Is there somebody you've been witnessing to and you just cannot reach? Is there a family member who you love very much and it hurts your heart that the truth doesn't touch them? What if that person used to be a great believer, hot on the Word and they don't seem to care anymore? Your heart aches and you just keep reaching out to God and to them, right? Well, if Jesus was to be tempted in all things just as we are, can you understand that Judas Iscariot was more than just a traitor?
He was a man of great ability that God needed on Jesus' apostle team. He probably did wonderful things. There was a reason he was on the apostle team, and not just because God needed somebody close to betray Jesus. Moreover, Jesus obviously loved him very much. It is hard to invest a great deal of personal time teaching somebody and not to have compassion for them.
I heard Nick teach about Judas when he was teaching about prayer in the Gospels. He mentioned that Jesus prayed all night before he selected the 12 apostles out of the crowd of disciples. He said that Jesus wanted to make sure He had it right in His selection, so He prayed all night. Perhaps He knew that Judas would betray Him at that point. Nick's point was that Judas had free will; it wasn't that he was predestined to be a turn-coat. At any point, Judas could have changed his mind and made a different decision. God knew in advance what Judas would do; it was not his "destiny" to betray Jesus. Judas himself made a deliberate, free will decision to do so. Obviously, just as King Saul reached a point of no return in his reign, Judas would have reached a point of no return in his ministry of apostleship by his betrayal of Jesus. He was demonized.
John 6:70 - 71 70Jesus answered them, Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil? 71He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon: for he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve.
The question could be is he just demonized or had he committed the unpardonable sin? I would argue that there isn't much difference in the end. Instead of going to God and seeking forgiveness, he took matters into his own hands and committed suicide like King Saul did. It takes humility to go to God and it takes coach ability to turn your life around. The apostle Paul did it. King David did it. Maybe you did it. I know that I tried to kill myself when I was 12. What would have happened? It would have had a horrible effect on my family who wouldn't have understood. I would have never experienced the highlight of my awful childhood the next year when Ben Shapiro (not the famous one) asked me to dance and we won a competition. I would have never been born again and there would have been people who might have never been reached with the Word. Because I am so great? Not really. When I let God be God, it made a big difference in my effectiveness. What about Judas? He could have taken a different route.
Dr. Stanley talked about suicide in one of his teachings, and he talked about how you forfeit rewards by cashing in your chips early. First off, what is your witness? Unbelievers will say that's what you get for believing in God. Other people who love you will be tormented that they could have said something to save you. Rev Stanley said that what you are saying when you kill yourself is that you want to do it your way and that you don't care that God will come through with a deliverance for you. It could have ended differently with Judas. Maybe he could have been as great a witness as the apostle Paul. Look at what God did for Paul. What if he gave up on the road to Damascus? What if David did himself in after having Uriah killed off?
What event made Judas turn? The Word said he made his decision when Mary anointed Jesus' feet with the expensive ointment "nard." I read in Mark 14 in the World English Bible version about the woman putting the expensive ointment on Jesus' feet. The note says that 300denarii is about 1 year's wage for an agricultural worker. We see that this event did it for Judas as the thieving accountant for the group.
John 12:4-6 4Then saith one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, which should betray him,5Why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence, and given to the poor?6 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.
Consider this. Jesus and His followers slept anywhere.
Matthew 8:20 And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.
Jesus and His disciples often went without eating because they were so busy ministering healing the multitudes.
Mark 6:31 And he said unto them, Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat.
So, Jesus takes the disciples on a boat trip to a deserted place to rest but they were soon found by the multitudes. You remember that Jesus instructed them and miraculously fed them with the fish and bread.
Judas obviously was tired of living on believing and was critical of Jesus' decisions. He must have felt that he "deserved better. They could be eating steak and staying at the Marriott using this ointment money. Judas saw what he thought to be an extravagant waste of the saint's offerings and he made subsequent actions based on that. He lost sight of what they were there for. Whatever his motive, I think this is also a clear warning to those who second guess a spiritual leader and think it okay to double cross them for whatever reason. If you are going to leave, just leave. Don't work for the devil.
So, you know that Jesus was perfect and always did the Father's will. I believe that Judas stood for a while and that God benefited from his stand. Judas didn't have to throw it all away for a piece of land and a handful of silver, but he did. At any point, he could have changed his mind and God would have forgiven him. He made a bunch of bad decisions. Jesus didn't make a mistake in choosing him. You don't make a mistake for speaking God's Word to somebody either. People are accountable for their own decisions. Jesus didn't win everyone and you can't either. Just do your best and keep believing for people.