DAY #136: Luke 22:63-23:12

After the preliminary meeting in Caiaphas’s house, the men adjourned to await daybreak and the arrival of the entire council for the more formal meeting in the Temple. Matters had really already been decided during the night, but the full trial would be held early in the morning to satisfy a law that allowed trials only during the daytime. This would be a formality to carry out the sentence that already had been decided.

Apparently Jesus was left in the care of guards who proceeded to mock and beat him. Evidently, the charge of Jesus being a prophet had come up, so the guards took advantage of their prisoner by playing on this claim. They blindfolded him, hit him, and asked that he say who had hit him. In addition, they threw all sorts of terrible insults at him.

The religious leaders asked him to tell them if he was the Messiah. For Jesus to answer in the affirmative would incriminate himself. To answer in the negative would have been to lie. Jesus knew this was their plan, for he said, “If I tell you, you won’t believe me.” The council had already proven that they had no intention of believing Jesus to be their Messiah. Jesus also knew that if he questioned them, they would not answer. Jesus was in a no-win situation, but he told them the truth, “The time is soon coming when I, the Son of Man, will be sitting at God’s right hand in the place of power.” To say this was to say that yes, he was the Messiah and to boldly claim his own exaltation to the place of highest honor in heaven.

The religious leaders understood exactly what Jesus was saying. He was indeed claiming to be the Son of God—but they needed him to be a bit more clear. So they asked again. Jesus agreed, saying, “You are right in saying that I am.” The council recognized Jesus’ claim and realized that they needed no other witnesses. He had accused himself. Their accusation against him was blasphemy—claiming equality with God. So Jesus was led to trial before the local Roman leader—Pontius Pilate.

While the Jewish leaders had arrested Jesus on theological grounds—blasphemy; but they had to come up with a political reason for executing Jesus. The charges against Jesus in the Roman court were rebellion and treason. The irony is that the first accusation—that Jesus was leading the people to ruin—was completely unfounded. The second accusation—that Jesus told the people not to pay their taxes—was an outright lie. The third charge, that he was claiming to be the Messiah, a king, was absolutely true.

The Jews’ plan was unraveling. Pilate wasn’t playing into their hands as they had hoped, and they became desperate. So they came up with more trumped-up charges. They claimed that Jesus was causing riots everywhere. Because Pilate was mainly charged with keeping peace, he would be interested in dealing with a man who was causing riots. If this charge were true, Pilate would have heard about Jesus long before this.

When the religious leaders mentioned that Jesus had been in Galilee, Pilate wanted to know if Jesus was a Galilean. Jesus had grown up in Nazareth and later had made Capernaum his base; he was indeed under Herod’s jurisdiction. This was the Herod who had killed John the Baptist. Herod, also called Herod Antipas, was himself in Jerusalem that weekend for the Passover celebration, mainly as a tactic to please his subjects. Pilate hoped to pass Jesus off on Herod.

Herod may have been delighted to finally see Jesus, but he had already closed his window of opportunity to hear the message. John had spoken to him; Herod had killed John. Herod’s motivation here was only to see Jesus perform a miracle. He apparently saw Jesus as no more than an amazing traveling sideshow. When Jesus was brought before him, Herod asked him questions, but Jesus refused to answer. Herod is the only person to whom Jesus said nothing at all. Herod had not listened to John; Jesus had nothing to add to what John had said. Cold and cruel, Herod had a hard heart. Jesus knew this and remained silent.

With this prisoner refusing to answer, and looking very little like a great miracle worker, Herod and his soldiers began mocking and ridiculing Jesus. Angry at Jesus’ refusal to even answer questions for him, Herod resorted to mocking Jesus. To make fun of Jesus’ claim to be a king, Herod put a royal robe on him. Herod did not even take the charge seriously. So he neither released the prisoner nor made a judgment about his guilt. He simply sent him back to Pilate. Herod and Pilate had a rather tenuous relationship. But because neither man knew what to do in this predicament, their common problem made them friends that day.

SO WHAT? (what will I do with what I have read today?)

I am blown away by the endurance of Jesus. I want His staying power. I am convicted by the humility that Jesus displayed in light of the lies and false charges and the evil of men that was stacked against Him. Lord, build that kind of restraint and humility into me.

Test me Oh Lord and show me the areas of my life where I need to grow and Lord strengthen those areas. Lord, build character and strength in to the people of COV. When the trials and tests come, help them endure.

"Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain." 1 Corinthians 15:58 (NIV)