Tried and Condemned
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Handout
During the season of Lent we’re on a journey to the cross, stretching out the events of Jesus’ days leading to the crucifixion, and ultimately his resurrection. One of the challenge in studying this portion of Scripture is our awareness, especially as Christians. This is a part of Jesus’ life we know very well…or do we?
How many “trials” did Jesus endure?
First he’s taken before the assembly of the chief priests and scribes (teachers of the law), and they led him away to their council. Luke records their question which sounds familiar.
“If you are the Christ, tell us.”
Do you remember Jesus’ temptations by the evil one?
The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.”
And he took him to Jerusalem and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here,
The first thing the devil did was attack Jesus identity. And here at the end of Jesus life on earth we see religious leaders doing the exact same thing. The difference? The temptations that Jesus faced from the devil were to prove who he was right after his baptism and God had announced who he was. Lk 3:22
and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”
Now the religious leaders on the council attack his identity as well. The big difference at this point is they have watched Jesus for 3 years during his ministry.
They’ve seen him heal the sick,
cast out demons,
restore sight to the blind,
open the ears of the deaf,
cause the lame to walk,
raise the dead!
And still they have to ask: Are you the Christ? Are you the Messiah?
That’s what the council said they wanted to know. Bud did they really? Jesus doesn’t seem to think so. Again, they’ve watched him for three years. Jesus responds:
But he said to them, “If I tell you, you will not believe, and if I ask you, you will not answer. But from now on the Son of Man shall be seated at the right hand of the power of God.”
Son of man is a messianic title.
So later,
So they all said, “Are you the Son of God, then?” And he said to them, “You say that I am.”
So they see this as blasphemy, “speaking against God”. That’s one trial. So then they haul him off to a civic authority(?). They take him to Pilate, a Roman prefect of Judea, and the 5th governor of the province. They again accuse him of saying that he himself is Christ (The Messiah) and then translate it for him, “a king”.
And Pilate asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” And he answered him, “You have said so.”
He finds no guilt in Jesus, but the chief priests are insistent and plead their case, Luke 23:5 “But they were urgent, saying, “He stirs up the people, teaching throughout all Judea, from Galilee even to this place.””
Hearing about Galilee, Pilate sees an out. He sends him to the governor of Galilee, Herod. Herod had heard of him and was hoping to see Jesus do “a sign”, but when he questions Jesus he won’t answer. All the while the chief priest are becoming apoplectic, vehemently accusing him. Not getting what he wanted Herod sends Jesus away, back to Pilate. Who still finds nothing deserving of death.
Yet this is where we see Pilates weak side as the chief priests cry out:
But they all cried out together, “Away with this man, and release to us Barabbas”—
Who was Barabbas? v. 19, Lk 23:19
a man who had been thrown into prison for an insurrection started in the city and for murder.
So back up a moment. The priest and Scribes who are the teachers of the Law have watched Jesus for 3 years do all these good things. They’ve accused him over and over again and not been able to trap him. Time and time again Jesus refocused their attention on the heart rather than the law.
So now these legalists are willing to release a man who started an insurrection in the city and murdered someone! Somehow they don’t see the irony. They want to crucify a man who has been found innocent not only by the local authority, but by two governors, and in their religious fervor are blinded to their own hypocrisy.
What do we do with this?
What do we do with this?
Three trials and he’s found innocent.
Three trials and ultimately he’s still condemned.
In our weekly Bible Study groups it was brought up that Jesus doesn’t do much to help himself in these situations. He clearly doesn’t try and get out of what is ultimately coming.
We can be so quick to judge and condemn the religious leaders of Jesus day without taking anytime to consider their position. They had studied the Scriptures for years, they knew them and taught them to the people.
In many ways they were like so many today who consider themselves religious and faithful to the Scriptures. They’ve studied the Scripture and they know them well. They don’t see a need to continue to study them nor to examine themselves and their own motives. Nor do they see any need to consider alternative views given by people with whom they disagree.
What am I to do with this?
Reflecting on these trials I’m struck by one statement by Jesus in vss. 67 & 68 of chapter 22: Lk 22:67-68
“If I tell you, you will not believe, and if I ask you, you will not answer.”
In other words, I could tell you the answer to your question, but you won’t listen. I could ask you probing questions to help you discover this on your own, but you won’t answer.
Are you listening?
Are you listening?
Do you listen and hear those who disagree with you? Do you weigh their views and consider them against your own and against what you know of the Scripture? Do you engage them to gain understanding? Do you allow them to challenge your views? Are you willing to adjust your view based on new information?
Are you aware of where your mind is already made up?
Are you aware of where your mind is already made up?
Being self-aware is so important. All of us have areas where our minds are already made up. The difficulty here is when we come up against something that challenges our position are we willing to consider new information and weigh it honestly against a position we have long held?
How will you respond to hypocrisy?
How will you respond to hypocrisy?
We look at the chief priests, the teachers of the law and we have a difficult time not pointing out their hypocrisy. But what about our own?
This gets back to Jesus statement in sermon on the Mount, “Why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye when behold the log is in your own?”
In recovery from any addiction we are reminded often that the beginning of healing is first admitting you have a problem. That takes humility. We have to humble ourselves to recognize we do not see everything. We have likely not considered all sides to an issue.
This humility will also allow us to engage others who hold opposing views in a dialogue rather than feeling attacked and thus reacting in fight mode.
Being open to hearing and considering opposing views does NOT mean all positions are equally true.
Again…
Being open to hearing and considering opposing views does NOT mean all positions are equally true.
Our quest in following Christ is to seek the truth. In listening to and seeking to understand opposing views there will be times when our views need an adjustment. Other times hearing these will only sharpen our own position and give us yet one more reason to stand firm.
Do not repay evil with evil
Do not repay evil with evil
As I was preparing this message this week I read these words from Dietrich Bonhoeffer:
God Is on the Cross: Reflections on Lent and Easter Third Sunday of Lent: Do Not Repay Evil with Evil
Suffering injustice does not hurt the Christian, but doing injustice does.
He goes on to say, “Indeed, evil can only do one thing to you, namely, make you also become evil. If it does, then it wins. Therefore, do not repay evil with evil.…”
He concludes:
God Is on the Cross: Reflections on Lent and Easter Third Sunday of Lent: Do Not Repay Evil with Evil
“How can we overcome evil? By our forgiving it endlessly. How does that happen? By our seeing enemies as they really are: as people for whom Christ died, as people Christ loves.”
On His journey to the cross Jesus’ trial, or should I say “trials” were clearly heavily biased. We’re very quick to condemn the religious leaders throughout this journey. And still when we spend sometime in self-reflection we no doubt will recognize similar tendencies in ourselves.
The religious leaders represent the establishment of the time. In many ways you and I are a part of the religious establishment of our day.
Jesus often repeated the Shema (the Hebrew Word for “Hear”) from Deuteronomy 6:4-5
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.
I remember many years ago sharing this in a children’s sermon and a little voice spoke up, “But pastor Murph, if I love God with all, I won’t have anything left?” Exactly.
In our love and worship of God we are invited to bring our whole self to God. That’s not just our good parts, but our doubts, our fears, our anger, our selfishness, our pride, all of it. We’ll continue to explore this in our journey with Jesus to the cross.
Tried and Condemned
Tried and Condemned
Let me pray for you.
What was the main question the council asked Jesus during his trial?
How did Jesus respond to the claim that he was the Son of God?
What were the accusations brought against Jesus by the assembly?
What did Pilate conclude after examining Jesus before the crowd?
What was the crowd's demand regarding Jesus, despite Pilate's findings?
How can we apply Jesus' example of maintaining composure in the face of false accusations in our own lives?
What does Jesus' response to the council teach us about the necessity of faith in the truth when faced with skepticism?
In what ways can we identify and resist the pressures of the crowd that lead to injustice or wrongful actions?
How can the story of Jesus before Pilate inspire us to stand firm in our beliefs even when they are unpopular?
What are some practical steps we can take to uphold justice and truth in our everyday interactions?
