John 13, Part 2
Notes
Transcript
18 I am not speaking of all of you; I know whom I have chosen. But the Scripture will be fulfilled, ‘He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.’
Betrayal—Apostasy: there is the heartbreak of betrayal. When Judas or any other man betrays the Lord, the Lord’s heart is cut to the core, for a soul is being lost. There are two things in particular that cut deeply.
a. The betrayer is not chosen by Christ. He cannot be, for he has rejected Christ; therefore, Christ has to reject him (Mt. 10:32–33). Christ did draw Judas; He did move upon Judas’ heart to quicken his mind. He did stir Judas to understand that He, Jesus, was the Messiah, the very Son of God Himself. But Judas rebelled against the drawing power of Christ and rejected the quickening power of Christ.
When a man is so drawn and quickened by God’s Spirit, he must respond then and there. God says, “My Spirit shall not always strive with men” (Ge. 6:3). Most persons are aware of a tugging and a pull to decide for God sometime in their lives. However, when the tug and the drawing power are rejected, it soon leaves; and the person ceases to think too much about the matter.
The point is this. When a person betrays Christ and begins to live in sin, he shows that he did not truly respond to the movement of God’s Spirit within his heart. He exposes his true unregenerate nature: he is not one of the chosen of God. This breaks the heart of Christ, for He wants every man to pay attention to the call of the Spirit, to respond to His offer of eternal salvation. He wants everyone to become a true follower of His. He wants no one to be lost.
b. The betrayer is of the basest sort: he eats with Christ, yet his heel is against Christ. Judas actually ate bread with Jesus. Judas was a friend of Jesus, not an enemy. He did not hate Jesus; he cared for Him. He often walked into the house of God with Jesus and had close fellowship with Him. Judas was His follower, a choice disciple, yet Judas lifted up his heel against Jesus. The very wording of the prophecy shows the heartrending tragedy of the situation. The term “lifted up his heel” is the picture of a horse lifting up his hoof to kick. Judas kicked Jesus. He struck Him with the fatal blow …
⇒ of disloyalty: he forsook Christ.
⇒ of contempt: he rejected Christ.
⇒ of betrayal: he spurned the love of Christ, turning his back upon Him.
The whole scene is one of tragedy, a tragedy that is deplorable and heartbreaking. One who professed Christ was not a true follower of Christ. He was in fact a betrayer, an enemy, a person who chose and stood for the things of the world (money, recognition, power).
18 I am not speaking of all of you; I know whom I have chosen. But the Scripture will be fulfilled, ‘He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.’ 19 I am telling you this now, before it takes place, that when it does take place you may believe that I am he.
Betrayal—Apostasy—Minister, Dignity of: there is the prediction of the betrayal. Christ predicted the betrayal to strengthen and assure the disciples.
a. Christ wanted His disciples to be strong in their belief in Him as the Messiah. Once the prophecy came to pass, they would know He was omniscient (that He knew all things). And only God knows all things. Therefore, they would know that He was exactly who He claimed to be, the Son of God, the One who has the very nature of God Himself. Their faith in Him would be strongly strengthened.
Thought 1. God knows every person’s heart. Even a person’s inner thoughts are known to God, as well as what a person does. No one can hide what He does from God, not even a thought. God knows if a man is betraying His Son. He even knows if a man is thinking about sinning and turning his back on Jesus. The more a man thinks about sinning, the more likely he is to turn back. His betrayal can be predicted.
Thought 2. The fulfillment of prophecy is strong evidence for both the deity of Christ and the inspiration of the Bible.
b. Christ wanted His disciples to be assured of the dignity of their call as servants of God. Judas had betrayed the call, and his betrayal had left a bad image in people’s minds and reflected a poor image of the ministry. It could affect some people, causing them to question the power of Christ, even causing others to actually withdraw and turn away from the ministry. The betrayal could also cause true disciples to become discouraged, feeling that God’s call and ministry did not have the dignity Christ claimed.
Christ was clear. The man may be dirty and unclean; he may even be a betrayer, but the call and ministry are not touched. The office of His servant and follower cannot be affected. Nothing can affect the relationship between Him and His true disciple, nor the relationship between the Father and His disciple. People will still continue to be saved. Nothing can change this. People out in the world …
• who receive the Lord’s messenger receive the Lord
• who receive the Lord receive God
c. Christ wanted His disciples to be assured of God’s indwelling presence. Note that Christ put Himself on a par with God. To receive Christ is to receive God, and to receive Christ’s indwelling presence is to have God’s indwelling presence. What a glorious promise to the believer! His body is the temple of God
21 After saying these things, Jesus was troubled in his spirit, and testified, “Truly, truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me.” 22 The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom he spoke. 23 One of his disciples, whom Jesus loved, was reclining at table at Jesus’ side, 24 so Simon Peter motioned to him to ask Jesus of whom he was speaking. 25 So that disciple, leaning back against Jesus, said to him, “Lord, who is it?” 26 Jesus answered, “It is he to whom I will give this morsel of bread when I have dipped it.” So when he had dipped the morsel, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot.
Betrayal—Decision—Last Chance: there is the last chance given to the betrayer. This scene is most descriptive. Jesus exposed Judas, but He did it quietly, and He did it to give Judas a last chance to repent and to turn from his evil.
Note that Jesus was “troubled in spirit” and “testified” (a strong, solemn witness), that he used the solemn attention getter, “verily, verily.” All this stresses the extreme seriousness of betrayal. Jesus was “troubled in spirit”: distressed, moved, disturbed over the desertion of this false believer and servant—this betrayer who was turning back to the sin of the world.
The disciples were perplexed and became nervous and self-conscious over Jesus’ exposure of a betrayer. The disciples had no idea; they were totally unaware of a deserter. They looked at one another wondering just who it might be. Note two things.
⇒ Judas was a counterfeit disciple, an exceptional deceiver. In public he was ideal: moral, decent, upright. No one ever suspected him—not at all. It was what Judas did in secret that doomed him, not what he did in public. He was a deserter, a man of the world behind the scenes.
⇒ Note the tenderness of Jesus. He did not reveal the betrayer by name. Jesus was making the man aware that He knew about his desertion, and He was hoping that the man would begin to fear and turn from his evil deed.
The disciples wanted to know who the traitor was. One of the disciples who was leaning next to Jesus, apparently John himself (out of humility he did not give his name), was beckoned by Peter to ask Jesus for the name of the betrayer.
Note Jesus’ tenderness and appeal: His love still reached out to Judas.
⇒ Jesus did not name Judas as the traitor, not vocally. He did not want the disciples to know who the betrayer was. Judas still had a chance.
⇒ Jesus drew Judas close by His side. Apparently, He asked Judas to sit by His side. He was close enough that Jesus could reach him and hand the sop to him. Jesus wanted him close so that Judas would be in a position to consider the seriousness of what he was doing. (Note: if the listener of this point is living in sin, God has him listening. God wants him to consider the seriousness of his sin. God will place the betrayer in a position where he has to consider the seriousness of what he is doing.)
⇒ Jesus gave very special attention to Judas. He gave the sop to Judas. The sop (a morsel of bread or meat) was a sign of special attention and affection. This act of affection actually turned suspicion away from Judas, for Jesus seemed to be saying “Judas means something special to me.” This act also gave Judas a chance to repent.
⇒ Jesus identified Judas, but only to John. However, John did not fully grasp what was happening. Remember the disciples had no idea that Jesus was about to be murdered. The giving of the sop, because of its sign of affection, also threw suspicion away from Judas.
The whole scene, in all its descriptive drama and tragedy, is a picture of strong appeal—the appeal of the Lord to a man who was about to sell his soul for the goods of the world. It is the picture of a last chance being given to a betrayer.
Thought 1. Note that this is the last chance Judas would ever have to repent. There would be no more opportunities. The Lord was appealing and doing all He could. The decision was the deserter’s. He would either turn to Christ or to the world. There would be no more chances.
27 Then after he had taken the morsel, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.” 28 Now no one at the table knew why he said this to him. 29 Some thought that, because Judas had the moneybag, Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the feast,” or that he should give something to the poor. 30 So, after receiving the morsel of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night.
Betrayal—Apostasy: there is the warning against betrayal. This whole scene is a warning to every person who claims to be a follower of Christ. Remember, Judas was a disciple, a man who ate with Jesus and was a close friend of Jesus.
a. Evil possessed Judas; Satan entered him. This was a critical moment. Sitting there, Judas stiffened and refused to listen. He hardened his heart and made the decision …
• to give himself over to evil and to do the work of Satan
• to be filled with the thoughts of wrong and of Satan
• to act for sin and for Satan
• to be controlled by evil and controlled by Satan
Judas made the decision to do as he had planned. He gave himself over to evil: to be possessed by Satan and evil.
Thought 1. The warning is clear. To do sin is to be possessed by sin and by Satan himself.
b. Jesus charged Judas: act now and act quickly. Once a person has made the decision to desert Him, Jesus wants no dallying around. He wants the traitor and counterfeit disciple out from among His fellowship.
c. The deception of the disciples. Judas had hid his sin well. The other disciples had no idea what was happening.
Thought 1. Being able to hide and keep sin a secret …
• is not a cute trick
• is not a reason for feeling more suave or capable than others
• is not a reason for feeling that one’s ego is boosted
Hiding and keeping sin a secret is building one’s life upon a false foundation that will result in a collapsed life. The very fact that true disciples are unaware of a person’s sin is a warning to the sinner. He is building a life of deception and lies that will crumble every worthwhile relationship he has.
d. The judgment is descriptive. The deserter …
• was separated immediately
• went out into the night and into the darkness
Leadership Ministries Worldwide: The Gospel according to John, The Preacher’s Outline & Sermon Bible. Chattanooga, TN : Leadership Ministries Worldwide, 2004
