Archives for March 2014

Mat. 27:15-26a; Mark 15:6-15a; Luke 23:13-25; John 18:39-19:16

With Jesus before him again, Pilate called the Jewish leaders back to the tribunal.

“You have brought this Man to me as a supposed inciter of the people, but neither Herod nor I have found any wrongdoing in Him, so I’ll have Him scourged and let Him go.”

The Jews strenuously objected. Then Pilate had what he thought was a good idea for effecting Jesus’ release. Every year at the time of the Passover the Roman Procurator would release to the people one prisoner whom the government was holding and would free him of all charges. This was meant to have a calming effect on the Jews who were known to be sensitive and easily aroused at Passover time.

There was at that moment, languishing in prison, a notorious prisoner named Barabbas, who had been arrested for rebellion and murder. Pilate thought that, although the Jews despised Jesus, if they were given a choice between the infamous Barabbas and Jesus, they would choose Jesus.  At least Jesus was not guilty of the same desperate crimes as Barabbas.  Pilate had many vices, but it is evident he did not want to imprison Jesus, much less crucify Him.

Pilate cried out to the crowd gathered in front of the judgment hall, “Whom shall I release to you, Barabbas or Jesus who is called the Christ?” It is highly likely that, with such a choice presented to them, the common people would have chosen Jesus in spite of their keen disappointment in Him.

But the leaders of the Jews shouted to the people, “Ask for Barabbas! Ask for Barabbas!”

A large group of people can quickly become mob?like; and this crowd was no exception. They fast caught the evil impetus that was in the Jewish leaders’ actions and cried, “Away with this man! Give us Barabbas!”

“What then shall I do with Jesus?” Pilate asked them. Oh, what a searching question for everyone! What indeed will we do with Jesus: crucify Him afresh?

The mob had made their fateful decision to ask for the release of Barabbas instead of Jesus. Now they were incited by their leaders to compound their guilt and bring the whole edifice of razed justice crashing down on Jesus’ immaculate head. “Crucify Him!” they cried.

There was enough evil in that microcosm of mankind gone mad to make the staunchest of men to tremble. It was not just human caprice; it was a pit?spawned spirit of evil that enveloped the whole mass of humanity thronging the area before the judgment hall. All around rose the throaty roar of a horde of crazed persons who had lost touch with reality, caught up in the demonic tide that would willingly sweep Jesus into being merely a passing memento of history.

When the shouting subsided somewhat, Pilate said, “Why? What evil has He done?”

And again the mob, urged on by the chief priests, gave full voice to their awful demand: “Crucify Him!”

Pilate wanted all the more to release Jesus because some time during Jesus’ trial Pilate’s wife had sent word to Pilate, “Have nothing to do with this just Man. I have suffered a great deal today because of a dream I had of Him.” But Pilate could prevail not a little. Calling for a basin of water, he washed his hands in it and said, “I am innocent of the blood of this just Person. You see to it.”

“His blood be on us and our children,” they shouted, casting aside all caution in their frenzy and madness.

Mat. 27:26b?31a; Mark 15:15b?20

Pilate set Barabbas free, but Jesus he sent to be scourged, after which He was to be crucified. The soldiers took Jesus to an inner courtyard of the praetorium where they prepared Him for scourging. (Tenney 1967, 761: “Scourge.”) They bared His back to the waist, bound His hands behind His back, and then tied Him, in a stooped over position, to a stake in the ground. In this way His back could receive the full force of the lash as it descended. The lash, or scourge, was a three?thonged whip with jagged pieces of metal or bone attached to the ends. Victims were known to faint or even die from the ordeal.

As mentioned previously, we cannot get elaborate details from the Scriptures of Jesus’ ordeal. We have to use an informed imagination; and even though we may cringe from the picture, we must force ourselves to look at it. It is only natural not to want to see such degradation and torture inflicted on Him who is our very life and on whom our affections are centered. But this is the reason we love Him so: He suffered it all for us when He in no way had to do it. Perhaps the statement is wrong — He did have to do it. His love compelled Him to this extremity and would not let Him avoid the journey into torture on which He was now embarked since the fateful moment in Gethsemane.

So we look at Deity clothed in flesh as the soldiers roughly prepare Him for His scourging and push and curse Him. We force ourselves to look at Him as the lash descends on His back with the full force of an unfeeling arm behind it. The onlooker can see the jagged ends as they cut deeply into the flesh, and watch in distress as Jesus’ body convulses in the searing pain and a cry escapes his lips. Horror-stricken, we can feel in some small measure His exquisite suffering and are appalled as we see His back gradually turn into one crimson mass as the welts crisscross it until they are scarcely distinguishable one from the other. And all that our tear blurred eyes can make out is raw, bleeding flesh.

It is needful that we look at this tragic scene. It is not only a tremendously moving tale of deep and enduring love: it actually happened. It was a literal event and the love that engineered this exacting yet great redemptive design is more real than the world around us.

The soldiers were not yet through with their brutal diversion. As Jesus sagged at the stake, they untied Him and jerked Him to His feet, His mind blurred by a fog of pain. Somewhere they found a purple robe which they draped on Him, the touch of it on His back causing needles of pain to jab at Him.

“He said He was a king,” someone said. “Let’s dress Him like one.”

Next, they reasoned, He must have a crown. One of them got the idea of plaiting a crown of thorns, which they hastened to do and then pressed it down on His brow. He meekly endured it as fresh drops of blood appeared amid the traces of dried blood from Gethsemane. Putting a reed in Jesus’ hand for a scepter, the soldiers knelt before Him.

“Hail, King of the Jews!” they shouted in mockery. Then they spit on their newly elevated king and, taking the reed out of His hand, they struck him over the head with it.

After a while their sadistic urge tapered off and they took Him back to Pilate. Pilate took Jesus out to the people again. He had been a bedraggled figure before, but now the change for the worse was striking. Still there was no sympathy in the myriad of eyes fastened on Him — only a monumental unconcern at best or, at worst, a deep hatred that wanted Jesus swept completely out of their lives. It is amazing how inhumane mankind can be to its own kind.

Staggering behind Pilate as the two of them came before the throng, Jesus stood mute in front of them. If Pilate had any doubts as to the crowd’s sympathies at this moment, they were soon dispelled.

Pointing to Jesus still wearing the purple robe and the crown of thorns, Pilate said, in wonderment and possibly some compassion, “Behold the Man!”

The mob was intractable and again cried out as one, “Crucify Him!  Crucify Him!”

“You crucify Him,” Pilate shot back. “I find no fault in Him.”

“He broke our law by saying He is the Son of God.”

An uneasy feeling closed in on Pilate like a thick cloud, stifling his sense of security. Was there any truth to this preposterous claim? Who was this Man?

He took Jesus back inside and asked Him, “Where are you from?” Jesus remained silent.

“Don’t you know,” Pilate said a little testily, “that I have the power to crucify you or release you?”

“You have no power at all” Jesus replied with conviction, “except what is given you from above.” Pilate was impressed. From then on he tried to free Jesus, but was frustrated by the Jews and his own cowardice. He recalled that the Jews had made a point of telling Pilate, “If you let this Man go you are not Caesar’s friend. Whoever makes himself a king sets himself against Caesar.”

Pilate brought Jesus out and he (Pilate) sat down in the judgment seat. He gestured dramatically toward Jesus. “Behold your King!”

There is the possibility that it was said not altogether in mockery. Pilate was without doubt strangely moved by this Person who was altogether wretched looking and yet exuded such an air of calm and imperturbability.

The Jews were adamant, crying again, “Away with Him! Crucify Him!”

“Shall I crucify your king?”

“We have no king but Caesar.” These were strange words from a nation who had always insisted that they submitted to no foreign power. The Jews were now so inflamed with their hatred of Jesus that their former intense dislike of foreign dominion became a triviality. Pilate, seeing a clear and present danger of yet another Jewish uprising, yielded and gave Jesus over to be crucified.

 

NOTE: Peter is a negative example of all mankind. We are loud boasters, braggarts who have been cruelly disappointed in our own selves times without number. We see the fragile moral creatures we really are, but that has the wrong effect on us. So we become like naïve children who think that by closing our eyes tightly to the truth as it is in Jesus, we can make the ugly reality in us vanish and be replaced by our loud statements to the contrary. But claiming to have reached the truth as it is in Christ does not automatically – presto changeo! and in a puff of smoke – make it our own.

Jesus suffered the tortures of the damned to sanctify us, and we actually do attain that sanctification of body, soul and spirit in a split second by faith in Him alone. But that is not the whole story – if we have a living faith in Him – we will strive mightily to grow into that sanctification we now have by faith. And we will agonize and suffer (in a measure) with Jesus. The beauty of this setup is that, although we are in reality reaping the evil seed we have sown, God in grace and mercy reckons it as suffering for Him and with Him! This is the grace that angels and demons have never known. The angels rejoice with us for the grace God extends to mankind – while the devil and his demons are trying to drag us down to hell with them.

Mat. 27:1, 2; Mark 15:1; Luke 22:66-71

Early in the morning the Sanhedrin convened and Jesus was brought before them. This does not appear to have been a formal meeting of the Sanhedrin. Whether it was or not, all Bible scholars agree that the proceedings were a perversion of justice and were motivated by the deep-seated hatred of the scribes and Pharisees for Jesus. They despised this Man who had been so openly critical and even judgmental of them who were the spiritual leaders of the Jews. It is nevertheless remarkable that no one in that august assemblage found room in his heart for compassion for the pitiful figure standing before them unless it was one or two such as Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus. But there is no record of their offering any resistance at this time to the farcical trial they were witnessing.

“Are you the Christ?” the council asked Jesus.

“You will not believe if I tell you; neither will you answer if I question you. But from now on the Son of man will be seated at the right hand of God Almighty.”

“Are you then the Son of God?” they eagerly asked Jesus, anxious for Him to assent so they could condemn Him.

They did not have to wonder what He would do; Jesus would not deny it. “You say that I am,” He answered, giving full assent to His divinity.

They pounced on Jesus’ statement like a pack of hungry jackals. “Why do we need any more witnesses? We ourselves have heard Him say it from His own lips!”

Text Ref. 35

Far away from this, which was one of the most critical scenes of all history, Judas began to have painful second thoughts. (Mat. 27:3?10) Coming back to the Temple, he attempted to return the thirty pieces of silver to those priests and elders who were there. He cried out in late remorse, “I have sinned in betraying innocent blood!””What is that to us?” they sneered. “You see to that.”In his intense remorse and confusion, Judas threw the money down on the Temple floor and went out and hanged himself. But this did not stop the execution of the only Man ever that did not deserve to die. Judas’ “repentance” was too late.

With regard to Text Ref. 35 above, I shall have to refer you to my comments on Judas’ possible fate and the issue of “God’s View of Eternity, Time and the Individual” in Text Ref. 35, Fig. 18, in the Teaching Aid – which is not available to this post. Although it is profitable reading, it is collateral to the main text and is not necessary for your understanding of this portrayal of the life of Jesus.

There have been volumes of opinions written by Bible scholars on two issues that arise whenever a serious discussion is held about Judas: 1) What was his eternal destiny? and 2) Was Judas predestined to betray the Lord of glory? I do not claim to have satisfactory answers to either question, but, whatever the answer, we still have to “work out our own salvation.”          AJS

The priests concluded that the Law would not permit them to put such “blood money” in the treasury. So, (and this is the ultimate irony!) to stay within the Law, they decided to buy with it what was later known as the potter’s field, a burying place for strangers.

Mat. 27:2, 11-14; Mark 15:1-5; Luke 23:1-6; John 18:28-38

They bound Jesus and led Him away to Pilate the Roman procurator over Judea who resided in the praetorium during his stay in Jerusalem. The praetorium was the headquarters of the procurator and was located in Herod’s palace not far from the Temple. To execute anyone convicted of a crime, the Jews first had to receive permission from the procurator as the representative of the Roman government.  It seems likely that, to get this permission, the Sanhedrin at their earlier meeting had agreed to change the charge against Jesus so that He would be guilty according to Roman law. The previous charge had been blasphemy. This would not move the Roman authorities, but treason would. So when they brought Jesus before Pilate, they charged Him with claiming to be the King of the Jews. Naturally, with the Jews being subservient to Rome, this could not be allowed.

Here again is an incongruity in a scenario filled with them. Jesus, the Almighty, all?seeing, eternal Judge of all the earth, was to be judged by one frail, insignificant mortal whose breath was given to him by the moment. And He was to be judged for claiming to be the King of the Jews. He WAS their King! It is a never?ceasing wonder how God has put up with man’s impertinences through the centuries.

It was about six o’clock Friday morning when Jesus was taken to the praetorium, which was also called the judgment hall. The Jewish leaders did not go into the building because it was the time of the Passover and they feared there might be leaven somewhere in the praetorium. All Jews at Passover time assiduously avoided all leaven and cleaned all their dwellings of any trace of it. Yet the Jews who were hounding Jesus had no qualms about killing an innocent man. This of course was another supreme irony in a long chain of them at this horrible time.

Pilate’s tribunal, the place where he presided at trials, was a raised platform projecting from the judgment hall. It could be reached by a door opening from the inside of the Praetorium or on the outside by steps leading up to it from the ground. It fronted on an open area so that the general populace could view the proceedings of the trials held there. In this way the Jews could avoid the possible defilement of going inside the building.

Jesus’ accusers led Him up the steps of the tribunal to appear before Pilate who occupied a seat elevated above the floor of the tribunal. Disdaining to go further on “unrighteous” Gentile territory, they stood at the top of the steps and roughly thrust Jesus at Pilate.

“What accusation do you bring against this man?” Pilate asked.

They answered, “If He weren’t a criminal we would not have brought Him to you.”

“You take Him and judge Him by your law.”

“It’s not lawful for us to execute anyone.”

They were thus saying that Jesus had committed a crime they deemed worthy of death. If they could have executed Jesus, it would have been by stoning: this was the Jewish method. But Jesus Himself had said that He would die by crucifixion, although this was in no way a concern to the Jews. They cared not how He died; just that He should die. God, however, had decreed death for His Son by crucifixion and so it had to be: death by crucifixion.     God had decreed that Christ should die by the cross because “he that is hanged is accursed of God.” This was intended to show emphatically that Jesus had become accursed when He assumed the sins of the world, thus giving evidence of the extreme hatred God has for sin.

The Jewish leaders now leveled the charge against Jesus upon which they had agreed: “This fellow has been perverting our nation, telling us not to pay taxes to Caesar and saying that He Himself is a king.”

Pilate arose at this point and went inside the praetorium, summoning Jesus to come in after him so that he might talk privately with Him. The Jews who waited outside fidgeted uneasily, fearful that they might lose their quarry.

In the privacy of the judgment hall Pilate asked Jesus, “Are you the King of the Jews?”

“Are you saying this on your own, “Jesus asked him, “or have others said it about me?”

“Am I a Jew?” Pilate asked half-contemptuously. “Your own people have delivered you to me. What have you done?”

“My kingdom is not of this world,” Jesus responded, in this way possibly easing any fears Pilate might have of a political uprising. “If it were, my servants would fight to protect me from the Jews. But my kingdom is not of this world.”

“Are you, then, a king?”

“You have said rightly. To this end was I born and for this cause came I into the world: to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice.”

“What is truth?” Pilate asked in a flippant manner. Not waiting for an answer, he went outside to the Jews who were waiting impatiently.

“I find Him guilty of no crime,” Pilate told them.

But the Jews vehemently pressed their charges, saying that Jesus had stirred up all the people from Galilee to Judea. At the mention of Galilee, which was under the rule of Herod Antipas, Pilate decided to send Jesus to appear before Herod. (Luke 23:7?12)

Herod was glad to see Jesus, not for any reason of merit, but simply because he wanted to be entertained by the Miracle Worker.  He talked to Jesus at length, hoping that Jesus would cooperate and perform some magical feat. But Jesus answered Herod not one word.  The chief priests and scribes again pressed before Herod the charges they had made to Pilate. Through it all Jesus offered no defense.

Irritated and disappointed, Herod changed his tone and began to mock Jesus. His soldiers joined in the sport and in jest they roughly clothed Jesus in a royal robe. There Jesus was, royalty Himself, dressed in the fine robe of royalty, but in physical appearance looking not at all like a king. He had not slept at all the previous night; He had not eaten since the Passover feast; His face was lined and spotted with blood from the agonizing in the Garden of Gethsemane. The contrast between His bodily appearance and the robe was jolting.

When Herod and the soldiers had finally had their fill of the cruel sport, Herod sent Jesus back to Pilate. That same day Herod and Pilate, who had been at odds, became friends. There is a paradox, a contra­diction in logic of some sort here.