The repentance of Judas - Matthew 27

[Pergamum]

I am studying Matthew 27, where Judas "repents."

I want to explain simply to tribal peoples the difference between true and false repentance.

How would you do this?



Also, Pharaoh said, "I have sinned."—Exodus 9:27.

"And Pharaoh sent, and called for Moses and Aaron, and said unto them, I have sinned this time: the Lord is righteous, and I and my people are wicked."



I am sure some Puritans wrote about this, help point me to the places, links, sermons, that cover this.

 

[ShagVT]

My copy is out on loan, but I would start by reading Thomas Watson's Doctrine of Repentance.

The simplest example of true versus false repentance is what I teach my daughters. There is one kind of repentance that is sad you got caught, sad you have live with the consequences of your sin. There is another repentance which is sorry that you have wronged somebody else - and in particular, you have grieved God, scorned his law, despised the atoning work of his Son, and joined Satan's mutiny against creation.

When one of my daughters hurts another and the first words out are "I didn't mean to" ... that is false repentance. When the first words out are "What have I done?!? Are you OK? What can I do?" ... that is real repentance.

 

[Hamalas]

2 Corinthians 7:2-11 might be worth studying in this regard (particularly verse 10: "For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.")

 

[Jack K]

Neil H. Williams writes about Judas' false repentance in World Harvest Mission's Gospel Transformation curriculum (now, sadly, out of print). He draws, I'm quite sure, on Watson for his definition of true repentance. Williams says:

Judas was truly sorry, but there are two kinds of sorrow. The issue is not whether we are sorry, but what kind of sorrow we have (read 2 Cor. 7:9-10).

Even the outward appearance of Judas' response is lacking many essential elements of true repentance. He is still very much self-centered rather than Christ-centered. He is a man who hated Jesus. He is a greedy man—a lover of money rather than other people. He uses Jesus for his own advantage and gain, thus he is an adulterous man. Yet we do not hear Judas acknowledge any of this in his "repentance."

Judas has outmaneuvered himself with his sin. His sinful plan, which all along has been focused on himself, has turned out badly. So even when he makes restitution, he is saying, "Take this money, so I can feel innocent again. Take the money. Justify me, and get me off the hook." When this ploy fails, he throws the money into the temple, and hangs himself. His last-ditch effort does not work, so suicide is his only option. Judas is still taking control of his own life, and is still unrepentant.

Or, as I'm putting it in my yet unplublished adaptation for kids of that Gospel Transformation lesson:

Judas felt guilty. He was so sorry about what happened that he tried to give the silver pieces back. But being sorry about what happened is not true repentance. True repentance is being sorry you sinned against God. It means you hate your sin like God does.

Judas never repented of being greedy for money and hating Jesus. He was just trying to get rid of his guilty feelings. He wanted to make himself feel better. In fact, he wanted SO badly to get rid of those guilty feelings that he killed himself to do it! Yikes! He'd rather kill himself than really repent of his selfish attitudes.

 

[Alan D. Strange]

Contrast Judas with Peter. Both proved faithless to Christ in the crucial hour. But Judas, who did not simply deny Christ but actively betrayed him, was supremely self-pitying. Self-pity ultimately blames God, like Adam in the Garden ("this woman YOU gave to me"). But the Lord turned Adam from this, if one may say, paranoia ("I'm in trouble because all is against me") to metanoia ("I'm in trouble because of my own wickedness").

Judas, however, was consumed with this supreme sense of feeling sorry for himself. Things did not work out. It was all "useless, useless" (the last words of John Wilkes Booth). Judas never found the place of repentance (metanoia) as did Peter, that place in which one takes sides with God against Himself (Psalm 51). Peter saw his sin, hated it, and turned to Christ from his sin to serve the living and true God. Repentance always involves an apprehension of the mercy of God. Peter, bitter as his repentance was, had such. Judas did not, but was only full of bitterness untempered by any sense of God's mercy. Peter repented; Judas did not.

Peace,
Alan

 

[Pergamum]

Excellent Jack!

Also, I am reading about thieves who, once caught, confess. Or sailors, once stuck in a storm, pray (though they soon return to their sin once the clouds clear up).

 

[Pergamum]

Contrast Judas with Peter. Both proved faithless to Christ in the crucial hour. But Judas, who did not simply deny Christ but actively betrayed him, was supremely self-pitying. Self-pity ultimately blames God, like Adam in the Garden ("this woman YOU gave to me"). But the Lord turned Adam from this, if one may say, paranoia ("I'm in trouble because all is against me") to metanoia ("I'm in trouble because of my own wickedness").

Judas, however, was consumed with this supreme sense of feeling sorry for himself. Things did not work out. It was all "useless, useless" (the last words of John Wilkes Booth). Judas never found the place of repentance (metanoia) as did Peter, that place in which one takes sides with God against Himself (Psalm 51). Peter saw his sin, hated it, and turned to Christ from his sin to serve the living and true God. Repentance always involves an apprehension of the mercy of God. Peter, bitter as his repentance was, had such. Judas did not, but was only full of bitterness untempered by any sense of God's mercy. Peter repented; Judas did not.

Peace,
Alan

THANKS!

Yes, it seems purposeful that Peter's betrayal and Judas' occur so close together in Matthew.

 

[LeeD]

Some links that might be helpful:

A Puritan's Mind » Repentance and Conversion – by Dr. William S. Plumer

Spurgeon sermon on the betrayal and false repentance: The Betrayal

Frontline Ministries - True Repentence (didn't read all of this one)

 

[ShagVT]

Also, I am reading about thieves who, once caught, confess. Or sailors, once stuck in a storm, pray (though they soon return to their sin once the clouds clear up).

How about Americans who crowd churches after 9/11, only to return to their apathy and apostasy shortly after?

 

[bug]

I am studying Matthew 27, where Judas "repents."

I want to explain simply to tribal peoples the difference between true and false repentance.

How would you do this?



Also, Pharaoh said, "I have sinned."—Exodus 9:27.

"And Pharaoh sent, and called for Moses and Aaron, and said unto them, I have sinned this time: the Lord is righteous, and I and my people are wicked."



I am sure some Puritans wrote about this, help point me to the places, links, sermons, that cover this.

Compare his 'repentance' and it's results with Peter's!


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

[py3ak]

Repentance always involves an apprehension of the mercy of God.

Thank you, Dr. Strange. That seems to me the critical point, because our repentance is as imperfect as everything else we do: it's not uncommon for someone to repent only after being exposed, for instance. Yet in the case of King David, that repentance was genuine, even though his confession was forced, rather than spontaneous. Where there is hope of God's mercy, the imperfections of feeling do not cancel the truth of repentance; where there is no such hope, the intensity or focus of regretful feeling will do no good. Sorrow joined with despair leads to death - literally so, in Judas' case; but sorrow for sin joined to the perception that God is a pardoning God leads to finding mercy in confessing and forsaking sin.

 

[KaphLamedh]

Jesus said in John 6 that on of His disciples was satan, meaning Judas Iscariot. It would be better for Judas that he would never be born. He stole from their purse. Maybe Judas is an example of false convert?

 

[Pergamum]

Here are my rough notes that I have translated into the local language:

THE FALSE REPENTANCE OF JUDAS: A WARNING TO US!

Good morning, our text today is Matthew 27:1-5.

Our theme is this: the remorse or repentance of Judas.

This morning I would like to talk to you about false repentance, a remorse for sin that does not save. We must repent! Without repentance, we cannot enter heaven. And we must truly repent. There is such a thing as counterfeit repentance. There is a fake repentance. We must repent, but not after the manner of Judas. Let us read the first five verses of the Gospel of Matthew:

Matthew 27:1-5:

Introduction:

It is very clear from Scripture that repentance is necessary for salvation. The first sermon that Christ preached, yea, even the first word of Christ’s first sermon was what (Matthew 4:17)? REPENT! John the Baptist too preached repentance, and the very first words recorded as having been preached by John the Baptist are what? “Repent” (Matthew 3:2). The apostles too all went out and preached what? Repentance. (Mark 6:12). Thus, repentance is very important.

Here in Matthew 27 we see the fate of Judas. We also see Judas’ remorse over his sin. He feels sorry for his sin. He even takes actions to undo his sin (he tries to return the money). Yet, Judas was lost and he suffered an awful fate. He felt remorse for his sins, but this was not true repentance.

In this country there is a lot of counterfeit items. You can buy counterfeit watches, counterfeit films. Here today I am preaching about counterfeit repentance. It looks real at first, but is actually fake once we inspect it closer. Just like a lot of counterfeit stuff can look real, counterfeit repentance also can look real, but is actually worthless.
Judas possessed some of the marks of true repentance.

Judas realizes that he has sin: "I have sinned.."

Yudas knows that he is a sinner. He admits to doing wrong. Judas’ problem is not a problem of misunderstanding the situation. Sin is not merely a problem of the intellect; it is a problem of the heart.

Understanding doctrine is not enough. James 2:19 makes that clear, “...” Also, remember that in the wilderness, Satan used the very Word of God to try to tempt Jesus. Satan might know more of the Bible than you do here this morning. He even quotes Scripture. But he will be punished worse of all in hell – his knowledge will not save him from the flames, but will only increase his guilt.

The Gospel can enter into your ears, you can understand and even agree with the Gospel, and still be lost. You can be aware of your own sins and even feel yourself to be guilty – and still be lost. Judas admits to his sin here, and yet was not saved.

The goodness of Jesus is testified – even by Judas: "..."

Notice that Judas never says anything bad about Jesus. Judas himself testifies to the goodness of Christ. Judas testifies to the fact that Jesus is innocent, and has done no wrong.

Judas had traveled and ate and slept near Jesus. Jesus went everywhere almost with his disciples. They walked together, they ate together, they ministered together. Many people can trick others and appear good on Sunday and appear polite in front of other people and still do secret sins. Many youth here in ___ come to church on Sundays but at night, where are they at? When it is dark and they can hide their sins or commit sin in private, then they no longer try to look good. Much sin is done in secret.

But Jesus and his disciples always traveled together. If there was any flaw in Jesus’ character, if there was even one sin in Jesus’ life, Judas would have seen it. If Jesus was not absolutely perfect, Judas would be a close eye-witness.

But here, Judas testifies to the goodness of Jesus. Judas does not say anything false here, Judas speaks correctly. Judas tells the truth in all that he says here. There is no wrong in Jesus. He is good. Judas not only admits his sin, but he also admits the goodness of God and Jesus. Jesus was “innocent” Judas testifies to the truth here…and is still lost!


Judas tries to take action once he becomes aware of his mistake:

Notice that Judas tries to give the money back. He knows that he is wrong and wants to undo his sin. He is not merely passive; he acts. Once he feels guilty he actively tries to undo his sin by himself. Judas tries to undo his sin by the works of his own hands. He even gives money back in order to try to achieve this purpose.

---

So Judas was aware of his sin. He testifies to his own sinfulness. Judas was aware of the goodness of Jesus. He testified that Jesus was without fault. Judas felt remorse and shame for his sin. He grieved over his sin. Perhaps he even cried. Judas tried to take actions to correct his own sin. He tried to return the money with which he betrayed Jesus. And yet Judas was never saved. Judas had a false form of repentance. Judas did not possess real repentance, it was all a counterfeit.



Some examples of false repentance:

Here are some other examples of false repentance.
• Many thieves are sorry…sorry if they get caught.
• I heard of a sailor who lived a sinful life and didn’t care about God. He was out on the ocean in his boat. A bad storm approached. The waves crashed against the boat and the wooden boat began to break apart and fill up with water. The sailor was tossed back and forth on deck. When faced with this danger, this sinful sailor was afraid that he would drown. He began to pray and ask God for forgiveness. But when the day cleared and the storm ended, the sailor returned to his sinful life and forgot about all of his prayers.
• ..other examples....adulterer who continues in sin despite knowing it is wrong, etc.

Why do people have false repentance?

Many people do not love God; they merely want to escape hell: If you love yourself, then you will want to escape from danger. This desire to escape pain does not mean that you love God. It only means that you love yourself. Thus, if somebody desires to escape hell, that is not a sign that they are saved or believe or love God.

Many evangelists in ____ evangelize in a way that is not the best. Many evangelists will ask people whom they are evangelizing, “Do you want to pick heaven or hell?” Well, of course…EVERYBODY will pick heaven. Only an idiot would pick hell. The question asked by that evangelist is not accurate, the true choice is not between heaven or hell. The true question is this, “Do you want to pick Jesus and his will, or do you want to pick your own sin and your own way?” Most people choose their own sin, and by that, they make their true choice clear, yaitu, that they reject Jesus as Lord over their lives. They love their sin more than they love Christ.

Many people do not hate sin; they merely hate the consequences of sin: Many people repent and feel sorry for the consequences of their sin. They weep because sin brings about harsh consequences. They hate the pain caused by their sin and feel remorse over the result of their sins, but they do not actually hate their sin. If there was a way for them to continue to sin without consequence, they would do it. Thus, they do not hate sin itself; they only hate the results of sin.

In rice fields throughout I_____, people tie cloth to poles to scare away the birds. In America, we have what is called a “scare-crow,” a stuffed mannequin that is placed in a corn field to scare away the birds. The birds still want to eat the corn or want to eat the rice, but only stay away due to fear, not due to hating the rice or the corn.

In like manner, a man can even stay away from some sins out of fear, even though he secretly desires those sins in his heart. He fears the effects of sin, or being discovered or being hurt because of sin. Many men want to commit adultery and gaze upon women with lust, but only commit adultery in their minds by imagining the lust because they are too afraid to commit adultery for real.

Many would sin, if they had the opportunity. Many would do evil, if they knew that their sin could be hidden. Many people avoid many sins, even though they still love and desire the sin. Their nature is unchanged. They have never been born again with a new nature that desires holiness. They do not love God. Instead, they love their own good reputations, they want people to think that they are good people.

In ____, it is very easy to just follow the crowd and go to church out of habit because many people here think that they are already saved and safe. But, a dead fish can float downriver. But only a fish that is alive can swim upriver. And many people here just follow their culture and consider themselves Christians because it is their culture. They are like the dead fish, floating downriver.

Many people are aware of their sin but they do not repent of it: Many people acknowledge with their minds that they have sin and that sin is wrong. But they do not fight against that sin and seek to defeat it. They are content to let the sin live within their hearts.

Many people repent of sins that are visible (sins that other people can see), but they guard and save in their hearts and do not repent of their secret sins: Many people repent of their visible sins. But they have other sins that they hide and do not repent of because others still do not yet know about those secret sins. But a truly saved person will repent of all sins, even though other people do not know about those secret sins.

Many people repent, but intentionally leave the door open so that they can repeat the same sin later: I knew a drunk one time who claimed that he wanted to stop drinking. Yet, he would often visit bars and stores that sold liquor. He did not avoid those places associated with his sin. Also, I knew a man who battled with lust, yet he would watch television shows which showed women wearing sexy clothes. I knew a man who committed adultery with a loose woman that he worked with. He claimed not to want to commit adultery any more with her, but he still chose to work next to her and even offered to drive her home after work.

If we truly repent from sin, we will close the door of opportunity. We will make it hard or impossible for ourselves to continue in that sin. Jesus says that if your eye offends than pluck it out, if your hand causes you to sin, then cut it off (Matt. 5:29,30). If we truly repent, then we will try to avoid those opportunities to sin and will close the door and burn the normal bridges that allow us to sin easily. We will take radical steps of action to kill those sins. We must declare war on sin. If you have an enemy in wartime, you cannot live at peace with them as a neighbor. You will always fight them and seek their death. If you have a dangerous snake, you will not let it lie near – you will seek as quickly as possible to kill it! We will do likewise with sin. We will make it hard or impossible for ourselves to sin.

Many people even cry and do outward acts of atonement for their sin; but these are not saving: Many people try to do penance. In the Catholic religion, if you sin, you can do penance. Penance is an act that you do when you sin to pay for your own sin. You can agree to pray the Hail Mary prayer 50 times as penance for the forgiveness of sins. You try to atone for your own sins. Judas tried to pay for his own sins and undo those sins by returning the money that he received for betraying Christ. All man-made religions try to do some work to gain forgiveness for their sins by their own efforts. All religions of the world demand of us, “Do, do, do….work harder! Earn heaven!” Thank God that our Gospel says, “Christ has done it all – it is finished!”


The life and end of Judas:

Let us look briefly at the life of Judas. Yudas was very religious and appeared to do many good things and was respected by many people, and yet he was not saved:
• Judas was picked by Jesus to be one of the 12 disciples.
• Judas ate together with Jesus and traveled with him.
• Judas heard with his own two ears the greatest preacher in the world. You are listening to me today and I don’t speak very well. Just imagine sitting and hearing Jesus everyday! WOW! How much more effective Jesus’ preaching would be from my preaching! And yet Judas heard Jesus preach often, and was still not saved.
• Judas witnessed the miracles done by Jesus. He witnessed Jesus multiplying the fish and the bread. He was probably there when Jesus walked on the water and calmed the seas. He saw these miracles with his own eyes. He knew that Jesus could heal the sick. Maybe he even saw Jesus raise the dead. And yet Judas was unsaved.
• Judas ministered with Jesus and his disciples. When Jesus sent his disciples out to minister two-by-two Yudas was included. Judas spoke the Gospel to others but he himself was not saved by it. He might even have warned other people about hell, but he himself did not avoid hell.
• Mark 6:7 and 13 says that the 12 disciples went out and healed all sorts of sickness. So Judas healed the sick and was very busy in ministry.
• Judas was the treasurer for Jesus and his disciples; he even handled their money. He held a central position in the ministry, he held status above others by being in charge of the finances.
• Judas betrayed Jesus how? With a kiss! Judas gave Jesus a sign of love. With his lips he kissed Jesus even though he was in the very act of betrayal. Many people are similar; with their lips they claim to love Jesus, but their other actions show their true character.

Before Judas betrayed Jesus, his apparent righteousness far exceeded most people here in P___. If Judas lived here in P___, people would make him a pastor for sure, or even the head of a seminary or the head of a denomination.

Yet, despite all of these outward actions, Judas was called a “son of perdition” (John 17:12). In John 6:70, Jesus says, "Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil?" That is amazing, Jesus calls Judas a devil!

The basic nature of Judas Iscariot never changed. He was not saved and then lost. The man was never saved at all. Judas only had a remorse that was not saving, not a godly sorrow, just like described in 2 Corinthians 7:10, "For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death." Judas' remorse did not result in repentance but in death, and it was merely worldly sorrow.


What was the fate of Judas?

The fate of Judas was terrible. First, Jesus says that the fate of Judas would have been better if he had never been born (Matt. 26:24). That is shocking. To die in the womb, to be a miscarriage, would have been far better for Judas than to have ever been born and lived on this earth. To live and die as a sinner is worse than dying as in infant.

Second, Judas goes and hangs himself. Whereas Jesus is hung by others from a Cross for the sins of others, Judas hangs himself out of despair for his own sins. Judas dies without any hope, only black despair and depression. No Jew would want to defile himself during the Feast of Unleavened Bread by burying the corpse; and so Judas hung there in the hot sun. The body began to decompose. Finally, the body fell to the ground and burst open, Acts:1:18, “...."

Judas, in his death, did not merely fall from his place of hanging, but he fell from his high status. He fell into hell, he fell into the place that he deserved. As Acts 1:25 says, “...”

This morning, where is Judas? As we sit here and hear this sermon, where is Judas? He is in hell. Yesterday, where was Judas? Last week, where was Judas? Last year, where was Judas? Two hundred years ago, where has Judas been? For 2,000 years now, where has Judas been? Yes, in hell. Tomorrow, where will Judas be? Next week, where will Judas be? In another 100 years, 1,000 years, where will Judas be? For all eternity, without end, where will Judas be? There is no longer any hope for Judas.


Have hope: No matter how bad you are, God is mighty to save.

But as long as you live, there is hope for you. While you have breathe, you have hope. As long as you have life, you have an opportunity to truly repent.

Do not be like Judas and say, “There is no hope for me; I have sinned too much. Surely God will not save me!” Do not give up. No matter how sinful you are, Jesus is more powerful than your sin. The forgiveness that is in Jesus Christ is more than the guilt that is in your sins. A single drop of the blood of Christ can quench a thousand lakes of fire.

This morning I tell you seriously, it is dangerous to let poison lie a long time in your body. Unconfessed sin is like poison in the soul. Repentance is like the vomit of the soul. If you eat poison, your body will try to save itself by making you vomit. Therefore, repent and vomit out the poison of your sins for you are sick because of them. And don’t go back to them, don’t be like a dog going back to consume its own vomit.

Do not be satisfied with a counterfeit repentance; pray to God to receive true repentance.

Do not be satisfied to repent in front of men and to repent from outward sins only; confess your secret sins as well. Be open with God and stop hiding your sins any longer.

Do not be content merely to think of your sins as light things; they are awful, each one is a rebellion against a holy God. Each sin deserves to be punished in hell. Think of the price that Christ paid for your sins. Think of how Christ suffered due to your sins. How can you take your sins so lightly if Jesus suffered so harshly for your sins?

Do not be content to merely feel guilt or weep over sins; pray that God would give you a new heart and help you no longer continue under the power of sin any longer.

Last year, on the way to church I passed a traffic accident. I could see the dead man, his bloody body on the side of the road. He was wearing his good clothes; he was headed towards church. Surely he did not plan to die that day.

Tomorrow may be your dying day; let today be your repenting day.

Note: This is the english version of what was translated into another language, so it might not be as smooth as the Puritans