I have heard people say when I get to heaven I want to see Peter, Paul or Samson…
But you will never hear anyone say when I get to heaven I want to see JUDAS Iscariot….why? Because he is not there.
Judas is referred to by the Word of God as “The SON OF PERDITION”.
Only two people are referred to in the scriptures as “SON OF PERDITION”.
(1)One is Judas…
John 17:12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.
(2) The antichrist
In 2 Thessalonians 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, THE SON OF PERDICTION.
Since Judas and the antichrist are referred to as the SON OF PERDITION some believed that when Christ came to die for our sins that Judas the SON OF PERDITION will be REINCARNATED ON THE EARTH as the anti-christ.
Illus: The great scholar W. Arthur Pink states this. “As we have seen, in John 17:12 Christ termed Judas "the Son of Perdition," and 2 Thess.2:3 we find that the Antichrist is similarly designated -- "That Man of Sin is revealed, the Son of Perdition."
These are the only two places in the entire Bible where his name occurs, and the fact that Judas was termed by Christ not a "son of perdition," but "the Son of Perdition," and the fact that the Man of Sin is so named prove that they are one and the same person. What other conclusion can a simple and unprejudiced reader of the Bible come to?”
The implication is that such a person in an unredeemable state,
The Bible tells us as one of the twelve the Lord knew who he was…A devil.
John 6:70-71 Jesus answered them, have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil? He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon: for he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve.
Also, the Bible tells us why he was here on earth…
“…That the scripture might be fulfilled.”
The fact that the phrase is used again to describe the Antichrist shows us that forgiveness was not planned for Judas. He was indeed “doomed to destruction.
So Judas will not be in heaven based on the scriptures
It is hard to believe that someone can be one of His twelve disciples and he is not in heaven.
Illus: But also according to the Word of God it is going to be hard to believe that some so called preachers, Sunday school teachers, Deacons and church members one day will not be there also.
But normally when we think of betrayal we think of JUDAS. He goes down in the history books as committing the biggest betrayal ever been committed.
The fact is, he is not the only one who betrayed Christ.
1) However when He was being crucified, his disciples betrayed Him when they went and hid behind closed doors in fear for their lives.
2) Peter betrayed Him when he stood by a fireside and said he didn’t know the Lord in fear for his life.
3) We must examine our own life because we have betrayed Him many times when we kept quiet, in fear of not wanting to be identified with Him.
The Lord certainly knows the hurt that comes from being betrayed.
• In His last week on earth, Jesus went from being PRAISED to being BETRAYED!
• During the last week of His life, He entered Jerusalem as a hero.
• His disciples were convinced they are on the winning team. It looks like they cannot lose by following Him and they wanted to hang on to his coat-tails.
• The people were shouting and praising Jesus. They were all talking about the great miracles He had performed.
• They were pumped and excited just like the fans at a football game.
But their star player started doing things FANS didn’t like…
• And the crowd turned on the team and the hero.
• The shouts go from cheers to boo’s.
We call these fans fickle, not true supporters of the team.
Illus: The University of South Carolina has many thousands of fans. But some of them are known to be fickle football fans.
• When they are playing in William Brice Football stadium and they are winning, it is packed with screaming fans.
• But when they start to lose, these so-called fans are heading for the parking lot to get in their cars and go home before the game is over.
This seems to be how the Lord’s fans treated Him. In that one week they go from PRAISE to BETRAYAL.
• We could talk a great deal about the many who betrayed the Lord Jesus, but this passage deals with Judas.
• Judas is the individual we want to concentrate on because he actually betrayed the Lord not for fear but for thirty pieces of silver.
• When we hear the name Judas we immediately think of betrayal.
• When we hear the name Judas we immediately know why dad and mothers do not name their little boys Judas.
The Lord speaks about His betrayal in Mark 14:21, we read, “The Son of man indeed goeth, as it is written of him: but woe to that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! Good were it for that man if he had never been born.”
What are the two things that lead him to betray Christ?
We need to consider…
I. HIS SELF-SERVING AGENDA
It appears that Judas most likely entered into his relationship with Christ with a SELF-SERVING AGENDA.
Illus: A business in Columbia, S.C. was having a business meeting. The meeting of this company was told by the owner for the salesmen to join certain churches in town to get business contacts.
You would be surprise the things that are done for people who have a SELF-SERVING AGENDA!!!
No doubt about it Judas became follower of the Lord Jesus because he had a SELF-SERVING AGENDA!
John tells us a great deal about his character.
Illus: Remember when Judas complained about Mary of Bethany pouring the costly ointment on the Lord?
He made it sound as if he was concerned with the poor and that it could have been sold for a lot of money and used to help them.
He did not have God fooled, Look at John 12:6, we read, “This he said, not that he cared for the poor; but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and bare what was put therein.”
• He ate with Jesus
• He carried the money bag for the team
• He was trusted by everyone
• No one seems to have questioned the decision to put Judas in charge of the money
• No one suspected he was the evil man he turned out to be
Later, when Jesus talked about the impending betrayal, the disciples did not know it was Judas.
HOW DO WE KNOW THAT?
All twelve were asking, “Is it I?”
But even a greater question did the Lord Jesus know Judas was an impostor?
Some say He emptied himself of divine knowledge.
That is, He did not know that Judas was a devil!
But I disagree with that thinking and so does the scriptures.
The VIEW POINT OF OPEN THEISM is that God does not know what is going to occur in the future. He along with the rest of us has to wait and see what occurs.
The problem with this point of view is that Jesus tells us that He knew that Judas was going to betray Him before he betrayed Him.
The New Testament sets out a number of facts in the account of Judas’ betrayal of Jesus.
(1) Judas Had Met with the Chief Priests about Betraying Jesus
Judas initiated a meeting with the chief priests about betraying Jesus.
We read about that in Matthew 26:14-15 Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests, and said unto them, what will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver.
Therefore, Judas made the first move. He contacted them, they did not contact him.
(2) Jesus Predicted His Betrayal by One of His Own Disciples
We also discover that Jesus knew this would happen. He made it clear that He would experience betrayal.
Not only did Jesus say that He was going to be betraying Him, He said that His betrayal would be done by one of His own disciples.
Therefore, it was going to be somebody close to Him who would be the betrayer.
Thus, Jesus specifically said that one out of the Twelve would be His betrayer.
Jesus went further. He said it would be one who dipped in the bowl with him.
We read, Mark 14:20 and he answered and said unto them, it is one of the twelve, that dippeth with me in the dish.
Not only would it be one of the Twelve, it would be one who dipped with Him in the dish. The fact that Jesus willingly ate out of the same dish as Judas was no sign of friendship. Rather, it shows the awfulness of the betrayal.
3. Judas Iscariot Was Specifically Mentioned as the Betraying Disciple
Jesus went a step further. He specifically stated that Judas Iscariot would be the disciple who would betray Him.
In fact, at the Last Supper, Jesus told His disciples that one of them would betray Him that very night. When Judas asked Jesus if he would be the offending party, Jesus said that he would indeed be the betrayer.
Matthew 26:25 Then Judas, which betrayed him, answered and said, Master, is it I? He said unto him, Thou hast said.
Also, remember what he said in John 6:70-71 in the early part of his ministry. “Jesus answered them, Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil? He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon: for he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve.”
• Judas seems to have one thing that motivated him, and it was not love for the Lord, but love for MONEY!
• Judas is a man who saw the glory of God like few people saw it.
• Judas saw Jesus heal the sick, cleanse lepers, open blind eyes, and even raise the dead.
HOW CAN GOD USE A MAN LIKE THIS?
Illus: Evangelist A.A. Allen was a very poplar PENTECOSTAL EVANGELIST faith healer active in the United States from the 1930s to the mid-1960s.
• Thousands of people came out to hear him preach and people got saved.
• But he was not only known to be a great evangelist in the eyes mankind’s he was also very big DRUNK!
• He was, for a time, associated with the "Voice of Healing" movement founded by Gordon Lindsay. Allen died of alcoholism and liver failure in a coma at the age of 59 in San Francisco, California, and was buried at his ministry headquarters in Miracle Valley, Arizona.
How can such a person be used of God?
God can use all KINDS OF THINGS and ALL KINDS of people.
(1) In Genesis 4:9-10 God spoke through the blood of Abel. “And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said I know not: Am I my brother's keeper? And he said, what hast thou done? The voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground.” God used the blood of Abel to cry out to him.
(2) In Numbers 22:32-33 God spoke through a donkey. “And the angel of the LORD said unto him, Wherefore hast thou smitten thine ass these three times? Behold, I went out to withstand thee, because thy way is perverse before me: And the ass saw me, and turned from me these three times: unless she had turned from me, surely now also I had slain thee, and saved her alive.”
(3) In Luke 22:34 God spoke through a rooster crowing. “And he said, I tell thee, Peter, the cock shall not crow this day, before that thou shalt thrice deny that thou knowest me.”
God has used all KINDS OF PEOPLE and ALL KINDS OF THINGS to carry out His work.
He even used JUDAS, and the Lord said in John 6 that he was a devil.
Judas entered this relationship with the Lord, not because he loved Him, but with a SELF-SERVING AGENDA. He was not thinking about what he could do for the Lord, but about what the Lord could do for him.
Illus: Every time we have a presidential election, many politicians head for Washington, DC.
WHY?
Because a new man has come into power and they want to get appointed to serve with him so they can use his popularity to benefit themselves.
To be fair to Judas, this seems to be a problem with some of the other disciples also. Perhaps not to the same extent, but we can see this SELF-SERVING AGENDA in their lives also.
There seem to be A REAL POWER STRUGGLE with the disciples. When the Lord’s popularity was soaring and it looked like He was going to conquer the world, they all wanted to hang on to his coat tails.
Remember the mother that came to the Lord with a request in Matthew?
In Matthew 20:21-24, we read, “And he said unto her, what wilt thou? She saith unto him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom. But Jesus answered and said, ye know not what ye ask. Are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? They say unto him, we are able. And he saith unto them, ye shall drink indeed of my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with: but to sit on my right hand, and on my left, is not mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father. And when the ten heard it, they were moved with indignation against the two brethren.”
Notice, the Bible says that when the other disciples heard what this mother had done by trying to get the edge on them, “They were moved with indignation against the two brethren.”
It sounds like they thought maybe these two sons had put their mother up to making this request.
But it seems that THEN and NOW, many serve the Lord out of a SELF–SERVING AGENDA.
As long as the Lord can be used to promote their agenda, they hang in there.
• But once they feel He can no longer serve their agenda, AND THEN IT IS TIME TO BETRAY HIM AND GET HIM OUT OF THEIR LIVES!
• We have to guard our hearts carefully as we enter into a relationship.
If we come into a relationship driven by what we can get out of it, we have taken the first step toward betrayal.
Paul says, in Phil. 2:3 “Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteems other better than themselves.”
That applies to:
• A Pastor
• A Deacon
• A Church member
For example, no one should marry another person to simply get what he or she thinks they can get from that other person.
This kind of a marriage is headed for the divorce court the day they tie the knot, because the motive for the relationship is wrong to begin with.
Many will join a church having a self-serving agenda!
• They will use a church to get married in
• They will use a church for funerals to bury their deceased
• They will use a church for the programs and activities
• They will use a church when they need financial assistance
But when they can find another church that has more to offer, they will walk away from the church they profess to love.
Judas started following Jesus for all the wrong reasons, and never corrected his selfish agenda
We CONSIDER HIS SELF-SERVING AGENDA
And we need to …
II. CONSIDER HIS OUT OF CONTROL AMBITION
Ambition is a wonderful thing, but like many other wonderful things in our life it must be under control.
For example, our appetite for food is a wonderful thing, but we have to control it or else pay the consequences.
Illus: Thinking of food, did you hear about the couple that invited their preacher over for Sunday dinner?
• While they were in the kitchen preparing the meal, the minister asked their son what they were having. "Goat," the little boy replied.
• "Goat" replied the startled man of the cloth. "Are you sure about that?"
• "Yep," said the youngster. "I heard Pa say to Ma, 'Might as well have the old goat for dinner today as any other day.'" – (Pamela McManus)
It is wonderful to have ambition, but like many other things in our life, it has to be controlled.
It seems that Judas’ ambition was to get…
• ALL HE CAN,
• HOWEVER HE CAN
• AND WHENEVER HE CAN!
For example…
Illus: When he saw that costly ointment being poured out, dollar signs were running through his head.
THE LORD REBUKED HIM SHARPLY AND PUBLICLY.
Couldn’t the Lord have privately rebuked him?
Yes, but the Lord publicly rebuked him because Judas publicly rebuked Mary for pouring the expensive ointment on the Lord.
The Lord publicly rebuked him and told him to LEAVE HER ALONE.
If it was a private situation He would have handled it privately.
Judas became disappointed and disillusioned!
Why?
Because the course of the relationship did not follow his agenda.
After the Lord rebuked him, his hope to be a big shot was dampened, and he resented the way Jesus handled the situation.
Matthew specifically ties that incident with the betrayal.
Look at Matthew 26:14-16, “Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests, and said unto them, what will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver. And from that time, he sought opportunity to betray him.”
• For Judas and the other disciples, it was becoming more and more evident that Jesus was not going to come into a position of power the way they expected.
• In fact, Jesus was being sought by the authorities, and they planned to arrest Him.
• Judas certainly did not like the way Jesus was preaching at this time. He was talking more about a CROSS than a CROWN!
All his dreams were blowing up before him. He felt it was time to do something different, even if it was wrong.
Remember what the Lord said about his betrayal in Mark 14:21, we read, “The Son of man indeed goeth, as it is written of him: but woe to that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! Good were it for that man if he had never been born.”
Judas turned on Jesus and sold Him out for 30 pieces of silver — not a lot of money that’s for sure!
But at that point, Judas was trying to salvage what he could from all of this.
The name of Judas is associated with BETRAYAL!
We are dumbfounded how a man could sell out the Lord for thirty-pieces of silver.
• There are a lot of different opinions of the value of thirty-pieces of silver are worth in dollar value. So we do not know.
• But we do know you can go on go on Ebay today and buy 30 Pieces of Silver Coins for $47.42.
But while Judas was willing to sell out what the world has to offer for $47.42 cents there are other are selling the Lord out for a lot less.
Can you imagine how these people in hell are going to feel like such a fool? Nothing the devil has to offer is worth dying and going to hell over…
Judas life is a warning for each and every one of us.
Judas might as well hang a sign around his neck that read, “For Sale”.
ARE YOU FOR SALE?
Conclusion:
When we think of Judas, we cannot help but to think what a fool he must feel to know that he sold is soul for thirty pieces of silver.
But can you imagine what a fool they will feel when they have sold their soul for less than that!
What is keeping you from coming to Christ today!!!
Do not make the mistake of Judas of Walking with Jesus but Following Satan (Living a Double Life)
I. CONSIDER HIS SELF-SERVING AGENDA
II. CONSIDER HIS OUT-OF-CONTROL AMBITION
