Why did Jesus select an unbeliever from all His students to be one of the 12 disciples after an entire night of prayer?

The answer is found at the end of this prayer.

John 17:1-11

1 Jesus spoke these things; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, "Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You,

Jesus makes this prayer right after the Last Supper, after Judas has left the upper room in order to betray Him. He is probably praying in the Garden of Gethsemane.

4 "I glorified You on the earth, having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do.

How did Jesus glorify God? By accomplishing the work that the Father had for Him to do. God the Father had a specific task that He wanted His Son to accomplish. The same holds true for us. Our Father has specific work that He wants us to accomplish:

Ephesians 2:10

10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.

He has prepared the work for us; we don’t want to leave it unfulfilled!

5 "Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.

6 "I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world; they were Yours and You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.

Did Judas keep the Father’s word? No! Now don’t think we’re talking about losing your salvation. In order to KEEP His word you first have to RECEIVE His word! How you receive it makes all the difference in the world. Judas certainly heard the message of salvation. But how did he receive it? With faith, or without? How do you receive it? Like this?

1 Thessalonians 2:13

13 For this reason we also constantly thank God that when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but for what it really is, the word of God, which also performs its work in you who believe.

Hebrews 4:2

2 For indeed we have had good news preached to us, just as they also; but the word they heard did not profit them, because it was not united by faith in those who heard.

Here is the key – you can receive the Word of God, but if you don’t take it and mix it with faith, it will do you no good! You must take the things you learn, and apply them to your everyday life.

When Jesus said they had “kept Your word,” He used the word TUREO. Don’t think of it as keeping the rules, or following commandments. The word means to hold or preserve, to guard or protect, or to observe or pay close attention to something. Did Judas TUREO Jesus’ words? Absolutely not, he was storing up treasures on earth instead of in heaven.

8 for the words which You gave Me I have given to them; and they received them and truly understood that I came forth from You, and they believed that You sent Me.

12 "While I was with them, I was keeping them in Your name which You have given Me; and I guarded them and not one of them perished but the son of perdition, so that the Scripture would be fulfilled.

The phrase “son of perdition,” or HUIOS TES APOLEIAS, was an idiom referring to a person who is destined to perish. Judas was destined to perish, because he chose not to believe the Word of salvation that he had heard from Jesus Christ.

So why did Jesus pick Judas? SO THAT THE SCRIPTURE WOULD BE FULFILLED!

John 13:18

18 "I do not speak of all of you. I know the ones I have chosen; but it is that the Scripture may be fulfilled, "HE WHO EATS MY BREAD HAS LIFTED UP HIS HEEL AGAINST ME.' (From Psalm 41:9)