclaimed, “I tell you the truth, one of you will betray me!” 22 The disciples looked at each other, wondering whom he could mean. 23 The disciple Jesus loved [John] was sitting next to Jesus at the table. 24 Simon Peter motioned to him to ask, “Who’s he talking about?” 25 So that disciple leaned over to Jesus and asked, “Lord, who is it?”

26 Jesus responded, “It is the one to whom I give the bread I dip in the bowl.” And when he had dipped it, he gave it to Judas, son of Simon Iscariot. 27 When Judas had eaten the bread, Satan entered into him. Then Jesus told him, “Hurry and do what you’re going to do.” 28 None of the others at the table knew what Jesus meant. 29 Since Judas was their treasurer, some thought Jesus was telling him to go and pay for the food or to give some money to the poor. 30 So Judas left at once, going out into the night.”

I find it intriguing that the rest of the disciples don’t catch this very significant moment until later.  They assume that as the treasurer of their little group, Judas is going to settle up on the dinner and room rental arrangements or something. 

But in reality, Judas has come to the end of his expectations.  It has become clear to him that Jesus will not be the Messiah, the savior, that Judas has expected and therefore there is, in his mind, only one option.  If Jesus won’t deliver Judas the kind of revolutionary victory he wants, then Judas must deliver Jesus to defeat. 

He’s reached his “burn the whole thing down” moment.  John’s gospel doesn’t record Judas’ interactions with the Jewish leaders but Matthew, Mark and Luke all do.  Having come up empty with Jesus, Judas now throws his lot in with two forces – one knowingly and one unknowingly. 

Judas approaches the religious/political leadership of the day, who were none to pleased with Jesus.  Jesus was too popular for their liking and Jesus was also often in conflict with them over their religious ideals.  But the religious leaders were also savvy politicians.  They knew that they could not just arrest Jesus in the Temple or they would have a riot on their hands.  They needed a quiet place where they could do the deed.  They needed access to Jesus’ schedule and his private movements.  They needed a man on the inside.  So they cook up a plan with Judas as their mole.  He will provide them with inside information on the secret movements of Jesus and a quiet place to arrest him in exchange for 30 pieces of silver. 

Let me pause here and say something about the dynamic of personal choice in the tale of Judas and also how to think about this in our own personal lives.  We love to think of ourselves as independent, unilateral actors in the drama of our lives and our world, but the story of Judas reminds us that we can also give place to or yield to evil forces like temptation and sin.  And once we do, this opens a door.  It gives a beach-head to the forces of evil. 

At the start of the dinner narrative in John 13:2, we read that “the devil had already prompted Judas, son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus.”  So there would be some who would argue “well, poor Judas had no option – the devil made him do it!”.  But notice the language here: the evil one prompted Judas, but didn’t pull the trigger.  Judas, just like you and I, is still responsible for his own personal choices. 

Several years ago, we were in the southern UK (you know, when you could travel). We went south to the town of Dover and to the castle and amazing maze of tunnels beneath the white cliffs.  It was from this location that the dramatic mission to storm the beaches of France in WWII was planned and carried out.  It was the first time that all three branches of the military had been in one location to coordinate an attack on those beaches because they knew the importance of taking a beachhead.  Dunkirk demonstrated that if you can take a beach head, you can launch an assault deeper into territory. 

This is true in our lives spiritually as well. In the story of Judas, in John12:6, we learn that as the treasurer, Judas was dishonest and often took money out of the collective account for himself.  So the kiss in the Garden is not his first act of betrayal.  He was already practiced at deception.  Little by little, deception gains a toe hold, then a foot hold, then begins to occupy more and more territory in his life till he betrays a friend.  

The same thing is true for you and me with respect to sin and evil.  If you give over ground to evil in your life, you give opportunity for more ground to be taken away.  It’s really easy to tell ourselves things like “it’s only one little lie. Who could it hurt?” or “Its only one impulsive purchase – I’m still a pretty good steward.’ Or “Its only one image or one little bit of that movie… I’m not addicted.”  I’ve told myself those things sometimes. But sometimes, when you give up an inch, you are opening up the door to give up a mile. 

This is why in the prayer that Jesus teaches us and I pray daily as I go to bed, one of the phrases is ‘don’t let us yield to temptation’ (Matthew 6:13).  When temptation comes, take your stand through regular prayer and accountability. These are just two ways that you can avoid giving evil a landing place on the beachheads of your life. 

Now, don’t heart what I am no saying. This is not fatalism where if you have sinned once of given up a small bit of ground it’s game over.  Not at all.  It is simply to invite you and I to pay attention to what areas of our life are under attack and work to stand firm and mount a defense against the evil one. 

You might want to reach out to us here for confidential help and support.  Our pastoral team would love to pray with you or for you.  You can email us at or if you are watching the interaction Church online Platform, click on the “request prayer” button and you’ll be placed into a private chat with one of our pastoral team who would be pleased to pray with you about whatever struggle you are facing. 

Now back to our story of Judas.  Turn with me in your Bibles or on your device to John 18.  We’ve move from the Upper Room meal to the Garden of Gethsemane.  I’ll be reading starting in John 18:1

“After saying these things, Jesus crossed the Kidron Valley with his disciples and entered a grove of olive trees. 2 Judas, the betrayer, knew this place, because Jesus had often gone there with his disciples. 3 The leading priests and Pharisees had given Judas a contingent of Roman soldiers and Temple guards to accompany him. Now with blazing torches, lanterns, and weapons, they arrived at the olive grove.

4 Jesus fully realized all that was going to happen to him, so he stepped forward to meet them. “Who are you looking for?” he asked. 5 “Jesus the Nazarene,” they replied. “I am he,” Jesus said. (Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them.) 6 As Jesus said “I am he,” they all drew back and fell to the ground! 7 Once more he asked them, “Who are you looking for?” And again they replied, “Jesus the Nazarene.” 8 “I told you that I am he,” Jesus said. “And since I am the one you want, let these others go.” 9 He did this to fulfill his own statement: “I did not lose a single one of those you have given me.”

In this moment, we see Judas plan come to full fruition.  He betrays Jesus

The gospel of Matthew alone then goes on to record Judas’ remorse and his death.  He sees that the leaders handed Jesus over to be killed and then he attempts to return the blood money to the priests, who now pretend to be all religious and pious and won’t touch it because it’s dirty money!  In a moment of deep remorse, he throws the money into the Temple sanctuary, leaves and then hangs himself.  It ends as a tragedy.  

We have to step back from Judas and ask “so what?”  Other than moving the whole plot of the crucifixion / resurrection forward, what does his life and his choices have to do with mine?  Well, there are lots of places we could mine here – greed, influence of evil in our lives, a mistaken understanding of Jesus’ work.  One of the questions to ask isn’t so much what were Judas;’ expectations of Jesus, but what were Jesus’ expectations of Judas as a disciple?  And do these expectations extend to me? 

Here’s where I feel personally challenged by the story of Judas.  I am forced to ask myself some harder questions about my own personal expectations of Jesus.  Often times we think in terms of “what do I want from Him?”  What are my expectations of what will happen when I pray/ When I give money to people who are poor?  What are my expectations of Jesus? 

Some of us have had our expectations shaped, even unknowingly, by our own preconceptions.  Just like Judas who wanted a Jesus who was a political liberator, we want a certain kind of Jesus.  A Jesus who likes all the people we like, who doesn’t’ ask too much of us but feels warm and fuzzy all the same. 

But Jesus will not be domesticated into your suburban expectations of discipleship. Jesus upends many if not most of our expectations and just when you think you have this whole faith thing figured out, Jesus often shows up and messes up your expectations.  Which can be infuriating but is also, conversely, powerfully liberating. 

Because Jesus has come to seek and to save.  But Jesus does it on God’s terms and in God’s way, not in the way that you or I or Judas might imagine.  And friend, some of you are still trying to achieve God’s salvation on your own terms.  What I mean by that is that you believe that if you are a good enough person or do certain religious activities, that God will grant you access to God’s eternal presence.  I’m here to tell you that that’s now how this works.  If you keep running down that road, it is a dead end.  You will be frustrated and you will

 But there is another way.  A way where you take your expectations and frustrations directly to God and you put it on the table and say “God… this is all of me. I confess all my flaws and shortcomings, the places where I have knowingly and unknowingly let evil in.  I need you to come in and clean this mess up.  I need your help finding hope and healing in my life.” 

And friend, if you choose to do that today, you cry out “save me, Save us, Lord!” I can assure you that God will respond.  Not always in the way that you expect, not always in the timing that you expect, but always, always, always with the grace you don’t expect and don’t deserve.  That’s the power of the cross and the power of Easter.  So don’t go into this week without acting on that. 

If you want to step deeper into that place of healing and hope, I want you to email me and we’ll celebrate together and help you take some next steps.  Next steps of trust in God and realigning expectations on what it means to be saved. 

We have a practice of responding to what we hear by adding our voices to the conversation in song here at Jericho.  Sometimes those songs are about God and God’s work in our lives and in the world.  Sometimes those songs are very personal and about US.  The words to this next song might resonate deeply with you.  If you are in a season of doubt, you might feel caught or trapped and the one thing I want you to hear and sing out, even if perhaps you don’t fully yet believe it, is that you can trust in God’s unfailing live despite the struggles of your faith.

So as we enter into this time, I invite you to respond as God leads you.   Let’s sing together…