Voices - Good Friday 2025
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From then on Pilate sought to release him, but the Jews cried out, “If you release this man, you are not Caesar’s friend. Everyone who makes himself a king opposes Caesar.”
Pilate ponders these voices and proceeds to bring out Jesus to the Stone of Judgment (John 19:13). The Stone will represent the intersection of the Divine Sovereign and that of human authority; the judgment of the Divine by the earthy powers and voices of condemnation. “This is your King!”, Pilate declares (Jn 19:14). Away with Him, we have no king except Ceasar. Crucify Him! the voices demand (John 19:15).
This man misleads our nation, forbids us from giving honor to Caesar, He even says that he himself is Christ, a king (Luke 23:1-2). He stirs up the people everywhere causing division and distress, excitement and joy, wonder and skepticism, argument and anger (Luke 23:5). The voices are forceful, the voices are accusatory, the voices are one, the voices are dark and venemous.
Pilate asks Jesus, “Are you the King of the Jews?” (Luke 23:3). “You have said so”, Jesus responds, neither denying, neither affirming (Luke 23:4). Pilate, remembering his wife’s voice, her message, her warning to have nothing to do with this man who caused her to suffer terribly in her dream. Wary and afraid, Pilate has declared Jesus guiltless, he will not listen to these voices of darkness before him (Luke 23:4; Jn 19:8); “…crucify Him yourself! (Jn 19:6).
But persons of authority have to listen to voices whether of blessing, joy, encouragement, and/or anger, criticism, and cursing; voices are the instruments of the mind, the song of the heart. For the person of human authority, his or her voice, in order to be heard and honored, needs to listen to the voices he or she is over or be ignored, dishonored, and even destroyed. In order to avoid such a circumstance and situation, man chooses to appease, to smooth over the gravel, even change the likely outcome, pull a rabbit out of the hat if you will.
Except Jesus will not cooperate, He will not be denied His mission, His purpose, His Father’s will. ‘I have the authority to crucify you, I also have the authority to release you. Will you still not speak to me (Jn 19:10)?’ By the utterance of my voice and command, I can change your future, your situation, the road you are walking.
Jesus answered him, “You would have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above. Therefore he who delivered me over to you has the greater sin.”
Pilate has no authority, man has no authority over Christ, over angels, principalities and powers unless otherwise given (Lk 9:1-2; Mk 16:17-18; Eph 6:12; 1 Peter 3:22). The authority over Christ was given for one purpose, for one goal - to witness to the truth, and everyone who listens to the truth, listens to the voice of Jesus (John 18:37-38). The Authority who gave Pilate his authority is God the Father; as it still is today, tomorrow, and has been in the past. In the Garden, a foreign power and structure was invited to pickup man’s delegated authority, as the voice of a lie, “You can be god” was spoken and believed.
Each person, has a choice, as Pilate had, which voice will I listen to: the voice of truth or the voice of lies. The voice of truth does not always represent the majority in this world, most often and likely the opposite: the lie. Jesus says, “He is the way, the truth, and the life, and that no one comes to the Father expect through Him” (John 14:6). The truth is that He who believes in the Father, will believe in God the Son, and vice versa. The truth is that no one will see God unless they believe in the Son, and and follow Jesus. The truth is that even though we die physically, we will live spiritually, and be resurrected physically, when our LORD and Savior returns. Though I die, yet I shall live, because I believe in Jesus, the Crucified, the Resurrection, and the Ascended (Jn 11:25).
“What is truth?”, Pilate asks, we ask (John 18:38). That Jesus Christ, God of very God, very man of men, died for sin, for the sins of you and me, so that we might be reconciled to God (2 Cor. 5:18; Col 1:22), to His kingdom, to do His work, reconciliing others to Christ and His Kingdom (Mt 28:19-20), AND wielding once again the delegated forfeited authority we gave up. The truth is every man and woman needs to wield their God given authority and silence the voices of darkness that lead men and women to question and resist “What is truth and what is the Truth”.
The truth is that darkness prevailed on the day we remember and commemorate as Good Friday, because God the Father allowed death to prevail in killing the Christ, the “Anointed One”, the “Choosen One” of all life to open life to all once again.
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Good Friday is good because the voices of men prevailed (Luke 23:23). Good Friday is good because Pilate decided that the peoples voice should prevail (Luke 23:24). Good Friday is good because man did not know what they do (Luke 23:34). Good Friday is good because Satan was blinded to the truth that light always conquerors darkness in the economy of God, and that he was played for the fool he is. Even though Satan would slay the Christ, yet He would live! and better yet man would live, if he will only listen to the voice of Christ!
The truth is darkness succeeds where truth is forgotten, where it is overlooked; knowingly and unknowingly. Where the voices of darkness suppress the truth; of Whom which can be known, for Whom which is known, is not honored, nor thanked; thus humanities voice becomes dark and futile in thought and sense (Romans 1:18; 21). Evil overcomes truth when it’s voice is allowed to persist and refuse to acknowledge God and His truth. Good overcomes evil when God’s God given delegated authority is exercised by His followers.
“Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?…we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” And the thief said to Jesus, “remember me when you come into your kingdom.” And Jesus said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise” (Luke 23:40-43).
Voices of darkness are silenced by love, sacrificial love, which steadfastly holds to It’s character. Voices of darkness are transformed to songs of joy, when forgiveness is given, by a Son faithful to the love of His Father.
“The LORD God is in your midst, a Mighty One who will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you by His love; He will exault over you with loud singing.” -Zephaniah 3:17
Voices are silenced when sacrifice is made by the persecuted. Kingdoms are conquered, authority is exercised, and people are shook, when love overcomes darkness, meeting it’s demand for justice and payment.
Jesus said to the thief that he would be with Him in Paradise today, because Jesus’ imminent perfect and sinless death would mean full satisfaction of God’s wrath against man’s unrighteousness. Jesus, offering Himself for the unrighteousness of man, being our substitutionary sacrifice, broke our bonds to sin, death, and hell. Only appropriated by one’s belief, one’s expressed, inacted trust in Jesus Christ.
He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.
The thief defended Jesus, “He has done nothing wrong.” The thief confessed his sin, “we are receiving the due reward of our deeds”. The thief asked that Jesus would remember him when He came into His kingdom. And the thief said to the other thief of disrespect, “Do you not fear God?” The thief belived that Jesus was who He claimed to be, the Son of God. Why else would he ask that Jesus remember him when He came into His kingdom?
Is that my desire? Is that your desire? That Jesus would remember you, that He would remember your voice, as He awaits for all the nations, powers, and principalities to finally be put under His feet. What is your hearts cry? What does your voice speak - truth or death. Good Friday is good, because Jesus remained faithful to the love of His Father, to the will of His desire, and fulfilled His mission: to set man free from the bonds of sin and death, witnessing to the truth, that God is love, God is truth, and God faithful to the end. Amen.
