Articles
How do you explain it?
Prior to Jesus choosing His twelve apostles, we read that He first went off and prayed (Lk. 6:12). In the following verses we read the names of those whom Christ chose. The question is, why did the Lord choose Judas Iscariot? Before we deal with that question, please take note of the fact the verse reads, “...and Judas Iscariot who also became a traitor.” (vr. 16). I am not suggesting that Jesus didn’t know what Judas would do, rather at the time of him being chosen, he was a faithful follower.
Getting back to the question at hand. There is danger in thinking that Judas had no say in his future. In other words, did he have to betray the Lord and was there nothing that could have been done to prevent it from happening? Obviously, there was much Christ could have done, but let’s stay focused on Judas. Regardless of what our Savior knew concerning the future actions of this apostle, nothing was going to interfere with his free will. We know this, because Jesus said, speaking of Judas’ actions, “He who dipped his hand with Me in the dish will betray Me. The Son of Man indeed goes just as it is written of Him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.” (Matt. 26:23-24).
One can know with certainty that Judas made his own choices and God did not make him the betrayer. That’s why he was rebuked by the Lord. To say it would have been good if he had not been born reveals the seriousness of the matter (Matt. 6:24). No one will ever be punished spiritually for something they had no control over. After all, innocent people suffer all the time at the hands of the guilty.
Again, back to the question. Why would Jesus choose this man? It was all part of the plan. The fact that Christ used this man, knowing what choices he would make, doesn’t make Jesus responsible for his actions. It does, however, make Jesus the author and finisher of our faith since He used what He knew would happen in a way to help benefit all of mankind (Heb. 5:9).
