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You want proof Judas was once saved? Here it goes, i know you will still not believe, cause you dont want to, but i will post a short part of my proof.
JUDAS ISCARIOT WAS A DISCIPLE
John 12:4
Then saith one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot
To be a disciple of Christ you must be saved, you must already be a child of God in God's family.
A disciple is called out from among the saved. And not every child of God is a disciple. A disciple is not happy with just being saved, but instead, he desires to go on further knowing the Lord's will for his life. He is "growing in grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ" in 2 Peter 3:18. He continues in the words of Christ and is getting to know the truth which sets him free from the power of sin. A disciple has a hunger to obey the commandments of Jesus Christ. His level of commitment is higher than that of a normal Christian who attends church only on Sundays.
Judas Iscariot was a disciple! That is what the Bible says!
DISCIPLESHIP IS CONDITIONED ON OBEDIENCE
Luke 14:26-27
26 If any [saved] man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. 27 And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.
The word "hate," in Luke 14:26, is a term that means preference. It doesn't mean that we hate our family with bitter animosity, but rather, it means we place our allegiance to Christ and His will over all close family relationships. He has the first place in our lives. That is being a disciple. Judas was a disciple. He obeyed this passage. He was a follower of Jesus Christ. Therefore, I believe, he was a saved man. He was a Jew that believed in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And he also believed that Jesus was the Christ, the Jewish Messiah.
Judas was not only a disciple of Jesus Christ but he was chosen by the Lord, out of all His disciples, to fulfill a unique ministry as one of the twelve apostles.
JUDAS WAS ONE OF THE TWELVE
Luke 6:13-16
13 And when it was day, he called unto him his disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles; 14 Simon, (whom he also named Peter,) and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, 15 Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called Zelotes, 16 And Judas the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, which also was the traitor.
John 6:71 He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon: for he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve.
The ministry of the twelve apostles was unique and different from our ministry today. How? They were taught directly by Jesus Christ and they followed Him around the land of Israel. Also, in 2 Corinthians 12:12, they were given special power and authority to perform signs, wonders, and miracles in order to give them credibility that God was with them, and that Jesus was truly the Christ. Judas was part of this elect group of men. Peter says in Acts 1:17 that "For he was numbered with us and had obtained part of this ministry."
I think it is very significant that the Lord Jesus Christ called Judas His friend.
JESUS CHRIST CALLED JUDAS HIS FRIEND
Matthew 26:50
And Jesus said unto him, Friend, wherefore art thou come? Then came they, and laid hands on Jesus, and took him.
How was he Jesus's friend at one time? This proves at one time, he was NOT Jesus's enemy![/I]In the Old Testament Psalms we have a prophesy about Judas. It is actually a double reference. It also refers to Ahithophel who was one of King David's closest counselors in his kingdom. He ended up betraying David though he was his friend.
JUDAS WAS THE LORDS OWN FAMILIAR FRIEND
Psalm 41:9
Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me.
The Lord quoted this Psalm in John 13:18 as being fulfilled through Judas, "I know whom I have chosen: but that the scripture may be fulfilled, He that eateth bread with me hath lifted up his heel against me.
To eat bread with the King was an honor that was only given to those who were very close to him.
I also believe that Psalm 55 is a prophesy about Judas.
JUDAS WAS NOT THE LORDS ENEMY
Psalm 55:12-14
12 For it was not an enemy that reproached me; then I could have borne it: neither was it he that hated me that did magnify himself against me; then I would have hid myself from him:
13 But it was thou, a man mine equal, my guide, and mine acquaintance.
14 We took sweet counsel together, and walked unto the house of God in company. What does verse 12 say again? It was NOT his enemy that reproached him! How then was he of the Devil all along??? He wasnt! If he was, he could NEVER have been a friend of Jesus!
The twelve had a close relationship with the Lord. It was a more intimate fellowship than what all the multitudes that followed Jesus had with Him. Jesus ministered to the multitudes but He taught and showed things to the twelve that the multitudes did not see or hear.
The point I want to make about the above two passages is that Judas was very close to the Lord.
JUDAS CAST OUT DEVILS
Matthew 10:1-4
1 And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.
2 Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother;
3 Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus;
4 Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.
This is very important. I want to prove, in spite of traditional teaching, that Judas was not an unsaved man.
He cast out devils!
We have people today that believe they should also follow the apostles ministry by casting out devils. Yet there is no command or formal instruction in the Epistles to do this. Let me make one thing clear, we are never to talk with demons. We can go directly to the Sovereign God of the Bible and address Him. We talk to God, not to demons. The people who are involved in casting out demons in the church today place their experience above the Scriptures. They have stories after stories after stories. And if someone gives you a personal experience as his authority, you cannot debate it. By the way, the Lord gave us a warning in Matthew 7:22-23 about being involved in casting out demons. Unfortunately, most people believe that this warning is addressed to unsaved people. And that is merely an excuse to avoid accountability before God.
The Lord gave Judas, along with the other apostles, power over demons, a supernatural ability to heal all manner of sickness and disease, and even power to raise the dead. This was supernatural.
If Judas was unsaved, then Jesus Christ gave an unsaved person the very abilities which prove that the apostles were Christ's messengers. By the way, if Judas was unsaved and owned by Satan then how did he cast out devils?
SATAN CANNOT CAST OUT SATAN
When Jesus was accused of casting out devils by devils, He replied by saying:
Matthew 12:26
And if Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against himself; how shall then his kingdom stand?
This is a rhetorical question. Satan's kingdom will not stand if Satan casts out Satan! The point is that Judas could not cast out devils if he was under the ownership of Satan. There is no way Jesus or Judas could cast out devils by devils.
JUDAS SAW AND HEARD
Matthew 13:16-17
16 Jesus said, But blessed are your [the twelve] eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear. 17 For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.
Remember that Judas saw the unique, earthly ministry of Jesus Christ. He was right there when Jesus raised the dead son of the widow of Nain in Luke 7. He saw Christ feed the 5,000 with five barley loaves and two small fish. He saw Him walk on water. He heard the deep teachings of Jesus Christ. As an apostle of Christ, he had MORE LIGHT given to him than any other person that has ever lived. And with more light comes more accountability and greater judgment. The apostles were walking with God in the flesh. The light they had been given was BRIGHT!
Christ brought a higher accountability
Matthew 12:41
Jesus said, The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation [the generation that witnessed the earthly ministry of Christ], and shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater [Jesus Christ] than Jonah is here [and there was no repentance].
The point I really want to make here is that when Jesus appeared on the earth among men He brought them a higher accountability. He was the final revelation which is greater than all the prophets put together (Hebrew 1:1-2). The generation of Jews, to whom He came, was highly accountable.
Jesus Christ came to the Jews preaching the message of the Kingdom (Matthew 4:17). It was a restricted message (Matthew 10:5-6). Therefore, it was not a message of getting saved or becoming a Christian, but instead, it was a message for the saved Jews of that generation. His message was with repentance and baptism. That is the reason the Bible says that He came to His own (John 1:11) and that He was a minister of circumcision in Romans 15:8. His message was for the already saved. If that is not understood, then confusion in the Gospels will abound.
I really want you to understand that the generation to whom Christ came was made highly accountable.
Remember what Jesus said in Matthew 13:16-17 "blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear. 17For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them."
Much is given much is required
Luke 12:47-48
47 And that servant, which knew his lords will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. 48 But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.
Notice that Jesus is talking about "that servant." He is the same servant who was mentioned in verse 43. In that verse he was "blessed" for being faithful, but if that same servant would turn away from the truth, from knowing his lords will," he would be in trouble.
We are talking about accountability of a servant. The penalty will be greater if one falls away from knowing his Lords will, from preparing himself, or from doing according to the will of the Lord.
If you are given much, just as Judas was, there is going to be much required from you by the Lord!
sometimes It is better Not to know
If the Lord grants you understanding of His truth, yet you fall away or turn from that truth, it would have been better had you not known it at all. This is a very sad thing to witness.
2 Peter 2:21
For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.
2 Peter 2 is not written to the Mormons or the Jehovah Witnesses. It was written to those who "had known the way of righteousness." This means that they had come into the knowledge of the truth but had turned away from it! The only one that can do that is a saved man! It would have been better for them not to have known the truth. Why? Because they are going to be judged according to the truth they had. There will be no mercy for them at the Judgment Seat of Christ. They can only expect the terror of the Lord. Hebrew 10:31 is a trustworthy saying: "It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God."
Someone told me recently that "the outer darkness" mentioned in three parables in the Gospel of Matthew, is addressing unsaved Jews. He also said that the outer darkness is never mentioned in the Epistles. Therefore, it is not something Christians have to fear about during the millennial kingdom.
Well, he hasn't read 2 Peter 2:17. The darkness mentioned in that passage is for the age to come. Peter is not talking to the Jews in the tribulation period. Rather, he is talking to Christians who apostatize through false teaching. It is amazing what people will do to avoid and escape accountability! They plainly twist the Scriptures to their own destruction according to 2 Peter 3:16.
JUDAS WAS A TRAITOR
Luke 6:16
And Judas the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, which also was the traitor.
The word "traitor" refers to a person who violates or goes against that which has been trusted to him. A traitor commits treason. Judas committed treason against the Lord by siding with the enemy. He knew the truth yet he held it down and went against it.
Judas was trusted with a unique ministry and he had a unique choice. He departed or fell from that ministry.
TRAITORS IN THE LAST DAYS
Did you know that in the last days there will be more traitors?
2 Timothy 3:1-2, 4
This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.2 For men shall be... 4 Traitors, heady, high minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
The word "traitor" is also associated with apostasy which means to stand away from. It is used in the New Testament for the word divorcement. That means that one has to be married in order to be divorced. The same is true with apostasy. It is not for the unsaved, but rather for the saved. A person has to be in the faith before he can walk away from it. Yes, Christian people can and do apostatize!
Judas was a traitor---He divorced himself from Christ! How can he be a traitor if he were never with Jesus? NO one and I mean NO ONE can betray an enemy! They at once were true friends my brothers and sisters!
Amen, Praise God!
Joe
www.arkwebshost.com/biblestudies/joevberry3/