Judas Faked it

Judas Faked it! 

Are you?

We all probably think we can pick a fake Christian out of a lineup…we assume their lives may not live up to their religious vocabulary.

But Fake Christians know when to say “Amen.” They have mastered the concerned church nod. Their “Praise the Lord” rolls off the tongue before you can even finish telling them what happened. 

They cook a heavenly banana pudding at the potluck.

But not all fakes can be pointed out. 

Such as in art, it may take a keen, trained eye to spot the differences.

I could point out some mega church pastors I would call wolves in sheep’s clothing but that’s another subject.

Of course, I should be careful about appointing myself chairman of the Heavenly Admissions Committee. I cannot see whose heart is authentic. 

People who call themselves Christian and act un-Christlike are more prolific these days. But that doesn’t give us the right to accuse every person of “NOT” being a Christian when they say something we disagree with or don’t like.

But Judas, now he was the ultimate imposter.

He was apart of the inner circle of Jesus, the definitive dream team of Christ followers.

I was inspired by a Josh Howerton’s sermon where he dug deep into this comparison of Peter and Judas. Two men who shadowed Jesus daily. But also failed him terribly.

Who do you relate to? Are you a Judas or a Peter?

Judas had the resume of a model Christian.

He traveled on mission trips. He heard the greatest sermons ever preached. He watched the blind receive sight, the lame walk and the dead return to life. Then he was sent out to heal the sick and cast out demons himself.

If the disciples had printed a church directory, Judas would have been smiling right there with the rest of them in his Olan Mills portrait.

His outward performance was so convincing that when Jesus announced one would betray Him, the disciples did not immediately point toward Judas and say, “I knew that fellow looked suspicious.”

But… Judas was faking it.

He blended in perfectly, walked and talked like a true follower.

And that is what is so frightening. A person can be so intimately involved in the work of Jesus, deeply entrenched in theology, but as Jesus warned in Matthew 7:23, “Depart from me, I never knew you.”

The unsettling question is not simply how he fooled the other disciples.

The unsettling question is whether we might be fooling ourselves.

Was Judas just in a bad way and made a human error? Afterall, Christians can still sin and mess up…look at King David.

The problem was Judas was not a real follower. The Bible never records Judas personally addressing Jesus as “Lord.” He never made Jesus Lord of his life.

When the other disciples asked whether they would betray Jesus, they said, “Is it I, Lord?” But Judas asked, “Is it I, Rabbi?”….meaning teacher.

Later, when Judas arrived to betray Jesus, he again greeted Him as “Rabbi.”

There is a world of difference between admiring Jesus and belonging to Jesus.

We may quote Scripture, study Jesus’s life and even argue about Him on Facebook—with Christians turning a comment section into a theological cage match faster than you can say “bless your heart.”

But is Jesus Lord of our lives?

Judas stayed close enough to Jesus to look like a follower, but he never surrendered his heart.

Judas handled the money and it turns out he was dipping into the pot.

Sin, such as the love of money, did not turn Judas into a counterfeit disciple. It eventually revealed that he had been one.

Money and ministry have always been uncomfortable companions.

Some of us remember television preachers offering prayer cloths in exchange for “a special blessing.” Apparently, the prayer worked better when accompanied by a credit-card number.

Just like I don’t trust a skinny chef, some do not trust a rich pastor.

Charles Spurgeon declined large payouts and gifts, John Wesley earned a modest income but gave most of it away, Billy Graham capped out his salary early on in his ministry and channeled his book royalties into trusts for use in ministries, charities and educational institutions he supported.

Prosperity theology has created opulent lifestyles for Kenneth Copeland, Joel Osteen and Jesse Duplantis. But when I was a minister’s wife,  apparently we were in the poor version because we could barely make ends meet. But it was worth it.

Money itself is not the problem, whether having it or not having it.

You can be poor and still love money.

It is not the size of the pocketbook that spoils the heart. It is what owns the heart—and what we are willing to do to fill the pocketbook.

Judas looked as if he belonged to Jesus, but money was his master.

Then there was Peter.

Like Judas, he was called, served, healed and when Jesus was arrested, he denied he knew him.

Peter did not stumble quietly either. Peter rarely did anything quietly.

He was the disciple most likely to speak first and think about it on the ride home.

Yet after denying Jesus, Peter went away and wept bitterly.

The two disciples reacted differently to the arrest. Judas felt remorse.  But remorse and repentance are not necessarily the same thing.

Judas confessed to religious officials his sin. Peter went to directly to Jesus and confessed his sin.

Judas tried to undo what he did himself. Peter allowed Jesus to restore him.

Judas ran toward despair and then committed suicide. Peter returned to grace and received a commission.

The difference in the two disciples is their heart condition.

The warning to us all is what do we do with Jesus?

Checkboxes cannot save us.

Like Judas, church attendance is not salvation, nor Christian activity, nor knowing Scripture, nor witnessing, nor being in the ministry. Judas looked like a Christian. He checked all the boxes.

Sitting in a church pew no more makes you a Christian than sitting in a garage makes you a Buick.

Anyone can read the Bible.

You can fool the congregation. You can fool your family. You may even fool yourself for a while.

But you cannot fool Jesus.

Judas faked it.

Are you?