On the Same Night - Part One Apr 07, 2024 by: Mike Madrigal | Series: Messages by Mike Madrigal Audio Study Notes PDF https://s3.amazonaws.com/cornerstonejax/sermonfiles/T047_20240407.mp3 Refresh A Recap from the Sermon 1 Corinthians 11:23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread........ Mike will be looking at the events of the 'Last Supper' min today's message. The full text of this message can be found by clicking the PDF button. On The Same Night Part 1 1 Corinthians 11:23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; 24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, "Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me." 25 In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes. 27 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. 28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. 30 For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep. 31 For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world. The Apostle Paul had received directly from the Lord what we have come to know and practice regularly as the Lord’s Supper, and then had delivered it to the assembly in Corinth. And Paul records for us the context of Jesus breaking the bread and drinking of the cup as being the same night in which He was betrayed. His betrayer, as we know, was Judas, who also partook of the bread and of the cup with the other disciples - Matthew 26:23 He answered and said, "He who dipped his hand with Me in the dish will betray Me…. John 13:26 …And having dipped the bread, He gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. It has been widely taught among Christians throughout the years and even up to today that Judas was an ‘unsaved’ individual. As with all error in the misinterpretation and mishandling of God’s Word, this firstly stems from Christians who have not understood and properly laid the foundations in Genesis (where one is to begin), have failed to heed the instructive command to compare Scripture with Scripture, and who are blind to the division that is to be made between the spirit and the soul. This type of error results in seeing God dealing only with ‘saved’ and ‘unsaved’ individuals by reading and forcing ‘eternal salvation’ into areas of God’s Word where it should not be, resulting in doing away with what the Spirit of God wants to speak to the believer. Another common error has to do with making incorrect judgments based upon what has been recorded for us in the gospel accounts about Judas’s behavior behind the scenes during Christ’s earthly ministry and his actions following his betrayal of the Lord, and condemning Judas to the lake of fire. Many Christians believe that Judas’s unfaithfulness and failure to continue with the Lord was proof that he never possessed spiritual life to begin with - John 12:4 But one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, who would betray Him, said, 5 "Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?" 6 This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it. Matthew 27:3 Then Judas, His betrayer, seeing that He [Jesus] had been condemned, was remorseful and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, 4 saying, "I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” And they said, "What is that to us? You see to it!” 5 Then he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed, and went and hanged himself. But as we know, Christ did not come to a generation of Jews void of spiritual life. Rather, He came to a generation who had been slaying the Passover lambs year after year, applying the blood, and believing in God’s provision for their sins through the death and shed blood of those lambs. They were availing themselves of the means provided prior to the appearance of The Lamb, by which any individual passed from being spiritually dead in trespasses and sins to being made spiritually alive. Once this one-time event had taken place, it could never be reversed, resulting in a position where that individual was now capable of receiving spiritual truth. The Word of God which is spiritual - Genesis 3:21 Also for Adam and his wife the LORD God made tunics of skin, and clothed them. Exodus 12:13 Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt. 1 Corinthians 2:14 But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. Christ proclaimed a message that must be - and can only be - heard by those in possession of spiritual life and who have spiritual ears to hear. A message for those who have been saved (past). He proclaimed a message of repentance to a ‘lost’ Jewish people. Not in the sense of ‘lost for eternity’, a phrase used by Christians referring to the unredeemed, but in the sense of having gone in a direction away from God’s original calling and purpose for the nation. This was, as we know, a calling having to do with rulership along with a King in His kingdom - Jeremiah 50:6 "My people have been lost sheep. Their shepherds have led them astray; They have turned them away on the mountains. They have gone from mountain to hill; They have forgotten their resting place. Matthew 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” And this group of redeemed individuals to whom Christ came would include Judas, who would have at one point in his life appropriated the blood of the Passover lambs, and had received the message of the kingdom of the heavens that Christ was offering to Israel. He was named among one of the twelve apostles that Jesus summoned to follow Him to rule alongside Him in His kingdom - Matthew 10:2 Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; 3 Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; 4 Simon the Cananite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him. Judas was a disciple, being that he was instructed by the Lord concerning the kingdom of the heavens during His three-and-one half year earthly ministry. Judas saw the signs Christ performed and even performed them himself - Matthew 10:1 And when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease. 2 Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: … v.4 …and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him. Yet these are the words spoken by the Christ that we read concerning Judas - Matthew 26:23 He answered and said, "He who dipped his hand with Me in the dish will betray Me. 24 The Son of Man indeed goes just as it is written of Him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.” 25 Then Judas, who was betraying Him, answered and said, "Rabbi, is it I?” He said to him, "You have said it.” SONS OF PERDITION OR SONS THE KINGDOM? John 17:12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name. Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. Judas is called the son of perdition, or the son of destruction. And pictured in him, we see a large part of the majority of Christians and their experience following the JSOC; we see the many who will have chosen the broad way that leads to destruction. In this description of him, we will understand how Scripture defines the word ‘lost’. “Lost” is not used here with regards to the endless ages, but instead Judas is lost (rendered useless) for the age to come. His feeling of remorse or regret when he betrayed his innocent Lord for thirty pieces of silver, embracing the cares and riches of this world, foreshadows the repentance many will seek from the Lord at the JSOC for having chosen the same. This is a chilling thought to ponder now or even wish upon our worst enemy - Matthew 7:21 "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ (the very signs that Judas performed) 23 And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ However, we should be careful to note that Judas would not represent ALL Christians, in the sense that not ALL Christians have come into a mature knowledge as Judas had, and not all possess the same understanding today of what was on offer to him then. This outcome would primarily apply to those who have matured beyond the basic elementary principles of Christ - have gone from a gnosis to epignosis knowledge - but then at a later point chosen to turn away from it. We know this by comparing the signs he witnessed Christ perform, which he himself also did, and the warning that is written for us in the book of Hebrews. This is a letter to an assembly who had gone on to maturity but had regressed because of carelessness, and were in danger of reaching that terminal point of no return - Hebrews 6:4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5 and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame. The gospel had been preached to Judas. Not the gospel of grace, but the gospel of glory contained in the message he heard Christ proclaim to Israel (of whom he was a part), “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” And in order for him to have been an apostle and a disciple of Christ, he would have had to repent (for repentance was a requirement), receive and believe the message of the offer of the kingdom of the heavens that was being presented to him, and in the identity of Jesus as the Christ, the Son of living God. He was a partaker of the Holy Spirit through the signs he performed which were done in the power of the Spirit, tasting by experience the good Word of God towards Israel, and what was on offer to them then. These signs pointed to God’s power to heal the nation and to gather them back to the land from their dispersion and captivity. But that awaits a future fulfillment, because of their rejection of the message and the Messenger. This was prophetically foretold in Jeremiah concerning the seventy years of the past Babylonian captivity - Jeremiah 29:10 For thus says the LORD: After seventy years are completed at Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to return to this place. 11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, says the LORD, and I will bring you back from your captivity; I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you, says the LORD, and I will bring you to the place from which I cause you to be carried away captive. But as we know, despite all that was revealed and manifested to him, Judas had fallen away (apostatized). He delivered his Lord over to be crucified, putting Him to an open shame - Matthew 27:27 Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole garrison around Him. 28 And they stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him. 29 When they had twisted a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand. And they bowed the knee before Him and mocked Him, saying, "Hail, King of the Jews!" 30 Then they spat on Him, and took the reed and struck Him on the head. 31 And when they had mocked Him, they took the robe off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him away to be crucified. BRING BACK THE GOOD FRUIT! Matthew 12:33 "Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit. This is not the first time a redeemed individual came into this type of experiential knowledge and turned away from it, betraying the Lord. In fact, we can go back to an OT example of an entire generation of Jews who had been delivered (past spiritual salvation) from Egypt, who understood their purpose for their deliverance, which was to rule within a Theocracy in another Land. Who then came to the borders of it but chose to turn back, resulting in their being destroyed in the wilderness. Except of course, for two individuals, and a few in comparison to the many - Numbers 13:1 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 "Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel; from each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a leader among them.”……v.17 Then Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, "Go up this way into the South, and go up to the mountains, 18 and see what the land is like: whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, few or many; 19 whether the land they dwell in is good or bad; whether the cities they inhabit are like camps or strongholds; 20 whether the land is rich or poor; and whether there are forests there or not. Be of good courage. And bring some of the fruit of the land." Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes. The Lord had spoken to Moses to spy out the land of Canaan by sending a leader from each of the 12 tribes of their fathers. They were to go up into the south and go up in the mountains and search out the land to find out what its inhabitants and its cities were like. They were then to bring back a report (not to the Lord, for He knew what its inhabitants and cities were like), but to Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the children of Israel. And in their search, they were commanded to be strong and courageous, for the Lord was with them to give them the land as He had said multiple times throughout their journey. It mattered not how weak or strong the people were who dwelled there, or the construction of their cities, again because God was with them. And upon their return from spying out the land, the spies were instructed by Moses to bring back the fruit of the land. All twelve did so - Numbers 13:25 And they returned from spying out the land after forty days. 26 Now they departed and came back to Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the children of Israel in the Wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh; they brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 Then they told him, and said: "We went to the land where you sent us. It truly flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. But after seeing the inhabitants of the land, ten of the spies spoke against what God had said. They brought back a bad report to the people - Numbers 13:31 But the men who had gone up with him said, "We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we." 32 And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, "The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. 33 There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.” Who they saw themselves to be in their own sight, in comparison to the giants that were in the land, took precedence over what God had said and how He viewed the matter. There were giants in the land and they were strong, but that was immaterial and would not affect God giving the children of Israel the land for which they had been redeemed, and it would not revoke what He had clearly declared before commanding Moses to send men to spy out the land - Numbers 13:1 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 "Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel; And what had been declared previously - Exodus 4:22 Then you shall say to Pharaoh, 'Thus says the LORD: "Israel IS My son, My firstborn. Malachi 3:6 "For I am the LORD, I do not change; Therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob AND THE PEOPLE WEPT THAT NIGHT Numbers 14:1 So all the congregation lifted up their voices and cried, and the people wept that night. 2 And all the children of Israel complained against Moses and Aaron, and the whole congregation said to them, "If only we had died in the land of Egypt! Or if only we had died in this wilderness! 3 Why has the LORD brought us to this land to fall by the sword, that our wives and children should become victims? Would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?" 4 So they said to one another, "Let us select a leader and return to Egypt.” 5 Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel. The ten who brought back the bad report put fear in the people, rather than instilling faith in the Lord. They influenced the children of Israel to respond in unbelief rather than belief. Their reaction to what they heard and then chose to believe from the ten spies was to lift up their voices and cry and complain against Moses and Aaron that night. They believed that it would have been better for them to have died in Egypt or the wilderness than to have ever been redeemed from Egypt at all! In other words, they told God, “You should have left us where you found us!” OR “It would have been better if we had not been born…!” We see this same attitude exemplified in Esau. He was right in his own eyes when he confessed that he was about to die because of a fleshly desire. That took priority over the rights he possessed as a firstborn, and he chose to then cast his inheritance aside - Genesis 25:32 And Esau said, "Look, I am about to die; so what is this birthright to me?" But let us not be quick to blame the peoples’ response solely on the ten spies. Of their own free will, they chose to believe the bad report. And out of their own mouths they made the confession and said to one another "Let us select a leader and return to Egypt.” There were within the camp a remnant of two individuals of the twelve who brought back a good report. These two spoke to the people the same words as the Lord had spoken, as opposed to the ten who spoke against Him - Numbers 14:6 But Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes; 7 and they spoke to all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying: "The land we passed through to spy out is an exceedingly good land. 8 If the LORD delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land which flows with milk and honey.' 9 Only do not rebel against the LORD, nor fear the people of the land, for they are our bread; their protection has departed from them, and the LORD is with us. Do not fear them.” The good report Joshua and Caleb gave and their plea to the people not to fear or rebel against the Lord, but to go into and possess the land, comes after the bad report of the ten spies. They gave the children of Israel one final opportunity to act by faith, rather than in the unbelief which they had previously exhibited. And if they did act by faith, believing that the Lord was with them and would give them the land, He would delight (be pleased) in them - Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. That day, the first generation of Israel to come out of Egypt was on the cusp of entering into the land, overthrowing its inhabitants, and consequently ruling in a Theocracy where God would dwell within their midst. This possibility could be seen by the glory of the Lord appearing in the tabernacle of meeting before them following the good report of Joshua and Caleb. But again, this provided another opportunity for a change of mind, and the Israelites chose to pick up stones to stone them - Numbers 14:10 And all the congregation said to stone them with stones. Now the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of meeting before all the children of Israel. DO NOT FALL! As we bring this back around to where we began with our study of Judas, the statement the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel had made in wanting to select a leader and return to Egypt is no different than the actions of Judas betraying the Lord in exchange for thirty pieces of silver. From the viewpoint of the children of Israel, we see the forsaking and the rejection of the God of their Fathers in exchange for Egypt, a type of the world and all that it offers - Numbers 14:11 Then the LORD said to Moses: "How long will these people reject Me? And how long will they not believe Me, with all the signs which I have performed among them? If we stop to think about it, it was always their heart’s desire to return to “the world” throughout their wilderness journey. What we see at Kadesh Barnea is just the final manifestation of what was in their hearts all along. And unfortunately, if they had examined themselves and dealt with these desires prior to and during that time in the wilderness, they would have not suffered the consequences of those lingering desires at a time when it mattered most - Numbers 14:26 And the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, 27 "How long shall I bear with this evil congregation who complain against Me? I have heard the complaints which the children of Israel make against Me. 28 Say to them, As I live,' says the LORD, 'just as you have spoken in My hearing, so I will do to you: 29 The carcasses of you who have complained against Me shall fall in this wilderness, all of you who were numbered, according to your entire number, from twenty years old and above…..v.32 But as for you, your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness. 33 And your sons shall be shepherds in the wilderness forty years, and bear the brunt of your infidelity, until your carcasses are consumed in the wilderness. 34 According to the number of the days in which you spied out the land, forty days, for each day you shall bear your guilt one year, namely forty years, and you shall know My rejection. 35 I the LORD have spoken this. I will surely do so to all this evil congregation who are gathered together against Me. In this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die.'" The same outcome is spoken of Judas because of the same choices he made. As the children of Israel completely fell and died in the wilderness, Judas, the one who betrayed the Lord, fell and died in the field that he purchased - Acts 1:18 (Now this man purchased a field with the wages of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his entrails gushed out. 19 And it became known to all those dwelling in Jerusalem; so that field is called in their own language, Akel Dama, that is, Field of Blood.) 20 "For it is written in the Book of Psalms: Let his dwelling place be desolate, And let no one live in it’; and, Let another take his office.’ And whether death was in the wilderness or in the field, both picture for us coming short of and not entering into the land - Hebrews 4:1 Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it. 2 For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. HEAR HIS VOICE TODAY AND LIVE The whole assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel (save Joshua and Caleb) who came out of Egypt, as well as Judas, died physically apart from faith. They stood away from believing what God had said about the land set before them for which they had been redeemed and in which they were to be ruled over by Him. And they, along with many of the physical descendants of Jacob who appropriated the blood of the Passover lambs prior to Calvary, will be resurrected at the wilderness of the peoples to be judged prior to the establishment of the Millennial Kingdom - Ezekiel 20:33 "As I live," says the Lord GOD, "surely with a mighty hand, with an outstretched arm, and with fury poured out, I will rule over you. 34 I will bring you out from the peoples and gather you out of the countries where you are scattered, with a mighty hand, with an outstretched arm, and with fury poured out. 35 And I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there I will plead My case with you face to face. 36 Just as I pleaded My case with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will plead My case with you," says the Lord GOD. 37 "I will make you pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant; 38 I will purge the rebels from among you, and those who transgress against Me; I will bring them out of the country where they dwell, but they shall not enter the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the LORD. It will be in the wilderness before entrance into the Land, where judgment will take place for those who rebelled against the Lord and those who did not. This judgment will be for all of the redeemed who died physically during the Jewish dispensation, along with those Jews who survive the time of Jacob’s trouble. Those who will have heard the voice of the Lord and believed His Word will experience life in the age to come, and those who have rejected His voice and Word through unbelief are as described as having done evil, and shall not enter the land - John 5:24 "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has age-lasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life. 25 Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live. 26 For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, 27 and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man. 28 Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice 29 and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation. So what does this all have to do with the Lord’s supper and Judas’s betrayal? Hopefully we have made some connections and we have heard what the Spirit is saying to us today. And we have seen the spiritual significance and seriousness of it beyond the physical act that we practice regularly. With all this in mind, let’s read again part of the opening passage of Scripture from today’s message - 1 Corinthians 11:27 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. 28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. 30 For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep (are physically dead). 31 For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world. On the Same Night - Part One Apr 07, 2024 Speaker: Mike Madrigal Series: Messages by Mike Madrigal Category: Sunday Morning https://s3.amazonaws.com/cornerstonejax/sermonfiles/T047_20240407.mp3 Download Audio x
Refresh A Recap from the Sermon 1 Corinthians 11:23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread........ Mike will be looking at the events of the 'Last Supper' min today's message. The full text of this message can be found by clicking the PDF button. On The Same Night Part 1 1 Corinthians 11:23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; 24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, "Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me." 25 In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes. 27 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. 28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. 30 For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep. 31 For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world. The Apostle Paul had received directly from the Lord what we have come to know and practice regularly as the Lord’s Supper, and then had delivered it to the assembly in Corinth. And Paul records for us the context of Jesus breaking the bread and drinking of the cup as being the same night in which He was betrayed. His betrayer, as we know, was Judas, who also partook of the bread and of the cup with the other disciples - Matthew 26:23 He answered and said, "He who dipped his hand with Me in the dish will betray Me…. John 13:26 …And having dipped the bread, He gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. It has been widely taught among Christians throughout the years and even up to today that Judas was an ‘unsaved’ individual. As with all error in the misinterpretation and mishandling of God’s Word, this firstly stems from Christians who have not understood and properly laid the foundations in Genesis (where one is to begin), have failed to heed the instructive command to compare Scripture with Scripture, and who are blind to the division that is to be made between the spirit and the soul. This type of error results in seeing God dealing only with ‘saved’ and ‘unsaved’ individuals by reading and forcing ‘eternal salvation’ into areas of God’s Word where it should not be, resulting in doing away with what the Spirit of God wants to speak to the believer. Another common error has to do with making incorrect judgments based upon what has been recorded for us in the gospel accounts about Judas’s behavior behind the scenes during Christ’s earthly ministry and his actions following his betrayal of the Lord, and condemning Judas to the lake of fire. Many Christians believe that Judas’s unfaithfulness and failure to continue with the Lord was proof that he never possessed spiritual life to begin with - John 12:4 But one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, who would betray Him, said, 5 "Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?" 6 This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it. Matthew 27:3 Then Judas, His betrayer, seeing that He [Jesus] had been condemned, was remorseful and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, 4 saying, "I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” And they said, "What is that to us? You see to it!” 5 Then he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed, and went and hanged himself. But as we know, Christ did not come to a generation of Jews void of spiritual life. Rather, He came to a generation who had been slaying the Passover lambs year after year, applying the blood, and believing in God’s provision for their sins through the death and shed blood of those lambs. They were availing themselves of the means provided prior to the appearance of The Lamb, by which any individual passed from being spiritually dead in trespasses and sins to being made spiritually alive. Once this one-time event had taken place, it could never be reversed, resulting in a position where that individual was now capable of receiving spiritual truth. The Word of God which is spiritual - Genesis 3:21 Also for Adam and his wife the LORD God made tunics of skin, and clothed them. Exodus 12:13 Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt. 1 Corinthians 2:14 But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. Christ proclaimed a message that must be - and can only be - heard by those in possession of spiritual life and who have spiritual ears to hear. A message for those who have been saved (past). He proclaimed a message of repentance to a ‘lost’ Jewish people. Not in the sense of ‘lost for eternity’, a phrase used by Christians referring to the unredeemed, but in the sense of having gone in a direction away from God’s original calling and purpose for the nation. This was, as we know, a calling having to do with rulership along with a King in His kingdom - Jeremiah 50:6 "My people have been lost sheep. Their shepherds have led them astray; They have turned them away on the mountains. They have gone from mountain to hill; They have forgotten their resting place. Matthew 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” And this group of redeemed individuals to whom Christ came would include Judas, who would have at one point in his life appropriated the blood of the Passover lambs, and had received the message of the kingdom of the heavens that Christ was offering to Israel. He was named among one of the twelve apostles that Jesus summoned to follow Him to rule alongside Him in His kingdom - Matthew 10:2 Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; 3 Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; 4 Simon the Cananite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him. Judas was a disciple, being that he was instructed by the Lord concerning the kingdom of the heavens during His three-and-one half year earthly ministry. Judas saw the signs Christ performed and even performed them himself - Matthew 10:1 And when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease. 2 Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: … v.4 …and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him. Yet these are the words spoken by the Christ that we read concerning Judas - Matthew 26:23 He answered and said, "He who dipped his hand with Me in the dish will betray Me. 24 The Son of Man indeed goes just as it is written of Him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.” 25 Then Judas, who was betraying Him, answered and said, "Rabbi, is it I?” He said to him, "You have said it.” SONS OF PERDITION OR SONS THE KINGDOM? John 17:12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name. Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. Judas is called the son of perdition, or the son of destruction. And pictured in him, we see a large part of the majority of Christians and their experience following the JSOC; we see the many who will have chosen the broad way that leads to destruction. In this description of him, we will understand how Scripture defines the word ‘lost’. “Lost” is not used here with regards to the endless ages, but instead Judas is lost (rendered useless) for the age to come. His feeling of remorse or regret when he betrayed his innocent Lord for thirty pieces of silver, embracing the cares and riches of this world, foreshadows the repentance many will seek from the Lord at the JSOC for having chosen the same. This is a chilling thought to ponder now or even wish upon our worst enemy - Matthew 7:21 "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ (the very signs that Judas performed) 23 And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ However, we should be careful to note that Judas would not represent ALL Christians, in the sense that not ALL Christians have come into a mature knowledge as Judas had, and not all possess the same understanding today of what was on offer to him then. This outcome would primarily apply to those who have matured beyond the basic elementary principles of Christ - have gone from a gnosis to epignosis knowledge - but then at a later point chosen to turn away from it. We know this by comparing the signs he witnessed Christ perform, which he himself also did, and the warning that is written for us in the book of Hebrews. This is a letter to an assembly who had gone on to maturity but had regressed because of carelessness, and were in danger of reaching that terminal point of no return - Hebrews 6:4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5 and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame. The gospel had been preached to Judas. Not the gospel of grace, but the gospel of glory contained in the message he heard Christ proclaim to Israel (of whom he was a part), “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” And in order for him to have been an apostle and a disciple of Christ, he would have had to repent (for repentance was a requirement), receive and believe the message of the offer of the kingdom of the heavens that was being presented to him, and in the identity of Jesus as the Christ, the Son of living God. He was a partaker of the Holy Spirit through the signs he performed which were done in the power of the Spirit, tasting by experience the good Word of God towards Israel, and what was on offer to them then. These signs pointed to God’s power to heal the nation and to gather them back to the land from their dispersion and captivity. But that awaits a future fulfillment, because of their rejection of the message and the Messenger. This was prophetically foretold in Jeremiah concerning the seventy years of the past Babylonian captivity - Jeremiah 29:10 For thus says the LORD: After seventy years are completed at Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to return to this place. 11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, says the LORD, and I will bring you back from your captivity; I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you, says the LORD, and I will bring you to the place from which I cause you to be carried away captive. But as we know, despite all that was revealed and manifested to him, Judas had fallen away (apostatized). He delivered his Lord over to be crucified, putting Him to an open shame - Matthew 27:27 Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole garrison around Him. 28 And they stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him. 29 When they had twisted a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand. And they bowed the knee before Him and mocked Him, saying, "Hail, King of the Jews!" 30 Then they spat on Him, and took the reed and struck Him on the head. 31 And when they had mocked Him, they took the robe off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him away to be crucified. BRING BACK THE GOOD FRUIT! Matthew 12:33 "Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit. This is not the first time a redeemed individual came into this type of experiential knowledge and turned away from it, betraying the Lord. In fact, we can go back to an OT example of an entire generation of Jews who had been delivered (past spiritual salvation) from Egypt, who understood their purpose for their deliverance, which was to rule within a Theocracy in another Land. Who then came to the borders of it but chose to turn back, resulting in their being destroyed in the wilderness. Except of course, for two individuals, and a few in comparison to the many - Numbers 13:1 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 "Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel; from each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a leader among them.”……v.17 Then Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, "Go up this way into the South, and go up to the mountains, 18 and see what the land is like: whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, few or many; 19 whether the land they dwell in is good or bad; whether the cities they inhabit are like camps or strongholds; 20 whether the land is rich or poor; and whether there are forests there or not. Be of good courage. And bring some of the fruit of the land." Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes. The Lord had spoken to Moses to spy out the land of Canaan by sending a leader from each of the 12 tribes of their fathers. They were to go up into the south and go up in the mountains and search out the land to find out what its inhabitants and its cities were like. They were then to bring back a report (not to the Lord, for He knew what its inhabitants and cities were like), but to Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the children of Israel. And in their search, they were commanded to be strong and courageous, for the Lord was with them to give them the land as He had said multiple times throughout their journey. It mattered not how weak or strong the people were who dwelled there, or the construction of their cities, again because God was with them. And upon their return from spying out the land, the spies were instructed by Moses to bring back the fruit of the land. All twelve did so - Numbers 13:25 And they returned from spying out the land after forty days. 26 Now they departed and came back to Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the children of Israel in the Wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh; they brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 Then they told him, and said: "We went to the land where you sent us. It truly flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. But after seeing the inhabitants of the land, ten of the spies spoke against what God had said. They brought back a bad report to the people - Numbers 13:31 But the men who had gone up with him said, "We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we." 32 And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, "The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. 33 There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.” Who they saw themselves to be in their own sight, in comparison to the giants that were in the land, took precedence over what God had said and how He viewed the matter. There were giants in the land and they were strong, but that was immaterial and would not affect God giving the children of Israel the land for which they had been redeemed, and it would not revoke what He had clearly declared before commanding Moses to send men to spy out the land - Numbers 13:1 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 "Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel; And what had been declared previously - Exodus 4:22 Then you shall say to Pharaoh, 'Thus says the LORD: "Israel IS My son, My firstborn. Malachi 3:6 "For I am the LORD, I do not change; Therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob AND THE PEOPLE WEPT THAT NIGHT Numbers 14:1 So all the congregation lifted up their voices and cried, and the people wept that night. 2 And all the children of Israel complained against Moses and Aaron, and the whole congregation said to them, "If only we had died in the land of Egypt! Or if only we had died in this wilderness! 3 Why has the LORD brought us to this land to fall by the sword, that our wives and children should become victims? Would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?" 4 So they said to one another, "Let us select a leader and return to Egypt.” 5 Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel. The ten who brought back the bad report put fear in the people, rather than instilling faith in the Lord. They influenced the children of Israel to respond in unbelief rather than belief. Their reaction to what they heard and then chose to believe from the ten spies was to lift up their voices and cry and complain against Moses and Aaron that night. They believed that it would have been better for them to have died in Egypt or the wilderness than to have ever been redeemed from Egypt at all! In other words, they told God, “You should have left us where you found us!” OR “It would have been better if we had not been born…!” We see this same attitude exemplified in Esau. He was right in his own eyes when he confessed that he was about to die because of a fleshly desire. That took priority over the rights he possessed as a firstborn, and he chose to then cast his inheritance aside - Genesis 25:32 And Esau said, "Look, I am about to die; so what is this birthright to me?" But let us not be quick to blame the peoples’ response solely on the ten spies. Of their own free will, they chose to believe the bad report. And out of their own mouths they made the confession and said to one another "Let us select a leader and return to Egypt.” There were within the camp a remnant of two individuals of the twelve who brought back a good report. These two spoke to the people the same words as the Lord had spoken, as opposed to the ten who spoke against Him - Numbers 14:6 But Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes; 7 and they spoke to all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying: "The land we passed through to spy out is an exceedingly good land. 8 If the LORD delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land which flows with milk and honey.' 9 Only do not rebel against the LORD, nor fear the people of the land, for they are our bread; their protection has departed from them, and the LORD is with us. Do not fear them.” The good report Joshua and Caleb gave and their plea to the people not to fear or rebel against the Lord, but to go into and possess the land, comes after the bad report of the ten spies. They gave the children of Israel one final opportunity to act by faith, rather than in the unbelief which they had previously exhibited. And if they did act by faith, believing that the Lord was with them and would give them the land, He would delight (be pleased) in them - Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. That day, the first generation of Israel to come out of Egypt was on the cusp of entering into the land, overthrowing its inhabitants, and consequently ruling in a Theocracy where God would dwell within their midst. This possibility could be seen by the glory of the Lord appearing in the tabernacle of meeting before them following the good report of Joshua and Caleb. But again, this provided another opportunity for a change of mind, and the Israelites chose to pick up stones to stone them - Numbers 14:10 And all the congregation said to stone them with stones. Now the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of meeting before all the children of Israel. DO NOT FALL! As we bring this back around to where we began with our study of Judas, the statement the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel had made in wanting to select a leader and return to Egypt is no different than the actions of Judas betraying the Lord in exchange for thirty pieces of silver. From the viewpoint of the children of Israel, we see the forsaking and the rejection of the God of their Fathers in exchange for Egypt, a type of the world and all that it offers - Numbers 14:11 Then the LORD said to Moses: "How long will these people reject Me? And how long will they not believe Me, with all the signs which I have performed among them? If we stop to think about it, it was always their heart’s desire to return to “the world” throughout their wilderness journey. What we see at Kadesh Barnea is just the final manifestation of what was in their hearts all along. And unfortunately, if they had examined themselves and dealt with these desires prior to and during that time in the wilderness, they would have not suffered the consequences of those lingering desires at a time when it mattered most - Numbers 14:26 And the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, 27 "How long shall I bear with this evil congregation who complain against Me? I have heard the complaints which the children of Israel make against Me. 28 Say to them, As I live,' says the LORD, 'just as you have spoken in My hearing, so I will do to you: 29 The carcasses of you who have complained against Me shall fall in this wilderness, all of you who were numbered, according to your entire number, from twenty years old and above…..v.32 But as for you, your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness. 33 And your sons shall be shepherds in the wilderness forty years, and bear the brunt of your infidelity, until your carcasses are consumed in the wilderness. 34 According to the number of the days in which you spied out the land, forty days, for each day you shall bear your guilt one year, namely forty years, and you shall know My rejection. 35 I the LORD have spoken this. I will surely do so to all this evil congregation who are gathered together against Me. In this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die.'" The same outcome is spoken of Judas because of the same choices he made. As the children of Israel completely fell and died in the wilderness, Judas, the one who betrayed the Lord, fell and died in the field that he purchased - Acts 1:18 (Now this man purchased a field with the wages of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his entrails gushed out. 19 And it became known to all those dwelling in Jerusalem; so that field is called in their own language, Akel Dama, that is, Field of Blood.) 20 "For it is written in the Book of Psalms: Let his dwelling place be desolate, And let no one live in it’; and, Let another take his office.’ And whether death was in the wilderness or in the field, both picture for us coming short of and not entering into the land - Hebrews 4:1 Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it. 2 For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. HEAR HIS VOICE TODAY AND LIVE The whole assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel (save Joshua and Caleb) who came out of Egypt, as well as Judas, died physically apart from faith. They stood away from believing what God had said about the land set before them for which they had been redeemed and in which they were to be ruled over by Him. And they, along with many of the physical descendants of Jacob who appropriated the blood of the Passover lambs prior to Calvary, will be resurrected at the wilderness of the peoples to be judged prior to the establishment of the Millennial Kingdom - Ezekiel 20:33 "As I live," says the Lord GOD, "surely with a mighty hand, with an outstretched arm, and with fury poured out, I will rule over you. 34 I will bring you out from the peoples and gather you out of the countries where you are scattered, with a mighty hand, with an outstretched arm, and with fury poured out. 35 And I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there I will plead My case with you face to face. 36 Just as I pleaded My case with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will plead My case with you," says the Lord GOD. 37 "I will make you pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant; 38 I will purge the rebels from among you, and those who transgress against Me; I will bring them out of the country where they dwell, but they shall not enter the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the LORD. It will be in the wilderness before entrance into the Land, where judgment will take place for those who rebelled against the Lord and those who did not. This judgment will be for all of the redeemed who died physically during the Jewish dispensation, along with those Jews who survive the time of Jacob’s trouble. Those who will have heard the voice of the Lord and believed His Word will experience life in the age to come, and those who have rejected His voice and Word through unbelief are as described as having done evil, and shall not enter the land - John 5:24 "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has age-lasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life. 25 Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live. 26 For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, 27 and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man. 28 Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice 29 and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation. So what does this all have to do with the Lord’s supper and Judas’s betrayal? Hopefully we have made some connections and we have heard what the Spirit is saying to us today. And we have seen the spiritual significance and seriousness of it beyond the physical act that we practice regularly. With all this in mind, let’s read again part of the opening passage of Scripture from today’s message - 1 Corinthians 11:27 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. 28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. 30 For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep (are physically dead). 31 For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world.