Lesson 249 - Senior

Memory Verse

"Woe unto the world because of offences!  for it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh!" (Matthew 18:7).

Cross References

I The Man, Judas Iscariot

1. He was chosen and ordained as one of the 12 disciples and also as an Apostle, [MAT:10:1-5]; [MAT:26:14]; [MAK:3:13-19]; [LUK:6:13-16]; [ACT:1:17], [ACT:1:25].

2. He failed to continue in the way of righteousness, became covetous, and also a thief, no doubt having carnal aspirations concerning the supposed earthly kingdom of Christ, [JHN:12:4-6].

II The Betrayal and the Immediately Preceding Events

1. Old Testament prophets spoke of Judas' act, [PS:109:8] cf. [ACT:1:16-17]; [ZEC:11:12-13].

2. Jesus spoke prophetically of Judas' act, calling him a devil and the son of perdition, [JHN:6:70-71]; [JHN:13:18-30]; [JHN:17:12].

3. Nevertheless, Judas acted through his own willful choice, [MAT:26:1-5], [MAT:26:14-16]; [MAK:14:10-11]; [LUK:22:3], [LUK:22:6]; [ZEC:11:12-13].

4. Judas made his choice and then Satan entered into him, [LUK:22:3] cf. [JHN:13:2], [JHN:13:27].

5. As the son of perdition " no longer the son of God -" he could easily betray the Son of God with a kiss, [MAK:14:43-45]; [LUK:22:47-48]; [JHN:18:2-5].

III Judas' Tragic End

1. Realising the full effects of his deed for the first time, Judas was filled with remorse, but devoid of repentance toward God, [MAT:27:3-5]; [ZEC:11:12-13]; [PS:94:20-23].

2. He committed suicide, [MAT:27:5]; [ACT:1:18-19].

3. The money he had accepted, and then returned, was used to buy a potter's field, [MAT:27:6-10]; [ZEC:11:13].

Notes

An Example of Infamy

Of all the examples of infamy and treason that are preserved for us in sacred and secular history there is none that can possibly be worse than that of Judas Iscariot. His name will be in that classification forever, for he conceived and perpetrated the most heartless betrayal this world could ever see. He aided and made possible the seizure of the Son of God by the enemies of righteousness through an insincere and hypocritical kiss that is now known as the "Judas kiss." Even the ranks of infidelity refer to his action with scorn and contempt. And the thing that makes this so much worse is that this man was once a chosen disciple and Apostle of the Son of God!

We are not told in Scripture of the specific time or place where Judas prayed the penitent's prayer and obtained the forgiveness of sins that every man, woman, and child must receive if they enter Heaven. But we have every reason to believe that he was a partaker of that salvation, for God does not send out unbelievers to proclaim His story of salvation.

Judas was one of those who were sought out and then sent out, two by two, to preach the Gospel of the Kingdom [MAK:6:7]). He was one of those to whom Christ gave a commission, and to whom He gave power to carry out that commission. These disciples were, in addition, to "heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils"; and Christ assured them that they would be sustained during their labours for Him. Judas was one of those whom Jesus sent out as "sheep in the midst of wolves."

Judas was one of those of whom Jesus said that the Spirit of the Father would speak in. He was one of those who Christ said would be hated of all men for His sake, and that it would be his privilege also to endure persecution for the cause of Christ. He was one of those of whom Christ was speaking when He said that they, as disciples and servants, would not be greater than He, their Master and Lord.

Judas was one of those whom Christ contrasted with the servants of the kingdom of Beelzebub. He was one of those who chose to take up the cross and follow Jesus. He was also one of the number who returned to Jesus and told Him "all things, both what they had done, and what they had taught," and then went with Him into a place of solitude that they might rest their bodies after their mission for Him. (Read [MAT:10:1-42] and [MAK:6:7-13], [MAK:6:30-32].)

Can anyone rightly say that such a man was a sinner all the time that Jesus used him in the work of righteousness? Can any say that God, who knows the end from the beginning, disregarded His specific commandment that no notice, unrighteous, or unholy person should be used in the work of the ministry, and used an unregenerate Judas for the high calling and responsibility that he had in the first part of Christ's ministry? Can any say that he who was called and ordained to discipleship, appointed to apostleship, and who had obtained part of the ministry of the disciples -" which part was so prominent and necessary that the eleven Apostles felt that no time should elapse before a successor was appointed -" had never felt the pardon for sins or the surge of that new spiritual life that is given when one is made a new creature in Christ Jesus?

It is true that Jesus spoke of Judas as a devil on one occasion, and as the son of perdition on another. It is true that Old Testament prophets predicted his infamous actions and decisions. These Old Testament prophets also wrote of Christ's sufferings. They told of Christ's death and resurrection. They told of the price that He paid for us. But we are told that Christ had power to lay His life down and to take it up again. He had power to call a company of angels to oppose and overthrow the army that was brought against Him, and that He could come down from the very cross itself and refuse to die for the sins of mankind.

But Jesus willingly went to the cross. He willingly died, even though it was necessary for Him to ask for strength to endure that sad and painful hour. He fulfilled the prophecies of godly men of old. The prophecies were not commandments that Jesus was compelled to obey; they were history written in advance through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit who knows the mind of God, is equal with God, and has the infinite wisdom and foreknowledge of God.

Judas, too, fulfilled prophecy. He was called the "son of perdition" because he chose the path that led him to the condition that merited that name. He was not called the son of perdition because he was thus predestined and had no alternative. He was called a "devil" because he chose the way that led to darkness and alienation from God and Heaven. He wilfully chose the wages of unrighteousness instead of the rewards of God. And when he saw the full amount of those wages that would inevitably be paid him he acted like the coward that he was, plunging headlong into a blazing, eternal punishment from which there is no escape. The prophecy concerning Judas would never have been written as applying to him had he chosen the higher way instead of the way that leads to eternal damnation.

Let all who take refuge behind such an insecure fortress as the doctrine of the so-called eternal security of the believer take heed to the example and fate of this man whom God called, ordained, empowered, commissioned, and sent out to work for the Kingdom-cause. Let all who feel safe under the Blood, which they say was shed for their past, present, and future sins, realise that the Blood will never avail unless it is applied, and it can be applied only when there is repentance, and forgiveness is sought through faith and a sincere forsaking of sin. Let all who say that they will be sanctified at death read again the words of the Apostle Peter who said Judas "was numbered with us, and had obtained part of this ministry," from which he "by transgression fell." Peter also told of Judas' suicidal death and the reference that was made to him by the Psalmist, given to remind us of the curse that was even put upon his earthly possessions.

Can an individual be saved who refuses the means of grace and disobeys the commandment of God by betraying and delivering to wicked men Him whom we are commanded to love with all the heart, mind, soul, and spirit? Can a person be saved who has trodden under foot "the innocent blood" and thereby cut off his hope of that Blood cleansing away his sins? Can one who, by committing the sin of murder, plunging his soul into eternity and thereby throwing away his last opportunity to repent, ever be saved? The answer to all these questions is obviously No! Reader, think carefully on these things!

The Steps of Judas' Downfall

It might be asked: Of what benefit to us is the study of the life of this God-forsaken man? For one thing, we can see the steps that led to his eventually tragic end, and we must guard lest we take the same course.

Sin, at its ending, is always obnoxious. Even in this life there is nothing to be desired in the final outcome of a lifetime of dissipation and revelry. Physical ailments plague the last days of the majority of the wilfully rebellious. Peace of mind is always gone. The conscience, many times, allows its owner no rest. And the tortures of a body wrecked in sin remain when the pleasures and intoxications of the days of wantonness are gone.

But at the beginning of a life of sin, the very opposite is true. Sin often appeals to the mind and heart of the young. There may be, at first, a certain thrill, a certain joy, and a certain measures of excitement in an excursion into the paths of wrong. But such an excursion leaves a bitter sting of remorse, and many times so blemishes the mind and body of the wayward one that nothing will ever completely remove that scar or restore him to the pristine, or original, innocence he once possessed.

Let it not be thought, even for a moment, that these thrills of sin can equal the much greater, present-day compensations and the eternal rewards that we receive because of a life of righteousness. Some have tired of the godly life, the righteous influence of those around them, and the ordered path of the faithful ones, and have sought something new and different. The beginnings of sin are attractive to them since they have turned their hearts away from the Source of true happiness and joy.

Saul, Israel's first king, began a descent that also ended in suicide by allowing pride to come into his formerly humble heart. He, too, had felt the thrill of the Spirit's call and influence, had been given a new heart, and had been chosen by God. But Saul closed his life on earth in a tragedy that is second only to that of Judas. The path that led to God's final rejection of that king began with a seemingly innocent harbouring of pride in his heart.

Just so, the beginnings of Judas' downfall were what the world would call small and not to be noticed. He began to covet. He was placed in a position of responsibility in the little group that followed Jesus. But we are told that he became a thief. What he stole, or from whom it was stolen, is not told us. But the fact that he was a thief is plainly set forth.

It was then but a little step for him to bargain and covenant with the enemies of Christ. Jesus warned him, even to pointing him out as the one who would betray Him. But Judas did not repent or turn aside from the way that led to the perpetration of the world's most terrible crime.

Even the words of the prophets spoke to him of the tragic ending that was ahead for him if he committed the deed he contemplated. He must have had knowledge of those words for they were known to Peter, who in all probability was far less educated than Judas. It was not after the receiving of the Comforter -" our Guide to lead us into all truth and to reveal the things of God to us -" that Peter quoted the words spoken prophetically of Judas. It was at least ten days prior to that event on the Day of Pentecost [PS:69:25]; [PS:94:20-23]; 109:8 cf. [ACT:1:15-26]). Therefore, if Judas did not know, he could have known. He was justly condemned. Let the believer in the false doctrine of eternal security also note the condemnation of Judas in these prophetic passages. He was cut off in his own iniquity! And it is an inescapable fact that he had been, at one time, a righteous man!

After the rejection of the warnings given him, Judas let Satan put a determination in his heart to commit the actual deed [JHN:13:2]). Judas had already bargained with Christ's enemies. He had rendered himself vulnerable to Satan's attacks by reasoning with him through his henchmen.

The next step was devil-possession, for it is written, "After the sop Satan entered into him." Here, he be-came the son of perdition in actuality. He was now the complete servant of Satan -" an antichrist of that early age -" a complete apostate and Christ-rejecter. The hope that had once burned brightly in his heart was gone. He who had once been instrumental in the work of the Kingdom of Christ was now an abject and willing-hearted slave in the kingdom of Satan. Since we know there is joy in Heaven over every soul that is snatched from the kingdom of darkness and brought into the Kingdom of Light, we can assume that there was fiendish glee and rejoicing in the realms of the damned when Satan accomplished that infamous deed.

The next steps are obvious. Judas committed the deed without a tremor or bit of consideration for its terrible consequences. He felt no qualms of conscience when he kissed the pure, undefiled Christ of Glory, thereby giving the signal to the waiting armies that here was the One whom they sought. There was no affection in that kiss. There was no feeling of gratitude in it for all that Christ had done for him. There was only the spirit of betrayal, the double-dealing of a traitor, and the spirit of covetousness that would sell the most priceless of Jewel of Heaven for a mere pittance. (Judas received the equivalent of N19.50 in our money.)

The price that Judas set when bargaining with the enemies of Christ was that which was required, under the Law, as the most that could be exacted by a slaveholder when one of his best slaves was killed in an accident. Judas had now come to the place of rejection of God and His Christ where he could sell his Master for no more than the price of a slave!

Judas had remorse, but no repentance. He took back the "price of blood" and said that he had betrayed "the innocent blood." There was no other who could qualify for that title than Christ. There may have been people killed who were innocent of certain crimes or out-broken sins, and it could be said of those people that innocent blood had been shed. But when it is stated, "I have betrayed the innocent blood," none other than Christ could have been meant, for He alone is The Innocent One. Judas admitted his sin in betraying the divine Son of God, but more is necessary for salvation than a mere admission of guilt.

The thieves on their crosses were both guilty, but only one was saved; and he was saved only because he called upon the Lord for mercy and for help, admitting his guilt. There is no salvation for the unrepentant. Judas never repented to God. He attempted to obtain a certain reconciliation by repenting to the chief priests and elders, but never once was his prayer directed to God " the only One who can forgive sins.

Abandoned by God, rejected and scoffed at by those with whom he was conspiring, the former disciple and Apostle took his own life. We have seen that he sealed forever his own doom by ending his life with an act of sin, because in that very act of sin he passed out of this world to stand before his God, condemned for all his sins, unrepenting, and without hope.

Questions

1. To what responsibilities had Judas been called? and what was the title of this office?

2. What responsibility was his among the immediate twelve Apostles?

3. What was the first digression from righteousness that we see in Judas' life?

4. In what way did Judas violate the commandment that righteous men should not seek the fellowship or unnecessary companionship of the ungodly?

5. What warnings did Judas receive that could have saved him from his fate?

6. Was Judas compelled to do what he did by a divine prediction over which he had no control?

7. When can it be said that he fully became the "son of perdition"?

8. How does this lesson refute the false doctrine of the eternal security of the believer?

9. Explain the difference between Satan's activities concerning Judas, as recorded in [JHN:13:2] and 27.

10. What is the difference between remorse and repentance? Which did Judas have? And was Judas saved in the end?