Freedom Comes From Trusting God

Today’s reading: Acts 1:12-26

Any reference to Judas always brings to mind for me the famous saying: one man’s terrorist is another’s freedom fighter.

I grew up with the traditional Christian idea that Judas was wicked to the core, that he was Satan’s eternally evil child. I vaguely remember writing a school essay, in fact, in which I argued that Judas could be thought as history’s very first terrorist.

But in recent years, I’ve come to understand that Judas’ story isn’t quite that simple. Historians tell us that his betrayal of Jesus was motivated by the common human sin of impatience — not necessarily the eternal, mythical evil of Satan. Judas was simply frustrated with Jesus for not using his popularity to encouraging a violent uprising against the Romans.

So, for many in Jerusalem who were enslaved and abused by the Romans, Judas was a freedom fighter.  (And Jesus, by his silence, would have been considered a supporter of terrorism — hence, the Crucifixion made perfect sense to them.)

This “hero” Judas’  tragic mistake was to take matters into his own hands rather than to simply trust God. But, of course, God foretold this “mistake,” so that is a debatable word.

By my reading, God is trying to teach us through this episode that all of mankind — even freedom fighters and terrorists —  must put all trust in Him. When we don’t, we risk ending up like Judas (“falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out.” Verse 18), and being replaced in God’s work by someone who can trust God.

Thanks be to God for His eternal goodness. May I (and we) always find complete trust in Him.