pastor Judas

Multitudes followed Jesus wherever he went during his public ministry.  Great miralces of healing and deliverances of all kinds were so abundantly ministered by Jesus, that he sometimes resorted to put a little distance between himself and the throngs of needy people, in order to be able to teach them (Matthew 13:2; et al).  In their desperation, some even went so far as to tear away the roof of a house wherein Jesus was, and lowered their invalid companion through the opening in the roof (Mark 2:4).

But not everyone had to stand in long lines to see Jesus.  A small group of twelve, hand-picked men had special access to their Master.  Judas Iscariot was one of those men.  He was not merely one of Jesus' disciples (of which there were many): Judas was one of the twelve Apostles of Christ.  Accordingly, Judas was given exceptional privilege concerning the Kingdom of God and the ministry of Jesus Christ.  He was trusted with authority and power, to teach the Word of God and to perform miracles in Christ's name.

People everywhere recognized and respected Judas, as one who served in the capacity, or in the office of Christ's minister.  It is well known, of course, that Judas betrayed Jesus--with a kiss.  And for what?  For money.

Today, many who presumably are Christ's ministers likewise use their office to betray Jesus, for personal gain.  Pastors are entrusted by their congregants to instuct them in the Word and the ways of God.  Instead, many (most?) pastors feed their flocks not with the pure Word of God but with spiritual junk food, as it were.  If it's sweet, people will buy it...and swallow it.  But too much of Truth has been known (even in Jesus' ministry) to turn a lot of folks away--which, carnal minds suppose, threatens the financial bottom line!

Therefore, in order to protect their own purse, many pastors

• neglect to warn Chritian parents about the soul-destroying nature and effects of the public education system;
• refuse to admonish those same parents to protect their children against that system;
• fail to organize the Church's resources in any substantive way to provide genuinely Christian education opportunities (beyond the token half-hour 'Sunday School');
• fear or otherwise loathe to discuss in any setting the ramifications attending the proliferation of Bible-substitutes, all of which (so-called Bible 'versions') demonstrably serve to undermine the true Word of God--that is to say, the King James Bible (for the English-speaking world);
• insist upon preserving and celebrating certain pagan holidays and rituals, in lieu of clear, Biblical teaching to the contrary; i.e., Easter, Christmas (and even Halloween!);
• substitute a plethora of man-centered ideas and programs (including many occult, or so-called New Age ideas), in the place of the Person and ministry of Jesus Christ by and through the Holy Ghost.

Although the foregoing list is by no means exhaustive, the pervasiveness of just those elements alone, sufficiently explains the apostacy that is rampant amongst contemporary churches throughout America and most of the world.

Pastor Judas says within himself, "Show me the money!", as he leans over to kiss Jesus, in the sight of all the people.

And in the sight of Almighty God.