Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests, And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver. And from that time he sought opportunity to betray him. Matthew 26:14-16

When you try to think of the most evil names in human history, Judas is on the top of the list. Even people who are not Christians, can associate the name of Judas, with being a great villain. Probably one of the most hated people in history is Judas Iscariot, so how did this man become an Apostle? Was Judas ever really saved? Why did Christ allow Judas in his inner circle, when he knew Judas was going to betray him?

Whenever you talk about Judas, many thoughts and theological conversations are sparked. As we often hear “God works in mysterious ways” , God actually fulfilled His will by using the evil of Judas that was meant for Christ’s harm. It’s amazing how even when Satan thinks he’s won a battle, God is always in complete control. 

And I said unto them, If ye think good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver. Zechariah 11:12

Judas loved money more than he loved God, this is why Jesus warned about the love of money through his ministry (Matthew 19:24) Money has become Judas’ god, and when the opportunity came to make 30 pieces of silver, Judas chose his god, money. The amazing thing is God already knew this was going to happen, as prophesied by Zechariah

In the gospel of Luke it says “Satan entered Judas, then he discussed ways to betray Jesus” (Luke 22:3-4) So we see a storm brewing here, Judas love for money , then Satan uses that lust to betray Christ. It’s clear that Judas had a heart issue, he didn’t love The Lord God with all his heart, mind, soul, and strength. In the gospel of Mark it says “Judas began looking for an opportunity to betray Jesus” (Mark 14:11) So this was a premeditated crime, this was not a spontaneous act by Judas, he planned this out driven by his lust for money

 Then Jesus made the statement at the Last Supper “It would be better for him if he not been born” (Matt. 26:24) ,Christ revealed someone would betray him and there would be eternal damnation.  Judas replied was “Surely, not I Rabbi” and Christ replied “ You have said it yourself” (Matthew 26:25) Jesus called Judas out on his sin , before he even committed it, and Judas still denied it, like the devil he is

Reminds me of a quote from JC Ryle “Except a man be Born Again, he will wish he was never born at all”  Judas clearly wasn’t Born Again and He now probably wishes he was never born , as he’s most likely in Hell

Even though Judas Iscariot, was one of the original Apostles, he was never saved, he never loved Christ. He attended all the meetings, even broke bread with The Lord, but he never became Born Again!