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Good morning, everyone. Welcome 
back to Free Christ Baptist Church. Good to see Isaac back. Hope 
you still remember English, not all Spanish. A few announcements before we 
get started, and the top one on the list is that Becca Abbey 
is expecting. Glorious news. We rejoice with 
Shane and Becca. Keep them in our prayers. This 
evening service, of course, at 5 p.m. and Wednesday Bible study 
takes place again at 7.30. Coming up on Saturday the 24th 
of February is our annual general meeting here at the church. Happens 
once a year if you're a member or an adherent. If you come regularly, 
you're welcome to attend. That is at 7 p.m. on the 24th 
of February. The letters and financial statements 
are being passed out already, so if you're a member and you 
haven't yet received financial statements, see Steve Lawson 
or Doug Lutain afterwards. That's it for announcements. 
Please turn in your Bible to Psalm 41 for our call to worship. Psalm 41. To the Chief Musician, a Psalm 
of David. Blessed is he who considers the 
poor. The Lord will deliver him in 
time of trouble. The Lord will preserve him and 
keep him alive, and he will be blessed on the earth. You will 
not deliver him to the will of his enemies. The Lord will strengthen 
him on his bed of illness. You will sustain him on his sick 
bed. I said, Lord, be merciful to 
me. Heal my soul, for I have sinned 
against you. My enemies speak evil of me. 
When will he die and his name perish? And if he comes to see 
me, he speaks lies. His heart gathers iniquity to 
itself. When he goes out, he tells it. 
All who hate me whisper together against me. Against me, they 
devise my hurt. An evil disease, they say, clings 
to him. And now that he lies down, he 
will rise up no more. Even my own familiar friend in 
whom I trusted, who ate my bread, has lifted up his heel against 
me. But you, O Lord, be merciful to me and raise me up, that I 
may repay them. By this I know that you are well 
pleased with me, because my enemy does not triumph over me. As 
for you, you uphold me in my integrity and set me before your 
face forever. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel 
from everlasting to everlasting. Amen and amen. For our first 
hymn this morning, we'll turn to Psalm 148 in the Psalter, 
148B, as in Bravo. And please stand with me as we 
sing, hallelujah, praise Jehovah. O come, let us adore Him, O come, 
let us adore Him, O come, let us adore Him, O come, let us 
adore Him, Christ the Lord! ♪ To your heavens a bed was laid 
♪ ♪ And it was a blue sky ♪ ♪ And the praises came to all the blood 
♪ ♪ For his name the Lord is high ♪ ♪ And his glory is exalted 
♪ ♪ And his glory is exalted ♪ His glory is exalted far above 
the earth and sky. From the earth, O praise Jehovah! And his glory is exalted, and 
his glory is exalted, and his glory is exalted, over all the 
earth and sky. Through fruitful trees and steams, 
all you hills and mountains high. In new plains and beasts and 
castle, birds that in the heavens fly. Kings of earth and all you 
beasts. Let the praises give to God, 
for his name alone is high. And His glory is exalted, and 
His glory is exalted, and His glory is exalted far above the 
earth. You may be seated. Let us turn 
to the Lord in prayer. Gracious Heavenly Father, we 
thank you for this day of gladness and rejoicing when we can come 
into your house as your people to worship you. We thank you 
for this privilege that you have afforded us, not only that we 
get to come here but that you have put it in our hearts to 
come here because we know that in ourselves and before Before 
you moved upon our hearts, we had no desire to be in your presence 
or to meet with your people. But in your gracious kindness, 
you have drawn us, you have wooed us, and you have brought us into 
this place. And we thank you for that mercy 
and that privilege that you have extended. Thank you for the forgiveness 
of sins. Thank you for what Christ did 
on the cross in securing our salvation, in securing for us 
pardon, wiping away our guilt and taking away our sins. And 
Lord, we pray for any here this morning that have not yet tasted 
and seen that the Lord is good. May this be the day of salvation 
for them, O God, as well. Lord, we pray that you would 
be present in our midst and that the Holy Spirit would attend 
the preaching of the word this morning. We pray, O Lord, in 
particular for our young people and for the children in this 
congregation, that you would move upon their hearts, Lord, 
that they would not only hear the gospel week in and week out 
and not let it just run over them, but I pray, O God, it would 
sink into their hearts and that they would taste and see that 
the Lord is indeed good. And Lord, I pray that they would 
see, even from a young age, their need of Christ and their need 
of a salvation. Lord, we pray. that you would 
add to our numbers, not for the sake of this congregation alone, 
but for the sake of the Kingdom of God. We pray, O Father, that 
your kingdom would march forward. We thank you that you are doing 
a good work all over the face of this earth. We thank you that 
you are drawing people from every language, every people group, 
every nation, every tribe to yourself. And Lord, we pray that 
that work would continue. We pray in particular for tribes 
and peoples that have not yet heard the gospel, that have not 
yet had the scriptures translated into their own languages. We 
pray, O God, they too would be reached. We pray that there would 
be a new impetus and a new wave of missionaries sent forth, Lord, 
as you have done in the past. We pray that you would do again 
in the future. Lord, we pray for those nations 
that have been reached with the gospel, but many that are slipping 
away into secular humanism and various other religious beliefs 
that are contrary to the gospel, we pray, O God, that you would 
move once again in our own nation and in the United States of America 
and Europe. Lord, we pray that we would see 
a new revival in your church and an awakening on the streets. 
We thank you for what you are doing and we pray, O God, that 
you would continue that good work. Lord, we pray for Our brethren 
in the Far East, especially in countries where there is active 
persecution against your people, we pray for the Church in Myanmar, 
we pray for the Church in China, in North Korea, in Muslim Indonesia. Lord, we pray that you would 
be gracious to your people wherever they are persecuted for your 
namesake. We pray that you would continue 
to uphold them. and give them strength to continue 
on and even to preach the gospel under difficult circumstances. Lord, be merciful to your church 
this day, the world over. And Lord, we pray for the Church 
of Jesus Christ here in this city, not only our own congregation, 
but for every church here where the gospel is being preached 
this day. We pray, O God, that you would bless the ministers 
of the gospel here. and cause your word to go forth 
and be a light to the Gentiles, to the heathen. Lord, I pray 
that you would preserve this city, this province, and this 
nation. We pray for other churches that 
are like-minded, for our sister churches, and for churches that 
we know of that are Reformed Baptist, Lord, we pray that you 
would bless them. Pray you'd work in the church 
in Surrey today and in Armstrong and Dryden, Ontario. We pray 
for this congregation in Medicine Hat. Lord, we pray as well that 
this conference coming up would be a tremendous blessing in drawing 
us together and causing your people to be united. And we pray, 
God, that you would do us good for your own namesake. Be with 
us and continue with us this day. I pray, Lord, that you'd 
cleanse us from all sin and unrighteousness. And Lord, I pray that our worship 
would be fitting in your sight because you are worthy. We ask 
these things in Jesus' name. Amen. Let's turn now in our Psalter 
again to Psalm 84a, a as in alpha, 84a. And stand with me, we'll 
be singing it to a different tune, but one that is familiar 
to all of us. you. The sparrow finds a home here, 
a small old wilterness, where she may lay her young here, your 
altar, Lord of hosts. How blessed are those who dwell 
here, your house, my King, Through the sorrows you've straightened, 
through the woe of pilgrims' pining, amidst the hill of weeping, 
fresh springs and fruits. O hear, O God of Jacob, to me 
an answer give, ♪ A day within your temple excels 
a thousand heads ♪ ♪ I further keep God's glory and give thanks 
to your strength ♪ ♪ A shield and shining stone ♪ 
♪ The Lord bestows His favor ♪ ♪ And honor to His own ♪ ♪ 
O'er the hilly denials ♪ ♪ You walk in praise of true love ♪ You may be seated. Please take 
your Bibles and turn to the Gospel of Matthew for our morning scripture 
reading. Matthew, we're now in chapter 
19, and we will read the first half of the chapter up until 
verse 15. Matthew 19, beginning in verse 
1 and reading through verse 15. Now it came to pass, when Jesus 
had finished these sayings, that He departed from Galilee and 
came to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan. And great multitudes 
followed Him, and He healed them there. The Pharisees also came 
to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, Is it lawful for a man 
to divorce his wife for just any reason? And he answered and 
said to them, have you not read that he who made them at the 
beginning made them male and female and said, for this reason 
a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his 
wife and the two shall become one flesh? So then they are no 
longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined 
together, let not man separate. They said to him, why then did 
Moses command to give a certificate of divorce and put her away? 
And he said to them, Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, 
permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning 
it was not so. And I say to you, whoever divorces 
his wife except for sexual immorality and marries another commits adultery, 
and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery. His 
disciples said to him, if such is the case of the man with his 
wife, it is better not to marry. But he said to them, All cannot 
accept this saying, but only those to whom it has been given. 
For there are eunuchs who were born thus from the mother's womb, 
and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men. And there 
are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's 
sake. He who is able to accept it, let him accept it. Then little 
children were brought to him that he might put his hands on 
them and pray, but the disciples rebuked them. But Jesus said, 
Let the little children come to me, and do not forbid them, 
for of such is the kingdom of heaven. And he laid his hands 
on them and departed from there." Amen. Let us pray. Gracious Father 
in Heaven, we thank you that Christ answered his detractors 
with such wisdom from the Scriptures. Lord, they were accustomed to 
twisting the Scriptures to fit their own designs. And Lord, 
we pray that you'd be gracious to us and help us to read your 
Word with understanding. And may the Spirit of God illuminate 
our hearts that we might not read into it things that are 
not there. Be gracious to us as we continue in worship. We 
pray, O God, that you would anoint Pastor Butler as he comes to 
preach to us. We pray that you would give him fluency and the 
ability to preach clearly the gospel to us. And we pray that 
we would be open to receive when we ask these things in Jesus' 
name. Amen. For our final hymn, we'll 
turn to 213 in the hymnals. 2, 1, 3. And please stand with 
me as we sing again. ♪ Glory be to God the Spirit ♪ 
♪ God Almighty free and one ♪ ♪ Hallelujah, hallelujah ♪ ♪ Glory be to Him 
alone ♪ ♪ Glory be to Him who loved us ♪ with him to praise. Alleluia, 
alleluia, praise the Lamb that once was slain. Alleluia, alleluia, to the King 
of glory sing. in him, thus his praise we sing. Well, you can turn with me in 
your Bibles to the book of John as we work our way through John's 
gospel. We're in chapter 13. Specifically this morning, our 
focus will be verses 18 to 30. I do want to read beginning in 
verse 1 to verse 30 to remind us what's going on here in what's 
called the upper room discourse. So John 13 beginning in verse 
1. Now before the feast of the Passover, 
when Jesus knew that His hour had come, that He should depart 
from this world to the Father, having loved His own who were 
in the world, He loved them to the end. And supper being ended, 
the devil, having already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, 
Simon's son, to betray him, Jesus, knowing that the father had given 
all things into his hands and that he had come from God and 
was going to God, rose from supper and laid aside his garments, 
took a towel and girded himself. After that, he poured water into 
a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them 
with the towel with which he was girded. Then he came to Simon 
Peter, and Peter said to him, Lord, are you washing my feet? 
Jesus answered and said to him, what I am doing you do not understand 
now, but you will know after this. Peter said to him, you 
shall never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, if I do not 
wash you, you have no part with me. Simon Peter said to him, 
Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Jesus said 
to him, he who is bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is 
completely clean. And you are clean, but not all 
of you. For he knew who would betray 
him. Therefore he said, you are not all clean. So when he had 
washed their feet, taken his garments and sat down again, 
he said to them, do you know what I have done to you? You 
call me teacher and Lord, and you say, well, for so I am. If 
I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also 
ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, 
that you should do as I have done to you. Most assuredly I 
say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor 
is he who is sent greater than he who sent him. If you know 
these things, blessed are you if you do them. I do not speak 
concerning all of you. I know whom I have chosen, but 
that the scripture may be fulfilled. He who eats bread with me has 
lifted up his heel against me. Now I tell you before it comes 
to pass that when it does come to pass, you may believe that 
I am. Most assuredly, I say to you, 
he who receives whomever I send receives me, and he who receives 
me receives him who sent me. When Jesus had said these things, 
he was troubled in spirit and testified and said, Most assuredly, 
I say to you, one of you will betray me. Then the disciples 
looked at one another, perplexed about whom he spoke. Now there 
was leaning on Jesus bosom, one of his disciples whom Jesus loved. Simon Peter therefore motioned 
to him to ask who it was of whom he spoke. Then leaning back on 
Jesus' breast, he said to him, Lord, who is it? Jesus answered, 
It is he to whom I shall give a piece of bread when I have 
dipped it. And having dipped the bread, 
he gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. Now after the 
piece of bread, Satan entered him. Then Jesus said to him, 
What you do, do quickly. But no one at the table knew 
for what reason he said this to him. For some thought, because 
Judas had the money box, that Jesus had said to him, buy those 
things we need for the feast, or that he should give something 
to the poor. Having received the piece of bread, he then went 
out immediately, and it was night. Amen. Well, let us pray. Our 
God and Father, we thank you for this Lord's Day. We thank 
you for the house of God and for the people of God and the 
great privileges that is ours to gather in your name. We ask 
now that you would guide us by the Holy Spirit, that you would 
cause us to reflect upon this passage of Scripture, cause us 
to stand again amazed at what the Savior went through on on 
behalf of us. We thank you for that life, that 
death, that resurrection. We praise you for His current 
session and we look forward to His return again in glory to 
judge the living and the dead. Forgive us now for all sin and 
unrighteousness. May you open dead hearts to receive 
the truth as it is in Jesus. May sinners see themselves before 
a holy God in desperate need of forgiveness and a righteousness 
that avails with God. And may they hear that that comes 
through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. And may you be glorified 
in this. And we ask through Jesus Christ 
our Lord. Amen. Well, as we have come to this 
upper room discourse, we notice that Jesus is speaking to his 
disciples. He is preparing them for ministry 
once he ascends, is raised from the dead, ascends on high and 
goes back into heaven. They're going to be the men that 
are tasked with going out, making disciples, planting churches, 
and extending the kingdom of God Most High on earth. And we 
know that what motivates our Lord Jesus in terms of His discourse 
is His love for them, His authority over them, and then His mission 
in terms of their salvation and the salvation of those who will 
hear and believe the gospel. So in the first section, in verses 
4 to 17, we see that he washes their feet. And that washing 
is physical, he washes their feet, and by doing so sets an 
example for them on how they're to engage in service and love 
and charity to others. But there's also a symbolic reference. What he's doing here sort of 
typifies what he's going to do on the cross. His passion, his 
service for men, his giving up himself ultimately for the salvation 
of sinners. So in 4 to 17, he cleanses their 
feet. Now in our passage from verses 
18 to 30, he cleanses the disciple group itself. In other words, 
he removes the betrayer. He removes the traitor. He removes 
the one that is not like the others. He is not saved. He is 
not a true believer. And so Jesus, before he gets 
down to intimate truth with his disciples, gets rid of Judas 
Iscariot. So I want to look at, first of 
all, the announcement of the betrayal in verses 18 to 20, 
and then secondly, the identification of the betrayer in verses 21 
to 30. And as we look at the announcement 
of the betrayal, there's actually three things here that does deserve 
our attention. First, the fulfillment of Scripture. 
Secondly, the divinity of Christ. And then thirdly, the nature 
of discipleship. But notice first the fulfillment 
of Scripture in verse 18. He says, I do not speak concerning 
all of you. I know whom I have chosen, but 
that the Scripture may be fulfilled. And then he invokes Psalm 41, 
specifically at verse 9. But notice, he says, I do not 
speak concerning all of you. I know whom I have chosen. There's 
this two types of choosing that we find with reference to the 
apostles. There's a choosing unto apostolic ministry. Judas 
certainly had that. We see in Matthew chapter 10, 
for instance, when the twelve are selected. Jesus was over 
that. He says this and refers to this 
often times. But here specifically he's talking 
about a choosing unto salvation. the elect according to the sovereignty 
of God most high. Jesus understands the regenerate 
nature of the true disciples. Go back to verse 10. He who is 
bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean, 
and you are clean, but not all of you. He knows that 11 of them 
are regenerate, but he also knows that this one Judas is a reprobate. He is not heaven bound. He is 
not the genuine article. And again, I think Judas stands 
in the pages of scripture to cause us to reflect upon this. 
Just having office in the church does not secure grace in the 
heart. It doesn't demonstrate necessarily that there is grace 
in the heart. The time of the 18th century, 
for instance. What was very much important 
and needed was a converted ministry. People would go into the gospel 
ministry just like you'd go into being a lawyer, or just as you'd 
go into being a teacher, or just as you'd go into being a doctor. 
It was just another profession that offered a comfortable sustenance, 
and it was another job like all the others. Well, what would 
happen if you had a thoroughly unconverted ministry? There's 
no emphasis or exhortation on the truth of the gospel. I mean, 
they may go through the motions, they may go through the actual 
charade, but they're not pressing the consciences of men with the 
glory of Christ most high. And so when it comes to that 
reality, just because a man preaches every week doesn't necessarily 
mean he's heaven bound. And Judas, no doubt, understood 
something of the success of gospel ministry. You have that occasion 
in Luke's gospel, Luke chapter 10. The disciples are sent out 
to minister. They're sent to cast out demons. 
They're sent to preach in the name of the Lord Jesus and to 
heal people. And of course, they come back and they marvel at 
the fact that the Lord God had blessed that ministry. Well, 
Judas was one of them. So Judas stands in the pages 
of Holy Scripture to testify that they were not all of us. For if they had been of us, they 
would not have gone out from us. Judas was an apostate. Judas was a reprobate. Jesus 
understood that. And now Jesus is going to disclose 
that particular truth. He affirms the disciples' regeneration. He affirms, as well, Judas' reprobation. And then notice, specifically, 
the prophecy of his betrayal in Psalm 41. He says, "...I know 
whom I have chosen, but that the Scripture may be fulfilled." 
We need to understand, Judas doesn't betray Jesus so that 
the Scripture can be fulfilled. Rather, the scripture predictively 
prophesied that these things would in fact occur in the life 
of the Messiah. So it's not that Judas is raised 
up only to fulfill scripture. It is rather that scripture in 
the Old Covenant points forward to what is going to happen in 
the plan and purpose of God Most High. In fact, in a parallel 
passage in Luke's Gospel, it says, Jesus says, and truly the 
Son of Man goes as has been determined. So this stuff that we see, the 
passion of our Lord Jesus, isn't sort of an afterthought. It's 
not a plan B. It's not, you know, well, let's 
try to make the best thing out of this that we can make. No, 
this was all purposed and planned by God Most High. On that day 
of Pentecost, Peter says that Jesus was crucified according 
to the predetermined plan and purpose of God. There's nothing 
that takes God by surprise. The Lord Jesus Christ was a man 
with a particular mission. He understood that mission and 
he's gonna execute that mission. And according to his humanity, 
he would have read Psalms like Psalm 41 to see what was in fact 
going to happen in terms of his suffering, in terms of his death. There would be an external threat. 
The devil enters into Judas, but there's this internal threat 
as well, Judas Iscariot. When you look back in the Old 
Testament, Israel had to contend, not only with the Philistines, 
but with a Manasseh. Not only with the Canaanites, 
but they had to deal with apostasy in their midst, in their ranks 
and files. And so John is showing us that. 
With reference to the enemies of our Lord, they are one, cosmological, 
the devil himself, but then two, historical, the person of Judas 
Iscariot. He would eat with Christ, he 
would maintain that intimacy with Christ, and all the while, 
as we read here, he who eats bread with me has lifted up his 
heel against me. And that's a symbolic statement 
that you find in scripture that shows not only domination, but 
it shows victory. and triumph. It shows an attempt 
on the part of the one raising the heel to smash the face of 
the other. It's interesting though because 
when Judas does this, it provides the occasion for Jesus to do 
it likewise. but to do it to the devil specifically 
in accordance with Genesis 3 15. I will put enmity between you 
and the woman and between your seed and her seed. He shall bruise 
your head and you shall bruise his heel. So the occasion of 
the betrayer lifting his heel against our Lord Jesus provided 
the context or arena such that our Lord Jesus would smash the 
devil himself through his cross work and through his resurrection. 
So with reference to this prophecy, Jesus knows that it's written. Jesus understands that what's 
happening has been determined. But then notice as well, His 
divinity. On the heels of this invocation 
of Psalm 41, look at what He says in verse 19. Now, I tell 
you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may 
believe that I am. Predictive prophecy in the Old 
Testament functioned in a couple of ways. First, it confirmed 
or validated a prophet. In Deuteronomy chapter 18, God 
says to the children of Israel, you're not like the heathen. 
You're not like the pagans. You're not supposed to have witches. 
You're not supposed to have soothsayers. You're not supposed to have necromancers. 
You're not supposed to engage in those dark, black, occultic 
arts. Rather, what you have in Israel 
is the priest who, on behalf of the people, goes to God. And 
then you have the prophet who, from God, comes to the people 
and speaks the truth. Well, with reference to that, 
how do we identify who a true prophet is? Well, if he speaks 
the word and it doesn't come to pass, then he's not a true 
prophet. You're not to be afraid of him. 
In other contexts, you're supposed to execute the false prophet. I think that would go a long 
way to sort of mitigating the prophecies that we've seen in 
our own generation about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 
You need to very much be quiet when it comes to certain mysteries 
relative to the things of God. But in terms of predictive prophecy, 
it affirmed the authority of the prophet. But then as well, 
it affirmed the authority of Yahweh of Israel. Turn back to 
the book of Isaiah. The book of Isaiah, specifically 
chapter 48, a context where God is, through the prophet, condemning 
idolatry. One of the problems that Israel 
often engaged in was idolatry, having other gods before or besides 
Yahweh, the true and living God. What was one of the ways that 
Yahweh distinguished himself from the idols? Well, he had 
the ability to speak, they didn't. He had the ability to hear, they 
didn't. He had the ability to predict 
what was going to happen, and they certainly did not. So notice 
in 48 at verse 3, I have declared the former things from the beginning. 
They went forth from my mouth, and I caused them to hear it. 
Suddenly I did them, and they came to pass, because I knew 
that you were obstinate, and your neck was an iron sinew, 
and your brow a bronze. Even from the beginning I have 
declared it to you. Before it came to pass, I proclaimed 
it to you, lest you should say, my idol has done them, and my 
carved image and my molded image have commanded them." See what 
he says? I have told you what I'm going 
to do so that when it comes to fruition, you don't give the 
credit to Baal. You don't give the credit to 
Asherah. You don't give the credit to the government. Rather, you 
understand that the Yahweh who spoke it is the God who is able 
to execute it. In fact, turn back to chapter 
46. Not the same emphasis, but a very similar sort of a thing. Notice in 46a, remember this 
and show yourselves men. Recall to mind, O you transgressors. Remember the former things of 
old, for I am God and there is no other. I am God and there 
is none like me. Well, what distinguishes him 
from the others? What differentiates the true 
and living God from the fake, from the dunghill deity? What 
distinguishes Yahweh from Baal, from Asherah, from Moloch? Well, here it is, verse 10. So 
going back to John's gospel in chapter 13 at verse 19, do you 
hear what Jesus is saying? Jesus says very specifically, 
now I tell you before it comes. You're not gonna be caught off 
guard. You're not gonna slap your forehead and say, wow, I 
can't believe somebody actually sold the Savior out for 30 pieces 
of silver. You're not gonna be able to do 
that because I've told you what's gonna happen. In fact, he's gonna 
disclose it further in the remainder of our passage this morning. 
But he says, now I tell you before it comes that when it does come 
to pass, you may believe. And not just some sort of vague, 
undefined belief, just want you to believe. but that you may 
believe that I am." Now what's behind this statement is Exodus 
chapter 3 and verse 14, the great I am passage. When Moses asks 
God, who shall I say is sending me to them? God said to Moses, 
I am who I am. And he said, thus you shall say 
to the children of Israel, I am has sent me to you. It's the 
name of God that reflects something of the perfection of God vis-a-vis 
his eternality. God is. There's never a time 
when he wasn't, and there never will be a time when he will not 
be. He's always been. He's pure act. There's no movement 
in God. There's no potential in God. 
You say that to your children sometimes. You've got great potential, 
son. Perhaps someday you'll be the 
president. Nobody can say that to God. There's no potential 
in God. He's pure act. And this word 
or this phrase, I am, points to that. It underscores the glory, 
the majesty, the distinctiveness of the true and living God versus 
the idols around Israel, versus the idols around the church, 
versus the idols of our own hearts, versus the idols that constantly 
stand in competition with the true and living God. What distinguishes 
him? He is. Notice in Genesis 1, it 
doesn't argue for the existence of God, it simply assumes it. In the beginning, God. That's 
how the Bible begins. Not, I am Moses, I am the prophet 
of God, and I'm going to give you 15 good reasons why you ought 
to believe in God. I'm not decrying proofs for the 
existence of God. I'm not suggesting that's a bad 
exercise. Not at all. Paul does that in 
Romans chapter 1. He says that the creature leads 
us to the Creator. The effects of the Creator causes 
us to marvel and to understand specifically His eternal power 
and His Godhead and His glory. But the beginning of Genesis 
1 just starts with God. And that's what I think Exodus 
3.14 is pointing to. Eternality, pure act, glory, 
majesty, distinction from all others. He is creator, we are 
creature. It's not like God is just a better 
version of man. It's not like you've got man 
and then angel and then God sort of at the top of that. No, God 
is creator. Everything else is creature. 
We have far more in common with the worm at the level of essence 
than we do with God Almighty. There is a creator-creature distinction. And Exodus 3.14 points to that. So back to our text. Now I tell 
you, predictive prophecy, before it comes, that when it does come 
to pass, you may believe that I am. You'll remember that in 
John's Gospel, we have several places where Jesus uses this 
phrase, I am, with a predicate. Predicate simply means something 
you say about a subject. And there are seven of them in 
John's gospel. Jesus is the bread of life. Jesus 
is the light of the world. Jesus is the door of the sheep. 
Jesus is the good shepherd. Jesus is the resurrection and 
the life. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. And Jesus 
is the true vine. So seven times in John's gospel, 
he gives us this I am with a predicate. I am the bread of life. But there 
are several times in John's gospel where he uses this language I 
am with no predicate. Again, I think we need to hear 
Exodus 3.14 in the background there, such that when Jesus says, 
I am, what's He doing? He's asserting His equality with 
the Father. He is of one being with the Father. He is of the same nature as the 
Father. Remember in the prologue, we 
learn, He's not the Son by creation, He's not the Son by adoption, 
but He's the Son by eternal generation. He is God from God, light from 
light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, being in 
one substance with the Father, through whom all things were 
made. So that's his point here. I give you this predictive prophecy 
concerning the betrayer so that when you see the betrayal happen, 
yeah, you're going to be sad, obviously. You don't want to 
see your friend and your master and your lord and the one that 
you love betrayed into the hands of filthy, wretched sinners who 
are going to crucify him. But you'll also remember that 
I told you this. And as it was supposed to function 
in the days of the prophet Isaiah to affirm and confirm the validity 
of the one speaking it, so it is true here. Let's look at some 
of those other I Am statements in John's gospel just to see 
how Jesus does, in fact, assert his equality with the Father. 
Look at John 4, specifically at verse 25. John 4 at verse 
25, Jesus has been discussing things with the woman at the 
well, the Samaritan woman at the well. She has come to the 
point where she realizes he ain't like other men. He ain't like 
anyone else I've ever heard. When she goes back to her village, 
she says, come and meet a man that told me all things that 
I ever did. I mean, we don't meet those kind of people, do 
we? Hey, I met a guy at Walmart, and he told me all the things 
that I ever did. That just doesn't happen. I met a guy at Bruce's, 
and he was sitting at the table next to us, and he told me all 
things that I ever did. That doesn't happen. Who could tell 
her all things that she ever did? God from God, light from 
light, true God from true God, begotten not made, one in being 
with the Father. Notice in 425, the woman said 
to Him, I know that Messiah is coming, who is called Christ. 
When He comes, He will tell us all things. Jesus said to her, 
I who speak to you am. Now the he there is supplied 
and it's not bad because we don't usually stop a sentence with 
I am. So the he supplied there is legit, 
it's not bad, it's not wicked. But again, what's behind there 
is God's declaration to Moses at the burning bush. Look at 
chapter six, chapter six specifically. Chapter six specifically at verse, 
15, well, we'll drop down. Jesus is walking on the sea. 
Pick up at verse 19. So when they had rode about three 
or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing 
near the boat, and they were afraid. Again, that's common. I was chilling at Cultus Lake, 
and I saw somebody just walking along the lake, not the shoreline, 
but on the water, and they didn't have a visible paddleboard. They 
didn't have some sort of mechanism by which to fake it. I'd be afraid, 
too. You know, when Jesus does things 
in the gospel records, like stopping the wind and the waves, and it 
says the disciples are afraid, you shouldn't go. I wonder why 
they're afraid. Well, because they're standing with a man who 
can talk to the wind and waves and make them stop blowing. I 
would suggest that would be a fearful encounter for us if we happen 
to confront such a fellow in our daily goings-on. So when they had rode about three 
or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing 
near the boat, and they were afraid. But he said to them, 
it is I. Literally, he says, Now when 
you look at the backdrop in terms of the Old Covenant and the Psalter, 
for instance, the book of Job, you see that Yahweh treads the 
waves. You see that Yahweh walks on 
the water. So that these men, when they 
see this, and they're filled with fear, and Jesus says, Again, 
brethren, he is making a very specific declaration concerning 
his nature, concerning the reality that would be later confessed 
by the Nicene Creed, God from God, light from light, true God 
from true God. Look at chapter 8, specifically 
at verse 18. Chapter 8. Verse 18, I am one who bears 
witness of myself. Actually, that's not it. Oh yeah, 
I am one. Same thing, it's ego eimi. I 
am one who bears witness of myself, and the Father who sent me bears 
witness of me. And then look at 24, specifically 
there in chapter 8. Well look at verse 23, you are 
from beneath, I am from above. You are of this world, I am not 
of this world. Therefore I said to you that you will die in your 
sins. For if you do not believe that I am, you will die in your 
sins. See there's a bit of triage or 
hierarchy when it comes to Christian doctrine. Brethren, it's good 
that people understand the last things. It's good that people 
understand the Lord's Supper. It's good that people understand 
baptism. It's good that people understand 
Baptist ecclesiology, Presbyterian ecclesiology, Dutch Reformed 
ecclesiology. All those are good things, but 
all those things can be disagreed upon, and one can still find 
themselves in the marriage supper of the Lamb. But you know what 
you can't get wrong? You can't get wrong God. You 
can't get wrong the triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 
You can't get wrong Christology. Unless you believe that I am, 
what will happen? You will die in your sins. So 
with that in mind, what ought to be the focus in gospel preaching? Gospel preaching. What ought 
to be the focus in terms of our evangelism? Are we out there 
to make more Baptists? I mean, if God happens to make 
them Baptists, we'll take it, but the primary emphasis is to 
call them to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. to see him as altogether 
lovely, to see him as chief among 10,000, to see him as one in 
whom you too can have a part. Remember he says that to Simon 
Peter, if I don't wash you, you don't have any part with me. 
And then we have this scene that we're examining this morning. 
Where's John? John, the beloved disciple, they 
would recline when they were at table. They wouldn't have 
some sort of a chair like we had and a table set up the way 
we did. It was more of a reclining situation 
where there was some intimacy and closeness. The right hand 
would be available to take the food, but there would be an intimacy 
involved. Where do we see John? He's right 
close to the Savior King. Where do we see Judas? He's right 
close to the Savior King. The fact that Jesus dips the 
bread and is able to hand it to Judas indicates that he's 
got some close degree of proximity. Jesus didn't have to throw it 
across the room there. You see, this Jesus is God from 
God, light from light, true God from true God. The one in whom 
there is forgiveness, the one in whom there is a righteousness, 
the one in whom there is salvation. This is why the apostles in the 
book of Acts go everywhere proclaiming Him. They're not out there to 
make Baptists and Presbyterians and Dutch Reform. They're out 
there to call sinners, needy, desperate, hell-bound sinners 
to close with Christ, to believe on Christ, to be saved by Christ, 
to be washed in His precious blood and clothed in His impeccable 
righteousness such that they can one day stand before a thrice 
holy God. See, Jesus is the great I Am, 
and He indicates this over and over and over again. Look at 
verse 28. When you lift up the Son of Man, 
then you will know that I Am. See, on the one hand, when He's 
lifted up on that cross, there's gonna be a whole host of emotion. The disciples are gonna be hurt. 
The women attending Him at the cross, they're gonna be hurt. 
Watching your friend crucified is probably no fun thing. But 
as well, just like the invocation of Psalm 41, just like his emphasis, 
I've told you this so that when it happens you may come to believe 
that I am, guess what else would transpire at the cross? Persons 
would say, like the centurion does, truly this is the Son of 
God. Notice as well, chapter 8 at 
verse 58, and believe you me, the Jews knew precisely what 
he was doing. Verse 57, Then the Jews said 
to him, You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen 
Abraham? Jesus said to them, Most assuredly, 
I say to you, before Abraham was, I am. Then they took up 
stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the 
temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by. Why 
did they pick up stones to throw at him? Because he, being a man, 
made himself equal with God. Because he, being a man, made 
himself equal with the I Am. They couldn't handle that, brethren, 
as far as their law was concerned. This man was a blasphemer, and 
this man deserved to die. 13, 19, same sort of an emphasis 
that we're looking at, but then one other I Am passage that we 
should look at in chapter 18. It's in the Garden of Gethsemane. It's a beautiful scene, not in 
terms of the arrest and the wretchedness and the wickedness and the lawlessness, 
but the revelation of the I Am-ness of the Son of God. Notice specifically 
at chapter 18, verse 5. They answered him. Well, verse 
four, whom are you seeking? They answered him, Jesus of Nazareth. 
Jesus said to them, I am. And Judas, who betrayed him, 
also stood with them. Now when he said to them, I am, 
they drew back and fell to the ground. Huh, that's an interesting 
statement. They drew back and fell to the 
ground. Were these all converted Christians 
that had gone to Sunday school, that had learned the Nicene Creed, 
that had understood Chalcedon, that knew that he was God from 
God? What? No. But when He reveals to them His 
identity as the Great I Am, they draw back and they fall down. Why? Because they're in terror. This is what happens when you 
come into the presence of God Most High. Remember those men 
of Beth Shemesh that just wanted to peer into the Ark of the Covenant? 
How'd that go? Man, how did that work out for 
you? There is a holiness and a majesty 
and a glory about our God, and at times throughout the gospel 
narratives, we see it in the person of our Lord Jesus Christ, 
and these Roman soldiers saw it in the revelation of the fact 
that he was indeed I am, and they draw back and they fall 
to the ground. So back to John 13, Jesus wants 
them to understand who he is. Now I tell you before it comes, 
that when it does come to pass, you may believe that I am. And 
then notice the nature of discipleship. I think he speaks verse 20, one, 
to encourage the disciples, and two, to highlight condemnation 
for Judas. So notice the encouragement for 
the disciples in verse 20. I mean, how would you think? 
You're the 11, and Jesus says, okay, one of you, or no, you're 
the 12, and one of you in the midst of the 12 is going to betray 
me. Honestly, brethren, I would think 
that's not good. He's collected this band of merry 
men to go out with his message, to take it to the uttermost parts 
of the earth, to canvass the world, to call every tribe and 
tongue and people and nation to Israel's God through the Messiah. And in our midst, one out of 
12, there's a traitor? There's a betrayer? How are we 
going to do this? This is going to be tough. I 
mean, we're not talking about teams. We're not talking about 
thousands and millions. This is a real Gideon moment. 
Remember when Gideon is facing the Midianites? And what does 
God say? You got too many troops. You've got to get rid of those 
soldiers. Again, brethren, we read that, 
we know the outcome, but if you're one of those troops, aren't you 
kind of wondering, hey, wait a minute, shouldn't we have more 
people to meet the enemy? Shouldn't we take more guns? 
Shouldn't we have more ammunition? Now God's saying, you know, get 
rid of it. Whittle it down. Get to the bare bones. In fact, 
just grab 300. 300? We've got scads of men here. 
We could certainly clean house. What does Yahweh demonstrate? He doesn't need the numbers. 
He doesn't need our agency. He doesn't need our mediation. He is God Most High. And so in 
this disciple group, as you're looking about you and you're 
wondering which one is it, you might be a little bit shaken. 
So what does Jesus do? He wants to comfort them. He 
wants to encourage them. He wants to let them know that 
once he whittles away this dead branch, The same parameters are 
in play, the same truths obtained, the same reality is theirs, and 
he uses something he uses in the missionary discourse in Matthew's 
gospel in chapter 10 at verse 40. Notice what he says here 
in verse 20. Most assuredly, I say to you, he who receives 
whomever I send receives me, just like in Matthew's gospel. 
It's a beautiful statement. In other words, disciples, you're 
not going on your own. You're not going in your own 
power and in your own strength. You're not going in your own 
authority. You're rather delegates. You're ambassadors. You're the 
keruchs, the preacher. You're the one sent by the king 
for the particular task at hand. And when you go and when you 
function appropriately and accordingly, you've got the authority of the 
king behind you. You have the authority of Christ 
himself. If they receive you, they receive 
me, he says. What do you think that does to 
the 11? Again, they're probably still, you know, I'm not too 
sure about everything here, but I like that, I like that concept, 
I like that reality, I like that his authority backs us. This 
is how he ends the gospel narrative in Matthew 28. Go therefore, 
make disciples of all the nations, baptize those disciples that 
you made in all the nations, in the name of the Father, the 
Son, and the Holy Spirit. Teach them to observe all things 
that I have commanded you, and what? Lo, I am with you even 
to the end of the age. You're not going about this on 
your own. Isn't this what God does with Joshua? Go into the 
land, Joshua. Vanquish the Canaanites, Joshua. 
Dispossess the land. But you're not going alone. You're 
not going to be by yourself. You're not going it solo. God 
promises his presence to Joshua in that campaign against the 
Canaanites. Well, so does Jesus in our present 
campaign against the spiritual Canaanites that need to be vanquished 
from the land. We do that through the proclamation 
of the gospel and the hope that they'll be transferred from the 
kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of the son of his love. 
Joshua went in and broke heads. Joshua went in and cut throats. 
Joshua went in and did things that is not our prerogative to 
do in this new covenant era. We follow Jesus, our Joshua, 
and he calls us to make disciples, to baptize those disciples, to 
trust in his presence and power. As church, now there might be 
that for some other agency, but as church, we don't wield the 
sword. We rather preach the word and 
we pray for the salvation of sinners, and for the advancement 
of the cause of Jesus. So he encourages them, most assuredly 
I say to you, truly, truly I say to you, amen, amen I say to you. 
He who receives, whomever I send receives me. And then notice 
the condemnation for Judas. Judas is still present. Judas 
is here, not here, but there. What do you think this is gonna 
do? And he who receives me receives him who sent me. What's the flip 
side? He who rejects me rejects the 
one who sent me. We see that in John 5. You honor 
the son just as you honor the father. You see it in John 8 
as well, that if there's love for, adoration to, and ownership 
of the father, then you have the son. But to deny the son 
is a rejection of the father. So perhaps here he's speaking 
specifically, again, to encourage them, you've got me, you've got 
the father, but to condemn the betrayer in their midst. You 
really need to think about what you're doing here, pal. You really 
need to think about selling your soul for 30 pieces of silver. 
You need to think about the fact that you are rejecting the God 
of heaven and earth for 30 pieces of silver. You know, we look 
at that and we say, what chump change? Why would he do that? I mean, here he is, right in 
the disciple group. Why is that? Really, is that 
a question that you have? Because people are doing it all 
the time around us. You might be doing it. May not 
be 30 pieces of silver, but it may be a particular sin. May 
not be 30 pieces of silver, but it may be, you know, several 
hundred million dollars. It might be some drugs, it might 
be some relationships or illicit relationships. Why would we go 
away from our blessed God to chase that which is not God? 
That's the perennial issue, isn't it? That's what the Son of Man 
came to address. We're sinners, we're messed up, 
we're as bad as you can possibly get. We are defiled. We are unholy. You set before 
us the glory of heaven and the pains of hell. Guess where we 
default every single time, unless God intervenes? Always hell. We'll always choose that which 
is contrary to our blessed God and Savior. So when we look at 
Judas here, we ought to take a little bit of look at ourselves. 
What am I forgoing or what am I taking or pursuing instead 
of Jesus? What is that fruit? What is that 
benefit? What is that piece of joy that 
I'm cleaving to or clinging to instead of coming to the Savior? 
instead of believing on the Lord Jesus Christ. We already know 
that Judas is a traitor. He's been announced in 6, 70, 
and 71. We see that in John chapter 12 at the supper a couple days 
before the Passover, he's already niggling about money. He's like, 
well, what are we going to do with that money? We should make 
sure we have all that money. We should want to make sure that 
we don't waste it on lavish expenses like the Savior and his glory. 
I mean, again, who does that, right? Could you imagine being 
that guy in the group? You're with the master, somebody 
lavishes glory upon him, and you're the one who complains? 
Not because you're fastidiously committed to making sure the 
accounting is upright and every penny is accounted for. No, because 
you're a thief, and you want to steal what has been given 
to the service of the master. The guy's a wretch. He's a bad 
guy. When it says that Satan entered 
him, I don't think we interpret that like the demon possessions 
we see elsewhere in scripture. You remember the one who the 
boy was thrown on the ground and he went into violent convulsions? 
Or you've got the demoniac legion by the tombs? I don't think that's 
what's going on. We've already got the devil plying 
him, setting before him this allure of money, this allure 
of stuff. He's already on this path. He's 
already got a predilection to a traitorous spirit. So the devil 
enters him, it simply confirms where he'd already been heading. 
And that brings us to consider that, the identification of the 
betrayer, specifically in verses 21 to 30. We'll keep this short 
so that we don't keep you long. Notice first the declaration. 
In verse 21, when Jesus had said these things, he was troubled 
in spirit. Why? Because he had just said 
these things. We see a troubled spirit at the 
graveside of Lazarus in John chapter 11. Do you know what 
this shows us? True humanity. Just as He is 
God from God, light from light, true God from true God, so He 
is man from man, true man from true man. What is true of humanity, 
accepting sin, is true of our blessed Savior. In fact, Cyril 
makes the observation, after eating his bread, he lifted his 
heel against him. He esteemed not honor, not glory, 
not the law of love, not the reverence owed to Christ as God, 
nor anything else having to do with him. Instead, he was focused 
only on the defiled denarii of the Jews. He sold his own soul 
for just a few pieces of silver, and he handed over innocent and 
righteous blood to the hands of polluted murderers. The reason 
for Jesus being troubled then makes perfect sense. Jesus announces 
this, Jesus again, true God from true God, but true man. When 
Jesus is in the Garden of Gethsemane and he's sweating great drops 
of blood and he prays to the Father, if it is possible, let 
this cup pass from me, nevertheless, not my will but thine be done, 
that's true humanity, brethren. This is true humanity to see 
a troubled spirit in the context of betrayal and a traitor. Right? If you knew that somebody was 
gossiping about you behind your back, you knew that a friend, 
somebody that you ate bread with, was running you down, how would 
you feel? Oh, that's great! No, you'd be 
troubled in spirit. You've got intimacy with this 
person, as Jesus and Judas had. You've got intimacy to the point 
where you're eating together. Intimacy such that you can dip 
a piece of bread and hand it to him, and he's going to lift 
up the heel against you. Of course it's going to promote 
a troubled spirit in the heart of true humanity, and that is 
precisely what we see here. So notice what he says after 
this statement that he's troubled. Verse 21, most assuredly, I say 
to you, one of you will betray me. One of you will betray me. Now, on the heels of this, there's 
a degree of confusion on the part of the disciples. We see 
that in verses 22 to 25. Note their confusion, first of 
all, in verse 22. I think this speaks to three 
things. Notice in verse 22, then the disciples looked at one another, 
perplexed about whom he spoke. What does that indicate? I think 
it indicates that Judas was pretty good at hiding his wickedness. 
Right? I think it also indicates that 
they were pretty charitable. Well, we knew it was Judas. We 
knew it was that guy. We always suspected him. And 
the parallel in Matthew's gospel, what does it say? When Jesus 
says, one of you will betray me. You know what they say? Is 
it Judas? No. They say, is it I? Is it 
me, Lord? They understood what the hymn 
writer would later capture. We're prone to wander, prone 
to leave the God that we love. There's always that suspiciousness 
we maintain about our own hearts, isn't there? We're not too sure 
about all the goings on in there. I mean, for the most part, we're 
happy. We have Jesus, we have his blood, we have his righteousness. 
But man, once in a while, you pull back a little bit of that 
heart and you go, ugh. I kind of wish that wasn't still 
there. It's gross and disgusting. So 
in that context, when he says, one of you will betray me, is 
it I? So Judas could fake it pretty 
well. They were pretty charitable, 
but Jesus didn't treat him any differently. Jesus didn't say, 
you're the pariah. You sit out there with the coats. 
You make sure nobody comes in with guns. You just secure the 
perimeter. I think that's kind of owing 
to their confusion. Really? Someone's going to betray 
you? Who's going to do that? What 
manner of man does something like that? Where's the suspiciousness 
on the part of him? Notice as well their question. So this sort of statement between 
23 to 25, John is right there. And later 
John will identify John, John as the beloved disciple who wrote 
the Gospel of John, he wrote the Epistles of John, and he 
wrote the Book of Revelation. And on several occasions he describes 
himself as being the beloved disciple, the one whom Jesus 
loved. Now according to his divinity, Jesus doesn't love one more than 
the other. That would be impossible. Every object of God's love is 
most loved. There's no increase, there's 
no diminishment. That's what we celebrate in the doctrine 
of divine impassibility. But according to his humanity, 
he had an affinity for John. He really loved him. That's okay. That's all right, and I don't 
have to be everybody's BFF. There's a doctrine of friendship. 
When Jesus went into key situations, he took Peter, James, and John. 
I hope the other guys weren't there. That's not fair, he never 
takes us. That's our kind of inclination, isn't it? Isn't 
that sad, pathetic? Oh, I don't want to not be the 
bestest friend. Why not? Aren't you happy that 
people have found somebody that they want to share their life 
with? That's okay. There's a doctrine of friendship 
in the Bible. And that John is able to refer 
to himself as the one whom Jesus loved. I don't think it's arrogance 
on his part. He's not saying, you know, I'm 
the mighty disciple that he loved more than anybody else. No! There 
was this affinity. There was this intimacy, this 
closeness that they shared. And that's okay, brethren. That's 
perfectly acceptable. That's not sin. I mean, Jesus 
is holy, harmless, undefiled. He doesn't sin. So there is this 
sort of question. So Peter basically nods to John 
and says, find out who it is. And then the question is posed 
by John in verse 25. Then leaning back on Jesus' breast, 
he said to him, Lord, who is it? And then there's a verbal 
response to John. Now based on the rest of the 
context, I think it was a verbal response to John. Wasn't for 
all of them, because it wouldn't make sense. Well, they knew, 
he dips the bread, he hands the bread, it's obviously the guy. 
There's a very specific emphasis on the intimacy involved here. 
John is leaning on the breast of Jesus. And as one commentator 
pointed out, we read that in the West and we kind of think, 
oh, that's kind of weird. But in the Middle East, there's 
a show of friendship that isn't weird between men and doesn't 
underscore or doesn't reveal any sort of hidden things about 
them. No, it's just a different culture. And so there's this 
intimacy that has obtained with John, the beloved disciple, with 
Jesus. So when he answers him, it is he to whom I shall give 
a piece of bread when I have dipped it, the rest of the context 
would indicate that they didn't all hear this, that there's still 
some degree of confusion. But then he actually engages 
in the action, and notice in verse 26, and having dipped the 
bread, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. Now after the 
piece of bread, Satan entered him. Then Jesus said to him, 
What you do, do quickly. That's interesting. So what we 
see in verse 2 is the plan. What we see here is the execution 
of the plan. And as I said, I don't think 
this is your garden variety demon possession where he's going to 
cast him down on the ground, he's going to enter into convulsions, 
and Jesus is going to whack the demons right out of him. He's 
confirmed in his godlessness. He's confirmed in his wickedness, 
as Poole says. So though the devil had formerly 
been moving Judas to this vile act and had his consent to it, 
yet after he had taken this mouthful, the devil plied him with stronger 
motions, impulses, and suggestions. And now he had mastered his conscience 
and hardened his heart. So as he was more prepared for 
the villainy about which he had some thoughts before. So it's 
just showing the deal is sealed at this point. And then when 
Jesus says what he does in verse 27, what you do, do quickly. That's interesting too, isn't 
it? Cyril of Alexandria suspects that Jesus is talking to the 
devil here. Satan entered him, so Cyril says 
he's not talking to Judas at this point, he's talking to the 
devil. I don't know. I'm not saying that's wrong. 
I'm saying it's an interesting take. I think Thomas has an interesting 
take that I think is a bit closer to it. He's giving permission. Remember John 10, 18? Jesus makes it very specific 
that no one takes his life from him. What's Jesus saying when 
he says, what you do, do quickly? He's showing his sovereignty. 
He's showing his control. He's showing his absoluteness. He's showing that he is, in fact, 
the I Am. These are not affairs or events 
that are out of his control. These are not things that have 
sort of gotten away from him. And if we back up to chapter 
12, and even in chapter 13, we read that the hour had arrived. 
Well, what happens during the hour? Well, what happens during 
the hour is that the devil is cast out of this world. What happens at the hour is that 
if I be lifted up, I will draw all men to myself. So Jesus knows 
what's happening. Jesus understands that the arrival 
has come. Jesus tells him, in terms of 
permission, go and do it. Let's do this. Because Jesus 
knows the outcome and what's going to happen consequent to 
his death and resurrection. I think the apostle captures 
something of this in Hebrews 12 too, looking unto Jesus, the 
author and finisher of our faith. Listen to what it says, who for 
the joy that was set before him, the casting out of the devil, 
the drawing all men to himself, who for the joy that was set 
before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has 
sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. I think that 
kind of gets at it. Whether he's talking to the devil 
or not, I don't know. Again, I'm not saying that's 
bad, but I think it's closer to the fact that Jesus is displaying, 
in the midst of this, his hardship, his affliction, his turmoil, 
his trouble, his difficulty. He's in charge. He's in control. All these events are His to accomplish, 
and though the cross is there, and the shame is there, and the 
ignominy is there, on the other side, the salvation of the likes 
of you and I are there. So He endures that. He endures 
those things for the salvation of His people. Again, we've got 
misunderstanding, verse 28. No one at the table knew for 
what reason he said this to him, but they speculated. Some thought, 
because Judas had the money box, that Jesus had said to them, 
buy those things we need for the feast, or that he should 
give something to the poor. So there's still this confusion. 
But now notice, according to verse 30, having received the 
bread, he then went out immediately, and it was night. See, Judas 
has now been cleansed from the disciple group. Their feet are 
clean. Their group is clean. So the 
upper room discourse now is the master to the servant with great 
intimacy, with great love, with great encouragement, and with 
a great help to promote them. in the task at hand, to go to 
make disciples, to baptize those disciples, and then to teach 
those disciples. But just before we close, look 
at that. It was night. That's a historical 
detail to be sure, but doesn't John in his gospel give us a 
lot of parallel between light and dark? A lot of parallel between 
day and night with an ethical sort of a reference. Yeah, it's 
night when Judas goes out. You know, you could see that. 
It's a historical fact. But there's some symbolism going 
on there. In fact, if you back up just 
a little bit in chapter 12, notice in verses 35 and 36. A little while longer, the light 
is with you. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake 
you. He who walks in darkness does 
not know where he is going. While you have the light, believe 
in the light, that you may become sons of light. Verse 44, he who 
believes in me, believes not in me, but in him who sent me. 
And he who sees me, sees him who sent me. I have come as a 
light into the world, that whoever believes in me should not abide 
in darkness. And if anyone hears my words and does not believe, 
I do not judge him, for I did not come to judge the world, 
but to save the world. He who rejects me and does not 
receive my words has that which judges him. The word that I have 
spoken will judge him on the last day." So there is this motif, 
light, good, dark, bad, day, good, night, bad. And so that 
he goes out at night, underscores the power of darkness behind 
him and this mission that he has assumed from the devil having 
entered him to accomplish this wicked deed. Carson says, doubtless 
this is a historical reminiscence, but it is profound theology. 
Even though the paschal moon was shining at the full, Judas 
was swallowed up by the most awful darkness. Judas was heading 
to his own place. But in another way, it was also 
the nighttime for Jesus. It was the power, or the hour 
rather, of the power of darkness. Well, in conclusion, we learn 
a couple of things with reference to Judas and with reference to 
Jesus. Always better to focus on Jesus 
than a Judas, but Judas can be important and helpful for us 
in some other ways as well. Because being a fake, being a 
hypocrite, making a profession, and then living like the devil, 
again, it's in us, brethren. Is it I? It's certainly in us 
to be prone to wander and prone to leave the God that we love. 
It's certainly in us to stumble. It's certainly in us to fall. 
It's certainly in us to have to get up again, have to go back 
to our Savior, have to confess our sin, and plead the advocacy 
of Jesus Christ the righteous. It's there. I know it's there. Not because I see you guys, but 
I see this guy, and it's unfortunate, and it's perplexing. There's 
a big difference between remaining corruption, those struggles of 
the heart, the good that I wanna do, I don't do, and the evil 
I don't wanna do, I find myself doing, such that it brings you 
to that place with the apostle in Romans 7, wretched man that 
I am, who will deliver me from this body of death? Praise God 
for our Lord Jesus. See, when we have that remaining 
corruption, it brings us back to the cross, it doesn't, God 
through his grace and spirit does. That's remaining sin, that's 
a reality. That wasn't Judas' problem. He 
didn't just need his feet cleansed each and every day. He needed 
to be born again. He needed to be regenerated. 
He needed to be saved. He needed the Spirit of God. 
He needed faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. He didn't have that. 
He had the office of apostle, but he didn't have the grace 
of a disciple. And that man stands on these 
pages, wagging his dead, sinful, reprobate finger at all of us, 
causing us to reflect. Why am I here? Am I only here 
because mom or dad makes me come? Am I only here because my husband 
or wife makes me come? Am I here in terms of a profession 
of faith because that's what everybody around me does? Or 
am I here because he's altogether lovely and chief among 10,000? 
Am I here because I want a part in him? I'm here because I wanna 
lay my head on his breast and eat bread with him. Am I here 
for the right reasons? I don't just mean church, I mean 
profession of faith, confessing our great and glorious doctrines. 
Again, Judas had that, Judas had success, Judas came back 
having seen the power of God at work, and yet Judas did not 
have the Lord Jesus Christ. So just a simple question today, 
where are you? Is it remaining corruption that 
you're struggling with? Join the club. How do I fix it, 
pastor? I don't know. When you do, come 
and teach me. Because it's this ongoing situation 
that you see spelled out in Romans 7 and Galatians 5. It's the reality. It's the fact that Simon Peter 
is going to deny his blessed Savior, not to the emperor of 
Rome, but to a servant girl. It's the wretched reality that 
David, when kings go out to battle, stayed behind, sent out Joab, 
and then ended up committing adultery and murder. That's the 
reality of the Christian life. And I'm not minimizing that, 
but I am suggesting, if anyone does sin, we have an advocate 
with the Father, even Jesus Christ the righteous. But if you've 
got reigning sin, You have no desire for Jesus, no faith in 
Jesus, no love for Jesus. What's the answer? The answer 
is to come to Jesus. Lord, to whom shall we go? You 
have the words of eternal life. He's able to heal the heart even 
of the I don't necessarily want you sort of a sin. he's that 
glorious and that wondrous and that good all who come to me 
i will in no wise cast out so learn from judas hypocrisy bad 
learn from jesus there is forgiveness with him that he may be feared. He is the great I am. He is the 
divine being. He is the one in whom there is 
forgiveness and a full on righteousness that avails with his father in 
heaven. Come to him in faith and you'll 
have everlasting life. Well, let us pray. Our gracious 
God and our Holy Father, we thank you. Though a very difficult 
passage on the one hand as it represents our race, our humanity, 
our personhood in a very negative light, but on the other hand 
it shows the supremacy, the glory, and even the goodness of our 
Lord Jesus. Once he gets rid of the traitor, he deals very 
intimately and kindly with his disciples. I pray, Father, that 
all over this earth today, as the gospel goes forth, you would 
be pleased to draw many out of darkness into marvelous light, 
confessing faith in Jesus our Lord. And we pray in his most 
blessed name, amen. Well, we'll stand and close our 
worship this morning by singing number 572. 572. Again, we'll stand as we sing. You. Grace of the Lord Jesus Christ 
and the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you 
all, amen. Thank you, Father, for such a 
wonderful Savior. Thank you for the Son of your 
love, your only begotten Son. We thank you for his life, death, 
resurrection, and pray, God, that you would cause us to reflect 
on this each and every day and stand in light of Calvary's cross. 
And we ask this through Jesus Christ, our Lord, amen. You may 
be seated for a brief time of meditation.