How Bad Was Judas?

I sometimes think we judge Judas Iscariot more harshly than we should. “Don’t be a Judas, He (She) is a Judas, etc” are sayings that have meanings that cross cultural boundaries. Judas is synonymous with traitor. Now before people start getting upset and huffy, I’m not saying what he did was justifiable, OK, or anything like that. Someone was going to betray Jesus and it just so happened that it was Judas. It could have just as easily been Peter, John, Matthew, or any of the other 8 disciples. So why was it him?

   When Jesus picked Judas as one of the original 12, did He know that Judas would betray him? I have no idea but it seems odd that Jesus would pick someone knowing he would betray Him. Simply put, Jesus was/is all about redemption, forgiveness, and new starts; therefore Judas’ fate couldn’t have been set in stone. He had to decide to do it. When Luke names the 12 disciples, he makes an important distinction that I think we often overlook. Luke 6:16b Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor. He didn’t start out wanting to betray Jesus; he wasn’t a subversive placed there by the religious leaders or Romans. He was initially an earnest follower of Jesus.

   Luke 9:1-2 When Jesus called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and heal the sick. He was commissioned by Jesus and given Holy Spirit power. Was he a traitor by this point? Most likely not, however he was stealing from their funds. He was literally stealing from Jesus yet he was still able to operate in gifts of healing and deliverance! His redemption opportunities were still available.

   He became a traitor. It was a process, one sin at a time until he passed the point of no return: death. I believe Jesus would have fully forgiven Judas if he had repented instead of killing himself. Yes, Judas betrayed him to the authorities but Peter lied about Him 3 times; his lies were another act of betrayal. The sole difference was repentance; Peter did it and Judas refused it.

   When I said I think we harshly judge Judas I meant it’s because we are so quick to point out his awful sin. But are we better than him? When I decide not to forgive am I not betraying the One who died to forgive me? Am I allowing pride to betray my trust in Christ by relying on me instead of Him? We all sin but its how we decide to deal with it that differentiates us from Judas. It wasn’t the type of sin that condemned Judas; it was the fact that he chose to ignore his sin and it swallowed him. May we all decide to be like Peter instead of Judas; recognizing that no matter what we do or have done Jesus still offers forgiveness. We simply are required to ask Him for it.