On the Thursday before Easter, John, one of our readers, played Judas Iscariot in his church’s play, about the last supper Jesus had with His disciples in the upper room. Apparently John was the only one returning to play the same role he played four years ago when the church first performed it. This year, as he tells it, the cast was entirely different except for the role of Judas. A few weeks before the performance, John received a frantic email from the director that he was having a hard time filling roles and especially the role of Judas. It was “a major stumbling block. No one wanted to even consider it.” So John was drafted, he writes, with very little persuasion. “It is a marvelous role and I was blessed, honored and humbled to be asked to do it again.”
Which raises a very interesting question: why would no one want to play Judas? Did they think that by playing Judas in a play they would bring on a curse upon themselves for betraying Christ yet again? Is there difficulty in separating art from reality? Do you have to be Judas to play Judas? Do we only want to identify with the good guys? Do we have nothing in our character and experience to draw from when it comes to betraying Christ? Are we all such perfect Christians that we have never denied Him or given Him the kiss of death?
In my book, the guy who plays Judas is probably the most real person in the play. He has so much to draw from in that we all crucified Christ with our sin. We are the ones who put Him there. The fact that no one wants to play Judas is alarming to me. It says that no one wants to take responsibility for their sin. This is indeed a revealing story.
If we can’t embrace our own sin, how can we claim to know anything about our own forgiveness? If we can’t identify with Judas, how can we pretend to identify with Peter, or John, or Matthew, or any of the others who all betrayed Him and denied they knew Him by running away in His time of need? We identify with good old Peter because he got forgiven and reconciled to Christ, but Judas went out and hanged himself. Do we not understand that? Can we not embrace that in our own character? Are we all so bent on being good Christians that we cannot connect with being the bad guy?
It seems to me that the person who plays Judas may have the most to learn from this experience since it will put them in touch with that part of their humanity that we all try to avoid. Since in every one of us, as the scriptures indicate, there dwells no good thing, since it is only because of God’s grace and His grace alone that any one of us has any claim on salvation, since we all crucified Christ and deserve to be the ones dying there that day, it would seem that Judas would be the obvious character for us to want to play, and if for some reason we can’t do that, or as John indicated this role is “a stumbling block” to us, then we have some serious reexamining to do about our claim as Christians in the first place.
John said he was “blessed, honored and humbled” to play this role again. Really… “humbled” to play Judas Iscariot? Something about that seems as it should be.
John Fischer The Catch 
My favorite character in the crucifixion panoply is the thief who was crucified with Jesus and said, “Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” To me, he was the most “real” person, other than Christ, because he recognized that he was getting what he deserved and that Jesus did not deserve what He was getting. I don’t think Judas recognized anything, except that he had made a serious, serious mistake. In other words, the thief truly regretted what he had done; Judas, on the other hand, regretted that he had been caught. Judas had no repentance; the thief did. So, while I think the part of Judas would be challenging and fun, I think the part of the repentant thief would be life-changing.
For me Pastor John you asked a very insightful question in this: “Is there difficulty in separating art from reality?” To me, it seems a lot of now-in-day believer just can’t, or have trouble doing that. I once read were an actress had a few of her Christian friend get up-set @ her for when she played a part in a movie and she said a few “bad words” and she told her friends she was playing a part in a movie and how could that not understand that..? I wanted to stand up and shout that back and add it’s called art – Some what simular to how i hear a lot of believers get all mad and upset over TV shows, to which my reply is OMG plz consider changing the channel and i think has Jesus once said: he who is without sin cast the first stone! For a lot of reasons to me, I have no trouble thinking our God can very easily separte the two…
PS Waitsel Smith: i really get a lot out of your comments today and thank-you 4 them too…
“….then we have some serious reexamining to do about our claim as Christians in the first place”. John, I believe you are stumbling over your intellect again. You are pondering and imagining things that are not given us to be sure of. You say, “Something about that seems as it should be.” Your “seems” are at fault. The answer is clear…..” The Son of man goes as it is written of Him: but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed ! it had been good for that man if he had not been born.” This is the “stumbling block”, the stigma attached to Judas. Don’t teach us that we should identify with him. The apostles were weak during this time, as would you and I have been, but they didn’t betray Jesus as Judas did. This was something else, as Jesus’ words indicate. Believe that and let it be as it is. We need to rest in our salvation, and be confident in Him…. not question it…. that is, if in fact we are truly trusting in Him to have saved us by the incredible price He ransomed us with. Ralph Gaily
Judas didn’t betray Christ, he fulfilled his destiny, he was part of the plan, one of the chosen. I think his suicide was an act of repentance. I believe if he isn’t in heaven then I have a snowballs chance in hell of ever being there.
Judas was a pawn in the hand of God and our salvation depended on his “betrayal”.
Would we still be talking about Christ if it weren’t for Judas?
sailaway58…. ” The Son of man goes as it is written of Him: but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed ! it had been good for that man if he had not been born.” ….these are His words! He was true, or not true. What else do you doubt about Him? Even a snowball can be preserved …. believe in Him….. it is very late!
Somehow I can never reconcile the horror of crucifiction with any sin I or almost anyone I know has ever committed.
i know, that i know my sins caused His, Jesus death on the cross and i simply don’t try to kidd myself otherwise…
Two years ago, in a church initiated play about the underground railroad of the 1850’s, I played a bounty hunter. To that point I had been in two plays and a multitude of skits and was always type cast. This bounty hunter was a violent angry man interested only in finding runaway slaves and doing anything he could to expose those helping them.
It was difficult for me to be angry, because as a golfer in my earlier days I was the entertainment. Making a bad shot, I would lose it and throw an incredible tantrum, much to the delight of my golfing buddies. Having left those days behind it was unnerving to notice that anger reappear. I prayed about it , talked to the director of the play about it and finally chose to portray righteous anger, the kind God has. So I was angry but did not sin, much different than in my golfing days. At that point I was comfortable in the role. The portrayal of evil and being evil are to be kept separate. I thank God for making that possible.
The bounty hunter portrayal showed me that evil can be portrayed but there are boundaries. I was not that man, but it was humbling to note I was still a sinner and tempted. On that note I would love to play Judas, knowing that even the portrayal of Christ’s betrayer is forgiveable, if repentant. How many of us have betrayed a friend? I have. Yet God forgives the repentant,God’s grace is overwhelming.