There are people like Judas in every age – people who enjoy the blessings of Christ’s presence, who hear His word and enjoy the fellowship of His people in a special way. They are given every opportunity to receive the wonderful blessings of God. But like Judas of old, they prove to be hypocrites, selling out their Lord by the phony ways in which they live.

No treachery is worse than betrayal by a close friend or family member. Julius Caesar knew such treachery. Among the conspirators who assassinated the Roman leader on March 15, 44 B. C. was Marcus Junius Brutus.

Brutus had joined the opposition army against Caesar when civil war broke out in 49. However, Caesar pardoned him after the leader of that uprising, Pompey, died in 48. In a magnanimous gesture, Caesar appointed Brutus governor of Cisalpine Gaul in 46 and city praetor in 44. Nevertheless, Brutus resented Caesar's autocratic rule. He longed for the restoration of republican government. Hence, in spite of the favors done to him, he joined in a plot to murder the Emperor. Brutus' prestige attracted several dozen other senators to the murderous scheme.

Caesar had not only trusted Brutus - he had favored him as a son. According to Roman historians, the Emperor first resisted the onslaught of the assassins. But when he saw Brutus among them with his dagger drawn, Caesar ceased to struggle, pulled the top part of his robe over his face, and asked that famous question borrowed by William Shakespeare in his famous play, Julius Caesar: "Et tu Brute?" - "You too, Brutus?"

In some ways the betrayal of Julius Caesar by Brutus was not unlike that of Jesus Christ by Judas - both were betrayed by a close, trusted friend. The similarity ends there however, as we shall see in this morning’s message.

Turn with me please, to John 13. We’re going to read verses 12-30, which contain John’s description of the betrayal of Jesus by Judas.

In this passage we find Jesus reclined at table with His twelve disciples on the evening prior to His arrest. He had just washed the feet of all twelve men.

Now Jesus’ words turn to the pending betrayal.

A fundamental difference between the betrayal of Caesar and the betrayal of Christ is that Jesus knew ahead of time that it was going to happen and who would be the one to do it.

Can you imagine how the disciples’ eyes must have widened to see that? And yet, somehow, they missed the point.

There is much we could talk about in this passage, but I’ll limit myself to just a few points – the first being that this passage contains an important mention of:

The Scripture Jesus refers to comes from Psalm 41:9 – "Even my close friend, in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, has lifted up his heel against me."

The second half of verse 21 makes it clear what Jesus meant by using the passage: "Truly, truly, I say to you, that one of you will betray me."

Like many of the events of Jesus’ life, the betrayal of Judas was foretold in prophecy hundreds of years before it happened. Judas fit right into the divine master plan.

The passage Jesus quoted has what is called by students of prophecy, a "dual meaning," that is, it had a meaning in the day in which it was written and similar meaning in the future. It was first written about 1000 years before Christ. In that era it referred to the betrayal of King David by one of his close associates. David’s betrayer was Ahithophel(1), grandfather of Bathsheba. But here Jesus informs His disciples that the verse had that dual meaning. It also referred to His betrayal by a close associate. The picture of the lifting up of a heel suggests a man down on the battlefield and another comes over to take advantage of his weakened condition to crush his neck with the heel of his boot. The act of Judas, after being admitted to the group of Jesus’ closest disciples for three years, was no less treacherous.

There are other prophecies of this betrayal. Psalm 55:12-14 contains one:

Then again in that same Psalm, verses 20-21:

Zechariah contains another prediction of Christ’s betrayal – one that gives the exact price paid for the treachery. Listen to it in Zechariah 11:12-13:

This prediction had to do with what Judas did after the death of Jesus. He took the thirty pieces of silver paid him by the chief priests(2) (the price of a slave) and threw them down in the sanctuary.(3) Matthew tells us that the money was picked up and used to buy a potter’s field, the exact fulfillment of Zechariah 11.(4)

Old Testament prophets foretold the betrayal of Jesus by Judas hundreds of years before it happened, which raises a perplexing question that is sometimes asked about free will. If God knew that Judas was going to betray Jesus long before Judas was even born, and even went so far as to build His plan to redeem man by the death of His Son around the betrayal, does that mean that Judas had no choice in the matter? Did God predestine Judas to be a betrayer in such a way that Judas could have done nothing else?

First, let me say that it was indeed Judas who was foreseen in the prophecy. Jesus made that clear later on this same night. We read in John 17:12: "While I was with them, I was keeping them in Thy name which Thou hast given Me; and I guarded them, and not one of them perished but the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled."

Here Jesus is speaking to God the Father and He makes reference to the only one of the twelve disciples who perished, the "son of perdition" (perdition is a word meaning "eternal damnation"). Jesus’ words make it clear that both the betrayal and the betrayer were known ahead of time. In fact, we read these words in John 6:70-71: "Jesus answered them, ‘Did I Myself not choose you, the twelve, and yet one of you is a devil?’ Now He meant Judas the son of Simon Iscariot, for he, one of the twelve, was going to betray Him."

Since both the betrayal and the betrayer were known ahead of time, does it mean that Judas was created for the role of betrayer? Does God create certain people to fulfill His purpose and then cast them into Hell forever for merely carrying out what they have been pre-programmed to do? Such a proposition flies in the face of the whole concept of free will and God’s impartiality taught elsewhere in Scripture.(5)

Then how can we explain it? Let me suggest a line of thinking…

Being finite creatures, we are limited in time and space. We do not know the future. We do not even know what it is like to know the future. God is not so limited. He knows "the end from the beginning."(6) While He grants free will to all of us – the freedom to live the way we chose during our brief time on earth - He also knows the outcome of the choices we will make because He knows the future. Perhaps it would be like making videotape of every choice you make in a day. No one interferes with the choices you record on that tape. Now imagine somehow that someone were able to possess that completed tape two days before it was made. I know such a thing is impossible from our perspective, but that is just my point. God isn’t so limited. Thus we have a case where God knows the future, yet free will is not impinged. Only when we insist upon trying to fit the infinite God into our finite understanding do we force Him into things He clearly denies in His Word.

Judas was a chosen instrument of God, not apart from his own free will. His evil was by his own desire and design, yet it was also woven into the plan of God in such a way that God could foretell it through the mouths of prophets.

Our first point then has been prophecy. Let’s move on now to a second point, which I’m calling:

Unmasking Judas as the betrayer apparently caused Jesus deep trouble and anguish. What was it that troubled Him? Was it the fact that Judas had been given the same degree of love and consideration as the other disciples, yet was about to reject it? Was it His deep hatred for sin and the effects He could see ravaging Judas’ life? Was He troubled by Judas’ hypocrisy? Was He burdened as He thought of Judas facing eternity in Hell? Was He bothered because time and time again He had tried to reach out to Judas, only to see him move progressively farther and farther away?

"One of you will betray Me," Jesus said to His disciples.

Look at their response.

In my opinion, the perplexity that showed on the face of each man present in the aftermath of this announcement speaks volumes. It shows that Jesus had shown the same love for Judas over the three years of His ministry as He had shown to the others. If Jesus had ever treated Judas any differently than the rest – had He been more distant or shown some resentment for what He knew Judas would do – they would have known the identity of the betrayer immediately. Had Jesus harbored any bitterness toward Judas, they would have known, since they had lived in such close quarters for nearly three years. Apparently those years had shown Jesus just as gentle, just as loving, just as kind to Judas as He was to the other eleven. Not one of them could guess whom He was talking about.

How could you love someone whom you knew was going to double cross you and cause you the greatest anguish of your life? How could you treat kindly one whom you knew would take every good thing you had done for him and throw it back into your face?

Jesus was living out in his relationship to Judas the very thing He called others to do - "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you."(7) Do you suppose, when Jesus went off into the mountains on His own to pray for his disciples, that He excluded Judas from His prayers? I don’t think so. He probably prayed for him right along with the rest.

What a contrast between the love Jesus had shown to Judas over the three years they had been together and the hatred Judas returned to Him, being ready to sell Him for the price of a common slave!

Why was Jesus unmasking Judas at this point? Why not say nothing and just let the betrayer do his treacherous deed? I see two reasons. First, Jesus did it for the sake of the other disciples. That is clear from verse 19.

If they understood that Jesus knew what was going to happen ahead of time, they wouldn’t be so inclined to believe that events were out of control. They would also have another proof that He was Messiah.

But I also think there is another reason. I think Jesus did this for Judas’ sake. I believe He was giving Judas one last chance to think this over and turn around. I see that reason in verses 24-26.

The "morsel" (other translations say "sop" or "piece of bread") was a fragment of broken bread taken from the unleavened cakes that would be on the table as part of the Passover feast. Also on the table would be a dish called the cheshireth, filled with bitter herbs, vinegar, salt, and mashed fruit consisting of dates, figs, raisins, and water, blended into a pasty substance. It was eaten as a dip.

It was a mark of honor for the host to dip a morsel into the cheshireth and give it to the guest of honor. Jesus did this as though Judas were a special guest of honor – a kind of noble gesture to one who was going to betray Him – a final act of love to turn Judas around.

One would think such a gesture would have broken Judas’ heart. Sadly, it did not. Judas’ heart was hard by this time, perhaps made that way by the many months of pilfering from the moneybox.(8)

Judas was perhaps in that state referred to in Hebrews 6 as "impossible to renew to repentance." He had "fallen away" so fully – his apostasy was so great – that nothing would turn his will.

Can a person go so far into sin that God’s love extended to him no longer has any effect? I think we see the answer to that here.

Was it God’s refusal to take Judas back that froze him into his hell bound path? No. Even at this point Jesus was reaching out to him. The problem was not that grace could not reach. The problem was that free will would not respond.

Sin has a cumulative effect on believers. There is an immediate effect which, when we confess our sin, we have an Advocate who pleads our case before the Judge.(9) Forgiveness is granted on the spot. However, with every sin there is also a slight hardening of our will. If the sin is repeated, the hardening gets worse. Eventually, cumulatively, we can become dangerously hardened to the pleading of God’s Spirit. This is what the Hebrew writer warned about in Hebrews 3:13: "But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called ‘Today,’ lest any one of you be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin."

Such a "hardened" person does not want to return to God anymore. He or she loves the sin too much. I believe that was the case with Judas. He was fully deceived by Satan. He had been flirting with sin so long that now Satan had taken over. The next verse verifies that.

Notice how suddenly Jesus’ attitude changed. He was through with Judas. The betrayer had crossed the line in resisting grace. No more would there be any reaching out to him. The difference was like night and day. From then on all Jesus wanted to do was get rid of him. At this point the command of Jesus and the command of Satan were the same. Satan said, "Betray him." Jesus said, "What you do, do quickly." I find myself wondering whether these words were actually addressed to Satan. The devil was determined to destroy Jesus and Jesus was determined to die for the sins of the world. This might be the only time that God and Satan ever agreed on anything, though I don’t believe Satan knew what the result of the betrayal was going to be. Had he known of Jesus’ resurrection and victory over death, he would not have pushed Judas to betray Him. But that is another subject for another sermon.

Of course no one else in the room saw Satan enter Judas.

You must have the eyes of God to know what is really going on in the world. We would know nothing of Satan entering Judas were this not recorded here. The fact is, if we are to understand anything going on the realm of unseen spiritual realities, we must have the eyes of God - and the eyes of God for today are found in this book, the Word of God, the Bible. Without this book my friends, we’re as blind to the real issues of life and death as those other disciples were to fact that Satan himself was present in the very room where they were reclining. Why it is that so many people can be interested in spiritual things and bored with this book is beyond my understanding.

We come now to what I have called simply:

The next verse records the final departure of Judas from Jesus – the final contact that he probably remembers from his place of torment to this very day.

So off he went, into the night, to make his deals for the betrayal of Jesus. Off he went, into the night, a solitary figure, leaving not just his companions of the last three years, but the final offer of God’s grace. Off he went, not only into a Judean night but also into an eternal night from which he would never return. Judas walked away into the darkness of hell.

There are people like Judas in every age – people who enjoy the blessings of Christ’s presence, who hear His word and enjoy the fellowship of His people in a special way. They are given every opportunity to receive the wonderful blessings of God. But like Judas of old, they prove to be hypocrites, selling out their Lord by the phony ways in which they live. Yes, Jesus reaches out to them in love, but they coldly turn away, once, twice, then perhaps that same final time.

The story of Judas stands as a solemn warning to all of us to be true to Jesus to the fullest of our ability – with a "whole heart" as the Bible says. Are we doing that?

A poem from an earlier time tells what is perhaps the real tragedy of this story…

Don’t repeat his mistake.

Footnotes: Use your back button to return to your place

1. 2 Samuel 15:12
2. Matthew 26:15
3. Matthew 27:3-5
4. Matthew 27:9-10
5. Acts 10:34; Romans 2:9-11; Galatians 2:6; Ephesians 6:9; Colossians 3:25.
6. Isaiah 46:10
7. Matthew 5:44
8. John 12:6
9. 1 John 2:1
10. Author Unknown

Dave Redick is Minister of the Hwy 20 Church of Christ in Sweet Home, Oregon and Editor of The Preacher's Study. He may be reached at pstudysupport@comcast.net.

Copyright © 1996-2008 by The Preacher's Study. Permission is granted to subscribers to use this document in total or in sermon preparation in the context of the local congregation only. Publishing it in a book, on the Internet, or anyplace beyond the local congregation is prohibited.

All Scripture quotations and references are from the New American Standard Version unless otherwise stated.

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