Judas, the Tares, and Judge Not: Correction

From: Bible Treasury: Volume 16 By:

Matthew 7:1 • 5 min. read • grade level: 9

My dear Friend,

Your plea (which is not an uncommon one), that Judas Iscariot was present, and a partaker with the other apostles at the institution of the Lord's supper, is hardly based on adequate scripture testimony. Even if it were true, the plea would be pointless unless it were used to justify our tolerating known Judases, i.e. thieves and traitors to Christ, at the Lord's table. But it is so used, and this is why I trouble you with these few lines; and I appeal to conscience in a child of God whether such a plea is just and holy. Christ knew all then as now.

If you will read carefully John 13:1-29¹Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end. ²And supper being ended, the devil having now put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him; ³Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he was come from God, and went to God; ⁴He riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel, and girded himself. ⁵After that he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded. ⁶Then cometh he to Simon Peter: and Peter saith unto him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet? ⁷Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter. ⁸Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me. ⁹Simon Peter saith unto him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. ¹⁰Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all. ¹¹For he knew who should betray him; therefore said he, Ye are not all clean. ¹²So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you? ¹³Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. ¹⁴If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet. ¹⁵For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you. ¹⁶Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him. ¹⁷If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them. ¹⁸I speak not of you all: 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. ¹⁹Now I tell you before it come, that, when it is come to pass, ye may believe that I am he. ²⁰Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth me; and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me. ²¹When Jesus had thus said, he was troubled in spirit, and testified, and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me. ²²Then the disciples looked one on another, doubting of whom he spake. ²³Now there was leaning on Jesus' bosom one of his disciples, whom Jesus loved. ²⁴Simon Peter therefore beckoned to him, that he should ask who it should be of whom he spake. ²⁵He then lying on Jesus' breast saith unto him, Lord, who is it? ²⁶Jesus answered, He it is, to whom I shall give a sop, when I have dipped it. And when he had dipped the sop, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. ²⁷And after the sop Satan entered into him. Then said Jesus unto him, That thou doest, do quickly. ²⁸Now no man at the table knew for what intent he spake this unto him. ²⁹For some of them thought, because Judas had the bag, that Jesus had said unto him, Buy those things that we have need of against the feast; or, that he should give something to the poor. (John 13:1‑29), I think you will perceive, that all that is there recorded took place at the paschal table, during that supper (ver. 2, R.V.), and not when it was “ended,” as the Authorized Version says. Judas was evidently there, and the devil had already put it into his heart to betray the Lord (ver. 2). Afterward; when the Lord had given him the sop, Satan entered into him (ver. 27), thus exercising him to carry out his purpose—a fatal consequence of not at once repelling a first suggestion or form of evil (1 Thess. 5:22²²Abstain from all appearance of evil. (1 Thessalonians 5:22), R.V.). “He then having received the sop went immediately out;” and the dark and awful night of this sin-stricken world has continued ever since. The institution of the Lord's supper (Matt. 26:26²⁶And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. (Matthew 26:26); Mark 14:22²²And as they did eat, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and brake it, and gave to them, and said, Take, eat: this is my body. (Mark 14:22); Luke 22:19, 20¹⁹And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. ²⁰Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you. (Luke 22:19‑20)) took place after the paschal meal. The “all” in Matt. 26:27²⁷And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; (Matthew 26:27) and Mark 14:23²³And he took the cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them: and they all drank of it. (Mark 14:23) presents no difficulty. It means simply all the remaining disciples. If the order of Luke 22:21²¹But, behold, the hand of him that betrayeth me is with me on the table. (Luke 22:21) were chronologic, the question would be decided; but who would affirm this?—

Again, as to the tares, you say that the wheat and the tares are to grow together in the church The scriptures do teach, not this but, the very reverse. Even the passage which speaks of the wheat and the tares growing. together, tells us expressly that “the field is” not the church, but emphatically “the world,” and that the taros are the children of the wicked one. Are such to be knowingly allowed to participate in the most significant and precious and the holiest act of worship of the children of God? Scripture (1 Cor. 5:13¹³But them that are without God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person. (1 Corinthians 5:13)) says even of a believer who had fallen into sin, “Put away from among yourselves that wicked person;” and when through grace he had repented, the saints were to confirm their love to him. Is this the unholy toleration of evil persons—tares—children of the wicked one in “the church which is His body,” the complement of Him that filleth all in all? If you read the parable carefully again, you will surely see that it has nothing whatever to do with the toleration of evil persons in the church.

You condemn your own ecclesiastical system as strongly as it could be condemned, by identifying it with the world.

I am thankful to know that there are therein so many true believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. I love them with all my heart because they are dear to Him; but their identifying themselves with the world does not make it the church of God. You have in it heterodox teachers and infidel clergymen of every shade; and there is no power to act for God and for Christ by putting them away; and so in order to justify their being allowed to remain, you plead Judas and the tares! You should rather have mourned that such might be taken from among you (1 Cor. 5:2²And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you. (1 Corinthians 5:2)). Instead of this, you try to make out that others, who have at great cost left your state of things for the Lord's sake, are wrong for having done so, or are as bad as what they have left. I am sure we have sinned greatly against the greater light given to us; at least we do not excuse or justify ourselves, but judge ourselves for it before God. The divisions you reproach some of the Lord's people with, are largely the result of their faithfulness to the Lord and His truth in seeking to walk, according to His revealed mind, as much apart from the world's formalism as from its profaneness. The Lord has forewarned us that the effect of His coming and testimony (not its object) would be strife, dividing even the nearest and most precious natural relationships (Matt. 10:34-37³⁴Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. ³⁵For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. ³⁶And a man's foes shall be they of his own household. ³⁷He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. (Matthew 10:34‑37)).

But you say we must “not judge,” and you quote Matt. 7:1¹Judge not, that ye be not judged. (Matthew 7:1), “Judge not that ye be not judged.” This is an important word of the Lord's, but it is misused to cover our cowardice and want of zeal for the glory of the Lord in not judging sin in ourselves and others. But read on and in ver. 6 you will find we are directed not to give that which is holy unto the dogs, neither to cast our pearls before the swine. Is not that an injunction to judge? How can anyone act upon the word without judging? The fact is, my dear friend, there is carnal judging which is only the indulgence of an evil propensity at the expense of our neighbors, and there is a godly spiritual judging which is a duty we owe to the Lord and to each other, and which begins with ourselves. He knows which is which, if we do not.

Believe me, yours in Christ, G.O.

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