Lenten Service 3 St. John, Galveston 3/19/25
Ironies of the Passion – “See To It Himself”
Matthew 27:1-5
+ In Nomine Jesu +
Grace and peace to you, from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus
Christ. Amen.
For the past three years Judas hadn’t been alone much. After all, he was part of a group, the disciples of Jesus. He even had a guide for his life. Jesus had always been there, leading him, teaching him, encouraging him, inspiring him. When days were good, when adoring crowds gathered, Judas had been able to share the joys of the faith with the other disciples. When days had been hard, when the crowds dwindled, he still had his brothers in the faith, and sure and certain promises of Jesus.
Judas was given a high level of trust among the disciples; he was the keeper of the treasury. He had a secret though, something he kept from the others. He would occasionally help himself to the money in the treasury. Perhaps he had begun to withdraw from some or all of the other disciples. He couldn’t be too close to Matthew, after all. Matthew was good with numbers; he could have discovered the truth easily enough. Judas had to keep to himself. Still, the other disciples all trusted him. Jesus trusted him too, after all, He chose him to be one of His own.
Judas betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver! What was he thinking? Jesus had never done anything wrong – not to Judas, not to anyone. He’d been loyal to all of the disciples; the best friend anyone could ever have. And, of course, He was much more than a friend. Peter had said it; Judas and all the disciples had nodded in agreement; Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. But now Judas had betrayed Him into the hands of the authorities and they were going to kill Him. Frantic, Judas ran to the temple and confessed his sin. “I’ve betrayed innocent blood! You’ve got to let Him go!” And…they laughed. “You’ve betrayed innocent blood. What is that to us? See to that yourself!” “See to it myself?!! How shall I ever do such a thing?!!”
Judas realized it now: he’d committed the worst sin he could imagine. He conspired against the Son of God. Suddenly, he was alone. His fellow conspirators wouldn’t have anything to do with him. They had no more sympathy for him than they did for the man they arrested. Certainly the money was no companion. To whom could he turn now?
In the past, he had always turned to Jesus. But, that was just it; the One he’d always counted on was the One he could least approach now. Jesus had always taken care of everything. “But He’s the One I’ve betrayed! I couldn’t bear to hear what He would say to me now. “See to it myself?!! See to it myself?!! There’s nothing I can do now. I can’t make up for this! Betraying the Messiah ! Killing the Christ of God! See to it myself?!! They’re right, though. No one else can see to this but me. Then Judas went out and hanged himself. What else could he have done?
No one, I should think, wants to be alone with his failings, with his sins.
That’s the worst kind of loneliness. Oh, you can ignore it for awhile. You can imagine your sins aren’t so bad – surely nothing like the sin committed by Judas. “I can handle it. I can see to it myself.” You imagine you can make up for your sin by doing enough good on the plus side of the ledger. But that doesn’t really make sins go away.
There’s nothing else Judas could have done. But there’s the irony of our text: Judas didn’t have to do anything about his sin. Ironically, he didn’t have to “see to it himself.” Ironically, his sin brought about the forgiveness of all sins – including his own. The sin that drove Judas to suicide, God used to reconcile the whole world to Himself, including Judas.
Make no mistake, Jesus’ death on the cross did lead to Judas’ forgiveness. If only Judas believed it. If only he could have seen a little further. Jesus’ death – of which he himself was guilty – won forgiveness for all sins. That is, all sins. That is, all sins have been forgiven, are forgiven. Even the worst. It’s as the apostle John says in his first letter: “Jesus Christ the righteous…is the propitiation (or the atoning sacrifice or the satisfaction) for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world.” (I John 2:1-2)
I hope you understand what that means. Judas’ sin was not only forgivable; it was forgiven. This is what we call objective justification. Every sin ever committed has been forgiven. God is no longer angry with you because of your sin. The resurrection of Jesus proves that. Judas didn’t have to see to his sin himself. Jesus saw to it for him.
In the Epistle reading for this evening, Peter was speaking to us, all well as to the Jews on Pentecost, “you have taken (Him) by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death” (Acts 2:23). Remember from last week, we have all, in one way or another, betrayed Jesus! Our sins are equally bad, but equally forgiven. Did you hear the desperation in the voices of Peter’s Pentecost audience? We’ve killed the Christ! “Men and brethren, what shall we do? (Acts 2:37)” Then did you hear Peter’s answer? “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins.” (Acts 2:38). As desperate as it sounds, as helpless as you feel, Peter is saying, “don’t despair. You don’t have to see to your sins yourself. Your sin has been forgiven. Repent and receive the forgiveness of God!”
We’re never alone – especially not with out sins. Confession and absolution is an intimate conversation with a close, personal friend, even with loving family members. We bow our heads and confess our sins to our dear Father. We hold nothing back, because He knows what’s in our hearts, and He’s already promised to listen patiently. Then, as the Pastor turns to face us, it’s really our best Friend, our own brother, Jesus, stepping forward to absolve us. Jesus says, “I forgive you all your sins.” We look up, and we see to our left, and to our right, in front of us, and over our shoulder, others who have been listening in. Well, not really listening in. Taking part. They’ve been in this family conversation too. They’re part of the same close circle of friends. They’re with us – sinners, forgiven by Jesus even of our worst sins.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
The peace of God that passes all understanding keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus unto life everlasting. Amen.
+ Soli Deo Gloria +