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Sermon Series: We are currently going through a sermon series in the Gospel of Matthew. Today, we’re talking about a passage of Scripture where Judas regrets betraying Jesus.

Judas Hangs Himself

³ Then when Judas, his betrayer, saw that Jesus^[a] was condemned, he changed his mind and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders, ⁴ saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” They said, “What is that to us? See to it yourself.” ⁵ And throwing down the pieces of silver into the temple, he departed, and he went and hanged himself. ⁶ But the chief priests, taking the pieces of silver, said, “It is not lawful to put them into the treasury, since it is blood money.” ⁷ So they took counsel and bought with them the potter’s field as a burial place for strangers. ⁸ Therefore that field has been called the Field of Blood to this day. ⁹ Then was fulfilled what had been spoken by the prophet Jeremiah, saying, “And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of him on whom a price had been set by some of the sons of Israel, ¹⁰ and they gave them for the potter’s field, as the Lord directed me.”

None of us are perfect, which means we’ve all struggled with regret. In this part of God’s Word we Judas struggling with regret. By taking a look at his story, we learn a lot about how we are to handle regret in our own lives.

When you feel regretful, remember:

1. Don’t ignore it

Matt. 27:3, Rom. 1:18-32, Prov. 1:24-33, Jer. 17:23, John 12:48

2. Your sin can’t be fixed by good works

Matt. 27:3-4, Eph. 2:8-9, Rom. 3:22-26, Rom. 10:9-10

3. Sin leads to death

Matt. 27:5, Rom. 6:23, John 3:36, James 1:15, John 5:24

4. Your sin doesn’t surprise God

Matt. 27:9-10, Rom. 8:38-39, Heb. 4:15, Ps. 139:7-12

5. Turn your remorse into repentance 

Matt. 4:17, Acts 2:38, 2 Pet. 3:9, Acts 17:30, 1 John 1:9, Prov. 28:19

6. True repentance involves change 

Acts 3:19, 2 Chron. 7:14, Matt. 3:8

7. Ask God to transform your life

Rom. 12:1-2, 2 Cor. 3:18, Col. 3:9-10

Reflecting on God’s Word

Getting Started

• Take some time to read over Matthew 27:3-10 and pray. 
• Have you ever read or heard about this before? What stood out to you as we were talking about it? 
• What surprised you as we talked about it?
• How have you dealt with regret in the past? 
• As you reflect on how Judas dealt with his guilt, has the enemy tried using similar tactics on you? 
• Are you dealing with any ongoing sin during this season of your life? 

 

Diving In 

1. When you feel regret over sin, how likely are you to ignore it? Why is that? 
2. Judas tried dealing with his regret by returning the money. We often try to make the same mistake by trying to cover up our sins with good works. Scripture is clear though: our sins cannot be made up for by doing good things, but only by grace through faith (see Eph. 2:8-9), made possible by Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. How can you be sure to avoid this same mistake? 
3. The enemy can often keep us feeling guilty. How can you turn your remorse into repentance? 
4. Spend some time in prayer asking God to transform your life. Jot down any take-aways or action steps that He leads you to. 

 

Applying the Scripture

What are your biggest takeaways from this passage of God’s Word? 

• What practical step(s) do you need to implement in your life to apply what God has taught you in this passage of Scripture? 
• How would applying this affect your life and your relationship with the Lord? 
• Who can you ask to keep you accountable to applying this to your life?

 

Small Group Guide: