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I don’t remember the specifics of too many of my own sermons, let alone out of the hundreds or thousands I’ve listened to. But every once in a while a preacher makes a comment that forever changes the way you think about something. I don’t remember exactly when I heard it, and I think I heard it from John MacArthur first, but I’ve always remembered a particular way of dealing with the problem of hypocrites. More specifically, how to address the common reason that people give for not going to church: there are too many hypocrites. MacArthur’s answer was the right kind of sassy. He likes to say, “Well, there’s always room for one more.”

A hypocrite is someone playing the game of discipleship. They look the part, go through the motions externally, but their heart runs another direction. It is true that there are many posers in church. There always have been. I like the smart aleck come back, especially as it puts the ball back in the complainers court.

However, that answer doesn’t help the genuine believers deal with hypocrites. It also isn’t strong enough. Why are there so many hypocrites? It’s because God sovereignly uses them for His purposes. Even more, God uses hypocrites to strengthen the believing of true disciples.

On the night before Jesus was crucified He was betrayed. He was rejected and sold and handed over by one of His closets disciples. The events of that night shaped the last two thousand years’ worth of naming boys. No father calls his son Judas. Dante put Judas in the lowest level of his fictional poem of hell as the worst of the worst, as one who played the friend of Jesus but had everyone fooled.

Imagine how this treachery could have affected to the eleven other disciples. From their perspective, how could this happen? Didn’t Jesus choose His disciples? Yes, He said so in John 6:70. Didn’t Jesus know Judas’ heart? Yes, He knew the hearts of men generally (John 2:24-25) and Judas specifically (John 6:64). Didn’t Jesus know what Judas was doing that very moment? Yes, He knew (13:2-3). Then why didn’t Jesus do something to stop Judas? It’s because Jesus was doing something bigger through Judas’ betrayal, including strengthening the believing of His own in Himself.

This fantastic chapter of Jesus’ strong love that drove Him to humbly serve His disciples by washing their feet has already been marked by ominous tones, see verse 2 and verse 10. The faucet drips become a flood of trouble in verses 18-30. The context is still Jesus loving and preparing His own for His departure. In these two paragraphs we’ll see it as He fulfills Scripture (verses 18-20) and as He foretells betrayal (verses 21-30).

Jesus Fulfills Scripture (verses 18-20)

Many godly men in history have been betrayed. Godly men in the future will be betrayed. God Himself, in Jesus, was betrayed. It was all promised before.

I am not speaking of all of you; I know whom I have chosen. But the Scripture will be fulfilled, ‘He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.’ I am telling you this now, before it takes place, that when it does take place you may believe that I am he. Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever receives the one I send receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me. (John 13:18–20, ESV)

Jesus had just finished explaining His foot-washing example (verses 12-17) and punctuated it with a promise of blessing. His servants should follow the pattern and command of their Master. Then Jesus said, I am not speaking of all of you. There were only 13 of them in the room. If it wasn’t surprising when Jesus got up to wash their feet, this certainly must have been stage two of the stunning.

He continued, I know whom I have chosen. This must be a different choosing than He describes in chapter 6. This is a choosing for cleansing (verse 10), unconditional election to salvation and also selecting to represent Him in the future (verse 20).

In His inner dozen, one was chosen for another purpose: to fulfill an Old Testament prophecy. The Scripture will be fulfilled, ‘He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.’ The quote comes from Psalm 41:8. Written by David, it seems to describe the betrayal of a close friend, perhaps his counselor, Ahithophel, during Absolom’s rebellion.

Psalm 41, though, does not present the act as a prediction but as a description. The event already happened. How can Jesus say that the song applies to something about to happen to Him?

It applies because David was a forerunner of the Messiah. God promised David that He would set a descendant of David on Israel’s throne. What happened to David was now happening to Christ but with a much deeper cut. To “lift one’s heel” against another was a way to say kick them when they are down. The concern is less with how and more with who. One who shared bread turned to attack.

Jesus makes it clear why He’s not keeping it to Himself. I am telling you this now, before it takes place, that when it does take place you may believe that I am he. He who? First, the “He” is not in the Greek text. The sentence could be translated, “that you may believe that I am.” But it could be that Jesus is showing that He is that Davidic fulfillment. He is God, He is the fulfillment of God’s Word, and He proves it by saying ahead of time what would happen. However detestable Judas behaved, he did not deceive Jesus.

He is exceptionally patient for a man only 12-15 hours from crucifixion. He is still prepping His disciples and He affirms, Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever receives the one I send receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me. This comment seems disconnected, but two things hook this affirmation to His prediction of betrayal.

First, no betrayer could ruin their relationship. If they received Jesus they were receiving God. We don’t receive other men, so whether another man receives or rejects God doesn’t change our receiving. No hypocrite can steal a true Christian’s direct connection to God through Jesus.

Second, the receiving ones who were being sent to represent Jesus would also be rejected, if not betrayed. Jesus said that this is not a personal rejection, it is a rejection of God. Here is another way in which they would be like their Master (verse 16). A servant shouldn’t expect better treatment.

Jesus Foretells His Betrayal (verses 21-30)

Jesus had introduced the subject and, even though He doesn’t name names, He makes it painfully clear.

After saying these things, Jesus was troubled in his spirit, and testified, “Truly, truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me.” (John 13:21, ESV)

We’ve seen Jesus troubled in his spirit a couple times. For as much as He was in control—all things were in His hands, verse 3—it was still bothersome to be betrayed by one so close. He makes no guesses. He offers no speculation. He testified.

The disciples had no clue who He was talking about and they were bent by the heaviness of Jesus’ announcement.

The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom he spoke. (John 13:22, ESV)

We, the readers, have known for a while. Yet Judas had masked his hatred so convincingly that none of the other disciples suspected him, or anyone else for that matter. The room was silent, apparently no one felt like it was an appropriate time to talk. So Peter tried to get information another way.

One of his disciples, whom Jesus loved, was reclining at table at Jesus’ side, so Simon Peter motioned to him to ask Jesus of whom he was speaking. So that disciple, leaning back against Jesus, said to him, “Lord, who is it?” (John 13:23–25, ESV)

Unlike the painting by Leonardo da Vinci, the disciples weren’t sitting in chairs. It was a short table and the disciples would have been laying down on pillows, resting on their left elbows so that they could use their right hands to eat, feet stretched out behind them.

The disciple whom Jesus loved (described here for the first time, but mentioned again a few more times), was a subtle way for John to refer to himself. John was close, probably on the right side of Jesus. Peter, who was perhaps on the opposite side since he could have just whispered if he was closer, motioned to him to ask Jesus. I don’t know what the official motion or nod for “Ask who the betrayer is” is, but John picked up on it and asked. Jesus answered, not with a name, but not without clarity.

Jesus answered, “It is he to whom I will give this morsel of bread when I have dipped it.” (John 13:26, ESV)

We might wonder why Jesus didn’t simply say to John, “It’s Judas.” Jesus let’s Judas hang himself. The disciples’ ignorance demonstrated in the remainder of the paragraph indicates that only John heard the answer. But even he didn’t appear to do anything with it until much later, when he was writing it down.

Almost immediately after saying who it would be, Jesus followed through.

So when he had dipped the morsel, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. Then after he had taken the morsel, Satan entered into him. (John 13:26–27, ESV)

The morsel was probably a piece of bread. Some older translations and commentaries call it “sop.” The Passover meal was coming to an end when the head of the table would dip a piece of bread in the bitter herb mix and pass it to others. Jesus dipped and shared with Judas.

Judas was that close, maybe on Jesus’ left side (which would have made it easy for Judas to stab Jesus in the back!)(Borchert, 95). Judas took the sop. From the human perspective, this was his final window to repent, to come clean and get clean by Jesus. But he took it and Satan entered into him, took possession but still at the opening disobedience of Judas. Satan himself came after Jesus in the wilderness and was bringing it home.

Jesus knew it all.

Jesus said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.” (John 13:27, ESV)

His disciples didn’t know it at all.

Now no one at the table knew why he said this to him. Some thought that, because Judas had the moneybag, Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the feast,” or that he should give something to the poor. (John 13:28–29, ESV)

The feast was not the Passover but the Feast of Unleavened Bread which began the next day and lasted for seven days. On Passover eve the Temple gates were opened late and beggars came, so the possibility of Judas going to give something to the poor. Whatever it was, how could the disciples think that Jesus ordered Judas to betray Him quickly? If John knew, he did nothing to speak up. Later he summarized.

So, after receiving the morsel of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night. (John 13:30, ESV)

Not much could be darker than the night of Judas’ soul, the night of Satan’s war against the seed of the woman, the night when Jesus was betrayed.

Conclusion

Jesus said, “I am telling you this now, before it takes place, that when it does take place you may believe that I am.” Who does that? Only God has that sort of future visibility. But if God has that power, why didn’t He rewrite the script? Why didn’t He thwart the terrorist plot against Him with His inerrant intel?

Because being betrayed by a disciple was a way He could demonstrate love for His disciples. His love for the 11, His love for us, was costly. He knew what He was headed for when He created the world, let alone when He got up to wash their feet on the final night.

The gods of that nations do not know what’s coming five minutes from now with certainty. If they did, and if it involved their pain, you can bet that none love us so much as to head towards the roar.

We won’t see Judas again until chapter 18. He rejected three years of up close and personal teaching, meals with, escapes together, and watched miracles. He is the ultimate hypocrite and even he can’t touch the confidence of true believers. But, by Jesus’ work, even Judas gives us more reason to believe and trust and follow Jesus.

There is too good evidence that we are very ready to be wounded by bad examples; for, in consequence of this, the revolt of one man inflicts a deadly wound on two hundred others, while the steadiness of ten or twenty pious men hardly edifies a single individual. (Calvin, 67)

If anyone had a reason to quit because of hypocrites, the 11 did because of Judas. Judas’ betrayal didn’t knock down their belief in Jesus. Jesus used it to build up their believing and make it stronger.