Episode 1986: Betrayal and Arrest - Judas betrays with a Kiss - Part 7

This is the 7th of the 22 statements that Christ made leading up to His death.

And this comes from Luke 22:48: "Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?"

Did you know the name or word Judas is actually listed in the Merrium-Webster dictionary with three definitions:
a: the apostle who in the Gospel accounts betrayed Jesus
b: a son of James and one of the twelve apostles
And TRAITOR
especially : one who betrays under the guise of friendship

Imagine that being your legacy. There is a lot of uncertainty when it comes to understanding exactly who Judas was. What do we actually know about him as a man?

Pope Benedict XVI in a sermon delivered in Vatican City in March of 2006, said in reference to Judas, "We ask ourselves why Jesus chose this man and put His trust in him. ... Even more uncertain is the mystery concerning his eternal fate."

Pope Benedict continued, "Why did he betray Jesus?" Some people highlight the question of his greed for money. Others favor a messianic explanation: Judas was disappointed to see that Jesus' plans did not include the political-military liberation of his country."

The point is, Judas belonged to the group of those whom Jesus had chosen as companions. Just what made Jesus choose this man and trust him? Perhaps because Jesus knew of Judas’ betrayal, he WANTED to make him one of his own, love him and treat him as the other apostles so that Judas might actually change his mind? Or did Jesus HAVE to choose Judas so that in the end he would ultimately understand and suffer the gravity of his sins?

John says in chapter 13: 21-27, “Jesus informed his disciples during the Last Supper that one of them will betray him. When they asked who it would be, Jesus said, ‘It is the one to whom I give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.’ He then dipped a piece of bread in a dish and handed it to Judas…after Judas received the piece of bread, Satan entered into him.”

Judas then went on his own to the priests of the Temple, the religious authorities at the time, and offered to betray Jesus in exchange for money—30 pieces of silver, as specified in the Gospel of Matthew. Like the Gospel of John, the Gospel of Luke also cited Satan’s influence, rather than mere greed, as a reason for Judas’s betrayal. John, however, made clear that Judas was an immoral man even before the devil got into him, saying: He kept the “common purse,” the fund that Jesus and his disciples used for their ministry, and stole from it.

Whatever his motives, Mark says in his gospel 14:44-46, Judas led soldiers to the Garden of Gethsemane, where he identified Jesus by kissing him and calling him “Rabbi.”

What Matthew’s gospel says 26: 46-49
Rise, let us go: behold he is at hand that will betray me. 47 As he yet spoke, behold Judas, one of the twelve, came, and with him a great multitude with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priests and the ancients of the people. 48 And he that betrayed him, gave them a sign, saying: Whomsoever I shall kiss, that is he, hold him fast. 49 And forthwith coming to Jesus, he said: Hail, Rabbi. And he kissed him.

Padre Pio’s interpretation of the same moment in his writing in the Agony of the Garden)
He sees first Judas, His disciple, loved so much by Him, who sells Him for just a few coins; who is about to approach the Garden to betray Him and give Him over into the hands of His enemies. He, the friend, the disciple, whom a little while before He had nourished with His Body and Blood.... (Jesus hoped then that Judas) would repent and be saved. But, no, he goes to his ruin and Jesus weeps over his voluntary perdition.

(Betrayed with a kiss)
Judas would have known where to find Jesus because of the many times Jesus took them to the garden. Judas led them into the garden and right to Christ. In the words of Luke, “He came near Jesus to kiss Him.”
A kiss - a sign of love and friendship. Hm. Sometimes the most wicked acts can be done under the pretense of love. With a kiss, Judas disclosed the identity of Jesus while he pretended to show respect and affection to Him, yet knowing that Jesus knew all - what broke inside Judas at that exact moment?
According to the Gospel of Matthew 27: 3-8, Judas immediately regretted his actions and returned the 30 pieces of silver to church authorities, saying “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” When the authorities dismissed him, Judas left the coins on the floor and committed suicide by hanging himself.

Conclusion
In the aforementioned sermon delivered by the Pope in 2006 he also said, “Even Judas' negative role" is part of God's mysterious plan of salvation, explaining how, "God takes Judas' inexcusable gesture as an occasion for the total donation of the Son for the redemption of the world."

He concluded by saying, “Judas' repentance degenerated into desperation and thus became self-destruction. For us, this is an invitation never to despair of divine mercy." Perhaps this is the way we should remember Judas.

So in conclusion, C.S. Lewis put it this way: “The crucifixion is the best, as well as the worst, of all historical events, but the role of Judas remains simply evil.” We can be compassionate and work inside the simple good of loving our neighbors, or we can be cruel and work inside the simple evil, which, unbeknownst to the evil man, is working out a more complex good. You will certainly carry out God’s purpose,” Lewis continues, “but it makes a difference to whether you serve like Judas or like John.”
Thank you for listening.