Impending Doom - Matt 17:22-23; Mark 9:30-32; Luke 9:44-45

After casting out the demon from the man’s only son, Jesus and his disciples slip out of wherever they are and head back to Capernum, as Mark says, “and he would not that any man should know it. For he taught his disciples.” JTC speculates that Jesus probably took lesser known roads so that he could have private time with the apostles that would be taking over the ministry in just a few short months. Also let’s remember that many of his apostles were from Capernum and they were probably anxious to get home and see their families. The main message that he taught them on the way home is, “The Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of men.” Matthew is the only account where Jesus is recorded as foretelling his betrayal. I don’t know why it bothers me so much, but there is a thought process that I go through because the fate of Judas Iscariot. I have heard it said that Judas is a son of perdition, and that really bothers me because of what I know perdition to be. We know that in order to be a son of perdition one has to have a full understanding of all universal light and truth and then after having that understanding, reject it all. It’s hard for me to believe that any one in this mortality can have that fullness of understanding and make a choice determining their eternal fate with only what we’ve learned here, regardless of whether it was through one of the dispensations or at the feet of Jesus himself. I guess it’s such a difficult concept to accept because I feel that I’ve been in Judas’ place before, committing massive betrayal against the Savior. And unlike Judas, it wasn’t one terrible event but I betrayed him over and over again, still to this day I do things that I know I shouldn’t do, and to me, regardless of whether or not I identified the Savior to a group of guards or just make mistakes that I know I shouldn’t, the betrayal is the same, the pain is the same, the ransom paid is the same.

Honestly, the people knew who Jesus was, they didn’t need a member of His inner circle to identify him for arrest, they could have figured out who it was, it wouldn’t have been that hard. That Judas offered to arrange a location and identification for arrest was helpful, but not necessary for the high priests. We know that Jesus gave his life of his own free will, and that when Judas betrayed Him was the perfect time according to God’s will. Judas could have betrayed Him all day long, but if Jesus hadn’t allowed himself to be arrested and crucified, nothing Judas could have done would have made it happen. As much as Judas followed Jesus, ate with him, lived with him in all manner of circumstances, for several years, I too have sat at the feet of those who testified of Christ and had hate in my heart. The words and testimony don’t matter if your heart is not open to receiving them. Did Judas make a mistake? Of course, there’s no denying that, but does that qualify him for eternal damnation? Only if he refuses to forgive himself and accept the Savior’s forgiveness. This is going to sound stupid but sometimes I think about the conversations that I would have with a famous, or in Judas’ case, infamous person about their crimes on the other side of the veil. I would imagine saying something to the still grief-stricken Judas like, “He knew you were going to do it, he could have stopped it at any time, it would have happened anyway, he’s clearly over it, let him help you forgive yourself. He still wants to be friends.” There’s something empowering about knowing that the person you wronged has forgiven you and still wants a relationship.

Finally, the fact that right after Jesus was arrested, Judas tried to return the money and then hanged himself, indicates to me that he knew what he had done was wrong, and not only that he knew it was wrong, but that it caused him such torment that he couldn’t live this life anymore. If Judas had in fact understood all truth, and still rejected Jesus, he would have known that when he died he would be in a world of hurt, he would have recognized that this life would be the only time he would have had a chance at pleasure and so he would have taken his money and lived it up as best he could until he went to the grave kicking and screaming. But no, Judas rushed to his date with destiny, and I’ve often wondered if he was waiting at the veil for Jesus when he got there. The fact that he took upon himself enough blame for the Savior’s death to kill himself over the guilt, indicates that he couldn’t have understood the Savior’s true mission and destiny.

One of the church manuals says, “President Joseph F. Smith wrote about whether or not Judas is a son of perdition, after first referring to Doctrine and Covenants 76:31-37,43, which describes the knowledge that must be understood and then rejected by those who become sons of perdition: ‘that Judas did partake of all this knowledge- that these great truths had been revealed to him- that he had received the Holy Spirit by the gift of God, and was therefore qualified to commit the unpardonable sin, is not at all clear to me. To my mind it strongly appears that not one of the disciples possessed sufficient light, knowledge nor wisdom, at the time of crucifixion, for either exaltation or condemnation; for it was afterward that their minds were opened to understand the scriptures, that they were endowed with power form on high; without which they were only children in knowledge, in comparison to what they afterwards became under the influence of the Spirit.” This was so comforting to me, because if Judas could lose his salvation because of his role in the betrayal of the Savior, then why couldn’t I lose mine for any of my sins. Let’s go over what we know:

Perdition is a choice.Jesus has said that there is nothing that anyone can do that can’t be forgiven.Sometimes a betrayal cements loyalty.

 
I wouldn’t be at all surprised if we got to the next life and found Judas a spiritual giant leading others to Christ. The reason that I have so many emotions concerning this is because I consider myself to be a “Judas” and if he can be saved then maybe I can too.

Jesus continues teaching his disciples, “And they shall kill him, and the third day he shall be raised again.” He’s trying to prepare the apostles for the time, soon coming, when he won’t be with them anymore. It’s important that he notes not only his impending doom, but also the resurrection, because really, that’s what the climax of human history is. A couple of years ago the church released a video and hashtag for Easter called #becausehelives. I thought that this was stupid because it felt too long and involved. I thought “why not just say #helives, it’s easier to remember.” But the word “because” gives the statement so much more meaning. If we were to say that “He lives,” we can imply that Jesus is alive, that he was indeed risen from the dead after he was executed. While it means the same thing, the connotation is different. The simpler “he lives” give the reader a feeling of detachment, “yes, he lives but what does that have to do with me.” It’s a closed statement that is completely confined to itself, whereas “Because He lives” begs the question, “because he lives… what?” It’s not enough for him to just be alive, lots of people are alive and that doesn’t impact me at all. Because Jesus lives, I can be happy, we can live as families forever, we can grow spiritually and be comforted in all circumstances, we can heal, we can serve, we can love, and all this because he lives. The difference in meaning between these two statements takes an aloof, disengaged supernatural concept, and creates a personal, compassionate deity with a plan for our lives.

Mark and Luke both note that the disciples “understood not this saying, and it was hid from them that they perceived it not: and they feared to ask him of that saying.” JTC gives excellent insight into the disciples lack of understanding, saying, “We read with some surprise that the apostles still failed to understand… The thought of what the Lord’s words might mean, even in its faintest outline, was terrifying to those devoted men; and their failure to comprehend was in part due to the fact that the human mind is loath to search deeply into anything it desires not to believe.”