As we continue on with John 18 and the judgment against Jesus, think about what you would do, how you would feel betrayed, mocked, lied about, false accusations made, being envied and those who should honor you being jealous of you. Yet, knowing all along it is what must be done because you love even those who are doing all of this to you. Really being loved by someone is a rare thing, and understanding that love was something everyone around Jesus failed to do.
Everything we are about to talk about is because Jesus loved!
John 18: 28-31
Jesus’ trial before Caiaphas ended in the early hours of the morning. Then he was taken to the headquarters of the Roman governor. His accusers didn’t go inside because it would defile them, and they wouldn’t be allowed to celebrate the Passover. 29 So Pilate, the governor, went out to them and asked, “What is your charge against this man?”
30 “We wouldn’t have handed him over to you if he weren’t a criminal!” they retorted.
31 “Then take him away and judge him by your own law,” Pilate told them.
“Only the Romans are permitted to execute someone,” the Jewish leaders replied. 32 (This fulfilled Jesus’ prediction about the way he would die.)
His accusers didn’t want to enter the praetorium because it would have defiled them for the Passover. Yet they broke the law by
– binding Jesus without proof of flight risk
– holding a trial in the high priest’s home rather than the temple
– beat him during the trial when the chief priest is to protect the accused
– accused and condemned Him to death before he was tried
– trial was at night.
– Sentence was proclaimed without a waiting period
– sentence handed down without unified accuser testimony
These are just some of the defiling things they already did, in secret, but in public, they would not defile themselves. Their hypocrisy is evident, but can you imagine what it was like when they stood before Jesus after their death?
They wanted Jesus dead! “Judge him by your own laws;” Pilate didn’t want to have anything to do with this! Their response was only Romans could put someone to death!
John 18:33-35
Then Pilate went back into his headquarters and called for Jesus to be brought to him. “Are you the king of the Jews?” he asked him.
34 Jesus replied, “Is this your own question, or did others tell you about me?”
35 “Am I a Jew?” Pilate retorted. “Your own people and their leading priests brought you to me for trial. Why? What have you done?”
Pilate is trying to assess if Jesus and his movement are a threat to the Roman government. Remember, he already had Barabbas, an insurrectionist, in jail, ready for execution.
Jesus wants to know if he is thinking on his own. Is this in his heart or if the leadership of the Jews put him up to ask the question? Pilate’s wife had a dream warning her to have nothing to do with Jesus, the city had swelled to three times its population, this was a high holiday, and all of this added to the tension and Pilate could not afford any trouble in Jerusalem.
John 18:36-40
Jesus answered, “My Kingdom is not an earthly kingdom. If it were, my followers would fight to keep me from being handed over to the Jewish leaders. But my Kingdom is not of this world.”
37 Pilate said, “So you are a king?”
Jesus responded, “You say I am a king. Actually, I was born and came into the world to testify to the truth. All who love the truth recognize that what I say is true.”
38 “What is truth?” Pilate asked. Then he went out again to the people and told them, “He is not guilty of any crime. 39 But you have a custom of asking me to release one prisoner each year at Passover. Would you like me to release this ‘King of the Jews’?”
40 But they shouted back, “No! Not this man. We want Barabbas!” (Barabbas was a revolutionary.)
Jesus wisely made it clear that His kingdom was not an earthly or political one, instead, he rules by the devotion and obedience of his followers. He was pointing out in this world of false bravado and arrogance and pride, He came to bring truth.
His truth and bringing truth was meant to set men free, including Pilate! (John 8:32)
Pilate asks a question but then does not wait for the answer, most likely because he is cynical that there is an answer. However, even if cynical, he calls Jesus the King of the Jews, which would have been a real slap in the face to the Jewish leadership.
Notice Pilate declared him not guilty…at that he should have been immediately released.
John 19: 1-3
Then Pilate had Jesus flogged with a lead-tipped whip. 2 The soldiers wove a crown of thorns and put it on his head, and they put a purple robe on him. 3 “Hail! King of the Jews!” they mocked, as they slapped him across the face.
We hear discussed, the 39 lashes, which was Jewish law, not Roman, so he could have Jesus flogged as many times as he wanted. Each leather whip was covered with lead balls and bits of jagged bone. The whip would grab the flesh then the guard would twist it for maximum grip on the flesh and then pull, often exposing bone and muscle. They would whip the entire body for maximum punishment! The crown of thorns most likely came from the date palm whose thorns can exceed 12”. Many drawings reflect the use of these palm thorns and are even inscribed on coins.
For more details about Christ’s experience, read Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53, which describe this time in detail, written over 700 years before the event.
John 19:4-6
Pilate went outside again and said to the people, “I am going to bring him out to you now, but understand clearly that I find him not guilty.”5 Then Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate said, “Look, here is the man!” 6 When they saw him, the leading priests and Temple guards began shouting, “Crucify him! Crucify him!” “Take him yourselves and crucify him,” Pilate said. “I find him not guilty.”
Jesus is bleeding profusely; Pilate declares him not guilty. He is hoping for some compassion and empathy from the crowd of hundreds to release Jesus, but there is none. The crowd who cheered 3 or 4 days earlier for their Messiah now yells to have him crucified.
Pilate also understood that a man very popular with the crowd being crucified could cause a riot, so he made it clear that the Jewish leadership was responsible for Jesus’ crucifixion.
The early church became very antisemitic, persecuting the Jews for the crucifixion of Christ. However, we need to remember Jesus was no one’s victim, but he went willingly to the cross so Satan would be defeated, we could have right relationship with God, and the Holy Spirit could be released for all of us. Just as a reminder, Jesus said this, about four months earlier!
John 10:17,18
“The Father loves me because I sacrifice my life so I may take it back again.18 No one can take my life from me. I sacrifice it voluntarily. For I have the authority to lay it down when I want to and also to take it up again. For this is what my Father has commanded.”
Moving on in John 19:7
The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and according to our law He ought to die, because He made Himself the Son of God.” (NKJV)
Leave it to the enemies of Jesus to remind us, Jesus is the Son of God. Often, the cults and other religions will tell us that Jesus was not God. However, the enemies of Jesus often remind us who he is and what He said!
John 19: 8-11
Therefore, when Pilate heard that saying, he was the more afraid, 9 and went again into the Praetorium, and said to Jesus, “Where are You from?” But Jesus gave him no answer.
10 Then Pilate said to Him, “Are You not speaking to me? Do You not know that I have power to crucify You, and power to release You?” 11 Jesus answered, “You could have no power at all against Me unless it had been given you from above. Therefore the one who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.”
This hardened warrior, the most powerful man in all of Judea is afraid, why? The Romans had much mythology about God/men. To us, from our modern point of view, the idea of Hercules and others is ridiculous, but to Pilate and the Roman leadership of the day, this was real.
When he heard Jesus was the Son of God, his heart was struck with fear. He wanted to know where he was from—Olympus, perhaps?
For Jesus to explain to Pilate where he was from would have taken an understanding of truth that Pilate had refused earlier. Perhaps that is why Jesus did not respond.
The Father gave Pilate temporary power over Jesus so that Jesus could go to the cross for you and me.
John 19:12
From then on Pilate sought to release Him, but the Jews cried out, saying, “If you let this Man go, you are not Caesar’s friend. Whoever makes himself a king speaks against Caesar.”
“a friend of Caesar” is a title given to someone who has gotten favor from Caesar. The Jews were saying if you don’t do this, we will ruin you! With that threat Pilate had to make a decision.
John 19:13-16
When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus out and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that is called The Pavement, but in Hebrew, Gabbatha. 14 Now it was the Preparation Day of the Passover, and about the sixth hour. And he said to the Jews, “Behold your King!” 15 But they cried out, “Away with Him, away with Him! Crucify Him!”
Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar!” 16 Then he delivered Him to them to be crucified. Then they took Jesus and led Him away.
From the seat of judgment, Pilate makes his final Judgment! Pilate never confirmed him as guilty but human nature and the fear of man made him turn Jesus over to be crucified.
The priest hated Caesar and for them to say they had, “No King but Caesar,” was the ultimate of hypocrisy.
But Pilate would get in one last word….Which we will talk about next week!