Poisonious Attacks
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Poisonous Attacks....
Poisonous Attacks....
Good morning my friends, I hope you are having a good morning! I know sometimes it’s hard to get here on Sunday...
Mom’s and Dad’s are trying to get the kids ready, you are trying to get you ready… It seems like there are so many little things that pop up and try to hinder you
But you made it. Give the Lord praise that You made it. Thank Him for the new day and thank Him for what He will do in your life today.
Today w are going to look at the events that took place that night after Jesus arrest.
His arrest would the set the stage for the coming of His hour… the moment God had prepared from before the foundation of the world.
So lets set the stage as we begin this message on the Betrayal of Jesus.
So lets take our Bibles and turn to Matthew 26:57-60
57 Then those who had seized Jesus led him to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders had gathered. 58 And Peter was following him at a distance, as far as the courtyard of the high priest, and going inside he sat with the guards to see the end. 59 Now the chief priests and the whole council were seeking false testimony against Jesus that they might put him to death, 60 but they found none, though many false witnesses came forward. At last two came forward
As we look at this an other passages today, I want you to see there is a lot of information, a lot of things happening here over the course of those few hours before Jesus is crucified..
When I look at all of these texts I want to bring to your mind the word poison. Poison is a tool of the devil to rob life, disrupt life and end life. The devil has poisoned the minds of many through fear, the unknown and most certainly pride.
So today lets start with this..
1. The Poison of an Accusation. ..
The very first thing you notice when you examine the hearts of the religious leaders is their accusation that Jesus was a blasphemer, one who violated all that God had brought to them as the Jewish nation.
That night as they arrested him, they led him straight to the house of Caiaphas, the high priest.
And it was there that many of the scribes and elders were gathered to accuse and try Jesus.
So a good portion of the Sanhedrin the ruling Jewish body was there that night as we see in verse 59.
Look there with me
57 Then those who had seized Jesus led him to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders had gathered. 58 And Peter was following him at a distance, as far as the courtyard of the high priest, and going inside he sat with the guards to see the end. 59 Now the chief priests and the whole council were seeking false testimony against Jesus that they might put him to death, 60 but they found none, though many false witnesses came forward. At last two came forward
Now we know there were 70 members to the Sanhedrin, but they most likely assembled a quorum very quickly this night in the hopes of carrying out this illegal court.
Now I say illegal court because the Mishnah Sanhedrin 4:1 the oral law of the Jewish people says that capital cases must be held and verdicts reached during the day only, not at night.
So it was illegal to even hold this trail at night, along breaking other laws about reaching verdicts in Mishnah Sanhedrin 5.
What were their charges, verse 59 says that were seeking to bring false testimony against him in the hopes of putting him to death…wow
They hoped to lie in order to put Jesus to death
And verse 60 gives us the truth, “- they found no testimony against him where by they might charge Him.”
Now as they continue with this charade, verses 61 and 62 shares with us that two more witnesses came forward with the testimony of something Jesus had said...
Look with me, verses 60-62 Matthew 26:60-62
60 but they found none, though many false witnesses came forward. At last two came forward 61 and said, “This man said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to rebuild it in three days.’ ” 62 And the high priest stood up and said, “Have you no answer to make? What is it that these men testify against you?”
Now this is important, 2 witnesses came forward. According to Jewish law, only the witness of 2 or more could be considered as truth, so how conveniently they come to the council with the word of two.
So the charge is Verse 61
“This man said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to rebuild it in three days.’ ”
That is not exactly what Jesus said… Let me share His words with you...
19 Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”
So Jesus never said “I” .... will destroy, he only said "destroy it, and in three day I will raise it up”.... So what is he saying
He is speaking about his own body there, if they destroyed it, which in truth He is getting ready to be punished and sentenced to death, and while death will come, in three days He will rise up.
It is a poisonous accusation, one that could be seen as a political or social threat… and they used it to push for Jesus to be put to death..
Through these accusations, Jesus remained silent… only speaking when the High Priest asked Him if he was the Christ, Jesus said, listen to verse 64...
64 Jesus said to him, “You have said so. But I tell you, from now on you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.”
Now, the high priest didn’t like this, he tore his robes and accused Jesus of blasphemy, spitting on Jesus and slapping him, finally taking him to Pilate, who is the Roman Governor of the area. Look at Matthew 27:1-2
1 When morning came, all the chief priests and the elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death. 2 And they bound him and led him away and delivered him over to Pilate the governor.
My friends, here we can see just how poisonous the accusations of their words and heart were , they hated Jesus. They are truly as John the Baptist Said, a brood of vipers..
What do we learn from it?
We must be careful with our words, Words are powerful they can build up or tear down. Make sure your words are seasoned with grace my friends!
Make sure we live correctly and right in front of God and man.
Now lets consider a second thought.... The second poison.....
2. The Poison of Denial....
As you probably noticed from the previous text, Peter was following close by the events as they led Jesus to the High Priests home, he was there, I am sure several of the disciples were… But we know Peter is close
Now remember the last moment we looked at Peter last week was were he swung the sword and cut the ear off of the servant of the High Priest. Jesus told Peter to put away the sword and he healed the servants ear...
Peter was ready to fight at that moment, but it would soon change.
But now he is there, following at a distance and we see this..
Look at verses Matthew 26:69-75
69 Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard. And a servant girl came up to him and said, “You also were with Jesus the Galilean.” 70 But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you mean.” 71 And when he went out to the entrance, another servant girl saw him, and she said to the bystanders, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.” 72 And again he denied it with an oath: “I do not know the man.” 73 After a little while the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Certainly you too are one of them, for your accent betrays you.” 74 Then he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know the man.” And immediately the rooster crowed. 75 And Peter remembered the saying of Jesus, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.
Remember the prophecy that Jesus spoke to Peter last week? In verse 34; Jesus said “...Peter before the rooster crows in the morning you will have denied me 3 times.”
Now a few hours later, Just as Jesus was on trial before the High Priest Caiaphas and others that night, Peter suddenly found himself on trial as well as people spoke to him.
And with each passing moment we see the poison of denial....
The first dose is in verses 60-70...
In verse 69, a servant girl said ,"hey you are one of those with Jesus… and Peter denied it… I don’t know what you mean?”
So here is a young lady who was of no place and no value to society in that day and time, I don’t mean to put her down, but really no one would have paid her much attention. yet she scared Peter to death… You were with him … and Peter denied it.
The word “denied here means to disown. Peter claimed no identification with Jesus.
And then the second dose of poison comes in verses 71 and 72.
As Peter went to the entrance of the courtyard, another servant girl spoke up and said to a bystander, “...That man was with Jesus....” And Peter heard her and spoke up, denying it he said ‘I don’t know this man.”
Wow, He denied Jesus a second time, increasingly with each denial, it gets bolder and more personal.. First it was; “I don’t know what you are talking about" and Secondly there Peter says “I don’t know the man....”
And now finally…the third dose of poison is seen in verses 73-75
After a bit of time a person spoke up, You are one of them, you look like and sound like them.. Listen to it..
73 After a little while the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Certainly you too are one of them, for your accent betrays you.” 74 Then he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know the man.” And immediately the rooster crowed.
And listen to this dose of poison… Peter cursed the man, in a sense literally asking God to punish the man if he is lying… I do not know the man....
And the rooster crowed...
Oh my… the poison of of denial spoke from His lips and polluted this life from a simple I don't know what you me to cursing and calling down a curse… Thankfully, God didn’t strike Peter down...
Friends, with each push, and each accusation we see that Peter felt the pressure of the moment with Jesus on trial, Peter I am sure was scared they might come after Him..
And so he denied him.... And the Scriptures say that Peter went out and wept bitterly, he couldnt believe what he had just done...
I cannot imagine how broken Peter much have felt… can you?
I had often wondered so many times if Peter had stayed awake and watched and prayed with Jesus in the garden, could all of this been avoided...
But he didn’t, … Peter is down, but don’t count him out.. He like us is a product of grace, he doesn’t get what he deserves, instead He gets more of Jesus…
Friends in a poisonous world, with words like poisonous fangs that are ready to strike, we need more of Jesus and the world does as well...
The answer is always more of Jesus....
Now just one last thought my friends...
3. The Poison of Betrayal....
As we make our way into chapter 27 we find that the religious leaders had made up their mind, They say Jesus deserves to be punished, He deserves to be put toe death.
But the Sanhedrin did not have the authority to do that in their own right… Rome occupied the land and only they would exercise capital punishment. So they took Jesus off to Pilate, hoping he would carry out their wishes..
And while this was going on… we see Judas, the one who betrayed Jesus.
So look with me, Matt 27:3-7
3 Then when Judas, his betrayer, saw that Jesus was condemned, he changed his mind and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders, 4 saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” They said, “What is that to us? See to it yourself.” 5 And throwing down the pieces of silver into the temple, he departed, and he went and hanged himself. 6 But the chief priests, taking the pieces of silver, said, “It is not lawful to put them into the treasury, since it is blood money.” 7 So they took counsel and bought with them the potter’s field as a burial place for strangers.
Judas remember was one who had walked with Jesus since the beginning, but sadly His heart was never truly changed and he was bitter over Mary’s use of the alabaster box of pure nard that she poured over the head of Jesus back in chapter 26...
So he betrayed Jesus..... but now here in the text we see that Judas has a change of heart when he sees that Jesus is condemned.
We don’t know what Judas expected, did he think Jesus was just be arrested, did he think he might force the Messiah’s hand to usher in His kingdom or what..
But we do see that When they (the religious leaders) had condemned Jesus, He is sad, broken. The poison of his heart has struck a deadly blow...
Verse 3 tells us, Judas changed his mind, and he returns to the temple and to the religious leaders he stuck the deal with saying “…I have sinned, betraying innocent blood…”
The phrase “changed his mind” is the idea of repenting, but not as deep as the sense of turning from sin…
He is sorrowful, but his sorrow is for what his work is leading too… not that Jesus was arrested but that they are going to kill him…
But the religious leaders don't care, their words are simple, “…What is that to us...”
They truly do not care if Jesus is innocent or not, they want him and his ways out of the way ....
My friends, when we fail to care for God and his ways, we truly see how far we have fell.. They were at the bottom of the pit...
But in anger and despair, Judas throws the money down on the floor and goes out and hangs himself.
Judas life has spiraled so out of control that he has lost all sense of what is right or wrong and does another sinful act, He takes his own life.
His betrayal has poisoned his life so much that it takes his life.
Sin and betrayal are like a poisonous snake that sneaks up on us until it is to late, finally when it has us there is little hope of help, once bitten to often death comes,
Sin always leads to death....
Now the religious leaders, they knew they couldnt take that money back, they called it “blood money” so they purchased a plot of ground to buy a cemetery for the poor.
We look at all that happens in this passage and we are saddened, accusations, denials and betrayal,… all of this is the result of poisonous
sin. It always leads to death… Sin is a terrible thing to hold on too...
But thankfully Jesus came to forgive sin, to pay the penalty for the wrong done in our lives that we might have life and not death.
Peter betrayed Jesus, but remember Jesus restored Peter after He rose from the dead.
If he restored Peter, He will restore you.
Don’t let the poison of Satan rob you of life and the life you have walking with Jesus.
If there is sin, un-forgiveness, if you are holding a grudge, if there is something keeping you from being and enjoying the best Jesus as for you..
Let it go and look to Jesus
9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
He will help us, He always does and always will..
Turn to Jesus
Let’s Pray