CAPITAL BAPTIST CHURCH JULY 17, 2005 SERMON NOTES PASTOR BILL HAKEN GOSPEL OF JOHN SERIES Jesus & Judas John 13:18 30 Intro: Jesus prepared His disciples for Judas betrayal because He knew that the sudden betrayal might cause them to think Jesus was not all He claimed to be, or think He did not know about Judas (or He wouldn t have chosen him), and might cause them to lose their faith. So He wants them to see it is in God s plan. 1. The divine origin of betrayal vs. 18 Predicted in the Old Testament Psalm 41:9 originally was David lamenting about the betrayal of his dear friend Ahithophel; Jesus left out the phrase in whom I trusted because he never really trusted Judas since He knew what he was going to do. Psalm 55:12 For it is not an enemy who reproaches me; Then I could bear it. Nor is it one who hates me who has exalted himself against me; Then I could hide from him. But it was you, a man my equal, My companion and my acquaintance. 20 We took sweet counsel together, And walked to the house of God in the throng. Zechariah 11:12 12 Then I said to them, If it is agreeable to you, give me my wages; and if not, refrain. So they weighed out for my wages thirty pieces of silver. 13 And the Lord said to me, Throw it to the potter that princely price they set on me. So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them into the house of the Lord for the potter. Matthew 27:3 5 (the fulfillment). Part of his own will Jesus warned him 10 times He was not a robot; his treachery was his own choice and God merely designed it into the greater Master Plan. But God did not design the treachery; God does not cause man to do evil. Jesus gave him every warning to bring him to repentance and salvation. Principles we can learn from Judas: 1. God can use evil people to bring about good. Genesis 50:19 Joseph said to them, Do not be afraid, for am I in the place of God? 20 But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.
2. Even Judas could not find fault in Christ Matt. 27:4 saying, I have sinned by betraying innocent blood. But they said, What is that to us? See to that yourself! 5And he threw the pieces of silver into the temple sanctuary and departed; and he went away and hanged himself. 3. He reveals the blackness of sin 4. He serves as a solemn warning to sinners You can be very near to Christ and be lost and damned forever. 5. Hypocrites exist among the people of God People always say, I don t go to church, or I stopped going to church because there are too many hypocrites in the church! But that does not lower the high calling of every true child of God; wherever there are true Christians, Satan is going to sow tares (Matthew 13:24) - hypocrites! 6. The Devil is at work among the Lord s people Have you ever gotten a memo from Hell? Memos from Hell Ray Comfort If you decide to share your faith, be ready to get a "memo from Hell." The word "memo" is short for "memorandum." According to the dictionary it is "a written proposal or reminder." Your boss will give you a memo telling you what he wants you to do. It's his will for you to fulfill. If you have enlisted for the Christian faith, you have begun a new job. The Bible is now your memo. It is there to inform you of your new Boss's will. When you were in the world, you had a different boss. His memos dictated your lusts. You joyfully ran to do his will. You used to serve sin, but you quit because you suddenly discovered that there was going to be a payday, and you didn't like the wages. They were gross. The wages of is death. A down payment had already been dealt to you in this life, and full payment would have come in Hell in the next. It was a real bad deal. Thank God that you had the good sense to obey His command to quit before payday came. However, your old boss is a sore loser. He didn't like having to let you go. He desperately wants you back, and he keeps bugging you with memos. These are special messages that are designed to discourage you from working for your new Boss. These are personal dictates, formulated for you by subtle satanic secretaries, who know what to send you. They usually play on your fears and your weaknesses. These personal memos will usually be delivered to you through the mouth or pen of some individual from whom you least expect it. And they will come at just the right time to do their dirty demonic work.
I will never forget my first personalized memo. It came way back in 1974. I was about to preach open-air for the first time in my life. I was terrified, but I had determined to preach. I was gathering courage while looking at 20 to 30 people who were sitting on some steps in the local square of my hometown. Another Christian came alongside me, unaware of what I was planning to do. He looked in the same direction and casually said, "Look at that bunch of people. Hardly worth preaching the gospel to them...," and walked off. It was perfect timing. Too perfect. I realized what was happening, ignored the memo and preached anyway. I thank God that I opened my mouth that day, because I ended up going back to preach open-air at that location more than three thousand times. If I had listened to the memo, I may never have gone back there again. Jesus got a perfectly timed and personalized memo delivered to Him through the mouth of Peter. He had just finished telling His disciples about the cross and the resurrection-that He was going to be killed at the hands of the Jewish elders-when Peter (who didn't like what he heard) immediately rebuked Jesus. But look at what Jesus did. He knew where the memo originated: He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men" (Matthew 16:23). We need to react in the same way. The old boss can get behind us. We are no longer looking in his direction. His memos are now offensive to us because they work against the things of God. Some time ago I suggested to Kirk Cameron's sister, Candace (from "Full House"), that we publish her testimony as a gospel tract. She was excited about the concept, but she explains what came her way the same day as the suggestion: "I had just spoken to 5,000 teenage girls at a youth conference. I shared my testimony using God's Law to show them our need for the Savior. I felt great about the event and felt encouraged to continue to share my faith at conferences and churches around the country. When I got home, Ray sent me an email and said, 'Let's do a tract for you. We'll have some Full House pictures, your testimony, and a gospel message on it.' I was excited about this idea and thought it would be another wonderful tool for me to use in sharing my faith. "No sooner did I hit the send button on my reply email to Ray than I received an incoming mail message. It was from a pastor at a church where I'd spoken earlier in the year. As he was encouraging me to share my testimony with others, he had a few thoughts he wanted to share as well: 'People don't need a tract that you give them... [Be] sensitive to the Holy Spirit, and not try to preach and condemn.' "My heart sank. I was incredibly discouraged. The timing could not have been more perfect. I was so bummed out after reading it, I didn't know what to do. He was the last person I expected to hear those words from. As I realized it was Satan trying to discourage me in any way possible, I shook it off and wrote an email back telling him how important it is that we use the God s Law to draw people to Christ."
No doubt other memos will come. They are a sign that we're doing the right thing for the Kingdom of God. If we're not getting attacked, it would mean that we're not being effective for the Lord. So, if you are going to seek and save the lost, you too should be ready for that "personalized" memo. When it comes, tell the deliverer that he can take it back to where it came from. He can get behind you, because you are no longer your own. You have been bought with a price. Jesus would never think of quitting. The benefits are too great. So set yourself to work at the job He has called you to do. 2. The declaration of the betrayer vs. 19-21 Prior to this Jesus had maintained secrecy about Judas. Christ reaffirms His own omniscience He identifies Himself as the great I Am God s O.T. name He reassures them of their commission to preach the Gospel vs. 20 no matter what happens, they are still His representatives despite any satanic opposition. 3. The doubt about the betrayer among the disciples vs. 22 says they were all perplexed. Matthew s gospel says they all said, Is it I? (even Judas). Why did the disciples not suspect Judas? Judas was good at faking it Matthew 13:24 The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; 25but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. 26But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. 27So the servants of the owner came and said to him, Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares? 28He said to them, An enemy has done this. The servants said to him, Do you want us then to go and gather them up? 29But he said, No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. 30Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn. Jesus had shown love to him for 3 years. 4. The display that revealed the betrayer vs. 26-29 The sop of bread is the sign Satan enters Judas 5. The deed of betrayal vs. 30
He went out It was night In v. 21, Christ openly told the disciples that one of their number would betray Him. Actually, this statement was a final warning to Judas. Christ had washed his feet, quoted the Word to him, and now openly warned him, thus giving Judas every opportunity to change his mind. John, leaning on Jesus bosom, found out the secret and conveyed it to Peter, but apparently none of the men clearly understood the meaning of the Lord s words (v. 28). It is interesting to note that the Christian who is closest to Christ s heart is the one who discovers His secrets. When Judas accepted the sop, he finally yielded to Satan, who entered into him, making Judas a child of the devil. (See John 8:44.) Like the Holy Spirit, Satan works in and through human bodies and wills that are surrendered to him. And it was night (v. 30) signifying the darkness of Judas heart and the fact that this was the hour for the power of darkness (Luke 22:53). It is a dangerous thing to be a person like Judas. In Mark 14:21 Jesus said, It were good for that man if he had never been born! Judas pretended to be a Christian; he played with sin; he put off salvation; and any person who does these things may end up wishing he or she had never been born. There are some mysteries surrounding Judas, but one thing is clear: Judas made a deliberate choice when he betrayed Christ. In John 6:66-71, Christ warned Judas and called him a devil. Peter thought Judas was saved, for he said, We believe! Jesus knew that Judas had never believed and therefore was not saved.