Kangaroo Court

Introduction

-{John 18}

-If you have never heard the term “kangaroo court” it refers to courts and legal proceedings that ignore all recognized standards of law or justice and often carries little to no official standing. These proceedings normally ignore all due process in order to come to a conclusion that was predetermined before the proceedings began.

~The term “kangaroo court” sounds strange, but it might have its origins in the fact that these types of legal proceedings intentionally ignore any evidence in favor of the defendant, or they jump over the evidence (like a kangaroo). It’s also possible the term came about because the court was in someone’s pocket (like a kangaroo has a pocket).

-As strange as the term itself sounds, the reality of the existence of such proceedings is all too real.

~For example, in the late 1930s, Joseph Stalin used the legal apparatus of the USSR to fabricate charges against his political rivals in order to eliminate any challenge to his absolute rule. The courts were in his pocket, and they went through the motions of a court, but it was already determined that those men and women would be killed by the end of the proceedings.

~Another example is during the Romanian Revolution in 1989, where President and Communist Party General Secretary Nicolae Ceaușescu and his wife Elena were sentenced to death by a kangaroo court. The judge, prosecutor, defense attorneys, and all other members of the court were part of the Romanian People’s Army that had switched to the side of the revolutionaries that opposed Nicolae’s rule. The outcome had already been predetermined.

-In Scripture, we find another example of a kangaroo court as our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, is placed on trial. They are not seeking to come to truth in these trials but are merely trying to find a way to manipulate the situation so as to bring about His death.

-What we find is that the rejection and mistreatment of Jesus at His trial are still the prevailing attitudes toward Christ, His Word, and His church even today. In spite of this form of hostility, we as Christians must stand firm in our faith in Christ no matter which direction cultural trends may go. And, quite possibly, we might change the hearts and attitudes of people whose minds are already made up against Christ.

-In our passage, Jesus was brought before two different groups of people, and both reject Jesus, but for different reasons. Christ still faces these types of rejection today, but may we not allow that to give us reason to compromise—all the more, let’s stay true to our Lord. Let’s look at these two kangaroo courts before which Jesus stands and consider His rejection. In the first court there is…

1) The rejection of Jesus’ identity and doctrine

-READ JOHN 18:12-14, 19-24

John 18:12–14 ESV

So the band of soldiers and their captain and the officers of the Jews arrested Jesus and bound him. First they led him to Annas, for he was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, who was high priest that year. It was Caiaphas who had advised the Jews that it would be expedient that one man should die for the people.

John 18:19–24 ESV

The high priest then questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching. Jesus answered him, “I have spoken openly to the world. I have always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where all Jews come together. I have said nothing in secret. Why do you ask me? Ask those who have heard me what I said to them; they know what I said.” When he had said these things, one of the officers standing by struck Jesus with his hand, saying, “Is that how you answer the high priest?” Jesus answered him, “If what I said is wrong, bear witness about the wrong; but if what I said is right, why do you strike me?” Annas then sent him bound to Caiaphas the high priest.

-After His arrest, the mob brought Jesus to Annas. Annas had been the high priest several years earlier. Several of his sons had served as high priest after him, and by the time we come to Jesus’ arrest, Annas’ son-in-law was now high priest. So, even though not officially in the position, Annas wielded a lot of power.

~Before the Jews would attempt any formal action, Jesus was brought before Annas first—probably very late at night or very early in the morning.

-Annas was not able to do anything against Jesus officially, but he probably attempted to trump up charges against Jesus to make it easier for Caiaphas to bring charges before the Sanhedrin.

-Annas questions Jesus about His disciples and about His teaching / doctrine. Annas first wanted to find out how widespread Jesus’ influence had become. But Annas also wanted to see if there was anything that he could use against Jesus.

-Just like at His arrest, Jesus was completely in control of the situation. He was not going to give Annas the ammunition that he sought. Instead, Jesus makes it plain to Annas and his cohorts that He never hid what He was doing. Jesus never stayed in the shadows trying to drum up support. Jesus taught openly for all to hear. If Annas wanted to know what He taught, He could ask the hundreds or thousands of witnesses that had heard Him.

-One of the officers standing by struck Jesus, accusing Him of insulting the high priest.

But Jesus asked an important question—if Jesus had said or done something wrong, bear witness to it, but if He did not, why strike Him (or even try Him)? Jesus was completely innocent of anything that the Jews could accuse Him of.

-Not getting anywhere, Jesus is sent off to Caiaphas. Although John doesn’t record it, the other gospels record a kangaroo court going on where they brought false witnesses to spread lies about Jesus.

-The whole affair was a sham. The Jews were trying to be sneaky about things, doing everything under the cover of darkness. They didn’t even follow their own laws and rules and regulations about holding court. They were looking for anything to bring Jesus down.

~They finally settled on accusing Him of blasphemy, because, even though Jesus never directly answered their questions or accusations, there was no doubt what Jesus claimed for His identity. It was through Jesus’ actions and attitudes and teachings that made it abundantly clear. Sure, Jesus never came right out and said I’M THE MESSIAH, and yet His ministry proclaimed exactly who He was: Messiah, the Son of God, making Him equal with God in being and essence and existence. They knew that Jesus called people to believe in Him and follow Him. They knew that Jesus claimed to be sent from the Father for the salvation of those who would turn to Him.

-But, if the Jewish leaders were to admit that claim or submit to that claim in any way it would mean they would lose their power and authority and status. They would lose control. And they were not about to let that happen.

-The Jewish leadership rejected Jesus’ identity because they did not want it to be true. If Jesus is who He says He is, it has huge implications on their lives and on their religion. The whole system that they had built up was based on manmade rules that put on a front of following Jewish law. If Jesus is who He says He is, the whole thing would come tumbling down.

-Yet, they were so deluded about where they stood with God, they actually thought they were doing God and the nation a favor by getting rid of Jesus {Caiaphas: it is better for one man to die for the nation}. Jesus said in John 16:2 that they would think the same things about the disciples. Jesus said:

“They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God.” (John 16:2 ESV)

-And that’s what they did with Jesus. They rejected Him as Messiah, and they rejected the teaching and doctrine that flowed from His identity, and thought God would be proud.

-And now, in our day and age, people of the world will go out of their way to find fault with Jesus or they twist Jesus to fit a mold that has no biblical basis. The world rejects Jesus as He identified Himself. They will not accept Jesus for who He is, because of the implications that it has on their lives. And so, the world is seeking to rid the world of Christ and His doctrine and His people. They will reject Him, and they will try to minimize our influence in culture.

-And the thing is, they are not actually interacting with Christ and His doctrine—they are just trying to get rid of Him. The Jews didn’t care who Jesus claimed to be or what He taught, no matter how truthful it was. They just wanted Him gone. And the world just wants Jesus gone—or, at least, the Jesus of the Bible.

~They are absolutely fine with their own version of Jesus that teaches the doctrines they want to hear. They just don’t want the Jesus of the Bible, and they pressure us to change our Jesus. And we need to stand strong—there is not other Jesus and there is no other doctrine.

-Then we see further rejection in the next kangaroo court:

2) The rejection of Jesus’ authority and truth

-READ JOHN 18:28-40

John 18:28–40 ESV

Then they led Jesus from the house of Caiaphas to the governor’s headquarters. It was early morning. They themselves did not enter the governor’s headquarters, so that they would not be defiled, but could eat the Passover. So Pilate went outside to them and said, “What accusation do you bring against this man?” They answered him, “If this man were not doing evil, we would not have delivered him over to you.” Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.” The Jews said to him, “It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death.” This was to fulfill the word that Jesus had spoken to show by what kind of death he was going to die. So Pilate entered his headquarters again and called Jesus and said to him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered, “Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it to you about me?” Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered you over to me. What have you done?” Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.” Then Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” Pilate said to him, “What is truth?” After he had said this, he went back outside to the Jews and told them, “I find no guilt in him. But you have a custom that I should release one man for you at the Passover. So do you want me to release to you the King of the Jews?” They cried out again, “Not this man, but Barabbas!” Now Barabbas was a robber.

-The Jews bring Jesus to Pilate, the Roman governor. The Jews and Pilate were very hostile toward one another, but the Jews were willing to use Pilate to reach their goal.

~Pilate asks what the charges are, and they snobbishly reply, “IF THIS GUY WASN’T DOING EVIL STUFF, WE WOULDN’T HAVE BROUGHT HIM BEFORE YOU, NOW WOULD WE.”

-Pilate is no dummy—the other gospels tell us that he knows they brought Jesus before Him because of envy. He tells them to deal with Jesus themselves, but they want the death penalty, and legally they can’t do that.

-We don’t get the full exchange between Pilate and the Jews, but the accusation that they bring is that Jesus claims to be King and is therefore a threat to Caesar.

~Pilate straight out asks Jesus if He is a King. Jesus says that He is, but not a King in this world (yet). His kingdom is not of this world—it is a spiritual kingdom.

~Little does Pilate or the Jews know, Jesus is not merely a king—He is King of kings and Lord of lords. And yet, all they do is reject Him and mock Him and mistreat Him.

-The Jews don’t want to recognize any authority but their own, and Pilate refuses to recognize any authority other than Caesar. They do not want to place themselves under the authority of Jesus.

~If Jesus is the authority, then they aren’t. If Jesus is the authority, then you and I aren’t. And that just does not sit well with people.

-People today like the people back then want to be the master of their own domain. They want to set their own rules and build their own boundaries. They don’t want to be told what to do or how to live. They want to determine right and wrong. They don’t want a king to set the standard. Even people claiming to be Christian don’t want Jesus to be the authority. They want to be the authority. They want to do things their way, not Jesus’ way.

-This past week the Executive Committee of the SBC removed four churches from fellowship of the convention. Two of the churches were removed for knowingly employing sex offenders as their pastors (which boggles the mind).

~But the other two were disfellowshipped because they affirm the LGBTQ lifestyle and accept practicing LGBTQ people into their membership. When I say that they affirm the lifestyle, I mean that they think that lifestyle is not sin and you can live that way and still be a Christian in good standing.

~Jim Conrad, pastor of Towne View Baptist Church in Kennesaw, Georgia, which is one of those churches, said that he recommended to the church that they adopt a policy that would explicitly state that they would welcome anybody as members who profess Jesus as Lord regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity. SO, it seems, they no longer consider that lifestyle as sin. Instead, it is something to be enjoyed and celebrated.

-So, here is what I’m hearing this pastor and church saying by their actions (although they would probably never put this in words); but I hear them saying:

~We are our own authority and we reject the authority of Jesus Christ and His Word over our church and lives. Our thoughts and desires are more important than what Jesus has to say.

-Now, hear me out on this, because this can be a very sensitive subject:

~I’ve been asked the question, would I allow an LGBTQ person to attend the church? And my answer is always: YES, ABSOLUTELY. Why? Because I want them to hear the gospel of Jesus Christ that gives life to all who would believe, but in order to believe they have to hear. And how are they going to hear if we start banning people from attending.

~That doesn’t mean we would bring them into membership without faith and repentance—but hopefully we can love them to Jesus, because, guess what, Jesus hung out with prostitutes and tax collectors and probably LGBTQ people in order to bring them to repentance. But He never once approved of the lifestyle.

JESUS CAME TO SAVE PEOPLE FROM THEIR SIN, NOT APPROVE PEOPLE IN THEIR SIN!

-But, why would people think that Jesus approves of that lifestyle, or any other sin for that matter? Because they don’t know the truth. Jesus, who Himself is the truth, says He came to the earth to bear witness to the truth, and everyone who is of the truth will listen to His truth and approve of His truth and follow His truth.

-Pilate snidely replies WHAT IS TRUTH? And that’s the attitude of the world. What is truth? And they answer I AM TRUTH AND I MAKE MY OWN TRUTH!

~You can’t make your own truth and follow Jesus in truth at the same time. It’s either your truth or Jesus’ truth—what are you going to choose?

Conclusion

-The Jews and the Romans rejected Jesus, and the world is doing the same today.

~The federal government is pushing through the terribly named Equality Act that would add “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” as protected classes to existing laws, and churches and religious schools would not be exempted. It would purportedly force churches to allow men into women’s bathrooms, and purportedly force churches and religious schools to hire people whose lifestyles go against their beliefs, and a whole slew of stuff like that.

~First, I want to say, that I don’t care what the government says, we are not ever going to go against our doctrines and beliefs.

~But then, it begs the question, how can things have even come to this point, including the support of some supposed churches? It is because they have rejected Jesus and His identity and His doctrine and His authority and His truth—and culture will reject those who follow Him in truth.

-So, Christian, will you allow this rejection of Jesus in the kangaroo court of public opinion to compromise your walk with Him? Come and pray that you and the church would stand strong. And come and pray for the repentance of those who so reject Jesus.

-But maybe you have rejected Jesus all your life, it’s time to repent and turn to Him because He is the only way, He is the only truth, He is the only life…