Today's scripture focus is Luke 23:13-25
13 Pilate called together the chief priests, the rulers and the people, 14 and said to them, “You brought me this man as one who was inciting the people to rebellion. I have examined him in your presence and have found no basis for your charges against him. 15 Neither has Herod, for he sent him back to us; as you can see, he has done nothing to deserve death. 16 Therefore, I will punish him and then release him.” [17] [a]
18 But the whole crowd shouted, “Away with this man! Release Barabbas to us!” 19 (Barabbas had been thrown into prison for an insurrection in the city, and for murder.)
20 Wanting to release Jesus, Pilate appealed to them again. 21 But they kept shouting, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”
22 For the third time he spoke to them: “Why? What crime has this man committed? I have found in him no grounds for the death penalty. Therefore I will have him punished and then release him.”
23 But with loud shouts they insistently demanded that he be crucified, and their shouts prevailed. 24 So Pilate decided to grant their demand. 25 He released the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, the one they asked for, and surrendered Jesus to their will.
18 But the whole crowd shouted, “Away with this man! Release Barabbas to us!” 19 (Barabbas had been thrown into prison for an insurrection in the city, and for murder.)
20 Wanting to release Jesus, Pilate appealed to them again. 21 But they kept shouting, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”
22 For the third time he spoke to them: “Why? What crime has this man committed? I have found in him no grounds for the death penalty. Therefore I will have him punished and then release him.”
23 But with loud shouts they insistently demanded that he be crucified, and their shouts prevailed. 24 So Pilate decided to grant their demand. 25 He released the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, the one they asked for, and surrendered Jesus to their will.
Talk about caving to peer pressure. Friday we learned that Biblically, there were two witnesses declaring Jesus innocent, which was enough for God's eyes. Herod no longer wanted to kill Jesus. In Matthew 27:19, this same story was told, with an added little blip about Pilate's wife. She warned Pilate not to have "anything to do with this innocent man" because of a dream she had had concerning Jesus.
I have always felt that Pilate wanted to do the right thing. He wanted to release Jesus, he wanted to keep Barabbas in prison (a man who actually had incited riots, and had even murdered), he wanted the crowd to be happy.
And in the end, the crowd's cries for Jesus's crucifixion, were louder than Pilate's wife's warning, louder than his belief that Jesus was innocent. And so Jesus was crucified.
Thankfully, we can learn from Pilate. It is never easy to do the right thing. It is never easy to go against the crowd.
And yet at the same time, would we really have wanted Pilate to do the right thing? Because this was God's plan. Jesus had always planned to come to save the world.
And during the Christmas season, while we celebrate His birth, I'm reminded again and again of just how blessed we are that he came at all.
2 comments:
Great post, Tiffany. We are blessed indeed. Thank you, Jesus, for saving us.
It's so hard wrapping my brain around how evil the act of killing Jesus was, yet how that was God's plan, and yet how it was sin for them to do so.
It is never easy to go against the crowd. Thankfully, because of Jesus' death, ressurection, ascension, we have the Holy Spirit within us to strengthen us at those times.
We are blessed indeed!
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