Judas' Apostasy in Light of God's Faithfulnessနမူနာ

Judas healed and cast out demons

Mark 3:13-15: “Jesus went up on a mountainside (after praying all night – Luke 6:12) and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him. He appointed twelve that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach and to have authority to drive out demons.”

Matthew 10:8: “Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give”. And Mark 6:13 says: “They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them.”

And when the 72 came back after being sent out by Jesus, they returned with joy and said in Luke 10:17: “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.”

From the clear message in Scripture, Judas ministered in Jesus’ name, and in His authority, and healed the sick, and cast out demons. Remember in Matthew 12:24 when Jesus was accused of casting out demons by the ruler of demons, and His reply in verses 25-28 was “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.”

So, Judas definitely cast out demons by the power of God Himself, and he could not do that unless he was ministering by the power bestowed on him by Jesus Christ. Remember Acts 19:13-16, when the seven sons of Sceva tried to cast out demons in Jesus’ name, when they didn’t know Jesus – the demons attacked them and beat them severely.

From Scripture, we must conclude that Judas ministered in the power of Jesus’ name.

Reflection: In our life and actions, are we reflecting God’s honor and His glory? Living to impress others will never end well, and we cannot forget what Jesus said about being lukewarm in Revelation 3:16: “So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”