The Difference Between Judas and Peter | Matthew 27:3-5

[00:00:00] Real Truth Daily This is Daily Truths with Dave Ahlman

[00:00:07] Hi everybody, welcome back to Daily Truths. Remember in Matthew chapter 27 and Jesus has just been handed over to Pilate, it's Good Friday morning, probably about 6.30 or 7 o'clock in the morning.

[00:00:19] And this is what it says in verse 3 of Matthew chapter 27 verses 3, 4 and 5.

[00:00:25] Then when Judas, his betrayer, saw that Jesus was condemned, he changed his mind and brought back 30 pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders saying,

[00:00:35] I have sinned by betraying innocent blood. They said, what is that to us? See it to yourself.

[00:00:43] And throwing down the pieces of silver into the temple, he departed and he went and hanged himself.

[00:00:52] Wow. This is one of the saddest portions of scripture in all the Bible. Oh my goodness.

[00:00:58] And we can learn many different things from this passage. First of all, people matter more than money.

[00:01:05] Judas came to the realization, oh my goodness, I betrayed innocent blood and my relationship with Jesus surely trumps the money that I received.

[00:01:14] And it really isn't that much. People matter more than money. Secondly, God's grace is always available to those who are repentant.

[00:01:24] There's a big difference between Peter and Judas. Peter went bitterly. He was filled with remorse, but he did not take his life.

[00:01:33] He didn't feel so badly and was so remorseful about what he had done that he took his life. He knew there was still grace for him.

[00:01:40] And that's exactly what Jesus gave him. If Judas would have come to Jesus after doing what he did, he would have received grace.

[00:01:48] Instead, he went to the priests and the elders. And what did they say? We got no grace for you. See to yourself.

[00:01:54] I mean, they weren't doing their job, right? And, and all they needed to do was say, you know what? God loves you. God forgives you.

[00:02:05] You messed up. Everything is going to be okay. Can you imagine if these religious leaders would have done their job and conveyed grace to this man who felt so remorseful for what he had done?

[00:02:16] But no, they didn't do it. Okay. So people matter more than money. Grace is still available to everyone who messes up. And here's the last thing I want to say about this portion.

[00:02:28] Suicide is a very poor solution to a temporary problem, right? It's a very poor solution to a temporary problem.

[00:02:37] And that leads us to the next point. You see many times people commit suicide at night because things close in. There's darkness around them. They feel like there's no hope and they end up taking their life, right?

[00:02:50] And so they have no idea. They can't look ahead to see how incredibly unfortunate it is, what they're doing and how that's going to affect people that are left behind.

[00:03:01] If people who take their lives could foresee the tremendous heartache and the tremendous pain that their loved ones go through as a result of their poor decision, they would never, ever do it.

[00:03:13] So there's a lot to learn from this passage. I guess the bottom line of what I want to share with you today is big difference between Peter and Judas.

[00:03:22] Peter fled to the refuge of God's mercy. Judas did not. And had he repented, had he been remorseful, had he gone to Jesus with a repentant heart, he would receive grace just like Peter did.

[00:03:36] Now, let's apply this to our lives. First of all, we sometimes may be interacting with people who have threatened suicide. Take it seriously.

[00:03:47] If they've said, you know, I'm thinking about taking my life or I'm thinking about hurting myself. Holy cow. Take it seriously. Don't just pass it off. Don't change a subject. Don't say all things will get better. No, no, no. Take it seriously.

[00:04:00] Secondly, this is what I've done all throughout my ministry. When I know that people are suicidal, I tell them, promise me that you'll do nothing to hurt yourself until I'm in contact with you again. And that's usually the next day, right?

[00:04:13] If you have the opportunity, sit with them and let them talk about whatever they're feeling. But if you don't have that opportunity, if you've got things that you've got to do, of course, this ought to trump just about anything you ought to do.

[00:04:26] And you've got to leave whatever. Make them promise that they won't do anything to arm themselves. And I've done this many times down through the years. I've said, you know what? I've spent a couple hours with you.

[00:04:36] I'm going to have to leave now, but I want you to promise me that you won't do anything to hurt yourself. And when they promise me, I've never had anybody say, I'm going to take my life anyway. No, make them promise.

[00:04:48] And then thirdly, stay in contact with these individuals, right? Make sure that you follow up on them the next day and make sure that they're okay.

[00:04:58] And then encourage them to talk to their pastor or talk to some sort of group in the community that helps in suicide prevention. Stay in contact. Let them know that there's hope.

[00:05:12] And remember, I don't hesitate saying this. This is not a good solution. This is not an option, right? You have loved ones that care for you. I care for you. I love you.

[00:05:21] And so I try to talk them off the ledge many times and say, you know, life is worth living and God loves you. And this is just a temporary problem. It's going to fade away.

[00:05:34] And you're overreacting to the situation that you're in now. This too shall pass. We said that suicide is a very poor permanent solution to a temporary problem. And that is so true.

[00:05:48] So I hope this is helpful for you today. And if you're feeling down in the dumps and feeling about hurting yourself, you know what? Talk to your pastor.

[00:05:57] You can text me or email me if you want and we can talk. You know, we know that God has a purpose for our life.

[00:06:05] And there's many things that God wants to accomplish through you in the future.

[00:06:10] So go to the grace of God. Talk to other people if you're feeling suicidal and know that there's a purpose for your life.

[00:06:17] And God has a great vision for your life. And he wants to use you mightily in dispensing God's grace, in encouraging people and being the person that God has called you to be.

[00:06:29] OK, so that's today's daily truth. Not a pleasant subject today, but I think a necessary one.

[00:06:35] And the bottom line of this devotion today is Peter could or Judas could receive grace and he didn't.

[00:06:41] Grace is always available for us when we mess up and we go to the grace of God revealed through the death and resurrection of Jesus.

[00:06:49] And we find grace and mercy to help us in our time of need.

[00:06:53] Have a great day in the Lord Jesus Christ. And that is today's daily truth.

[00:06:58] Thank you for tuning in to Daily Truths with Dave Allman.

[00:07:01] Pastor Dave Allman is the pastor of Mount Hope Church in Boulder, Colorado.

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[00:07:16] Come back tomorrow for your next Daily Truth.