PASSAGE FOR THE DAY:
2 And they began to accuse him, saying, “We have found this man subverting our nation. He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Messiah, a king.”
3 So Pilate asked Jesus, “Are you the king of the Jews?”
“You have said so,” Jesus replied.
4 Then Pilate announced to the chief priests and the crowd, “I find no basis for a charge against this man.”
5 But they insisted, “He stirs up the people all over Judea by his teaching. He started in Galilee and has come all the way here.”
6 On hearing this, Pilate asked if the man was a Galilean. 7 When he learned that Jesus was under Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent him to Herod, who was also in Jerusalem at that time.
8 When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had been wanting to see him. From what he had heard about him, he hoped to see him perform a sign of some sort. 9 He plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer. 10 The chief priests and the teachers of the law were standing there, vehemently accusing him. 11 Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him. Dressing him in an elegant robe, they sent him back to Pilate. 12 That day Herod and Pilate became friends—before this they had been enemies.
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 [Now it was the governor’s custom at the festival to release a prisoner chosen by the crowd.]
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. (Luke 23:2-25, NIV)
THE TEXT AT A GLANCE:
Ping-pong anyone? That’s what I feel like when reading these verses. Your head is constantly turning back and forth. Jesus is taken to Pilate, then taken to Herod, then back to Pilate. Pilate talks to the Jewish leaders, then talks to Jesus, then talks to the Jewish leaders, then back to Jesus. So what do I get out of all this head-swiveling action?
Luke tells us that the Jewish religious leaders pressed three charges against Jesus when they took him to Pilate: He was stirring up rebellion, He opposed taxation by Rome, and He claimed to be a king. These were all very serious crimes against the state. The Jews knew that in order to get the death penalty Jesus’ crime would have to be political rather than religious, but their problems with Jesus stem from Old Testament laws of worship. In Deuteronomy Moses lays down guidelines so that the Jewish people worship God as required. Deuteronomy 12 entails worshiping only in the place (location and venue) authorized by God. Deuteronomy 13 entails worshiping only God, and that anyone advocating the worship of another god is to be killed, whether it be prophets or miracle workers (13:1-5), family members (13:6-11), residents, or even entire towns including animals (13:12-18). So this Jesus guy shows up on the scene and diverges significantly from the mainstream orthodoxy of the day, welcomes repentant sinners, and rejects some contemporary temple practices, and at the end of the day the Jewish leaders have two choices—either Jesus is a heretic, or they must repent. It’s no surprise they opt for the former and Old Testament law kicks in and Jesus must die for leading people away from proper worship of the true God. I’m so thankful that Jesus wasn’t concerned with people’s ideas of what was proper.
Pilate listens to the Jewish leaders make their case and declares that he sees no basis for a charge against Jesus. Unwavering in their protest, the crowd mentions that Jesus is a Galilean, and Pilate jumps at the opportunity to send Jesus to Herod (Galilee was Herod’s jurisdiction after all), likely thinking he’s passing the buck to a man he didn’t get along with anyway.
Jesus is sent to Herod (the ball just crossed the net), who is actually looking forward to seeing Him, hoping that Jesus will perform a miracle for him. Herod seems to almost ignore the Jewish crowd as he berates Jesus with questions, but upon Jesus staying completely silent (see Isaiah 53:3-7) Herod and his guards begin mocking Jesus. Herod winds up avoiding the wrath of the crowds by not pronouncing any verdict, but instead sends Jesus back to Pilate. And then there’s verse 12, “That day Herod and Pilate became friends—before this they had been enemies.” I’m not sure why that verse hits me as much as it does… Maybe it’s because it makes me sad that a friendship was formed out of contempt for my Savior…
Jesus is sent back to Pilate (did your head turn just a bit?) and, after speaking more with the Jewish leaders and with Jesus, he again pronounces that Jesus is innocent of the charges. In fact, three times Pilate says that he finds no fault with Jesus and that Jesus should be let go. He’d even go as far as to beat Jesus severely in order to appease the crowd. Still no deal. What’s next? We all make offers we really don’t expect others to accept, don’t we? That’s exactly what Pilate tried next—an offer that the chief priests would never accept. Pilate offered to release Barabbas (a thief, revolutionary and murderer) in exchange for Jesus. No sensible Israelite should have taken that offer. I bet Pilate could hardly believe his ears when the crowd demanded Barabbas’ release. Verse 25 tells the end of Jesus’ trial, “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.” The fear of man brings many people to do unjust things. Pilate declares Jesus innocent but didn’t have the courage to go against a stream as strong as the Jewish crowd. He sacrificed Christ for his own ambitions, self-interest, and maybe even his life.
REFLECTIONS:
There are several things that I take away from this section of Luke. First, I don’t want to live life in fear. Easier said than done, I know. But there is such a peace that comes in not worrying, especially about what others think or how they’ll react to me. I know I’m still growing in this, but I try to lean into God’s faithfulness to me every day. He really does have my back and I can rest assured in that.
Second, I think this account is a great example of not relying on earthly kingdoms to fix our problems or solve injustice. No political process is going to achieve the righteousness of God. Herod was at the top of his political game when he managed to maneuver the way he rejected Christ, maintained the support of the Jewish leaders, and won Pilate as a friend all in the same day; yet righteousness and justice did not prevail. It’s a great reminder to focus on the real Kingdom work. I know for me, our church has been a great partner in my walk to DO Kingdom work. I love the heart our church has for seeing the world’s injustices righted.
Lastly, I’m challenged by this passage to continue to rely on the Holy Spirit. If there are men so utterly angry with God that they will always hate, oppose and reject Him (and there are) then what can I do to convince or change them outside of letting the Holy Spirit work through me in their lives? Again, easier said than done, right? It’s like Lisa talked about on Monday—denying myself! To really move and walk with Jesus means I have to lay down a lot of my desires. I have to be willing to get messy and uncomfortable. But I’m learning to be more and more ok with that, because at the end of the day I want to be able to make people an offer they can’t refuse—to be loved by my Jesus.
WHO AM I?
I’m Jennifer Babb and I love the outdoors! I love hiking and climbing and am pretty sure there’s mountain goat blood somewhere in the gene pool. To my great delight, it has been passed on to Ellie and James. We love to go on hikes down along the river. This was a few weeks ago on one of our adventures.
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