Then entered Satan into Judas surnamed Iscariot, being of the number of the twelve. Luke 22:3

One of the great mysteries of the Bible is Judas, was he ever saved? Did he become unsaved? Was his destiny predetermined? Did he betray Jesus upon his own free will?

When you start analyzing these questions, you get a lot of thoughts and theories flowing in your head, which is why I wanted to address this. I would like to analyze these thoughts and you can come to your own conclusions

Was Judas ever saved (Born Again)? Judas was part of Jesus inner-circle. He was a disciple who had direct teachings and interaction with the Son of God. Is it possible he was a complete fraud the whole time? Or was he saved at one point and fell away? Is it possible to become “Unborn Again”?

But, behold, the hand of him that betrayeth me is with me on the table. Luke 22:21

Jesus knew Judas was going to betray him before it happened. The obvious first thought is Jesus is God therefor he knows the past, present , and future. If Jesus always knew this why did he allow Judas to be part of his inner-circle? Was Judas able to repent or was he always predestined to be the Son of Perdition?

But Jesus said unto him, Judas, betrayest thou the Son of man with a kiss? Luke 22:48

Did Judas not understand or truly believe that Jesus was the Messiah? If he knew or believed Jesus was God, would he really betray him for some money? Makes me think Judas had no real understanding of who Jesus was or authentically believed in his teachings

And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself. Matthew 27:5

Judas eventually realizes who Jesus really is, and he realized what exactly he did. Judas knows by ultimately leading the Romans to kill Jesus, he is guilty of the Messiahs blood, so he hangs himself.

While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled. John 17:12

Jesus calls Judas the “Son of Perdition” and that Judas is not saved. Meaning Judas went to Hell , how do you go from being a disciple of Christ to condemned to Hell?

I don’t believe Judas was every really saved (Born Again) otherwise he would have known who Jesus really is.  Be careful not to be a Judas, make sure you are Born Again! Don’t be just a follower of religion have an authentic relationship with Christ!

And as some spake of the temple, how it was adorned with goodly stones and gifts, he said, As for these things which ye behold, the days will come, in the which there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down. Luke 21:5-6

I think one of the most significant events that are overlooked is the destruction of the Temple. Jesus predicted that this day would come when the Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed, and it happened in 70 A.D.

Now to understand the significance of this you need to understand the Temple of God. This was the holiest place on Earth, the only place where the Spirit of God dwelled. The only place where you can get atonement for your sin, the only place where the Ark of the Covenant lived.

But Jesus was about to change all of this, as Jesus said Destroy this temple in 3 days and I will raise it up (John 2:19) The New Covenant no longer required a Temple because we become the Temple of God by becoming Born Again through Jesus Christ

And they asked him, saying, Master, but when shall these things be? and what sign will there be when these things shall come to pass? Luke 21:7

The disciples wanted to know, “When will this happen”? After the Resurrection it turned the whole world upside down. Why? Because Jesus defeated Sin and Death, Satan no longer has a hold of us. So what happened? The whole world went into chaos, even today we still see the chaos.

But the Romans fulfilled this prophecy of destroying the Temple in Jerusalem, and it was never rebuilt again. Why? Because the Old Covenant has been fulfilled, the New Covenant is we are the Temples of God and the Holy Spirit lives inside of us! (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)

Then came to him certain of the Sadducees, which deny that there is any resurrection; and they asked him, Luke 20:27

Again the religious leaders were trying to stump Jesus by asking him ridiculous questions. The Sadducees used the example of 7 brothers marrying the same wife because they all kept passing away. Obviously this is a ridiculous scenario, as the possibility of all seven men continually dying before the same woman and never having children is mathematically improbable

But since they didn’t believe in the resurrection , they wanted to poke holes in the gospel message. Not only does Jesus answer them but he brings us some profound insight into the afterlife for us all

But they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage: Luke 20:35

First Jesus reveals that there will no longer be marriage in the News Heavens and Earth. Why? Well most likely because there is no reason anymore for Creation, everyone has already existed and those saved will remain with Christ.

It shows you the purpose of marriage, not only for our companionship, but the foundation for humanity. The family was created to bring people into this world. This is why you see Satan attacking the family/marriage so much, broken marriages and families destroy the foundation of society

Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection. Luke 20:36

Jesus reveals that through him we become Children of God, equal to the angels. If you think your life has no purpose, just wait! What a wonderful blessing to understand we are Children of the Resurrection through Jesus Christ Amen!

Is it lawful for us to give tribute unto Caesar, or no? Luke 20:22

The religious leaders were distraught over Jesus, he has turned their religious world upside down. The only way they thought they could stop him , was by challenging his teachings and discrediting him. So they thought of a good argument to bring against him, “Should the Jews pay taxes to Rome or not”?

This is the perfect question or scheme to trap Jesus. If Jesus says Israel shouldn’t pay taxes to Rome, then they have the perfect reason for the Roman government to crucify him. If Jesus says Israel should pay taxes to Rome, then they can convince his Jewish followers to rise against him

But he perceived their craftiness, and said unto them, Why tempt ye me? Shew me a penny. Whose image and superscription hath it? They answered and said, Caesar’s. Luke 20:23-24

The religious leaders obviously didn’t understand who Jesus is. Being the Son of God he saw their deception and knew they weren’t really looking for truth, they were just looking to deceive people. So Jesus threw them a “curve-ball” of his own. He asked them who’s image was on the money.

And he said unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which be Caesar’s, and unto God the things which be God’s. Luke 20:25

Jesus response here is so brilliant you could do a whole sermon just on this one text. Jesus is saying we should pay our taxes and respect our governments, however we also need to love God and give what belongs to him

Is this referring to tithing? Not necessarily, everything belongs to God. God doesn’t want your money, he wants your heart, mind, and soul. He wants your full devotion of your life, when you analyze it, the list gets very long quick

And they could not take hold of his words before the people: and they marvelled at his answer, and held their peace. Luke 20:26

Jesus answer was so perfect, they had no response and held their peace. If your looking for wisdom and understanding, seek Christ. Remember to love God with all your heart, mind, and soul Amen!