Thinking about Judas

Judas is perhaps the penultimate New Testament villain. I cannot think of anyone treated with as much disdain as Judas from the moment of first mention to death.

On the list of the twelve core disciples, he was introduced as the one who would betray Jesus. Meet Judas. Goat. Traitor. Just saying the name nearly provokes the gag reflex by the time you hit the snake hiss at the end. You will soon learn that he was not only a two-faced liar, he was also a thief, embezzling money from Jesus and his crew. He even used a kiss to betray the Lord. It is tough to shed a tear or spare a kind thought for Judas by the time he takes his own life. Even the ground he was buried was labeled as godless and cursed.

Presumably Judas was placed there to teach us a lesson. If we betray Christ, we might find ourselves dead in body and spirit. However, would you ever be tempted to do that if you thought he was Messiah? Maybe. Evil happens. Good people give in to evil every day.

There are many nagging questions about Judas. He seems to add little to story of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. It would be just as powerful a narrative if none of the 12 hand-picked disciples betrayed Jesus to the political and religious authorities. The betrayal could have come from an outsider or the authorities could have caught Jesus away from his adoring followers. Nothing changes about the trial before Pilate or the sentence to die by crucifixion with the contribution of Judas. Or the empty tomb or the physical manifestations of Jesus to his loyal disciples after the crucifixion. Do we really need Judas to fully appreciate Jesus? The answer seems to be no.

A bigger question is why did Jesus pick Judas in the first place? The Lord is presented as being able to see through the motives of everyone he encounters. That would seem to indicate that Judas was picked in spite of or because of his corrupt heart. That would make Judas a pawn unless he was corrupted after joining the disciples. In other words, Jesus saw potential for great good in Judas but evil won out.

Jesus trusted Judas enough to make him treasurer for the group. It was a very big responsibility to be given since a lack of money would hamper travel throughout the region. Maybe Judas got tired of just skimming a little gold off the top. He was outed as thief before he betrayed Jesus (John 12:4-6).

But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected,“Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages.” He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.

That raises another question. If Judas was just a thief, why would he sell out the goose that laid the golden eggs? The other disciples did not have the charisma or ability to work miracles like Jesus did. This was the Jesus show and money always follows the star.

After witnessing the miracles of Jesus and the adoring masses, did Judas secretly hope the Lord would leaded an armed insurrection against the Romans and restore control of Judea to God's chosen people? If Moses could bring the Egyptian empire to its knees, think what God in human form could do to the Roman empire. It would restore the House of David to the throne of Israel. Jesus dashed those hopes by making it clear to all listening that the Kingdom of God was not of this world (John 18:36).

Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here.”

Or maybe Jesus threatened the gravy train of the religious authorities. Their coffers overflowed every time there was a religious holiday. Millions of pilgrims would venture to Jerusalem with every major celebration and spend a king's ransom on sacrifices in the Temple. A healthy chunk of that change wound up in the pockets of the High Priests. Along comes this Jesus talking trash about the priestly caste and turning over the tables of the money-changers, all while being hailed as a prophet greater in stature than John the Baptist. Something had to be done and infiltrating the inner circle of Jesus was critical. Judas to the rescue.

Satan also had a hand in turning Judas to the dark side (Luke 22:3-6):

Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve. And Judas went to the chief priests and the officers of the temple guard and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus. They were delighted and agreed to give him money. He consented, and watched for an opportunity to hand Jesus over to them when no crowd was present.

Jesus was the only one who could have saved Judas from the clutches of Satan. Instead, the Lord points out Judas as the sell-out to the other disciples on the night of that fateful last supper.

After Peter took charge of the disciples after Jesus returned in glory to the Kingdom of Heaven, the first order of business to name a replacement for Judas (Acts 1:15-19):

In those days Peter stood up among the believers (a group numbering about a hundred and twenty) and said, “Brothers and sisters, the Scripture had to be fulfilled in which the Holy Spirit spoke long ago through David concerning Judas, who served as guide for those who arrested Jesus. He was one of our number and shared in our ministry.”

(With the payment he received for his wickedness, Judas bought a field; there he fell headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines spilled out. Everyone in Jerusalem heard about this, so they called that field in their language Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood.)

That just leaves one question. If Judas so filled with evil, then why was he overcome with remorse and guilt after betraying Jesus (Matthew 27:3-5)?

When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders. “I have sinned,” he said, “for I have betrayed innocent blood."

“What is that to us?” they replied. “That’s your responsibility.”

So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.

Judas was overwhelmed with the realization that he was responsible for a great injustice. The depth of his grief suggests a powerful love and devotion to Jesus. Remorse so powerful that it precipitates suicide. His core did not seem to be completely rotten.

Maybe Judas was necessary as an object lesson after all. Maybe we all have a little Judas in us. Maybe we are all tempted to use the name of Jesus for our own personal gain or to foster the interests of the powerful. Even those of us that truly love the Lord.