What Can We Learn from Judas’ Example?

Theology
1

Judas Iscariot walked with Jesus, saw the miracles, and heard the teaching. But despite all of that, he was never truly saved. John 13: 2 says, “the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot… to betray him.” Judas had already opened his heart to sin, and Satan only pushed him further.

That should make us stop and think. Proximity to the truth doesn’t equal ownership of the truth. Judas looked like a disciple, acted like a disciple, but he was not born again. Jesus said of him in Mark 14: 21, “It had been good for that man if he had never been born.” His life warns us not to just go through the motions, but to truly repent and believe. This should concern us as I see many people on forums that say they are Christian but are actually acting just like Judas.

Scripture tells us to examine ourselves to see whether we are in the faith (2 Corinthians 13:5). It’s easy to play the part of a Christian, but only a real change of heart through Christ saves.

Reflecting on Judas’ example, what do you think this teaches us about the difference between outward religion and true faith in Christ?

How can we guard against simply playing the part of a follower of Christ instead of truly knowing Him?

1 Like
2

@bdavidc

This is hitting the core of the matter, right at the level where it truly counts.

Table of Pauline Markers of a Known Christian

Marker Key Scripture Greek Terms / Verbs
Faith in Christ Romans 10:9–10 ὁμολογέω, πιστεύω, σῴζω
Fruit of the Spirit Galatians 5:22–23 ἀγάπη, χαρά, πραΰτης, ἐγκράτεια
Love for others 1 Thess 1:3, 1 Cor 13 ἔργον πίστις, κόπος ἀγάπη, γνωστός
Obedience Romans 6:17–18 ὑπακούω, παραδιδωμί
Confession 2 Cor 4:13 ἐπίστευσα, ἐλάλησα
Perseverance Phil 1:27, 2 Tim 2:12 περιπατέω, ὑπομένω
Community witness 1 Thess 1:6–8 μιμητής, πνεῦμα

In the Pauline epistles, a Christian is known by faith expressed in action, love evidenced in service, obedience to God’s Word, perseverance in trials, confession of Christ, and a Spirit-led life that others can see.

Outward appearance or proximity to teaching alone is never sufficient. This aligns perfectly with Judas’ example: walking with Jesus is not enough; the heart must be transformed.

J.

1 Like
3

Is not Judas just a poster-child for humanity, a person like you and me, who, being left to his own devices, naturally follows the dictates of his own heart – doing “what is right in his own eyes”. And, in so following is heart, he surely will experience all the incumbent feelings and accompanying confidences of one who believes they are acting righteously. I think that the only thing that keeps you and I from applauding Judas is that God intervened, “while we were yet sinners” He interposed His own life to make from a shy quarter-ton of dust (you and I approx, [Ps 103:14]), glorious vessels for His own honor.

Romans 9:10-24

… when Rebecca also had conceived by one man, even by our father Isaac (for the children not yet being born, nor having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works but of Him who calls), it was said to her, “The older shall serve the younger.” As it is written, “Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated.”

What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? Certainly not!
For He says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion.” So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy. For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.” Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens.

You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who has resisted His will?”

But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, “Why have you made me like this?” Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor? What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory, even us whom He called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?

Jesus makes a bold claim, that it is He who personally “keeps” the sheep, and it is He who makes exceptions.

John 17:12

While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name.
Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.

This is an uncomfortable truth.
KP

4

Who is Judas Iscariot?
I am.

Who is Barabbas?
I am — because Christ died in my place while I kept living the same filthy ways.

I’ve read the Bible since I was seven. I’ve studied theology. That makes this even sadder: knowing the Word hasn’t stopped me from sinning. Today the devil whispers, “You are a sinner, you filthy—” What can I say? I can only say: “My Lord has forgiven me.”

A thousand times I’ve promised God I’ll stop. A thousand times I’ve prayed, “Forgive me, Lord, please forgive me.” But how long can this go on? Each morning I wake only because God gives me breath — and I know one day I won’t see the sun again.

Can I be perfect? No. Can I try? Yes — but I fail. If I once drank twenty glasses and now drink one, will God see that effort? If I cursed every minute and now only once a day, will God notice? I’m not perfect, even though I repent. And still the question lingers: How long can this continue?

In a way, I am Judas the betrayer: I betrayed Christ. He forgave me and told me to sin no more, yet I sin again. I grow tired — tired of the cycle. But even in my weakness, I keep returning. I repent, and repent, and repent.

Here’s what I’ve learned: repentance is not about perfection, but about turning back to God. You cannot be perfect, but you can strive for holiness. God does not judge by the world’s standards of success and failure; He looks at the heart and the direction of your walk.

So when the devil hisses, “Your sins define you,” I will answer:
“May the Lord rebuke you. My sins are gone, washed in the blood of Christ.”, make the sign of the Cross, “In the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”

Be Peter, not Judas.

1 Like
5

I can see your heart in what you wrote, and you’re right about some important truths: we all sin and fall short (Romans 3:23), Satan does accuse us (Revelation 12:10), and forgiveness is only in Christ’s blood (1 John 1:7). But I want to point out where your post mixes truth with error, because Scripture alone has to be our guide.

You are not Judas if you are in Christ. Judas was “the son of perdition” (John 17:12) who betrayed Jesus and died in unbelief. Believers are not identified with him, we are called “new creatures” in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17). To say “I am Judas” is to deny what Christ has done to make you His child (John 1:12).

When resisting the devil, Jesus gave us the pattern, He stood on the Word of God (Matthew 4:4,7,10). The Bible never tells us to use rituals like making the sign of the cross. Our authority is in Christ and His Word, not man-made traditions. James 4:7 is plain: “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

You’re right about one thing especially: we must not let sin define us. Our identity is in Christ. Romans 8:1 says, “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.” Be encouraged, you are not Judas. You are either still in sin, or you are in Christ, forgiven and called to holiness. There is no in-between.

1 Like
6

When I wrote “I am Judas,” I didn’t mean it literally, as though I share Judas’ eternal fate. I meant it in the sense of how my sins betray Christ again and again, and that realization breaks me. But I see your point: if I’m in Christ, I shouldn’t identify myself with Judas, because Christ has already made me new (2 Corinthians 5:17). That reminder actually lifts a heavy weight.

Also, thank you for pointing me to James 4:7. You’re right, the Word itself is the sword of the Spirit (Ephesians 6:17), and resisting the devil means clinging to God’s promises, not rituals or traditions. I don’t want to give Satan more credit than he deserves — he’s already defeated.

Most of all, I’m grateful you pointed me back to Romans 8:1. That’s the verse I need tattooed on my heart. There really is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus.

So, I’ll take your words as encouragement: I am not Judas — I am a child of God, forgiven by the blood of Christ.

Be blessed, brother.

1 Like
7

If a man affirms every article of biblical doctrine with his mouth yet lives in unrepentant sin, does his profession still constitute genuine fellowship in Christ, or does his life reveal that he is denying the gospel he claims to uphold?

How do passages like 1 Corinthians 5, where Paul commands the church to remove the immoral brother, weigh against the idea that “doctrinal correctness” alone can safeguard fellowship?

Is it more dangerous to embrace doctrinal error while living a clean outward life, or to affirm true doctrine while living in open rebellion? Which one brings greater dishonor to the cross before the watching world?

At what point does continued immorality, even in one who teaches truth, become the kind of leaven that Paul warns will spread through the whole lump?

Does 2 Thessalonians 3:6, which commands believers to keep away from those who walk disorderly, apply equally to those who affirm orthodox doctrine but refuse to repent of sinful conduct?

How do we reconcile the pastoral patience of Galatians 6:1 in restoring a brother caught in sin with the decisive separation of 1 Corinthians 5:11, “not even to eat with such a one”?

If the cross of Christ purchased not only justification but also sanctification, what does it mean when someone professes the first yet resists the second?

In light of Jesus’ warning in Matthew 7:16–23, do right words without righteous fruit indicate false profession, even if the doctrine sounds impeccable?

How should local churches handle teachers or leaders who are theologically sharp but morally compromised, given Paul’s warnings about reproach and disqualification in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1?

Is the biblical ground for separation primarily doctrinal purity, or is it also holiness of life, since Hebrews 12:14 says without holiness no one will see the Lord?

J.