Warning passages are given to us out of God's love to protect us from harm and getting ourselves into danger. Just as warning signs are for our good, so are tragic characters in Scripture.
Judas is one such warning for us. Being one of the 12 apostles of Jesus Christ and being so close to His loving, gracious, compassionate, and pure character made no difference in him. Judas heard an undiluted truth from heaven directly from Jesus, and witnessed most of His miracles yet refused to repent and truly believe in Him. He identified with Jesus' followers yet remained the devil.
Judas met his tragic end under the weight of his own guilt but betrayed the Son of God. Yet even greater tragedy was that he never turned to Jesus Christ to be saved and for his guilt to be removed. Judas was remorseful but not repentant.
How sobering should his example be to us? We ought to examine our own hearts and see whether we are truly one of God's sheep. If not, cry out to Jesus Christ to save you, remove your sin and guilt, and give you a new heart that desires to follow Him as Saviour and Lord.
At the same time, it was God's plan to use even the tragedy of Judas and the sin of the high priest, to point out the perfect purity and innocence of Jesus Christ.
1. The Perfect Lamb of God (1-2)
2. The remorse, confession, and death of Judas (3-5)
3. The hard hearts of the high priests and Sanhedrin (6-10)
22 июн 2024
