The Characteristics of Hypocrisy (Judas Iscariot)

The twelve apostles included "Judas Iscariot, the one who betrayed Him" (Matt. 10:4).

Hypocrisy is a spiritual cancer that can devastate lives and destroy ministries.

On a recent trip to New Zealand I learned that sheepherders there use specially trained castrated male sheep to lead other sheep from holding areas into the slaughtering room. Those male sheep are appropriately called "Judas sheep." That illustrates the commonness with which we associate Judas with deception and death. Pretending to be a friend of Jesus, Judas betrayed him with a kiss and became for all time and eternity the epitome of hypocrisy.

Several characteristics of spiritual hypocrisy are clearly evident in Judas's life. First, hypocritical people often seem genuinely interested in a noble cause. Judas probably didn't want the Romans to rule over Israel and he saw in Christ an opportunity to do something about it. He probably had the common misconception that Jesus was immediately going to establish His earthly kingdom and put down Roman oppression.

Second, hypocritical people demonstrate an outward allegiance to Christ. Many of those who followed Jesus in the early stages of His ministry deserted Him along the way (John 6:66). Not Judas. He stayed to the end.

Third, hypocritical people can appear to be holy. When Jesus told the disciples that one of them would betray Him, none of them suspected Judas. Even after Jesus identified Judas as His betrayer, the other disciples still didn't understand (John 13:27-29). Judas must have put on a very convincing act!

Fourth, hypocritical people are self-centered. Judas didn't love Christ—He loved himself and joined the disciples because he thought he could gain personal prosperity.

Finally, hypocritical people are deceivers. Judas was a pawn of Satan, whom Jesus described as a liar and the father of lies (John 8:44). Is it any wonder that his whole life was one deception after another?

Judas was an unbeliever, but hypocrisy can also thrive in believers if its telltale signs are ignored. That's why you must guard your motives carefully, walk in the Spirit each day, and immediately confess even the slightest hint of hypocrisy.

Ask God to purify your love for Him and to protect you from the subtle inroads of hypocrisy.

How did Mary demonstrate her love for Christ? What objection did Judas raise? What was his motive?

The understanding of the character of Judas Iscariot is, was, and will be problematic for believers.

The struggle deals with internal questions of how and why one of the chosen disciples could think to lead the Lamb of God to slaughter.

I understand it is not the act of leading Jesus to his enemies, it is the ‘thought’, the ‘thinking’ to do so.

Many might resolve that Judas was ‘idealistic’ thinking he was somehow chosen to be an instrument to bring a settlement between Jesus and those in power over Israel, and that he was ‘duped’ into doing what he did. But this line of reasoning puts a human spirit into Judas Iscariot whereas the spirit of the Devil is what possessed Judas.

Judas Iscariot had walked with Jesus, talked and listened directly, ate with, dwelt beside, witnessed all signs, wonders, and miracles of Jesus, heard and knew Jesus was the Messiah, yet was possessed willingly by a spirit that hated Jesus, that was jealous of Jesus and sought to subjugate Jesus to its will pulling Jesus into the darkness of its kingdom just as it had done to Adam, the first man. Jesus was the Second Adam, the perfect Adam although Jesus is declared to have been there with God in the beginning.

Judas then was an instrument of the Devil.

That Judas Iscariot hung himself is not an act of remorseful thinking, of self-condemnation, of inability to accept what he had done or had been led to do. No, the suicide of Judas was the Devil killing the flesh again of those whose spirits he had consumed. It was the act of snuffing out the Spirit of Life, the Will and Creation of God.

Only the spirit of a non believer could do what Judas did. A believer would repent, would cast themselves to the ground and cry out in torment “I HAVE SINNED!” pleading for forgiveness and then enter a process of reconciling, remission, and healing.

But not Judas.

Judas was the Son of Perdition, the Devil incarnate, the opposite of Jesus.

Is it amazing that one can find spiritual hypocrisy in others, namely Judas Iscariot, but fail to mention the hypocrisy of their religious dogma?

How do protestant religions ignore God’s Word and substitute man’s word?

For the most part, they ignore (or partially ignore):

1. That Jesus established His visible Church and appointed Peter to build His Church and gave him and his successors the keys to the kingdom of heaven on earth and the duty to bind and loose
2. That Jesus established 7 sacraments: Baptism, Eucharist, Confession, Confirmation, Marriage,
Holy Orders and Anointing of the Sick.
3. That Jesus established the Sacrament of the Eucharist as His Body and Blood as food and drink for our salvation.
4. Purgatory as a condition to cleanse our venial sins before entering Heaven.

They follow man-made religious dogma:

1. Assume that faith alone “sola fide” is sufficent.
2. Assume that “sola scriptura” was taught by Jesus and the Apostles.
3. Assume that “Once saved,always saved” was taught by Jesus and the Apostles.

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