Faithful or Traitor?

… Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor. Luke 6:16 (New American Standard Bible, NASB)

… Judas by transgression fell… Acts 1:5 (KJV)

This tells us that Judas became a traitor. Judas chose this for himself, not God. One version says he turned traitor. A traitor is one who betrays trust and does what he or she wants for selfish gain. God does not destine someone to fall; He does not choose this for anyone. It is His desire that all people be saved. We all have free will and each individual chooses for himself.

Judas had a choice. He made the wrong choice to allow greed to direct his actions. God did not force Judas to do what he did. God chose Judas to be a disciple. Judas rejected discipleship and chose to betray the Son of God. When he realized what he had done, he committed suicide.

When we cheat, we cheat ourselves more than anyone else. When we betray someone, we betray ourselves as well. And when we sin against God and others, we sin against ourselves. Whether we do it through unfaithfulness, lies, dirty deals, or whatever, the outcome is never good. Sin is self-destructive.

However, we can repent and move on. Peter also betrayed Jesus, but he repented. Judas did not. Both men had a choice, but each one chose differently. We can avoid being a traitor by making right choices each time. We can choose to be more Christlike, to do the right thing. But, if we mess up, we can get back on track by being quick to repent and change course.