INTRODUCTION:

A Vacation Bible School teacher, one summer, taught class on Judas' betrayal of Jesus. After the lesson, she went over the review questions and asked, "Who betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver?"

Without hesitating, her 7-year-old son replied, "I know! It was 'Judas the Scariest!' " (1)

For me Judas was the Scariest disciple of all. He's the most frightening character of the entire Passion story. He's more frightening than Pilate or Herod or Caiaphas and the other accusers. To me, Judas is even more frightening than the guards who nailed Jesus to the cross. Now I'm not talking Frankenstein or Freddie Kruger kind of frightening. He wasn't some misshapen monster or someone who haunts our dreams. Judas is more frightening than that because both of those we know are fiction. But Judas was reality. And the reality of is that any one of the disciples could have done what Judas did.

And because of that any one of us could become a Judas. And that's why I think Judas is the most frightening character of the Passion, because there is a small kernel of Judas that lives within each of us. We all have the capability to not only deny Christ but to Betray him just as Judas did.

Let's look at the passages of Scripture for this morning. There are two: John 13:21-30; Matthew 26:14-16; 45-50

John 13:21-30 (NRSV)

[21] After saying this Jesus was troubled in spirit, and declared, "Very truly, I tell you, one of you will betray me."

[22] The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom he was speaking.

[23] One of his disciples--the one whom Jesus loved--was reclining next to him;

[24] Simon Peter therefore motioned to him to ask Jesus of whom he was speaking.

[25] So while reclining next to Jesus, he asked him, "Lord, who is it?"

[26] Jesus answered, "It is the one to whom I give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish." So when he had dipped the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas son of Simon Iscariot.

[27] After he received the piece of bread, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, "Do quickly what you are going to do."

[28] Now no one at the table knew why he said this to him.

[29] Some thought that, because Judas had the common purse, Jesus was telling him, "Buy what we need for the festival"; or, that he should give something to the poor.

[30] So, after receiving the piece of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night.

Matthew 26:14-16 (NRSV)

[14] Then one of the twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests

[15] and said, "What will you give me if I betray him to you?" They paid him thirty pieces of silver.

[16] And from that moment he began to look for an opportunity to betray him.

Matthew 26:45-50 (NRSV)

[45] Then he came to the disciples and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? See, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.

[46] Get up, let us be going. See, my betrayer is at hand."

[47] While he was still speaking, Judas, one of the twelve, arrived; with him was a large crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the elders of the people.

[48] Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, "The one I will kiss is the man; arrest him."

[49] At once he came up to Jesus and said, "Greetings, Rabbi!" and kissed him.

[50] Jesus said to him, "Friend, do what you are here to do." Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and arrested him.

I find that a very hard part of Scripture to read. There's just so much I don't understand about Judas and why he did what he did. But let's explore it a little because I think it's important to at least attempt to understand what and why.

I. BETRAYAL:

A. Have you ever been betrayed? Have you ever felt that total alienation and deep, deep almost soul shattering hurt that rides in the pit of your stomach for years because you were betrayed by someone you trusted and loved. I'll bet you've all experienced it in some form, haven't you.

I have. And for a long time, that hurt and that betrayal colored everything I did. And I felt like I couldn't trust anyone. It happened when I was in the sixth grade. My Dad accused me of something I didn't do. And no matter what I said, he wouldn't believe me. After what seemed like hours of interrogation, I was so tired of not being believed and told that I was a liar, that I finally just gave up and gave in and said, "Yes, I did what you said."

As a consequence I had to confess to my so called transgression to my 6th grade class and teacher. I stood there, bitter and angry and alienated as my Dad, watched me lie and confess to something I didn't do. I can't tell you how betrayed I felt.

That's not the way Dad's were supposed to act. Dad's were supposed to believe you and defend you, no matter what, right. It took me years to get over that. It took me years to let go. It took Christ in my life to get me to forgive my Dad.

Being betrayed by someone you love and trust is one of the worst experiences of life.

B. But what's even worse is being the betrayer. There is nothing like the look of pain and hurt you seen in the eyes of the one you betrayed. The pain of betrayal that you see in the other persons eyes, is a million times worse than the pain of being betrayed. Unfortunately, a lot of times we don't see that pain because the sin of our betrayal has blinded us at the very core of our being. Our denial and our fallenness block our eyes from seeing what we've done.

But, if there is even an inkling of remorse, it blows a hole in the defenses and strikes us at the very heart and soul of our existence.

Scripture tells us that Peter looked into the eyes of Jesus after his third denial, just as the rooster crowed. It doesn't say the anything about whether Jesus and Judas locked eyes or not. I think they did and that's why Judas felt shame and remorse. I think he saw the same thing Peter did, compassion and an opportunity for forgiveness.

But unlike Peter, who still believed, who still had faith, although he was shaken, Judas had lost faith in Jesus. Had there been even a nanobyte of faith left, Judas might have experienced the same forgiveness that Peter experienced. Had there been even a nanobyte of faith left, Judas would have realized that the Cross of Christ made the noose unnecessary. Instead, the same shame and guilt that Peter felt, so overwhelmed Judas that he took the cowards way out and hung himself.

II. WHY?:

A. The question that plagues everyone about Judas is "WHY?" Why did he betray Jesus. Why did he turn him over to the authorities. The problem in trying to determine his motive is that there probably isn't any one answer.

But the question is still valid. Why? Why did one of the twelve, one of the inner circle of leadership and power, one of the trusted disciples turn on the leader. Judas, had obviously been a fairly good disciple with lots of good potential or Jesus wouldn't have chosen him, would He? Judas went out two by two with the other disciples and preached the Good News, healed the sick, cast out demons and raised the dead just like the others. He witnessed all the miracles and heard all the teachings.

He was even the treasurer. Of course Scripture says he was a thief and stole from the treasury for his own use. And putting a thief in charge of the money is sort of like putting Colonel Sanders in charge of the chicken house. So, WHY? Why did Judas betray Jesus.

There have been a ton of explanations down through history.

Some have said it was simply because he was greedy. But 30 pieces of silver wasn't all that much. It was enough to buy a slave's freedom but not enough to retire on. All it did was buy Judas into slavery to his sin.

Some have said that it was because of Jealousy. Judas was a Judean, from Kerioth, the only one of the twelve who wasn't from Galilee. So he felt a little alienated, like an outsider. Plus the fact that Judas wasn't a part of the inner circle of Peter, James and John.

Others have said that it was Anger, lingering anger from the rebuke he received when he objected to the woman anointing Jesus feet with the expensive perfume.

And the last reason people give is Disappointment. Disappointment that the plan wasn't for an earthly kingdom. And in betraying Jesus, in turning Jesus over to the authorities, Judas thought He could force Jesus into the kind of revolutionary action that Judas was expecting.

It was probably a little of all of them. Or maybe none of them. It's hard to get into the head and heart and soul of someone else.

B. One thing's for sure though, whatever the reason, Judas did it of his own free will. Some people have said that Judas was chosen for this role. That his actions were predetermined, predestined and that he had no choice but to follow the script and do what was planned.

Unfortunately, I think that's wrong. If Judas had no choice, then that means he bears non responsibility for his actions and he bears no guilt or fault in the matter. And that means he hung himself for nothing. It let's him off the hook.

If there had never been a Judas, Jesus still would have wound up on the cross. We need to realize that Judas represents the terrible potential for betrayal that lives in all of us. Any one of the disciples could have done what Judas did. They all had opportunity. But it was Judas who chose to betray Jesus.

III. FAILURE ISN'T FATAL:

A. Last week I talked about Peter's denial and I said that FAILURE ISN'T FINAL. Well the same holds true this week as well. It's always true in the Kingdom of God. FAILURE ISN'T FINAL, FAILURE ISN'T FOREVER. And in the case of Judas, FAILURE ISN'T FATAL. Or shouldn't be. The Cross of Christ made the noose unnecessary. All Judas had to do was put the rope in Jesus' hands.

In the very early church, the Apostle's Creed had an extra phrase in it. One that we don't use very often. It says that after Jesus was crucified, dead and buried, "He descended into hell." There are all kinds of theological reasons why we don't include that in the Protestant version of the Apostle's Creed. But there is an interesting legend that goes along with that phrase.

It says that Jesus did indeed descend into Hades for the purpose of finding Judas. Jesus went looking for Judas to offer forgiveness. But remember Judas had lost faith. And he was so filled with guilt and shame, he was so convinced that he couldn't be forgiven, that he hid from Jesus. Judas couldn't repent because he wouldn't even hear the offer of forgiveness.

B. Ray Anderson has written a sermon titled "The Gospel According to Judas." In it, he describes going into a men's restroom in San Francisco and there carefully lettered on the pale green paint beside the mirror with a black pen, were the words: "Judas, come home; all is forgiven."

He says he pondered that for a long time, wondering who it was who put the message there. Was it some father, hoping that a prodigal son would find his way into that obscure place and see the message and know that he was Judas, and realize that, despite the horror of what he had done to his father and his family, there was a way home?

Or was it the boy himself, projecting upon that wall some impossible hope and belief that all could be forgiven. (2)

One thing is for certain, the Good News of Jesus is that FAILURE ISN'T FINAL. FAILURE ISN'T FOREVER AND FAILURE ISN'T FATAL. That's the message Judas needed to hear. The Cross of Christ made the noose unnecessary.

I read a story told about an eight-year-old girl who did something wrong. When confronted with it she got angry and argumentative with her mother. What started off badly went quickly from bad to worse. The girl refused to admit she had done anything wrong, even though she had been caught in the act. Finally ran out of the room in anger and went upstairs. She saw her mother's new dress laid out for a party that evening. She was so angry that she found scissors and vented her hostility by ruining her mother's new dress, seeking to injure her mother.

Later the mother came upstairs, saw the dress, threw herself on the bed, and began to weep. It wasn't long before her daughter came into the room and whispered, "Mother." But there was no reply.

"Mother, Mother," she repeated, Still no reply.

"Mother, Mother, please," she continued.

Finally, through her tears, the mother responded, "Please what?"

The girl pleaded: "Please take me back, please take me back."

Of course the mother did take the child back, just as Jesus would have taken Judas back. All he had to do was ask.

That is what the cross is all about. The cross is not about God's love for saints. The cross is about God's love for sinners like you and me. It's about second chances for people like Peter and Judas. FAILURE ISN'T FINAL. AND FAILURE ISN'T FATAL.

CONCLUSION:

There is another ancient legend that I love. It's the end times. The Trumpet has blown. It's Judgment Day. The sheep and the goats have been separated. In heaven, everyone is joyfully celebrating, singing, dancing, and embracing their loved ones.

Peter stands at the Pearly Gates with the Key in his hands ready to lock up. Everyone else is headed deep into the glory of Heaven. Everyone that is, except Jesus. Jesus is stranding just outside the gate. He's standing there waiting and looking all around.

Peter waits patiently with the Key. The joyful crowds are nearly out of sight. Peter checks the time and is starting to get a little nervous. It's past time to lock the gate. And so he clears his throat to try and get Jesus' attention. But to no avail. Jesus keeps standing outside the gate looking.

Peter finally works up the courage and he steps up next to Jesus and quietly asks, "Master? What are you doing? It's time to lock up. Who are you waiting for?"

Without turning his head, Jesus shoulders sag a little and answers simply, "I'm waiting for Judas."

It is just a legend. It's just a legend but I think it contains a kernel of truth. Whatever the motive behind the Betrayal by Judas, Jesus death on the Cross offered him second chance. A chance at repentance and new life. All Judas had to do was ask.

Judas is the Scariest of the disciples because the ability to Betray our Savior lies within all of us. But the Good News is that FAILURE ISN'T FINAL AND FAILURE ISN'T FATAL IF WE COME TO JESUS.

Who knows, maybe Jesus IS still waiting for Judas. But an even more important question might be:

Is Jesus still waiting for you?

1. Karen Weaver, Huber Heights, OH. Today's Christian Woman, "Heart to Heart."

2. Ray S. Anderson, The Gospel According To Judas

3.

4.

www.SermonWriter.com (Copyright, Richard Niell Donovan, 2000)

www.SermonMall.com

www.deaconsil.com

www.rockies.net/~spirit/sermon.html (Richard Fairchild Lectionary Resources)

Homiletics, (Communications Resources, Inc., Canton, OH)

Lectionary Homiletics, (Lectionary Homiletics, Inc. Midlothian, VA)

Dynamic Preaching, (Seven Worlds Publishing, Knoxville, TN)

The Clergy Journal, (Logos Productions, Inc., Inver Grove Heights, MN)

Preaching Magazine (Preaching Resources, Jackson, TN)

Circuit Rider, (The United Methodist Publishing House, Nashville, TN)

The Interpreter's Bible, (Abingdon Press, Nashville, 1953)

The New Interpreter's Bible, (Abingdon Press, Nashville, 1995)

Lectionary Preaching Workbook, Cycle A, (CSS Publishing, Lima, OH, 2002) SermonPrep Version.

Preaching the Miracles, (CSS Publishing, Lima, OH, 1998) SermonPrep Version.

Preaching the Parables, Cycle A, (CSS Publishing, Lima, OH, 1997) SermonPrep Version.