But Judas Iscariot, the disciple who would soon betray him, said, “That perfume was worth a year’s wages. It should have been sold and the money given to the poor.”Not that he cared for the poor—he was a thief, and since he was in charge of the disciples’ money, he often stole some for himself. John 12:4-6
Before Judas commits the great sin that earns him the title, “Traitor” and ends him in the lowest part of Dante’s hell, before the devil enters him and pull his strings (as John will narrate), there is Judas putting some pennies into his pockets. Such is the slope of sin. We slip into them.
This does not let us off the hook. But our sense of self would be shattered if we jump into sin. So we move to sin gradually. We acclimate ourselves, we create reason for what we do so sin and the sense of self can coincide, so we can live with the sin and still feel we are right. Everyone who sins believe they have good reason for it.
When Judas went to the religious leaders, he really did not see himself as a bad man. He had good reasons for it. Jesus was not, after all, a revolutionary who would liberate the poor. Jesus, it turns out, isn’t any different than the religious leaders themselves, hobnobbing with the rich (Lazarus). And why not demand 30 pieces of silver. He will send some of that to Compassion International or some other charities. And demanding 30 silvery pieces did not feel greedy at all, since his hand was already oily with dimes and nickels. Long before Satan enters us, we are committing little white lies.