I read that other day about these old writtings known as the Gospel of Judas. It didn’t trouble me at all that it praises Judas Iscariot and account him as a saint for what he did. However, it raised some thoughts in my mind. One of them is related to Judas himself and the other one is related to those who believed in his sanctity.
First, let me talk about Judas. Judas was not only one of Jesus’ disciples, but I bet he was one of the smartest. He must had been honest too. The reason I am saying so is that he was assigned to be responsible for all the finances. He must had performed miracles. Remember when Jesus had send out all Hs disciples, He ordered them to heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, rasie the dead, and cast out demons (Matt 10:8). Judas had the best experience anyone can ask for. But at the end he betrayed his Master. One can say the devil tricked him, but many times Jesus warned him. Even till the last moment Jesus told him,”what you do, do quickly.” After all of this, he still persisted on pursing his plan. The bible mentioned that satan entered him. Did satan enter him against his will? No, it was his choice . Though he did not choose it explicitly, he took the way that leads to so.
I can analyse Judas character and give a very reasonable explanation to what he did, from a psychological point of view. But I find it more beneficient to learn something out of this stroy than to satisfy my intense intellectual desire to analyse Judas. After all this time with his Master, I am sure that Judas had a very strong motivation to do what he did. otherwise, he wouldn’t have done it. His mistake was that he did not reveal his motivations, his thoughts.. I am sure the whole thing started with simple and innocent ideas. But since he covered these thoughts, they started to ferment. When reading the bible, you will notice how many times Jesus gently provoked Judas to expose his hidden thoughts, but Judas kept silent. Assuredly, Jesus loved Judas and when He was prophecising about the one who will betray Him, He was mainly worried about Judas. But as a loving Father, He did not want to hurt Judas’ feelings. He did not confront him,but He was waiting for Judas to speak up. But Judas kept silent. He may had some talks with the Pharisees but he kept silent in front of those who cared about him.
Sometimes Satan wants us to keep silent especially when some of our thoughts need fermentation. He will fight us with discomfort feelings when we try to speak up and reveal ourselves to those who really care out us. Remember that God’s way is always bright. It is always light and it does not fear darkness. If we are afraid to reveal our desires fearing that we may lose them, then they are not from God. They cannot live in light.
To be continued….