Therefore, King, whence are the armies which he leadeth?
The hope is calling, and the strength is calling.
He is our Lord and Redeemer, Savior and Monarch divine.
They are the stars that forever bright in his kingdom will shine.
Not to the strong is the battle, not to the swift is the race.
Get to the true and the faithful, victorious promise through grace.
Conquering now and still to conquer, Jesus the ruler of all.
Thrones and their scepters all shall perish, crowns and their splendors shall fall.
Yet shall the armies thou leadest, true to the last, find their mansions eternal.
Not to the strong is the battle, not to the swift is the race.
Yet to the true and the faithful, victorious promise through grace.
Amen.
And I pray that you'd also just be with us in the congregation,
that we would just take the message to heart and apply it to our lives this morning.
We pray now these things in Jesus' name, Amen.
Song number 230, you may be seated.
Song number 230, Heavenly Sunlight.
Song number 230, there in your hymnals.
We're seeing it on that first verse.
Walking in sunlight, all of my journey.
See it on that verse?
Walking in sunlight, all of my journey.
Over the mountains, through the deep veil.
Jesus has said I'll never forsake thee, promise divine that never can fail.
Heavenly Sunlight, Heavenly Sunlight, my soul with glory divine.
Hallelujah, I am rejoicing, singing his praises, Jesus is mine.
Shadows around me, shadows above me, never conceal my savior and guide.
He is the light in him is no darkness, ever I'm walking close to his side.
Heavenly Sunlight, Heavenly Sunlight, flooding my soul with glory divine.
Hallelujah, I am rejoicing, singing his praises, Jesus is mine.
In the bright sunlight, ever rejoicing, pressing my way to mansions above.
Singing his praises, gladly I'm walking, walking in sunlight, sunlight of love.
Heavenly Sunlight, Heavenly Sunlight, flooding my soul with glory divine.
Hallelujah, I am rejoicing, singing his praises, Jesus is mine.
Heavenly Sunlight, Heavenly Sunlight, flooding my soul with glory divine.
And you can see Ms. Janelle Gonzalez for more details about that.
Easter service is on the 9th of April and there will be a breakfast potluck and Easter egg hunt for the children as well on that day.
I want to encourage you to invite your family, friends, co-workers, associates to that service.
Of course it's a time when people are very much conscientious about going to church and so we want to take advantage of that.
Bring them here, get them saved, Lord willing get them baptized, amen.
And hopefully we'll break record attendance on Sunday, April 9th.
And then Barstow zoning resumes on Monday, May 1st.
Tomorrow is actually the last day.
We typically take about a three month break and so tomorrow would be the last day for this particular block.
If you would like to participate tomorrow you can see brother Ulysses Hernandez for more details.
We meet here at the building at 1130 and of course we'll have dinner out there.
And then the end of school picnic, we're having an end of school picnic on Tuesday, May 30th.
You can see my wife Sarah for more details about that.
No food or drink allowed in the main auditorium except for water and coffee.
Please make sure you're not loitering in the foyer or fellowship hall during the preaching service.
And then this afternoon, quiet time is from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. throughout the whole building.
The lights will be turned off.
And then please make sure you silence your phones during the preaching so as to not be a distraction during the service, alright.
And that is it, let's go ahead and sing our next song, song number 206, Oh Say But I'm Glad, song number 206.
Song number 206, song number 206, Oh Say But I'm Glad, we'll sing it on that first verse.
There is a song in my heart today, something I've never had.
Jesus has taken my sins away, oh say but I'm glad.
Oh say but I'm glad, I'm glad, oh say but I'm glad.
Jesus has come and my cup's overrun, oh say but I'm glad.
The wonderful marvelous love he brings into a heart that's sad.
Through darkest tunnels the soul just sings, oh say but I'm glad.
Oh say but I'm glad, I'm glad, oh say but I'm glad.
Jesus has come and my cup's overrun, oh say but I'm glad.
We have a fellowship rich and sweet, tons can never relate.
Abiding in him the souls retreat, oh say but I'm glad.
Oh say but I'm glad, I'm glad, oh say but I'm glad.
Jesus has come and my cup's overrun, oh say but I'm glad.
Won't you come to him with all your care, weary and horn and sad.
You too will sing as his love you share, oh say but I'm glad.
Oh say but I'm glad, I'm glad, oh say but I'm glad.
Jesus has come and my cup's overrun, oh say but I'm glad.
Amen. Wonderful singing. At this time our ushers will be receiving the opera.
.
We're in Acts chapter number one this morning.
Acts chapter number one the Bible reads,
The former treatise have I made of Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen.
To him also he had showed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.
Being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which saith ye have heard of me.
For John truly baptized with water, but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost, not many days hence.
When they therefore were come together, they asked of him saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?
And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons which the Father hath put in his own power.
But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost has come upon you, and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up, and a cloud received him out of their sight.
And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven?
This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner, as ye have seen him go into heaven.
Then returned they unto Jerusalem, from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem, a Sabbath day's journey.
And when they were come in, they went up into an upper room, where both Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas, Bartholomew, and Matthew,
James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelodes, and Judas the brother of James.
These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren.
And in those days, Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, The number of names together are about one hundred and twenty.
Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to them that took Jesus.
For he was numbered with us, and had obtained part of this ministry.
Now this man purchased a field, and with a reward of iniquity, and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the mist, and all his bowels gushed out.
And it was known unto all the dwellers of Jerusalem, and so much as that field is called in their proper tongue, a seldom, that is to say, the field of blood.
For it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be desolate, and let no man dwell therein, and his bishopric let another man take.
Wherefore, of these men which have accompanied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us,
beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection.
And they appointed two, Joseph, called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias.
And they prayed, and said, Thou Lord, which knoweth the hearts of all men, show whether of these two thou hast chosen.
That he may partake of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.
And they gave forth their lots, and the lot fell upon Matthias, and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.
Let's pray to our Lord God, just thank you for this church, thank you for your word, and for this opportunity to hear it preached now.
I just ask that you would bless Pastor Mihir with your Holy Spirit now, and please just prepare our hearts to receive your word.
In Jesus' name we pray, Amen.
Amen. Okay, we're in Acts chapter 1 this morning, and the title of the sermon this morning is The Real Judas Iscariot.
Look at Acts chapter 1 and verse 26, it says,
Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas,
which was guide to them that took Jesus, for he was numbered with us, and had obtained part of this ministry.
Now please excuse me, I've had a little cold, and so my voice obviously might crack a little bit throughout this sermon, especially if I get a little angry, and so excuse me if I do so.
This morning I want to preach on the real Judas, and obviously what I'm implying here is that there's a fake Judas being proposed out there in this world.
And more specifically, the inspiration to this sermon is the series entitled The Chosen Series, right?
Where you have Mormons and Catholics coupling together in order to make this series, this TV series.
I don't know if my mic's on. Is my mic on here? It is on?
They're teaming together to create this series where it's highlighting the Gospels, and I believe there's been about three seasons so far.
And essentially what it is, it's a bastardization of the Gospels, because of the fact that they're very much unscriptural.
They take away and add to from God's word. They add a bunch of characters that aren't even there. They add scenarios that never even really happen.
And they even apply attributes to biblical characters that they've never had. One of them being Judas Iscariot.
Now, in this TV series that is put forth by Mormons, Dallas Jenkins, who's supposedly an evangelical Christian, he's the one who's behind the whole thing.
Judas Iscariot is proposed as someone who actually came into the ministry with genuine sincerity, that he wanted to be a help to the ministry.
He believed on Jesus Christ, and he believed he was going to do something big, and he just wanted to help and wanted to be a blessing.
And, you know, somewhere along the line, he just kind of went astray or something, you know?
He became disillusioned with Jesus' ministry, and that's why he began to steal and do all these things.
But, folks, that's a bunch of nonsense, and it's not even biblical. None of that is true.
You say, well, aren't there people out there, though, that become disillusioned with the ministry?
Aren't there individuals out there that can become discouraged and then, you know, they become bad?
Yeah, of course, but Judas isn't one of them.
Now, how do we know that? Because the Bible tells us everything that we need to know about Judas, and it tells us that he was the devil from the beginning, my friends.
Now, why would the Chosen Series do such a thing where they propose that Judas started off good and then became bad?
I'll tell you why. In order to get the audience to sympathize with wicked people, Judas Iscariot is essentially your textbook false prophet infiltrator.
And so if they could downplay what the Bible says about infiltrators, then they can get people to sympathize with them and essentially be careless in churches.
Infiltrators can go into churches and be a Judas Iscariot, and people will...
Before, it's just like, well, we know Judas is bad, and so we don't want Judases in our church.
But now it's just like, hey, yeah, I know what you're going through. It's like Judas, right?
You know, Judas was, you know, he's not a bad guy, and, you know, he just became disillusioned, became discouraged, and that's why he became a devil. Wrong.
And I like what Morrie said on a comment in one of these videos that I made.
He says, like, what's next? Are they going to, like, seek to get people to sympathize with the devil now or something?
Like, you know, he started off good, and obviously we know that the devil started off as an angel, but the Bible says that his heart was lifted up.
And then what are they going to say? Well, you know, it's not his fault. He just wanted to be like God, you know?
He just wanted to be like God. He just wanted to just be like the Most High.
I mean, is it really so bad? You know, God just didn't really understand him.
You know, that's kind of like the direction this is going in, okay?
And it's crazy to think that anybody can seek to romanticize Judas Iscariot.
If 10 years ago you would have come up with something like this, people would think you're crazy.
It's like, this is impossible. How would you do this? Because everyone knows, even the unsaved know that Judas is a wicked person.
He betrayed Jesus Christ. He's a devil. But yet the chosen series has successfully done so.
And of course, the series ended with season three. And just to let you know, I didn't watch them, okay?
I watched about two hours of different clips of the chosen, and my righteous soul was vexed from minute to minute,
hour to hour, just watching them, because of the fact that it's so unbiblical.
And one of the reasons I even began looking into it is because I know a fundamental Baptist that likes it, okay?
And they're watching it, and I'm just like, you know, what?
And so I'm thinking, maybe it's close to the Bible. Maybe, you know, it kind of summarizes what the Bible says.
But you'd be surprised how anti-biblical it really is, how much it promotes feminism and communism.
And, you know, they take subtle jabs at the fundamentalists, too.
And, you know, they got scenes with Nicodemus, for example, and most of the dialogue with these people never even happened in the Bible.
I mean, like, none of it. It's like, where are you getting this from?
You know, in the chosen series, Nicodemus actually gets salvation.
Like, he understands the biblical salvation, because Jesus tells them, you know, ye must be born again.
He's like, oh, what do you mean, like a conversion? Like, I need to become a new creature? Well, that's what it is.
But in the Bible, Judas didn't even get that. I'm sorry, not Judas. Nicodemus didn't even get that.
He's just like, huh? You know, I need to go back into my mother's room and come out again.
You know, but in the chosen series, he actually gets it, and Jesus says, no, no, no, that's not what I'm talking about.
Now, obviously, the scene with Nicodemus is in chapter 3 of the book of John that has the most famous verse in the Bible, verse 16, that says,
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
So they're not going to remove that, because obviously, everyone knows that verse.
Unsafe people, Mormons, Catholics, doesn't matter who it is, they know that verse, right?
But what they do in that particular scene is that they couple it with works.
Because when he tells them he must be born again, which means to believe on Jesus Christ for salvation, as he later on explains,
Nicodemus says, are you saying that I have to give up everything and follow you? And he says, yes.
So what is it? It's a complete works-based salvation.
It's a lordship salvation where they couple believing on Jesus Christ with just forsaking everything and following Jesus.
That's not salvation. Following Jesus is not part of salvation.
I don't care what your favorite false prophet says, that's not true.
Following Jesus comes after salvation, and that's your choice if you want to do that.
If you want to earn rewards, be blessed of God, not have God's chastisement upon your life, that comes afterwards.
But salvation is 100% free.
And they're having this conversation, and they're talking about all kinds of random things that are just not in the Bible.
And in this particular conversation, he's like, you know, there's been some fiery preaching, you know, with their rhetoric, right?
And Jesus is like, ah, yeah, I've heard them myself.
What he's doing is he's taking jabs at fundamental Baptist preaching because that's the only preachers that preach that way.
I mean, who else, is there anybody else who really preaches hell, fire, and damnation other than the Baptist?
Like, well, I know this one evangelical pastor, man, he rips face on, come on.
Come on. Are you being serious? Are you joking with me?
Let's just be honest. And here's the thing, is that there's another scene where John the Baptist's disciples come to Jesus, you know, because John's in prison at the time and he's discouraged.
And the scene is basically geared towards mocking John the Baptist.
And they don't even call him John the Baptist either. They call him John the Baptizer.
So wasn't that the same thing? Well, if it was the same thing, they should have just stuck to the Baptist.
But there's a reason why they don't want to stick to the Baptist because the Baptist still exists today.
You know, he's not John the Presbyterian. He's not John the Methodist. He's not John the Calvinist. He's not John the Catholic. He's John the Baptist.
And in that scene, he's just kind of like mocking John's disciples. And he's like, yeah, he has a tendency to get a little excited like that.
It's kind of like downplaying John the Baptist and his ministry. I mean, all this stuff is just nonsense, my friends.
And obviously, an entire sermon can be dedicated to the false Jesus of the chosen.
But this morning I want to talk about Judas Iscariot because of the fact that, you know, that's the one video that I made that the chosen series chose to comment on.
Because I made a video, just a short little clip, exposing this fraud of a Judas of the chosen series because the guy who's acting on his behalf,
they're interviewing him and he's just like, he started off with the best intentions, very sincere.
I know that he wanted something good to happen to the ministry. And he's just like, what?
And so I made this video and one of the first people to comment on the video was the chosen series.
And it was a verified account. In other words, you click on it, it goes to the chosen series actual YouTube channel that has over a million subscribers.
So here's the thing is that my channel is not that big.
The views on the video weren't even that much. It was like a couple hundred views.
Like new MVP people were like, whatever, you know, whoever was on it was just like, we already know this.
I just wanted to make it because it was fun to make.
And so they could have easily just like brushed it off and said, this is some no name channel, whatever.
But it bothered them so much that they had to comment on it.
And they could have easily just gone to like another channel and commented from that other channel,
whoever that manager is of that channel, and just easily commented.
But it bothered them so much that they chose to do it from their very own chosen series channel.
And this is what they said. They're like, well, you're negating what he did after John chapter six and you're negating the scriptures.
You know, he cast out devils and you know, he did a lot of miracles and this they have the audacity to comment this.
OK. They said this. If you're going to criticize our show, at least be accurate.
What? You're telling me to be accurate on this video when your entire series is based upon discrepancies?
They're all fraudulent. It's like, did anybody even read the Bible before making this film?
And so this morning I want to talk about Judas Iscariot.
Now, why is it that Judas is being favored so much in this particular series? I'll tell you why.
Because Mormons favor Judas. OK. And, you know, people want to make the argument.
Well, it's not really made by Mormons. It's made under the canopy of Mormonism or whatever.
Canopy, whatever. Tent, tabernacle. They own over 50 percent of the film.
Most of the scenes that are shot are shot on Mormon property.
And the other percentage is owned by Catholics. OK. And the guy, the evangelical director, Dallas Jenkins, he's not saved.
How do you know? Because he's saying that he calls the Mormons his brothers and sisters in Christ.
Mormons are damned, my friends. They're not saved. I mean, you ask the most watered down Christian who has any knowledge of the Bible saved.
They're going to tell you, yeah, Mormons aren't saved for sure because they believe weird stuff about Jesus.
But this guy's like my brothers and sisters in Christ. And then he goes on to say that as he's filming in one of these sites for the chosen series,
he's like, I felt the presence of God here in them. I mean, come on.
I mean, we're not about feelings or whatever, but if that were true, there's no presence of God on any Mormon property.
OK. But let me read to you from Joseph Smith's Gospel Doctrine, page 433 to page 435.
OK, this is regarding Judas Iscariot. He says, But not knowing that Judas did commit the unpardonable sin,
nor that he was a son of perdition without hope, who will die the second death, nor what knowledge he possessed by which he was able to commit so great a sin.
I prefer until I know better to take the merciful view that he may be numbered among those for whom the blessed master prayed,
Father, forgive them for they know not what they do. So let me explain what he's saying here.
Not knowing that Judas did commit the unpardonable sin, he's like, we don't really know if he committed the unpardonable sin.
That's what he's saying. Nor that he was the son of perdition. We don't really know if he was the son of perdition.
I mean, like the Bible calls him, Jesus calls him the son of perdition. He's like, yeah, but we don't really know that, though.
I mean, do we really know that?
Nor what knowledge he possessed by which he was able to commit so great a sin. We don't know how much he really knew.
He might have done this in ignorance. And the paragraph before this implies that all the disciples, because they have limited knowledge of the Bible,
most of them probably weren't even saved until after the resurrection. That's what he implies.
So he says that all the disciples, including Judas, many of them were probably not even saved because they didn't have knowledge of the gospel,
and so, you know, they didn't get saved until after. So, you know, by process of elimination, we could safely assume that Judas probably didn't know him,
and therefore he was probably saved. And he says this, so I prefer until I know better, which let me say this.
You know what I'm going to say. He knows better today.
Now, why is Joseph Smith being so lame and weak sauce on Judas Iscariot? Because he is a Judas Iscariot.
So he's basically projecting what he would want to happen to him because he's such a wicked person himself.
So Joseph Smith takes this soft position on Judas Iscariot where he believes that he's in heaven because God was merciful to him.
And so his predecessors, along with these people who are making this show, they're going to take that same position.
And it doesn't take much of watching the chosen series to see, you know, they're trying to romanticize Judas Iscariot.
And I guarantee you, because the seasons are not over, I don't know how many seasons they're going to make,
but I guarantee you, once he does die and hangs himself, because, you know, how are they going to, unless they just completely take that out of the script,
once he dies, I guarantee you, they're going to leave it open for interpretation.
You know, the Bible doesn't leave, it's not open for interpretation in the Bible. Like, you know the guy went to hell.
For sure. There's like, beyond a shadow, there's like no doubt whatsoever that that guy is in the lowest hell.
But I guarantee you, the show is going to leave it open for interpretation because they've spent so much time pulling at the heartstrings of the audience,
trying to convince people that he was a genuine individual who just deviated from the way, you know, he became disillusioned,
because he thought that Jesus was going to create some sort of, you know, earthly revolution with his kingdom.
And when that didn't happen, then that moved him to steal the money, and then he became bad and feel bad, you know, he turned, he betrayed Jesus,
and then he hangs himself. But, you know, who knows, maybe we might see him one day.
Well, everyone in that show will see him one day, for sure.
Now go to Matthew chapter 10. Matthew chapter number 10.
And, you know, it's important, even though you may know the characteristics and attributes of Judas Iscariot, to reinforce these things,
because you have people working pretty hard to try to convince Christianity otherwise, through these shows.
Trying to get people to sympathize with Judas Iscariot and, you know, create these scenarios that never existed, that never happened.
I mean, in the show, he has a sister named Devon.
Like, when did the Bible ever talk about him having a sister named Devon?
And that, you know, she's just like, go follow your Messiah.
One of the most cringiest, though, scenes that I have ever, that I ever saw in that whole series, the clips that I saw, is the scene with the woman at the well, though.
Cringe!
You know, it's a wonderful story in the Bible, right?
Where Jesus comes to the woman at the well, she's a Samaritan, he's talking to her, and she's trying to, you know, he talks about how she's had five husbands,
and then she's trying to change the subject, and then he brings her back on course, and she perceives that he's a prophet,
and then she goes and tells all the men in the city, they come and they get saved.
It's a wonderful story, right?
Oh, but that's not enough for the Chosen series, though.
They need to make sure they gear it towards women, and gear it towards women who hate their husbands,
or want to divorce their husbands, or have bad husbands, or whatever,
because in that particular scene, he's like, you know, he talks about all the husbands that she had,
and she's like about to leave, and then he starts naming off her husbands.
Now, don't ask me to remember the names, because the names are funky.
And he was like, he was your first husband, but he caused you to stray from the faith.
She's like, why are you doing this to me?
Like, that never happened.
Oh, but wait, there's more.
The second husband, he's like, you know, on the wedding night, his skin smelled like oranges.
At that point, the woman on the wall should have been like, okay, bro, that's way too much info.
Like, that never happened.
Why is it important, first and foremost, okay, let's just sympathize with them a little bit and say, okay,
they wanted to name some husbands.
Why did you need to say that his skin smelled like oranges on the wedding night?
What? What?
You know, it's just like, it's so cringe.
And then, you know, it's just like, he's appealing to her emotions,
and he's appealing to the emotions of the female watcher of the show, is what it is.
Okay.
And none of that happened. It wasn't true.
You know, the Bible is true.
And so, but here's the thing is that the Chosen series is meant to, is geared towards two groups.
One being a group of people who just undermine the Bible and don't care really what the Bible says.
They just want to be entertained.
So you can add a bunch of extra stuff to the Chosen and to the Bible, and they don't really care.
They're just like, well, it's kind of the same.
Stop being a Pharisee.
You're being a Pharisee, you know.
Oh, I'm sorry for being a Pharisee because I want you to stay true to the Bible and not add to or take away from it.
But it's also geared towards babes in Christ who are possibly, they're saved, okay.
But maybe they haven't really read the word of God.
And so it's going to cause them to become, to start undermining the word of God.
Because they're just like, well, it's a good show.
I don't know, you know.
Does it really say that? Maybe it does. I didn't know that.
Wow, you know.
And so they start having these preconceived ideas embedded into them by the show, okay.
And make no mistake about it, it's a big show.
Like, people, it's a very popular show.
And so let's get into Judas Iscariot this morning and just talk about him.
You're in Matthew chapter 10.
The first thing I want to mention is that he was part of the ministry, okay.
The Chosen depicts Judas as being inspired by Jesus and wanting to follow him because he wanted to do something big.
It combines getting saved with following Jesus Christ.
So in the show, he's just like, I want to follow you because I know you're going to do something big.
And he's inspired by a sermon.
Like, he hears Jesus preaching and he's just like, wow, this is it, you know.
But that never happened, okay.
And I'll get more into that later.
But look at Matthew chapter 10.
Of course, in Acts 1, verse 17, it says that he obtained part of this ministry.
Now, we should know this already.
Most of you know this.
Maybe some of you don't.
Being a part of the ministry doesn't mean that you're saved.
It doesn't mean anything other than you're in the ministry, okay.
Now, let's see where this took place.
Look at Matthew 10, verse number 1.
It says in verse number 1, and when he had called unto him his 12 disciples, he gave them power.
What is power?
Authority, right, against unclean spirits to cast them out and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.
Now, these are the names, excuse me, now the names of the 12 apostles are these.
The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew, his brother, James, the son of Zebedee, and John, his brother.
Philip and Bartholomew, Thomas and Matthew the publican, James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus.
Now, this guy has a lot of names, by the way.
We talk about Lebaeus, Thaddaeus, because his name is also Judas.
There's actually two Judases in the group of the 12 disciples, but don't be mistaken by them.
In the other gospels, it actually names them as being Judas, who's the brother of James the son of Alphaeus.
But let's just call him Thaddaeus, just to not confuse them.
Look at verse number 4, Simon the Canaanite and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.
So right off the bat, right when Judas is mentioned on the first time, he's just like, Judas was selected even though he's going to betray him.
Now, go to John chapter 12. We'll come back, or go to John chapter 12 and put a piece of paper or a pen in John chapter 12,
because we're going to go to another scripture after we're finished reading John chapter 12, and then we're going to come back to it in a bit.
Now, I'm going to chase a rabbit here regarding Judas and where he possibly came from.
You might think, what does this have to do with what we're talking about, but I'm going to draw it all in together.
Now, this is actually something that Brother Haik pointed out to me a while back regarding Judas,
and I thought it was a good idea, and it's a good theory, and then I started studying into it this week,
and specifically yesterday, and just found some other connections in regards to it, and so I feel like it does help this point.
Now, this is a theory, but you'll see how the theory really drives home the point.
Now, you're in John chapter 12. There is a possibility that Judas Iscariot's father was a Pharisee.
You say, how do you know? Well, John chapter 12, look at verse number 1, it says,
Then Jesus six days before the Passover came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, which had been dead, whom he raised from the dead.
There they made him a supper, and Martha served, but Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with him.
Then took Mary a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair,
and the house was filled with the odor of the ointment. Verse 4,
Then saith one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, which should betray him,
Why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence, and given to the poor?
Go to Luke chapter 11. So there we see that six days before the Passover, he goes to Bethany,
he goes to this house in particular, and Mary anoints Jesus' feet with oil,
and it particularly says that when Judas is, you know, he's being a contrarian here, he wants to steal the money.
He says, why wasn't this ointment sold and given to the poor? But it describes Judas as being Simon's son, right?
Well, in Mark chapter 14, you don't have to turn there, it's essentially the same story.
The difference being that it actually names the person's house in Bethany known as Simon the leper, okay?
And this was two days prior to the Passover, so what you see in the Gospels is that Jesus,
before the Passover, would frequent the city of Bethany to this particular house.
Twice it's named as being Simon's house. One, it's not named as Simon's house,
but it describes Judas as being Simon's son at that particular location, okay?
Which would be kind of interesting, right? Because of the fact that in John chapter 12 it doesn't name whose house is it in,
why does it describe Judas as being Simon's son? I don't think it's a coincidence that he says it's Simon's son,
but then in Mark chapter 14 and then the other portions of scripture where the parallel story is found,
it doesn't say it as his son, but it says it's Simon's house. Everyone get what I'm saying here?
Now you're in Luke 11. In Luke chapter 7, it states that the person whose house it is is a Pharisee.
So we have Simon the leper, you have Judas who's Simon's son, and then in Luke chapter 7,
it states that the owner of the house from which Jesus Christ goes and indines is a Pharisee.
And then they have that same discourse about the ornament, etc.
If you look at Luke chapter 11 and verse 15, you say, well, you know, is that a possibility that he's a son?
Well, I think it's a strong possibility because of the fact that the Pharisees are super wicked, okay?
It would explain a lot actually, okay? You know, the Bible tells us that Jesus said unto the Pharisees,
Ye are of your father the devil, and the lust of your father will ye do.
He was a murderer from the beginning and abode not in the truth.
And so he calls them the children of the devil, and lo and behold, their offspring also become children of the devil's sons of perdition, okay?
And you kind of wonder, why is Jesus constantly frequenting this particular house in Bethany?
Well, it potentially is because it's Judas' father's house.
Now, look at verse 15. And the reason I'm bringing this up is because of the fact that people bring up that Judas was in the ministry as proof that maybe he was saved, okay?
Obviously, the Mormons are the ones who really proposed this, especially the chosen seers when they made that comment.
But also, Christians just in general have a hard time wrapping their mind around the fact that Judas is one of the 12 apostles.
And if the 12 apostles were able to cast out devils and heal people and do miracles, it's like, well, how is that possible if Judas wasn't saved, right?
And the common answer is, well, he didn't perform those miracles. He didn't cast out those devils. He didn't do any of those things.
Because we automatically assume only saved people can do those things, right?
Typically, the common answer that we'll give, I used to give the same answer, well, he probably didn't cast out any devils. He probably didn't do any of that.
But think about it. You think for three and a half years, the disciples are going two and two, and Judas isn't doing any of that, like casting out devils, which is a very visible thing to see.
You don't think any of the apostles would have been like, hey, bro, what's up? It's like the fifth door, bro. You haven't done anything. You're right. What's going on here?
Because keep in mind that even when Jesus dipped the saw up and he dipped it with Judas, right, and he had told the disciples that he was going to do that and that was going to expose the infiltrator, they still didn't get it.
Which would imply that maybe Judas had a reputation among the disciples, among the apostles, and he is one of the 12.
You say, are you proposing that you think that Judas Iscariot did cast out devils? Yes. And I'm going to explain to you why.
Because I think at some point, someone would ask, hey, what's going on here? I know that you're preaching, but you seem to always have to use the restroom every time this person has to get a devil cast out or something.
I'm joking here. I'm being facetious. But I'm saying there would come a point where suspicion would arise over the fact that maybe he's not doing these things, which I believe maybe he was doing them.
Now, here's further proof. So keep in mind that Jesus is going to Bethany to the house of Simon the leper, who's also a Pharisee.
And in John chapter 12, it says that Judas goes out of its way to say that Judas is Simon's son.
And by the way, that's not the only time it calls him Simon's son. About four or five times in the book of John, it calls Judas Simon's son. I mean, who's Simon?
It kind of goes out of his way to call Judas Simon's son, Simon's son, Simon's son.
Now look at verse 15 of Luke chapter 11. Jesus is going back and forth with the Pharisees.
And of course, the Pharisees are bringing a railing accusation that Jesus, by the power of Beelzebub, who Satan, is casting out devils.
He says in verse 15,
But some of them said, He casteth out devils through Beelzebub the chief of the devils, and others tempting him, sought of him a sign from heaven.
But he knowing their thoughts, said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and a house divided against a house fallen.
If Satan also be divided against himself, how shall his kingdom stand? Because he sayeth that I cast out devils through Beelzebub.
Listen to verse 19,
And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges.
So that's a random verse there to put if it wasn't implying that some of the sons of the Pharisees were casting out devils.
And so I believe what this is referring to is the fact that he's addressing Judas' father, Simon, in the crowd because Simon wasn't a proponent of Jesus.
He criticized him. He was like most of the Pharisees.
So he says, If I by Beelzebub cast out the devils, then how are your sons casting them out?
Because obviously Simon knew that Judas followed Jesus.
He says in verse 20, But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you.
Now go to John chapter 6, John chapter 6.
Now the common argument against this would be, yeah but hold on a second, can Satan cast out Satan?
Right? I mean most of you probably thought that right off the bat.
It's like well that makes sense. I see the verses there. I see what you're trying to say.
But can Satan cast out Satan?
Well what is Jesus saying here and in the other gospels when he talks about Satan casting out Satan?
He's basically saying if Satan cast out Satan, that house shall fall.
That kingdom shall come to desolation.
What is it saying? It's basically saying that it shall proceed no further.
It's not going to go any further than that. It's going to fall. It's not going to continue.
Well what happened to Judas?
He was not allowed to proceed any further.
His folly was made manifest and he ended up hanging himself.
Because the main teaching of infiltrators in the Bible is that eventually they'll be found out.
So yeah, if Satan cast out Satan, you know eventually that ministry will come to an end.
Right?
You know just like what Gamaliel said about the disciples that if it's not of God, then it shall come to naught.
Just as because Judas was not saved, he came to naught because he was an infiltrator.
He came to naught as well. He ended up hanging himself.
He died before Jesus died.
I mean he didn't even get a chance to fulfill much in the ministry there.
He ended up becoming a bad person.
So I believe what he's stating that when he says Satan cast out Satan is the fact that infiltrators,
people who have a form of godliness but they deny the power thereof, they're not going to be allowed to continue very much.
Eventually they'll be found out.
Eventually they'll be exposed for who they really are.
They'll come to desolation. The house will fall.
They're not going to succeed in that quest.
Now I think it's also interesting the fact that in Matthew chapter 7,
when Jesus is talking about false prophets, wolves in sheep's clothing,
he tells them that there's going to be people who are saying to him on that day,
Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name?
And in thy name have what? Cast out devils.
And in thy name have done many wonderful works and I will profess unto them,
I never knew you Judas. Depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
Why? Because Judas wasn't saved.
So he's preaching this and he's probably making eye contact with Judas in the crowd somewhere.
He said, well, you know, what if those people are just lying about that?
I believe they actually did these things.
Now the question would say, well, are you saying the unsaved people can do these things?
No, what I'm saying is apostles can do these things.
You see, I believe Jesus gave the apostles the authority to cast out devils and heal,
not on the basis that they were saved, but on the basis that he chose them to become apostles.
It's the office of an apostle.
So he enabled them not on the basis of salvation, but rather on the basis that he chose them to be apostles.
And here's the thing, the office of an apostle doesn't exist anymore.
Like, well, I think only saved people could do those things.
Well, can you do it? No, I can't either.
So obviously salvation is not a prerequisite now, is it?
You have to be enabled by God for a specific time.
And you got to keep in mind the office of an apostle was very important
because essentially they were the catalyst to the churches of the New Testament.
They were preaching God's word.
And so these signs and wonders needed to be done in order to confirm the word of God that was being preached.
So he enabled them temporarily as an office to do these miracles, cast out devils,
and do these great wonders to confirm the word of God.
Not because they were saved, but just because he enabled them to do so.
And power means authority.
And just keep in mind, God enables people who are unsaved all the time with authority.
Magistrates, governors, presidents, they're all giving power by God.
It doesn't mean they're saved.
And it's not even on the basis whether they're saved or not.
It's just he enables them to do so to exercise that type of power here on this earth.
And so I think it's a flawed argument to say, well, you know,
and I know people want to make this argument to say, well, he wasn't saved, therefore he couldn't do these miracles
because we don't want to give credence to the potential interpretation that maybe he was saved or something.
But let me say this.
The fact that he cast out devils and did miracles and did all these mighty works
shows us even more that your works can't save you.
I mean, it just adds more to the argument, folks, that you could even be an apostle
and still split hell wide open if you're not saved, if you haven't believed on Jesus Christ.
I mean, Judas Iscariot was not only an apostle, he was one of the twelve.
He was the treasurer. He was with Jesus next to him, three and a half years, casting out devils, doing wonders,
preaching in the name of Jesus. But the guy wasn't saved.
He didn't believe on Jesus Christ.
You know, there's so many people out here today in 2023 that are depending on their righteous works to be saved.
Don't you see this great church I build or these great works that I do
and how much I read the Bible or how much I evangelize or how much I do these things.
But hold on a second. If you haven't believed on Jesus Christ, you have a seat reserved for you next to Judas in hell.
Because whosoever much is given of him shall be much required.
And I have no doubt in my mind that, and by the way, whether you believe that he did do these miracles or not,
it doesn't change the price in tea in China, right?
Like it doesn't change his position in hell, right?
I mean, if anything, if you really did do them, it got them from coach in hell to first class in hell.
It just bumped them down a couple more levels to the core of the earth to burn a little more.
Because if he's doing these miracles, you know, he's accountable for more because Jesus enabled him to do so.
And so when the Bible says that he partook of this ministry, it's not an indicator that he was saved or potentially saved.
It means that God enabled him to do those things, which would essentially cause him to be more accountable to the truth that he already knew.
And don't buy into this, well, the disciples didn't really understand the gospels until after the resurrection.
That's nonsense and that's dispensational.
All of the disciples, minus maybe a couple of them, were already saved even before following Jesus Christ.
You say, how is that possible? Because people were saved in the Old Testament.
Most of the interaction between the disciples and Jesus is when Jesus is trying to get them to follow him to actually work in the ministry.
Follow me, I'll make you fishers of men. That's not a salvation verse.
You know, most of them were already saved and knew about the Lamb of God who should take away the sins of the world.
How? Because all the Old Testament scriptures pointed to that.
I mean, folks, Abraham believed God and it was counted unto him for righteousness.
So don't buy into that. Now, did they have limited understanding of how everything was going to get carried out? Of course.
They didn't understand. They didn't know the timeline, if Jesus was going to set up his kingdom right then and there or later on.
But they knew he was going to die. They knew he was going to go to hell and they knew he was going to resurrect on the third day.
They didn't believe in the resurrection. The Old Testament scriptures taught about the resurrection.
Jonah, David, they all prophesied of the resurrection, my friends.
And look, Hebrews chapter 11 is written about people who saw a better resurrection and he's not talking about New Testament believers.
These are people who lived way back when.
So anyways, I don't want to get off on that. You say, well, you know, is that possible?
Yeah, for such are false apostles, deceitful workers transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.
This is no marvel. So that even drives home the point even more that you can't be saved by your works, my friend.
And let me share this story here that my wife reminded me of last night.
When I first got saved, I was reading through the Bible and I was reading through the Gospels and I was like reading about Judas.
And I was I was like appalled at the fact that he was so close to Jesus, yet he never got saved.
And it was just amazing to me that someone can be so close physically to Jesus for three and a half years.
Like you had you're walking with salvation, right?
Like you're born during a time where, you know, the word of God was made flesh and just not be saved.
And so I was talking to her brother and we're in this room and he was sitting down.
And my wife, Sarah, she was like she wasn't my wife at the time, but she was like to my left.
And her little sister, who was 10 years old, was sitting there with her.
And I was just kind of going off on what I learned about Judas.
I was like, Judas is the devil from the beginning. I was like, dude, this guy.
I was like, how can you do this for three and a half years and just not get saved?
I was like, this guy is just, you know, he it was at his fingertips.
He could have been saved like this guy. It's crazy.
And I didn't I didn't believe in the rapid rate doctrine back then because I didn't know about it.
I just figured, like, you're seriously just going to spend time three and a half years with Jesus and just never ask about salvation, never get saved.
And it just reinforced the fact that works don't save you. Right.
And I was like, he walked with Jesus. He did the miracles or he was an apostle.
He did all these things and he was never saved. He never believed.
I was like, all right, man, good night. You know, but then her little sister went home.
And she was like under deep conviction because she's a pastor's daughter.
And she went up to her dad and she was like, I don't want to be like Judas. I'm not saved. I want to get saved now.
She's like, because I go to a Baptist church, my dad's a pastor and, you know, I'm doing all these things.
I'm a bus minister. I'm serving. She's like, but I'm not saved. I don't want to be a Judas.
She ended up being saved. Amen. And so you see how important this doctrine is.
Whereas if we take the chosen series, Judas, it's just like, well, it's just a misunderstanding.
We just don't want people to become disillusioned with Christianity. Folks, if people hate Christianity, that's on them.
People don't like the Bible. That's on them. That's not on us. If people hate the Bible, they hate Christianity.
They don't like what Jesus says. That's not our fault. And that's not God's fault. That's their fault.
God knows no man in apology. We don't owe anybody an apology for what the Bible says.
Because at the end of the day, they can blame us all they want, all of eternity.
But you know what? We'll be in eternity. We'll be in heaven. They'll be in hell.
Because salvation is a choice that every person has to make. Believing on Jesus Christ.
Whereas it's just like, well, no, we need to let these Judases into our church, man.
Bro. They're just disillusioned, bro. We need to love them, bro.
Well, you know what? I don't want any Judases scary to my church.
You come here and you're like, you know, I saw the chosen. I feel like I'm a Judas.
I'd be like, Calvary Chapel. They accept Judases over there all the time.
Lonnie Frisbee. Jonathan Rumi. They love those Judases. Not here.
I don't want a Judas in my church. Why? Because they're devils.
Yeah, but how bad can they really get? I don't know. They, you know, like, betray Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
If they're willing to betray Jesus Christ, the Son of God, how much more are they willing to do to you?
Let's move on here. So what's another thing about Judases scary? Well, he was a devil from the beginning.
Now, don't let the Calvinist twist this to teach that what this means is that, you know, he was predestined to be a devil.
He was born a devil or something like that because it says he was the devil from the beginning.
What this means is that he was a devil from the beginning when he first started into the ministry.
So the chosen depicts Judas as having a sincere intention from the start.
And he went bad later because he became disillusioned.
Whereas the Bible tells us that right from the start, he was already bad.
Look at John Chapter six, verse sixty four. He says, Jesus said in verse sixty four.
But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not and who should betray him.
Look at verse seventy. Jesus answered them. Have not I chosen you twelve and one of you is a devil?
Now, this is a really funny verse to me because of the fact that prior to this, Peter is just kind of like pouring his heart out to him.
He's like, you know, we believe in our shirt that thou art the son of God and you have the words of eternal life.
We believe in our shirt that thou art the son of God. And he's just like, have not I chosen you twelve and one of you is a devil?
He just completely disregards the emotional outpouring of Peter. Peter's like pouring out his heart and Jesus is like, one of you is a devil.
Like he's not in the mood for that right now. You know how that is, right?
You're just like sometimes you're not in the mood to be like all emotional like that.
Sometimes it's just like, no, I want to talk about the fact that one of you guys is a devil.
Yeah, but, you know, verse seventy one. He spake of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon.
For he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve.
So what does it mean that he was a devil? It means, number one, obviously, that he's not saved.
Number two, that he's an extremely wicked person.
Just call someone a devil who's just not who's just a regular sinner.
That means this person has some nefarious intentions for that ministry.
Okay, go to John chapter seventeen. John chapter seventeen.
So, no, he didn't start off sincere. I mean, if you want to say that he sincerely wanted to like steal money.
Yeah, then I agree with you. If you sincerely wanted to destroy the ministry and wrong people, absolutely.
And look, at the end of the sermon, we're going to go Psalm one hundred and nine, which is a prophetic psalm about Judas.
And it gives us a little more details, a little more detail as far as like what Judas's intentions were and how wicked he really was.
Okay, because obviously, you know, the gospels are about Jesus Christ, so it's not going to give us the biography of every disciple.
Right. So we don't know exactly what they're doing throughout their three and a half year ministry.
However, you know, Psalm one hundred and nine gives us a little more in-depth information as far as Judas is concerned.
Now look at John seventeen. This is Jesus praying for his disciples.
He says in verse ten, All mine are thine, and thine are mine, and I am glorified in them.
And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee.
Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one as we are.
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.
Now what is perdition? Perdition is hell.
So the Bible is saying here that he's the son of hell, which would further prove that he's possibly a son of the Pharisee,
because the Pharisees, the Bible says that they can pass land and sea to make one proselyte,
and when he is made, they make him twofold more a child of hell than themselves.
That's what the Bible says of the Pharisees.
So he says none of them is lost except for one.
This isn't saying that Judas was saved, and then he lost his salvation because he betrayed Jesus.
It's implying that he's been lost since the very beginning.
Like he never got saved.
And when it says that the scriptures might be fulfilled, this isn't saying that God intentionally did not give him the truth,
so that he can become the son of perdition, because everyone has a free will.
And look, you say, no, I just think God didn't give him the truth.
Jesus is right there.
Like how much more truth do you want?
This is saying that essentially the reason he's lost, the reason he is the son of perdition,
is because of the fact that he chose that route, he chose that faith.
He's lost, and he's the son of perdition, and the scriptures confirm that.
That's what it's stating there.
Go to John chapter 12.
John chapter 12.
So he's not a sincere person.
And look, we need to recognize that if and when there's a Judas Iscariot in our church that is casting out devils or whatever,
he's sowing, obviously we don't believe in casting out devils here, but he's sowing, he's doing works or whatever.
The only kind of casting out we do is when we find out that they're infiltrated, then we cast them out of the church.
That's the only exorcism that we do here.
But when that happens, we never want to have this sympathetic attitude towards those individuals.
Because that's what the chosen series does.
It causes you to sympathize with the infiltrators.
Whereas God doesn't have mercy for infiltrators.
Because they infiltrate local congregations with the intent to violate the innocent in some way, shape, or form.
And so it's important that if and when this happens, we are in agreement with one another,
this person is a Judas Iscariot, they do not belong in a church, they're a wicked person,
and we don't need any bleeding hearts.
And our church is like, oh, I'm just sad that maybe he's just discouraged.
Yeah, he's discouraged because he got found out.
And if you're one of these people who are just like, well, I just feel bad for them, then just don't say anything at all.
Keep it to yourself.
You say, why? Because of the fact that we have innocent people here, we have unstable souls here, children here,
who that person comes in to take advantage of and violate, and we don't need bleeding hearts for psychopaths.
Because a modern term for Judas Iscariots are psychopaths.
Alright, what else do we know about Judas?
He got into the ministry because he just really loved Jesus, and he believed in his message,
and he just wanted to do something big with his life.
He did it because he wanted to steal money.
That's literally why he got into the ministry with Jesus, is to steal money.
Now, the chosen series depicts him as a legitimate treasurer, and as someone who simply is trying to help fund the ministry.
Because he goes before the disciples, and Jesus is like, I got this idea how we can raise money for the ministry.
I added a little phrase there, it's redacted, but I added a little phrase there, it's just like, by stealing your money.
So they're trying to make him seem as though he's some sort of business person, he's trying to help fund the ministry.
He'll take care of the funds, and he will raise up money so they can do the ministry and preach the word of God
and going to different cities. Wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong.
He literally went into the ministry because he saw it as an opportunity to take advantage of Jesus and his disciples.
He said, why? Well, because of the fact that Christians are very trustworthy.
In general, we give people the benefit of the doubt.
That's why infiltrators come into churches, because they see it as, oh, these people will trust me,
they're Christians, they believe the Bible, and so they're not going to see it when I'm trying to take advantage of them or whatever.
You say, well, how do you know that he went into it with the intent to steal money?
Look, he got into it with that intent, and he finished off his life confirming that.
Because he literally sold Jesus for 30 pieces of silver.
Now, I want you to think about that for a minute.
He's willing to sell the Son of God for chump change.
How much more is a Judas Iscariot today willing to do to you for how much?
Kind of shows you how wicked this guy is.
Look at John chapter 12. We read this earlier.
But of course, this is Mary bringing a pound of ointment.
Look at verse 3 of Spikenard, very costly, very expensive.
And anointeth the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair, and the house was filled with the odor of the ointment.
Then said one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot's son, which should betray him,
why was not this ointment sold for 300 pence and given to the poor?
Wow. Judas, you know, man, you're so godly.
I'm convicted. I didn't think about that.
We need to think more like Judas.
Man, I'm sorry. Can you collect that? Can you wipe that off his feet and put it back into the bottle?
I think we should go feed the poor with this. We should sell this.
Great idea. Oh, wait, there's more.
This he said, not that he cared for the poor.
And in fact, according to Psalm 109, he despised the poor.
He hated the poor.
But because he was a thief and had the bag and bare what was put there in.
So the implication here is that from the time that he started up until the end of his life, he was taking money out of the bag.
And then when he saw Mary pouring this, he's like, oh, that's so expensive. I couldn't use that.
And the guy is like a complete idiot, though, because he I mean, don't you know that Jesus like knows his thoughts?
But he's like, you know, oh, man, this could have been sold. He's like, this could have been sold and given to me.
That's how he sees this. Wicked.
Now go to Mark Chapter 14. Mark Chapter 14.
So he was a thief, meaning he's stolen money before. Meaning he was taking money out of the bag even prior to this.
He's out there preaching. He's out there casting out devils.
He's out there parading as a false or he's parading as an apostle of Christ with the intention.
He's just taking off the top. He's just like bagging. He's just pocketing the money, pocketing the money.
You're like, well, yeah, but that's Judas, but that doesn't exist today. Are you kidding me?
You ever heard of the health and wealth gospel preachers?
That they live. Kenneth Copeland. I mean, Kenneth Copeland.
The guy looks like a devil. He talks like a devil.
You know, it exists not only in those types of circles, but even in fundamental Baptist churches, my friend.
Where you have pastors that will literally start a church with the intention of using church funds to purchase prostitutes and drug money.
Or in drugs, I mean. And do that for years on end.
You say, well, you know, we all struggle. Okay, listen to me.
If you struggle with prostitutes and cocaine, it's wicked. But you know what? That could be a sin common to man.
However, if you're using church funds to end your pastor and you're sleeping with prostitutes and doing cocaine, that's a different level.
You see, a thief, according to the Bible, doesn't deserve the death penalty.
They just need to restore that which they took. You know, that they can work with their hands, that which is needful.
However, if you're stealing from church, though, if you're stealing from Jesus, if you're selling Jesus, that's a different story now, isn't it?
So God actually considers these types of sins maximized when you integrate church funds and church with it.
I mean, it's the worst scum of the earth.
Look at Mark 14, verse 9.
Barely I say unto you, verse 9, wheresover this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world.
This also that she hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her, referring to Mary.
It says, And Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, went unto the chief priests to betray him unto them.
So as soon as this is done, he's like, oh, this could have been sold.
Isn't it any coincidence that right after that, he's like, you know what, forget it.
I'm going to go betray him because I need to get some money.
Maybe they're running low on funds. I don't know what's going on here.
Verse 11, And when they heard it, they were glad and promised to give him money, and he sought how he might conveniently betray him.
So as soon as the incident with the spikenard is over with, he's like, all right, I need to figure something else out.
And then he basically turns them into his dad and his friends, right?
Now, this should come as no surprise because this is a hallmark of false prophets.
Obviously, there's false prophets that take advantage of innocent people by molestation, by perversion.
Others do it by heresies, right? The desire to be a preeminent one in a church.
But there are others, like Joel Osteen, for example, that do it because of money.
And the Bible says in 2 Peter 2, 3, that through covetousness, shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you.
This is why a lot of these health and wealth gospel preachers are always preaching a positive only sermon because that's what you want to hear.
It also says in verse 15 of 2 Peter that they have forsaken the right way and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam, the son of Bozor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness.
Go to 1 Timothy chapter 6, 1 Timothy chapter 6. We're almost done.
And then Matthew 27, 1 Timothy chapter 6 and Matthew 27.
Look at 1 Timothy chapter 6 and verse number 9, it says, But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.
Go to Matthew chapter 27, Matthew chapter 27.
Here's another thing about Judas Iscariot that is important to know, and this is a very important point, is the fact that, guess what, Judas Iscariot repented of his sin.
Did you know that? He repented. And look, he repented both ways.
Because, you know, some people are like, well, you got to like turn from your sin and actually not sin.
And then the other one is like, well, you have to feel sorry for your sin. Well, he actually did both.
And you know what? Thank God he did.
So why? Because that even proves further that you can't be saved by repenting of your sin.
Because Judas Iscariot did it and he still split hell wide open.
Look at Matthew 27 verse one.
When the morning was come, all the chief priests and elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death.
And when he had bound him, they led him away and delivered him to Pontius Pilate the governor.
Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned,
repented himself and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders.
He changed his ways.
He stopped smoking, stopped drinking, he stopped living a wicked lifestyle.
He even returned the thirty pieces of silver.
I mean, this is a physical action that he took.
Saying, I have sinned and that I have betrayed the innocent blood.
What is that? He felt sorry for his sin.
And they said, what is that to us?
Seethed out to that.
Like the worst types of people to ever go to for sympathy is the Pharisees.
Because they're just as wicked as he is.
You know, he's just like, what is that to us? We're devils like you.
Verse five, and he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed and went and hanged himself.
You say, what's the deal here?
Well, obviously he's being tormented by the fact that he probably came to the realization of what he's done.
But it's too late, Judas.
It's been three and a half years. Even prior to that, you're in Israel from which salvation comes from.
You've heard the salvation message.
And here's the thing, when it comes to 2 Peter chapter two, for example,
it gives you all of these qualities of false prophets and things that they do.
They make merchandise to people.
They have eyes full of adultery. They cannot cease from sin.
They do all these wicked stuff.
But then the very first verse tells us how they got there.
It says that they denied the Lord God that bought them.
That's how it all begins.
Is they rejected Jesus Christ, they rejected the gospel, and then they begin to hate him.
They become reprobates, and then they're given over to these things.
What we see here that he repented, it just didn't do anything for him.
He ended up hanging himself like Ahithophel did in the Old Testament, who was the chief counselor of David.
David's a picture of Jesus Christ. Ahithophel's a picture of Judas.
Ahithophel went and hung himself as well.
Verse six says, the chief priests took the silver pieces and said,
it's not lawful for it to put them into the treasury because this is the price of blood.
So it's just like, man, we can't take this as much as we want to.
That's basically what they're implying.
So they used it to buy a field in commemoration of Judas Iscariot.
Let me, let's see here.
Go to Psalm 109. Psalm 109.
Don't be deceived by the chosen.
The chosen, from what I've seen, kind of makes it seem as though Jesus didn't really know if he was going to do that or not.
Whereas in John chapter 13, when he's cleaning the feet of the apostles,
you know, Peter says, not my feet only, but my hands on my head.
And he basically says, you know, you don't need to because you're clean.
Not everyone, he says.
And he's like, oh, you know, then just basically, oh no, I'm sorry.
He says, you should never wash my feet.
And he says, if I don't wash your feet, then you have no part with me.
He's like, oh, then not just my feet, my hands on my head also, right?
He wants to go all in.
And then he begins to explain to them that basically the disciples are all clean already.
And obviously it's a physical example that he's given to them by washing their actual feet.
But what the principle that he's trying to teach there is that as believers, when we get saved, we are clean every whit.
And so, but because we're in this world, we're walking in this world, we track the dirt of this world, our feet get dirty.
We get involved in sin, we have bad habits or whatever.
And so on a daily basis, we need our feet to be clean, to be cleansed with the washing of the water of the word.
But not every whit because of the fact that we're clean.
We're already saved.
We just need the process of sanctification to clean our feet because we're walking in this world.
But then he says of Judas that, you know, basically he's not clean, okay, because he wasn't saved.
Now, here's the last thing I want to talk about here.
And I have some more verses I want to go through, but I'm out of time.
Let's talk about the Psalm for Judas, okay.
Because Judas is an important person in the New Testament because of the fact that he's even mentioned in the Old Testament.
I mean, he's the one who betrayed Jesus Christ.
He's the one who fulfilled the prophecy that Jesus Christ would be betrayed and crucified and essentially be a traitor.
But look at verse number four.
This is David speaking, but it's prophetic of Judas.
It says in verse number four,
From my love there are my adversaries, but I give myself into prayer.
They have rewarded me evil for good and hatred for my love.
Set thou a wicked man over him and let Satan stand at his right hand.
Now, here's the interesting thing about Judas is the Bible says that he was a devil from the beginning.
And then later on, Satan enters into him.
And what's interesting is that in Luke chapter 11, when Jesus is talking about the fact that with the finger of God,
he's casting out these devils, he goes on to give the parable of a man who's possessed with the devil.
The devil comes out of him.
He goes through dry places and then he comes back and the vessel is swept and garnished.
But then he takes up seven more devils wicked than himself and he comes back in.
And then the last estate of that man is worse than the first, which is indicative of Judas.
Because he was the devil from the beginning and then Satan possessed him at the very end.
And the Bible specifically says in 2 Peter chapter 2 that the last estate of that man is worse than the first.
Referring to those who promised him liberty, which is what he did.
And it even says in 2 Peter chapter 2,
It would have been better if that man had not known the way of righteousness.
And what does it say of Judas?
It would have been better if that man had never been born.
Now think about that phrase there.
Jesus said it would have been better if you just never existed.
If you just were never born, never existed, than to have betrayed the Son of God.
He goes on to say in verse 7,
When he shall be judged, let him be condemned and let his prayer become sin.
Let his days be few and let another take his office.
This is referring to, this is later stated in Acts chapter 1 where it says,
Let another take his bishop prick. Bishop meaning overseer because he was the overseer of the finances.
Let his children be fatherless and his wife a widow.
That's rough right?
Let his children be continually vagabonds and beg.
Let them seek their bread also out of their desolate places.
Now moms have trouble with this.
They're just like, that's why the children, what do they do?
But here's the thing, here's my theory on this.
It's actually better that they're fatherless.
And it's better that they're vagabonds.
Why? Because God is the father of the fatherless.
And if they so choose to walk in the steps of their father,
then God will visit the iniquity of the fathers into the third and fourth generation of them that hate me.
But then of course he'll show mercy to many others who don't, right?
So it's almost better that they're vagabonds, they're begging because that's humbling
and then in light of that they'll seek after God.
Let the extortion of mercy-loving catch all that he hath.
Let the stranger spoil his labor.
Let there be none to extend mercy unto him.
Neither let there be any to favor his fatherless children.
Let his posterity be cut off and the generation following, let their name be blotted out.
Let the iniquity of his fathers, you know those Pharisees, be remembered with the Lord
and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out.
I mean you got to be pretty wicked to raise up a Judas Iscariot.
Let them be before the Lord continually that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth
because that he remembered not to show mercy but persecuted the poor
and needy man that he might even slay the broken in heart.
Now you and I don't understand this.
Like how can you hate the needy?
How can you persecute the poor and slay the broken in heart?
We don't understand this because we're saved.
But Judas Iscariot is so wicked that even throughout his life this is what he did.
How did he persecute? Why did he persecute the poor?
To steal from them because he's a thief.
He took from the needy.
I just think he was sincere.
Haven't you seen the picture of how they depict him? He looks so nice.
Look at verse 17.
As he loved cursing.
He loved cursing.
So let it come unto him.
As he delighted not in blessing, so let it be far from him.
What does it mean that he delighted not in blessing?
Wouldn't you consider it a blessing to live and to have Jesus Christ right there?
If you had three and a half years with Jesus, you basically would probably never see your family.
Right?
I love my wife and I love my kids, but if Jesus was here, I would probably spend all my time with Jesus.
I'll just be honest with you because he's Jesus.
That's not right.
He's Jesus.
If Jesus said, you have one year with me.
You were just, you know, dreaming here, right?
You know, you have one year.
I'd be like, well, see you later, family.
Why? Because he's the God of the universe.
And then I just ask him every single question that I've ever thought of.
I just want him to teach me.
I want to walk with him because that would be like a major blessing.
Well, these guys had more than that.
But he delighted not in blessing.
He loved cursing.
How much did he love it?
Verse 18, as he clothed himself with cursing, like as with a garment.
So let it come into his bowels like water and like oil into his bones.
Let it be unto him as a garment which covereth him and as a girdle wherewith he is girded continually.
Now, why does it say that?
Because Judas was accursed.
So he was not just accursed in the most mildest manner.
The Bible says that he was clothed with cursing.
No hope for him whatsoever.
What's the sermon today?
The sermon is this, is that Judas Iscariot is a wicked piece of trash.
That the Bible describes in such a way that it leaves the reader with zero sympathy for him.
We all hate Judas.
Who doesn't hate Judas who's a Christian?
I mean, you should hate Judas.
Why? Because God hates Judas.
You see the extent of which he hates him in Psalm 109.
He betrayed the Son of God.
And yet you have Christians just like, well, you know, God loves some people, you know, and he loves all people or whatever.
And I think he loved Judas.
You know, he might have loved Judas when he was like five years old.
He might have loved Judas when he was like 10 years old.
But Judas chose a path by rejecting the message, by rejecting Jesus Christ, becoming a thief.
And then when he saw the 12 disciples or when he saw Jesus, what did he saw?
He didn't see salvation.
He's like, oh, money.
Because all these people are following him.
All these people are listening to him.
All these people are, oh, yeah, this is going to make me a lot of money.
And then when it didn't go as planned, he's like, well, I'll just sell him.
I mean, this is extremely wicked.
It's devilish, and it's a job only fit for the devil, for Satan himself, which is why he possessed Judas Iscariot.
I mean, think about that.
When it says Satan, it's not saying it, you know, it's not using hyperbole.
It's not like Satan was like in India at that time, creating new religions or something like that.
He was there, and he took that job to possess Judas to betray Jesus Christ.
And there's a reason why the Antichrist is also referred to as the son of perdition.
To kind of exemplify how wicked Judas is.
This is a very bad person.
So don't be fooled by the chosen series, and don't watch it, obviously.
And if you want to watch it, be my guest, but have a bucket right next to you.
Not for the tears, but for the throw up.
Make sure you don't eat before.
And you know, I mean, just the two hours that I saw the clips, it was just like, I need to go read my Bible.
I just, I feel so dirty.
Because it just felt like, ugh.
And then to just know that Christians are eating this up with fork and spoon.
I mean, there's Christians online, my friends, who are like new IFB people, by the way, who are watching this crap.
And they actually love it.
You know, it's shameful, my friends.
People need to get right with God and start reading the Bible.
They say, well, the Bible's not as like romantic.
It's the Bible!
It's what, it's God's word.
The Bible is not a novella.
It's not the days of our life here.
Or whatever, you know, you guys are too young for that, probably.
You know, what soap operas are out there?
Someone tell me one.
What novellas out there, brother Ulysses?
Come on, you keep up.
You know, it's not going to be a novella where they live happily ever after.
Because after the ascension, then people are getting persecuted, James dies.
I mean, folks, this is real life where sometimes there is no happy ending.
Why? Because the happy ending is being saved to the very end, which is called the new heaven and the new earth.
That's why.
And so Judas Iscariot is in hell. He's not a good person. He didn't start off being good. He's a devil from the beginning.
And let's pray.
Father, we thank you so much for your word.
And thank you for how explicit the teaching is of Judas in the Bible.
Help us as your people to realize this, Lord, and keep our eyes open.
And obviously we shouldn't be Christians who are constantly looking for a Judas Iscariot.
The disciples weren't doing that. I don't think God wanted them to do that.
I think you want us to trust in you to know that you shall manifest their folly.
It's not up to us to expose them. They expose themselves and we trust and have faith in your word that that will take place.
We don't need someone pointing out Judas Iscariots in our church or claiming that people are reprobates or whatever it may be.
What we need is just faith in your word. We need to keep serving you and trust that even if someone is doing great works,
it doesn't matter. At the end of the day, Satan can't cast out Satan and so that house shall come to desolation eventually.
And I pray, Lord, that you help us to continue to win people to Christ, getting people saved and baptized and following you, Lord, and reading the Bible and serving you.
And, Lord, may you protect our church, protect our families. We love you. We thank you. Pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen.
Song number 197. Song number 197 singing, I go.
Song number 197. Song number 197 singing on that first verse.
Song number 197 singing on that first verse.
Singing I go along life's road, praising the Lord, praising the Lord.
Singing I go along life's road, for Jesus has lifted my load.
He tells me of my Father's love, and never slumbering I.
Am I everlasting King above, will all my needs apply?
Singing I go along life's road, praising the Lord, praising the Lord.
Singing I go along life's road, for Jesus has lifted my load.
To the throne of grace I flee, I find the promise true.
The mighty arms of morning be, will bear my burden too.
Singing I go along life's road, praising the Lord, praising the Lord.
Singing I go along life's road, for Jesus has lifted my load.