John 18-19
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John 19:12-16, From then on, Pilate tried to set Jesus free, but the Jewish leaders kept shouting, “If you let this man go, you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who claims to be a king opposes Caesar.” When Pilate heard this, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judge’s seat at a place known as the Stone Pavement (which in Aramaic is Gabbatha). It was the day of Preparation of the Passover; it was about noon.
“Here is your king,” Pilate said to the Jews.
But they shouted, “Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!”
“Shall I crucify your king?” Pilate asked.
“We have no king but Caesar,” the chief priests answered.
Finally Pilate handed him over to them to be crucified.
These chapters detail Jesus’ time in the garden, his arrest, trial, and his time before Pontius Pilate. There is a fair amount of text here but do your best to read through both chapters.
Even Pilate, the Roman official, recognizes that Jesus has done nothing wrong. He truly wants to free Jesus; the text indicates that Pilate is somewhat scared of Jesus. But the Jewish officials are desperate to get rid of Jesus. They are blinded by fear, jealousy, and contempt. In an attempt to get Pilate to cooperate with their plans, they threaten to report him to Caesar. After all, Jesus claimed to be king and anyone who made such a claim would be considered a threat to the emperor. The great irony here is that the Jews are essentially presenting themselves as better Roman citizens than Pilate, the Roman official. When it’s convenient for them, they are happy to use the pagan Roman government to get their way. They will sacrifice their own ethics to ensure that Jesus is killed.
The thing about sacrificing our ethics is that it’s a slippery slope, is it not? These Jewish officials were probably very pious men. They thought they were doing the right thing. Jesus was saying blasphemous things and he didn’t follow their rules. They needed to step in and take care of it. But gradually their dislike of Jesus became hate. They so badly wanted him gone that they were willing to do anything, break their own laws, disobey Torah, simply to get rid of him. They were willing to do anything, no matter how shady it was or low they had to go.
Has your hatred of another person ever made you compromise your own values? We think we are so much better than these Jewish officials but I think sometimes we are just like these Jewish officials. Dig deep today, friends. Examine your own heart.
Let’s pray…Lord Jesus, Forgive us for the times in which we have sacrificed our own morals and values to punish another person. If we have hate in our heart, Lord, reveal that to us right now. Help us get rid of it, Lord. Take it from us. Create in us a clean heart, O Lord, and renew a right spirit within us. Amen.