Judas and His Mistakes

Introduction:

One of the most infamous names in the Bible is Judas. His fall from grace is a prime example of how anyone, no matter how faithful or religious they may seem, can fall away from Christ.

Body:

I want us to look closer at the mistakes of Judas, how those mistakes led to his demise, and verses that will help us avoid the same mistakes he made.

1. Judas was greedy and stole money.

· John 13:29 Judas was in charge of holding on to the groups’ money.

· John 12:3-6 He stole from the apostles and from the money box of which he was in charge.

· Foremost of Judas’ mistakes, I want to look at a passage from the Old Testament, since he was brought up Jewish. Exodus 20:15 You cannot steal. This is one of the Ten Commandments. He did not follow this law.

· Luke 12:15 Jesus said to beware of greed. Judas surely heard this. Yet he let his greed get the best of him. 

2. Judas betrayed Jesus.

· Many verses, such as Matthew 10:4, refer to Judas as the man who betrayed Jesus. This is how Judas is remembered, how he is defined. [I remember a classmate in kindergarten who cut his tongue with scissors and I saw blood. I don’t remember his name; but to me, he is defined by this action.]

· Luke 22:21-23 Jesus knew He was going to be betrayed.

· Luke 22:3-6 Judas fell into Satan’s temptations. He made and executed a plan with the chief priests and officers to betray Jesus.

· Matthew 26:45-50 Judas led those who wanted to harm Jesus directly to Him and betrayed Him.

· Proverbs 20:6 It is hard to find someone who is truly loyal and trustworthy. Judas was not. 

3. Judas realized he had sinned, but did not repent!

· Matthew 27:3-4 Judas felt badly for what he did. He knew he had sinned. But there is no passage in the Bible that says he repented of his sin.

· Luke 15:7 It is a wonderful thing to repent. Judas could have repented and continued to serve Christ, but he never repented. Maybe he felt ashamed, sorrowful, and hopeless. But that was no excuse. He should have repented. Peter denied Christ; but he repented. 

4. Judas killed himself.

· Matthew 27:5-10 Judas hung himself. Instead of repenting, he chose to die by his own hand.

· Exodus 20:13 Another one of the Ten Commandments: “You shall not murder.” Judas murdered himself. Suicide is a sin and is not, as some people say, the “easy way out.”

Conclusion:

We can learn from the mistakes of Judas; so we won’t fail the same way. Are you plagued with greed? Perhaps betrayal? Have you refused to repent? If you have any need, please come. 

Zane Berner [Guest Preacher]

June 29, 2014