Category: John 18

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John John 18 John 19 Luke Luke 23 Mark Mark 15 Matthew Matthew 27

When we have nothing to stand on

The gospels

I will start by saying that it’s a bit hard to harmonize these passages. Here’s how I see it, but I encourage you to look at it yourself, and come to your own conclusions.

  • The priests and council members bring Jesus in front of Pilate with their initial accusations. (Luke 23:1-2, John 18:29-31)
  • Pilate then talks to Jesus the first time. (John 18:33-38 gives us the most details of this conversation while the other gospels give the briefest of summaries).
  • Pilate proclaims Jesus innocent but after further accusations, decides to send him to Herod. (Mark 15:3-5; Luke 23:4-12)
  • Herod returns Jesus, and Pilate proclaims him innocent again. (Luke 23:13-17)
  • Pilate proposes releasing Jesus or Barabbas, and the crowd demands Barabbas. (All the gospels.)
  • Pilate releases Barabbas, but then proposes punishing Jesus instead of crucifying him. Ultimately, he has Jesus flogged. (Mark 15:16-20; Luke 23:21; John 19:1-7)
  • Pilate makes one last appeal, but ends up giving Jesus over to be crucified. (John 19:7-14)

With that background, over the next few days, I think I’ll go over the main characters in these events.

Today, I want to look at Pilate. You can read about Pilate in history, but I want to stay with what we see here. And what I see is someone who had nothing to stand on when it came to how he made decisions and how he lived his life.

When Pilate first called Jesus in for a private interrogation, his main concern was whether Jesus was truly an insurrectionist or not. So he asked point blank whether Jesus was a king or not.

When he found out that Jesus did claim to be a king, but that this kingdom was “not of this world,” and was certainly no threat to the Roman empire, that was all that mattered to Pilate. (John 18:36-37).

But Jesus would not let things rest there. Instead he challenged Pilate, by saying,

In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me. (John 18:37b)

Basically, Jesus was asking Pilate, “What about you? Are you on the side of truth? Are you a lover of truth? Are you willing to stand on truth? If you are, then you must listen to me and believe it.”

It’s the challenge that faces all of us. What do we base our lives on? Do we base it on truth? Do we believe that Jesus himself is truth?

Pilate faced that question in that moment. His response?

What is truth? (John 18:38)

I really wish that we could know the tone behind his words. Did he say this with the implication of, “Who do you think you are? You think you know better than everyone else?”

Or did he say it with a voice dripping with irony? “Truth? There is no truth. Truth is what people in power say it is.”

Or did he say it with despair. “Is there really any truth out there? Is it really possible to find?”

Whatever his feeling, his ultimate response was to reject the idea of absolute truth. Specifically he rejected Jesus as the source of truth. The result?

He had no foundation by which to make his decisions. Instead, he was tossed and blown by the winds of the words of others and the pressures they put upon him.

The pressure of facing a riot. (Matthew 27:24)

The pressure of being reported to Caesar. (John 19:12)

The pressure, ultimately, of his own fears. And because of this, he made a decision he knew was wrong.

The same will happen to us. If we refuse to make truth the foundation of our lives, if we refuse to make Jesus himself the foundation of our lives, then we will be blown and tossed by the opinions of others and by our own fears. And we’ll end up making decisions we know are wrong.

How about you? What do you rest your decisions on? What do you rest your life on?

Do you seek God’s counsel? And do you have the faith to believe that what he has said is true?

James tells us,

If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.

But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.

That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does. (James 1:5-8)

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John John 18

Striking those who tell us the truth

John

We now go to the first hearing Jesus had, this one before Annas.

Annas had been the high priest before Caiaphas but had been deposed from his position by the Roman government. Nevertheless, he was still held in high regard by the spiritual leadership, and his influence was still very strong.

At any rate, he questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching. But Jesus essentially deflected the questions and said, “My ministry has always been public. Everyone knows what I have taught. Ask them.”

In saying this, Jesus was pointing them to the law that they claimed to revere, and was basically telling them, “If you are going to charge me for some wrongdoing, call witnesses up and have them testify. That’s what the law says, isn’t it?”

At which point, one of the officials struck him in the face, saying, “Is this the way you answer the high priest?”

Jesus replied,

If I said something wrong, testify as to what is wrong. But if I spoke the truth, why did you strike me? (John 18:23)

In other words, “I’m merely pointing out that you should be following the law and calling witnesses. If what I said is wrong, tell me exactly how I’m wrong. But if I’m telling the truth, what right do you have to strike me?”

There was no answer the high priest could give to this. Jesus was right, after all. And so they had him sent to Caiaphas for the formal hearing.

But Jesus’ words make me think, “How do we respond to the truth when people confront us with it, particularly when we know we’re wrong?”

Are we like Annas, proud and refusing to admit our wrong? Are we like his officer, and abuse those who tell us the truth?

Or do we humbly accept the truth?

Truth can be hard to hear sometimes. Honestly, there are times when I can be really hard-hearted. And more than once, God had to step into the situation and say, “Bruce, listen.”

Even then, there was a struggle. I don’t like to admit I’m wrong. And oftentimes, I simply want to do things my own way.

But as followers of Christ, we can’t live that way. We need to be lovers of the truth. Even when it hurts.

So as James said,

Get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. (James 1:21–22)

How do you respond to people who confront you with truth?

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John 18 Luke 22 Mark 14 Matthew 26

Taking a hard look at ourselves

The gospels

We’ll get to the trial of Jesus in the next few blogs, but first, I’d like to deal with Peter.

It’s a bit tricky trying to harmonize the gospels on this point because there are variations in the testimony. If I’ve pieced it together properly, there were actually four denials with three coming before witnesses.

The first came as Peter entered the courtyard of the high priest.

Another of the disciples (perhaps John, or perhaps a disciple who was not one of the twelve) was well known to the high priest, so he was able to enter the courtyard, and on his word, Peter was able to enter too. (John 18:15-16)

Enter a very persistent servant girl. She was the one watching the gate, and as Peter entered, she asked, “You’re not one of his disciples, are you?” (John 18:17)

At a guess, she recognized him as one that had been with Jesus. This was probably confirmed in her mind by the fact that his friend who had vouched for him was a disciple too.

Peter denied it, saying, “I am not.”

The first denial before witnesses came shortly thereafter. As Peter was warming himself by the fire, the same girl came up to him, peered closely, and convinced that she was right, said, “You also were with that Nazarene, Jesus.” (Mark 14:67)

She then announced to everyone in the courtyard in a loud voice, “This man was with him.” (Luke 22:56)

At that point, one of the people at the fire questioned Peter, “You’re not one of his disciples are you?” (John 18:25)

Peter answered. “I am not. I don’t even know the man. I don’t know what you’re talking about.” (Mark 14:68; John 18:25b)

He then moved off to the entryway. A short while later, the same servant girl came with her friend, another servant girl who had perhaps seen Peter with Jesus before, and pointed him out to her, saying, “This fellow is one of them.” (Mark 14:69)

Her friend then said for all to hear, “This fellow was with Jesus of Nazareth.” (Matthew 26:71)

One of the men in the area looked over, recognized Peter and he too exclaimed, “You also are one of them.” (Luke 22:58)

Peter then swore that he didn’t saying, “Man, I am not. I don’t know the man.” (Matthew 26:72; Luke 22:58b)

Perhaps that satisfied everyone for a while, but after about an hour, one of the priest’s servants walked by and saw Peter.

Worse, he was a relative of the man Peter had attacked in the Garden of Gethsemane. And he said, “Didn’t I see you with him at the olive grove?” (John 18:26).

When Peter denied it, another piped up, “Surely you are one of them for you are a Galilean. Your accent gives you away. (Matthew 26:73; Mark 14:70)

At that point, Peter lost it and started to call curses on himself swearing, “I don’t know the man.”

And then, he heard a rooster crow. He then heard a commotion in the courtyard as Jesus was being led out to be taken to Pilate, and as he turned, he saw Jesus looking right at him.

Realizing what he had done, he ran out, weeping bitterly.

So much for that. What can we get from this?

It would be so easy to criticize Peter. To criticize him for his cowardice and hypocrisy. But I think we would be better served to take a close look at ourselves.

Personally, I don’t know if I would have done any better than Peter.

I remember as a teenager, basically doing the same thing. When asked if I was a Christian, I didn’t deny it, but I avoided the question entirely, either by silence or by trying to deflect the question.

It’s something I’m ashamed of to this day.

But going beyond that, I have seen people fall into other kinds of sin. Particularly sexual ones. And knowing the temptations that I face daily, I know that I could be like them if I’m not careful. Because I am weak. And only by the grace of God, can I stand.

And that’s what we need to remember when we see others fall. That we are all weak. We are all sinful. And we can all fall. So let us not stand in judgment so much as to have compassion for them and seek their restoration.

Let us remember the words of Paul who wrote,

Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. (Galatians 6:1)

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John John 18 Luke Luke 22 Mark Mark 14 Matthew Matthew 26

Power and authority, mercy and grace

The gospels

In this passage, there are three things I see in Jesus.

1. His power and authority. Though surrounded by his enemies, he was in total command of the situation. Standing to face his enemies, he asked them, “Who are you looking for?”

And when they said, “Jesus of Nazareth,” he answered, “I am he.” (John 18:4-5)

At this, his enemies immediately fell to the ground at his use of the divine name. (Exodus 3:13-14; John 8:58)

What fear must have struck their hearts at that moment? Jesus then asked again, “Who are you looking for?” (John 18:6-7)

Completely shaken and with a lot less confidence in their voices, they answered, “Jesus of Nazareth,” and probably braced themselves to be knocked down again.

But instead, Jesus simply said,

I told you that I am he… If you are looking for me, then let these men go. (John 18:8)

And though they went up to arrest him, I don’t think there was any doubt in their minds who was truly in control of the situation.

2. His mercy. Jesus’ disciples, however, perhaps thought to take advantage of their enemies’ uncertainty, and one of them cried out,

Lord, should we strike with our swords? (Luke 22:49)

Not waiting for an answer, Peter dashed up and chopped the ear off of one of the men that had come to arrest Jesus.

(Either he had very good aim going for the ear and hitting it, or he was trying to slice the guy in two, and missed. I kind of think it was the latter).

But Jesus rebuked his followers, and told them,

Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? (Matthew 26:53)

There’s an old song that says Jesus could have called 10,000 angels to destroy the world and set himself free.

Actually, the songwriter miscalculated. 12 legions would be more like 48,000 to 72,000 men. (Then again, maybe the songwriter just thought ten thousand sounded better).

Whatever the case, the point is Jesus could have destroyed them all. But he showed mercy to them. He spared their lives, and in fact, ultimately gave up his life for theirs.

3. His grace. While mercy is not giving a person the punishment he deserves, grace is the giving of something the person does not deserve.

And Malchus, the high priest’s servant, found Jesus’ grace as Jesus took Malchus’ severed ear and restored it. (Luke 22:51)

It was the last healing that Jesus ever performed here on earth. Physically, anyway.

For it was through the cross that Jesus brought spiritual healing. And by his grace, our sins are forgiven, and we can find eternal life. And he gives it to anyone who will believe.

Power and authority. Mercy and grace. Are there any better descriptions of our Lord?

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John John 18 Luke Luke 22 Mark Mark 14 Matthew Matthew 26

Weak

The gospels

Nobody ever said Satan fights fair. And he doesn’t. When he sees us in our weakness, whether it be physically or emotionally, he will attack.

You see this in these passages. When Jesus and his disciples arrived at the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus warned them,

Pray that you will not fall into temptation. (Luke 22:40)

The disciples had been through an emotional wringer.

They were still trying to make sense of all that Jesus had said, words about his betrayal, words about their betrayal of him, and the thoughts of him being taken from them.

Because of that, they were weakened, not just physically and emotionally (Luke 22:45), but spiritually.

So though Jesus asked them to stay with him and keep watch with him, they fell asleep. Not just once, not just twice, but three times. This despite all Jesus’ pleas and admonishments to keep watch and pray.

The result? When it came time to face Judas and all of Jesus’ enemies, they fled.

Jesus, on the other hand, faced even harsher realities. He was going to the cross, with all the sins of the earth upon him, and his Father’s face turned from him.

We see only a glimpse of his prayers here, but consider that they went on for at least an hour for the first prayer, and that he returned twice more to pray.

He prayed so hard, that drops of blood started to fall from his brow (a condition called hematidrosis—Luke 22:44)

Not only that, with his disciples sleeping, he had no emotional or spiritual support.

But in his weakness, God strengthened him, even sending an angel as support and comfort. (Luke 22:43)

Thus, when the time came for his arrest, he was calm, and fully prepared to face his final trials here on earth.

When I think about why Jesus could do this and his disciples could not, here’s the guess I would hazard.

Jesus throughout his life watched and prayed. Every morning he did so (Mark 1:35), and we can guess that he often did this at night too (Matthew 14:23)

So when the time came when he was weakest, he naturally responded the way he had trained himself.

His disciples, however, had not disciplined themselves that way, so in their weakness, they fell.

I remember reading about a famous football coach named Chuck Noll.

As he was watching film of a game with his team, he pointed out an opposing player who repeatedly made errors late in the game.

And he told his team (this is my paraphrase), “When he was practicing, he was probably lazy about working on his technique. He probably thought to himself, ‘Well, I don’t need to work so hard on this. I know what I need to do, and in the game, I’ll do it.’

“But when you’re tired and beat up late in the game, you don’t think, you react. And you react in the way that you trained yourself.”

The same is true in the spiritual world.

If you tell yourself, “Well, when I’m in trouble, I know what to do. I’ll pray,” but never make a daily practice of that, when you’re tired and beat up spiritually, you’ll find yourself unable to do even that.

And like the disciples, you’ll fall prey to your own weakness when your greatest hour of trial comes.

But if like Jesus you make a practice of seeking God, of watching and talking with him, when your hour of trial comes, you’ll find yourself able to do what you know you should. And you will stand.

How about you? Are you making a daily practice of watching and talking with God?

Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak. (Mark 14:38)