🏛⚡🖤 Judas and the Tragedy of Nearness: Authority Is Not Approval

I. 1. Ezekiel 3:20–22 — Who Is the “Righteous Man”?

“If a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits injustice…”

My first thought when reading Ezekiel 3:20-22 was "Judas!" Revisiting that thought I had to ask: Do the gospel passages regarding Judas address loss of righteousness or exposure of unrighteousness?

In Ezekiel, “righteous” (ṣaddiq) is covenantal and functional, not metaphysical or eternal. It refers to someone walking rightly within the covenant—visible obedience, alignment with God’s revealed will, and social faithfulness.

Two observations matter:

1. Righteousness here is observable and historical, not hidden or ontological. Ezekiel is dealing with public covenant life, not inward regeneration.
2. God Himself says He places the stumbling block.
   This is judicial testing, not temptation to evil. It is exposure, not seduction. The same logic appears in:
   • Pharaoh’s hardening
   • Israel in the wilderness
   • Deuteronomy 13 (false prophets as a test)

So Ezekiel 3 is not primarily about salvation lost, but about responsibility intensified. The righteous man is accountable because he knew and walked rightly—and then turned.

The watchman’s liability depends on whether the person had light and received warning.

2. Does This Apply to Judas?

Judas had authority, but Scripture never affirms his righteousness

Matthew 10:1–4 is explicit: Judas is listed with the Twelve and receives authority to cast out demons and heal.

But notice what Jesus later says:

• John 6:64–71 – “One of you is a devil… He spoke of Judas.”
• John 13:10–11 – “You are clean, but not all of you.”
• John 17:12 – “None has been lost except the son of destruction.”

Jesus does not speak as if Judas fell from righteousness. He speaks as if Judas was never clean, though fully included in ministry.

That matters enormously.

Judas does not “turn from righteousness”

He reveals what he is when pressure, proximity to Jesus, and temptation converge.

This aligns him more closely with:

• Balaam (Numbers 22–24; 31:16)
• Saul (1 Samuel 15–16)
• Those in Matthew 7 who prophesy, cast out demons, and perform mighty works

All have real power and real proximity—without covenant faithfulness.

So Ezekiel 3 does not apply to Judas in the sense of:

“A righteous man who fell away.”

But it does apply in the sense of:

“Greater accountability attends greater light.”

Judas’ condemnation is not that he lost righteousness—but that he betrayed truth while standing closest to it.

3. Matthew 7:21–23 — Authority as Extended Grace, Not Validation

Jesus’ words are devastating precisely because the works are real:

• “Did we not prophesy… cast out demons… do mighty works?”
• Jesus does not deny the works.
• He denies the relationship: “I never knew you.”

This confirms a consistent biblical principle:

God may work through people He does not approve of.

Why?

1. To serve others despite the servant
2. To test hearts
3. To remove excuses
4. To magnify His own faithfulness

Judas healed real people. Demons really fled. The Kingdom really advanced.
That was grace—for the recipients, and an opportunity for Judas.

Authority, then, is not a badge of righteousness. It is a summons to repentance.

Synthesis

• Ezekiel 3 addresses covenant participants who walked rightly and then turned, increasing the watchman’s responsibility.
• Judas does not fit that category because Jesus testifies he was never clean.
• Spiritual authority, as seen in Matthew 10 and Matthew 7, is not proof of righteousness but a severe mercy—an invitation that heightens accountability.
• Judas is condemned not for falling from righteousness, but for loving darkness while standing in the Light.

If anything, Judas stands as a warning more severe than Ezekiel 3:

One can preach truth, touch power, walk with Jesus—and still refuse Him.

That is not a loss of righteousness. It is the tragedy of nearness without surrender.

II. 1. Mark 9:39 — Authority Operating Outside the Inner Circle

“Do not stop him… for no one who does a mighty work in My name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of Me.”

Context matters greatly

• The disciples are policing association, not doctrine.
• The unnamed exorcist is not claiming independent authority; he is explicitly acting in Jesus’ Name.
• Jesus’ concern is not institutional alignment but directional allegiance.

This passage establishes a critical principle:

Jesus recognizes the legitimacy of works done in His Name even when the worker is not formally recognized by His followers.

Importantly, Jesus does not say:

• “This proves the man is righteous”
• “This proves the man knows Me”

He says the work itself testifies that the person is not currently hostile to Him.

That is a lower bar than covenant faithfulness.

So Mark 9:39 affirms:

• Divine power may operate beyond recognized boundaries
• God’s work is not hostage to human gatekeeping
• Authority is not equivalent to intimacy

This supports, rather than contradicts, Matthew 7.

2. “Without Me You Can Do Nothing” — Agency Without Ownership

John 15:5 is often softened into encouragement, but it is actually a totalizing claim:

“Apart from Me you can do nothing.”

Jesus is not speaking merely of “spiritual fruit” in a narrow sense. He is asserting exclusive causality for anything that genuinely participates in the life of God.

Which means—yes—you are exactly right:

Jesus is implicitly affirming that He was the source behind the works of Matthew 7:21–23.

He does not say:

• “Those works were fake”
• “Those miracles were illusions”
• “Those people were lying”

He says:

• “I never knew you”

The problem is not power. The problem is union.

This distinction is essential:

• Power can flow through proximity
• Fruit requires abiding

Miracles require authority. Fruit requires relationship.

3. Holding Mark 9, Matthew 7, and John 15 Together

Here is the synthesis that emerges when all three texts are honored:

1. Jesus is the true source of all Kingdom power

No one casts out demons apart from Him—whether they know Him or not.

2. Jesus may act through people He does not know

This is not endorsement; it is sovereignty.
It serves:

• The oppressed
• The hearers
• The witness of the Kingdom
• The exposure of the servant’s heart

3. Authority is a stewardship, not a seal of approval

It increases accountability rather than conferring righteousness.

4. Relationship—not results—is the dividing line

Matthew 7 does not condemn false claims of power.
It condemns loveless, lawless proximity to Jesus.

4. Judas, Revisited — Now Sharpened Further

With Mark 9 and John 15 in view, Judas becomes even clearer.

• Judas did not operate apart from Jesus.
• Judas operated through Jesus.
• The tragedy is not that Jesus was absent from Judas’ ministry.

Judas shared:

• The same authority
• The same commissioning
• The same power source

What he refused was abiding.

Which explains why Jesus can say:

• “You are not clean”
• “One of you is a devil”
• “The son of destruction”

Without contradicting the reality of Judas’ works.

Theological Claim

Spiritual authority is not evidence of righteousness; it is an extension of grace that demands response.

Jesus does not deny His involvement in the works of Matthew 7. He denies mutual knowledge.

• Mark 9 shows that Jesus is generous with power.
• John 15 shows that power without abiding is barren.
• Matthew 7 shows that barren power is ultimately judged.

That is not contradiction. That is coherence.

III. 1. “They Loved the Glory That Comes from Man” — The Missing Motive

John 12:42–43 names the pathology directly:

“They loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.”

This is not ignorance. It is misdirected desire.

Such people are not cut off from religious activity or even divine power. They are cut off from the Father’s approval as their ultimate good.

This maps exactly onto Matthew 7:21–23:

• Works are present
• Power is present
• Confession is present
• Relationship is absent

Because the direction of the heart is wrong, not the activity of the hands.

2. “I Never Knew You” — Knowledge Requires Turning Toward the Father

In biblical terms, knowing is relational and directional.

Jesus’ statement does not mean:

• “You never spoke about Me”
• “You never worked in My name”

It means:

• “You never oriented yourself toward the Father through Me”

John 5:44 exposes the mechanism:

“How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?”

This is decisive. Seeking human approval prevents belief, not merely maturity.

So the issue is not that the Matthew 7 figures failed to do enough for God.
It is that they failed to draw near to God.

3. Power Without Abiding — A Self-Sealing Loop

Here is the danger you are identifying, and it is deeply biblical:

1. Jesus grants authority (grace)
2. Works occur (real fruit for others)
3. Human affirmation follows
4. The worker feeds on affirmation
5. The need for God diminishes
6. Abiding is quietly replaced by performance

At that point, ministry becomes self-reinforcing without being God-seeking.

This explains how someone can remain “successful” while becoming increasingly unrelational toward God.

Paul warns of exactly this in Philippians 3:18–19:

“Their god is their belly… with minds set on earthly things.”

Even when the “belly” is reputation, admiration, or spiritual status.

4. Why Jesus Never Knew Them

Your conclusion holds:

They did not draw near to the Father because earthly glory sufficed.

This is why Jesus can say:

• “You did many works”
• “You used My Name”
• “You exercised My authority”

And still say:

• “I never knew you”

Because knowledge requires humility, dependence, and turning Godward.

James 4:8 is the simple counterpoint:

“Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.”

They drew near to crowds.
They drew near to influence.
They drew near to affirmation.

They did not draw near to God.

5. Judas Again — Now Fully Exposed

Judas fits this pattern with tragic clarity.

• He held the purse (status, control)
• He objected to “wasted” devotion (John 12)
• He exchanged Jesus for silver (measurable value)
• He sought outcomes, not communion

Judas did not lose intimacy.
He never sought it.

His proximity to power only hardened the choice.

Framing

Jesus never knew them because they were satisfied with being known by others.

Spiritual power became a means of self-affirmation rather than self-surrender.

That reading:

• Preserves the reality of the works
• Upholds Jesus as the true source of power
• Explains the absence of relationship
• Aligns Matthew 7 with John’s Gospel, Philippians, and James
• Avoids redefining righteousness into mere activity

This is not a marginal interpretation.
It is a sober, integrated biblical theology of glory misdirected.

If you wish to press this further, the next natural text is Matthew 6—because Jesus explicitly contrasts reward from the Father with reward from others, and He treats the latter as a completed transaction.

factor in: if I were still trying to please man I would not be a servant of Christ

That line from Paul is not an add-on to this discussion; it is the governing axiom that locks everything we have been tracing into place.

“If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.” (Galatians 1:10)

What Paul states as a personal conviction, Jesus presents as a judicial reality.

1. Paul and Jesus Are Saying the Same Thing in Different Registers

Paul speaks vocationally. Jesus speaks eschatologically.

Paul: “I would not be a servant of Christ.”
Jesus: “I never knew you.”

Different language. Same diagnosis.

Both assert that orientation toward human approval and servanthood to Christ are mutually exclusive loyalties. Not sequential. Not hierarchical. Mutually exclusive.

2. Pleasing Man Replaces Abiding — Not Works

Notice what Paul does not say.

He does not say:

• “If I still pleased man, I could not minister”
• “If I still pleased man, I would lack power”
• “If I still pleased man, I would be ineffective”

Paul himself acknowledges that he once pleased men very successfully—and with religious authority (Gal. 1:13–14; Phil. 3:4–6).

The issue is not capability. It is lordship.

To seek human approval is to accept a different audience, and therefore a different master.

3. This Explains Matthew 7 With Surgical Precision

Matthew 7:21–23 is not condemning ineffective servants.

It is condemning servants who served the wrong audience while using the right Name.

• They ministered in Jesus’ name
• But not for the Father’s pleasure
• And not toward the Father’s presence

Which is why Jesus does not say:

“You served the wrong master.”

He says:

“I never knew you.”

Because servants are known by their master. And they had chosen a different one.

4. Authority Without Sonship Is Possible — Servanthood Without Allegiance Is Not

This brings the full logic together:

• Authority can be delegated without intimacy
• Power can flow without union
• Ministry can succeed without obedience
• Recognition can replace relationship

But servanthood cannot exist without allegiance.

Paul says plainly:
If pleasing man governs me, I am not Christ’s servant.

Jesus says judicially:
If you never served the Father, I never knew you.

5. Matthew 6 Completes the Warning

Jesus already told us how this ends:

“They have received their reward in full.”

Human approval is not neutral.
It is a completed transaction.

Nothing remains to be given by the Father.

So when those in Matthew 7 appeal to their works, Jesus does not debate their résumé. He declares the account closed.

Integration

What you have now articulated can be stated as a unified biblical principle:

Seeking the approval of people is not a minor spiritual flaw; it is a competing allegiance that nullifies servanthood to Christ.

That explains:

• Why Jesus “never knew” miracle-workers
• Why Judas could wield power yet betray
• Why authority is not evidence of righteousness
• Why Paul draws a hard line with no middle ground

And it leaves us with a sober but clarifying truth:

You can be impressive to people and unknown to God.
You cannot be a servant of Christ while living for the applause of others.

That is not harsh. It is mercifully clear.

IV. 1. Jesus Affirms the Office Without Endorsing the Heart

Two strands must be held together.

a) Jesus sends people to the priests

For example:

• Matthew 8:4 / Mark 1:44 / Luke 5:14 — the cleansed leper is told to present himself to the priest.
• This is not because the priests are righteous.
• It is because the office remains functional within God’s economy.

Jesus honors the Torah’s structure even while confronting its corruption.

b) Jesus commands obedience to their teaching

“The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat; therefore do and observe whatever they tell you—but not the works they do.”
(Matthew 23:2–3)

This is decisive.

Jesus explicitly separates:

• Authoritative transmission of God’s word
• From moral integrity of the transmitters

God’s truth remains true even when carried by compromised vessels.

2. This Confirms the Principle: God Works Through Those He Does Not Approve Of

What you are identifying is consistent across Scripture:

• Balaam blesses Israel against his will
• Caiaphas prophesies Christ’s atoning death (John 11:49–52)
• Temple priests officiate sacrifices while plotting murder
• Pharisees accurately teach Moses while neglecting mercy

In every case:

• God’s purpose advances
• People benefit
• The servant’s heart is exposed rather than excused

The power of God is not an endorsement.
It is a test.

3. Why Jesus Protects the People While Judging the Leaders

Jesus’ approach does two things simultaneously:

1. Protects the vulnerable
   • He does not invalidate healings because priests are corrupt.
   • He does not destabilize covenant life for the sake of protest.
2. Increases accountability
   • “To whom much is given, much will be required.”
   • The priests’ judgment is heavier precisely because they remain conduits of God’s truth.

This mirrors Ezekiel’s watchman principle and sharpens Matthew 7:

• Authority increases responsibility
• Function does not imply approval
• Proximity intensifies judgment

4. This Resolves the Apparent Paradox Cleanly

Why would Jesus tell people to obey leaders He condemns?

Because God’s faithfulness is not suspended by human unfaithfulness.

Romans 3:3–4 answers it directly:

“Will their faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of God? By no means.”

God will not abandon His people simply because their leaders are compromised.

But neither will He excuse those leaders.

5. Implications for the Matthew 7 / Judas Discussion

This completes the framework you have been building:

• Judas functions like a priest in the Temple
• Real authority
• Real benefit to others
• Real participation in God’s work
• No inward submission to God’s will

The same dynamic applies:

• People are healed
• Demons are cast out
• God’s purposes advance
• The servant remains unapproved

Jesus does not deny the works.
He denies the relationship.

Final Statement (Integrated)

God often works through offices, structures, and individuals He does not morally approve of in order to preserve His faithfulness to others.

Jesus’ instruction to honor the priests while exposing their hypocrisy proves this is not theoretical—it is the Lord’s own practice.

This prevents:

• Idolizing leaders
• Dismissing genuine works of God because of flawed servants
• Confusing effectiveness with faithfulness

And it leaves every servant—especially those closest to holy things—with a sobering truth:

Being used by God is not the same as being known by God.

That distinction is not meant to breed cynicism. It is meant to drive us toward humility, repentance, and a singular desire to please the Father rather than people.