Betrayed! - Part A

If Jesus spent all night in prayer to the Father before choosing the 12, why was Judas on the list?

Well there's two reasons. Reason number one is what's stated in the text to fulfill scripture. Jesus lived in that total awareness of what is happening and he knew this was to fulfill scripture.

Here was the mechanism, this betrayer, this betrayal by which Jesus would go to the cross to pay for the sin of the world. Welcome to Connect with Skip Weekend Edition. Sometimes it seems like it would be wonderful to know the future, to know who will marry, who will win the Super Bowl. That seems like fun but then there's the downside to knowing the future, the difficult things that happen in life. Pastor Skip reminds us Jesus had that ability.

He knew what was going to happen and that didn't make it any easier for him. Betrayed is the name of today's message. But first let's find out more about this month's Connect with Skip resource offer. The book of Acts says we need to understand the days we live in and how we should be spending our time, energy, and finances. The first step is information and this month to complement Skip's series The End is Near, we're offering the excellent Harvest Handbook of Bible Prophecy by Tim LaHaye and Mark Hitchcock. This 450 page hardcover book is a reference guide to what the Bible says about the end times, covering over 150 topics from Armageddon to the wrath of the lamb. The Harvest Handbook of Bible Prophecy is a comprehensive survey from the world's foremost experts on biblical prophecy. Here is what Tim LaHaye said about the importance of understanding what the Bible says concerning the future. To me the signs of the times are evident that we're in the last days.

In fact, I call them the last days of the last days. I believe that the people that had a great deal to do with the early church were the expositors of the scripture but gave Christian evidences. Why do we believe what we believe? And one of the reasons we believe what we believe is because of prophecy. This Harvest Handbook of Bible Prophecy is our gift to you this month when you encourage the growth of Connect with Skip with a gift of $50 or more. Make your financial vote of support at connectwithskip.com or by calling 1-800-922-1888. With the Harvest Handbook of Bible Prophecy on your desk, you'll find yourself reaching for it frequently as events in these days speed forward. Receive this excellent hardcover book with your gift.

Go to connectwithskip.com or call 1-800-922-1888. We'll be in John chapter 13 today starting off in verse 18 so be sure to open your Bibles there as we begin. Here's Pastor Skip. We hate it whenever we hear stories of injustice where the criminal goes free and the bad guy doesn't get caught, the good guy gets victimized. On the other hand, we love it whenever we hear stories of the bad guy getting caught and justice being served. I heard a story about a man from Charlotte, North Carolina who bought a box of very rare and expensive cigars. And then when he bought them, he took out an insurance policy on those cigars and insured them, among other things, against fire. Within one month after having smoked all of those fine expensive cigars and before he had even made one premium payment on his policy, he filed a claim against the insurance company.

And I'll read you the story. In the claim, he stated the cigars were lost in a quote, series of small fires, close quote. The insurance company refused to pay, citing the obvious reason that the man had consumed the cigars in the normal fashion. The man sued and won. In delivering the ruling, the judge agreed with the insurance company that the claim was frivolous, but the judge stated, nevertheless, the man held a policy from the company in which it had warranted the cigars were insurable and also guaranteed it would insure them against fire without defining what is considered to be unacceptable fire and was obligated to pay the claim. Rather than endure a lengthy and costly appeal process, the insurance company accepted the ruling and paid $15,000 to the man for his loss of the rare cigars in the fires. We read that and we go, man, we don't like that.

But hold on, the best part is yet to come. After the man cast the check, the insurance company had him arrested on 24 counts of arson. With his own insurance claim and the testimony from the previous case being used against him, the man was convicted of intentionally burning his insured property and was sentenced to 24 months in jail and a $24,000 fine.

Yeah, baby. We love those stories. The worst crime ever committed was selling out the son of God for about 25 bucks, 30 pieces of silver. No one in the room that night had any idea that it was Judas. No one had any clue it was Judas Iscariot until this night.

On this night, Jesus will declare to his disciples, at least to one of them, John and then Peter, who it was. Now, Judas was a wonderful name. Judas comes from the word Judah, which means praise.

It's a great name to have. I'm sure that when he was born, his parents thought, our hopes is that this child will grow up to praise the Lord. But as time went on, the name Judas would appear in dictionaries, they're still there today, as a noun, a synonym for a child. They're still there today, as a noun, a synonym for a traitor. A Judas is someone who betrays a friend or a comrade. Of all the baby dedications I've ever done, I've done a lot, I have never yet dedicated a Judas.

There's just certain names people stay away from. No parent in their right mind would name their child Judas because of what this one person did 2,000 years ago. In England, there was an old tradition on Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent, of taking a jack-o'-lantern figure, dragging it out through the streets, and then shooting it to pieces. And that figure was called Judas.

In Spain and in Portugal and Latin America, there's in some places still the practice of taking a lifelike straw or wood figure, taking it through the streets, kicking it, spitting on it, cursing at it, et cetera, et cetera. And that is called on Good Friday, punishing Judas. So we're going to read about Judas Iscariot, the man who betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver. And we're going to eavesdrop on a conversation that our Lord has with his most intimate friends in John chapter 13.

Judas, the man who betrayed Jesus, the betrayer of Christ. What a horrible word that is, betrayal. Marriages are split apart because of betrayal. Friendships are severed because of betrayal. Nations have split and wars have begun because of betrayal.

Interesting, this week I was in a grocery store getting a few items, and as I was waiting to make the payment, my eyes went left and I glanced at those magazines, those very reliable magazines, news magazines. And I don't know the names of the magazines, but what struck me is that on three different magazines, the word betrayal appeared. There were three totally different stories. One was called Lies and Betrayal.

The other one was called Bachelor Betrayed, and the other one was simply Betrayal. As we look at our paragraph beginning in John 13, at verse 18, there's three things I want you to notice with me about this paragraph. Number one is the prediction that Jesus makes of the betrayal that is going to happen. Jesus selects an Old Testament scripture out of Psalms, shows that it was fulfilled, and what Judas was about to do. He predicts it. He knew all about it. Number two, I want you to notice the paradox of betrayal, that as bad as it was, it would still be used to serve the disciples, those who didn't betray Jesus.

It was going to be used for something good. Third and finally, I want you to notice the proximity of the betrayer himself and where he was at the table. Let's begin in verse 18. I do not speak concerning all of you. I know whom I have chosen, but that the scripture may be fulfilled. He who eats bread with me has lifted up his heel against me. What interests us at first is that Jesus was not surprised that Judas was about to betray him. In fact, Jesus pulls out a scripture that shows that it was predicted by something that happened in the Old Testament. Now, he's quoting Psalm 41. Let me tell you about Psalm 41. David wrote that Psalm, and he wrote it about a man that he loved, a man that was his friend, a man that sat at his table and had his own bread, but a man who betrayed David by the name of Ahithophel, Ahithophel, the trusted counselor of David. You remember the story how David had a son named Absalom who rebelled and tried to usurp the kingdom.

But if there was one person David knew he could trust, it was one of his closest associates named Ahithophel. But Ahithophel was a traitor, by the way, afterwards went out and hung himself like Judas would. It's a very interesting story, and the idea of lifting up your heel is to kick a person while he's down. If what Absalom would do to David wasn't bad enough, Ahithophel kicked David while he was down. It's a violent kicking.

It's like when your enemy's on the ground, and you lift up your boot heel, and you thrust it into his throat, into his neck. That's the idea of betrayal here. Now, why is this important, and why does John bring it up?

Here's why. Jesus Christ knew everything that was going on around him at all times. He was omniscient, right? One of the things we discover in the Gospel of John is he wants us to know that Jesus was in total control. Nothing surprised him. He wasn't some helpless victim of an unsuspecting crime. He knew it all in advance.

He was omniscient. And so, think back a few chapters to John chapter 5, when Jesus was interviewing a woman at the well of Samaria, and she was giving him cute little answers and trying to be really smart and terse. Finally, Jesus just cut to the chase and said, hey, go call your husband. And she said, I don't have a husband. And then Jesus went for the juggler.

You're right, you've had five husbands in your lifetime, and now you're living with a man outside the bonds of marriage with a man who is not your husband. Boy, did she sober up quick. She said, sir, I perceive you're a prophet.

Yeah, duh, what gave it away? In Luke chapter 6, Jesus is in the synagogue, and there's people watching him because in that synagogue was a man with a withered hand. And they wanted to see if Christ would heal that man. And the Bible says, Jesus, listen to this, knowing their thoughts, said, which is it better to do on the Sabbath day? Heal life or to destroy it?

To do good or to do evil? On another occasion, Matthew chapter 12, there was a man who was demon-possessed. He was mute. He was deaf. Jesus healed him, delivered him of a demon. And as soon as that man was cured and Jesus delivered him, some of the audience said, oh, this man, Jesus, just cast demons out by the name of Beelzebub, the prince of demons.

Once again, we read this. But Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said unto them, a house that is divided against itself cannot stand. So once again here, he knew that Judas was going to betray him. Can you imagine living like that? Knowing every bad thing that's going to happen to you in the future or around you, knowing that child is going to get into that horrible traffic accident, knowing that that parent is going to come down with that disease, knowing that Peter is going to deny you, knowing that Thomas is going to doubt you, knowing that Judas is going to betray you.

Can you imagine living that way? Jesus knew it all. And here's what I want you to see. Just because Jesus knew what was coming, that didn't soften the blow for him. Look at verse 21. When Jesus had said these things, he was troubled in spirit.

There's that word again, trouble, terrazzo, to be shaken, agitated, emotionally. And he testified and he said, most assuredly, I say to you, one of you will betray me. Sometimes we so emphasize the deity of Jesus Christ that we neglect to think about his humanity. We say, well, you know, he's God in a human body, so he knew everything that was happening. And somehow he was detached from all the bad stuff and sort of aloof from it. He wasn't bothered by some of the things you and I are bothered with.

It's not true. He lived in that awareness, but he was deeply troubled and agitated. As the writer of Hebrews put it in Hebrews four, he was in all points tempted like we are, yet without sin.

So that's what he knew. What I also want you to notice is what Jesus did. Look at one word in verse 18, the word chosen. I do not speak concerning all of you, for I know whom I have chosen.

Now that's a word of sovereign election. He knew that not everybody in that group believed and Judas was that one. I know whom I have chosen. And I don't want to get sidetracked on that because we've talked about divine election on other occasions. But Jesus certainly gave Judas lots of opportunities to believe and Jesus had chosen Judas to be in that elite group called apostles. Of all of the disciples, he was one of the apostles. Listen carefully as I read a portion of Luke chapter six.

Jesus went out to a mountain to pray and he continued all night in prayer to God. And when it was day, he called his disciples to himself and from them he chose 12, whom he also named apostles. Simon, who he named Peter, and Andrew, his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Simon called Zealot, Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who also became a traitor.

Question. If Jesus knew what Judas was going to do to him, why did Jesus choose him as an apostle to begin with? If Jesus spent all night in prayer to the father before choosing the 12, why was Judas on the list? Well, there's two reasons. Reason number one is what's stated in the text to fulfill scripture. Jesus lived in that total awareness of what is happening and he knew this was to fulfill scripture. Here was the mechanism, this betrayer, this betrayal by which Jesus would go to the cross to pay for the sin of the world.

Number two, reason number two, more on a human level. To love anyone at all is to be vulnerable. To love anyone at all is to take risks, even if it means being hurt. I had someone ask me one time, well Skip, I really want to love someone, but how can I know if I make a commitment in love to another person, I want to make sure I don't get hurt, how can I be certain I don't get hurt?

My answer, good luck with that one. In fact, I think that's impossible because as the old song says, love hurts. And if you're going to commit yourself in a relationship to any other person, like let's say a marriage relationship, there is going to be pain somewhere along that road. That's why people say vows to each other.

They don't say for better or for best, for richer or for richest until we all live happily ever after in the white picket fence. No, because to love an ideal, anybody can love an ideal person. The challenge is to love the real person. And in that giving of love, there is a vulnerability and a pain that you incur. I suppose Jesus could have been like Donald Trump and said, Judas, you're fired. And all the apostles said, yeah, at least we're not.

Celebrity apostle. The truth is you will be betrayed. Somebody will take advantage of you. Here's the question, what do you do? Answer, choose to love them anyway.

Choose to love them anyway. I'm choosing Judas. I know he's going to betray me. It fulfills the scripture. Nobody knew that Judas was betraying Jesus until that night, which means Jesus continually showed love overtly, outwardly, publicly to Judas so that nobody caught on.

Amazing. Let me tell you a true story about the alcoholic wife of a Christian husband. This wife had an affair with this man's best friend 10 years prior. He didn't find out about it for 10 years. When he found out about it, he was angry. He was bitter. He felt betrayed by his wife and betrayed by his best friend. He thought my family's falling apart because of her.

The kids are distanced to her. Everything that I've loved is broken apart because of this horrible situation. He felt so angry and so betrayed. I want you to listen to this man and what his reaction was the first time he met his best friend after knowing this information. He said, I suddenly remembered the words, Father, forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. And so he said, with the sob in my soul, I reached out my hand and I grabbed his. And for the first time in my life, I knew what it was to forgive. I felt a tremendous sense of release as the unbearable weight of bitterness was lifted from off my heart. While some powerful examples in our study of this issue today, we're looking at betrayal. If you'd like a copy of today's message, you can find it at connectwithskipp.com.

Or you can call us and order one at 1-800-922-1888. Each copy is just $4 plus shipping. While Skip and Lenny are in studio right now. So let's go there and catch a thought or two from them today. Skip, today we discovered and discussed a very challenging topic, being betrayed by someone you love. And you always hurt the ones you love? I don't know.

I don't think anyone intends to do it. But being hurt by someone you love and trusted is just devastating. And when that happens, it's hard for us to learn how to trust again.

And especially maybe even the same person. Because as scripture, we're called to forgive others. So does forgiving them mean we need to trust them again? Of course, we're dealing with Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus. And you have to know that the Lord knew what Judas was capable of. In fact, what he would indeed do, because he predicted that he would do it. And yet he chose him anyway, just like he knew that Peter would deny him, but he chose him anyway.

So I think to answer for us, that's all part of God's providence and all of God's foreknowledge that that happened. But I think that if we, when somebody betrays us, we can't say, well, I'm not gonna do it. When somebody betrays us, we can't sever the relationship. And certainly trusting is a part of loving and forgiving. But you could enable a person's bad behavior by entrusting the same amount that they were unfaithful with.

I think you have to sort of work your way up. Too much is given, much is required. And in weaning that person back, they need to be able to know that trust is something one earns, because once it's suffered, it's hard to rebuild it. So in human dynamics, in human relationship, in human forgiveness, we have to know that enabling a person's bad behavior is just as bad on our part as a person betraying our trust. So forgiveness is required. Jesus said, forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. So as a Christian, we're just required to do that. And sometimes that's a step of faith. Even Jesus said, if he sins against you several times, you do it. Seventy times seven. You keep doing it. That's a lot.

That's a choice, it can't be a feeling. Right. I remember a story about Robert Louis Stevenson and the great author. And he used to pray with his family every morning, and they would get on their knees and they would say the Lord's Prayer. And he was also a sickly man. And so one morning, he came in and he got up and left. His wife thought maybe he was unwell. And she said, Are you okay?

And he said, I'm unfit to say the Lord's Prayer. And so no one wants to stay in a place of being unfit to say, forgive our debts as we forgive our debtors. But you're right, trust is something that's earned. And so you may forgive a person, but now you need to develop and work on reconciling all the little pieces that have frayed and broken apart. And that just takes time. Well, thanks, Lania and Skip. You'll want to be sure to join in next time for the conclusion of this message, Betrayed, right here in Connect with Skip weekend edition, a presentation of Connection Communications. Connecting you to God's never changing truth in ever changing times.