We find ourselves once again in Mark's gospel. So if you will take your Bibles and turn to Mark 14, we will be looking at verses 43 through 52, under the heading, "The Betrayal of the Lord Jesus Christ." Betrayal by a close friend or loved one is undoubtedly one of the most painful things a person could possibly experience. Especially if that betrayal might lead to death. The name Judas Iscariot has become synonymous with the word "traitor." You probably noticed no one names their child Judas, and for good reason. But why would a man who knew Jesus was the Messiah, a man who witnessed all of those miracles, a man who saw Jesus raise the dead, cast out demons, heal the sick, a man that showed him nothing but kindness and love, how could a man possibly betray Jesus? What causes men and women that we know to violate their conscience, to defy all reason to enlist others to join in some wicked cause? All for the purpose of slandering and betraying other people with such vicious contempt with no regard for the truth? I mean, we see this on a daily basis. And in our political climate, you see it in the workplace, it happens in families, it happens in churches, how? How can that happen? We're going to examine some of these things this morning, as we look at this text, but the primary focus of the text is not the wickedness of the betrayer. Nor will it be the cowardice of the disciples, but the focus will be on the resoluteness of the Savior. Nothing would stop him from doing the will of the Father, to purchase our redemption. And I trust you will be deeply moved and perhaps convicted as we look at this inspired narrative. Who, by the way, or I should say, Mark was the one who, by the way, wrote this, as you will recall, but he wasn't there. But Peter was and Peter was the one that conveyed this to Mark. In fact, Justin Martyr writing about ad 150, described the gospel of Mark as, quote, "the memoirs of Peter." So what we're seeing here is a narrative describing from an eyewitness perspective, what happened. And we will compare this narrative with other gospel writers as well. So let me read this, Mark 14, beginning in verse 43.

"Immediately while He was still speaking, Judas, one of the 12, came up accompanied by a crowd with swords and clubs, who were from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders.

Now he who was betraying Him had given them a signal, saying, 'Whomever I kiss, He is the one; seize Him and lead Him away under guard.'

After coming, Judas immediately went to Him saying, 'Rabbi!' and kissed Him.

They laid hands on Him and seized Him.

But one of those who stood by drew his sword and struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his ear.

And Jesus said to them, 'Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest Me, as you would against a robber?

'Every day I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not seize Me, but this has taken place to fulfill the Scriptures.'

And they all left him and fled.

A young man was following Him, wearing nothing but a linen sheet over his naked body; and they seized him.

But he pulled free of the linen sheet and escaped naked."

I would like to divide this section of scripture into two general categories that I hope will be helpful to you. We're going to see first of all, the futility of human rebellion, and secondly, the triumph of divine sovereignty. And we see these things happening constantly in our environment. In fact, our postmodern, and I might add post Christian, culture utterly rejects the reality of absolute moral truth. Instead, for people in our culture, truth is relative, determined by feelings. And therefore, all viewpoints, no matter how absurd, or contradictory, must be considered as equally valid and embraced except the positions that are found in the Bible, those must be rejected. And as a result, if it feels good, do it. That's the mentality. That's the culture. And along with that, those who believe these things must silence anyone that differs with them. And this is why biblical values are being replaced by laws that impose a godless, immoral, oppressive social agenda on Christians who they see as a group of people that threatens their civil liberties. And this is essentially the platform of the Democratic Party, as well as many Republicans and libertarians and so forth.

Human rebellion, as we're going to see, once again, here in this text, is everywhere, it's all around us. So don't think that what we're looking at here is just some isolated incident, that doesn't find itself being manifested on a continual basis. Human rebellion against God is what produces people that want abortion on demand. We see the rebellion of these vicious pro Hamas, protesters who are largely female, screaming at the top of their lungs about things they know absolutely nothing about. Anarchists destroying property and getting away with it with our legal system. Then you see the alphabet mafia, coming out of this kind of rebellion. In fact, this is Pride Month, as you're all aware, and I was looking at the GLAAD website, which is the LGBTQ advocacy organization, I wanted to see how many days weeks and months they celebrate in our culture. And I looked at their LGBTQ community calendar, and to see this, and I counted 39 days, five weeks and three months, almost a half of year of celebrating that which God calls an abomination. This is rebellion, a kind of rebellion against God that would have us believe, for example, that personhood is defined by the individual, not by creational, or biological reality. And the state must therefore preserve a person's liberty, their civil rights to do and be whatever they want. And so you must eliminate all gender distinctions. And ultimately, you need to eliminate marriage, you need to eliminate family and on it goes. This is the hideous nature of rebellion against God. And I could give you many, many other examples. But folks, we've seen this down through human history, from Satan's rebellion against God along with a third of the angels that he lured into defecting with him to the depraved nature of every human being. We see rebellion, from Pharaoh to Hitler, from Nebuchadnezzar to Joe Biden. From the vile perverts of Sodom and Gomorrah to the LGBTQ mafia, in the United States, and on and on it goes.

And God describes the horrific fate of those who rebel against him in Proverbs one, beginning in verse 24. There we read, "Because I called and you refused, I stretched out my hand and no one paid attention; and you neglected all my counsel and did not want my reproof; I will also laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your dread comes like a storm and your calamity comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you. Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently, but they will not find me, because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD. They would not accept my counsel; they spurned all my reproof. So, they shall eat of the fruit of their own way, and be satiated with their own devices. For the waywardness of the naive will kill them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them. But he who listens to me shall live securely and will be at ease from the dread of evil."

And here, we see that indeed, despite man's rebellion against God, God's sovereignty will prevail, he will accomplish all of his purposes, as Isaiah 46:10 tells us, "Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things which have not been done, saying, 'My purpose will be established, and I will accomplish all My good pleasure.'" And we can take comfort in that text, and so many others, including Ephesians, one and verse 11, that he works "all things after the counsel of His will."

Well, Judas refused to believe all of that. He rebelled against God; he chose instead to pursue his own agenda. He rejected the word of the Lord that was right there in front of him. And he's now paying the price eternally for his rebellion. So, let's begin by looking at this text under the heading the futility of human rebellion. Now, the context, you will recall, as Jesus is in the garden; the garden was a familiar retreat for Jesus and his disciples. It was a place of beauty and peace, a sanctuary of for intimate communion, for fellowship, refuge, for rest and prayer. But as we can see from this text, there is no safe place in this world, right? No safe place, on this fallen planet, even the most sacred sanctuary can be defiled. And certainly, this is the preferred strategy of Satan, to defile that which is sacred, to destroy that which is beautiful, that which is blessed, whether it be a marriage of family, a church or a country. Now Jesus has just faced the most powerful temptation of his life, the temptation to somehow avoid being the sin bearer, and experiencing the alienation and wrath of the father to be treated as a sinner was utterly foreign to his holy nature. Perfect righteousness was always the automatic impulse of his soul, but he is now about to be assaulted, at the point of his transcendent holiness. And the thought of this produced such anguish within him that it brought him to the point of death, as he pleaded with the Father, "'Removed this cup from Me; yet not what I will, but what You will.'" Now, with his face, and his garment still glistening with sweat drops of blood, Jesus has resolutely accepted the cup that the Father has given him. And he says to his disciples in verse 42, to, "'Get up, let us be going; behold, the one who betrays Me is at hand!'"

And so now what we see, dear friends, in triumphant tranquility, Jesus now sets his face towards the cross, to willingly sacrifice himself on our behalf. So in verse 43 we read, "Immediately while He was still speaking, Judas, one of the 12 came up accompanied by a crowd with swords and clubs, who were from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders." "Judas," isn't it interesting, "one of the 12." It's fascinating that that phrase is a declaration that is made in all four of the Gospels. And the purpose of this is really clear. It's to underscore the reality that an apostle could be guilty of such a heinous crime. "Judas, one of the 12."

Now, the ones coming to arrest him are from the Sanhedrin. Sanhedrin literally means "sitting together." Thus we get the idea of a council or an assembly. It consisted of 71 persons, and essentially this was the Supreme Council or the tribunal of the Jews. It was headed by the high priest who's not a part of this mob. But this group had religious and civil and ceremonial jurisdiction over the Jews. And bear in mind, these are apostate Jews. These are the political power brokers. They are the corrupt, greedy, political leaders, as you might say, of the Jewish people. Not at all dissimilar to what we experienced today. And they're jealous of Jesus because of his astounding popularity, and supernatural powers. And you will recall that at the beginning, and then at the end of his ministry, Jesus absolutely up-ended their religious con game by forcibly expelling the merchants and the money changers from the temple precincts during Passover week, which would have been their most profitable season of the year. And so they absolutely hated Jesus. But also they hated him because he exposed their hypocrisy. Hypocrites do not like that; he exposed their greed, their corruption, their unbiblical, rabbinical traditions. But they also feared that Jesus might ignite a revolution against Rome, which would place their positions of authority in jeopardy. So they had to do something with him.

So we know from the gospels that they've been plotting to kill him for some time. And now they have their chance. And as I think about the scene in my mind, I think my, what a contrast. Here you have the innocent Jesus who preached about loving your enemies, along with 11 of his apostles. And they're up against a huge armed mob. We get further insights in John's gospel. In John 18, beginning in verse three, we read, "Judas then, having received the Roman cohort, and officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, came there with lanterns and torches and weapons." Now, a Roman cohort was about 600 men, some up to 1000 men. We don't know for sure if it was the entire cohort, which would have included men on horseback and the cavalry. But certainly, these were Roman troops, they would have been stationed there at Fort Antonia in Jerusalem. And it would appear that they fully intended to capture not only Jesus, but also his disciples. Now, obviously, the Sanhedrin had convinced the Roman authorities that Jesus was an insurrectionist. After all, he was being called the Messiah, the King of the Jews. And so they come now with overwhelming force. It's in the middle of the night, probably the wee early hours of the morning, and they do this to avoid the crowds that might be sympathetic to Jesus. Plus, I'm sure they feared his miracle working abilities. Who knows what this guy might do?

And it's such a fascinating irony, as you think about it. Here we see this, these religious phonies, these wicked politicians--men carrying lanterns and torches in the darkness so they can extinguish the light of the world. How futile. Here we see the spiritually dead, coming to kill the only one that can give life. Here we witness powerless men bearing weapons to somehow overpower the one and only omnipotent god. Murderous men bearing swords to arrest God who was about to voluntarily give up his life as a ransom for many. Violent men that are coming to subdue the Prince of Peace. John 18, beginning of verse four, we read this, “So Jesus, knowing all things that were coming upon Him, went forth, and said to them, 'Whom do you seek?' They answered Him, 'Jesus, the Nazarene.' He said to them, 'I am He.' And Judas also who was betraying them was standing with them. So when He said to them, 'I am He,' they drew back and fell to the ground."

What an amazing scene. Here, Jesus uses the covenant name of God, "Ego Eimi." The title that he used to describe himself, for example, in John 8:58, when, where he told the unbelieving Jews quote, "'Before Abraham was born, I AM.'" You see, he referred to himself in the present continuous tense. That seems odd, why would he do that? Because he wants to underscore the reality that he has always, and he will always, exist. This is a title indicating self-existence. One that indicates therefore preexistence. There has never been a time when he didn't exist. You will recall, when Moses asked God on the mountain, "What shall I tell the people when they ask what is your name?" And in Exodus three, in verse 14, "God said to Moses, 'I AM WHO I AM'; and He said, 'Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'" Tell them, "I AM" is your God. I am the preexistent, self-existent, uncreated Creator of the universe; the one who always is, and who always has been, and who always will be.

So this was the title, he used to respond to his enemies who came to arrest him. So when he said to them, "'I am He'" the "He" being added to the text, "they drew back and fell to the ground." Here we have the testimony of an eyewitness. And this is still vivid in John's memory. This, by the way, would have been written some 50 years after that incident happened. How could anybody ever forget something like that? Absolutely astounding.

So we first see the futility of human rebellion. But secondly, now, the triumph of divine sovereignty. And again, think about this, Jesus just mentioned his name and hostile men are rendered absolutely powerless and thrown on their backs to the ground. What a demonstration of power, but also what a demonstration of mercy? I mean, he could have thrown them all into hell, immediately, rather than on their backs, but rather he gives them another chance to repent and to embrace the Savior. Think about this, if that amount of power went forth, in the days of Jesus' humiliation, can you imagine the amount of power that will come in his voice and the force of his name in the day of his exultation and wrath, when it comes again in power and great glory? The triumph of divine sovereignty. Again, John 18, beginning in verse seven, "Therefore He again asked them, "'Whom do you seek?'" You see, he asks them again; he wants them to verbalize the second time, that they are under orders to arrest him alone, not his disciples, which he knew they intended to do. "And they said, 'Jesus the Nazarene.' Jesus answered, 'I told you that I am He; so if you seek Me, let these go their way,' to fulfill the word which He spoke, 'Of those whom You have given Me I lost not one.'"

O dear friends don't miss this, here Jesus demonstrates his great love for his own. He has promised to love them to the uttermost; to love us to the uttermost. And here we see a picture of the Good Shepherd, do we not? The good shepherd that is protecting his sheep, unlike the hireling that will flee at the first sight of the wolves, as we read about in John 10. Here we have a marvelous picture of a substitute, as he steps forward to take the place of sinners. And this also implies, I believe, that had the disciples been arrested, their faith would have been too weak to endure the profound disappointment and the confusion and the pain. But here we see the Savior doing what only he can do. You see, Jesus not only saved sinners, he secures sinners. Thus fulfilling he says, "the word which He spoke, 'Of those whom You have given Me I lost not one.'"

As I meditated upon this scenario, Martin Luther's great hymn, A Mighty Fortress is our God came to mind. And in one of those verses, we read this, "Did we in our own strength confide, our striving would be losing. Were not the right man on our side, the man of God's own choosing. Dost ask who that may be, Christ Jesus, it is He, Lord Sabaoth his name, from age to age the same, and he must win the battle." "Lord Sabaoth" must win the battle, which means "Lord of Hosts."

Back to John 18 and verse 10. "Simon Peter then, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s slave, and cut off his right ear; and the slaves name was Malchus. So Jesus said to Peter, 'Put the sword into the sheath; the cup which the Father has given Me, shall I not drink it?'" You know, you think about this, Peter must have really been emboldened when he saw all that whole mob just be thrown to the ground. You know, you can see him sticking out his chest, and he pulls the sword, come on, guys, you know, I mean, that's…you can see that happening here, right?

And I also think that one day in glory, we're going to meet some of those soldiers. And we may hear them say, "I was one of those guys, and I came to repentant faith before I got up off the ground." You know, you put yourself in the place of Peter, and the other disciples; you're fatigued, you're afraid, and then you got all of this fleshy stuff going on. You're self reliant, you’re overconfident. But your faith is weak, and you're not sure what all is going on. Folks, I'm telling you, that is a powerful mixture, that can cause a man to make a complete idiot out of himself. And to not even think rationally. I mean, Peter, really? As if Jesus couldn't defend himself, the one that could raise the dead and cast out demons? Do you really think if one angel could slay all of the firstborn of Egypt, that Jesus wouldn't be able to take care of himself here, and he needs you to take the sword of divine vengeance out of his hand? As if one angel didn't kill 185,000 Assyrians in one night to defend Jerusalem as we read about in Second Kings 19. Really, Peter, you didn't think about that, did you?

Well, like me many times, and probably like you, Peter was a ready, fire, aim, kind of guy. Shoot first and ask questions later, right? I think of Matthew 26 beginning in verse 52, "Then Jesus said to him, 'Put your sword back into its place; for all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword.'" In other words, Peter, if you kill him, or any of them, that's a capital offense, and you will be put to death. So Jesus is protecting him. He goes on to say, "'Or do you think that I cannot appeal to My Father, and He will let once put at My disposal more than 12 legions of angels?'" 12 legions, that's 72,000 angels. That's a pretty good force, right?

"'How then will the Scriptures be fulfilled, which say that it must happen this way?'" Oh, dear Christian, would that we all learn to contemplate the glory of Christ and the power of his sovereignty to accomplish all that he has declared in eternity past and then be able to rest in his plan. The Great 17th century Puritan theologian, John Owen said this, in his work on the glory of Christ, quote, "By beholding the glory of Christ by faith, we shall find rest to our souls. Our minds are apt to be filled with troubles, fears, cares, dangers, distresses, ungoverned passions and lusts. By these, our thoughts are filled with chaos, darkness and confusion, but where the soul is fixed on the glory of Christ, then the mind finds rest and peace. For to be spiritually minded is peace (Romans 8:6)."

Back to Mark's narrative, describing the betrayal, we come to verse 44. "Now he who was betraying Him, had given him a signal, saying, 'Whoever I kiss, He is the one; seize Him and lead Him away under guard.' After coming, Judas immediately went to Him saying, 'Rabbi!' and kissed Him." That type of a kiss would have been a sign of intimate friendship. It's fascinating what Luke reveals in Luke 22 verse 48, regarding that scenario, there we read, Jesus said him "'Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man?'" Jesus said that him, "'Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man?'" He didn't say Judas, "are you betraying your friend?" No, he said, "The Son of Man." This is the title that Jesus used to refer to himself many times. And rightfully so because it is a messianic title, describing the only one who could fulfill mankind's role as the human race's only perfect representative, the Son of Man; the one who would rule over the earth, the one who would succeed as the last Adam in the realm where the first Adam failed. Judas, are you betraying the only perfect representative that can be your substitute and pay the price for your sin? Really, Judas? Is that what you're going to do? Worse yet, are you betraying me with a kiss? A sign of esteem and even love.

You know, when you think about that, what Jesus said to Judas was such a profound, solemn warning but yet it was a final act of mercy to Judas. Seriously, Judas, think about what you're doing. And once again, we see the tender love of the Savior seeking to save a sinner right? Right there in the garden. But that sinner rejected Christ's mercy, spurned his grace, even betrays him with a kiss. What staggering treachery. We all shudder in horror at the scene. Imagine what the other 11 must have thought when they're watching all of this play out. In Matthew 26:50, we also read "Jesus said to him, 'Friend, do what you have come for.'"

In verse 46, back to Mark's narrative, "They laid hands on Him and seized Him." And you must bear in mind that the only reason they laid hands on him and seized him is because he allowed them to do so. John 10 beginning of verse 17, Jesus said, "'...I lay down my life so that I may take it again. No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay that lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I've received from My Father.'" Once again, dear friends, o, the folly and the futility of human rebellion, to go up against the sovereign, omnipotent, omniscient God.

So verse 46, "they laid hands on Him and seized Him. But one of those who stood by drew his sword, and struct the slave of the high priests and cut off his ear." Luke says, in Luke 22:51, "But Jesus answered and said..." "Answered," by the way, could be translated, "reacted or responded." He said, "'Stop! No more of this.' And He touched his ear and healed him." And they all fell on their faces and worshipped Jesus. Doesn't say that does it?

Please understand dear friends, and this is such a dramatic picture of this, unless God quickens the dead soul of a sinner, they will never come to faith in Christ. They can see miracle after miracle, but apart from the magnificent reality and miracle of regeneration, that instantaneous impartation of spiritual life to the dead, that spiritual resurrection--apart from that, not even witnessing a miracle like this, will cause a person to place their faith in Christ. Again, Judas saw countless miracles. Plus, he just witnessed the reality of what happens when Jesus speaks his covenant name. He's just gotten up off of the ground. And now he sees Jesus healed the ear. Ah, but some will say no, man is spiritually debilitated, but he is not spiritually dead, he can therefore exercise his free will. And he can cooperate with God and make a decision for Christ. That God and man are co-saviors in rescuing the fallen race from eternal wrath. Therefore, faith precedes regeneration. I'm sure you've heard that before. And very often they will point to First John 5:1, to prove their case. And there we read, "Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God." Well, that seems to indicate that that is true. That you have to first believe and then you're born of God. But if you execute the passage properly, you'll see that it's saying just the opposite. The phrase, "whoever believes" can be translated, "everyone believing" it's a present active participle, indicating ongoing faith. Everyone believing that Jesus is the Christ is born of God. And here in Greek, we have what's called a perfect passive indicative, which is an action that has already taken place in the past, it is complete, but it has ongoing effects in the present. That's what the text is saying. So it can be translated "everyone who presently believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God." You see, dear friends, regeneration is the cause, not the consequence of saving faith. The blind must first be given sight before they can see their sin and behold the glory of Christ; there must be a spiritual resurrection. While sinners are called to repent and believe in the gospel, ultimately God must take the initiative. Because, as we read in Scripture, the sinner is spiritually dead, he is alienated from God. He has no capacity to discern truth, he cannot understand divine truth. Plus, he's blinded by Satan. Romans 3:11 says that no man understands, no man seeks after God. Therefore, God must seek after him. Nevertheless, in a mystery, we cannot comprehend, man is still responsible for his unbelief, like Judas, who had no one to blame but himself.

So Jesus addresses the mob in verse 48, says to them, "'Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest Me, as you would against a robber?'" The term "robber" describes a plundering rebel that's notorious for pillaging and looting. Really? That's who I am? Of course, he knew that that was laughably absurd.

Verse 49, "'Every day I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not seize Me.'" In other words, what he's saying is, you are doing this under the cover of darkness, because you know, it is wrong. But then he adds this, "'...but this has taken place to fulfill the Scriptures.'" This, of course, is a reference to the many Old Testament prophecies that we have looked at on other Sundays--Psalm 41:9, Psalm 55:12 through 14, Isaiah 53:7, also verses seven and eight, verse 12, Zechariah, 11:12, and Zechariah 13:7 that Jesus just quoted in Mark 14:27, a few verses earlier, when he says, "'You will all fall away, because it is written, "I WILL STRIKE DOWN THE SHEPHERD, AND THE SHEEP SHALL BE SCATTERED."'" Again, he demonstrates that God is in complete control of all of this, this is not a plan B. This is prophecy being fulfilled. And all through Scripture, dear friends, we see that God has ordained to allow evil to accomplish his purposes, and to therefore put on display his infinite perfections, and all of his attributes. I ask you, is Jesus more or less glorified, because of what the Father did in sending him to the cross? Exceedingly more. That's how he puts his glory on display. And as we see these things, it unleashes the doxologies of the heart of the redeemed. So that with full throat and sincerity we can sing "Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me, I once was lost. But now I see." I was blind or but now I see, sorry, I got the words mixed up there. And we can all testify to that, can we?

So they seize Jesus, verse 50, "They all left Him and fled." Again, remember, they did not take seriously the Lord's command, to watch and to pray. Remember that earlier in the garden? Unless you fall into temptation, unless you fall into spiritual lethargy and indifference, sins that make us vulnerable to all manner of temptation. Quite frankly, they feared man more than they feared God and had I been amongst them, I'm sure I would have been right with them. By the way, what a change later on, after Pentecost, when the Spirit lived within them permanently.

Then verse 51, "A young man was following Him, wearing nothing but a linen sheet over his naked body; and they seized him. But he pulled free of the linen sheet and escaped naked." And many believe this was Mark. We can't say for sure, but the point of including this event, I think, is what's really important. And while it doesn't say for sure, it would be in my humble opinion that what we see here is Jesus being abandoned by all of his disciples, left all alone with this vicious mob. All of the bravado has disappeared. And now even a curious and innocent young man wearing the linen from his from his bed; he probably was awakened with all that was going on and gets out, throws his linen around him and comes out to see what's going on. Even that curious bystander has now just barely escaped the murderous Christ haters. What a poignant picture of Christ's suffering all along. And even the curious following at a distance, running the risk of being swept up in the hatred of the wicked and being destroyed.

Now, what causes a man to violate his conscience? like Judas? How does this happen? What causes a man or a woman to defy all reason? What motivates a man to enlist others to join in some kind of a violent cause, to somehow destroy the innocent? What provokes people to slander and malign and betray the innocent, with such vile contempt, with such a total disregard for the truth that is so obvious. Well, in a word, dear friends, it is covetousness--the 10th commandment, Thou shalt not covet. To covet means to crave material things that others have. It also means to have a desire for something for yourself, and to have more than what you already possess, so you're not content with what you currently have. Judas wanted the material wealth that would come with his position of prominence and power in the kingdom. He was wanting Jesus to establish the kingdom now, as were the others. And it wasn't happening. You know, the heretical prosperity gospel capitalizes on this sin, and it leads people away from the true gospel. It leads the naive and the ignorant into idolatry because remember, where a man's treasure is there will his heart be also; that man cannot love, money, and God at the same time. He will choose one over the other.

Covetousness, Exodus 20 verse 17, the 10th commandment, "'You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not cover your neighbor's wife or his male servant or his female servant or his ox or his donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.'" And we know that covetousness originates in the heart and leads to many other sins. Mark recorded what Jesus said in chapter seven beginning in verse 21, "'For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, deeds of coveting and wickedness, as well as deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. All these things proceed from within and defile the man.'" And if you look in Scripture, you'll see that Covetousness is idolatry that it never satisfies. It is vanity, it leads to injustice and oppression. It is foolish and hurtful lusts. It is a departure from the faith. It leads to lying, murder, theft, poverty, domestic troubles, and on it goes. And we see many of these things in the life of Judas. And you might see it even in your own life. Covetousness causes a man to search for satisfaction at the most deep level in his inner person, but to search for it in persons, in places and things other than Christ. Christ is never enough. In Colossians two and verse 10, the apostle Paul says, "In Him, you have been made complete." But the covetous man says, No, I know what's best for me. I know what will make me happy and it is not Christ. Think about it. Judas heard Jesus say in Matthew six, beginning in verse 32, "'For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things...'" is referring to what you eat, what you drink, what you put on your body, and what you wear. "'...for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.'" And then he says this, "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.'" But the covetous person says no, I know what I want, and I will have it and I will have it now. The psalmist says in Psalm 16:11 "You will make known to me the path of life, in Your presence is fullness of joy; in Your right hand there are pleasures forever." But the covetous man, the covetous man will say, No, no, I want my best life now. And the false teachers will give you 1000 ways to find that, supposedly. Dear Christian, guard your heart against this wickedness. Psalm 119, verse 36, says, "Incline my heart unto Thy testimonies, and not to covetousness."

So, what happened to Judas after his betrayal of Jesus? In Matthew 27, beginning in verse three, we read, "Then when Judas, who had betrayed Him, saw that He had been condemned, he felt remorse and returned the 30 pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying, 'I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.' But they said, 'What is that to us? See to that yourself!' And he threw the pieces of silver into the temple sanctuary and departed; and he went away and hanged himself." Luke tells us in Acts one verse 18, "...falling headlong, he burst open in the middle, and all his intestines gushed out." What a hideous death.

Back to Matthew's account, the chief priest took the pieces of silver, and said, "It is not lawful to put them into the temple treasury, since it is the price of blood." I have to stop here. What astounding hypocrisy. You're worried about violating the law with the money when you are about to kill an innocent man? Folks, that is the power of legalism to blind people utterly. It goes on to say, "And they conferred together and with the money bought the Potter's Field as burial place for strangers. For this reason, that field has been called the Field of Blood to this day. Then that which was spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: 'AND THEY TOOK THE THRIRTY PIECES OF SILVER, THE PRICE OF TH EONE WHOSE PRICE HAD BEEN SET by the sons of Israel; AND THEY GAVE THEM FOR THE POTTER'S FIELD, AS THE LORD DIRECTED ME.'"

Oh, dear friends, the futility, of human rebellion and the triumph of divine sovereignty. I must ask you, what will you do with Jesus? Will you succumb to your own covetousness and live apart from him? Just live unto yourself and not put your faith in him? Will you, in your own way, betray Him and reject Him and treat him with indifference? As if all that he did is really of no importance. My friend if that is you, woe to you. Your foolish rebellion will seal your fate and the wrath of God will remain on you throughout eternity unless you repent. So I plead with you to come to Jesus. You know who you are. Your life is really going nowhere fast. You pretend to be what you're really not. And you know that if suddenly you were in a position where your death was imminent, you would have no peace, about where you're going to spend eternity. So as a minister of the gospel, I reach out to you and say, please, place your faith in Christ your only hope of salvation before it's too late.

And you, dear saints that love Christ, my, we can celebrate the triumph of sovereign grace today, can we not? Oh my the power of the gospel. And as I was thinking about this, my mind went to the final verse of "A Mighty Fortress is our God" that says this, "That word above all earthly powers, no thanks to them abideth; the Spirit and the gifts are ours, through Him who with us sideth. Let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also; the body they may kill, God's truth abideth still; His kingdom is forever." Amen and Amen. Let's pray together.

Father, thank you for the magnificent truths of your word that speak so clearly, so directly to each of our hearts. I pray that what we have examined here today will move each one of us in the direction of holiness. That sinners might be saved and saints might be sanctified. We pray all of this in the precious name and for the glory of our Savior in King Jesus Christ. Amen.