Introduction
This morning we are beginning a series of sermons featuring the passion of Christ. The title of the series is Who is Responsible? Who is responsible for the death of Jesus? We will consider the cast of characters who make their appearance in the story and consider the roles they played. But I will reveal my hand now. As you look at each character, do not be surprised to find your own reflection.
We begin by looking at Jesus’ disciples, the men who had proven their devotion and loyalty to him, but in the hour of his need become known as the betrayer, the denier, and the deserters. Take first the betrayer.
The Betrayer
We know less about Judas than we think. Many believe that the name “Iscariot” indicates he belonged to an extreme group of Jewish nationalists who assassinated Romans and countrymen who collaborated with Romans, much like Muslim terrorists today. Thus, Judas betrayed Jesus because Jesus failed to live up to messianic expectations of leading a revolt against Rome, or as an attempt to force Jesus’ hand against the Romans. That is a possible scenario, but it is speculation nonetheless. Why would a terrorist collaborate with the establishment? If he wanted Jesus dead, he had his own friends who could do the job. If he was trying to force Jesus to play his hand, he certainly miscalculated the man whom he had daily lived with for more than two years.
What baffles us, of course, is how Judas could betray Jesus. How could a man who been in Jesus’ inner circle, who had heard him teach and witnesses his miracles – how could he do it? We know nothing about Judas other than he served as Jesus’ treasurer. Judas kept the money bag. John claims that he was a hypocrite who pilfered money from the bag. Remember the story of Mary anointing Jesus’ feet with expensive perfume and how the disciples protested her extravagance? John says that Judas was the one who spoke up:
But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was about to betray him), said, 5 “Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” 6 He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it (John 12:4-6).
To put it plainly, Judas was a bad apple. And Jesus knew it. Another time, John reports Jesus as saying, “Did I not choose you, the Twelve? And yet one of you is a devil.” 71 He spoke of Judas the son of Simon Iscariot, for he, one of the Twelve, was going to betray him (John 6:70-71).
Some think Judas betrayed Jesus for the sake of money. Besides the above example, the gospels report him going to the authorities and agreeing to receive payment. Matthew even quotes him asking for a price. Even so, he settled on a fairly cheap price. He must have demonstrated some kind of money sense, considering that he was entrusted with the group’s funds. And don’t forget other possible motives. Perhaps it was resentment. Even within the Twelve there was yet an inner circle of three disciples closer to Jesus made up of Peter, John, and James. Perhaps he did not think he got enough attention. More than one such person has murdered to get attention. Why did Satan as an angel turn against God? Why did Adam disobey?
In the end, Jesus gives the best answer: One of you is a devil. Indeed, John speaks of the devil putting the thought of betrayal into Judas’ heart (cf. John 13:2), and Luke goes so far as to say that Satan entered him (Luke 22:3). Whatever Judas’ motivation, at some point he became susceptible to Satan’s influence.
Then Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve, went to the chief priests in order to betray him to them. 11 And when they heard it, they were glad and promised to give him money. And he sought an opportunity to betray him….
Note Judas’ initiative. He goes to the authorities. They do not seek him out. Rather, he is a pleasant surprise to them. Their strategies had not figured on this boon to their efforts to entrap Jesus. We know from Matthew that Judas asked about the money. They did not dangle it before him as temptation. And then, he seeks the opportunity for betrayal. He is not a victim of circumstance; he exploits his circumstance for whatever it is that he supposes is his gain.
The time comes the one evening that Jesus stays after sundown in Jerusalem. During what would be known as the Last Supper, he slips out to alert the authorities. Again, note his involvement. He does not merely tell Jesus’ whereabouts. He leads the arrest party to the Garden of Gethsemane where he knew Jesus would be spending the night.
43 And immediately, while he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders. 44 Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man. Seize him and lead him away under guard.” 45 And when he came, he went up to him at once and said, “Rabbi!” And he kissed him.
Not only does Judas serve as a guide, he gives orders to the band how to carry out the arrest. He plans how he will assure that they get the right man and not confuse him with the disciples (The one I will kiss is the man.) Did it have to be a kiss, Judas? He directs them to seize Jesus at once so he will not get away. And then he brazenly carries out his role, going up to Jesus “at once,” speaking to him with reverence (“Rabbi”), and betraying him with a loving act. Satan must have been proud.
That is Jesus’ betrayer. Let’s look next at his denier.
The Denier
26 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. 27 And Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away, for it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’ 28 But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.” 29 Peter said to him, “Even though they all fall away, I will not.” 30 And Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” 31 But he said emphatically, “If I must die with you, I will not deny you.” And they all said the same.
We know much more about Peter than we do Judas. We know his occupation (a fisherman) and his hometown (Bethsaida in the territory of Galilee). He is clearly the leader of the disciples. He gets more mentions in the gospels than everyone else combined, most likely because of his mouth. If a question needs to be asked, Peter will raise it. It is Peter who, when Jesus walks on the water at night towards the disciples, calls out to let him walk also. When dazzled by the glorified appearance of Jesus with Moses and Elijah, Peter manages to think of something to say. In the midst of a humbling act of Jesus washing his disciples feet, Peter is the one who protests. It is Peter who speaks up and makes the great confession of Jesus as the Christ and receives Jesus’ blessing; it is also he who moments later rebukes Jesus for speaking of his passion to come, only to receive a stronger rebuke from him. It is a dramatic confrontation. Listen:
He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. 18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it….
21 From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. 22 And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” 23 But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man” (Matthew 16:15-18, 21-23).
Peter got the part about Jesus being the Christ. What he could not get was the part that the Christ must suffer; and it would be his downfall. We know what happened. Peter did deny Jesus three times. The third time he was vehement: But he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know this man of whom you speak (Mark 14:71). Then the cock crowed, and he broke down and wept.
What happened? Peter was not like Judas. His denial was not premeditated. When he made his vow of loyalty to Jesus, he did not keep options in the back of his mind as to how to get out of a dangerous situation. He simply lost his nerve.
Why? Because the arrest party was more terrifying than he supposed? Peter drew a sword and attacked them. No, it was not the arrest party, but Jesus. It was Jesus who caused him to lose his nerve. First, Jesus rebuked him for coming to his defense; and more startling, he quietly submitted to the arrest. Was Jesus afraid? Peter knew better than that. Why then did Jesus submit? Why was he yielding? Such a question bewildered Peter and robbed him of his courage.
And then we have the rest of the disciples.
The Deserters
27 And Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away, for it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’ 28 But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee….” 31 But he said emphatically, “If I must die with you, I will not deny you.” And they all said the same.
50 And they all left him and fled.
They all lost their nerve. Each would have to speak for himself why he did. Like Peter, they must have been caught off guard by Jesus. Then, if Peter ran, likely they too who give way. A soldier may be brave in battle until he sees his comrades run, especially his leaders.
Lessons
So we have a disciple who betrayed Jesus, another who denied him, and the rest who deserted him. This is not a heartening picture. What are we learn from it?
For one, we should take note how little we know the heart, our own or anyone else’s. We never do know what we will do until the time comes tries our faith. Are our hearts true that promise full surrender to Jesus, that profess undying love and devotedness? What should the disciples have done when Jesus prophesied their defection? Instead of protesting that he was wrong, they should have prayed for strength and courage for the test to come. They needed to listen. If they had, they would have heard, not Jesus denouncing them for falling away, but rather promising them that they would be restored to his fellowship.
They needed all along to exam their hearts in light of Jesus’ teachings. No doubt, they did what most of us do, think how God’s Word applies to somebody else. After reading the sermon’s scripture text, I pray something like this: “Father, as we open your Word, open our minds to understand it, and open our hearts to exam ourselves in light of your Word.” If you are hearing or reading this sermon, it is because God has ordained it so that you may apply it to yourself.
We can learn from Judas. Why was his sin the worst? After all, Judas alone was not restored to the fellowship of the twelve. Betrayal is bad; that alone could qualify, though I am not sure if beats Peter’s denial. Peter had promoted himself as the most loyal of Jesus’ disciples. It is what Judas’ sin reveals about him that accounts for his downfall. Remember, Judas’ sin was premeditated. Whatever the exact motive, he acted for his own advantage. Thus, he reveals that he never truly belonged. He never caught on to who Jesus was and what he was about. Because we are baffled that anyone could turn on Jesus, we attribute complex motivations to Judas. But Judas was not the first, and certainly would not be the last, to latch on to a religious leader or movement for the sake of self gain. And it is his failure to turn to God for forgiveness that reveals that he was not “one of us,” as the apostle John would so speak of others who would later leave the church (cf. 1 John 2:19).
This is a sobering thought, that one can appear to belong to the body of Christ but does not. How do we know if we belong? By our deeds and fruit. Do you strive to be holy and to love your neighbor? Do you give evidence of the fruit of the Spirit such as love, joy, and peace? Is Jesus your Lord for whom you live and not merely your Savior? And perhaps more telling, are you convicted of sin and find your hope only in your Lord? It is an odd combination, but the one you must grasp: we live our lives fully for the Lord, and yet it is only the work that he has done for us that saves.
And this leads to the third lesion, which is the enormity of God’s mercy. All of the disciples, except Judas, was forgiven, and he only because he never did belong. How great is God’s mercy – is Christ’s mercy – that those who deny and desert him can be forgiven and restored. Remember that. Remember that the next time you deny and desert him as you have done and will do again. For every sin we commit is but another refuting of him as Lord. There will be times that you fail to speak up for Christ or fail to speak in his spirit. There will be times when you will speak in the name of Christ and dishonor him because of what you say. You will fail, but your failure cannot strain God’s mercy.
But what truly is the lesson we must learn is the power of Christ’s atonement. The disciples were forgiven because Christ atoned for their sin on the cross, just as he has atoned for ours. Our sins were placed on him, and he in turn gave to us his righteousness, so that instead of seeing us as sinners, our God regards us as his saints. That is the power of the cross. Christ died to turn deniers and deserters into saints; even betrayers can be changed if they but turn to the one who went to the cross.
Funny how it works out. We are given scripture that presents us with a sobering depiction of Jesus’ closest followers. We should be filled with dread, and yet their very failure becomes to us a sign of hope. But that is just like the gospel. It turns despair into hope, for our hope is in Christ whose mercy and power cannot fail.
