John 18 Cont.

Jesus’ Trial and Peter’s Denial

We will pick this momentous event in history, at the 1st trial......the trial before Annas.......This was an informal interrogation. Some speculate that the high priests were giving time for the members of the Sanhedrin “Jewish religious supreme court” to quickly gather together.

This was also done to try and gather something concrete to convict Jesus to death before Pilate.

Important to note that Caesar long before this had removed the “Jews” right to put people to death according to their law. Any death sentences had to go before the governors of each region. So, they had to have something to bring to Pilate for a death sentence.

This trial before Annas was completely illegal, because there was to be no trial held at night. Remember, I said last week Annas was a corrupt high priest and his family continued to be named high priest after Annas’ time was up.............It was not supposed to happen that way, but he manipulated the law and made it so..........Annas was like the mafia “godfather”..........Anyway, Caiaphas was the actual high priest during this time.........He is the son-in-law to Annas......He will be where Jesus goes next.

Verse 19................In Annas’ interrogation of Jesus, Annas and the others’ main objective was to get Jesus to claim that He was the Son of God....This would definitely be a death sentence........

Annas starts with Jesus’ disciples and His teaching.......

Jesus knew that there must be multiple witnesses of this by Jewish law.......

This is what prompted Jesus’ response.....Verses 20-21 He had taught openly everywhere, ask them.....

They know what Jesus said.....He had to have multiple witnesses in a real trial.......Jesus is just saying ask the people what He had taught them.........

Verses 22-24............One of the officers hit Jesus and rebuked Him for talking to Annas the way He did.

Jesus said ““If I have spoken wrongly, testify of the wrong; but if rightly, why do you strike Me?”

Annas knew that this was going no where, so he sends Jesus to Caiaphas.......mind you it is still night time when Jesus goes before Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin.....making the next phase of Jesus’ trial illegitimate.

Notice they still have Jesus bound.....just as they would bind the sacrificial lamb.

Now let’s take a moment to acknowledge these trials before Caiaphas......These are not accounted in John, but are really detailed in Matt. and Mark.

Let’s look at Matthew 26:57-68......which would be the 2nd phase of the Jewish trial........

None of these witnesses could agree on anything and their testimony was unreliable!

Jesus gives them what they wanted.......a death sentence.....He proclaimed what He actually was but what they were willing not to believe, but what they needed Him to say so that they could have Him crucified.

Their rage was profound in their beating of Jesus spitting on Him, mocking Him!

Luke 22:64 “And when they had blindfolded him, they struck him on the face, and asked him, saying, Prophesy, who is it that smote thee?”

Back to John.....Verses 25-27......Peter is denying Jesus again.......the scene was intense......Luke’s acct is when Jesus looked at Peter.....

I have a short video that gives a view of this scene, in my opinion it does a good job of portraying this moment in history..........

Verse 28........Now, according to the other Gospels.......when daybreak came they got together again, all of them, chief priests, elders, scribes, the whole council, to make everything legal pronounced judgement that Jesus be put to death.......Then they led Jesus away to Pilate.....

Hall of judgement.....Praetorium........is basically the headquarters of the Roman governor.

The “Jews” would not enter the hall of judgement, because they believed it would make them unclean.

According to the Mishnah, which is basically a book of Jewish oral traditions, a Jew who entered the dwelling-places of Gentiles became ceremonially unclean.

The reason......The context of Mishnah Oholoth suggests rather that the reason why a Jew would contract uncleanness in a Gentile home was because Gentiles were believed to bury aborted fetuses (i.e. corpses) in their homes, or flush them down their drains, and Numbers 9:7–10 insists that anyone who is unclean on account of contact with a dead body—a seven-day defilement, Numbers 9:6–11; 31:19–at the time of Passover must not participate in the feast.

Verses 29......Pilate’s question was basically a formality which formally opened the Roman proceedings against Jesus.

Verse 30-32.......This part is important.........The “Jews” let Pilate know that Jesus was an “evil-doer”, if He wasn’t they would of never brought Him to Pilate!

They kind of sound like they are a bunch of liars!~

Pilate not wanting to be in another mess of trouble, in which he had made multiple “big” mistakes and one more would probably be his last.

So, in one of many attempts to get this off his hands, he tells the “Jewish leaders” to do it yourself.......

Basically, Pilate gave them permission to execute Jesus on their own and by their own law, in which Roman law would not allow them to do, but Pilate was willing to let them do it this time to keep the heat off of him.......He was a typical politician!

The Jews wanted to stay in good graces with Caesar and Rome, they didn’t trust Pilate anyway.....There is some past history with them and Pilate.........

All of these things done was evil intended, but God used their evil for His will and purpose.......

The “Jewish leaders’ if they would of put Jesus to death, it would of been by stoning.......Romans execution was crucifixion.

Verse 32 tells of what is said about Jesus’ death

John 3:14 “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:”

John 8:28 “Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things.”

John 12:32 “And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.”

Matthew 20:19 “And shall deliver him to the Gentiles to mock, and to scourge, and to crucify him: and the third day he shall rise again.”

This is the prophecies, mostly by Jesus Himself!

Verses 33-38.....Pilate questions Jesus..........

I love the way Jesus answers with a questions, which always challenges the intent of the hearts of those asking Him questions........

Do you want to know? or is it just because they said this that you ask of Me?

Pilate answered it was the Jews........

Jesus gives Him a powerful answer in verse 36.....His Kingdom is not of this world, if it was Jesus wouldn’t be in Pilate nor the Jews custody! Jesus’ servants would fight!

Maybe His followers or maybe it is the 12 legions of angels (72,000)! Either way, Jesus wouldn’t be handed over to evil men, they would be handed over to Jesus if this world was His Kingdom!

Right now Jesus has all power in Heaven and Earth, but earth is not His kingdom, not because He couldn’t have it, but because of Grace!

Grace, because it is fallen and if He took it way back when there would be no Grace given

Our Grace through Jesus Christ is being delivered from this fallen world!

Pilate, answers this by asking.... “So, you are a king?”

Jesus tells Pilate that he had answered correctly.......

This is why Jesus was born into this world to testify of the truth........for us to believe in the Truth, repent and turn to the Truth of Jesus Christ!

John 1:14 “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”

Everyone that has seen and believes in the Truth.......Hear Jesus’ voice

John 10:14 “I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.”

John 10:27 “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:”

1 John 4:6 “We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.”

Pilate then asks Jesus sarcastically and rhetorically “What is truth?”

Many folks today believe there are many “truths”, I have heard many famous say this openly

I have heard many famous preachers not willing to offend say that other religions have their own truth!

John 14:6 “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”

Now, there is some talk about when Jesus is sent to Herod, it must be somewhere in here, maybe before Pilate questions Jesus, not sure........The parallel Gospel thing I use, has Herod coming in between this questioning and Barabbas........

Herod didn’t care one bit about the trial....he just wanted to see Jesus do a miracle.

Jesus was sent back to Pilate.

Verse 39-40........Pilate tries another scheme to get Jesus off his hands..........

This custom has no Biblical evidence, maybe in the Mishnah that I spoke of earlier.

Anyway, Pilate though that the “Jews” would definitely refuse Barabbas and have to take Jesus!

Barabbas was a robber and a murder......most traditional history says that he was most vile man!

No one would want Barabbas, but to show the “Jews” unashamed rejection of the Son of God, they chose Barabbas!

Listen, how Luke tells of this.....Luke 23:13-19.........

Next Wed. if the Lord tarries, we will read of another attempt by Pilate to appease the crowd without killing and innocent man!