Mark 14:10 And Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, went unto the chief priests, to betray him unto them.
11 And when they heard it, they were glad, and promised to give him money. And he sought how he might conveniently betray him.
Before we look at our text, there has been a major shift in events in the Middle East in the past twenty four hours. Israel has attacked Iran with a force we have not witnessed before. They are intent on stopping Iran from developing a nuclear bomb. Israel has warned for years that Iran is working toward the bomb. The U.N. has ignored all the warnings. The U.N. is very favourable to the Muslim world. It is not interested in a true peace. It was supposed to be a world body to keep countries from another world war. Up to this point, the U.S. is the only nation in that corrupt body, that has consistently stood with Israel. Recently Canada decided to join the U.K. and France in condemning Israel’s dealings in Gaza. Ignorance is not bliss. Condemning Israel is never a wise move.
Those who are saved can point out the hard-heartedness of the nation of Israel. We can show that they have taken a position against the true God. God is also judging them for their defiance of Him. We need to continue to pray for the peace of Jerusalem.
It will be interesting to see how far this current escalation of events goes. The U.S. just recently stated they did not want Israel to attack Iran yet, because there was to be another meeting between the U.S. and Iran this coming Sunday. That meeting was to talk further of the need for Iran to stop pursuing nuclear weapons. President Trump had stated that he preferred peaceful negotiations to open military conflict. We do not know if his recent statements were just a smoke screen to allow Israel to carry out its attacks with complete surprise. Reports suggest that several top military officials in Iran were killed because they were taken completely by surprise. Keep your eyes and ears open to what is going on in the Middle East.
In our text God continued to direct the writer to record events leading to the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ. Judas Iscariot was one of Jesus’ hand picked disciples. Jesus knew the heart of Judas as much as He knew the heart of any of the other disciples. As we have mentioned before, God did not force Judas to betray Jesus.
Psalm 41:9 Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me.
The Psalmist was directed to write those words long before Judas was born. Judas was not named in that prophecy. We are reminded again of the foreknowledge of God. God knows all things, but He still gives all people the opportunity to know His forgiveness. Whether a person likes that or not, no one will change Who God is. No one will interfere with His purposes.
Just as we noted in our opening, God is doing what He needs to do. His goal is still that all would come to repentance.
Judas was given the same opportunities as the other eleven disciples. They all walked with Jesus and He took them aside at times to give them further teaching on things He had said and done. Judas chose to reject the truth.
Those who are truly saved can observe how people can be exposed to the same truth, and a few will receive the truth, but most will not receive it. In a family, one person might trust in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation, but the majority will reject the truth. All receive the same opportunity but most refuse the truth. That is the sad reality. Sin is certainly a curse upon humanity. Adam knew better, but he chose to reject the Truth. All of Adam’s descendants are given the same opportunity to turn to God in repentance and to trust in His provision for salvation, but the Bible shows us that the majority has always chosen to reject the truth.
In our text, Judas was now determined to betray Jesus to the chief priests. God had a set day for the crucifixion. Judas did not know that, but he would act in accordance with God’s plan. He had chosen to reject the truth, and he would be used as an instrument to fulfil God’s purposes.
The Bible warns that a person can harden themselves to the place of no return. No man knows that point, but God does. The wise person is the one who humbles himself and trusts in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation.
The chief priests were just as hardened as Judas was. They were happy to have him betray Jesus to them. They promised to give him money for his evil deed. It is a shame that so many people are willing to invest their time and resources to try to destroy the Truth. That is what is going on in Iran. That regime hates God and is seeking to destroy Israel because of that hatred for God.
In the West, we have been a little more civilized in the past. We have recently shown our true nature in protecting terrorists and making life more difficult for Jews and Christians.
Without the Lord, there is no hope for man. There are far more false teachers today, than those who truly know the Lord. Far more people choose to follow a lie, than believe the truth. It is important to note that it was the religious leaders who wanted Jesus gone. Money was the motivator for this. The chief priests had the money to pay for Jesus demise. Judas was greedy and money was his god.
Many people today are still motivated by money. Those who are saved are changed by the grace of God. We see true value and we desire to see others come to know the true God.
Pastor Bartel
