Judas didn’t know Jesus

“So, Judas brought a band of soldiers and officers. They arrived at the garden carrying lanterns, torches, and weapons.” (John 18:3)

Jesus had to die so that we could receive forgiveness and eternal life.  For that to happen, he had to be apprehended.  And for that to happen, someone had to want to apprehend him.  There were many who stepped up to the plate to arrest him.  The High Priest, the Chief Priests, and Judas.  But of all the people the devil used, Judas was the easiest to manipulate.  That’s why we are told that it was Judas who led the soldiers and officers to Christ in the Garden.  He didn’t just want to betray Christ, he wanted to be there to watch him arrested.

Now first, just how many soldiers and officers do you think there were who came to apprehend Christ?  Well, there’s a very interesting answer to that question.  These soldiers who came with Judas that night were the soldiers who served at the Tower of Antonia.  The Tower was a massive complex, with somewhere between 300 to 600 specially trained warriors stationed there.  John tells us that a “band” of soldiers accompanied Judas that night.  The Greek word for band describes the entire number of these trained soldiers.  That’s right!  Somewhere between 300 to 600 men showed up with Judas to arrest one man – Jesus Christ.  Some translations say a “mass” of soldiers came seeking Christ, others “a great multitude.”  Why so many?  Because those who wanted to arrest him were aware of his power.  They had knowledge that he had healed the sick, cleansed lepers, cast out demons, raised the dead, walked on water, and fed thousands with a handful of loaves and fishes.  And Judas, above all knew Christ’s power because he didn’t just hear of it, he saw it with his own eyes.

But there’s more.  This vast multitude came with weapons and lamps.  So many lamps that they lit up the entire Mount of Olives.  Now, Passover occurred at the time of the full moon.  Did they really need all that extra light?  They also came with torches which were oil based with a long wick.  This tells us that they were fully prepared to search all night if they had to for the Messiah.  And then there were the weapons.  The Greek wording here tells us that they were wearing the full armor of a Roman soldier.  You can see what that armor involves in Ephesians 6:13-18.  A fight was what these soldiers had in mind.  And what did Jesus do?  He walked right up to them and asked them who they were looking for.  When they said they were looking for Jesus, he told them that he was Jesus.  Arresting Jesus Christ was nothing like the soldiers – or Judas – expected. 

Now, all this tells me something important about Judas. It tells me that after spending well over three years with Jesus Christ, Judas didn’t really know him very well.  If he had known him, he would have known Christ did not run or hid from anyone or anything.  He would have known Jesus was prepared to go to the cross.  So, just how well did Judas know Jesus anyway?  How well do we know Jesus?  How deeply do we want to know him?  Paul wrote in Philippians 3:10 – “I want to know Christ.”   Not just know about him or hear about him; but know him deeply.  Our first challenge for this season of preparation for Resurrection Sunday, is to spend the next 6 weeks getting to know Jesus in a deeper way than we have ever known him.

                                                                    Darlene