Phony Man #12 Judas, Mr. Traitor part 2 (Mark 3:19)

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Phony Man Judas, Mr. Traitor–part 2

Part 12 Real Men–the apostles, #12 Judas, from Mark 3:19

 

Robert Hanssen was born in Chicago, Illinois.  His father was a police officer who for years, ironically, had been part of a special division named Red Unit, designed to flush out communist sympathizers.  Hanssen attended college, and to graduate was required to study a foreign language–Robert chose Russian, a popular choice among students of the sixties.

After graduation, he bounced around at various jobs, but finally became part of the Chicago Police Department as an investigator in a new section of the department that dealt with police corruption, which connected him with the FBI, which he later joined.  Moving to the FBI office in New York, he struggled to pay the bills, and when he became disenchanted by the apathetic attitude of his fellow FBI agents, Hanssen approached the Russians and offered to sell them secret documents.

He managed to get $20,000 for secret documents he provided, and while he was counting the money in his basement, he was actually seen by his wife.  He admitted to her how he got the money, but he said it was only for useless information given to the Russians.  In reality, it was very valuable information, including the identity of a Soviet double secret agent.  His wife, rather than notify the authorities, convinced him to confess his actions to a Catholic priest.  The priest told him to stop being a double agent, and to donate the money he received to a Catholic charity.

At work, he continued to be regarded as a very intelligent and capable agent.  But by 1983, he realized his dreams of reaching the FBI highest levels would never come true.  In addition, he could barely provide for his family on his current FBI salary–so he made contact with the Russians again and offered to pass secret documents in exchange for $100,000.  This time he gave the Russians the names of three Russian agents who were working for the United States–they were all tortured, jailed and executed as a result.

In the five years that followed, Robert gave the Russians more than 6,000 pages of secret documents.  Some of them contained secret plans for nuclear weapons and satellite positions.  During this period, he received $600,000, some jewelry, and a Rolex watch.  His information went directly to Soviet leaders in Moscow, and he received official letters of praise directly from the head of the KGB.

Finally in 1991, after the fall of the Soviet Union, Hanssen’s fingerprints were discovered on a bag used by Russian agents, so the FBI began discreet surveillance of Robert at work and at home.  He was caught on tape bringing top secret documents home, then caught passing information to Russian agents.  When he was arrested, the first thing he said was, “Why did it take you so long?”

During the trial, Hanssen argued that his family was never aware of his work as a spy, and that his exchange of secret documents for money was only to provide for his family.  On May 10, 2002, Robert Hanssen was sentenced to life in federal prison.  Traitors are often motivated by money, and the most famous traitor of all was no different.

Open your Bibles to Mark 3, and take the outline in your bulletin as we wrap up our study of real men and the life of Judas.  After Peter, James and John, verse 18 and 19 say, “and Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot; 19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Him.”

Judas’s name appears last in every biblical list of apostles except in Acts 1, where it doesn’t appear at all after he’s dead.  Each time Judas is mentioned in Scripture, he’s noted as a traitor.  The other eleven apostles are all great encouragements, because they show how ordinary guys can be used of God in mighty ways.  Judas, on the other hand, stands as a warning to our hearts of the potential of spiritual carelessness, squandered opportunity, sinful lusts, and the gradual hardening of the heart.

Judas was as close as one can get to Jesus externally without being impacted by Jesus internally.  Judas was never saved, never transformed, never born again though he lived with the author of new life itself for years.  And worse than that, Judas betrayed the light and turned Him over to the darkness.  Last time we saw . . .

#1  His unique BACKGROUND

In naming him Judas, his parents hoped he would be led by God, but he ended up being led by Satan.  The name Iscariot means “a man of Kerioth”, probably coming from Kerioth-Hezron, a humble town in south Judea, only 23 miles south of Jerusalem, making him the only disciple to come from the south Judean region, and not Galilee in the north.

This probably made Judas a loner and somewhat isolated in the midst of the twelve, yet he was also trusted by the twelve, being the one who kept the money box, which he stole from.  Judas blended right in, and even when Jesus pointed him out as the betrayer, the other eleven men never suspected him.  Only Jesus knew His heart.  John 6:64b says, “For Jesus knew who it was that would betray Him.”  The fact that Judas’s betrayal is prophesied in the Old Testament, and that Jesus knew he would betray Him raises the question of . . .

#2  The frightening TENSION of his sovereign selection

Judas chose to follow Jesus–and yet Judas had also been chosen by Jesus, but not for redemption.  His role of betrayal was ordained before the foundation of the world, and predicted in the Old Testament.  In Psalm 41:9, a messianic prophecy says, “Even my own familiar friend in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, has lifted up his heel against me.”  Jesus cites that exact verse in John 13:18 and says its fulfillment would come in His own betrayal.  “I do not speak of all of you. I know the ones I have chosen; but it is that the Scripture may be fulfilled, ‘He who eats My bread has lifted up his heel against Me.’”

Judas’s role as traitor was foreordained, yet no one forced Judas to betray Christ.  He acted freely and without external compulsion.  He was completely responsible for his own actions.  Judas did it for evil, yet God meant it for good.  Judas had every opportunity to turn from his sin–heard Christ urge him not to do the deed he was planning to do.  He heard every lesson Jesus taught during His ministry.  And Judas listened to all of that, unmoved.  He never applied the truth, he never responded to the Spirit–which led to . . .

#3  His slow dark PROGRESSION leading to betrayal

Judas’s villainous deed was not a sudden plunge, but the last step in his gradual descent to the waters of depravity.  So what factors contributed to his final, horrible crime?  When he left all to follow Jesus, he never dreamed he’d be a traitor.  But progressively, he slowly began to go down that road.  Hey, no one suddenly commits adultery (there was a lot of lust that led to that sin).  No one steals money on a whim.  No one becomes a drunk in a day.  Every great sin is always preceded by many little sins of heart.  What were the smaller sins which led to the giant betrayal?

First  His desire for position

Last time we saw that Judas was looking for an earthly kingdom.  He thought Jesus would deliver the Jewish nation from the Romans and establish His messianic rule immediately on earth.  Judas expected to share in the glory, power and riches of this new government. But then Judas heard Jesus teach on turning the other cheek, don‘t worry about tomorrow, don’t layup treasures on earth, final reward will be later, and don’t merely love your friends but love your enemies–even Romans.

Hearing this, Judas began to realize he was not going to gain power or position.  The Lord’s teaching increasingly didn’t sound like someone who would overthrow Rome and rule others as an earthly king.  As a result, Judas grew more disillusioned.  But Judas kept it hidden from everyone except Jesus.  And within his unregenerate soul, Judas also battled with . . .

Second  His greedy heart

Now turn to John 12.  Shortly after the raising of Lazarus, and just before His triumphal entry into Jerusalem, Jesus and the disciples returned to Bethany, just over the other side of the Mount of Olives.  This was the place where Lazarus had been raised from the dead, and where Lazarus lived with his sisters, Mary and Martha.  Jesus was invited to eat a meal at the home of Simon the Leper.  This blows me away–sitting at the table is an ex-dead guy, one who was dead long enough to stink.  No one can survive four days without water–so Laz was raised from the dead.  (Where are the crowds, the news crews, tabloids, the fans)?

His dear friend Lazarus is at the table (living, eating, drinking) with Mary and Martha, who were helping serve the meal—he went on with life.  John 12:2 to 3 tells us what happened, “So they made Him a supper there, and Martha was serving; but Lazarus was one of those reclining at the table with Him. 3 Mary then took a pound of very costly perfume of pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped His feet with her hair; and the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.”

This act is shocking and extravagant.  Say I took all my savings and my entire salary from last year, and used all that money to buy a dozen eggs from a rare bird.  Then I took those eggs and decided to fry them up and serve them scrambled for my beloved TC brothers at my house.  Why?  Just to show them how much I love them–crazy?  That might come close to matching this act—except not only was pouring out this perfume an act of love, but it was an overt act of worship.  There is adoration, affection and exaltation here.

But it did have the appearance of wastefulness.  Not only is perfume designed to be used in small amounts, but once it’s poured out, it cannot be reused.  To pour out a cup of expensive oil and use it to anoint someone’s feet gave the appearance of gross excess.  So much so, read verses 4 to 5, “But Judas Iscariot, one of His disciples, who was intending to betray Him, said,  5 ‘Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and given to poor people?’”

Three hundred denarii is a lot of money, and in my opinion for perfume?  It is a waste of money.  I must be allergic to perfume, because when I get a big whiff of it, it closes my throat and instantly gives me a headache.  For me, perfume does the opposite–instead of being compelling, it’s repelling to me.  Teaching at other churches, sometimes I have to move, to get away from those who drown themselves in smelly stuff, men or women.

Remember, a denarius was basically a working man’s daily wage (Matthew 20:2).  Three hundred denarii is a full year’s wages (allowing for Sabbaths and holidays off).  Before Jean and I both became no-scent people, in the past, I used to purchase perfume for her–Chanel #5.  But I would never think of spending a year’s wages on one dose of perfume.  This was an amazingly lavish act on the part of a family, who must have been wealthy.

But I am not siding with Judas here.  His response was a ploy–he feigned concern for the poor.  Apparently his protest seemed reasonable to the other apostles, because they all echoed Judas’s indignation.  Matthew 26:8, “But the disciples were indignant when they saw this, and said, ‘Why this waste?’”  The eleven saw the money as something that might have helped in their current, demanding ministry.  But the traitor saw the money as something to gain by theft.  Judas had become an expert in hiding his hypocrisy.

The apostle John, reflecting on this incident years later, wrote in John 12:6, “Now he said this, not because he was concerned about the poor, but because he was a thief, and as he had the money box, he used to pilfer what was put into it.”  Of course neither John, nor any of the other apostles saw through Judas’s deceit at the time, but in retrospect, and writing his gospel under the Holy Spirit’s inspiration, John told us plainly what Judas’s motive was—sheer greed.

Judas was covetous–that’s a violation of the tenth commandment, “Thou shalt not covet.”  At first, coveting seems inoffensive–but covetousness is a serious sin which leads to a host of other sins.  Coveting the reputation of another may lead to slander and lies.  Coveting a friend’s possessions may lead to theft.  Coveting a neighbor’s mate may lead to adultery.  Coveting some things badly enough can lead to murder.  Really?  Yes!

For Judas, coveting led to the crucifixion of the sinless Son of God.  Jesus responded to Judas (and the disciples) in verses 7 and 8, “Therefore Jesus said, ‘Let her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of My burial. 8 For you always have the poor with you, but you do not always have Me.’”  Given the circumstances, and because Jesus knew exactly what was in Judas’s heart, this seems a rather mild rebuke.  Jesus could have blasted Judas with a fierce condemnation, and exposed his real motives, but the Lord didn’t.

Nevertheless, this gentle reprimand seems to have made Judas resent Jesus even more.  Judas did not repent.  He did not even examine his own heart.  In fact, this incident seems to have been the turning point in his thinking.  Three hundred denarii would’ve been a lot to add to the treasury, giving Judas more opportunity to skim money for himself, or to hide his current thieving from the money box.  Because of Jesus’ willingness to receive such lavish worship, Judas missed a prime opportunity to embezzle funds.

And this event appears to have been the last straw for Judas, because immediately after telling of this perfume anointing, Matthew 26:14 to 16 says, “Then one of the twelve, named Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests 15 and said, ‘What are you willing to give me to betray Him to you?’ And they weighed out thirty pieces of silver to him. 16 From then on he began looking for a good opportunity to betray Jesus.”

Judas crept away from this dinner party, left Bethany, hiked down the mount of Olives, through the Kidron-valley, and back up to the temple area in Jerusalem–about 1/3 miles.  He then met with the chief priests and sold Jesus to His enemies for a pocketful of coins–thirty pieces of silver.  That’s all he could get.  According to Exodus 21:32, thirty pieces of silver was the price of a slave—not much, but maybe enough to hide his thievery, and maybe a way to force Jesus to rebel against Rome.

You should be shocked by the contrast here.  Our Savior is anointed with overwhelming love by Mary, and betrayed with overwhelming hate by Judas, all at the same time.  This is the first time Judas ever exposed himself in any way.  Up to this point he blended in perfectly with the eleven.  This is the first time on record he spoke out as an individual, and it is the first time he merited any kind of direct rebuke from Christ.  Apparently that was all it took to provoke his betrayal.  He had kept his bitterness bottled up inside as long as he could.  Now it spewed out like vomit in treachery.  Finally, all of this exposed . . .

Third  His pretentious heart

Turn to John 13.  Judas was not misguided.  He is not a victim, as he was presented in Jesus Christ Superstar, or as a misguided hero, as he was presented in The Passover Plot.  Judas was a willing, responsible, premeditated traitor.  Jesus calls him, in John 6:70 and 17:12, “a devil and the son of perdition,” not a misguided victim.

His dreams were crumbling, his plans were falling apart, his desires were failing, and it was eating away at him.  We face the same struggles–I can’t get the scholarship, I can’t make the team, I can’t get the girl or guy I want, I can’t get the job I’ve always wanted, I can’t advance in the company, and it begins to eat away at you.  And if you don’t confess your sin, you will become bitter in heart—like Judas did.

Now in the incredible final hours before the Lord is arrested on Thursday night, John 13 describes what Jesus says to His men in the Upper Room discourse.  Judas has already taken money to betray Christ, and has come back, pretending nothing unusual has happened.  Yet even here Jesus gives Judas an opportunity to repent.

Three strikes and you’re out–Judas gets three warnings here.  John tells us in verse 2 that Satan is directly involved.  John 13:2, “During supper, the devil having already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray Him.”  That’s no surprise.  Again, Judas did what he did willingly, without coercion.  Satan could not force him to betray Jesus.  But Satan suggested a plot, tempted Judas to continue, and planted the very seed of treachery in Judas’s heart.

Judas was so hostile to the truth, and so filled with evil that Judas became a willing instrument of Satan himself.  It was at this very point that Jesus gave the apostles a lesson in humility by washing their feet.  He washed the feet of all twelve, which means He even washed the feet of Judas.  Judas sat there and let Jesus wash his feet, and remained utterly unmoved.  The world’s worst sinner was also the world’s best hypocrite.

And think of the emotions of Christ at that moment–in the lowliest and most intimate act, serving the very man who would betray him, leading to His horrible death on a cross.  If it were me, I would probably have given his ankle a twist.  Peter was deeply moved by Jesus’ act of humility.  At first he was ashamed, and refused to let Jesus wash his feet.  But when Jesus said in verse 8, “’If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me,’” Peter replied in verse 9, “’Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!’”

In verse 10 Jesus replies, and gives the first warning, “’He who is bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean; and you are clean, but not all of you.’”  A buzz must have gone around the room when He said that.  There were only twelve of them in the room, and Jesus was saying someone in the group was not clean.  John adds in verse 11, “For He knew who would betray Him; therefore He said, ‘You are not all clean.’”  I think it is safe to speculate that the Lord looked at Judas for some small sign of repentance–but there was none.  Strike one.

Then in verse 18, Jesus spoke more directly, giving warning number two:  “’I do not speak concerning all of you.  I know whom I have chosen; but that the Scripture may be fulfilled, “He who eats bread with Me has lifted up his heel against Me.”’”  Jesus says Judas’s betrayal is the fulfillment of Psalm 41:9.  Strike two.

All of that seems to have gone over the heads of most of the apostles.  So in verse 21, Jesus makes it even more pointed, “When Jesus had said these things, He was troubled in spirit, and testified and said, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, one of you will betray Me.’”  All the disciples except Judas were deeply troubled.  They apparently began to examine their own hearts, because Matthew 26:22 says, “They were exceedingly sorrowful, and each of them began to say to Him, ‘Lord, is it I?’”

Even Judas, being careful to keep up appearances asked, in Matthew 26:25, “’Rabbi, is it I?’”  But with Judas, there was no sincere self-examination.  He only asked the question to make certain the others wouldn’t think it was him–Judas was concerned how they perceived him.

Then warning number three–in verses 23 through 30, “There was reclining on Jesus’ bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved. 24 So Simon Peter gestured to him, and said to him, ‘Tell us who it is of whom He is speaking.’ 25 He, leaning back thus on Jesus’ bosom, said to Him, ‘Lord, who is it?’ 26 Jesus then answered, ‘That is the one for whom I shall dip the morsel and give it to him.’ So when He had dipped the morsel, He took and gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. 27 After the morsel, Satan then entered into him. Therefore Jesus said to him, ‘What you do, do quickly.’ 28 Now no one of those reclining at the table knew for what purpose He had said this to him. 29 For some were supposing, because Judas had the money box, that Jesus was saying to him, Buy the things we have need of for the feast; or else, that he should give something to the poor. 30 So after receiving the morsel he went out immediately; and it was night.”  Strike three—out.

The day of salvation was closed for Judas.  He was given over.  Divine mercy gave way to divine judgment.  Sin had triumphed in his heart, so Satan moved in.

Notice, however, that even though Jesus had just spoken of the betrayer and had given Judas the morsel to identify him, it still did not compute in the minds of the apostles.  No one seemed to anticipate that Judas could be the traitor.  He fooled everyone but Jesus, right up to the very end.  Judas was a talented traitor, a skilled hypocrite, so Jesus sent him away–why?

Judas was given over to sin and Satan had entered him.  Jesus wasn’t about to have the first communion service with the devil and Judas present in the room.  They had to leave.  Only after Judas left did our Lord institute the Lord’s Supper.  To this day, when we come to the Lord’s Table, we are instructed to examine ourselves lest we come hypocritically to the Table, and bring judgment upon ourselves (1 Corinthians 11:27-32).

The apostle John reminds us in verse 21 that until Judas left, Jesus was deeply “troubled in spirit”–why?  Again–the father of lies and the author of murder was indwelling Judas and polluting their fellowship.  Judas intentionally rejected the kindness of Christ.  Would you feel troubled if one of your closest companions now had only the gaping jaws of Hell awaiting them?  And now the starting gun of the cross and bearing sin had begun.  All of that troubled Jesus.  No wonder he sent Judas away.

And Judas left because his disillusionment turned to hate, and hate mixed with greed, and hypocrisy turned to treachery.  Judas convinced himself Jesus had stolen his life, and robbed him of wealth and power.  And that thinking ate away at him until he finally became a monster who betrayed Christ.

#4  The HEARTBREAK of his betrayal

Turn to John 18.  Judas went straight from the Upper Room to the Sanhedrin.  He reported to them where they could apprehend Jesus under the cover of darkness.  Ever since getting the money, Judas had been waiting for just the right moment to betray Christ–it had to be at night, in the dark, when the crowds were not around.

Luke 22:6 tells us Judas had been seeking an opportunity “to betray [Jesus] to them in the absence of the multitude.”  Plus, he was pressed now, his secret was out in the open–Jesus knew, and eventually the eleven would figure it out, so he had to act.  And now he had the place–he knew where they would go . . . to the garden of Gethsemane to pray.  How did he know?

Luke 22:39 says it was Jesus’ custom to go there.  John 18:2 says Judas “knew the place; for Jesus often met there with His disciples.”  Judas knew exactly where to bring the authorities to capture Jesus.  So the next time you see Judas is in John 18–Judas is accomplishing his betrayal.

The evening was at its end.  Jesus had come to His customary place of prayer in the Gethsemane olive grove.  There He poured out his heart to the Father in such agony, that He sweat great drops of blood.  He left eight of the disciples some distance away, and went deep into the garden with Peter, James and John.  Then John 18:3 says, “Judas then, having received the Roman cohort and officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, came there with lanterns and torches and weapons.”

The Roman cohort was most likely from the Antonio Fortress, adjacent to the temple.  And a full cohort is six hundred men.  No exact figure is given, but all the gospel writers say it was a great multitude, probably hundreds of soldiers.  They obviously expected the worst, so they came armed to the teeth.  Verse 4, “So Jesus, knowing all the things that were coming upon Him, went forth and said to them, ‘Whom do you seek?’”

Jesus did not wait for Judas to single him out–He did not try to hide.  Verse 5 says He “went forward,” presenting Himself to them, and said, “I am He.”  Matthew 26:48 tells us Judas had a prearranged signal to identify Jesus:  “Whomever I kiss, He is the One; seize Him.”  Jesus had already stepped forward, but the heart of Judas was so malicious, Judas goes ahead and identifies Him anyway.

Jesus asked Judas in Luke 22:48, “‘Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?’”  Kissing is a mark of love, affection, respect and intimacy.  Judas’s feigned feelings for Christ only made this act that much darker.  Jesus, gracious to the end, even addressed Judas as “friend”.  Even in this action of betrayal, Jesus called Judas friend in Matthew 26:50.

Jesus had never been anything but friendly to Judas, but Judas was no true friend of Jesus.  His kiss was the kiss of treachery, deceit and hate.  Judas profaned the Lamb of God.  He profaned the Son of God.  He profaned the place of prayer.  He betrayed his Lord with a kiss.

#5  The DESCRIPTION of his death

Turn to Matthew 27.  Judas sold Jesus out for a pittance.  But as soon as the deal was complete, Judas’s conscience immediately came alive.  He found himself in a hell of his own making, hammered in his mind for what he’d done.  The money, which had been so important to him before, now didn’t matter.

Matthew 27:3 to 4 says, “Then Judas, His betrayer, seeing that He had been condemned, was remorseful and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying, ‘I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.’”  His remorse wasn’t the same as repentance, as what happens next clearly shows.  He was sorry, not because he’d sinned against Christ, but because his sin did not satisfy him the way he had hoped.

The chief priests and elders were unsympathetic.  Look at verse 4.  “They said, ‘What is that to us? You see to it!’”  They had what they wanted.  Judas could do what he liked with the money.  Nothing would undo his treachery now.  Matthew adds in verse 5, “Then he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed, and went and hanged himself.”  Judas was already in a hell of his own making.  His conscience would not be silenced, and that is the very essence of hell.

Sin brings guilt, and Judas’s sin brought him unbearable misery.  His remorse was not genuine repentance–otherwise he wouldn’t have killed himself.  He was merely sorry because he did not like what he felt.  Sadly, Judas did not seek the forgiveness of God.  He did not cry out for mercy.  He didn’t seek deliverance from Satan.  Instead, he tried to silence his conscience by killing himself.  This was the grief of a madman who’d lost control.

Matthew 27:6 to 8 concludes his account of Judas, “But the chief priests took the silver pieces and said, ‘It is not lawful to put them into the treasury, because they are the price of blood.’  And they consulted together and bought with them the potter’s field, to bury strangers in. Therefore that field has been called the Field of Blood to this day.”

Acts 1 lets us know that the field they bought with the blood money was the exact place where Judas hung himself.  He chose a tree that hung over some jagged rocks.  The rope or branch broke and Judas fell in the rocks, and Acts 1:18 says falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his intestines gushed out.  Judas was such a tragic figure, he couldn’t even kill himself the way he wanted to.  This is the last word in Scripture about Judas–all his intestines gushed out.  His life and his death were grotesque tragedies–a child of hell and a son of perdition, the worst traitor of all.

#6  The LESSONS from Judas’s life

1  Judas is a WARNING

To make certain you are truly born again, made new, washed, given a new nature with new desires to please, love and honor Christ from the heart–not merely with appearance of Christianity.

To make certain you don’t continue on the road of betrayal.  All of us betray Christ when we allow sin to go unconfessed, unrepentant, and undealt with in our hearts and lives.  Do not continue.

To make certain we don’t allow the idol of money or position to be more important than Christ in our lives–Judas is a warning.

2  Judas is a MOTIVATION

He should motivate us not to miss out on what we have in Christ.  Judas heard Jesus teach day-in and day-out for two years.  He could have asked Jesus any question he liked.  He could have sought and received from the Lord any help he needed.  But he forsook all of it for his secret love of money and more.  Yet we have all those blessing in Christ and more, as His children. How many of you here today are living more like Judas than like Peter, James or John?  Let his life motivate you to enjoy Christ, and live life abundantly in Him.  Are you enjoying prayer, the Word, living in the Spirit?  You have Christ.

3  Judas is an EXAMPLE

He is an illustration of the ugliness of spiritual betrayal.  How we wish that Judas were the only hypocrite who ever betrayed the Lord, but that is not true.  There are Judases in every age–people who seem to be true disciples and close followers of Christ, but who turn against Him for sinister and selfish reasons.  Judas’s life is a reminder to each of us about our need for self-examination, and for our shepherds to beware of wolves in our midst.

4  Judas is a PROOF

Some Christians doubt Christ when life gets harsh and difficult.  But Judas is proof that Christ is patient, good, loving and kind all the time.  Psalm 145:9 says, “The LORD is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works.”  The Lord even showed His loving-kindness to a reprobate like Judas.  Jesus still called him “Friend” in the midst of Judas’s betrayal.  Jesus never showed Judas anything but kindness, even though the Lord knew all along what Judas was planning to do.  Judas is a proof–if the Lord would show kindness to his betrayer, then the Lord surely will show kindness to His own children.  The question is, are you His child?  And are you trusting Him?

About Chris Mueller

Chris is the teaching pastor at Faith Bible Church - Murrieta.