Knock on the door

Two weeks ago we spoke about being part of the family of God and last week we spoke about ‘the old Redemption story.’ This week, we are going to examine a person who missed both of these concepts … a man named Judas. However, I think we should remember that although we think of him as the ‘most evil person there ever was,’ we forget that Jesus chose Judas to be a disciple. (Read Scripture Above) With this said, we often forget that while Judas was the one who betrayed Jesus, all of the disciples deserted Jesus. Each of these people wanted the same basic outcome … they wanted their Savior to come and rescue them. (Pause) How to describe the difference … it is like this.

Illustration

Suppose I told you that we jumped in the water at California and started swimming for Hawaii . We each have different abilities, we are different ages, we have different levels of conditioning. Some of us might make it off the beach, others to the outer buoys. There might be a few who make it half-way before they have to be rescued. There could even be one that gets to the coast of Hawaii and sees the beachhead … that person swims just to the edge of the shore … then drowns. The one that drowns was just like Judas … he never understood that no matter how far you can go yourself, without accepting Christ in your heart and ‘selling out completely,’ you will drown.

By looking at this man named Judas, we can learn the pitfalls that mankind can fall into. This morning, I would like to reflect on these pitfalls.

The Message

The first pitfall which Judas fell into is that he missed the message. Christ’s message was simple … simply believe in me and you shall be freed from the wages of sin, which is death. As Scripture states in John 3:16 & 17 16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. 17 "For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. These simple, but powerful words are ones which you think everyone would want to hear, but sadly many today turn from the same words. Like Judas, many have a different image of the Messiah and they are not willing to believe that this is the image of God’s Son.

The Mandate

Secondly, Judas missed the mandate … In Mark 12:29 Jesus answered, "The foremost is, 'HEAR, O ISRAEL! THE LORD OUR GOD IS ONE LORD; 30 AND YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND, AND WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH.' 31 "The second is this, 'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.' There is no other commandment greater than these." These words are the words which Jesus gave to the ‘Rich Young Ruler’ who wanted to know what must be done to inherit the kingdom. Unfortunately, scripture says that this young man turned and left not willing to let go of his earthly desires. Scripture states that Judas also missed this message. Whereas Judas knew the words and heard these words daily, he could not let go of his desire for war. The desire for the Messiah on horseback charging the Romans. Judas heard and turned his back; the others took them to heart. Sadly, many today have heard these same words and turn away just as Judas did.

The Moment

Finally, Judas missed the moment. As our passage this morning states, Judas betrayed the Lord. Judas had his chance in life, and he blew it!!! Scripture planning states: Rev 3:20 'Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him.’ Sadly, Judas slammed the door in his face. (Pause) With all of this ‘bad news’ comes one reassuring fact … Jesus gives us chances from day 1 until we die. It is never too late to accept salvation. This is shown in the fact that Jesus gives Judas chance after chance. From the beginning to the Last Supper (where Jesus stated that he already knew who is betrayer was) and even in the garden, Jesus left the door open for Judas. Truthfully, Jesus never shut the door. Judas shut the door on himself when he took his own life without repentance. Redemption can come to us all … all we must do is ask. We must always hold true to these words … Mat 6: 33 "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. If we only believe in our hearts, the door will always be opened. God always knows who is knocking at the door.

As we continue thru Lent, let us hold on to the fact … no the truth of who Jesus Christ is and what he did for each of us.

Mowrystown — If everyone would join with me, we will close this morning by singing and remembering “What a Friend We Have in Jesus” on Page 384.

Buford — If everyone would join with me, we will close this morning by singing and remembering that “Jesus’ Hands Were Kind Hands” on Page 273.