Even Today, They are choosing Barabbas

Matthew 27:15–26 NKJV

15 Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to releasing to the multitude one prisoner whom they wished. 16 And at that time they had a notorious prisoner called Barabbas. 17 Therefore, when they had gathered together, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release to you? Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?” 18 For he knew that they had handed Him over because of envy. 19 While he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent to him, saying, “Have nothing to do with that just Man, for I have suffered many things today in a dream because of Him.” 20 But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitudes that they should ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus. 21 The governor answered and said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release to you?” They said, “Barabbas!” 22 Pilate said to them, “What then shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?” They all said to him, “Let Him be crucified!” 23 Then the governor said, “Why, what evil has He done?” But they cried out all the more, saying, “Let Him be crucified!” 24 When Pilate saw that he could not prevail at all, but rather that a tumult was rising, he took water and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, “I am innocent of the blood of this just Person. You see to it.” 25 And all the people answered and said, “His blood be on us and on our children.” 26 Then he released Barabbas to them; and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered Him to be crucified.

Even Today, They Are Choosing Barabbas

INTRODUCTION

MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN CHRIST…..IT IS GOOD TO BE TOGETHER IN THE HOUSE OF THE LORD, WHERE WE CAN FELLOWSHIP AND WORSHIP….AND RECEIVE A WORD OF HOPE. WE ARE HERE TO ENGAGE WITH HIS WORD, TO UNDERSTAND IT, TO LET IT NOURISH US AND SHAPE US.

TODAY, WE TURN OUR ATTENTION TO A FASCINATING CHARACTER IN THE BIBLE, A MAN WHOSE LIFE INTERSECTED WITH JESUS' IN A PROFOUND AND DRAMATIC WAY. THIS MAN IS BARABBAS, A FIGURE WHOSE STORY IS OFTEN OVERLOOKED, YET IT CARRIES SIGNIFICANT IMPLICATIONS FOR US TODAY.

AS WE CONSIDER THE LIFE OF BARABBAS, WE WILL REFLECT ON THREE MAIN POINTS: REJECTION OF TRUTH, RESISTANCE OF REPENTANCE, AND RELEVANCE OF BARABBAS IN TODAY'S WORLD.

REJECTION OF TRUTH

IN THE STORY OF BARABBAS, WE SEE A MAN WHO DID NOT ASK TO BE SET FREE. HE DIDN'T CAMPAIGN FOR HIS RELEASE OR PLEAD HIS CASE BEFORE PILATE. HE WAS A CRIMINAL AWAITING HIS FATE. AS A MATTER OF FACT, HE WAS ACCUSED OF POLITICAL INSURRECTION IN JERUSALEM….. YET, THE CROWD CHOSE HIM. THEY DEMANDED HIS RELEASE. THIS WAS NOT BECAUSE OF ANY MERIT ON HIS PART, BUT BECAUSE OF THEIR REJECTION OF JESUS.

THIS IS A STRIKING ASPECT OF THE STORY. THE CROWD DID NOT DEMAND BARABBAS BECAUSE THEY SAW SOMETHING GOOD IN HIM, OR BECAUSE THEY BELIEVED HE DESERVED TO BE FREE. THEY DEMANDED HIM BECAUSE THEY WANTED TO REJECT JESUS. THEY CHOSE A NOTORIOUS PRISONER OVER THE SON OF GOD.

THIS TELLS US SOMETHING PROFOUND ABOUT THE HUMAN CONDITION. WE OFTEN CHOOSE WHAT IS FAMILIAR, WHAT IS COMFORTABLE, EVEN IF IT IS HARMFUL, EVEN IF IT GOES AGAINST OUR BEST INTEREST, OVER WHAT IS GOOD AND RIGHT. WE REJECT THE TRUTH BECAUSE IT CHALLENGES US, BECAUSE IT DEMANDS CHANGE. WE PREFER THE COMFORT OF OUR SINS OVER THE DISCOMFORT OF REPENTANCE.

THIS IS NOT JUST A HISTORICAL OBSERVATION, BUT A PRESENT-DAY REALITY. WE SEE IT IN OUR OWN LIVES, IN OUR OWN CHOICES. WE OFTEN CHOOSE OUR OWN BARABBAS – OUR OWN SINS, OUR OWN WAYS – OVER JESUS. WE REJECT HIS TRUTH, HIS LOVE, HIS GRACE, BECAUSE WE PREFER THE FAMILIARITY OF OUR SINS.

BUT THERE'S MORE TO THIS STORY. THE CROWD'S DEMAND FOR BARABBAS WAS NOT JUST A REJECTION OF JESUS, BUT A REJECTION OF GOD'S PLAN OF SALVATION. THEY WERE NOT JUST CHOOSING A PRISONER OVER THE SON OF GOD, BUT THEIR OWN WAY OVER GOD'S WAY. THEY WERE REJECTING THE VERY MEANS BY WHICH THEY COULD BE SAVED.

THIS IS A SOBERING THOUGHT. HOW OFTEN DO WE DO THE SAME? HOW OFTEN DO WE REJECT GOD'S PLAN OF SALVATION, HIS OFFER OF GRACE, BECAUSE WE PREFER OUR OWN WAY? WE THINK WE KNOW BETTER, WE THINK WE CAN SAVE OURSELVES, SO WE REJECT HIS OFFER. WE CHOOSE OUR OWN BARABBAS OVER JESUS.

YET, GOD'S GRACE IS GREATER THAN OUR REJECTION. EVEN AS THE CROWD SHOUTED…..WE WANT BARABBAS …… GOD WAS WORKING OUT HIS PLAN OF SALVATION. JESUS WAS CRUCIFIED, AND THROUGH HIS DEATH AND RESURRECTION, WE ARE OFFERED FORGIVENESS AND ETERNAL LIFE.

THIS IS THE HEART OF THE GOSPEL. WE ARE LIKE BARABBAS, DESERVING OF PUNISHMENT, YET SET FREE BECAUSE OF JESUS. WE ARE OFFERED GRACE, NOT BECAUSE OF OUR MERIT, BUT BECAUSE OF HIS LOVE. WE ARE CALLED TO ACCEPT THIS GRACE, TO TURN FROM OUR SINS AND FOLLOW HIM.

THIS IS THE CHALLENGE FOR US TODAY. WILL WE CONTINUE TO CHOOSE OUR OWN BARABBAS, OUR OWN WAYS, OVER JESUS? OR WILL WE ACCEPT HIS OFFER OF GRACE, TURN FROM OUR SINS, AND FOLLOW HIM? THE CHOICE IS OURS. LET US CHOOSE WISELY.

RESISTANCE OF REPENTANCE

THE NARRATIVE OF BARABBAS IS A STARK REMINDER OF OUR HUMAN TENDENCY TO BYPASS SELF-EXAMINATION AND RESIST REPENTANCE. THE CROWD'S CHOICE OF BARABBAS OVER JESUS IS A VIVID ILLUSTRATION OF THIS. THEY WERE MORE COMFORTABLE WITH A KNOWN CRIMINAL THAN WITH THE CHALLENGE OF JESUS' TEACHINGS. EVEN TODAY THIS IS TRUE….MANY WERE MORE COMFORTABLE WITH A CRIMINAL….THIS IS A REFLECTION OF OUR OWN HUMAN NATURE, WHERE WE OFTEN CHOOSE THE FAMILIAR OVER THE UNKNOWN, EVEN WHEN THE FAMILIAR IS HARMFUL.

THE CROWD'S CHOICE OF BARABBAS OVER JESUS WAS NOT BASED ON ANY MERIT OF BARABBAS. HE WAS A NOTORIOUS PRISONER, A KNOWN MURDERER AND CRIMINAL. YET, THEY CHOSE HIM OVER JESUS. THIS REFLECTS OUR OWN TENDENCY TO REJECT GOD'S PLAN OF SALVATION, PREFERRING OUR OWN WAY. THINKING OUR WAY IS BETTER THAN GOD’S WAY. WE OFTEN THINK WE CAN SAVE OURSELVES AND THUS REJECT GOD'S OFFER OF SALVATION. THIS IS A CLEAR DEMONSTRATION OF OUR HUMAN NATURE, WHERE WE OFTEN CHOOSE OUR OWN WAY OVER GOD'S WAY, EVEN WHEN OUR WAY LEADS TO DESTRUCTION.

THE CROWD'S REJECTION OF JESUS IN FAVOR OF BARABBAS IS A STARK REMINDER OF OUR OWN REJECTION OF GOD'S GRACE. DESPITE OUR REJECTION, GOD'S GRACE IS GREATER. THIS IS A REFLECTION OF GOD'S LOVE FOR US, WHICH IS NOT BASED ON OUR MERIT BUT ON HIS GRACE. WE ARE OFFERED GRACE NOT BECAUSE OF WHAT WE HAVE DONE, BUT BECAUSE OF HIS LOVE FOR US.

IN THE ORIGINAL GREEK, THE NAME BARABBAS MEANS "SON OF THE FATHER". THIS IS SIGNIFICANT BECAUSE IT HIGHLIGHTS THE CONTRAST BETWEEN BARABBAS, THE SON OF AN EARTHLY FATHER, AND JESUS, THE SON OF THE HEAVENLY FATHER. THE SAME WORD, "PATER", IS USED IN OTHER PASSAGES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT TO REFER TO GOD AS OUR HEAVENLY FATHER.

FOR EXAMPLE, IN THE LORD'S PRAYER, JESUS TEACHES US TO PRAY, "OUR FATHER (PATER) IN HEAVEN, HALLOWED BE YOUR NAME" (MATTHEW 6:9). THIS REMINDS US OF OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD AS OUR HEAVENLY FATHER, AND THE GRACE HE OFFERS US AS HIS CHILDREN.

THE STORY OF BARABBAS ALSO SERVES AS A REMINDER OF OUR OWN NEED FOR REPENTANCE. JUST AS THE CROWD CHOSE BARABBAS OVER JESUS, WE OFTEN CHOOSE OUR OWN WAY OVER GOD'S WAY. WE REJECT HIS OFFER OF SALVATION, THINKING WE CAN SAVE OURSELVES. THIS IS A CALL TO EXAMINE OUR OWN HEARTS, TO RECOGNIZE OUR NEED FOR GOD'S GRACE, AND TO TURN FROM OUR SINS.

THE STORY OF BARABBAS REMINDS US OF THE POWER OF GOD'S GRACE. DESPITE OUR REJECTION, GOD'S GRACE IS GREATER. THIS IS A REFLECTION OF GOD'S LOVE FOR US, WHICH IS NOT BASED ON OUR MERIT BUT ON HIS GRACE. WE ARE OFFERED GRACE NOT BECAUSE OF WHAT WE HAVE DONE, BUT BECAUSE OF HIS LOVE FOR US. THIS IS A CALL TO ACCEPT HIS GRACE AND LIVE IN THE FREEDOM IT OFFERS.

RELEVANCE OF BARABBAS IN TODAY’S WORLD

AS WE CONSIDER BARABBAS IN TODAY'S WORLD, WE SEE AN ECHO OF THE SAME REJECTION OF TRUTH THAT PLAYED OUT IN THE BIBLICAL NARRATIVE. MANY MADE THEIR VOICES HEARD ON THIS PAST TUESDAY…..AND THE CROWD MADE IT CLEAR……THEY CHOOSE BARABBAS BECAUSE THEY HATED TRUTH. THE TRUTH THAT THINGS ARE CHANGING IN THE POPULATION OF THIS NATION. THAT SOON THEY WOULD BE THE MINORITY AND NOT THE MAJORITY. THIS HATRED OF THE TRUTH THAT THINGS WILL NOT BE THE SAME ANYMORE….. AND IT WAS THIS REALITY THAT PUT FEAR IN THEIR HEARTS.

IN THE FACE OF TRUTH, THERE IS OFTEN A RESISTANCE, A PUSHBACK, A DESIRE TO CLING TO OUR OWN NARRATIVES AND BELIEFS, EVEN WHEN THEY ARE AT ODDS WITH THE TRUTH. THIS IS EVIDENT IN THE WAY MISINFORMATION SPREADS LIKE WILDFIRE IN OUR DIGITAL AGE, IN THE WAY PEOPLE OFTEN CHOOSE COMFORTABLE LIES OVER UNCOMFORTABLE TRUTHS, AND IN THE WAY WE SOMETIMES RESIST THE TRUTH ABOUT OURSELVES, ABOUT OUR WORLD, AND ABOUT GOD.

THE FIRST ASPECT OF THIS THAT WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND IS THE ALLURE OF FALSEHOOD. FALSEHOOD OFTEN PRESENTS ITSELF AS MORE APPEALING, MORE CONVENIENT, MORE COMFORTABLE THAN TRUTH. IT TELLS US WHAT WE WANT TO HEAR, NOT WHAT WE NEED TO HEAR. IT ALLOWS US TO STAY IN OUR COMFORT ZONES, TO AVOID THE DISCOMFORT OF CHANGE AND GROWTH. IT SERVES TO OUR PRIDE, OUR EGO, OUR DESIRE FOR CONTROL. IT IS, IN MANY WAYS, THE EASIER PATH. BUT IT IS A PATH THAT LEADS TO DESTRUCTION, NOT TO LIFE.

IN HIS LETTER TO THE EPHESIANS, THE APOSTLE PAUL WARNS AGAINST BEING "TOSSED TO AND FRO BY THE WAVES AND CARRIED ABOUT BY EVERY WIND OF DOCTRINE, BY HUMAN CUNNING, BY CRAFTINESS IN DECEITFUL SCHEMES" (EPHESIANS 4:14).

THIS IS A VIVID PICTURE OF THE INSTABILITY AND CONFUSION THAT COME FROM EMBRACING FALSEHOOD. IT IS A WARNING AGAINST THE ALLURE OF FALSEHOOD, AGAINST THE TEMPTATION TO CHOOSE BARABBAS OVER JESUS, TO CHOOSE LIES OVER TRUTH.

THE SECOND ASPECT OF THIS IS THE REJECTION OF TRUTH. THIS IS NOT MERELY A PASSIVE INDIFFERENCE TO TRUTH, BUT AN ACTIVE, DELIBERATE, WILLFUL REJECTION OF IT. IT IS A REFUSAL TO ACCEPT THE TRUTH, TO SUBMIT TO IT, TO LET IT SHAPE OUR LIVES. IT IS A REBELLION AGAINST THE AUTHORITY OF TRUTH, AGAINST THE AUTHORITY OF GOD HIMSELF.

THE THIRD ASPECT OF THIS IS THE CONSEQUENCES OF REJECTING TRUTH. WHEN WE REJECT THE TRUTH, WE ARE NOT MERELY REJECTING A SET OF FACTS OR IDEAS. WE ARE REJECTING THE VERY FOUNDATION OF REALITY, THE VERY BASIS OF LIFE. WE ARE REJECTING GOD, WHO IS THE SOURCE OF ALL TRUTH, THE EMBODIMENT OF ALL TRUTH. AND THIS HAS SERIOUS, FAR-REACHING CONSEQUENCES.

THE FINAL ASPECT OF THIS IS THE CALL TO EMBRACE TRUTH. DESPITE THE ALLURE OF FALSEHOOD, DESPITE OUR RESISTANCE TO TRUTH, DESPITE THE CONSEQUENCES OF REJECTING TRUTH, WE ARE CALLED TO EMBRACE TRUTH. WE ARE CALLED TO CHOOSE JESUS OVER BARABBAS, TO CHOOSE TRUTH OVER LIES.

WE ARE CALLED TO LET THE TRUTH SHAPE OUR LIVES, TO LET IT GUIDE OUR DECISIONS, TO LET IT TRANSFORM US FROM THE INSIDE OUT.

SO, AS WE REFLECT ON THE STORY OF BARABBAS AND ITS RELEVANCE TO OUR WORLD TODAY, LET US NOT BE LIKE THE CROWD THAT CHOSE BARABBAS BECAUSE THEY HATED TRUTH.

LET US INSTEAD BE PEOPLE WHO LOVE TRUTH, WHO SEEK TRUTH, WHO EMBRACE TRUTH. LET US BE PEOPLE WHO CHOOSE JESUS, WHO IS THE WAY, THE TRUTH, AND THE LIFE.

BUT THE BEAUTY OF THE GOSPEL IS THAT JESUS TOOK OUR PLACE. HE WAS CONDEMNED SO THAT WE COULD BE SET FREE. HE WAS REJECTED SO THAT WE COULD BE ACCEPTED. HE DIED SO THAT WE COULD LIVE. AND THAT, MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS, IS THE GRACE OF GOD. IT'S NOT ABOUT WHAT WE'VE DONE OR WHAT WE HAVEN'T DONE. IT'S ABOUT WHAT JESUS HAS DONE FOR US.

I KNOW THAT MANY OF US DID NOT LIKE THE OUTCOME OF THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION…BUT HOLD ON TO THE TRUTH, THAT THE LORD MAKES NO MISTAKES…..LET US HOLD TO GOD’S UNCHANGING HAND, LET'S STRIVE TO BE MORE LIKE JESUS EVERY DAY. BECAUSE IF GOD CAN LOVE A SINNER LIKE BARABBAS, HE CAN CERTAINLY LOVE THE PEOPLE WE FIND HARD TO LOVE.