It hits you square in the soul, doesn’t it - like stepping out of a warm home into a sleet-laced east wind that slaps and stings your face. What an incredible, almost terrible paradox before us this morning -
        - the beauty, the hope of new life, family, baptism
                and
        - the tragedy, the despair of death, alone, destruction

We celebrated baptism -
        the gift of life that God grants to a young family, the hope and anticipation of the future in the life of Samantha. Faith and joy in the presence of Jesus Christ.
        But we do that in the context of Lent - weeks of sober preparation for Good Friday and Easter; weeks when we are remembering some of the people who were there in the time of Jesus’ suffering; there and active.

        As part of that, let me put in this little plug, an aside, for the devotional that was handed out a couple of weeks ago. It follows the same theme of looking at people involved in Jesus’ path to the cross. I hope you are using this for personal or family devotions.
If you aren’t, it’s available for download from our website: www.calvincrc.ca.

As Kathy described to the children, and as we encountered in the Bible reading -
        today we meet Judas Iscariot; Judas - man from Kerioth in Judea.

As much as we met Samantha, and together with her family anticipate a future of joy, of life, of hope in her life, so equally powerfully do we see absolute chaos, emptiness and tragic despair in his life.
        Nothing....... except darkness.

Judas - his name is infamous, his actions reviled.
But little is actually known of him.
        We know he was the treasurer of Jesus’ band of disciples - part of the executive we’d say, no mere hanger-on. We also know from other accounts that he wasn’t above padding his expense account from donations to the ministry. Fringe benefits, shall we say?
        Some bible scholars and historians suggest that he was a quiet zealot, wanting freedom from Rome, as did most in his home province of Judea. Hoping, somehow, that Jesus was the ticket to that freedom.

And he, Judas, was there -
        there for the miracles,
        there for the teaching,
        there for the prayer times,
        there for the confrontations with the politicians and leaders,
        there - and sent out - along with the others to teach and heal.

But somewhere along the way something died.
Whatever it was that caused him to drop his career, leave behind a stable home life, and follow Jesus –
        Whatever passion, whatever hope, whatever dream had propelled this man from Kerioth, had died.

The last straw came just before the first moments of our reading - a woman anoints Jesus with an incredibly expensive perfume, and lavishes him with her love. Spends about 4 months wages on this one moment of worship.
        The disciples, Judas among them, object.
        Imagine how that devotion could have been channelled to social and political restitution in oppressed Israel?
        Perhaps Jesus was not their man after all!
        The flame flickered out at that moment in Judas’ life.

In the Old Testament bible prophecy of Zechariah, 11:12-13, a shadowy picture is painted of a shepherd whose care for the sheep is unappreciated. He asks for his wages and is given the disgustingly low amount of 30 pieces of silver. Take that amount, says God to the shepherd, and throw it into the temple.
        That ancient shadow reappears in Judas.

Judas has moved beyond mere disillusion with Jesus. If that were all, he would have simply left, just gone home to resume his former life. The option was there.
        But he doesn’t.
        Disillusionment has become infected and turned to disgust.
        And Judas, the man fascinated with money, figures he may as well try to salvage something for himself from this whole experience — even if it is only a little; a trifle compared to the months he’s given trudging behind this leader.
        Jesus is cheap junk - trade him in like one would an old car;
        30 pieces of silver.

        Judas Iscariot had a heart that turned ice cold. How else can you explain the act of betrayal? Not just pointing out Jesus from behind a bush, but going into the open...... the greeting..... the kiss?
        Thinking no more of destroying the life of Jesus and the hopes of the disciples than young boys would think of kicking in an ant hill.
        It doesn’t matter.

Or did it?

We’ll never really know what went on in his heart and mind.
Perhaps Judas just wanted to shake Jesus up and force him to act by coming against him with the vigilante mob.
Perhaps he thought that Jesus would just be popped in jail for a time, or publically humiliated somehow - marginalised until he could get his act together.
Perhaps Judas simply didn’t think it through.
We’ll never really know.

What we DO know is that something snaps inside him when we sees that Jesus will die. He tries to turn back the clock.
        But can’t.
        Judas slams into a concrete wall of political contempt and cynicism:

"I have sinned, for I have betrayed innocent blood," says Judas to the senior pastors of his church.
"We don’t care. That’s your problem," comes their reply.

Oh, Judas, what went so wrong?
Why did it have to end like this?

When you saw how badly you had screwed up, could you still not see?
Remember what Jesus had said months before? You were there!
        "Come to me, all of you who are tired from carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest." (Mt 11:28)

Did you not hear what Jesus said to many others? You were there!
        "I do not condemn you, either. Go and leave your life of sin." [Jn 8]
        "Your sins are forgiven." [Mk 2]

Did you not see the new beginnings that Jesus gave to so many who came to him with all the broken pieces dangling from their lives?

This morning here at Calvin we sang of peace.
        Judas experienced aching regret.
We sang of clapping your hands.
        Judas was wringing his; and tied a knot.
We read of drinking deeply from the well of living water.
        Judas drowned in an ocean of his own despair.

Outside Jerusalem there were, as Max Lucado points out [No Wonder They Call Him Saviour], two trees.
        A tree of life. And a tree of death.
        On the tree of life a man died. But through his death came life for all who surrender to him. Punishment is passed off. Forgiveness is found. Real, new hope where humanly speaking it would be impossible to fabricate any.

On the other tree dangles the body of a man who carried his heavy load himself, and found no rest.
Who could not come back to the Jesus he had betrayed, and so found himself in a spiritual wilderness with no forgiveness.
Who heard the words of the senior pastors, "We don’t care. That’s your problem"...... and believed it. He could see no way out of the junkyard created by his own shallow, foolish sin.

You know -
        Judas almost got it right.
In his sin, he realized his wrong. He admitted it openly. He tried to put it behind him. All very important steps!!
        He almost got it right.

But the one item he missed was deadly.
        He tried to sort it all out himself. Figured that if he screwed up, like his pastors told him, he’d have to make it right. And if he couldn’t make it right...... there was no right to be had.
Judas accepted the condemnation which the religious leaders offered him. The chains of guilt dragged him to his grave.
 

Judas, oh Judas, if only you could see that it didn’t have to end this way!!!
        That you missed it is a tragedy far worse than betraying your master.
        For that betrayal was sin.
        And for sin there is forgiveness at the tree of life, the tree where another man dangled and died........
                The cross.
                Jesus.

Samantha, oh Samantha.
        Your middle name says it all - Grace.
        God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense.
        Your name points to that other tree - the one on Calvary.

Samantha, little one - oh, the regret that you will feel in your life. For you, like the rest of us...... like Judas...... will have moments, perhaps seasons, where God will be grieved - maybe even betrayed:
        - through a moment of silence when a word of witness ought be spoken.
        - through a wallet held closed when a donation should have been given.
        - through an act that is clearly wrong - where you and God both know it.
        - through figuring that if you don’t do it, nobody will, not even God.
        - through a compromise in your values..... just this once.

Samantha Grace -
        When you get to that point, remember your baptism.

        John and Annette, remind her of that baptism.
        Brothers and sisters at Calvin - remember your vows and join in reminding her. Join in teaching her. Join in modelling for her, walking with her to the only place where regret, remorse and despair can be deposited without worry that you’ll ever have to pick it up again. Bring her all the way - not like Judas, who got it almost right.

        Make good on the baptismal promise you recited in front of God:
"What we have heard and known, what our fathers have told us, we will not hide from our children; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord" (Psalm 78:4).

Bring her, brothers and sisters, to the truth of 1 John 1:9:
"If we confess our sins to God, He will keep His promise and do what is right: He will forgive us our sins and purify us from all our wrongdoing."

One of Shakespeare’s most famous characters is well known as wringing her hands, desperate to try and wipe away the stain of blood, the stain of a murder that haunts her. She is unable to do so.
        Judas died similarly haunted.

Jesus died that all haunts of sin would be removed.

That’s what baptism represents. Full and complete washing.
That instead of drowning in an ocean of despair, we would experience a river of life welling up inside us.

That when we hit the low point which St.Paul experienced when he cried, "What a wretched, unhappy man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is taking me to death?" [Romans 7:24-25]
        That when we hit that point, we could also cry with Paul,
        "Thanks be to God, who does this through our Lord Jesus Christ!"

Samantha Grace..... you are born into richness.
        You are in good hands.
        Despair has been banished.
        The chains have been removed!
        From your life.......... and those of all your brothers and sisters here.
                Grow in that.
                Live in that.

                        Don’t ever let that go.