In our current series we’ve been going through an old list of questions and answers contained in the Westminster Larger Catechism published in 1648. In previous weeks we’ve been looking at how Christ was humbled in order to bring us salvation. We’ve seen that Christ was humiliated by his conception, birth, subjection to the law and the temptations of Satan. This week I want to begin looking at how Christ was humiliated by his death, starting with his betrayal by Judas.
Judas Iscariot was one of Christ’s disciples from the beginning. Judas was called along with the other apostles: ‘He called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him’ (Matthew 10:1-4).
And not only did Judas have the privilege of being one of Christ’s apostles, he was also given great power. In the quote above we see Judas received ‘authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness’.
Judas must also have appeared in every way to be a friend of Jesus. On the night he was betrayed Jesus predicted: ‘I tell you the truth, one of you is going to betray me’ (John 13:21). Yet the disciples did not instantly think of Judas. Instead we read: ‘His disciples stared at one another, at a loss to know which of them he meant’ (John 13:22).
Thus the subsequent betrayal of Jesus by Judas for money is a horrible event. Such a betrayal was not without effect on Jesus. We read that, before Jesus predicted his betrayal, he ‘was troubled in spirit’ (John 13:21). It grieved Jesus to have someone turn on him, particularly someone he had shown nothing but love and kindness.
Thus Christ was humiliated greatly by Judas on that dreadful night. Judas even gave the pretence of friendship right to the end by kissing Jesus at his arrest: ‘While he was still speaking a crowd came up, and the man who was called Judas, one of the Twelve, was leading them. He approached Jesus to kiss him, but Jesus asked him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?”‘ (Luke 22:47-48). Here we see Jesus asks a question of Judas that points out the sheer audacity of such an action.
So why would Jesus humble himself in this way? Because of our sin we deserve to be humiliated for eternity in hell. But thankfully Jesus takes the eternal humility we deserve so we can have eternal glory instead. This eternal glory comes by trusting that Jesus was humiliated for you, even by his betrayal by Judas.
Do you trust in Christ’s humiliation for you so that you will have eternal glory in heaven?
Joel Radford.
In our current series we’ve been going through an old list of questions and answers contained in the Westminster Larger Catechism published in 1648. In previous weeks we’ve been looking at how Christ was humbled in order to bring us salvation. We’ve seen that Christ was humiliated by his conception, birth, subjection to the law and the temptations of Satan. This week I want to begin looking at how Christ was humiliated by his death, starting with his betrayal by Judas.
Judas Iscariot was one of Christ’s disciples from the beginning. Judas was called along with the other apostles: ‘He called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him’ (Matthew 10:1-4).
And not only did Judas have the privilege of being one of Christ’s apostles, he was also given great power. In the quote above we see Judas received ‘authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness’.
Judas must also have appeared in every way to be a friend of Jesus. On the night he was betrayed Jesus predicted: ‘I tell you the truth, one of you is going to betray me’ (John 13:21). Yet the disciples did not instantly think of Judas. Instead we read: ‘His disciples stared at one another, at a loss to know which of them he meant’ (John 13:22).
Thus the subsequent betrayal of Jesus by Judas for money is a horrible event. Such a betrayal was not without effect on Jesus. We read that, before Jesus predicted his betrayal, he ‘was troubled in spirit’ (John 13:21). It grieved Jesus to have someone turn on him, particularly someone he had shown nothing but love and kindness.
Thus Christ was humiliated greatly by Judas on that dreadful night. Judas even gave the pretense of friendship right to the end by kissing Jesus at his arrest: ‘While he was still speaking a crowd came up, and the man who was called Judas, one of the Twelve, was leading them. He approached Jesus to kiss him, but Jesus asked him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?”‘ (Luke 22:47-48). Here we see Jesus asks a question of Judas that points out the sheer audacity of such an action.
So why would Jesus humble himself in this way? Because of our sin we deserve to be humiliated for eternity in hell. But thankfully Jesus takes the eternal humility we deserve so we can have eternal glory instead. This eternal glory comes by trusting that Jesus was humiliated for you, even by his betrayal by Judas.
Do you trust in Christ’s humiliation for you so that you will have eternal glory in heaven?
Joel Radford.
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