Men’s Breakfast
I attended our Men’s Prayer Breakfast this morning. If you are a man and have never attended, I highly recommend you give it a try. It begins at 8:00 a.m. on the third Saturday of every month and is a great time for men to gather, have a little breakfast and share with each other.
“Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.” - Proverbs 27:17 ESV
Anyway, back to today’s breakfast. William’s message this morning began with Judas’ betrayal. He split the bribe part away as being after the intentional decision was made by Judas to betray Jesus.
Rather than focus on the rest of his short message (It was really good, William!), I want to think about Judas for a minute. For whatever reason, Judas, his betrayal and his suicide have always bothered me some. It is obvious, to me, that God planned for Judas to betray Jesus to set in motion his eventual crucifixion for my sins. The questions that bother me are why he did it and whether he had any say in the matter.
When this question first popped into my mind several decades ago, I really wanted to believe Judas didn’t have a say in the matter. Satan worked on Judas and made him betray Jesus. In my mind, that absolved him of the betrayal.
“During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him,” - John 13:2
But, just a week or two ago, as I write this, we heard a sermon that pointed out Judas was stealing from the common money purse and that is what drove him to betrayal.
“Mary therefore took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was about to betray him), said, “Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it.” - John 12:3-6
If these two passages didn’t complicate determining why Judas betrayed Jesus, how about this one:
“Then when Judas, his betrayer, saw that Jesus was condemned, he changed his mind and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders, saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” They said, “What is that to us? See to it yourself.” And throwing down the pieces of silver into the temple, he departed, and he went and hanged himself.” - Matthew 27:3-5
This, to me, suggests that Judas was trying to manipulate or force Jesus into establishing his kingdom then and there. When he was condemned to death, he realized his ploy didn’t work and was remorseful.
I’ve come to believe that all three explanations are true simultaneously. Judas, like all of us, was a sinner who wanted the good things for himself and was not beyond helping himself to some of the common funds to accomplish it. The devil took advantage of this and “whispered in his ear,” encouraging this sinful behavior and helping Judas justify his betrayal. Finally, part of Judas’ justification to himself was the thought that he was doing this for the bigger benefit of all.
When I look at Judas’ betrayal, I see him in myself, and it makes me ashamed. I may not be betraying someone to death, but certain thoughts and actions can be just as bad.
But I also have to stop and praise God that he has forgiven me of all my sins–past, present and future. It also encourages me to come closer to God to hear his voice in my life more clearly.
