1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:01,333


2
00:00:01,417 --> 00:00:03,583
How are we doing, Mars Hill?

3
00:00:03,667 --> 00:00:04,917
Good, good, good.

4
00:00:05,000 --> 00:00:06,083
I am Pastor Jamie.

5
00:00:06,167 --> 00:00:08,667
This is Pastor Dave Bruskas,
Pastor Scott Thomas,

6
00:00:08,750 --> 00:00:10,250
and today is a big day.

7
00:00:10,333 --> 00:00:11,583
It's a wonderful day.

8
00:00:11,667 --> 00:00:15,083
Today, we celebrate the 15th
anniversary of Mars Hill Church.

9
00:00:15,167 --> 00:00:16,667
So--

10
00:00:16,708 --> 00:00:18,083
[congregation applauding]

11
00:00:18,167 --> 00:00:21,083
We're so thankful to Jesus
for all the work that he's done

12
00:00:21,167 --> 00:00:23,667
up to this point, and we're
looking forward to the next

13
00:00:23,750 --> 00:00:26,583
15 years and all that God's
going to do through Mars Hill.

14
00:00:26,667 --> 00:00:28,417
We have some very
special guests today,

15
00:00:28,500 --> 00:00:31,333
so if we could have
Pastor Mark and Grace

16
00:00:31,417 --> 00:00:33,292
and what they lovingly
call the Fab Five

17
00:00:33,333 --> 00:00:36,667
come join us onstage here.

18
00:00:36,750 --> 00:00:42,458
[congregation applauding]

19
00:00:42,500 --> 00:00:45,583
This is Pastor Mark and Grace
and his awesome family:

20
00:00:45,667 --> 00:00:48,583
Ashley, Zac, Calvin,
Alexie, and Gideon.

21
00:00:48,667 --> 00:00:50,583
So, welcome.

22
00:00:50,667 --> 00:00:52,667
A lot goes into
the building of a church.

23
00:00:52,750 --> 00:00:54,917
A ton goes into
the building of a church,

24
00:00:55,000 --> 00:00:57,583
and we have seen God move
over these last 15 years.

25
00:00:57,667 --> 00:00:58,917
Nothing, though,
is more important

26
00:00:59,000 --> 00:01:00,417
than the preaching
of God's Word.

27
00:01:00,500 --> 00:01:01,458
That's what we do.

28
00:01:01,500 --> 00:01:03,583
If we could do
one thing at Mars Hill,

29
00:01:03,667 --> 00:01:06,000
we would stand up,
and we would preach the Word,

30
00:01:06,042 --> 00:01:08,167
and Pastor Mark has poured
his life into that.

31
00:01:08,250 --> 00:01:10,333
He has been faithful
for the last 15 years,

32
00:01:10,417 --> 00:01:11,792
preaching week in
and week out.

33
00:01:11,833 --> 00:01:13,750
I want to read you
one quick verse.

34
00:01:13,833 --> 00:01:18,292
1 Timothy 5:17 says,
"Let the elders who rule well

35
00:01:18,333 --> 00:01:20,583
"be considered worthy
of double honor,

36
00:01:20,667 --> 00:01:23,917
especially those who labor
in preaching and teaching."

37
00:01:24,000 --> 00:01:26,292
And this is Pastor Mark's
life calling.

38
00:01:26,333 --> 00:01:28,083
It's his passion.
It's what he loves.

39
00:01:28,167 --> 00:01:30,500
And we want to honor him
today for his faithfulness

40
00:01:30,542 --> 00:01:32,167
in preaching the Word
for 15 years,

41
00:01:32,250 --> 00:01:34,167
and we just want
to say thank you.

42
00:01:34,250 --> 00:01:35,500
Thank you, buddy.

43
00:01:35,542 --> 00:01:47,167
[congregation applauding]

44
00:01:47,250 --> 00:01:48,583
Being part of Mars Hill,

45
00:01:48,667 --> 00:01:50,500
you come to a service
every Sunday, hopefully.

46
00:01:50,542 --> 00:01:52,667
Some of you have been
around a long time.

47
00:01:52,708 --> 00:01:53,833
Some of you are new.

48
00:01:53,917 --> 00:01:56,250
I want to give you
a little bit of scope.

49
00:01:56,333 --> 00:01:58,667
Over the last number of years,
since we've been putting

50
00:01:58,708 --> 00:02:01,083
Mark's sermons online,
30 million sermons

51
00:02:01,167 --> 00:02:02,417
have been downloaded.

52
00:02:02,500 --> 00:02:03,750
Thirty million sermons.

53
00:02:03,833 --> 00:02:07,083
So, God has used you to speak
and preach to 30 million people

54
00:02:07,167 --> 00:02:08,083
that have listened.

55
00:02:08,167 --> 00:02:10,750
That's a lot of preaching,
and that's a lot of teaching,

56
00:02:10,833 --> 00:02:12,792
and we're just overwhelmed
and thankful for that.

57
00:02:12,833 --> 00:02:15,750
And as a church,
we get to enjoy that every week.

58
00:02:15,833 --> 00:02:18,417
We get to grow in Jesus.
We get to be challenged.

59
00:02:18,500 --> 00:02:20,083
We get to be yelled at
sometimes.

60
00:02:20,167 --> 00:02:21,792
We get lots of jokes.
It's fun.

61
00:02:21,833 --> 00:02:23,250
But God has just shaped us.

62
00:02:23,333 --> 00:02:25,167
And I want to say
thank you personally.

63
00:02:25,250 --> 00:02:27,167
Without your preaching,
I probably don't know Jesus.

64
00:02:27,250 --> 00:02:28,417
I moved out from Montana.

65
00:02:28,500 --> 00:02:29,917
I came to Mars Hill.

66
00:02:30,000 --> 00:02:31,917
You were preaching through
the book of Romans,

67
00:02:32,000 --> 00:02:33,417
and that's where I met Jesus.

68
00:02:33,500 --> 00:02:36,083
I saw his grace and my sin
for the first time.

69
00:02:36,167 --> 00:02:38,667
And so on behalf of the world,
the 30 million people,

70
00:02:38,750 --> 00:02:41,083
on behalf of our church,
and on behalf of my family,

71
00:02:41,167 --> 00:02:43,750
I just want to say
thank you personally.

72
00:02:43,833 --> 00:02:48,167
[congregation applauding]

73
00:02:48,250 --> 00:02:50,583
Hand it over to you,
Pastor Dave.

74
00:02:50,667 --> 00:02:51,917
We wanted to
acknowledge today

75
00:02:52,000 --> 00:02:54,500
Pastor Mark and his family's
service to Mars Hill,

76
00:02:54,542 --> 00:02:57,083
both the Executive Elders
and Board of Directors.

77
00:02:57,167 --> 00:03:00,917
Pastor Mark, Paul says to the
Corinthians that they are his

78
00:03:01,000 --> 00:03:02,667
letter of recommendation,
that their transformed lives

79
00:03:02,708 --> 00:03:05,583
are evidence that God's grace is
working in him and through him.

80
00:03:05,667 --> 00:03:08,667
And so we wanted to take a
picture of all of us together,

81
00:03:08,750 --> 00:03:10,417
and we couldn't quite
pull that off,

82
00:03:10,500 --> 00:03:12,583
but the closest thing
we could do is this,

83
00:03:12,667 --> 00:03:14,500
so I'm going
to ask Pastor Scott

84
00:03:14,542 --> 00:03:16,917
to hold this up for you
to see from Qwest.

85
00:03:17,000 --> 00:03:17,917
That's awesome.

86
00:03:18,000 --> 00:03:20,500
We wanted to give you
a photo there.

87
00:03:20,542 --> 00:03:27,667
[congregation applauding]

88
00:03:27,750 --> 00:03:31,167
We love you so much and
Jesus has profoundly used you

89
00:03:31,250 --> 00:03:33,667
and the preaching of the Word
to change our lives.

90
00:03:33,708 --> 00:03:36,417
We also wanted to just thank
Grace and the kids today

91
00:03:36,500 --> 00:03:39,667
for your sacrifice and service
to Mars Hill Church.

92
00:03:39,750 --> 00:03:40,667
We love you.

93
00:03:40,750 --> 00:03:46,917
[congregation applauding]

94
00:03:47,000 --> 00:03:49,292
Also, 15 years of a lot
of sacrifice and service,

95
00:03:49,333 --> 00:03:52,417
a lot of it behind the scenes
that you may not know about,

96
00:03:52,500 --> 00:03:53,417
but it's transformed lives.

97
00:03:53,500 --> 00:03:54,917
We love you.
We appreciate you.

98
00:03:55,000 --> 00:03:57,417
You may have heard that
we are planting a church

99
00:03:57,500 --> 00:04:00,083
in southern California,
and it's going to require

100
00:04:00,167 --> 00:04:01,583
that Pastor Mark
travel there some,

101
00:04:01,667 --> 00:04:03,583
and we want you
to go with him.

102
00:04:03,667 --> 00:04:06,167
And not only do we want you
to go with him,

103
00:04:06,250 --> 00:04:08,583
we want you to go to Disneyland
while you're there.

104
00:04:08,667 --> 00:04:11,917
So, we've got the family
an annual pass to Disneyland,

105
00:04:12,000 --> 00:04:13,917
so that you guys
can enjoy that together.

106
00:04:14,000 --> 00:04:22,917
[congregation applauding]

107
00:04:23,000 --> 00:04:25,000
What do you think, Lexie?

108
00:04:25,042 --> 00:04:27,083
Cool.

109
00:04:27,167 --> 00:04:28,292
Do you know that means?

110
00:04:28,333 --> 00:04:30,250
Do you guys know
what annual pass means?

111
00:04:30,333 --> 00:04:35,583
You can go to Disneyland
anytime you want.

112
00:04:35,667 --> 00:04:37,083
[congregation laughing]

113
00:04:37,167 --> 00:04:38,917
Like right now.
Why not, huh?

114
00:04:39,000 --> 00:04:41,292
We love you so much,
and I'm going to ask

115
00:04:41,333 --> 00:04:43,667
Pastor Scott just to thank
the Lord for your ministry

116
00:04:43,750 --> 00:04:45,667
and to pray a blessing
upon the future.

117
00:04:45,708 --> 00:04:47,792
Thank you.

118
00:04:47,833 --> 00:04:53,083
Father, we are so blessed by
this family, every one of them,

119
00:04:53,167 --> 00:04:57,000
every single one of them,
by Pastor Mark, by Grace,

120
00:04:57,042 --> 00:05:00,167
and their dedication and their
vision to plant this church,

121
00:05:00,250 --> 00:05:03,917
and then these children,
all the Fab Five.

122
00:05:04,000 --> 00:05:08,417
They are, in fact, very
fabulous, and we just want

123
00:05:08,500 --> 00:05:10,792
to give you praise for them
and their family,

124
00:05:10,833 --> 00:05:12,667
for each one of them
and their lives,

125
00:05:12,750 --> 00:05:15,417
their sacrifice
that they poured into.

126
00:05:15,500 --> 00:05:19,000
But their sacrifice still is
bowed before the one who gave

127
00:05:19,042 --> 00:05:22,583
the greatest sacrifice
of all, Jesus Christ,

128
00:05:22,667 --> 00:05:27,583
the one who loved us greater
than we loved ourselves.

129
00:05:27,667 --> 00:05:30,750
"And greater love
has no man than this,

130
00:05:30,833 --> 00:05:34,167
that a man lay down his life
for his friends."

131
00:05:34,208 --> 00:05:37,083
And we give you praise
for Jesus Christ and him being

132
00:05:37,167 --> 00:05:40,500
the one on the cross,
that they follow.

133
00:05:40,542 --> 00:05:44,167
So, we ask for a special
blessing on this family.

134
00:05:44,250 --> 00:05:46,500
We give you praise for them.

135
00:05:46,542 --> 00:05:50,458
We pray that you will
honor them, sustain them,

136
00:05:50,500 --> 00:05:55,333
strengthen them, keep them safe,
and keep the joy of Jesus Christ

137
00:05:55,417 --> 00:05:59,458
in their hearts and their lives
for the glory of God.

138
00:05:59,500 --> 00:06:02,750
We just pray you
a special blessing now

139
00:06:02,833 --> 00:06:04,667
on this great family.

140
00:06:04,708 --> 00:06:07,917
In Jesus' name, amen.

141
00:06:08,000 --> 00:06:14,083
[congregation applauding]

142
00:06:14,167 --> 00:06:16,750
Thanks, guys.
Thank you, bro.

143
00:06:16,833 --> 00:06:18,083
Thanks, Pastor Dave.

144
00:06:18,167 --> 00:06:19,333
All right, love you, too.

145
00:06:19,417 --> 00:06:21,583
Thanks, bro.

146
00:06:21,667 --> 00:06:24,667
It is a great time
at Mars Hill Church.

147
00:06:24,750 --> 00:06:27,917
For those of you who are new,
you may have heard this story.

148
00:06:28,000 --> 00:06:30,292
We started as a little
Bible study 15 years ago,

149
00:06:30,333 --> 00:06:33,958
and God has been
really, really gracious to us,

150
00:06:34,000 --> 00:06:36,250
and things are moving
very quickly.

151
00:06:36,333 --> 00:06:39,750
It's actually the most
aggressive, fast-paced,

152
00:06:39,833 --> 00:06:44,417
forward-moving season we've had
in the history of the church.

153
00:06:44,500 --> 00:06:47,083
We have outgrown our
Bellevue church building,

154
00:06:47,167 --> 00:06:49,083
so they're in the process
of moving.

155
00:06:49,167 --> 00:06:50,667
We've outgrown our
Albuquerque church building,

156
00:06:50,750 --> 00:06:52,667
so they're in the process
of moving.

157
00:06:52,750 --> 00:06:54,583
We had outgrown our
Shoreline church building,

158
00:06:54,667 --> 00:06:57,667
so they were recently moved
into a larger space

159
00:06:57,708 --> 00:07:01,833
and also then planted
Everett. As well,

160
00:07:01,917 --> 00:07:05,792
we are now preparing to launch
with the Real Marriage campaign

161
00:07:05,833 --> 00:07:10,000
in early January, on one Sunday,
churches in three states,

162
00:07:10,042 --> 00:07:12,750
so Rainier Valley in Washington;
Portland, Oregon;

163
00:07:12,833 --> 00:07:14,917
and Orange County, California.

164
00:07:15,000 --> 00:07:17,583
And God keeps bringing us
people, keeps bringing us favor,

165
00:07:17,667 --> 00:07:19,917
keeps bringing us opportunity.

166
00:07:20,000 --> 00:07:22,083
And to be honest with you,
it's very humbling,

167
00:07:22,167 --> 00:07:24,417
it's very sobering,
it's very exciting,

168
00:07:24,500 --> 00:07:28,167
it's very encouraging, and
sometimes it's very exhausting.

169
00:07:28,250 --> 00:07:31,167
So, be in prayer for us
and our future,

170
00:07:31,250 --> 00:07:34,417
and that leads me to a really
strange birthday text,

171
00:07:34,500 --> 00:07:36,583
if I might say that,
but at Mars Hill,

172
00:07:36,667 --> 00:07:38,917
we've always
done strange things.

173
00:07:39,000 --> 00:07:41,917
We have a text today,
as we're in the Gospel of Luke,

174
00:07:42,000 --> 00:07:43,167
in the providence of God--

175
00:07:43,250 --> 00:07:45,167
We've been in Luke
for a long time.

176
00:07:45,250 --> 00:07:47,167
It feels like much
of our 15-year history,

177
00:07:47,250 --> 00:07:49,083
we've been in
the Gospel of Luke.

178
00:07:49,167 --> 00:07:54,583
Today, we hit "Luke #94,"
in Luke 22:47-53,

179
00:07:54,667 --> 00:07:56,167
and it's about
Jesus and Judas,

180
00:07:56,250 --> 00:08:00,083
and it's a sobering
text of Scripture,

181
00:08:00,167 --> 00:08:04,583
and it's an examination of a
life of a man who's not famous,

182
00:08:04,667 --> 00:08:06,667
but he's infamous.

183
00:08:06,750 --> 00:08:09,292
And it is for us, I think,
a timely word,

184
00:08:09,333 --> 00:08:16,000
because it shows Jesus' grace
needs to be availed to.

185
00:08:17,167 --> 00:08:20,292
As he gives, you need to
receive and walk with him.

186
00:08:20,333 --> 00:08:24,000
And Jesus has given so much
to you, and me, and to us,

187
00:08:24,042 --> 00:08:27,292
that we want to use this as an
opportunity to examine ourselves

188
00:08:27,333 --> 00:08:30,292
and say, "Thank you, Jesus,
for all that you've given.

189
00:08:30,333 --> 00:08:33,917
Let me be a good steward of
that for the rest of my life."

190
00:08:34,000 --> 00:08:36,083
And so we're going
to talk today about Judas.

191
00:08:36,167 --> 00:08:38,667
And as we examine the
Scriptures, there are actually

192
00:08:38,750 --> 00:08:42,167
eight different men in
the New Testament named Judas,

193
00:08:42,250 --> 00:08:44,833
and the other seven are pretty
bummed that they're named Judas.

194
00:08:44,917 --> 00:08:46,667
I mean, it's like,

195
00:08:46,750 --> 00:08:48,000
"So what's your name?"
"Judas."

196
00:08:48,042 --> 00:08:50,667
"Oh, I heard about--"
"No, I'm the other Judas."

197
00:08:50,708 --> 00:08:53,417
All right, like, there's
one Judas that is the most

198
00:08:53,500 --> 00:08:56,167
noteworthy of the eight,
and that is Judas Iscariot.

199
00:08:56,250 --> 00:08:58,333
He's mentioned 20 times
in the 4 gospels.

200
00:08:58,417 --> 00:09:00,583
He's also mentioned twice
in the book of Acts.

201
00:09:00,667 --> 00:09:03,500
So, the truth is we don't
know a whole lot about him.

202
00:09:03,542 --> 00:09:06,167
It seems like all the other
disciples, out of the twelve,

203
00:09:06,208 --> 00:09:09,000
they come out of the region of
Galilee where there's fishermen

204
00:09:09,042 --> 00:09:11,917
and farmers, and it's a rural
area where Jesus is from.

205
00:09:12,000 --> 00:09:16,083
But Judas, he's seemingly,
so far as we can tell,

206
00:09:16,167 --> 00:09:17,083
from another area.

207
00:09:17,167 --> 00:09:18,792
We don't know
a lot about him.

208
00:09:18,833 --> 00:09:20,833
We know that his
dad's name is Simon.

209
00:09:20,917 --> 00:09:23,000
We do know that his
whole life changed when,

210
00:09:23,042 --> 00:09:24,500
after a full night in prayer,

211
00:09:24,542 --> 00:09:28,792
the Lord Jesus Christ
chose twelve disciples,

212
00:09:28,833 --> 00:09:31,583
twelve people to be
personally mentored by him.

213
00:09:31,667 --> 00:09:32,833
And so in that day,

214
00:09:32,917 --> 00:09:36,000
you didn't generally go
to, oftentimes, a school.

215
00:09:36,042 --> 00:09:38,917
You would pick a teacher, and
you would sit under the teaching

216
00:09:39,000 --> 00:09:41,750
of that teacher, but you could
only sit under the teaching

217
00:09:41,833 --> 00:09:44,958
of that teacher
if they invited you.

218
00:09:45,000 --> 00:09:47,333
And so to get chosen by
Jesus--you think about this.

219
00:09:47,417 --> 00:09:52,667
Of all the people on the earth,
Jesus decided to pick twelve,

220
00:09:52,708 --> 00:09:56,083
and one was a man
named Judas Iscariot.

221
00:09:56,167 --> 00:09:59,417
He became one of the twelve
disciples of Jesus Christ.

222
00:09:59,500 --> 00:10:04,000
And as the list of names
of the twelve is mentioned

223
00:10:04,042 --> 00:10:06,417
throughout the New Testament
on multiple occasions,

224
00:10:06,500 --> 00:10:08,583
his name
is always listed last

225
00:10:08,667 --> 00:10:12,000
because he's the one
who ended poorly,

226
00:10:12,042 --> 00:10:15,167
and so he is given
a place of dishonor

227
00:10:15,250 --> 00:10:16,667
at the bottom of the list.

228
00:10:16,708 --> 00:10:18,750
And Peter is always
listed first,

229
00:10:18,833 --> 00:10:21,000
as he was their human leader.

230
00:10:21,042 --> 00:10:22,458
Well, what's interesting
is he spent

231
00:10:22,500 --> 00:10:25,292
roughly 3 years with Jesus.

232
00:10:25,333 --> 00:10:29,667
And so as we have spent now a
few years in the Gospel of Luke,

233
00:10:29,750 --> 00:10:33,000
for those of you that have
been here or caught up online,

234
00:10:33,042 --> 00:10:35,250
imagine being there
for everything

235
00:10:35,333 --> 00:10:38,292
we've been talking about,
as an eyewitness.

236
00:10:38,333 --> 00:10:42,750
So, when people were raised
from death, Judas was there.

237
00:10:42,833 --> 00:10:47,292
When Jesus was preaching
and teaching, Judas was there.

238
00:10:47,333 --> 00:10:50,583
When demons were cast out,
and people were healed,

239
00:10:50,667 --> 00:10:52,333
Judas was there.

240
00:10:52,417 --> 00:10:55,917
Judas ate his meals
with Jesus for 3 years.

241
00:10:56,000 --> 00:10:58,417
Judas could approach Jesus
at any time,

242
00:10:58,500 --> 00:11:00,250
because they were always
traveling together,

243
00:11:00,333 --> 00:11:02,000
and ask him any question
he wanted.

244
00:11:02,042 --> 00:11:04,917
Could you even fathom that?

245
00:11:05,000 --> 00:11:07,583
In addition, if Judas
wanted to be prayed for,

246
00:11:07,667 --> 00:11:10,500
he would just ask Jesus,
and Jesus would stop

247
00:11:10,542 --> 00:11:14,167
and pray for him.

248
00:11:14,208 --> 00:11:17,500
It's remarkable the access
and the opportunity that he had

249
00:11:17,542 --> 00:11:19,250
in the grace of God.

250
00:11:19,333 --> 00:11:21,583
And Jesus loved him,
and Jesus served him,

251
00:11:21,667 --> 00:11:24,500
and Jesus trained him,
and Jesus taught him,

252
00:11:24,542 --> 00:11:29,083
and on one occasion, we read
that Jesus even washed his feet,

253
00:11:29,167 --> 00:11:30,792
humbly, in the position
of a slave,

254
00:11:30,833 --> 00:11:34,792
got down and served Judas.

255
00:11:34,833 --> 00:11:38,792
This man was given
a remarkable opportunity.

256
00:11:38,833 --> 00:11:41,500
And we read in the gospels,
as well, that his position

257
00:11:41,542 --> 00:11:45,458
on the team was financial.

258
00:11:45,500 --> 00:11:47,167
He was, essentially,
the treasurer.

259
00:11:47,250 --> 00:11:48,583
He was the CFO.

260
00:11:48,667 --> 00:11:50,167
He was the CPA.

261
00:11:50,208 --> 00:11:51,333
He was the bookkeeper.

262
00:11:51,417 --> 00:11:53,667
He oversaw the resources
of the ministry.

263
00:11:53,750 --> 00:11:58,667
Just like our church takes in
resources, money, facilities,

264
00:11:58,750 --> 00:12:02,083
capital, so in that day
they brought in resources.

265
00:12:02,167 --> 00:12:04,167
There were financial
contributions.

266
00:12:04,208 --> 00:12:06,083
There was money generated.

267
00:12:06,167 --> 00:12:09,167
And the Bible says that Judas
was the one who kept the money.

268
00:12:09,250 --> 00:12:11,333
He was the one
who did all the accounting

269
00:12:11,417 --> 00:12:13,667
and stewarded the resources.

270
00:12:13,750 --> 00:12:19,167
So, he was the business guy,
and he was also a thief.

271
00:12:19,250 --> 00:12:21,167
The Bible tells us
around John 12

272
00:12:21,208 --> 00:12:27,292
that he had a pattern
of stealing from the money

273
00:12:27,333 --> 00:12:30,292
that belonged to
the ministry of Jesus.

274
00:12:30,333 --> 00:12:33,667
See, he was a taker,
not a giver.

275
00:12:33,750 --> 00:12:37,792
He didn't care about generosity
for the sake of the gospel,

276
00:12:37,833 --> 00:12:40,000
the good news
of Jesus going out.

277
00:12:40,042 --> 00:12:44,667
Instead, he only wanted
gain for himself.

278
00:12:44,750 --> 00:12:47,167
And it's an amazing
opportunity for us to ask,

279
00:12:47,250 --> 00:12:49,917
"Am I a giver or a taker?

280
00:12:50,000 --> 00:12:52,000
"Do I approach
the ministry of Jesus,

281
00:12:52,042 --> 00:12:54,292
"which would include
churches like Mars Hill,

282
00:12:54,333 --> 00:12:58,167
"as an opportunity for me to
take and to take care of myself,

283
00:12:58,250 --> 00:13:01,083
"or as an opportunity to give,
that others might come

284
00:13:01,167 --> 00:13:02,667
to know Jesus?"

285
00:13:02,708 --> 00:13:06,458
Judas was a taker, not a giver,
and he was secretly

286
00:13:06,500 --> 00:13:09,667
stealing money that
ultimately belonged

287
00:13:09,750 --> 00:13:11,167
to the ministry of Jesus.

288
00:13:11,250 --> 00:13:14,250
This would be like
a church CPA, or a church CFO,

289
00:13:14,333 --> 00:13:17,333
or a lead pastor stealing money,

290
00:13:17,417 --> 00:13:20,292
putting expenses on the church
credit card that are personal,

291
00:13:20,333 --> 00:13:24,917
trying to take advantage
of their position,

292
00:13:25,000 --> 00:13:30,417
altering the books so as to
skim off the top, or stealing.

293
00:13:30,500 --> 00:13:32,583
I mean, this would be today
like church theft,

294
00:13:32,667 --> 00:13:34,583
people stealing things
from the church,

295
00:13:34,667 --> 00:13:37,667
which tragically happens.

296
00:13:37,750 --> 00:13:40,000
Judas was that guy.

297
00:13:40,042 --> 00:13:44,750
But what's interesting is he
appeared to be very generous,

298
00:13:44,833 --> 00:13:47,917
and he appeared to care about
the poor, because in John 12,

299
00:13:48,000 --> 00:13:49,958
there's an occasion
where a woman comes in,

300
00:13:50,000 --> 00:13:52,167
and she's sinful,
and she's repentant of her sin,

301
00:13:52,208 --> 00:13:56,292
and so in an effort to apologize
to Jesus and to demonstrate

302
00:13:56,333 --> 00:13:59,167
the depth of her repentance,
she anoints his feet

303
00:13:59,250 --> 00:14:01,583
with a very expensive perfume.

304
00:14:01,667 --> 00:14:03,333
And Judas stands back,
and he says,

305
00:14:03,417 --> 00:14:06,083
"Oh, that's worth
a great deal of money.

306
00:14:06,167 --> 00:14:10,083
"We should give that,
instead, to the poor.

307
00:14:10,167 --> 00:14:12,500
We should take those
resources and reallocate."

308
00:14:12,542 --> 00:14:17,917
"Ooh, Judas, you are--
you're so civically minded."

309
00:14:18,000 --> 00:14:20,667
The Bible says, actually, he
wanted that perfume sold so that

310
00:14:20,750 --> 00:14:23,833
he could take the money and
rather than give it to the poor,

311
00:14:23,917 --> 00:14:25,583
put it in his pocket.

312
00:14:25,667 --> 00:14:28,083
He was a thief.

313
00:14:28,167 --> 00:14:31,792
Nonetheless, Jesus loved him.
Nonetheless, Jesus served him.

314
00:14:31,833 --> 00:14:33,500
And the Bible
actually predicted,

315
00:14:33,542 --> 00:14:36,292
at least on two occasions
in the Old Testament,

316
00:14:36,333 --> 00:14:40,083
events surrounding
Judas's life and demise.

317
00:14:40,167 --> 00:14:45,500
Psalm 41:9, written roughly
1,000 years before Jesus

318
00:14:45,542 --> 00:14:49,292
was born, we read, "Even my
close friend in whom I trusted,

319
00:14:49,333 --> 00:14:53,417
who ate my bread, has lifted
his heel against me."

320
00:14:53,500 --> 00:14:56,667
Jesus quotes this
very verse in John 13:18,

321
00:14:56,750 --> 00:14:58,500
when he's with his disciples.

322
00:14:58,542 --> 00:15:00,500
And he looks at them,
and he says,

323
00:15:00,542 --> 00:15:03,750
"That prophecy in Psalm 41:9
is going to be fulfilled

324
00:15:03,833 --> 00:15:04,958
"in one of you.

325
00:15:05,000 --> 00:15:06,917
You're going to lift
your heel against me."

326
00:15:07,000 --> 00:15:09,292
And in that culture,
that was an act of dishonor.

327
00:15:09,333 --> 00:15:12,167
Today it's like giving
somebody the finger.

328
00:15:12,250 --> 00:15:15,417
And Jesus looks at his disciples
and says, "One of you is going

329
00:15:15,500 --> 00:15:18,000
to do that to me."

330
00:15:18,042 --> 00:15:23,250
Also predicting Judas's demise
is a prophecy in Zechariah,

331
00:15:23,333 --> 00:15:26,500
uttered about 700 years
before Jesus was born,

332
00:15:26,542 --> 00:15:29,417
because God knows the future.

333
00:15:29,500 --> 00:15:35,500
Zechariah 11:13, it says that
Jesus ultimately would be

334
00:15:35,542 --> 00:15:39,417
betrayed for how many
pieces of silver?

335
00:15:39,500 --> 00:15:42,000
Thirty, not twenty-nine,
not thirty-one.

336
00:15:42,042 --> 00:15:45,583
All Scripture
is God-breathed and perfect,

337
00:15:45,667 --> 00:15:47,792
and the prophecy was given
700 years in advance

338
00:15:47,833 --> 00:15:50,417
that Jesus would come, that the
second member of the Trinity

339
00:15:50,500 --> 00:15:52,292
would enter into human history,

340
00:15:52,333 --> 00:15:54,792
and that he would be
betrayed by a close friend,

341
00:15:54,833 --> 00:15:58,292
and the exact bounty on his head
would be 30 pieces of silver,

342
00:15:58,333 --> 00:16:01,167
the equivalent of
a couple of hundred bucks.

343
00:16:01,250 --> 00:16:03,792
And Judas did betray Jesus,
and he did hand him off

344
00:16:03,833 --> 00:16:06,667
to the authorities to be
murdered and put to death

345
00:16:06,750 --> 00:16:09,458
by crucifixion and execution,

346
00:16:09,500 --> 00:16:12,667
and he was paid
30 pieces of silver.

347
00:16:12,750 --> 00:16:17,083
That's what the Scriptures
record, historically.

348
00:16:17,167 --> 00:16:20,000
And today we're going
to see Judas for the last time

349
00:16:20,042 --> 00:16:21,167
in the Gospel of Luke.

350
00:16:21,250 --> 00:16:23,583
We've been in Luke now
for more than 2 years.

351
00:16:23,667 --> 00:16:25,500
This is the 94th sermon.

352
00:16:25,542 --> 00:16:27,083
We will finish at 100.

353
00:16:27,167 --> 00:16:30,167
We're getting near the end,
and all along the way

354
00:16:30,250 --> 00:16:33,167
Judas has been in the plotline
of the life of Jesus.

355
00:16:33,250 --> 00:16:35,083
Sometimes he's been up
in the forefront,

356
00:16:35,167 --> 00:16:36,417
and he's named and mentioned;

357
00:16:36,500 --> 00:16:39,000
other times he's hanging
in the background,

358
00:16:39,042 --> 00:16:41,667
just part of the crowd
and following Jesus,

359
00:16:41,708 --> 00:16:43,417
but he's been there
the whole time,

360
00:16:43,500 --> 00:16:46,167
and this is the last occasion
that we will see Judas

361
00:16:46,250 --> 00:16:49,292
in the entirety
of the Gospel of Luke.

362
00:16:49,333 --> 00:16:54,583
And so here we find him,
beginning in Luke 22:47.

363
00:16:54,667 --> 00:16:56,750
"While he was still speaking,"
that is Jesus,

364
00:16:56,833 --> 00:17:01,000
"there came a crowd,
and the man called Judas,

365
00:17:01,042 --> 00:17:03,500
"one of the twelve,
was leading them.

366
00:17:03,542 --> 00:17:07,500
"He drew near to Jesus to kiss
him, but Jesus said to him,

367
00:17:07,542 --> 00:17:10,667
'Judas, would you betray the
Son of Man,'" God became a man,

368
00:17:10,708 --> 00:17:12,167
"'with a kiss?'

369
00:17:12,250 --> 00:17:15,750
"And when those who were around
him saw what would follow,

370
00:17:15,833 --> 00:17:18,667
"they said, 'Lord, shall we
strike with the sword?'

371
00:17:18,708 --> 00:17:21,292
"And one of them struck the
servant of the high priest

372
00:17:21,333 --> 00:17:23,000
and cut off his right ear."

373
00:17:23,042 --> 00:17:26,667
The other gospels say this was,
in fact, Peter the Impetuous.

374
00:17:26,708 --> 00:17:30,583
Peter is always ready, even when
he doesn't know what he's doing.

375
00:17:30,667 --> 00:17:33,458
That's Peter.

376
00:17:33,500 --> 00:17:35,167
"But Jesus said,
'No more of this!'

377
00:17:35,208 --> 00:17:37,083
And he touched his
ear and healed him."

378
00:17:37,167 --> 00:17:38,667
Now, you've got to see this.

379
00:17:38,750 --> 00:17:40,917
This man comes to arrest
and murder Jesus.

380
00:17:41,000 --> 00:17:46,000
Peter cuts his ear off,
and Jesus heals his murderer.

381
00:17:46,042 --> 00:17:47,958
That tells you
a lot about Jesus.

382
00:17:48,000 --> 00:17:50,083
"Then Jesus said to
the chief priests and officers

383
00:17:50,167 --> 00:17:52,583
of the temple and the elders,"
all the religious leaders,

384
00:17:52,667 --> 00:17:54,250
"who had come out against him,

385
00:17:54,333 --> 00:17:56,667
"'Have you come out
as against a robber,

386
00:17:56,750 --> 00:17:58,083
with swords and clubs?'"

387
00:17:58,167 --> 00:18:00,333
He's saying, "When have
I ever carried a weapon?"

388
00:18:00,417 --> 00:18:03,000
"'When I was with you
day after day in the temple,

389
00:18:03,042 --> 00:18:04,667
"you did not lay hands on me.

390
00:18:04,750 --> 00:18:08,500
But this is your hour,
and the power of darkness.'"

391
00:18:08,542 --> 00:18:12,792
Jesus is in
the Garden of Gethsemane.

392
00:18:12,833 --> 00:18:15,417
It's a place that
the Bible told us previously

393
00:18:15,500 --> 00:18:16,833
he would go to for prayer.

394
00:18:16,917 --> 00:18:19,500
It was his place for silence
and solitude and prayer,

395
00:18:19,542 --> 00:18:21,750
and pastors, in general,
and Christians, in particular,

396
00:18:21,833 --> 00:18:24,667
oftentimes have a place
for silence, and solitude,

397
00:18:24,708 --> 00:18:26,167
and prayer, and journaling,
and Bible-reading,

398
00:18:26,250 --> 00:18:27,917
and to get alone
with the Lord.

399
00:18:28,000 --> 00:18:29,917
And Jesus here is meeting
with the Father

400
00:18:30,000 --> 00:18:32,083
in the Garden of Gethsemane,
as was his custom.

401
00:18:32,167 --> 00:18:33,750
And Judas knew
where he would be,

402
00:18:33,833 --> 00:18:39,167
because Judas was part
of the inner twelve.

403
00:18:39,208 --> 00:18:42,917
This is like a pastor
is getting prayer time,

404
00:18:43,000 --> 00:18:46,667
and one of his associates
decides to betray him,

405
00:18:46,750 --> 00:18:50,083
and knows exactly where
he'll be praying,

406
00:18:50,167 --> 00:18:51,792
and so he takes
his enemies there.

407
00:18:51,833 --> 00:18:56,792
I mean, it's treasonous,
it's treacherous, it's tragic.

408
00:18:56,833 --> 00:18:58,167
And it's nighttime.

409
00:18:58,250 --> 00:19:01,583
Jesus says, "Oh, you came
at night, when it's dark.

410
00:19:01,667 --> 00:19:03,292
"I've been out
at the temple courts.

411
00:19:03,333 --> 00:19:04,792
"I've been preaching
and teaching

412
00:19:04,833 --> 00:19:08,167
"in open public forums
during the daylight.

413
00:19:08,208 --> 00:19:12,417
"If you wanted to arrest me,
why didn't you do it then?

414
00:19:12,500 --> 00:19:15,667
Oh, I'm not guilty of anything."

415
00:19:15,750 --> 00:19:17,500
But, see,
this isn't an arrest.

416
00:19:17,542 --> 00:19:19,417
This is a murder.

417
00:19:19,500 --> 00:19:22,000
They do it at night when
everybody's at home in bed,

418
00:19:22,042 --> 00:19:23,667
so that no one can see.

419
00:19:23,750 --> 00:19:25,917
And he says,
"Now is the hour of darkness."

420
00:19:26,000 --> 00:19:28,917
And what he's saying is,
the darkness that surrounds us

421
00:19:29,000 --> 00:19:32,667
is not as dark as
the darkness that's in you.

422
00:19:32,750 --> 00:19:34,333
It's all darkness.

423
00:19:34,417 --> 00:19:36,750
And Judas comes up
and betrays him with a kiss.

424
00:19:36,833 --> 00:19:41,000
And in that culture, this was
a common form of greeting.

425
00:19:41,042 --> 00:19:43,917
And so Judas, with the soldiers,
coming in the darkness of night

426
00:19:44,000 --> 00:19:46,583
to a dark garden with Jesus--

427
00:19:46,667 --> 00:19:50,667
There would've been his
other 11 disciples, 12 men.

428
00:19:50,708 --> 00:19:52,333
And the soldiers
would have asked Judas,

429
00:19:52,417 --> 00:19:54,292
"How will we know
which one is Jesus?

430
00:19:54,333 --> 00:19:56,583
It's going to be dark
and hard to tell."

431
00:19:56,667 --> 00:19:58,000
Judas says, "Just wait.

432
00:19:58,042 --> 00:20:00,750
"I'll approach him like
a friend, a pretend friend,

433
00:20:00,833 --> 00:20:03,167
"and I'll kiss him,
and the one that I kiss,

434
00:20:03,208 --> 00:20:05,292
"that's the one who is Jesus,
to be arrested

435
00:20:05,333 --> 00:20:06,417
and put to death."

436
00:20:06,500 --> 00:20:09,000
And in that culture, again,
they did greet with one another

437
00:20:09,042 --> 00:20:10,000
with a kiss.

438
00:20:10,042 --> 00:20:11,000
It was common.

439
00:20:11,042 --> 00:20:13,167
The Bible says, elsewhere,
that Christians are to greet

440
00:20:13,250 --> 00:20:14,417
one another with a kiss.

441
00:20:14,500 --> 00:20:15,833
The principle is
an affectionate greeting

442
00:20:15,917 --> 00:20:17,917
among the people of God,
like a family.

443
00:20:18,000 --> 00:20:20,792
In our day, that would be
a handshake or a firm hug,

444
00:20:20,833 --> 00:20:23,167
but in that day,
it was a kiss.

445
00:20:23,250 --> 00:20:25,500
In some cultures,
it's still this way, correct?

446
00:20:25,542 --> 00:20:28,167
I remember the first time
I met a family like that,

447
00:20:28,208 --> 00:20:31,083
I think it was a Spanish family,
early on in Mars Hill.

448
00:20:31,167 --> 00:20:33,667
I think one of their kids,
it was, became a Christian.

449
00:20:33,750 --> 00:20:36,083
The family was really excited,
showed up for a service.

450
00:20:36,167 --> 00:20:37,083
"Oh, thank you, Pastor."

451
00:20:37,167 --> 00:20:39,750
And the grandma comes up,
comes to kiss me.

452
00:20:39,833 --> 00:20:41,583
I'm trying to get certain,
you know,

453
00:20:41,667 --> 00:20:44,083
maybe get her a cheek,
trying to defend myself.

454
00:20:44,167 --> 00:20:46,250
And then Mom comes
to give me a kiss,

455
00:20:46,333 --> 00:20:49,500
and then Dad and Grandpa are in
line, and I'm freaking out,

456
00:20:49,542 --> 00:20:51,667
like, I'm not making out
with the whole family.

457
00:20:51,708 --> 00:20:54,792
I don't know how to--I'm Irish.
We have intimacy issues.

458
00:20:54,833 --> 00:20:58,167
I don't like people
touching me, you know, like,

459
00:20:58,250 --> 00:21:01,167
but the whole family had to
give you a kiss, you know,

460
00:21:01,250 --> 00:21:03,917
and the whole time you're like,
"Okay, I'm going to be

461
00:21:04,000 --> 00:21:06,500
a moving target and keep
my lips out of the way."

462
00:21:06,542 --> 00:21:08,167
And some families
are still like that,

463
00:21:08,250 --> 00:21:10,167
and some cultures
are still like that,

464
00:21:10,250 --> 00:21:12,167
and some Eastern cultures
are still like that,

465
00:21:12,250 --> 00:21:14,167
and that's how it was
in that day,

466
00:21:14,250 --> 00:21:19,583
and that's how Judas
comes to betray Jesus.

467
00:21:19,667 --> 00:21:23,458
Can you imagine what
that felt like for Jesus?

468
00:21:23,500 --> 00:21:26,167
"Here comes my friend.

469
00:21:26,208 --> 00:21:31,167
"I have fed him, housed him,
loved him, cared for him,

470
00:21:31,250 --> 00:21:38,000
taught him, invested in him,
endured with him for 3 years."

471
00:21:39,333 --> 00:21:41,667
Have you had that moment
where somebody you trusted in

472
00:21:41,750 --> 00:21:44,917
and loved,
they just betrayed you?

473
00:21:45,000 --> 00:21:48,333
"You did what?"

474
00:21:48,417 --> 00:21:51,667
Can you imagine how the
disciples felt in that moment?

475
00:21:51,750 --> 00:21:52,667
You're a team.

476
00:21:52,750 --> 00:21:54,333
You're together.

477
00:21:54,417 --> 00:21:55,333
Right?

478
00:21:55,417 --> 00:21:57,292
Have you been on
a competitive sports team,

479
00:21:57,333 --> 00:21:59,500
or have you been in
a military fighting unit,

480
00:21:59,542 --> 00:22:02,458
or have you been part
of a small class in a school

481
00:22:02,500 --> 00:22:05,667
that was together
for very many years?

482
00:22:05,708 --> 00:22:11,292
Have you been part of
a work team or a ministry team,

483
00:22:11,333 --> 00:22:13,333
that you had intense
life experiences,

484
00:22:13,417 --> 00:22:17,792
lots of time together over
the course of multiple years,

485
00:22:17,833 --> 00:22:23,667
and then one of you absolutely
does the unthinkable?

486
00:22:23,708 --> 00:22:25,583
I'm sure the disciples
were just stunned.

487
00:22:25,667 --> 00:22:28,792
"Judas?

488
00:22:28,833 --> 00:22:32,667
"You're the one
who's going to murder Jesus?

489
00:22:32,750 --> 00:22:34,500
"You're one of us.

490
00:22:34,542 --> 00:22:38,167
"We thought we were all friends.

491
00:22:38,250 --> 00:22:42,000
"We thought we all
belonged to God.

492
00:22:46,333 --> 00:22:51,833
You're an enemy
of God and us."

493
00:22:51,917 --> 00:22:55,458
And, again, this is the
last time we see Judas Iscariot

494
00:22:55,500 --> 00:23:00,667
in the Gospel of Luke.

495
00:23:00,708 --> 00:23:02,167
Jesus is arrested.

496
00:23:02,208 --> 00:23:04,292
Jesus is run through
a series of false trials,

497
00:23:04,333 --> 00:23:07,458
because this is a murder.

498
00:23:07,500 --> 00:23:09,792
All of this happens at night.

499
00:23:09,833 --> 00:23:12,458
You're going to see it
in the coming days and weeks

500
00:23:12,500 --> 00:23:15,458
as we study together,

501
00:23:15,500 --> 00:23:18,167
Jesus is ultimately
beaten beyond recognition.

502
00:23:18,250 --> 00:23:20,583
He is crucified
and put to death.

503
00:23:20,667 --> 00:23:26,583
He is buried,
and 3 days later he rises.

504
00:23:26,667 --> 00:23:32,417
How does Judas feel about what
he has done to betray Jesus?

505
00:23:32,500 --> 00:23:38,167
Well, what is tragic is he has
remorse, but not repentance.

506
00:23:38,250 --> 00:23:43,917
He feels bad,
but he doesn't change.

507
00:23:44,000 --> 00:23:47,292
See, there's another man around
this same section of Luke,

508
00:23:47,333 --> 00:23:50,417
who also betrayed Jesus.

509
00:23:50,500 --> 00:23:52,417
What was his name?

510
00:23:52,500 --> 00:23:53,667
Peter.

511
00:23:53,750 --> 00:23:57,000
He denied Jesus Christ
three times.

512
00:23:57,042 --> 00:23:59,250
And then it says
that he wept bitterly,

513
00:23:59,333 --> 00:24:02,583
that he was devastated,
that he felt horrific

514
00:24:02,667 --> 00:24:05,667
about what he had done!

515
00:24:05,750 --> 00:24:09,083
And as soon as
he heard Jesus was alive,

516
00:24:09,167 --> 00:24:13,250
after the resurrection,
Peter ran, the Bible says,

517
00:24:13,333 --> 00:24:16,000
to the empty tomb,
looking for Jesus.

518
00:24:16,042 --> 00:24:19,000
He was the first one
to walk into the empty tomb.

519
00:24:19,042 --> 00:24:20,667
He wanted to see Jesus.

520
00:24:20,750 --> 00:24:22,792
He wanted to look
Jesus in the eye.

521
00:24:22,833 --> 00:24:25,000
He wanted to tell Jesus
that he was sorry,

522
00:24:25,042 --> 00:24:29,000
and he wanted to ask
for forgiveness.

523
00:24:29,042 --> 00:24:31,917
That's repentance.

524
00:24:32,000 --> 00:24:34,500
And Peter did change.

525
00:24:34,542 --> 00:24:39,250
He was not a perfect man,
but he was a changed man.

526
00:24:39,333 --> 00:24:42,083
Judas had remorse,
but not repentance.

527
00:24:42,167 --> 00:24:45,583
He felt bad,
but he never changed.

528
00:24:45,667 --> 00:24:49,167
So, the Bible says
that he had remorse,

529
00:24:49,208 --> 00:24:51,667
but rather than repenting--
and repenting is where

530
00:24:51,750 --> 00:24:55,000
you tell people you're sorry,
and you own what you've done,

531
00:24:55,042 --> 00:24:58,167
and you tell God you're sorry,
and you own what you've done.

532
00:24:58,208 --> 00:25:00,292
He just had remorse.

533
00:25:00,333 --> 00:25:02,000
All right,
this is some of you.

534
00:25:02,042 --> 00:25:05,083
You cry, and you feel bad,
and you grieve the consequences,

535
00:25:05,167 --> 00:25:08,833
but you don't hate your sin,
and you don't bring it to God

536
00:25:08,917 --> 00:25:11,292
and the people
you've offended,

537
00:25:11,333 --> 00:25:14,167
and that leads to
discouragement, and depression,

538
00:25:14,208 --> 00:25:15,583
and despair.

539
00:25:15,667 --> 00:25:18,000
It can ultimately culminate
in suicide and, tragically,

540
00:25:18,042 --> 00:25:23,583
that's exactly what happened
with Judas Iscariot.

541
00:25:23,667 --> 00:25:28,000
Matthew records and Acts 1
picks up the fact

542
00:25:28,042 --> 00:25:30,458
that then Judas,
rather than going to Jesus,

543
00:25:30,500 --> 00:25:31,833
he went to a tree.

544
00:25:31,917 --> 00:25:34,917
And rather than saying he
was sorry, he made a noose.

545
00:25:35,000 --> 00:25:37,750
And rather than making it right,
he made it end.

546
00:25:37,833 --> 00:25:39,667
And he put a noose
around his neck,

547
00:25:39,750 --> 00:25:45,167
and he jumped off a tree branch,
and he hung himself.

548
00:25:45,208 --> 00:25:48,417
And Acts records that,
in some way,

549
00:25:48,500 --> 00:25:52,958
his body then fell off,
and his intestines burst out,

550
00:25:53,000 --> 00:25:55,792
and his guts came out
of his body,

551
00:25:55,833 --> 00:25:59,292
and that's the end
of Judas Iscariot.

552
00:25:59,333 --> 00:26:01,458
That's remorse,
not repentance.

553
00:26:01,500 --> 00:26:03,292
It's not enough
to just feel bad.

554
00:26:03,333 --> 00:26:06,167
You've got to bring it to God,
and you need to change

555
00:26:06,250 --> 00:26:08,083
by the grace of God.

556
00:26:08,167 --> 00:26:10,167
Judas never got there.

557
00:26:10,250 --> 00:26:12,917
Peter did; Judas didn't.

558
00:26:13,000 --> 00:26:14,417
And then the question is asked,

559
00:26:14,500 --> 00:26:17,083
and I'm sure some of you
are thinking,

560
00:26:17,167 --> 00:26:22,000
"Why did this happen?
Why did this happen?"

561
00:26:24,833 --> 00:26:28,083
And the Bible tells us
in John 6,

562
00:26:28,167 --> 00:26:29,917
that Jesus looked
at his disciples,

563
00:26:30,000 --> 00:26:32,792
this is at the end
of John 6, and he says,

564
00:26:32,833 --> 00:26:36,167
"One of you is a devil."

565
00:26:36,250 --> 00:26:41,083
Jesus knew early on what
was in the heart of Judas.

566
00:26:41,167 --> 00:26:42,833
Also--I'll double check.

567
00:26:42,917 --> 00:26:48,167
I think it's--yeah,
Luke 22:3-6, just prior to this,

568
00:26:48,250 --> 00:26:51,583
the disciples
are together having a meal,

569
00:26:51,667 --> 00:26:56,917
and it says that Judas
opened his heart to Satan.

570
00:26:57,000 --> 00:27:01,292
So, he's an unbeliever
who opens himself up to Satan.

571
00:27:01,333 --> 00:27:03,792
See, we're to be
filled with the Holy Spirit.

572
00:27:03,833 --> 00:27:05,958
And if we're not filled
with the Holy Spirit,

573
00:27:06,000 --> 00:27:09,083
we could leave ourselves open,
if non-Christians,

574
00:27:09,167 --> 00:27:13,083
to be open to unholy spirits.

575
00:27:13,167 --> 00:27:16,167
See, we live in a world where
we sort of discount, or dismiss,

576
00:27:16,250 --> 00:27:20,417
or disregard Satan and demons,
that which is evil,

577
00:27:20,500 --> 00:27:21,667
but the Bible doesn't.

578
00:27:21,750 --> 00:27:23,167
The Bible is exceedingly clear.

579
00:27:23,208 --> 00:27:25,500
There is a Satan,
there are demons.

580
00:27:25,542 --> 00:27:28,167
There is not just evil
in the world;

581
00:27:28,208 --> 00:27:33,042
there is personal evil
behind the evil in the world.

582
00:27:36,250 --> 00:27:38,167
It doesn't matter
how many wars we fight,

583
00:27:38,208 --> 00:27:40,750
how many dollars we spend,
how many elections we hold,

584
00:27:40,833 --> 00:27:42,167
how many prisons we make,

585
00:27:42,250 --> 00:27:44,083
how many locks
we put on our home,

586
00:27:44,167 --> 00:27:46,292
how many bullets
we put in the chamber,

587
00:27:46,333 --> 00:27:47,583
sin and death continue.

588
00:27:47,667 --> 00:27:50,083
Why?

589
00:27:50,167 --> 00:27:53,667
Because Satan and demons
empower the fallen, wicked,

590
00:27:53,750 --> 00:27:57,083
deadly desires
of unrepentant sinners,

591
00:27:57,167 --> 00:27:59,292
and that's exactly
what happened to Judas.

592
00:27:59,333 --> 00:28:01,458
Judas was no victim.

593
00:28:01,500 --> 00:28:05,083
Judas's desire
was to betray Jesus,

594
00:28:05,167 --> 00:28:09,667
and Satan came
and empowered that desire.

595
00:28:09,708 --> 00:28:13,458
This is like a man who is in a
boat and wants to proceed toward

596
00:28:13,500 --> 00:28:16,417
a destination, and he's in
the boat, and he has the map,

597
00:28:16,500 --> 00:28:19,500
and he has the compass,
and he is determined to row hard

598
00:28:19,542 --> 00:28:23,167
and strong toward
his destination.

599
00:28:23,208 --> 00:28:26,292
And it's as if Satan then sends
a stiff breeze into the sail

600
00:28:26,333 --> 00:28:29,792
to help him get there more
quickly, but it doesn't mean

601
00:28:29,833 --> 00:28:32,500
that that man is a victim
being taken in a direction

602
00:28:32,542 --> 00:28:35,083
that he does not
want to go.

603
00:28:35,167 --> 00:28:40,583
Rather, his desires are being
empowered by the enemy of God.

604
00:28:40,667 --> 00:28:42,792
And this is exactly
what Acts 1:25 says.

605
00:28:42,833 --> 00:28:46,792
It says, quote, "Judas turned
aside to go to his own place,"

606
00:28:46,833 --> 00:28:49,250
that Judas knew exactly
what he wanted to do,

607
00:28:49,333 --> 00:28:52,417
and Satan wanted
to help him do it.

608
00:28:52,500 --> 00:28:55,083
And let me say this.

609
00:28:55,167 --> 00:28:58,333
Satan doesn't make us
do things we don't want to do,

610
00:28:58,417 --> 00:29:02,833
but he empowers us to do things
that God doesn't want us to do.

611
00:29:02,917 --> 00:29:05,500
If those are the things
that we want to do,

612
00:29:05,542 --> 00:29:07,667
we are opening ourselves up
to our enemy.

613
00:29:07,708 --> 00:29:09,792
I'm not saying you're going
to lose your salvation

614
00:29:09,833 --> 00:29:10,792
if you're a Christian.

615
00:29:10,833 --> 00:29:13,000
I'm not saying that you're
going to be demon-possessed.

616
00:29:13,042 --> 00:29:16,292
I'm not saying that at all,
but I'm saying

617
00:29:16,333 --> 00:29:21,667
that our sin nature has foolish,
wicked, deadly desires.

618
00:29:21,750 --> 00:29:25,417
The world in which we live
provides evil opportunities,

619
00:29:25,500 --> 00:29:30,750
and Satan and demons will like
to empower those evil desires

620
00:29:30,833 --> 00:29:34,917
to do deadly things
in the world that God made.

621
00:29:35,000 --> 00:29:39,917
And if you're a non-Christian,
you are exceedingly susceptible,

622
00:29:40,000 --> 00:29:43,583
not just to being influenced,
but completely overtaken,

623
00:29:43,667 --> 00:29:46,667
because you have no authority
over Satan and demons,

624
00:29:46,750 --> 00:29:50,667
apart from Jesus Christ.

625
00:29:50,750 --> 00:29:55,250
This is why, friends,
some people do horrific things,

626
00:29:55,333 --> 00:29:59,000
not just in the days of Jesus,
but in our day, as well.

627
00:29:59,042 --> 00:30:00,667
And people ask,
"How could they do that?

628
00:30:00,750 --> 00:30:01,667
What happened?"

629
00:30:01,750 --> 00:30:03,667
Well, they had
an evil desire in them,

630
00:30:03,708 --> 00:30:06,292
an opportunity in the world,
and an enemy which empowered

631
00:30:06,333 --> 00:30:10,750
that evil desire toward
destruction and death.

632
00:30:10,833 --> 00:30:13,458
And that's the story of Judas.

633
00:30:13,500 --> 00:30:16,292
He's no victim.

634
00:30:16,333 --> 00:30:19,792
He's no victim,
but Satan is involved.

635
00:30:19,833 --> 00:30:23,333
And then the Bible
gives him three names.

636
00:30:23,417 --> 00:30:30,083
See, his title was
"Disciple of Jesus Christ,"

637
00:30:30,167 --> 00:30:32,667
"Apostle of Jesus Christ."

638
00:30:32,750 --> 00:30:34,958
What a title.

639
00:30:35,000 --> 00:30:38,667
He went from
disciple and apostle,

640
00:30:38,750 --> 00:30:43,000
to traitor, betrayer,
and son of destruction.

641
00:30:43,042 --> 00:30:45,417
Those are the three titles
that the Bible gives him.

642
00:30:45,500 --> 00:30:47,417
Traitor!

643
00:30:47,500 --> 00:30:49,000
He was loved by Jesus.

644
00:30:49,042 --> 00:30:50,833
He was friends with Jesus.

645
00:30:50,917 --> 00:30:54,583
Or I should say, at least
Jesus was friends with him.

646
00:30:54,667 --> 00:30:57,083
And he was a traitor!

647
00:30:57,167 --> 00:31:01,917
He sold Jesus for a couple
of hundred bucks to his enemies.

648
00:31:02,000 --> 00:31:04,292
And he was a betrayer.

649
00:31:04,333 --> 00:31:07,083
Those disciples had walked
away from their businesses.

650
00:31:07,167 --> 00:31:12,083
They had given their life
to follow Jesus,

651
00:31:12,167 --> 00:31:15,333
and he was a betrayer.

652
00:31:15,417 --> 00:31:21,083
He betrayed Jesus and he
betrayed the other disciples.

653
00:31:21,167 --> 00:31:23,583
And lastly, John 17:12,
Jesus says that he

654
00:31:23,667 --> 00:31:25,250
is the son of destruction.

655
00:31:25,333 --> 00:31:26,917
Some of your
translations will say,

656
00:31:27,000 --> 00:31:31,167
"The one doomed to destruction."

657
00:31:31,208 --> 00:31:34,583
In the providential
understanding of God,

658
00:31:34,667 --> 00:31:39,833
this is fully known by God,
who Jesus--who Judas, rather,

659
00:31:39,917 --> 00:31:45,167
would be
and what he would do.

660
00:31:45,250 --> 00:31:47,000
And Satan empowered
those evil desires,

661
00:31:47,042 --> 00:31:48,958
and God knew
that it would all happen.

662
00:31:49,000 --> 00:31:50,917
And I want to be clear on this.

663
00:31:51,000 --> 00:31:54,958
God didn't make it happen
because God is good, not evil.

664
00:31:55,000 --> 00:31:59,167
But God uses
even evil for good.

665
00:31:59,250 --> 00:32:01,667
And he uses
the most horrific evil,

666
00:32:01,750 --> 00:32:04,667
the betrayal and murder of the
second member of the Trinity,

667
00:32:04,708 --> 00:32:08,417
the Son of God,
the Lord Jesus Christ.

668
00:32:08,500 --> 00:32:11,792
He uses the greatest evil
for the greatest good,

669
00:32:11,833 --> 00:32:16,833
the glory of God
and the salvation of sinners,

670
00:32:16,917 --> 00:32:21,583
and that's how God uses
even the evil of Judas

671
00:32:21,667 --> 00:32:24,458
for his glory and our good,
because God works out all things

672
00:32:24,500 --> 00:32:27,333
for the good of those who love
him and are called according

673
00:32:27,417 --> 00:32:29,500
to his purpose,
because what is meant for evil

674
00:32:29,542 --> 00:32:33,542
is used for good
and the saving of many lives.

675
00:32:39,000 --> 00:32:41,583
"Why?"

676
00:32:41,667 --> 00:32:43,083
Isn't that
the question you have?

677
00:32:43,167 --> 00:32:44,458
So many do.

678
00:32:44,500 --> 00:32:46,958
"Why?"

679
00:32:47,000 --> 00:32:48,083
And here's the truth.

680
00:32:48,167 --> 00:32:50,292
The Bible does not tell us.

681
00:32:50,333 --> 00:32:52,667
Some say, "Well, maybe
he was a zealot,

682
00:32:52,708 --> 00:32:55,583
"and that was a political party,
and they wanted Jesus

683
00:32:55,667 --> 00:32:57,667
"to be a political ruler
to overthrow the government.

684
00:32:57,750 --> 00:32:59,167
"He kept talking about
the kingdom,

685
00:32:59,250 --> 00:33:01,000
"and when they realized
he didn't actually

686
00:33:01,042 --> 00:33:03,583
"want to be a political king,
as part of their political

687
00:33:03,667 --> 00:33:06,500
party, Judas got disappointed
and murdered him."

688
00:33:06,542 --> 00:33:08,500
I don't know.
It doesn't say.

689
00:33:08,542 --> 00:33:10,750
Others say, "Well, Jesus
became very powerful,

690
00:33:10,833 --> 00:33:13,000
and Judas became
very jealous."

691
00:33:13,042 --> 00:33:16,167
Others say Jesus had disciples
that were closest to him,

692
00:33:16,250 --> 00:33:19,083
and Judas was not one of them,
and so he became bitter

693
00:33:19,167 --> 00:33:21,000
at the position he had
on the team.

694
00:33:21,042 --> 00:33:23,167
Others say he was in it
for the money.

695
00:33:23,250 --> 00:33:26,083
He was a con man,
and as soon as he could tell

696
00:33:26,167 --> 00:33:27,583
that Jesus' life
was about over,

697
00:33:27,667 --> 00:33:29,583
and the money
was about to run out,

698
00:33:29,667 --> 00:33:31,500
and there was
nobody else to rip off,

699
00:33:31,542 --> 00:33:35,250
he just cashed in his final
investment and betrayed Jesus

700
00:33:35,333 --> 00:33:38,167
for the last few bucks,
'cause he was a lover of money.

701
00:33:38,250 --> 00:33:41,167
I don't know.

702
00:33:41,208 --> 00:33:43,667
And I appreciate the fact
that the Bible doesn't exactly

703
00:33:43,750 --> 00:33:45,583
tell us why Judas
did what he did.

704
00:33:45,667 --> 00:33:49,167
The Bible tells us who did it,
where he did it, when he did it,

705
00:33:49,250 --> 00:33:50,292
how he did it.

706
00:33:50,333 --> 00:33:54,083
Doesn't tell us why he did it,
and so it leaves the question

707
00:33:54,167 --> 00:33:59,167
hanging in the air for us to
ask, "Could I do the same?"

708
00:33:59,208 --> 00:34:01,917
I may not understand what
was in the heart of Judas,

709
00:34:02,000 --> 00:34:05,500
but I know what is in my heart,
and you know what is in your

710
00:34:05,542 --> 00:34:10,958
heart, and we need to ask, "How
am I capable of betraying

711
00:34:11,000 --> 00:34:13,917
Jesus and his people,
as Judas was?"

712
00:34:14,000 --> 00:34:17,000
And we cannot look at the story
and say, "He's a bad guy,

713
00:34:17,042 --> 00:34:19,667
I'm a good guy; I'm so glad
I'm not like Judas,"

714
00:34:19,708 --> 00:34:22,250
because that's how we
get into serious trouble.

715
00:34:22,333 --> 00:34:25,292
We lack humility
and sober-mindedness,

716
00:34:25,333 --> 00:34:27,417
and instead we have
pride and arrogance.

717
00:34:27,500 --> 00:34:29,500
And we should,
in the grace of God,

718
00:34:29,542 --> 00:34:32,292
we should avoid that
as much as possible.

719
00:34:32,333 --> 00:34:36,667
And I believe sometimes
the most deadly examples

720
00:34:36,750 --> 00:34:39,167
are some of the most
powerful examples,

721
00:34:39,250 --> 00:34:41,667
and sometimes those
are negative examples,

722
00:34:41,750 --> 00:34:44,292
and Judas serves
as a negative example.

723
00:34:44,333 --> 00:34:47,958
It's God's way of saying,
"You are in danger;

724
00:34:48,000 --> 00:34:54,583
stay close to my Son."

725
00:34:54,667 --> 00:34:58,917
How's it going
for you and Jesus?

726
00:34:59,000 --> 00:35:03,000
It's a sober sermon.

727
00:35:03,042 --> 00:35:08,000
It's a sober Scripture.

728
00:35:08,042 --> 00:35:10,833
One of the most infamous,
arguably, the most infamous man

729
00:35:10,917 --> 00:35:14,083
in the history of the world.

730
00:35:14,167 --> 00:35:20,667
So, I want to close
with eight reflections,

731
00:35:20,750 --> 00:35:23,417
lessons from Judas.

732
00:35:23,500 --> 00:35:26,000
Number one: Sometimes you bear
no responsibility for a person

733
00:35:26,042 --> 00:35:29,000
you love who betrays you
and/or wrecks their life

734
00:35:29,042 --> 00:35:31,167
and shipwrecks their faith.

735
00:35:31,208 --> 00:35:33,792
How many of you know someone,
they have wrecked their life

736
00:35:33,833 --> 00:35:37,417
and shipwrecked their faith?

737
00:35:37,500 --> 00:35:41,292
And some of you feel a sense
of guilt or responsibility.

738
00:35:41,333 --> 00:35:43,583
Now, perhaps you should.

739
00:35:43,667 --> 00:35:44,792
"I didn't love them well.

740
00:35:44,833 --> 00:35:45,792
"I didn't pursue them.

741
00:35:45,833 --> 00:35:47,000
"I didn't help them.

742
00:35:47,042 --> 00:35:50,000
"In fact, I contributed
to the circumstances that led

743
00:35:50,042 --> 00:35:53,958
to their devastating
conclusion."

744
00:35:54,000 --> 00:35:55,667
And if so, own it to God.

745
00:35:55,708 --> 00:35:56,750
Own it with them.

746
00:35:56,833 --> 00:35:57,917
Apologize.

747
00:35:58,000 --> 00:36:01,667
Try and make right and make
amends in the grace of God.

748
00:36:01,750 --> 00:36:05,583
But sometimes
it's not your fault.

749
00:36:05,667 --> 00:36:08,333
There's nothing else
you could've done.

750
00:36:08,417 --> 00:36:12,917
They were determined
to self-destruct.

751
00:36:13,000 --> 00:36:16,167
In this occasion,
Judas wrecks his life

752
00:36:16,250 --> 00:36:20,417
and shipwrecks his faith,
and none of us can stand back

753
00:36:20,500 --> 00:36:25,667
and try and pin any modicum
of responsibility on Jesus.

754
00:36:25,750 --> 00:36:28,083
You can't say, "Well,
if Jesus was a better friend."

755
00:36:28,167 --> 00:36:30,833
He's God, the perfect friend.

756
00:36:30,917 --> 00:36:34,292
"Well, if Judas just
had better community."

757
00:36:34,333 --> 00:36:37,000
Look at his community group!

758
00:36:37,042 --> 00:36:41,417
It's God and 11 disciples!

759
00:36:41,500 --> 00:36:42,583
Right?

760
00:36:42,667 --> 00:36:43,583
You have a problem?

761
00:36:43,667 --> 00:36:45,500
Well, you could talk
to Peter or John.

762
00:36:45,542 --> 00:36:47,167
Hey, pick your favorite
New Testament author

763
00:36:47,250 --> 00:36:49,500
and chat with him
in your Community Group.

764
00:36:49,542 --> 00:36:54,333
He's not lacking in opportunity
for counsel and care!

765
00:36:54,417 --> 00:36:55,917
You can't look
at his situation.

766
00:36:56,000 --> 00:36:58,500
But, see, here's the truth.

767
00:36:58,542 --> 00:37:02,917
We live in a culture where
it is profitable to be a victim.

768
00:37:03,000 --> 00:37:04,583
If you can prove
you're a victim,

769
00:37:04,667 --> 00:37:08,458
then you can take your life and
you can push the responsibility

770
00:37:08,500 --> 00:37:12,083
for whatever failures,
and flaws, and faults you have

771
00:37:12,167 --> 00:37:15,750
on someone else,
and it's their fault,

772
00:37:15,833 --> 00:37:17,833
and you're abdicated
of responsibility,

773
00:37:17,917 --> 00:37:21,833
and you may even get
some money for it.

774
00:37:21,917 --> 00:37:23,083
So, we blame our parents.

775
00:37:23,167 --> 00:37:24,083
We blame our genetics.

776
00:37:24,167 --> 00:37:25,667
We blame the culture.

777
00:37:25,750 --> 00:37:26,792
We blame the enemy.

778
00:37:26,833 --> 00:37:30,792
I mean, it's the blame game.

779
00:37:30,833 --> 00:37:33,500
I mean, even today, you know,
you never see protests

780
00:37:33,542 --> 00:37:35,458
where people stand up
with a sign saying,

781
00:37:35,500 --> 00:37:40,750
"It's my fault.
I'm sorry."

782
00:37:40,833 --> 00:37:46,917
It's always
somebody else's fault.

783
00:37:47,000 --> 00:37:49,500
You're responsible
for your own life.

784
00:37:49,542 --> 00:37:51,500
There may be people
and circumstances that have

785
00:37:51,542 --> 00:37:54,583
contributed to making
your life more difficult,

786
00:37:54,667 --> 00:37:59,083
and I don't want to
dismiss those or diminish those,

787
00:37:59,167 --> 00:38:03,583
but Judas has nobody
to blame but Judas,

788
00:38:03,667 --> 00:38:08,167
and perhaps you have nobody
to blame but you.

789
00:38:08,250 --> 00:38:10,958
And if you've done it to
yourself, you're not a victim.

790
00:38:11,000 --> 00:38:12,833
You're a fool.

791
00:38:12,917 --> 00:38:14,792
And I tell you that in love.

792
00:38:14,833 --> 00:38:16,500
But Judas is not a victim.

793
00:38:16,542 --> 00:38:19,958
He's a fool.

794
00:38:20,000 --> 00:38:23,667
Number two: Sitting under good
Bible teaching is not enough;

795
00:38:23,750 --> 00:38:25,667
you have to believe it.

796
00:38:25,750 --> 00:38:30,917
See, sometimes what happens
is a person who seems to be

797
00:38:31,000 --> 00:38:35,917
a Christian, or maybe they even
seem to be a ministry leader,

798
00:38:36,000 --> 00:38:37,792
they wreck their life
and shipwreck their faith,

799
00:38:37,833 --> 00:38:40,417
and everybody wants
to blame the senior leader.

800
00:38:40,500 --> 00:38:42,792
"Oh, well, obviously, that
church doesn't do a good job."

801
00:38:42,833 --> 00:38:44,583
And I hear this
about other churches,

802
00:38:44,667 --> 00:38:46,500
and I'm sure they
say it about ours.

803
00:38:46,542 --> 00:38:48,458
"Oh, so-and-so did this,
or so-and-so did that.

804
00:38:48,500 --> 00:38:50,417
"Well, that's because
they go to that church.

805
00:38:50,500 --> 00:38:51,417
You know that church."

806
00:38:51,500 --> 00:38:52,833
"No, actually,
I know that pastor,

807
00:38:52,917 --> 00:38:54,792
"and they love Jesus,
and they're really nice,

808
00:38:54,833 --> 00:38:56,000
"and they do teach the Bible.

809
00:38:56,042 --> 00:38:57,917
"And we don't agree
with them on everything,

810
00:38:58,000 --> 00:38:59,583
"but it's not the teaching.

811
00:38:59,667 --> 00:39:02,667
It's the believing
on the part of the hearer,

812
00:39:02,750 --> 00:39:06,917
not the proclamation on
the part of the instructor."

813
00:39:07,000 --> 00:39:09,083
But, see, sometimes people
like to blame the teacher.

814
00:39:09,167 --> 00:39:10,458
Oh, yeah.

815
00:39:10,500 --> 00:39:12,833
And the truth is people are
products of their instruction,

816
00:39:12,917 --> 00:39:17,792
but in this instance, we can't
look at it and say, "Poor Judas.

817
00:39:17,833 --> 00:39:21,583
"You know, he just didn't have
a lot of theological formation

818
00:39:21,667 --> 00:39:22,583
"and education.

819
00:39:22,667 --> 00:39:24,500
"He didn't get a lot
of Bible teaching.

820
00:39:24,542 --> 00:39:29,833
He sat under, you know,
not the best instruction."

821
00:39:29,917 --> 00:39:32,083
Right?

822
00:39:32,167 --> 00:39:36,417
Three years, he went to
the seminary of Jesus Christ.

823
00:39:36,500 --> 00:39:39,083
There's only 12 in the class!

824
00:39:39,167 --> 00:39:41,292
[congregation laughing]

825
00:39:41,333 --> 00:39:42,667
Right?

826
00:39:42,708 --> 00:39:46,583
He's walking around with
the breathing, breakfast-eating

827
00:39:46,667 --> 00:39:51,417
Word of God, right?

828
00:39:51,500 --> 00:39:54,167
I mean, there are days when
Jesus is like, "All right,

829
00:39:54,250 --> 00:39:56,792
"turn to Daniel,
and we'll talk about the day

830
00:39:56,833 --> 00:39:58,292
I showed up in a furnace."

831
00:39:58,333 --> 00:40:03,333
I mean, that's a really
amazing Bible study!

832
00:40:03,417 --> 00:40:07,167
Right?

833
00:40:07,250 --> 00:40:13,792
"Tell you boys about Daniel,
because I was there."

834
00:40:13,833 --> 00:40:20,083
He has complete access
to all the biblical teaching

835
00:40:20,167 --> 00:40:23,292
that he needs to live
a life of godliness.

836
00:40:23,333 --> 00:40:24,667
And you know what?

837
00:40:24,708 --> 00:40:27,333
So do we.

838
00:40:27,417 --> 00:40:30,750
I mean, right now, you could log
on to the Internet and download

839
00:40:30,833 --> 00:40:33,917
amazing world-class
Bible teachers for free,

840
00:40:34,000 --> 00:40:37,250
more than you could possibly
ever listen to.

841
00:40:37,333 --> 00:40:38,292
You can go online.

842
00:40:38,333 --> 00:40:42,792
You can find Bible study tools
and resources for free,

843
00:40:42,833 --> 00:40:46,583
the kinds of opportunities
that the world has never had.

844
00:40:46,667 --> 00:40:50,000
You could buy books and
commentaries and concordances

845
00:40:50,042 --> 00:40:51,083
and software.

846
00:40:51,167 --> 00:40:52,917
You can go to
conferences and seminars.

847
00:40:53,000 --> 00:40:54,583
Even if you can't afford
the Internet,

848
00:40:54,667 --> 00:40:58,667
you can turn on the radio,
and it's there for free.

849
00:40:58,750 --> 00:40:59,833
You can come to church.

850
00:41:00,000 --> 00:41:00,958
It costs nothing.

851
00:41:01,000 --> 00:41:02,667
We go through
books of the Bible.

852
00:41:02,708 --> 00:41:03,667
You could take classes.

853
00:41:03,708 --> 00:41:05,417
You can go to Community Group.

854
00:41:05,500 --> 00:41:07,458
You can be in
a Redemption Group.

855
00:41:07,500 --> 00:41:09,917
You can understand
counseling in community.

856
00:41:10,000 --> 00:41:12,583
If you want, we've got
master's level program

857
00:41:12,667 --> 00:41:13,792
called, "Re:Train."

858
00:41:13,833 --> 00:41:16,333
It's all there!

859
00:41:16,417 --> 00:41:22,167
It's like somebody starving
to death at the grocery store.

860
00:41:22,208 --> 00:41:25,667
That's a decision you made.

861
00:41:29,167 --> 00:41:31,000
Sitting under good
Bible teaching isn't enough.

862
00:41:31,042 --> 00:41:35,583
And my hope,
my prayer is to increasingly

863
00:41:35,667 --> 00:41:38,167
be a better Bible teacher.

864
00:41:38,250 --> 00:41:39,417
Okay?

865
00:41:39,500 --> 00:41:41,083
I really love
teaching the Bible.

866
00:41:41,167 --> 00:41:42,583
I've been
doing this 15 years.

867
00:41:42,667 --> 00:41:44,083
I love Mars Hill Church.

868
00:41:44,167 --> 00:41:48,167
I want to die a long time
from now as a pastor

869
00:41:48,208 --> 00:41:49,167
at Mars Hill Church.

870
00:41:49,250 --> 00:41:50,292
Okay?

871
00:41:50,333 --> 00:41:51,792
I love teaching
the Bible here.

872
00:41:51,833 --> 00:41:53,000
This is a great church.

873
00:41:53,042 --> 00:41:55,917
I have so much freedom
to teach the Bible.

874
00:41:56,000 --> 00:41:57,583
They don't put time
restrictions on me.

875
00:41:57,667 --> 00:41:59,292
I don't know
if you've noticed that.

876
00:41:59,333 --> 00:42:00,583
[congregation laughing]

877
00:42:00,667 --> 00:42:01,792
I mean, like,
it's amazing.

878
00:42:01,833 --> 00:42:04,417
I want to thank you
for hanging in there.

879
00:42:04,500 --> 00:42:06,583
I did a conference recently
in Atlanta called, "Catalyst,"

880
00:42:06,667 --> 00:42:07,583
and it was great.

881
00:42:07,667 --> 00:42:09,250
I love it,
and they were awesome.

882
00:42:09,333 --> 00:42:12,167
And before I got up, they were,
like, "You've got 35 minutes."

883
00:42:12,208 --> 00:42:13,833
It's like, "All right,
great, thank you.

884
00:42:13,917 --> 00:42:16,500
"I appreciate 1 minute,
but at Mars Hill we call that

885
00:42:16,542 --> 00:42:17,500
an introduction, 35 minutes."

886
00:42:17,542 --> 00:42:18,583
Right?

887
00:42:18,667 --> 00:42:21,167
Like, it was great, but you
guys will--and I know pastors,

888
00:42:21,250 --> 00:42:24,083
and they'll tell me, "How do
you get people to stay there?"

889
00:42:24,167 --> 00:42:25,583
I say, "What do you mean?"

890
00:42:25,667 --> 00:42:28,167
They say, "Well, if I talk
over 25 or 30 minutes,

891
00:42:28,250 --> 00:42:29,917
people literally get up
and start leaving."

892
00:42:30,000 --> 00:42:31,833
I say, "People start
getting up and leaving,

893
00:42:31,917 --> 00:42:33,583
"but it's not because
of the time,

894
00:42:33,667 --> 00:42:35,500
"it's because of the content,
when I'm preaching.

895
00:42:35,542 --> 00:42:36,958
"They don't like
what they heard.

896
00:42:37,000 --> 00:42:39,583
"But most people hang in there,
and they'll hang in there

897
00:42:39,667 --> 00:42:40,583
for an hour plus."

898
00:42:40,667 --> 00:42:42,292
I want to thank you for that.

899
00:42:42,333 --> 00:42:44,958
I want to thank you for being
a church that says,

900
00:42:45,000 --> 00:42:46,000
"We love the Bible.

901
00:42:46,042 --> 00:42:47,250
"Help us learn the Bible.

902
00:42:47,333 --> 00:42:48,417
Teach the Bible."

903
00:42:48,500 --> 00:42:49,833
I mean, we're at "Luke 94."

904
00:42:49,917 --> 00:42:54,417
We've grown by
a few thousand people in Luke.

905
00:42:54,500 --> 00:42:58,167
All right, no gimmicks,
no tricks, Bible teaching,

906
00:42:58,250 --> 00:43:01,500
and the people of God
in Community Groups.

907
00:43:01,542 --> 00:43:08,083
But sitting under Bible teaching
can give the impression

908
00:43:08,167 --> 00:43:11,750
that you are a Christian
and are growing spiritually.

909
00:43:11,833 --> 00:43:14,292
Jesus' brother, James,
says it this way in his book,

910
00:43:14,333 --> 00:43:15,667
bearing his name.

911
00:43:15,708 --> 00:43:18,792
"Do not merely listen
to the Word and," what?

912
00:43:18,833 --> 00:43:21,292
"Deceive yourselves.

913
00:43:21,333 --> 00:43:24,792
Do what it says."

914
00:43:24,833 --> 00:43:29,917
See, you need to hear the Word
of God and obey the Word of God;

915
00:43:30,000 --> 00:43:32,000
otherwise, you're
prone to deception.

916
00:43:32,042 --> 00:43:33,083
"I'm very knowledgeable.

917
00:43:33,167 --> 00:43:34,417
I'm very spiritually mature."

918
00:43:34,500 --> 00:43:37,167
Are you obeying?

919
00:43:37,250 --> 00:43:38,667
Are you believing
what you're told?

920
00:43:38,750 --> 00:43:42,667
So, you know, I tell you all the
time, "This is the Word of God.

921
00:43:42,750 --> 00:43:44,167
"Jesus is the Son of God.

922
00:43:44,208 --> 00:43:45,333
"He is God among us.

923
00:43:45,417 --> 00:43:46,333
"He lived without sin.

924
00:43:46,417 --> 00:43:51,083
"He died on a cross,
in our place, for our sins.

925
00:43:51,167 --> 00:43:52,292
"He was buried.

926
00:43:52,333 --> 00:43:55,833
"Three days later
he rose from death.

927
00:43:55,917 --> 00:43:57,083
"He is ascended on high.

928
00:43:57,167 --> 00:44:00,292
"He is coming again to
judge the living and the dead.

929
00:44:00,333 --> 00:44:01,292
"He is Lord.

930
00:44:01,333 --> 00:44:02,292
"He is King.

931
00:44:02,333 --> 00:44:03,333
"He is God.

932
00:44:03,417 --> 00:44:04,917
"He is Christ.

933
00:44:05,000 --> 00:44:05,917
"He is friend.

934
00:44:06,000 --> 00:44:06,958
"He is Savior.

935
00:44:07,000 --> 00:44:09,000
He is all!"

936
00:44:09,042 --> 00:44:13,000
But you have to believe that.

937
00:44:13,042 --> 00:44:16,458
Do you believe that?

938
00:44:16,500 --> 00:44:20,000
See, I really want
you to believe that.

939
00:44:20,042 --> 00:44:24,583
See, Judas heard that,
but he didn't believe that.

940
00:44:24,667 --> 00:44:28,500
Jesus gave him
all the information,

941
00:44:28,542 --> 00:44:31,792
and Judas didn't
respond with faith.

942
00:44:31,833 --> 00:44:35,500
He didn't trust a word of it.

943
00:44:35,542 --> 00:44:40,167
Sitting under the best Bible
teaching has the potential

944
00:44:40,250 --> 00:44:45,792
of merely increasing
your self-deception.

945
00:44:45,833 --> 00:44:50,917
It also increases
the opportunity of experiencing

946
00:44:51,000 --> 00:44:54,958
sanctification,
growing in grace.

947
00:44:55,000 --> 00:44:57,583
And whether it become
self-deception or sanctification

948
00:44:57,667 --> 00:45:01,083
is contingent upon
you believing and obeying

949
00:45:01,167 --> 00:45:04,167
what the Bible
actually teaches.

950
00:45:04,250 --> 00:45:06,167
And I'm not saying
that I'm always right,

951
00:45:06,250 --> 00:45:09,417
and I never get it wrong.
And I want to do my best.

952
00:45:09,500 --> 00:45:11,792
So, even take what I say,
like the Bereans did,

953
00:45:11,833 --> 00:45:13,000
take it to the Bible.

954
00:45:13,042 --> 00:45:15,417
Check it and make sure
it's what the Bible teaches.

955
00:45:15,500 --> 00:45:18,500
And if I'm wrong, help me to
repent and do a better job,

956
00:45:18,542 --> 00:45:21,917
because at the end of the day,
we want the truth to be told,

957
00:45:22,000 --> 00:45:25,083
we want Jesus to be loved,
and we want people to be served.

958
00:45:25,167 --> 00:45:27,167
Number three: Being in
community with Jesus' people

959
00:45:27,250 --> 00:45:29,667
is not enough;
you have to be one of them.

960
00:45:29,708 --> 00:45:30,667
We're glad you're here.

961
00:45:30,708 --> 00:45:32,583
We hope you get
in a Community Group.

962
00:45:32,667 --> 00:45:34,583
We hope you get connected
to God's people.

963
00:45:34,667 --> 00:45:36,500
You need to be connected
to God's people,

964
00:45:36,542 --> 00:45:38,833
but first you've got
to be connected to God,

965
00:45:38,917 --> 00:45:42,833
or at least, at some point,
you need to be connected to God.

966
00:45:45,917 --> 00:45:49,000
Again, look
at Judas's Community Group!

967
00:45:49,042 --> 00:45:51,667
I mean, what an amazing--that's
a Community Group, right?

968
00:45:51,750 --> 00:45:57,583
This is the first Community
Group in the early church.

969
00:45:57,667 --> 00:46:02,833
Here's Judas with John:
1, 2, 3 John;

970
00:46:02,917 --> 00:46:05,833
the Gospel of John;
Revelation;

971
00:46:05,917 --> 00:46:09,667
pretty impressive resume,
wrote books of the Bible.

972
00:46:09,750 --> 00:46:12,333
He's in that Community Group.

973
00:46:12,417 --> 00:46:16,167
Peter: leader of the disciples;
1 and 2 Peter;

974
00:46:16,250 --> 00:46:18,458
he wrote books of the Bible.

975
00:46:18,500 --> 00:46:21,792
That's who's in his
Community Group!

976
00:46:21,833 --> 00:46:28,500
That's amazing,
but that's not enough.

977
00:46:28,542 --> 00:46:29,667
You can be in community.

978
00:46:29,750 --> 00:46:32,583
You can have
Christian family, amazing!

979
00:46:32,667 --> 00:46:34,583
You could go
to Christian school,

980
00:46:34,667 --> 00:46:36,292
maybe amazing, maybe not.

981
00:46:36,333 --> 00:46:39,333
You could be in
a dynamic youth ministry.

982
00:46:39,417 --> 00:46:43,250
You could go on an amazing
retreat, or a missions trip,

983
00:46:43,333 --> 00:46:44,583
or a conference.

984
00:46:44,667 --> 00:46:47,500
You could go to
a great church like Mars Hill.

985
00:46:47,542 --> 00:46:50,167
You could be part
of what God is doing.

986
00:46:50,250 --> 00:46:51,917
You could know
the people of God.

987
00:46:52,000 --> 00:46:53,583
You could see
the presence of God.

988
00:46:53,667 --> 00:46:55,292
You could experience
the work of God,

989
00:46:55,333 --> 00:46:59,292
and not be a child of God,
because you don't

990
00:46:59,333 --> 00:47:03,917
believe in Jesus.

991
00:47:04,000 --> 00:47:05,792
And sometimes people think,
"Well, I'm fine

992
00:47:05,833 --> 00:47:07,292
because my family
loves the Lord,"

993
00:47:07,333 --> 00:47:09,458
or "I'm fine because
my church loves the Lord,"

994
00:47:09,500 --> 00:47:11,583
or "I'm fine because
my school loves the Lord,"

995
00:47:11,667 --> 00:47:13,792
or "I'm fine because
my friends love the Lord."

996
00:47:13,833 --> 00:47:15,792
Do you love the Lord?

997
00:47:15,833 --> 00:47:18,417
Do you love Jesus?

998
00:47:18,500 --> 00:47:20,083
Judas didn't.

999
00:47:20,167 --> 00:47:21,917
You say, "I know Jesus."

1000
00:47:22,000 --> 00:47:24,792
Do you love him?

1001
00:47:24,833 --> 00:47:29,292
See, Judas knew Jesus,
didn't love him.

1002
00:47:29,333 --> 00:47:32,792
You can know Jesus
and not love him.

1003
00:47:32,833 --> 00:47:35,083
Knowledge is information,
but love is what leads

1004
00:47:35,167 --> 00:47:39,083
to the transformation.

1005
00:47:39,167 --> 00:47:41,000
Number four: Leading
a ministry is not enough;

1006
00:47:41,042 --> 00:47:44,917
you have to love Jesus.

1007
00:47:45,000 --> 00:47:48,417
Right, Judas is in full-time
ministry for 3 years.

1008
00:47:48,500 --> 00:47:50,000
He's part of the staff.

1009
00:47:50,042 --> 00:47:52,917
He's with Jesus!

1010
00:47:53,000 --> 00:47:54,583
It's like Jesus
is the senior pastor,

1011
00:47:54,667 --> 00:47:57,958
and here's all
his associate pastors,

1012
00:47:58,000 --> 00:48:02,917
and this is his top twelve,
and there's others beyond that.

1013
00:48:03,000 --> 00:48:06,583
You can be in ministry
and go to hell.

1014
00:48:06,667 --> 00:48:10,500
You can be in ministry
and be an enemy of God.

1015
00:48:10,542 --> 00:48:16,167
For me, this is like
a kick to the soul.

1016
00:48:16,250 --> 00:48:17,917
When I was
a brand-new Christian,

1017
00:48:18,000 --> 00:48:20,250
I had this strange experience
at a conference.

1018
00:48:20,333 --> 00:48:21,458
It was a mainline denomination,

1019
00:48:21,500 --> 00:48:23,417
and they brought me in to
their national convention

1020
00:48:23,500 --> 00:48:25,792
to teach a seminar
on how to reach young people.

1021
00:48:25,833 --> 00:48:27,667
This was when I was in my 20's.

1022
00:48:27,750 --> 00:48:29,417
I had no right to be there.

1023
00:48:29,500 --> 00:48:32,792
I had no idea what I was doing,
but I got up to teach,

1024
00:48:32,833 --> 00:48:35,792
and they wanted me to talk about
how to reach young people,

1025
00:48:35,833 --> 00:48:37,583
and so I started
with Romans 1,

1026
00:48:37,667 --> 00:48:40,083
that, "The gospel,
this good news about Jesus,

1027
00:48:40,167 --> 00:48:45,500
it's the power of God to the
salvation of all who believe!"

1028
00:48:45,542 --> 00:48:47,250
And I said,
"You know, young people,

1029
00:48:47,333 --> 00:48:50,458
"they don't really get excited
about religion and tradition

1030
00:48:50,500 --> 00:48:54,833
"and rules, but they'll get
pretty fired up about Jesus.

1031
00:48:54,917 --> 00:48:57,250
So, people need to preach
Jesus, and believe in Jesus."

1032
00:48:57,333 --> 00:48:59,167
And I had a pastor
raise his hand.

1033
00:48:59,250 --> 00:49:00,667
And he was an honest guy.

1034
00:49:00,750 --> 00:49:03,333
It was a room of maybe
a couple of hundred people,

1035
00:49:03,417 --> 00:49:05,500
and he said, "What if you
don't believe that?"

1036
00:49:05,542 --> 00:49:06,792
I was like, "Believe what?"

1037
00:49:06,833 --> 00:49:08,792
He said, "Well, that
Jesus died and rose."

1038
00:49:08,833 --> 00:49:10,417
"What?"

1039
00:49:10,500 --> 00:49:11,917
[congregation laughing]

1040
00:49:12,000 --> 00:49:13,333
I was a brand-new Christian.

1041
00:49:13,417 --> 00:49:14,792
I was a brand-new pastor.

1042
00:49:14,833 --> 00:49:17,583
I didn't know there was
a possibility of a pastor

1043
00:49:17,667 --> 00:49:19,083
who didn't believe
in the resurrection.

1044
00:49:19,167 --> 00:49:23,167
I said--and I'm not the best
at filtering my own thoughts,

1045
00:49:23,250 --> 00:49:26,583
you know, and I said, "Well,
you're not a Christian, man.

1046
00:49:26,667 --> 00:49:28,833
You're probably going
to hell and stuff, so--"

1047
00:49:28,917 --> 00:49:31,083
[congregation laughing]

1048
00:49:31,167 --> 00:49:33,583
And I was like, "Ah,
I can't get that toothpaste

1049
00:49:33,667 --> 00:49:34,583
"back in the tube.

1050
00:49:34,667 --> 00:49:37,000
Like, that's--that's out."

1051
00:49:37,042 --> 00:49:39,917
[congregation laughing]

1052
00:49:40,000 --> 00:49:41,792
And then I looked
at the people.

1053
00:49:41,833 --> 00:49:45,333
I was like, "Do some of you guys
not believe Jesus is alive?"

1054
00:49:45,417 --> 00:49:47,167
And some of them didn't.

1055
00:49:47,208 --> 00:49:50,292
"Oh, well, then I'm not going
to tell you how to get young

1056
00:49:50,333 --> 00:49:53,958
"people, because I don't want
them to go where you're going.

1057
00:49:54,000 --> 00:49:56,000
Instead, let's--"
And I started doing evangelism

1058
00:49:56,042 --> 00:49:57,667
with the pastors.

1059
00:49:57,750 --> 00:49:59,167
[congregation laughing]

1060
00:49:59,208 --> 00:50:01,458
Because leading
a ministry is not enough;

1061
00:50:01,500 --> 00:50:03,583
you have to love Jesus.

1062
00:50:03,667 --> 00:50:06,500
And some of you say, "Well, I've
had bad experiences at church

1063
00:50:06,542 --> 00:50:07,500
and crazy stuff."

1064
00:50:07,542 --> 00:50:08,500
Do you know what?

1065
00:50:08,542 --> 00:50:10,417
I don't know,
I don't judge, Jesus does,

1066
00:50:10,500 --> 00:50:12,333
but maybe some of
the leaders weren't Christians,

1067
00:50:12,417 --> 00:50:13,583
and that was the problem.

1068
00:50:13,667 --> 00:50:16,167
I had this early on
with a leader in Mars Hill.

1069
00:50:16,250 --> 00:50:18,458
He came from another church,
and he'd led there,

1070
00:50:18,500 --> 00:50:20,417
and he'd done well,
and he showed up,

1071
00:50:20,500 --> 00:50:22,583
and he had habitual
sexual sin in his life,

1072
00:50:22,667 --> 00:50:24,083
and I finally
met with him.

1073
00:50:24,167 --> 00:50:26,083
I'm like, "Buddy,
look, we love you, man.

1074
00:50:26,167 --> 00:50:27,083
"I don't understand.

1075
00:50:27,167 --> 00:50:28,083
What's going on?"

1076
00:50:28,167 --> 00:50:29,583
I said,
"Are you a Christian?"

1077
00:50:29,667 --> 00:50:31,000
He said,
"Yeah, I'm a Christian."

1078
00:50:31,042 --> 00:50:32,958
He was kind of
offended that I asked.

1079
00:50:33,000 --> 00:50:35,333
I said, "Well, how do you
know you're a Christian?"

1080
00:50:35,417 --> 00:50:37,750
He said, "Well, I've been
serving the Lord for years,

1081
00:50:37,833 --> 00:50:41,333
"and I did this, and I did that,
and I have been on the stage

1082
00:50:41,417 --> 00:50:43,500
at this conference,
and I worked at this church."

1083
00:50:43,542 --> 00:50:45,667
I said, "No, you're talking
about you, not Jesus;

1084
00:50:45,750 --> 00:50:47,417
"what you've done,
not what he's done.

1085
00:50:47,500 --> 00:50:50,167
That's not how you know
you're a Christian."

1086
00:50:50,250 --> 00:50:54,083
And, in the grace of God, he was
humble, and he said, "Oh."

1087
00:50:54,167 --> 00:50:55,083
And so we talked.

1088
00:50:55,167 --> 00:50:57,583
He really didn't know
Jesus as God and Savior.

1089
00:50:57,667 --> 00:50:59,792
And he did give his life
to the Lord,

1090
00:50:59,833 --> 00:51:01,792
and he has had
a radical life change,

1091
00:51:01,833 --> 00:51:03,500
and his whole
life course has changed.

1092
00:51:03,542 --> 00:51:05,667
He's doing great,
and I'm really proud of him,

1093
00:51:05,750 --> 00:51:09,667
and he is serving the Lord,
but you can be in ministry

1094
00:51:09,750 --> 00:51:11,167
and be an enemy of God.

1095
00:51:11,208 --> 00:51:16,583
Judas was.

1096
00:51:16,667 --> 00:51:19,000
Number five: An enemy of Jesus
parading as a minister

1097
00:51:19,042 --> 00:51:23,083
can lead people astray
for thousands of years.

1098
00:51:23,167 --> 00:51:25,458
Can you imagine how confusing
it was for the people

1099
00:51:25,500 --> 00:51:27,167
who were following
the ministry of Jesus,

1100
00:51:27,250 --> 00:51:29,167
but they had a particular
affinity toward Judas?

1101
00:51:29,250 --> 00:51:30,667
Because, see,
that's what happens, right?

1102
00:51:30,750 --> 00:51:32,292
Like, we've got
Mars Hill Church,

1103
00:51:32,333 --> 00:51:34,000
and we've got
all of our churches,

1104
00:51:34,042 --> 00:51:35,167
and we've got various leaders,

1105
00:51:35,250 --> 00:51:36,917
and then imagine
we're all going together,

1106
00:51:37,000 --> 00:51:38,917
and then one person
really gets off track,

1107
00:51:39,000 --> 00:51:41,917
and the people who are with
us, but they have a particular

1108
00:51:42,000 --> 00:51:43,833
affinity for that leader,
all of a sudden,

1109
00:51:43,917 --> 00:51:45,500
they're confused, like,
"Where's he going?

1110
00:51:45,542 --> 00:51:46,500
"What's he doing?

1111
00:51:46,542 --> 00:51:47,500
Who's right, who's wrong?"

1112
00:51:47,542 --> 00:51:49,167
There's a conflict,
and tension, and drama,

1113
00:51:49,250 --> 00:51:51,250
and, "Oh, no,
which side are we on,

1114
00:51:51,333 --> 00:51:53,333
and who's responsible for him?"

1115
00:51:53,417 --> 00:51:54,417
And they get defensive.

1116
00:51:54,500 --> 00:51:57,083
I mean, this is a very
divisive moment

1117
00:51:57,167 --> 00:52:00,792
for the ministry of Jesus.

1118
00:52:00,833 --> 00:52:03,250
And I'm sure there were some
people who were confused.

1119
00:52:03,333 --> 00:52:07,167
Like, "Wait,
we've been following Judas,

1120
00:52:07,250 --> 00:52:10,583
"and he's been following Jesus,
and now we're following Judas.

1121
00:52:10,667 --> 00:52:12,292
"We don't know
if he's following Jesus.

1122
00:52:12,333 --> 00:52:14,000
Do we keep following
Judas or not?"

1123
00:52:14,042 --> 00:52:15,958
And some people,
even to this day, have.

1124
00:52:16,000 --> 00:52:17,458
It's been a few thousand years,

1125
00:52:17,500 --> 00:52:19,417
and you can
look it up on Amazon.

1126
00:52:19,500 --> 00:52:22,917
Just put in "Judas," and there's
all of these books about Judas.

1127
00:52:23,000 --> 00:52:24,083
"Oh, he's misunderstood.

1128
00:52:24,167 --> 00:52:28,500
"Let's psychoanalyze him.

1129
00:52:28,542 --> 00:52:31,250
"Maybe he was onto something,
and Jesus was the bad guy,

1130
00:52:31,333 --> 00:52:34,083
and Judas was the good guy."

1131
00:52:34,167 --> 00:52:35,083
Wow.

1132
00:52:35,167 --> 00:52:37,958
We even have something
that was kind of a lost gospel.

1133
00:52:38,000 --> 00:52:40,833
It's called the Gospel of Judas,
and it's not in the Bible.

1134
00:52:40,917 --> 00:52:43,667
It was written
long after Judas was dead,

1135
00:52:43,750 --> 00:52:45,458
something called
pseudepigrapha,

1136
00:52:45,500 --> 00:52:48,083
which means "pen name."

1137
00:52:48,167 --> 00:52:52,083
And now "scholars," educated
beyond their intelligence,

1138
00:52:52,167 --> 00:52:55,417
you know, are sort of
looking at it, saying,

1139
00:52:55,500 --> 00:52:56,792
"Well, maybe there's
something here."

1140
00:52:56,833 --> 00:52:59,792
And the story there is that
Jesus and Judas had a deal,

1141
00:52:59,833 --> 00:53:04,167
and Jesus told Judas to murder
him, and Judas obeyed Jesus

1142
00:53:04,250 --> 00:53:07,083
and murdered him, and then Jesus
was going to promote Judas

1143
00:53:07,167 --> 00:53:13,917
to heaven in a primary
position of leadership.

1144
00:53:14,000 --> 00:53:25,667
[congregation laughing]

1145
00:53:25,750 --> 00:53:32,417
That's an interesting
hypothesis...

1146
00:53:32,500 --> 00:53:34,500
for some people.

1147
00:53:34,542 --> 00:53:36,500
It's crazy.

1148
00:53:36,542 --> 00:53:38,083
Some people are
still following Judas,

1149
00:53:38,167 --> 00:53:41,667
trying to make him
into the good guy.

1150
00:53:41,708 --> 00:53:44,667
Number six: Sometimes false
teachers appear to be credible,

1151
00:53:44,750 --> 00:53:46,333
loving, and generous
to the poor.

1152
00:53:46,417 --> 00:53:50,667
Did Judas appear
to be credible?

1153
00:53:50,750 --> 00:53:52,917
"So, where did you
go to seminary?"

1154
00:53:53,000 --> 00:53:55,500
"Jesus Christ Seminary."

1155
00:53:55,542 --> 00:53:57,417
"Really?
Who was your professor?"

1156
00:53:57,500 --> 00:54:00,083
"For Old Testament,
I had Jesus Christ.

1157
00:54:00,167 --> 00:54:01,667
"For Prophecy,
I had Jesus Christ.

1158
00:54:01,750 --> 00:54:03,417
"For Preaching,
I had Jesus Christ.

1159
00:54:03,500 --> 00:54:07,667
"For Leadership,
I had Jesus Christ.

1160
00:54:07,750 --> 00:54:09,167
"For Evangelism,
I had Jesus Christ."

1161
00:54:09,250 --> 00:54:10,917
"Well, have you ever
worked in ministry?"

1162
00:54:11,000 --> 00:54:12,833
"Yeah, I did an internship
for 3 years."

1163
00:54:12,917 --> 00:54:13,833
"Oh, really?

1164
00:54:13,917 --> 00:54:14,917
With who?"

1165
00:54:15,000 --> 00:54:16,083
"Jesus Christ."

1166
00:54:16,167 --> 00:54:18,417
"Really?"

1167
00:54:18,500 --> 00:54:19,667
"Yeah, it was pretty fantastic.

1168
00:54:19,708 --> 00:54:22,167
"I saw him raise
people from the dead.

1169
00:54:22,250 --> 00:54:25,917
"One day, a few guys went water
skiing, no boat, no skis."

1170
00:54:26,000 --> 00:54:27,083
[congregation laughing]

1171
00:54:27,167 --> 00:54:28,417
"You should read the resume.

1172
00:54:28,500 --> 00:54:32,500
It's pretty interesting,
that resume I've got."

1173
00:54:32,542 --> 00:54:34,750
He looked credible,
and sometimes false teachers,

1174
00:54:34,833 --> 00:54:37,250
false leaders, they come out
of good seminaries,

1175
00:54:37,333 --> 00:54:38,917
good Bible colleges,
good churches,

1176
00:54:39,000 --> 00:54:41,167
good denominations,
good traditions,

1177
00:54:41,250 --> 00:54:43,917
and they go a bad trajectory.

1178
00:54:44,000 --> 00:54:45,750
Number two, he appeared loving.

1179
00:54:45,833 --> 00:54:48,750
If you had asked,
"Well, Judas, is he a mean guy?

1180
00:54:48,833 --> 00:54:50,167
Is he a bad--?"

1181
00:54:50,250 --> 00:54:51,667
"No, he's a loving guy.

1182
00:54:51,750 --> 00:54:53,917
"The last time I saw him,
he walked up,

1183
00:54:54,000 --> 00:54:56,667
"and he gave Jesus a big kiss,
and they're best friends.

1184
00:54:56,750 --> 00:54:59,833
"To me, it looks like
he's a very loving guy.

1185
00:55:00,000 --> 00:55:02,583
"It looks like he loves Jesus,
and he's generous.

1186
00:55:02,667 --> 00:55:05,333
"Oh, he's so generous, this one
day, people were wasting money,

1187
00:55:05,417 --> 00:55:08,583
and he said, 'No, let's
give it all to the poor!'"

1188
00:55:08,667 --> 00:55:10,750
False teachers appear to be
credible, loving, and generous

1189
00:55:10,833 --> 00:55:16,292
to the poor, and sometimes
it's just another Judas.

1190
00:55:16,333 --> 00:55:18,083
Number seven: You cannot
lose your salvation,

1191
00:55:18,167 --> 00:55:20,667
but you can fake it.

1192
00:55:20,708 --> 00:55:22,583
Judas never
lost his salvation.

1193
00:55:22,667 --> 00:55:24,083
He's the one doomed
for destruction.

1194
00:55:24,167 --> 00:55:26,792
Jesus tells them all the way
back early in the ministry

1195
00:55:26,833 --> 00:55:31,500
in John 6,
"One of you is a devil."

1196
00:55:31,542 --> 00:55:34,667
Judas was stealing money
from Jesus the whole time!

1197
00:55:34,750 --> 00:55:38,958
And see, what sometimes happens
is we think, "Oh, that person

1198
00:55:39,000 --> 00:55:41,333
"was walking with the Lord,
and then they just disappeared,

1199
00:55:41,417 --> 00:55:42,500
or they fell away."

1200
00:55:42,542 --> 00:55:43,583
No, you know what?

1201
00:55:43,667 --> 00:55:47,500
In their heart, they had been
drifting for a long time,

1202
00:55:47,542 --> 00:55:54,167
and then you just see externally
who they are internally.

1203
00:55:54,250 --> 00:55:56,000
Judas's betrayal of Jesus

1204
00:55:56,042 --> 00:55:57,917
was not a change
in his character;

1205
00:55:58,000 --> 00:56:01,083
it was a revelation
of his character.

1206
00:56:01,167 --> 00:56:05,417
He hadn't changed;
he had simply been exposed.

1207
00:56:05,500 --> 00:56:09,583
You cannot lose your salvation,
but you can fake it,

1208
00:56:09,667 --> 00:56:12,583
and Judas faked it.

1209
00:56:12,667 --> 00:56:15,792
Some of you are faking it.

1210
00:56:15,833 --> 00:56:17,250
You've learned
the Christian language,

1211
00:56:17,333 --> 00:56:19,667
you've been around the church,
you know a few believers,

1212
00:56:19,750 --> 00:56:21,583
your parents
love the Lord.

1213
00:56:21,667 --> 00:56:23,667
You can fake it.

1214
00:56:23,708 --> 00:56:26,792
You can fake it, and the way
you know you're faking it

1215
00:56:26,833 --> 00:56:30,917
is you present yourself
as one person in public,

1216
00:56:31,000 --> 00:56:33,833
and you're not that person
in private.

1217
00:56:33,917 --> 00:56:37,958
In public, Judas was associate
pastor to Jesus Christ;

1218
00:56:38,000 --> 00:56:43,292
privately, he's stealing money.

1219
00:56:43,333 --> 00:56:46,083
Who are you privately?

1220
00:56:46,167 --> 00:56:48,083
Who are you really?

1221
00:56:48,167 --> 00:56:52,083
Who are you truly?

1222
00:56:52,167 --> 00:56:56,583
Are you a Christian who
loves Jesus and hates your sin,

1223
00:56:56,667 --> 00:57:01,167
or are you just a Judas
who's faking it?

1224
00:57:01,250 --> 00:57:04,667
Are you faking it so that
your parents will be happy,

1225
00:57:04,750 --> 00:57:07,167
your friends will be happy,
your school will be happy,

1226
00:57:07,208 --> 00:57:10,083
because it benefits you
in some way?

1227
00:57:10,167 --> 00:57:12,500
And number eight:
How your life concludes

1228
00:57:12,542 --> 00:57:15,500
is far more important
than how your life begins.

1229
00:57:15,542 --> 00:57:17,000
Amen?

1230
00:57:17,042 --> 00:57:19,583
It's not the first day
of your wedding and marriage

1231
00:57:19,667 --> 00:57:21,583
that's the most important;
it's the last day

1232
00:57:21,667 --> 00:57:23,083
of your marriage.

1233
00:57:23,167 --> 00:57:25,792
It's not the first day
you get saved and baptized;

1234
00:57:25,833 --> 00:57:29,000
it's the last day
of your life.

1235
00:57:29,042 --> 00:57:32,417
See, we tend to make a big deal
of the start, and we should,

1236
00:57:32,500 --> 00:57:34,833
and we should celebrate
and rejoice.

1237
00:57:34,917 --> 00:57:36,167
People are getting married.

1238
00:57:36,250 --> 00:57:37,833
People are making
professions of faith.

1239
00:57:37,917 --> 00:57:39,292
People are being baptized.

1240
00:57:39,333 --> 00:57:40,500
Praise be to God.

1241
00:57:40,542 --> 00:57:43,250
But the most important day:
the last day.

1242
00:57:43,333 --> 00:57:46,583
Some of you come in here,
and you say, "You know what?

1243
00:57:46,667 --> 00:57:48,000
It's not been great 'til now."

1244
00:57:48,042 --> 00:57:49,292
Praise God you're still alive.

1245
00:57:49,333 --> 00:57:50,417
He loves you.

1246
00:57:50,500 --> 00:57:53,000
This is a word of encouragement
and exhortation and invitation

1247
00:57:53,042 --> 00:57:54,792
to say, "You know what?

1248
00:57:54,833 --> 00:57:57,417
"Judas ran away from Jesus,
and it killed him.

1249
00:57:57,500 --> 00:58:01,083
I'm going to run to Jesus,
so I can live with him."

1250
00:58:01,167 --> 00:58:03,917
And that's God's
invitation to you today.

1251
00:58:04,000 --> 00:58:06,292
And some of you would say,
"Man, it started good,

1252
00:58:06,333 --> 00:58:08,083
but it's not gone well."

1253
00:58:08,167 --> 00:58:09,667
Then do like Peter did:

1254
00:58:09,708 --> 00:58:13,292
get brokenhearted,
run to Jesus and his people,

1255
00:58:13,333 --> 00:58:17,583
receive the grace of God,
and finish well.

1256
00:58:17,667 --> 00:58:19,917
And I believe this
is a prophetic word

1257
00:58:20,000 --> 00:58:24,250
at a significant time in
the history of Mars Hill Church.

1258
00:58:24,333 --> 00:58:27,958
It's like the early years
with Jesus and Judas

1259
00:58:28,000 --> 00:58:29,292
for us right now.

1260
00:58:29,333 --> 00:58:32,917
I mean, God is with us.

1261
00:58:33,000 --> 00:58:35,792
God is with us, Mars Hill.

1262
00:58:35,833 --> 00:58:38,667
We are a miracle.

1263
00:58:38,708 --> 00:58:41,583
We're one of the largest,
fastest-growing churches.

1264
00:58:41,667 --> 00:58:43,500
We're planting
in other states.

1265
00:58:43,542 --> 00:58:45,583
People are getting saved.

1266
00:58:45,667 --> 00:58:47,792
Marriages are coming together.

1267
00:58:47,833 --> 00:58:49,917
Babies are getting born.

1268
00:58:50,000 --> 00:58:52,083
People are being transformed.

1269
00:58:52,167 --> 00:58:56,250
We can't even keep up with all
the grace that God has given us.

1270
00:58:56,333 --> 00:59:00,958
And it's wonderful and
it's amazing and it's sobering,

1271
00:59:01,000 --> 00:59:06,500
because it's about
the last day.

1272
00:59:06,542 --> 00:59:09,167
Had you looked at Judas
early on, you would've said,

1273
00:59:09,208 --> 00:59:15,000
"That guy, what a life,
what an amazing life."

1274
00:59:16,167 --> 00:59:19,083
We're there.

1275
00:59:19,167 --> 00:59:21,792
A guy like Peter,
through humility and repentance,

1276
00:59:21,833 --> 00:59:24,292
his last day's a great day.

1277
00:59:24,333 --> 00:59:26,250
"Crucify me upside down!

1278
00:59:26,333 --> 00:59:28,167
I still love Jesus!

1279
00:59:28,208 --> 00:59:30,417
I'll tell him you said hi."

1280
00:59:30,500 --> 00:59:32,833
That's Peter.

1281
00:59:32,917 --> 00:59:38,250
Judas hangs himself,
and his guts come spilling out,

1282
00:59:38,333 --> 00:59:42,583
and the last day
is a tragic day.

1283
00:59:42,667 --> 00:59:47,583
And I want you, and I want me,
and I want us to be able to say

1284
00:59:47,667 --> 00:59:51,833
like Paul, "I've run my race!

1285
00:59:51,917 --> 00:59:55,792
"I've kept my faith!

1286
00:59:55,833 --> 00:59:58,958
And now I'm ready
for my reward."

1287
00:59:59,000 --> 01:00:01,833
Please pray that for me.

1288
01:00:01,917 --> 01:00:04,167
Please pray that for your
elders, and your deacons,

1289
01:00:04,250 --> 01:00:05,500
and your
Community Group leaders,

1290
01:00:05,542 --> 01:00:07,917
and your
Redemption Group leaders.

1291
01:00:08,000 --> 01:00:10,667
Please pray that for yourself.

1292
01:00:10,708 --> 01:00:13,083
Please pray that
for your family.

1293
01:00:13,167 --> 01:00:16,000
And it all starts with
each of us making a decision

1294
01:00:16,042 --> 01:00:21,917
in the grace of God,
humbly, prayerfully,

1295
01:00:22,000 --> 01:00:25,417
soberly saying,

1296
01:00:25,500 --> 01:00:28,292
"God, give me the grace
to not be a Judas.

1297
01:00:28,333 --> 01:00:30,667
Save me from myself."

1298
01:00:30,750 --> 01:00:34,667
And so, Father,
we ask that right now.

1299
01:00:34,750 --> 01:00:41,083
Lord Jesus, we see
how you received Peter,

1300
01:00:41,167 --> 01:00:45,083
and we see what happened
to Judas when he ran from you,

1301
01:00:45,167 --> 01:00:48,333
rather than to you.

1302
01:00:48,417 --> 01:00:50,833
Holy Spirit,
I pray that, right now,

1303
01:00:50,917 --> 01:00:55,417
those who have been faking it,
that they would come to a real

1304
01:00:55,500 --> 01:01:00,500
saving knowledge of Jesus.

1305
01:01:00,542 --> 01:01:04,083
And God, on this, our birthday,
I thank you for the opportunity

1306
01:01:04,167 --> 01:01:09,167
to preach what is
an awkward birthday sermon,

1307
01:01:09,250 --> 01:01:12,750
but 15 years in,
it feels like the early days

1308
01:01:12,833 --> 01:01:16,292
of Jesus and Judas,
where it's exciting,

1309
01:01:16,333 --> 01:01:18,833
and there's a lot of grace,
and it's amazing,

1310
01:01:18,917 --> 01:01:21,792
and we're so richly blessed.

1311
01:01:21,833 --> 01:01:26,833
And God, for myself and for our
leaders, and for our people,

1312
01:01:26,917 --> 01:01:31,583
we want to humbly, soberly,
aggressively, confidently,

1313
01:01:31,667 --> 01:01:37,792
continually repent of sin,
and stay close to Jesus,

1314
01:01:37,833 --> 01:01:40,583
and finish well,
by the grace of God.

1315
01:01:40,667 --> 01:01:44,083
So, Lord Jesus,
please allow our run to continue

1316
01:01:44,167 --> 01:01:47,583
for 15 more years,
and 15 more years after that,

1317
01:01:47,667 --> 01:01:50,958
and 15 more years after that.

1318
01:01:51,000 --> 01:01:54,333
And, Lord God, I thank you
that I get to teach the Bible

1319
01:01:54,417 --> 01:01:56,417
to the people
of Mars Hill Church.

1320
01:01:56,500 --> 01:01:59,292
I thank you that I've gotten
to do that for 15 years.

1321
01:01:59,333 --> 01:02:02,083
I thank you that
you love these people,

1322
01:02:02,167 --> 01:02:04,667
and I pray that none of them
would end like Judas,

1323
01:02:04,750 --> 01:02:05,792
in Jesus' name.

1324
01:02:05,833 --> 01:02:06,833
Amen.