Question & Answer – Who else besides Judas sold the Lord?

Balaam also sold his Lord. Both Judas and Balaam sold their souls for money even though they both claimed a relationship with their Lord. Read the following excerpts on the comparison from Patriarchs and Prophets, 451, 452:

“Balaam witnessed the success of his diabolical scheme. He saw the curse of God visited upon His people, and thousands falling under His judgments; but the divine justice that punished sin in Israel did not permit the tempters to escape. In the war of Israel against the Midianites, Balaam was slain. He had felt a presentiment that his own end was near when he exclaimed, ‘Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his’ (Numbers 23:10)! But he had not chosen to live the life of the righteous, and his destiny was fixed with the enemies of God.

“The fate of Balaam was similar to that of Judas, and their characters bear a marked resemblance to each other.

 

Both these men tried to unite the service of God and mammon, and met with signal failure.
Balaam acknowledged the true God, and professed to serve Him. Judas believed in Jesus as the Messiah, and united with His followers.
Balaam hoped to make the service of Jehovah the steppingstone to the acquirement of riches and worldly honor; and failing in this he stumbled and fell and was broken. Judas expected by his connection with Christ to secure wealth and promotion in that worldly kingdom which, as he believed, the Messiah was about to set up. The failure of his hopes drove him to apostasy and ruin.
Both Balaam and Judas had received great light and enjoyed special privileges, but a single cherished sin poisoned the entire character and caused their destruction.

“It is a perilous thing to allow an unchristian trait to live in the heart. One cherished sin will, little by little, debase the character, bringing all its nobler powers into subjection to the evil desire. The removal of one safeguard from the conscience, the indulgence of one evil habit, one neglect of the high claims of duty, breaks down the defenses of the soul and opens the way for Satan to come in and lead us astray. The only safe course is to let our prayers go forth daily from a sincere heart, as did David, ‘Hold up my goings in Thy paths, that my footsteps slip not’ (Psalm 17:5).”

Question & Answer – Why did Moses and Elijah appear with Christ instead of angels? (Matthew 17:1–3)

There were no others who could better encourage Jesus in His impending trial and death than those who had previously been His representatives on earth and who had suffered at the hands of those whom they had tried to lead.

“At the transfiguration the Lord sent Moses and Elijah to talk with Jesus concerning His sufferings and death. Instead of choosing angels to converse with His Son, God chose those who had themselves experienced the trials of earth.” Early Writings, 162.

“The Father chose Moses and Elijah to be His messengers to Christ, and glorify Him with the light of Heaven, and commune with Him concerning His coming agony, because they had lived upon earth as men; they had experienced human sorrow and suffering, and could sympathize with the trial of Jesus, in His earthly life. Elijah, in his position as a prophet to Israel, had represented Christ, and his work had been, in a degree, similar to that of the Saviour. And Moses, as the leader of Israel, had stood in the place of Christ, communing with Him and following His directions; therefore, these two, of all the hosts that gathered around the throne of God, were fittest to minister to the Son of God.” The Spirit of Prophecy, vol. 2, 329.

“Elijah had walked with God. His work had been painful and trying, for the Lord through him had reproved the sins of Israel. Elijah was a prophet of God; yet he was compelled to flee from place to place to save his life. His own nation hunted him like a wild beast that they might destroy him. But God translated Elijah. Angels bore him in glory and triumph to heaven.

“Moses was greater than any who had lived before him. He had been highly honored of God, being privileged to talk with the Lord face to face, as a man speaks with a friend. He was permitted to see the bright light and excellent glory that enshrouded the Father. The Lord through Moses delivered the children of Israel from Egyptian bondage. Moses was a mediator for his people, often standing between them and the wrath of God. When the anger of the Lord was greatly kindled against Israel for their unbelief, their murmurings, and their grievous sins, Moses’ love for them was tested. God proposed to destroy them and to make of him a mighty nation. Moses showed his love for Israel by his earnest pleading in their behalf. In his distress he prayed God to turn from His fierce anger and forgive Israel, or blot his name out of His book.” Early Writings, 162, 163.

Also we are told that “Moses was present to represent those who will be raised from the dead at the second appearing of Jesus. And Elijah, who was translated without seeing death, represented those who will be changed to immortality at Christ’s second coming and will be translated to heaven without seeing death.” Ibid., 164.

Question & Answer – Why did Jesus choose Judas, of all people, to be one of his disciples?

Judas was not one who Jesus personally called to be a disciple. He had called the others and was instructing them of the work that was to be before them and preparing them for ordination when Judas urged himself to be part of the inner circle. He made great profession of devotion to Jesus and proposed to become one of His disciples, even insisting that he was willing to follow Him wherever He went (Matthew 8:19). Christ knew that Judas was possessed of the demon of selfishness and his main object in seeking a connection with Christ was to obtain temporal advantages through Him. Jesus referenced His own poverty, contrasting His condition of having nowhere even to lay His head with the foxes that had holes and the birds that had nests.

This “was designed to cut off any hope Judas might cherish of securing earthly gain by becoming a follower of Christ. Judas was a man of acknowledged executive ability, and possessed of no small influence. For these reasons the disciples were anxious that he should form one of their number. They commended him in the highest terms to Jesus, as one who would greatly assist him in his work. They were therefore surprised that He received him so coolly; but the Saviour read the heart of Judas, and knew, even then, the part he was to act in his future betrayal and execution. Still, Jesus wished to connect this man with Himself, that he might learn his divine mission, and gain moral strength to overcome the defects in his character, and experience an entire change of heart that would ensure his salvation.” The Spirit of Prophecy, vol. 2, 202, 203.

Unfortunately for Judas, he held on to his selfish nature and his carnal heart was never broken to realize the love that had been offered to him. He was covetous; he loved money. Jesus “kept him by His side, where He could counteract the influence that he might exert against His work.” The Review and Herald, May 12, 1903.

Though Judas had a strong love for money, he was not always corrupt enough to do such a deed but he had fostered the evil spirit of avarice until it had become the ruling motive of his life and he eventually sold his Lord for thirty pieces of silver (see Matthew 26:15). The money did him no good.

“The history of Judas presents the sad ending of a life that might have been honored of God.” Conflict and Courage, 317.

Question & Answer – What does it mean that Caiaphas “rent his clothes” in Matthew 26:65

When questioned by Caiaphas if Jesus was the Christ, “Jesus said to him, ‘It is as you said. Nevertheless, I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.’ ” Matthew 26:64 NKJV. Then the high priest rent his clothes in pretended horror that the people might see.

“This act was deeply significant. Little did Caiaphas realize its meaning.

  • In this act, done to influence the judges and secure Christ’s condemnation, the high priest had condemned himself.
  • By the law of God he was disqualified for the priesthood.
  • He had pronounced upon himself the death sentence.” The Desire of Ages, 708.

“Everything worn by the priest was to be whole and without blemish … represented the character of the great antitype, Jesus Christ.

  • Nothing but perfection, in dress and attitude, in word and spirit, could be acceptable to God. …
  • Nothing but perfection could properly represent the sacredness of the heavenly service. …
  • No rent must be made in the priestly robes, for this would mar the representation of heavenly things.
  • The high priest who dared to appear in holy office, and engage in the service of the sanctuary, with a rent robe, was looked upon as having severed himself from God.
  • By rending his garment he cut himself off from being a representative character. He was no longer accepted by God as an officiating priest. …

“By rending his garments, Caiaphas made of no effect the law of God, to follow the tradition of men. A man-made law provided that in case of blasphemy a priest might rend his garments in horror at the sin, and be guiltless. Thus the law of God was made void by the laws of men. …

“When Caiaphas rent his garment, his act was significant of the place that the Jewish nation as a nation would thereafter occupy toward God. … When Christ upon the cross cried out, ‘It is finished’ (John 19:30), and the veil of the temple was rent in twain, the Holy Watcher declared that the Jewish people had rejected Him Who was the antitype of all their types, the substance of all their shadows. Israel was divorced from God. … Well might the high priest rend his robes in horror for himself and for the nation.” Ibid., 709.

Note: “It was the general custom for the garments to be rent at the death of friends. The only exception to this was in the case of the high priest. Even Aaron, when he lost his two sons … was forbidden to show sorrow and mourning by rending his garments. The prohibition was positive [Leviticus 10:6 quoted].” “Ellen G. White Comments” Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 5, 1105.

“He [Christ] bore even the guiltiness of Caiaphas, knowing the hypocrisy that dwelt in his soul, while for pretense he rent his robe. Christ did not rend His robe, but His soul was rent. His garment of human flesh was rent as He hung on the cross, the sin-bearer of the race.” Ibid.

Question & Answer – Is Repentance required before we come to Jesus?

Many people are under the mistaken idea that we need to repent first before we can come to Jesus. The following quotations reveal to us that repentance is a gift. Without this gift the heart has no desire to and, in fact, cannot repent.

“The sinner is represented as a lost sheep, and a lost sheep never returns to the fold unless he is sought after and brought back to the fold by the shepherd. No man of himself can repent, and make himself worthy of the blessing of justification. The Lord Jesus is constantly seeking to impress the sinner’s mind and attract him to behold Himself, the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sins of the world. We cannot take a step toward spiritual life save as Jesus draws and strengthens the soul, and leads us to experience that repentance which needeth not to be repented of.” Selected Messages, Book 1, 390.

“You cannot have a thought without Christ. You cannot have an inclination to come to Him unless He sets in motion influences and impresses His Spirit upon the human mind. And if there is a man on the face of the earth who has any inclination toward God, it is because of the many influences that are set to work to bear upon his mind and heart. Those influences call for the allegiance to God and an appreciation of the great work that God has done for him.

“Then don’t let us ever say that we can repent of ourselves, and then Christ will pardon. No, indeed. It is the favor of God that pardons. It is the favor of God that leads us by His power to repentance. Therefore, it is all of Jesus Christ, everything of Him, and you want to just give back glory to God. Why don’t you respond more when you meet together in your meetings? Why don’t you have the quickening influence of the Spirit of God when the love of Jesus and His salvation are presented to you? It is because you do not see that Christ is first and last and best, and the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, the very Author and Finisher of our faith. You don’t realize this, and therefore you remain in your sins. Why is this? It is because Satan is here wrestling and battling for the souls of men. He casts his hellish shadow right athwart our pathway, and all that you can see is the enemy and his power.

“Look away from his power to the One that is mighty to save to the utmost. Why doesn’t your faith plow through the shadow to where Christ is? He has led captivity captive and given gifts unto men. He will teach you that Satan claims every soul that does not join with Him as his property.” Faith and Works, 73.

Question & Answer – How do the animal sacrifices represent Christ?

I believe the following type-antitype chart will help you to understand the correlation between animal sacrifices and how they represented Christ.

Leviticus 4:3, 23, 28. The animal was to be without blemish. 1 Peter 1:19. Christ was “without blemish and without spot.”
Leviticus 4:4, 14. The offering was to be brought before the Lord to the door of the sanctuary. Hebrews 4:15, 16. “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”
Leviticus 4:4; Numbers 5:7. The sinner laid his hand on the head of the offering, thus acknowledging his sins. 1 John 1:9. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins.”
Leviticus 4:29. The sinner slew the sin-offering; he took the life of the lamb with his own hands. Isaiah 53:10. Christ’s soul was made an offering for sin. Criminals often lived for days upon the cross; it was the awful burden of the sins of the world that slew Christ.
Leviticus 4:5–7, 17, 18. In some offerings the blood was taken into the sanctuary and sprinkled before the Lord. Hebrews 9:12. “By His own blood He [Christ] entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.”
Leviticus 10:16–18. When the blood was not taken into the sanctuary, a portion of the flesh was eaten by the priest in the holy place; thus in type the priest bore “the iniquity of the congregation to make atonement for them before the Lord.” 1 Peter 2:24. This was a type of the One “Who His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.”
Leviticus 4:31; 7:30. The sinner with his own hands was to separate all the fat from the sin-offering, the fat typifying sin. Psalm 37:20. Isaiah 1:16. We are not only to confess past sins, but we are to examine our own hearts and put away evil habits. “Cease to do evil.”
Leviticus 4:31. The fat is all burned to ashes in the court of the sanctuary. Malachi 4:1–3. All sin and sinners will be burned to ashes on the earth.
Leviticus 4:7, 18, 25, 30. The blood of every sin-offering was poured on the ground at the bottom of the brazen altar in the court. Ephesians 1:14. Christ purchased the earth as well as its inhabitants by His death on the cross.

The Cross and Its Shadow, by Stephen N. Haskell, reprint by The Review and Herald Publishing Company, 130, 131.

Question & Answer – What formed the beast and its image?

Apostasy. “When the early church became corrupted by departing from the simplicity of the gospel and accepting heathen rites and customs, she lost the Spirit and power of God; and in order to control the consciences of the people, she sought the support of the secular power. The result was the papacy, a church that controlled the power of the state and employed it to further her own ends, especially for the punishment of ‘heresy.’ In order for the United States to form an image of the beast, the religious power must so control the civil government that the authority of the state will also be employed by the church to accomplish her own ends. …

“It was apostasy that led the early church to seek the aid of the civil government, and this prepared the way for the development of the papacy—the beast. Said Paul: ‘There’ shall ‘come a falling away, … and that man of sin be revealed’ (2 Thessalonians 2:3). So apostasy in the church will prepare the way for the image to the beast.

“The Bible declares that before the coming of the Lord there will exist a state of religious declension similar to that in the first centuries.” The Great Controversy, 443, 444.

“After the warning against the worship of the beast and his image the prophecy declares: ‘Here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus’ (Revelation 14:12). Since those who keep God’s commandments are thus placed in contrast with those that worship the beast and his image and receive his mark, it follows that the keeping of God’s law, on the one hand, and its violation, on the other, will make the distinction between the worshipers of God and the worshipers of the beast.

“The special characteristic of the beast, and therefore of his image, is the breaking of God’s commandments. Says Daniel, of the little horn, the papacy: ‘He shall think to change times and the law’ (Daniel 7:25 R.V.). And Paul styled the same power the ‘man of sin’ (2 Thessalonians 2:3), who was to exalt himself above God. One prophecy is a complement of the other. Only by changing God’s law could the papacy exalt itself above God; whoever should understandingly keep the law as thus changed would be giving supreme honor to that power by which the change was made.” Ibid.

Q & A – What Does it mean to be “dead” and your “life is hid” in Christ?

You must be referring to Colossians 3:3: “For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.”

We are told: “The soul that loves God, rises above the fog of doubt; he gains a bright, broad, deep, living experience, and becomes meek and Christ-like. His soul is committed to God, hid with Christ in God.

  • He will be able to stand the test of neglect, of abuse and contempt, because his Saviour has suffered all this.
  • He will not become fretful and discouraged when difficulties press him, because Jesus did not fail or become discouraged.

Every true Christian will be strong, not in the strength and merit of his good works, but in the righteousness of Christ, which through faith is imputed unto him. It is a great thing to be meek and lowly in heart, to be pure and undefiled, as was the Prince of heaven when he walked among men.” The Review and Herald, December 3, 1889.

The following may also help to answer your question: “In the night season I was in a company of people whose hearts were filled with vanity and conceit. Christ was hid from their eyes. Suddenly in loud, clear accents, the words were heard, ‘Jesus is coming to take to Himself those who on this earth have loved and served Him, to be with Him in His kingdom forever.’ Many of those in the company went forth in their costly apparel to meet Him. They kept looking at their dress. But when they saw His glory, and realized that their estimation of one another had been so largely measured by outward appearance, they knew that they were without the robe of Christ’s righteousness, and that the blood of souls was on their garments.

“When Christ took His chosen ones, they were left; for they were not ready. In their lives self had been given the first place, and when the Saviour came, they were not prepared to meet Him.” Selected Messages, Book 1, 81.

“I awoke with the picture of their agonized countenances stamped on my mind. I cannot efface the impression. I wish I could describe the scene as it was presented to me. Oh, how sad was the disappointment of those who had not learned by experience the meaning of the words, ‘Ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God’ (Colossians 3:3).” Ibid.

[All emphasis added.]

Question and Answer – What is the “great gulf” in Luke 16:26?

The Gulf of Disobedience

“The closing scenes of this earth’s history are portrayed in the closing of the rich man’s history. The rich man claimed to be a son of Abraham, but he was separated from Abraham by an impassable gulf—a character wrongly developed. Abraham served God, following His word in faith and obedience. But the rich man was unmindful of God and of the needs of suffering humanity. The great gulf fixed between him and Abraham was the gulf of disobedience. There are many today who are following the same course. Though church members, they are unconverted. They may take part in the church service, they may chant the psalm, “As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after Thee, O God” (Psalm 42:1); but they testify to a falsehood. They are no more righteous in God’s sight than is the veriest sinner. The soul that longs after the excitement of worldly pleasure, the mind that is full of love for display, cannot serve God. Like the rich man in the parable, such a one has no inclination to war against the lust of the flesh. He longs to indulge appetite. He chooses the atmosphere of sin. He is suddenly snatched away by death, and he goes down to the grave with the character formed during his lifetime in copartnership with Satanic agencies. In the grave he has no power to choose anything, be it good or evil; for in the day when a man dies, his thoughts perish (Psalm 146:4; Ecclesiastes 9:5, 6).

“When the voice of God awakes the dead, he will come from the grave with the same appetites and passions, the same likes and dislikes, that he cherished when living. God works no miracle to re-create a man who would not be re-created when he was granted every opportunity and provided with every facility. During his lifetime he took no delight in God, nor found pleasure in His service. His character is not in harmony with God, and he could not be happy in the heavenly family.

“Today there is a class in our world who are self-righteous. They are not gluttons, they are not drunkards, they are not infidels; but they desire to live for themselves, not for God. He is not in their thoughts; therefore they are classed with unbelievers. Were it possible for them to enter the gates of the city of God, they could have no right to the tree of life, for when God’s commandments were laid before them with all their binding claims they said, No. They have not served God here; therefore they would not serve Him hereafter. They could not live in His presence, and they would feel that any place was preferable to heaven.” Christ’s Object Lessons, 269, 270.

Question & Answer – What is the New Heart Experience?

New Christians will look for a new heart experience. This means the things they once loved they now hate and the things they hated they now love. Their affections change toward heavenly or spiritual things and their characters are reshaped.

“When Jesus speaks of the new heart, He means the mind, the life, the whole being.

  • To have a change of heart is to withdraw the affections from the world, and fasten them upon Christ.
  • To have a new heart is to have a new mind, new purposes, new motives.
  • What is the sign of a new heart?—A changed life. There is a daily, hourly dying to selfishness and pride.” The Youth’s Instructor, September 26, 1901.

“One of the most earnest prayers recorded in the word of God is that of David when he pleaded, ‘Create in me a clean heart, O God’ (Psalm 51:10). God’s response to such a prayer is, A new heart will I give you. This is a work that no finite man can do. Men and women are to begin at the beginning, seeking God most earnestly for a true Christian experience. They are to feel the creative power of the Holy Spirit. They are to receive the new heart, that is kept soft and tender by the grace of heaven. The selfish spirit is to be cleansed from the soul. They are to labor earnestly and with humility of heart, each one looking to Jesus for guidance and encouragement. …” Our High Calling, 159.

“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

“The old nature, born of blood and the will of the flesh, cannot inherit the kingdom of God. The old ways, the hereditary tendencies, the former habits, must be given up; for grace is not inherited. The new birth consists in having

  • new motives,
  • new tastes,
  • new tendencies.

Those who are begotten unto a new life by the Holy Spirit, have become partakers of the divine nature, and in all their habits and practices, they will give evidence of their relationship to Christ. When men who claim to be Christians retain all their natural defects of character and disposition, in what does their position differ from that of the worldling? They do not appreciate the truth as a sanctifier, a refiner. They have not been born again.” The Review and Herald, April 12, 1892.

God says: “A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them” (Ezekiel 36:26, 37).