In our study through the Gospel of Mark, we've been in now for. Some two years. We come to Chapter 14 to that section. It deals with the betrayal of the Lord Jesus Christ by Judas Iscariot. The word infamy. We is defined as quote the state of being well known for some bad quality or deed. evil reputation brought about by something grossly criminal, shocking, or brutal. The word infamy, of course, was memorialized in a speech, December the 8th, 1941, given by President Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, a speech known as the Day of Infamy speech. And the speech began with these words yesterday, December 7th, 1941, a date which will live in infamy. Here's your word, infamy. That which has an evil reputation or something that's shocking or brutal or even grossly criminal. And that date, of course, lives in the minds and hearts of at least still through my generation, even though I wasn't born at that point. My parents, so there's a direct link to that time through my dad, who fought in that war, and uncles and aunts that were involved in that time frame. It's not only dates that are infamous, but there are people that we say live in infamy. They're infamous people. You think of Hitler, Stalin, Mao Zedong, all brutal, murderous dictators who killed together hundreds of millions of people. They're responsible for their deaths. Closer home on the home front of the United States of America, I would guess they still teach this, I'm not sure, but I'm sure school children still hear the name Benedict Arnold, and that's a name that is a despicable name in the history of the United States. It's a name of infamy because of what he did, what he's associated with. And I suppose among the multi-billion Christians that exist in the world today, Probably the most infamous name is Judas Iscariot. And the most infamous act is the betrayal of Jesus Christ by Judas Iscariot. Of all the deeds, evil deeds and shocking deeds perpetrated on the earth, the hatred, the betrayal, the crucifixion of Christ must reign at the top, at least in our mind. Judas' actions have been described as, quote, the most spectacular sin that has ever happened in the history of the world, end quote. We think of his actions, it's not just a crime against humanity, but he's guilty, I reckon we would call it theoside, of the murder of God himself, Jesus Christ, truly God, truly man. And then there are those that set themselves against God and his anointed one, according to Psalm 2, and they're not satisfied with anything less than his death. Well, as I mentioned in our series that has been started many, many months ago, we come to Mark 14, and last Lord's Day, we focused on verses three through nine, the anointing of Jesus, and we noted how that event, Mark is using a technique that he uses frequently throughout this gospel, and it's called the sandwich technique, where on one hand, Mark will begin a narration, and then that narration will break. And then he'll insert a different event, a different narration, and then on the other side of that, he'll come back, pick up the narration that he began and continue with that. And we see that over and over and over again as we work our way through the Gospel of Mark. Well, we have here this wonderful act of anointing in verses three through nine, an act which Jesus defended and memorialized it. He said, leave her alone. She has done what she could and what she has done will be mentioned and she will be mentioned as far as the gospel is preached in this world. So as long as the gospel goes out, wherever it goes out, this woman will be remembered. She's memorialized. And we also noted that this act was a prophetic act. While it was a glorious and wonderful and loving and caring act, Christ said, it's really a prophetic act. It's a harbinger of my death and my burial. And so that really brought us back to that greater theme that's running in this section of Mark of the death of Christ. Well, we have that event, but Just prior to that event in Mark Chapter 14 verses one and two. We have the Sanhedrin who were plotting to kill Christ, but not not during the Passover, lest it cause an uproar. And then right after that event of the anointing of Jesus in verse number 10, then we read, then Judas is carried. There's your sandwich. You got this desire, this plot to kill Christ. Asserted, then you have the narration of something that really happened days before of Christ anointing at Bethany and then following that he comes back and he picks up that narration of the murder of Christ. Now there's Judas Iscariot. And then sprinkled throughout the rest of the chapter, we have Judas Iscariot and what he did. So he's mentioned in different verses as we work our way through this. Verses 1 and 2, the plot, verses 10 through 11, Judas's decision to betray Jesus and then the actual how he does that is given to us in the chapter. Concerning Judas's decision to betray Christ, Dr. Sproul wrote, quote, Mark goes on to tell us that Judas sought how he might conveniently betray him, verse 11b. He does not simply say Judas sought how he might betray him, but how he might conveniently betray him. It was not enough that he intended to deliver Jesus into the hands of those who would kill him. Not only did he undertake this deed for monetary gain, He also sought to carry it out in a manner that would not inconvenience him. Lo and behold, I want to betray Christ and I want to make money, but I can't do it, I can't be inconvenienced by it. I must do it at a time convenient for me. We have these events and these are polar events. They're stark contrasts between Mary's anointing of Jesus and the plot to kill Christ, and then the betrayal of Christ, that he would be killed. We have Mary's selfless, costly honor of Christ, and contrasted to that, like laying a beautiful diamond, if you would, on a piece of black felt or velvet, then in contrasting to that, we have this despicable act of infamy. of the Sanhedrin and of Judas Iscariot. Also it's interesting, I just want to mention this as I move along and then we'll read some verses and start digging into this, but it's also interesting to contrast the cost. Mary anointed Christ with this pure lard, this precious ointment worth 300 denarii, a year's wages basically. Judas, on the other hand, sells Christ out for 30 pieces of silver, which is a tenth, a tithe, if you please, of 300 denarii. It's, in other words, just about a month's wages. So Judas, he says, okay, his life's worth about 30 pieces of silver. We'll contract for that. So that's what he gets. Meanwhile, Mary anoints his body for burial with an ointment worth 300 denarii. So there's all kind of contrast going on as you begin to look at Mark 14 and realize, okay, we've got, here's the theme, the betrayal and death of Jesus Christ, but let's back up six days, let's look at the anointing, then let's come back, and let's pick up Judas' act, and let's move on now in something of a chronological order as we move through the rest of Mark. So having given you that introduction, I wanna read Mark, I started to read the whole section because really it needs to be read as a group, but for time's sake, I'll break the reading up, but we want to read verses one and two to begin with, and then we'll go to verse 10, and then selected verses after that. Mark chapter 14, verse number one, may we hear God's word. It was now two days before the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread and the chief priest and the scribes were seeking how to arrest him by stealth and kill him. For they said, not during the feast, lest there be an uproar from the people. Now verse number 10. And Judas Iscariot, who was one of the 12, went to the chief priest in order to betray him to them. And when they heard it, they were glad and promised to give him money. And he sought an opportunity to betray him. Drop down to verse number 17. And when it was evening, He came with the twelve and as they were reclining at the table and eating, Jesus said, truly I say to you, one of you will betray me, one who is eating with me. They began to be sorrowful and to say to him one after another, is it I? He said to them, it is one of the twelve, one who is dipping bread into the dish with The Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed. It would have been better for that man if he had not been born. And then we go down to verse 43. And immediately while he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the 12. And with him a crowd with swords and clubs from the chief priest and the scribes and the elders. Now the betrayer had given them a sign saying, the one I kiss is the man. Seize him and lead him away under guard. When he came, he went up to him at once and said, Rabbi. And he kissed him. And they laid hands on him and seized him. But one of those who stood by drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his ear. And Jesus said to them, You come out as against a robber with swords and clubs to capture me. Day after day, I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not seize me. Let the scriptures be fulfilled. And they all left him and fled. And a young man followed him with nothing but a linen cloth about his body, and they seized him, but he left the linen cloth and ran away naked. May God be pleased to bless the reading of his word and may his people say. Let's pray together. Father, we're grateful for your Word and this portion of it. We seek now your favor as we attempt to make it plain in our hearing, to understand its truth, and to seek application from its truth in our lives. Bless your Word, Lord, however it needs to go forth, as a saver of life unto life or that of death unto death. May it be pleasing to Thee and accomplish Your purpose. We pray through Christ our Lord. Amen. It seems like every few years National Geographic or the History Channel comes out with a special about one of the lost Gospels. And of course, they're usually spinoff of movies and books and articles and magazines and newspapers and so forth and so on. And those lost Gospels are known as the Gnostic Gospels. Now the word Gnosis, from which Gnostic comes, it means knowledge. It's particularly a secret or mysterious knowledge that's not generally known. It's a mystical knowledge. So it's this secret knowledge that you can have that leads unto life and salvation. The Gnostics, and that faith I suppose we would define it as, profess that the spirit is good, going back to our lesson this morning, Bible study, that the spirit is good, but the flesh is evil. You can't inherit glory You can't be with God, there's not a resurrection because it's the spirit, it's not the flesh that's important. Thus they reject the humanity, they did reject the humanity of Jesus Christ. That Jesus only appeared to have a human body, He's really not in the flesh, He just looks like He is. And of course then there were those that also deny His deity. Christ really didn't die on the cross. Right before he died on the cross, his deity left him, and it was just his humanity that was there that died. All kind of notions. The Gnostics reject the presence and work of the kingdom of God on earth through the Lord Jesus Christ. We plan shortly to begin a series of study and Bible study on the epistles of John, 1, 2, and 3 John, and one of the things you noticed in John's writings, it seems like he's responding or at least anticipating part of the argument of the Gnostics because he's so insistent that yes, Christ is indeed God, but God has come in the flesh. In fact, in John chapter 1, we read in the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God, the Word was God, verse 14, and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. And we have seen His glory. Glory is the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. And then you open up 1 John, and how does it open up? That which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and we've handled. Jesus Christ, the Word of God, has come in the flesh." And then he will say in 2 John, verse 7, "'For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh, such a one as the deceiver and the antichrist.'" So John is very insistent in his writings. about the reality that Christ did indeed come in the flesh, and that that was God. And God dwelt among us in the flesh. And Christ is the word of God. He is God. Thus, I talked about earlier, theoside. Who is it that these men are angry at? Who is it that these men would kill? God is who they would kill. Well, the Gnostic Gospels, and one of those being the Gospel of Judas, of course, but the Gnostic Gospels claim to have this special information that you don't have, that somehow these books were left out of the canon of scripture. Therefore, you need to read these special Gnostic Gospels and get this mystical knowledge so you can be saved. Sounds like some other religions I've heard too. You know, God's Word's good, it's just not quite complete. So, but we got it here. You know, we've seen it with our rose-colored glasses and translated the hieroglyphics and here you go, we got it for you. Well, the Gospel of Judas, in the Gospel of Judas, it's claimed that Judas and Jesus were best of friends. They were good buds. And that what Judas did, he really did to help Christ out. That he really needed to betray him. And Jesus is the one that came up with the idea to do it with a kiss. But you really need to betray him so he can be crucified and he can become the king. Well, like all heresies, these claims are not biblical. And Judas Iscariot is not a hero. His name lives in infamy. What he did was evil and wicked. Now let's consider Judas Iscariot. Let's consider two or three items about him. First, the name Judas is a common name. Mark 6, verse 3, we read that the brother of Christ, his half-brother basically, he also had a half-brother named Judas. And so we see that Jesus even has a brother with that name. In Luke 6, verse 16, and John 14, verse 22, we read there's another apostle by the name of Judas. He's identified as Judas, the son of James. But there's another, of the 12 apostles, two have the name Judas. So it's a very common name. Then in Acts, chapter nine, after Paul, Saul of Tarsus has been struck blind on the road to Damascus. In Acts nine, Ananias, who God sends to recover Saul's sight, Ananias is sent to the house of Judas, so that Saul may recover his sight. And then in Acts chapter 15, what we often call the Jerusalem Council, verse 22 and verse 32, after the council, as it's closing out, they decide that they will send a prophet by the name of Judas to the Gentiles in Antioch at the church at Antioch to learn about them and preach to them. So they send the prophet Judas to them. So Judas, that name is, New Testament several times there's the name Judas. But the traitor, Judas Iscariot, is distinguished by his surname often, Judas Iscariot. And the word Iscariot probably refers to a region in Judea where he came from, a small town where he came from. It's probably where the surname Iscariot comes from. But if he's not defined as Iscariot, he is consistently defined as the betrayer. Judas, the one who betrayed Christ. Judas Iscariot, the betrayer. And you read this again and again. Matthew 10, 4, Mark 3, 19, Luke 6, 16, John 18, 5. And I'm sure you notice what I just did, but I gave you all the Gospels and they all refer to him and identify him that way as the betrayer. Now, Judas Iscariot also remember was one of 12 apostles. Jesus had many disciples. But he had 12 apostles. And those names were given to us as we read in the Gospels. Judas is one of the 12. Now, what does that mean? Well, that means that Judas lived with and followed, closely followed and was discipled by Christ for three years. It means that Judas the betrayer witnessed and participated in the ministry of Jesus. In fact, he taught himself and performed miracles himself. That's what it means. In his case, Judas the betrayer served as the treasurer for the apostles. As one has noted, Judas was a follower of Jesus, a preacher of the gospel. Judas made a commitment to Jesus, and there's no reason to think that he was anything but sincere in his faith. Like the rest of the disciples, he left everything to follow our Lord. Judas was actively involved in ministry and he was given remarkable spiritual gifts. Judas walked with Jesus for three years. He saw Jesus up close and personal. He directly witnessed the miracles. Judas heard the teaching and preaching of Jesus. With his own eyes he saw the clearest evidence. With his own ears, he heard the finest teaching with his own feet. He followed the greatest example. And yet this man still betrayed Jesus. So much for the idea that was common then and is still common today of somebody that would believe if only enough evidence was there. You go, well, what about Judas, the betrayer? He lived and walked and talked with Christ. He saw mighty deeds. And yet the scripture teaches us he was a thief. And Christ himself would say, have I not chosen you 12? And one of you is a devil? Wow. Well, that's Judas, a snapshot. Now let's come back and let's do a survey of our text. Here's some four or five points I want to lift out very briefly and then move towards some concluding comments. But let's survey the text. So we start with the Sanhedrin's plot, verses one and two. The plot to kill Jesus Christ. You remember how in chapter 13, Jesus is in the, excuse me, 12, 13 was the olive discourse, in chapter 12, how Jesus was in the temple and he taught in the temple and he had these confrontations with these various groups of the Sanhedrin. We've gone through all of that. So they've heard Jesus. They heard him in the temple. They heard him teaching. And you can just imagine, as you read chapter 14, knowing what has just preceded chapter 14, that when they're plotting to arrest him by stealth and kill him, how they're still smarting from the exchanges in the temple, where Jesus has time and again answered their questions really painted them into a corner. So they plot to kill Jesus, but not during the Passover. That will not be a good time. We've talked about this. I'm not going into great detail. The city of Jerusalem has had a tremendous influx because it's Passover. So you go from a very small population now to the estimates of how many people there range, they range wildly. But you go from a small town population, or moderate size at this day, to one that's just exploding with people. And in order to observe the Passover properly, you have to go into Jerusalem. So the place is just filled with pilgrims that have come to observe Passover. So they want to have him arrested, but they've heard the crowd cry, Hosanna. So we can't do this during the Passover when all these people are here, because if we do that, it's going to be mayhem. So let's avoid that. Let's wait till this Passover is over and then we'll get him. We'll work on it. Well, we know that was not God's purpose, that Christ himself is the Lord's Passover, that he himself is the Lord's Lamb, and that even as the lambs were sacrificed in the temple, Christ himself will be sacrificed. He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. So it's God's timetable, it's not the Sanhedrin's timetable. J.C. Ryle writing on this made this comment, he said, There is comfort in all of this for true Christians. They live in a troubled world and are often tossed to and fro by anxiety about public events and I would say private events as well. Let them rest themselves in the thought that everything is ordered for good by an all-wise God. And don't you often run to that truth? Don't you? And your life is you're troubled and you don't know the answers and you're turned upside down. It may be by public events, it may be from within. And I run to the reality that it's an all wise God who's overall and it's set in his order. Oh yeah, they had their plan. But God had another plan. And God's plan will trump. Secondly, verses 10 and 11, Judas's plan to betray Jesus. It looks like that Judas takes the initiative. He's not drafted. It's not that they blackmailed him, got something on him and said, oh, if you don't do this, we're gonna do that. Looks like to me, Judas just sought them out. He took the initiative, he goes to them and says, I can betray him. I knew that they needed that, I don't know. But he's not recruited, he's not groomed, he's proactive. I'm one of the 12, I can do this. Again, quoting from Sproul, Dr. Sproul writes, quote, when we look at this account of the Last Supper, we know that every one of the 12 disciples who sat with Jesus would shortly betray him. Most of them would do so out of fear, weakness, and the pressure of the moment. One of them, however, would betray him by premeditation. He would commit premeditated treason against the king of kings. This treason was in his heart as he broke bread with the Lord. Christ knew that. He called him out on that. Told him, what you do now, you go do it. So even as Judas is sitting there in this most sacred of moments, as Christ is giving the Passover meal and enjoying this very close family meal with his disciples, here sets the traitor in his mind already the 30 pieces of silver, already full of deceit. I will betray you. He's already made the arrangements. Verse 11 says that when Judas talked to the Sanhedrin, they were glad. When they heard it, they were glad. Well, you know, that begs the question, did they really need Judas? So you read the account, and when Christ is in the garden, he comes up to Jesus and he kisses him, calls him Rabbi, and that's the sign, this is him getting Question I have is, did not the Sanhedrin know who Jesus is? The answer to that is, yeah. They knew who he was. In fact, in verse 48 of Mark 14, this is what Jesus said to them. Have you come out as against a robber with swords and clubs to capture me? Day after day I was with you in the temple teaching. These are some of the same guys that he had just had interchange with in the temple with the questions. Now, having said that, their plot is not to take him during Passover because it might upset the crowd and that could cause chaos. And now you think, oh, well, they've got a betrayer and the betrayer knows where he's going to be taking Passover. And the betrayer knows his practice of going to the Mount of Olives and to Gethsemane to pray. This is the perfect place and here is Judas at the table. And Satan has put in his heart what to do. And Christ tells him what you do, do quickly, go Judas. Judas leaves that room, apparently already knowing that Jesus will be going to Gethsemane to pray. And then, so that's factor one. Then you say, well, there's probably some of the, probably had some Roman centurions with them, they probably had some temple guards, and they might not have known who Jesus was, and they did need some sort of identification. Chapter 22 of Luke, the first five verses, Luke explains that Judas could help them arrest Jesus away from the crowd. That's what they're after, and I think that's what's going on. Then we look at Mark 14, verses 17 through 21. We look at the Lord's purpose. Truly I say to you, one of you will betray me, one who is eating with me. He said to them, it is one of the 12, one who is dipping bread into the wine dish, excuse me, into the dish with me, not the wine dish, into the dish with me. For the son of man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the son of man is betrayed. It would have been better for him if he'd have never been born. The plan and the plot belong to wicked men. But the purpose was the Lord's. And the purpose was to save his people from their sins. Imagine sitting down with your family this Christmas. and everybody's there. You have a great meal out in front of you and the family's gathered around the table and you sit at the head of the table and before you have a blessing for the food and give God thanks, you look around at your family and you go, I'm so glad I could have this meal with you. By the way, I was just diagnosed with inoperable terminal cancer. I'll be dead within three weeks. Whoa. that would really be bad. Christ sits down with his disciples. A lot of times you see the picture and you know how art, sometimes, oh art, Christian art can really be deceiving. Were there only 12 people there? Probably more than that, the disciples were there, but it's the apostles that Judas is one of, but There'd have been many more disciples there, but anyhow, he sits down with his family to partake of the Passover. And he looks around him and says, truly, amen. Amen. Very solemn. Amen. I say to you, one of you will betray me. One of you who's eating with me. Now, that would be difficult sobering news. And they began to ask the question, is it I? And every one of them asked the question. Lord, am I the one who's going to do this? I would say that that does acknowledge at least some humility of heart. Because let he who thinks he stand take heed lest he falls. And we never think that I am above or beyond the gravest of sins. So I do admire them. Is it I? Could I do this terrible thing? And the answer is yes. Unless you're kept by the grace of God, yes. Not only can you, but you will. In verses 43 through 45 we have what I call the betrayer proper. In verse 43, immediately after a season of prayer, Judas comes and he identifies Jesus. Judas is identified as one of the 12. In verse 45, we have this incredible paradox where Judas honorably and respectfully acknowledges Jesus Christ, he addresses him, he kisses him in a most customary and affectionate way that this would be normal for a disciple to kiss their teacher in this way. So he comes to him in this very respectful, admirable way. He kisses him and he says, Rabbi, what a awful paradox. On the one hand, showing all of this humility, showing all of this respect, And yet, it's venom. It's just pure venom. Postscript. Then I want to move to our closing, but I want to give you a postscript. And that's Judas' remorse. And somebody's probably asking, well, didn't Judas, didn't he say he was sorry? So, postscript. Matthew 27, verses 3 and following, we find, yes, Judas did, quote, repent, And then he hanged himself. And the money that the Sanhedrin had given him came back to them, and they bought Potter's Field with it because it was blood money. And they couldn't put it in the treasury, so they bought a field to bury people that were not known, criminals and other people, bury them in Potter's Field. In 2 Corinthians chapter 7, there's a very interesting distinction made. And that distinction is between what the Bible calls godly sorrow and worldly sorrow. And it says that worldly sorrow, while it can be genuine, it is genuine, worldly sorrow leads to death. And if ever I think there is a description of worldly sorrow and godly sorrow, we find it right here, when Jesus is carrying it. He says, but godly sorrow, godly sorrow, it makes a person ever so careful and cautious. Yes, they repent, and it leads to godliness. We don't see that with Jesus. Was he sorry? Well, yes, he was sorry. He ought to have been sorry. Maybe it dawned on him finally that what he had done, where shall he run? Nowhere. How can he make amends? He can't. So don't be. distracted or convinced by Gnostic Gospels that will say, oh, well, he was a friend of Jesus and he's got a really special place up there with the Lord because he did a good thing. He did a wicked thing. He was a wicked man. And you also see that in they appoint another man to take his place because the Psalms had already prophesied concerning him that he's a reprobate. And what he has will be taken from him. We think about the parable of the gifts of the one and the two and the five and the one who has won. Even what he has will be taken from him. And what he had was taken from him. Lessons and considerations. Failures and guilt. A lot of remorse. We believers, I think, we often have a lot of remorse. You've heard me say it, ask for your prayers for my children, for my grandchildren. As a pastor, I have remorse. I look back at things and I go, what could I have done differently? Churches have remorse. So this is for those who have remorse about things and you worry about it. You know, if I would have just did this or that or the other, if I had made this way or that way. This is by Colin Smith. He writes, Judas' story contains an important lesson for parents, leaders, and friends who grieve over someone they love who has abandoned the faith. They worry, where did we go wrong? What more could we have done? Did we fail in our teaching? Did we fail in our example? Should we have immersed our son or daughter or friend in a different environment? But Judas teaches us that even the best example, the most compelling evidence, the finest teaching, the ultimate environment for incubating faith cannot in and of themselves change the human heart. Here is Judas Iscariot, an apostle who sits at table with Christ, who hears the private lessons about what does this parable mean? Well, let me explain it to you. He hears the very basic teaching of Jesus taken close to him. And who is this man? He's a viper. He's a wolf in sheep's clothing. He's reprobate, he's an apostate, he's a child of hell, even though he had the best environment in the world, as far as a teacher goes. So to you parents and others who struggle with this, it's not that we want to excuse ourselves, I'm gonna hit that again, I'll come back to that thought in just a moment, but we also understand that it does not lie in my hands But on my knees, we beg God for mercy. To be pleased to say. Secondly, the path to destruction. Jesus said enter by the narrow gate for the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction. Wide and easy. And those who enter in it are many. where the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few. In Luke 22, three and four, we're told Satan entered into Judas Iscariot. In John 3, 13, verse two, we're told the devil had already put it in his mind, in his heart, to betray Jesus. And in John 13, 27, we read that Satan entered Judas. Now, I don't want to get into this argument or this division right now with you about can a child of God be directed or influenced or whatever by Satan. But what I want, my point here is this. What I want to say to you is this. Like anyone who follows Jesus, Judas was a target of the wicked one. If you are a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, you have a big target on you. You are the target of the one who hates Christ and would have him destroyed. That's that's the point I want to make here. You're not exempt. No one is. Not a believer. I remember Genesis, I tried to teach this at Treloar to the boys, I've used this this passage many times, but The Lord God told Cain sin is crouching at the door. And the picture is that of a tiger or a lion waiting to jump on its prey, sin is crouching at the door. And God told Cain its desire is for you. But you must overrule it. Peter said, Beloved, do not be surprised by the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you as though something strange were happening to you. Our trials are not. Unusual. Every believer is tempted There was a popular statement, this is what I'm saying to you in this, there was a popular statement in probably many sermons years ago, I think it might have been one of those computer generated sermons, I don't know, it might have been before that. But it's a good statement, wherever it came from, so I'm gonna give you the statement. The statement was, sin will take you farther than you intended to go, keep you longer than you wanted to stay, and cost you more than you wanted to pay. Sin will take you farther than you intended to go, Well, I just was, I wasn't intending to do that. I just, it will take you further than you intended. It will keep you longer than you wanted to stay. Well, I thought I could just in and out. And it will cost you more than you wanted to pay. I had no idea that this is gonna end in this and it's gonna be so costly. I won't go there, but I think Romans 1, this is an example of Romans 1. We don't have the sexual sin here with Jesus that I'm aware of, but we see that downward spiral. Down he goes, and God gives him up. Down he goes, and God gives him up. Down he goes, and finally Christ says, what you do, Judas, you do it quickly. Then thirdly, take heed to thyself With that in my mind, we ask the question, is it I? And the history of Christian faith is littered with those that fell away. We sing a great hymn, I love the hymn, It's Come Thy Fount. And you remember one line of that hymn that we sing is, Prone to wander, Prone to wonder, Lord, I feel it. Prone to leave the God I love. Here's my heart, oh, take and seal it. Seal it for thy courts above. Great hymn, isn't it? Great line. You know what happened to the guy who wrote that line? He denied Christ. His last sermon, he made fun of the Trinity. He railed against the Trinity. He departed the faith. Now, there's a story told that a woman quoted the line to him later and he repented. That's a good story, but not really much substance there, I don't think. I hope that's true. I hope it's true. But it just strikes me that Robert Robinson, who wrote that hymn, fell into deep unbelief, heresy, and denied the faith. So Paul warns, and I've heard Brother Al refer to this on more than one occasion, and it's something we ought to refer to. 2 Corinthians 13, five. Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith. And the point there in 2 Corinthians is they are coming after Paul and saying, you are a false apostle. And they're bringing all kind of accusations against him. He answers their accusations, said, you want to see proof of my apostleship? Here, look at my scars. And that's when he says, I was beaten, I was shipwrecked, I was starved. He just goes through a litany of matters. You want proof of apostleship? No, I'm not a golden tongue boy. I don't have the golden tongue of Chrysostom. Of course, Chrysostom's after Paul, but I don't have this great ability of speech. I'm with you as one who doesn't speak well, he would say. And then Paul flips it. He says, now you want me to examine myself? I've done that. And believe me, I do it daily, he says. But he said then to the Corinthians, you've asked me to do that. Now you do that. Examine yourself. Examine yourself to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? that he goes on, unless indeed you fail to meet the test. And then Paul would say of himself, I discipline my body, I keep it under control, lest after preaching to others, I myself should be disqualified. Ever on his mind was that reality, examine myself. Is it I? Is it I? And then lastly, the plan of glory, a word of encouragement. I wanna close with a word of encouragement to you. Joseph told his brothers, as for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive as they are today. That's what he said to his brothers when he finally revealed himself and the plan of God. Without question, if ever there was an intersection of man's evil intention In God's good design, it is here. In fact, we read that in Mark 14, 21, where Christ said, The Son of Man goes as it is written of Him. It's prophesied, it's decreed of God that He will go to Jerusalem and He will die. But woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed. marvelous, mysterious, unexplainable intersection of the sovereignty of God and the responsibility of man. I close with these words by Stuart Eliot. The very worst sin that has ever been committed was the murder of the Son of God. The very best thing that has ever happened on this planet was the death of the Son of God. And if God can make the worst thing the best thing, He can make your disappointment, even your sin, even your foolishness work together for good. Let's pray together. Our Father who art in heaven, thank you for our salvation. Secured by the righteous life and sacrificial death of our Lord Jesus Christ. We marvel, Lord, that even the wicked accomplish your purpose. Lord, your dominion is an everlasting dominion. Your kingdom endures from generation to generation, and no one can prevail over your purpose and will. Come, O Lord, we pray with might. Rule the nations for your glory. Come, O Lord, and tend your flock like a shepherd. Gather up your lambs in your arms and carry us in your bosom, and gently lead us beside the still waters into green pastures. Restore our souls. Lead us in the paths of righteousness for your name's sake, we pray through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.