Used by Satan

Luke 22:3 (ESV) Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve.

Judas has to be one of the most despised people in history. It is hard not to hate him. He was the one who handed Jesus over to the Jewish leaders in an out of the way place so there was no risk of the crowds revolting. He traded the Savior for money. After getting what he wanted, he hung himself. On a quick glance it can seem that he must have been evil from the beginning. He must have been an especially bad person. There is no way any of us could be like him. Yet, in one short verse, Luke gives a scary warning: any of us could become like Judas.

Luke starts the verse by saying, “Then Satan entered into Judas.” Judas did not start out possessed. The bible does not give us any reason to believe that Judas’ initial motives for following Jesus were not good. To be clear, there are several references to Judas’ mission to betray Jesus being prophesied in advance (See John 6:70, 13:18 & 17:12 referring to Psalm 41:9). Yet, that does not mean Judas understood his role that way. In all likelihood, he started out with a sincere, earnest desire to usher in the Kingdom of God, because he was “of the number of the twelve.” Twelve was a very significant to the Jews. There will twelve tribes of Israel and twelve sons of Jacob. Twelve represented completion. Being in the twelve meant one was in the inner circle.

Something happened from the time Judas first became one of the twelve until the time Satan entered him. We get a hint that greed was an issue for Judas in John 12:6. Perhaps he was one of those Jesus warned about a few verses earlier in Luke 21:34, whose hearts get so weighed down by the cares of this life that they get trapped and unable to see how God is at work. Trading Jesus for money could have helped his financial situation. Jesus may also have not met Judas’ expectation of what the Messiah was to be. Perhaps Judas believed Jesus was too much of a risk to the nation of Israel and that Jesus’ death would spare a devastating backlash by the Roman Army.

Whatever the change, it opened the door for Satan to enter Judas. Demonization is not fully understood, but it is very real. Although this is not seen as often in the Western World as in the Majority World, Satan and his demons can take over a person’s life. I have witnessed it first-hand. A demonized person is no longer fully in control. I will not say that a Christian can become demon possessed, but this passage is a clear warning that those who start well do not necessarily end that way.

Being “of the number of the twelve” – a full recognized member of the Good Club – does not protect you against evil influences. Starting your adult life with good motives does not guarantee they will not stray. Horrible things have been done by those who started well but finished badly. Let’s pray we all stay the course and “not give the devil a foothold.” (Eph 4:27)