The Innocent Condemned, the Sinner Set Free

The Sound of Music is a movie about hills and mountains. Star Wars is about a dysfunctional family. The Godfather is about a family business. Harry Potter is about a magic wand. Jurassic Park is a case study in theme park management. And Braveheart is a movie about facepaint.

All of these are adventures in missing the point.

The Bible is the story of how to live a good life. The gospel is a demonstration of how valuable I am. Jesus was a revolutionary. Christianity is about how to be a better person. Many people - even Christians - have a hard time realizing that these too are adventures of missing the point.

We’ve been studying the gospel of Mark - the earliest biography of Jesus’ life - and we’re nearing the very end, where he dies on the cross. And the closer we get to his death, the closer we get to the very center of Christianity, the point, if you will.

In other words, there are many things that are included as part of Christianity. The Bible teaches Christians certain ethics, but they are not the center. Christian morals do not make one a Christian. The heart of Christianity is the cross of Jesus Christ.

If you’re not a Christian, you’ll want to stick around for the next few weeks, as we get closer to the death of Jesus on the cross. Before you reject Christianity, you should try to understand its central claims. And you can’t understand what we’re claiming if you miss the cross.

In our text, Mark 15:1-15, we are looking at the final hours before the cross. Chapter 11 onward is the last week of Jesus’ life. It’s the passover week when thousands of Jewish pilgrims are in Jerusalem. So the religious leaders wanted to get rid of Jesus, but they couldn’t do it during the day because it would’ve started a riot. Chap 14 tells us about the last night of Jesus’ life. We saw in 14:12-25 how Jesus transformed the Jewish Passover meal into what we call the “Lord’s Supper” - a meal for the church. Jesus presented himself as the new passover lamb, the one who dies in the place of sinners. In 14:26-31 Jesus predicted that the disciples would abandon him, and that Peter specifically would deny him three times (which came to pass in the section we studied two weeks ago). Then Jesus prayed in Gethsemane, he was arrested there in 14:43-51, he was brought before a midnight gathering of religious leaders in verse 53-65, where verse 64 indicates “And they all condemned him as deserving death.”

Remember, what the religious leaders were doing was a complete mockery of justice; they did not follow ordinary protocol; they did not conform to policy or procedure. They decided his sentence before there was any agreed upon crime. They lied, they made up accusations. They unlawfully beat him up and mocked him. Trials were supposed to happen in the daytime in public spaces, but here they’re done at night, in the high priest’s private residence.

And now we come to Mark 15. Let’s read it. I’ll give you my outline ahead of time so you can follow along: 1) The Perfect obedience of Jesus, 2) the Startling Evil of Men, and 3) The Symbolic Release of the Guilty.

The Perfect Obedience of Jesus

One of the central beauties of the gospel is something theologians call “the active obedience of Christ.” Let me explain. The Bible teaches that fallen humanity has two fundamental problems. First, we have guilt through sin; and second we lack perfect righteousness. So for us to be made right with God we need two things: 1) sins forgiven, and 2) perfect righteousness.

The doctrine of the “active obedience of Christ” teaches that Christ’s perfect obedience is given freely to anyone who trusts in him. We know that the cross - the death of Christ - atones for our sins, and thus makes forgiveness possible. But we often forget that every moment of Christ’s life - every time he resisted sin, every time he said no to temptation, and every time he submitted to the father’s perfect will, he was accomplishing that which we could never accomplish on our own. Why? So that all those who trust in him can have his righteousness credited to them. That’s what justification is.

So as we study his section, I want you to consider that Jesus’ perfect obedience in these trying hours is just as critical for your salvation as the cross is. If Jesus - even for one split second - gives in to temptation and falls into sin - he cannot save us. Why? Because his obedience is tainted, his righteousness is blemished, and we cannot be justified. The only reason we can be justified is if Christ credits his perfect righteousness to our account. But if his righteousness is not perfect, we cannot be justified. So let’s watch him as he perfectly obeys the Father.

“15 And as soon as it was morning, the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council.” Remember, they met at the high priest’s house in the middle of the night with some of the religious leaders there. And now, it’s very early in the morning. It’s around sunrise, and the chief priests meet with the rest of the Sanhedrin - the ones who weren’t at the midnight meeting - and relay the decision they’ve come up with about Jesus. And our text says, “And they bound Jesus and led him away and delivered him over to Pilate.”

Remember, the Jews living in Jerusalem at this time did not have complete autonomy. They were under Roman rule, and while Rome allowed for the Jews to have a lot of freedom, they did not allow Jews the power to execute anyone. If the Jews wanted to kill someone, they had to convince the Roman authorities. That’s why they bring him to Pilate. Pilate wasn’t ordinarily in Jerusalem, but during the important feast weeks, it was his job to ensure peace, so he would relocate for a while and live near the high priest.

Here we see the first aspect of the perfect obedience of Jesus: 1) His submission was perfect. They bound Jesus, he didn’t fight. They led him away, he didn’t resist. They delivered him to Pilate, and he went. Here, Jesus submits to these people.

How is he doing this? Ultimately, the reason he can submit to these wicked leaders is because he is submissive to God. In John 4:34, Jesus said, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work.” John 5:19 “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing.” In other words, the driving force of Jesus’ life is to do all the Father has given him to do. He is perfectly submissive to his heavenly Father.

To submit means to put yourself under another’s authority. It is to entrust yourself to them. He had fully entrusted himself to the Father. He had come to lay down his life as a ransom for many. He had come to die in the place of sinners. And as these ungodly authorities took him away, he submitted to the plan of his Father. 1 Peter 2:23 “When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.” In the midst of his suffering, he was able to look past the immediate discomfort of the moment and see the good hand of his heavenly father guiding him.

2) his answer was perfect. Verse 2: “And Pilate asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” And he answered him, “You have said so.” Luke records that the Jews, trying to convince Pilate that Jesus was a threat and therefore deserving of capital punishment, accused Jesus of three things: 1) misleading our nation, 2) forbidding us to give tribute to Caesar, and 3) saying that he is Christ, a king. Pilate doesn’t care about the first two - but it’s the last one that intrigues him. That’s why Mark includes it, and that’s why Pilate asks: “Are you the king of the Jews?” If he’s claiming to be a king, that could be a problem. It would mean he’s a threat to Caesar, and if that’s the case he could be guilty of some sort of insurrection.

Jesus’ response is: “You have said so.” Which is Jesus’ way of agreeing while still forcing Pilate to consider who he is. Jesus is affirming that he is the king of the Jews, but not in the way they think. A perfect answer. He is not shying away from the truth of who he is.

3) His attitude was perfect. “3 And the chief priests accused him of many things. 4 And Pilate again asked him, “Have you no answer to make? See how many charges they bring against you.” These religious leaders are desperate to convince Pilate that Jesus should be killed. They are layering accusation upon accusation.

“5 But Jesus made no further answer, so that Pilate was amazed.” Silence, in the right moment, can be more powerful than a sermon. Pilate was amazed. The silence of Jesus spoke louder than the accusations. His demeanor, his repose, his poise, is without the slightest stain of sin.

This is almost impossible for us to imagine. Even if we keep our mouths shut, when we’re accused of something we didn’t do, we start boiling with anger inside. We seethe. We’re annoyed, we’re bugged. We feel slighted. We hate when people treat us badly, it really upsets us. We feel we deserve to be treated better!

But Jesus’ attitude is perfect. He doesn’t flinch with anger. He doesn’t respond with annoyance or rage. He trusts his heavenly father. His obedience is perfect.

We should pause a moment and worship Jesus, shouldn’t we? Aren’t you glad he didn’t fail us here? Aren’t you glad he didn’t say, “Okay. That’s enough. I’ve had it up to here. I’m not going to tolerate another accusation!” Aren’t you glad he continued to submit to the Father? Aren’t you glad he was faithful in his answer? Aren’t you glad his attitude was sinless and perfect?

You see, one critical element of the gospel is this: Jesus was perfect in all the ways I’ve failed. And if I know my own sin, and look to Jesus in faith, God credits his perfect obedience to me, and I am justified by God on the basis on Christ’s righteousness, not my own. Because Jesus succeeded here, I can be reconciled to God.

If you’re not a Christian, you must know that one day you will face God. And the only righteousness that he finds acceptable is perfect righteousness. Not “mostly good” righteousness. Perfect. Do you have perfect righteousness? You don’t, but God offers it to sinners. Repent of your sin, and trust in Jesus to be your righteousness.

The Startling Evil of Men

Now, it’s as if the camera changes its focus. Verse 1-5 was on Jesus. Now, it’s on the leaders who have Jesus in custody. Verse 6 Now at the feast:” he’s talking about the passover feast “he used to release for them one prisoner for whom they asked.” This was sometimes the Roman government's way of keeping the Jews happy. It made them seem merciful. If a Jew was imprisoned under Roman law, during the celebration of the feast Pilate could allow his release.

And, strangely enough, verse 7 “And among the rebels in prison, who had committed murder in the insurrection, there was a man called Barabbas.” Barabbas was an actual insurrectionist. In the first century, there were a few Jewish uprisings against Roman oppression and some of these men were violent. That’s what Barabbas was. He had committed murder. He had shed innocent blood. Mark includes this detail because it’s about to become very important.

Verse 8: And the crowd came up and began to ask Pilate to do as he usually did for them.” That is, to release one prisoner. So it’s morning now, the gathering is in public, and now the crowds are gathering to hear what’s going on. Remember, you don’t have movie theaters, you don’t have iPhones or TVs. Often your entertainment for the day is going to see Pilate make judgments and render verdicts.

And Pilate assumes the crowd will ask for Jesus to be released. After all, Pilate doesn’t think Jesus should be executed, and the people in the crowd have loved Jesus. 9 And he answered them, saying, “Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?’ And the crowd, that had loved Jesus, that had celebrated his entrance into Jerusalem, starts crying out that Jesus should be crucified. What in the world? And by the end of our section, Jesus will be sentenced to the torturous death on the cross. How did that happen?

We have to see the horrifying evil here. Let me point it out to you.

First, notice the envy. In verse 10, it says Pilate “perceived that it was out of envy that the chief priests had delivered him up.” Matthew says, “He knew it was because of envy.” It’s not just that he thought it was envy, he knew it was. Jesus had become so popular with the people, so powerful and influential, and Jesus had embarrassed these religious leaders in the temple, and had called them out in public, and they hated it. They hated that his increase in popularity meant their decrease in power. They were envious.

Being jealous can feel like one of those “little sins'' that don’t matter too much. But do you see how powerful envy is? Jealousy is superfuel for hatred. Envy is murderous. Envy motivated Cain to kill Abel (Gen. 4:4-6) Envy motivated Joseph's brothers to ruin his life (Gen. 37:11) Envy motivated Saul to despise and attempt to murder David (1 Sam. 18:8)

Jas 3:16 “For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice.” Prov 27:4, “Wrath is cruel, anger is overwhelming, but who can stand before jealousy?”

Behold the power of envy! Look how it was envy that put Jesus on the cross. Consider the danger of envy in your own heart. Do you despise the success of others? Do you rejoice in the failure of others?

In our church covenant, we say we will “rejoice with those who are rejoicing.” Do you know what happens when you stop doing that? You become infected with the disease of envy. I wonder if there’s anyone who comes to mind right now. As you observe the wickedness of these envious men who killed Jesus, consider whether you’ve ever imitated them. You wish you had their gifts. You wish you had their prominence. You wish you had their wealth.

Brothers and sisters - put envy to death. Trust that God is wise in how he arranges our lives. Rejoice with those who are rejoicing.

Second, notice their lying schemes. Verse 11 says, “But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have him release for them Barabbas instead.” This explains how the crowd that once loved Jesus became the crowd that shouted for his death.

Their envy led to their scheming. Their job was to - as the sun was rising that Friday morning - to go through the crowds and convince them that Jesus should be killed and that Barabbas should be released. In Acts 14, the unbelieving Jews are said to have “poisoned their minds against the brothers.” That’s what’s happening here: these religious leaders are poisoning the minds of the crowd - and that’s how you have a crowd of people crying to kill an innocent man.

Third, notice their cruelty. Verse 12: “And Pilate again said to them, “Then what shall I do with the man you call the King of the Jews?” 13 And they cried out again, “Crucify him.” The envy evolved into lying schemes, which turned into abject cruelty. It was not enough to dismiss him. It was not enough to scourge him. It was not enough to kill him. They wanted him to die a shameful, embarrassing, undignified death. They wanted him tortured on a cross.

I wonder if we were there, could put on supernatural glasses so we could see the spirit-realm along with the physical realm, we would have seen demons howling about, devils shrieking in delight. Just a little while before, at his arrest, Jesus told the chief priests, “This is your hour, and the power of darkness.” In other words, what the chief priests were doing was not merely the design of wicked men. The wicked men were instruments in the hands of the deceiver.

If anger gives a foothold for the devil, I’m sure envy does, and I’m sure the swirling powers of darkness were working overtime that night and that morning. The madness of the crowd had settled, the powers of hells were excited, and they cried for the blood torture of the Son of God.

But fourth, notice the cowardice as well. Pilate, still not convinced that Jesus deserves death, washes his hands of the deed (in Matthew), and then, 15 So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released for them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.”

Look at those words: “wishing to satisfy the crowd.” Wow. What an indictment. And what an insight into the human heart. Here is a man willing to murder an innocent, release a murderer, all because he wants to satisfy the crowd. What cowardice!

Oh how sinful is fallen man! So many threads come together in this scene, weaving a tapestry of wickedness. Murderous envy. Lying schemes. Cruel atrocities against the innocent. And then the one with the authority to stop it bows to the will of the bloodthirsty mob, abdicating his role, turning a cowardly yellow, and allowing it all to happen on his watch.

Friends, behold the depravity of man. God - Almighty, All-knowing, All powerful, merciful, gracious, just, holy - came to man in Jesus Christ. And fallen humanity could not tolerate him. They hated him. They murdered him.

And most of us think that if we were there, we would have been one of the good guys. Do you think? Aren’t the same seeds of envy in your own heart? Haven’t you ever been startled by the cruelty you’re capable of? Doesn’t it frighten you how much of a coward you can be?

The evil of mankind is startling. And frankly, though we were not there at the trial, we were not part of the crowd crying for crucifixion, and we were not there at the cross, we are guilty of the same sins that put him there.

This is one of the most important claims of Christianity. That people - all people - are sinners guilty of high treason against God, and that we are deserving of God’s righteous condemnation.

But there’s something else I want to point out here.

The Symbolic Release of the Guilty

Yet even in this dark event, God is providentially demonstrating one of the most central Christian truths. The way of salvation is being acted out, in a sense, in these events. A pattern long attested to is being replayed here. Here’s the pattern: the guilty saved through substitution.

Think of this throughout Scripture. Adam and Eve are guilty of sin, and an innocent animal dies to make clothing to cover their shame. Isaac is going to be sacrificed, but God provides a ram to die in his place. Israel is a sinful nation, and God allows a lamb without blemish to be substituted for them and die in their place, for their sins. A spotless passover lamb dies so that guilty Israel can be set free from judgment.

And here, in the final hours before his death, how appropriate is it that a murderer goes free so that the holy one can die?

This is the principle of substitution. It’s woven everywhere in the Bible. This is what it means: we’re all so sinful that we don’t need to tweak our lives, we don’t need to turn over a new leaf, we don’t need to add more religion, we don’t need to improve our habits, we don’t need watch out for what influences us. Not fundamentally. Before God, we need a substitute. We need someone to stand in our place. We cannot represent ourselves before God, we are guilty. We need a righteous stand-in who can meet God’s qualifications in our behalf.

Romans 5 teaches that all humanity is either in Adam or in Christ. If you are “in Adam,” you are still bearing the guilt and condemnation of your sin. If you are in Christ, he is your substitute. He stands in your place. He dies the death you deserve. He provides the righteousness you need. And in Christ you are forgiven. That’s what we need.

There’s a sense in which we are all like Barabbas. We are truly guilty. We are spiritual rebels; spiritual insurrectionists. We have tried to live as if God did not exist, or as if God is not good, or as if God is not our authority. We have lived for our own glory, chasing our own purposes. We have rebelled against God, and we are under his just condemnation. We are, as the Bible teaches, under a curse because of our sin.

But here comes the only innocent one, Jesus Christ. The one who alone has perfectly obeyed the Father. The one whose obedience is without blemish. The one who’s life was only ever perfectly pleasing to the Lord. And he submits to the Father’s will, and he willingly goes to die. And notice, real quick, that they want to crucify him. Do you know why that’s significant? The Jews believed that to die on a tree was to be cursed by God. Jesus will die on the tree. He would experience the curse of God. He is the innocent suffering the punishment for the guilty. He is the spotless lamb dying for sinners. He is the perfect sacrifice that cleanses.

Are you “in Adam” - still in your sins? Or “in Christ?” Christ will be your substitute, your representative, your advocate, your savior, your Lord, when you turn from all other hopes and cling to Christ by faith.