05-04-2003 Sermon - Baldwin Christian Church

John 19:1-22

In Revelation 13, John wrote that Jesus was slain from the foundation of the world. Seven hundred years before the death of Jesus, the prophet Isaiah wrote about it in detail. When a little over 1900 years had passed after the death of Jesus, in a cave less than twenty miles east of Jerusalem, some ancient scrolls were found. Among the first ones found was a 24 foot long complete copy of the book of Isaiah, and a study of the text on that scroll revealed a big surprise. You see, the Dead Sea Scrolls contain the oldest known copy of Isaiah ever found, and the prophecy in chapter 53 reads the same in your Bible as it does in that ancient scroll (nothing has changed). God preserved the integrity of His word through many centuries of copying by the scribes, so that we can still read it today, and He preserved His word through centuries hidden in desert caves, the most perfect environment for preservation, so that we can know without a doubt in our hearts that it was the Lord God Almighty who wrote this love letter to us. We live in a time when there's absolutely no excuse for doubting the good news of Jesus Christ. The various scientific methods of dating the Isaiah scroll all declare that it predates the birth of Jesus by at least a hundred years. In Luke chapter 4 we find Jesus teaching in the great Temple, and He's reading from what we refer to as chapter 61 in the great book of Isaiah. It's entirely possible that He read from that very same 24 foot long scroll. Everybody who is willing to listen needs to hear the message from John chapters 19 and 20, and thanks to some nomadic shepherds looking for their lost sheep, the most important archaeological discovery of all time is proof that the message is true.

Before we begin chapter 19, we should review a little, because it starts in the middle of the trial of Jesus before Pilate. In the last chapter, it was Peter who meant well, but failed miserably. He'd boastfully made it plain that he would never leave or forsake Jesus, fighting for him even to the death, but when the time came, Peter failed the test, proving that even a non-threatening question from a young servant girl was enough for this big, proud fisherman to forsake Jesus. Pilate is another example of a man who meant well, but failed miserably. On that fateful morning, Pilate was awakened by a mob drummed up by the religious council, and they were demanding a trial. The very first mistake Pilate made was not requiring the Jews to enter the judgment hall. He lost his authority back in verse 29 of chapter 18, the very second he walked outside. A Roman governor of strong moral courage would have immediately released Jesus the moment he realized the accusers were unwilling to come inside so the trial could be held fairly and kept in order. But this is the most unusual day in history, so we have Pilate, with all his baggage, his nobility cracking and falling apart, while Jesus is getting stronger in spirit and in truth. Its all part of God's perfect plan. If the Jews had been in charge, Jesus would have been stoned to death, and bones would've been broken. To be an acceptable sacrifice as our Passover lamb, not a bone of Him could be broken. There's something very significant about the sacrifice being unblemished, and having no bones broken. Lord willing, we'll get to that another day. The overall picture of God's plan coming into place over the space of eons of time; coming to be on this one dark historic day, with all the little things that had to perfectly fall into place, and the diverse characters who come together to unwittingly fulfill the words of the prophets; its enough to fill a person with awe and wonder.

Pilate seems to act more like an advocate for the Defendant than a judge, and amazingly, when a mob would normally hold no sway with this ruthless man, somehow this time he'll be moved by them to make a judgment against his will. His strange behavior on this day reveals the presence of divine powers behind the scene, controlling these proceedings, but that can be said about each and every one of our lives, too. He emerges from the interrogation in the judgment hall to proclaim he finds no fault in Jesus, and because it is the Passover, he gives the crowd a choice of prisoners to free, either Jesus or Barabbas. When they choose Barabbas, Pilate goes back in to Jesus and reverts to plan B, hoping to prove to the crowd that Jesus poses no threat to them. It would seem an odd role for a Roman governor, trying to prove that a defendant should not be crucified, and that's where chapter 19 begins. In a 24 hour period, the two most proven systems of law in the world, up until that day, will both be distorted, and they will both fail.

John 19:1
Then Pilate therefore took Jesus, and scourged him.

According to Jewish law, this was limited to 40 lashes, but the Romans had no such restrictions. It was the means of interrogation in those days. Between each blow, the prisoner was given the opportunity to answer a question concerning his guilt. It was called 'the first death' by the Jews, because it almost always preceded crucifixion, and many men died from the flogging itself. We don't know how many lashes Jesus received, but even one would be terrible. The ends of each whip held pieces of sharp bone or metal, and the lictor applied it skilfully to inflict the maximum pain. Pilate obviously hoped this would convice the Jews to have pity and release Jesus. This severely injured our Healer, but as Isaiah 53:5 explains, the grace by which we receive physical and spiritual healing was released with these lashes.

Isaiah 53:5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

John 19:2~4
And the soldiers platted a crown of thorns, and put it on his head, and they put on him a purple robe, And said, Hail, King of the Jews! and they smote him with their hands. Pilate therefore went forth again, and saith unto them, Behold, I bring him forth to you, that ye may know that I find no fault in him.

After having endured the bursting of blood vessels as He prayed in the Garden that night, the beatings and torture in the courtyards of the high priest, of Herod, and of Pontius Pilate, the Lord Jesus was marred beyond recognition.

Isaiah 52:14 As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men:

We've heard this story so many times and we know it so well that it loses its impact. Each and every blow He endured was for you, and for me. He wore the crown of thorns they shoved down on His head as a symbol of the curse of suffering, the curse that began way back in Genesis 3:18. Again Pilate reminds us that Jesus is innocent, so that we never forget that every tiny bit of punishment Jesus was put through, He endured for others. Had Pilate found any proof at all of guilt, he certainly wouldn't have hesitated to crucify Jesus.

John 19:5~6
Then came Jesus forth, wearing the crown of thorns, and the purple robe. And Pilate saith unto them, Behold the man! When the chief priests therefore and officers saw him, they cried out, saying, Crucify him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Take ye him, and crucify him: for I find no fault in him.

Pilate's intention was to flog Jesus and release Him, as it is written in Luke 23:16. He'd hoped they would be moved with compassion after they saw how badly Jesus had been treated, but it didn't work. Pilate lost all his authority the first time he stepped out of the judgment hall, and this is the second time he's come out. It's like trying to hold court in a parking lot. The Jews were much more subtle than Pilate, and they see this as their opening. When they see that Pilate has been beating and torturing Jesus, even though he'd already declared Him innocent, they realize at that very moment Pilate is trying to save Jesus' life through this display. They realized at that very moment Pilate is acting like a defense attorney instead of a judge. They realized Pilate was trying to please them and satisfy them, so they knew they had the upper hand. This is a valuable lesson to us as a people, as a nation. Nothing good ever comes from a mob, even if its for a good cause, and the worst kind of mob is a religious one. Even if you are an intelligent person, the moment you join a mob, you become stupid, or even insane. Never placate a vicious mob, disperse it with whatever level of force is needed. They see Jesus standing there, beaten, bruised and bleeding, but they have no sympathy for Him. Instead, they scream out the unpardonable sin, "Crucify, crucify," then Pilate sarcastically makes his first attempt at "washing his hands" of this matter, and declares for the third time he believes Jesus is innocent.

John 19:7~9
The Jews answered him, We have a law, and by our law he ought to die, because he made himself the Son of God. When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he was the more afraid; And went again into the judgment hall, and saith unto Jesus, Whence art thou? But Jesus gave him no answer.

The fear Pilate felt was two-pronged. On one hand, the charges against Jesus had just escalated from being a disturber of the peace, to having claimed to be the Son of God, which is a far more serious offense to the local laws. It makes me wonder, how can somebody make themself the Son of God unless they are God? Whenever well-meaning but misguided folks knock on your door, and proceed to tell you that Jesus never claimed to be equal with God, verse 7 here is another one of those passages you can show 'em (also John 5:18 and John 8:59). The contemporary religious authorities clearly understood Jesus was claiming to be God. When a Jewish lad reaches the age of accountability, he's then allowed to read the holy scriptures in the temple, and he's then considered a spiritual equal with his father. Jesus' claim to be the Son of God implies equality with God, punishable by death (according to Leviticus 24:16), and He never makes any attempt to deny this charge. Had Pilate known these scriptures, he might have realized the Jews were screaming for crucifixion when their own law specified stoning. The taunting, sarcastic tone in Pilate's words, "Take ye him, and crucify him," even though they were spoken out of genuine frustration, it was those words that provoked the Jews into revealing their true intentions, and in anger they make this crazy sounding charge.

Pilate was already on probation with Caesar, and it might spell big personal and political trouble for him if he didn't oblige this angry mob. Pilate was known to be ruthless, and crucifying innocent men wasn't out of character for him, so why was he afraid? Matthew 27:19 explains that earlier during this trial, Pilate's wife had sent him a message saying, "Have thou nothing to do with that just man: for I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him." So, up until this point, Pilate knew Jesus was completely innocent of the charges brought against Him, he knows the charges were made because the Jewish religous leaders were envious of Jesus' ministry. Now they're telling Pilate, a man who comes from a polytheistic culture, that this man Jesus claims to be the Son of their God. The Romans had a different god for just about anything you could imagine, and Pilate was familiar with the stories about the gods' children coming down from the heavens disguised as humans and creating all sorts of trouble for people. So now these things begin to weigh on Pilate's conscience and his superstitions. He really doesn't like the Jews at all, but his job is on the line. Maybe his wife was right. Grilling the prisoner exposed no fault in Him, and He's not acting like a normal human prisoner would under these same circumstances. Pilate's lack of moral courage is about to catch up to him. In a way, I can feel sympathy for Pilate. He seems like he's trying to do what's right, and give Jesus a fair shake, but he has to deal with the Jews. From our Wednesday night studies in the book of Numbers, we've been learning a lot about the troubles that Moses had in dealing with the noisy ancestors of this noisy people confronting Pilate. Pilate is not the meekest man on earth, like Moses, and we'll soon learn neither is he an intellectual match for these Jews. At this point in the proceedings, the question "Whence art thou?" is pretty much the same as asking, "Where are you from?", and "Is your dad a god?" It's kinda like the ol' entrapment buster question. "I asked you if you're the son of a god, so if you tell me you're not, and you really are, you won't hold anything against me, right?" No, Pilate wasn't able to see the light, and Jesus knew it. There was no reason to answer that frivilous question. It wasn't deserving of an answer, which would only have complicated the situation, and it may have risked upsetting God's plan.

Isaiah 53:7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.

So here we have this figure of a powerful politician, in all his strength showing confusion and fear, set against the figure of our Lord Jesus, the cursed thorns causing the blood to drip down a face that's cut, swollen and disfigured, and probably the same color as the robe He's wearing, which is matting to the open wounds on His back; standing there, a picture of strength through weakness. Pilate's pride finally snaps him back to his senses, and he quickly forgets his fear of God:

John 19:10~11
Then saith Pilate unto him, Speakest thou not unto me? knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee, and have power to release thee? Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above: therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin.

Alongside the reproof, there is compassion in these words. Pilate did sin, but the degree was lesser than the sins of Judas and Caiphas. At least two lessons in Godly character can be gleaned from this verse. Jesus will ultimately judge each and every one of us, and here He shows us that even in the midst of terrible mistreatment, He is excusing Pilate, to some degree, for the act of passing the death sentence on Him. Even in the midst of of horrible undeserved suffering, He possesses the grace to offer forgiveness without the slightest hint of belligerence or bitterness. Secondly, He reminds us that any amount of power or authority we possess in our lives is a gift from above, and to whom much responsibility is given, much accountability is required. This applies to politicians and civil authorities, preachers, teachers, parents and husbands, who will all have to render an account one day to God. When you find yourself sitting in judgment of someone, remember who gave you that power, and render according to His will as best you can. As for Pilate, being a judge, it is commendable that he allows himself to be on the receiving end of severe reproof by Jesus, and he doesn't fly off the handle with an emotional response. Instead, he's even more eager to release Jesus, and there's a lesson here. How hard is it for any one of us to humbly accept even the mildest criticism, even when its given by somebody considered our equal? But Pilate only thinks he's judging Jesus, when in reality, Pilate is the one on trial here. Even though he has pronounced Jesus innocent three times, at the very moment he starts to talk to Jesus about his own authority as governor, at that very moment he is judged as having disbelieved Jesus, of having rejected that Jesus is God. Pilate's questions here condemn himself, and its a widely held belief that he committed suicide four years later.

John 19:12
And from thenceforth Pilate sought to release him: but the Jews cried out, saying, If thou let this man go, thou art not Caesar's friend: whosoever maketh himself a king speaketh against Caesar.

This is it. This is the blow that turns the tide against Pilate's conscience. Here's his dilemma: If he releases Jesus, he'll be accused before Caesar's tribunal of winking at treason. Such a charge would certainly end his career, and possibly be a death sentence on himself. If he condemns the innocent King of Kings, and avoids accusation to Caesar by the Jews, his career is apparently safe. The risk was too great. He'd rather sacrifice an innocent man than sacrifice himself. His ambition overcomes his sense of duty and his convictions. He gives in to political blackmail.

John 19:13~15
When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus forth, and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that is called the Pavement, but in the Hebrew, Gabbatha. And it was the preparation of the passover, and about the sixth hour: and he saith unto the Jews, Behold your King! But they cried out, Away with him, away with him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Shall I crucify your King? The chief priests answered, We have no king but Caesar.

Picture this craziness: Its about six in the morning. John wrote this account many years after Jewish time had ended, so this is indeed about 6:00 am, Gentile time, and here we have a Gentile judge going in and out of the courthouse, acting like the errand boy for the Jews, all because they refuse to enter the courthouse. By catering to Jewish pressure, he has sown the seeds of a revolution which ended forty years later. He's not helping the Romans or himself. A man without moral courage should not have power. God took this tragic flaw in Pilate and used it to fulfill His plan. Pilate brings the judgment seat outside to make his decision, but he is being judged, the priests are being judged, and the nation is being judged. In forty years, the crosses outside the city will number in the thousands, and the nation of Judea will cease to exist. In the Old Testament, the Jews begged Samuel for a king to rule over them, in effect rejecting God as king, and that caused them a bunch of trouble. Here they reject Jesus when they say, "We have no king but Caesar," and it wasn't long before their troubles got a lot worse. By August of 70 A.D., they're all either dead or in slavery, and they had no king but Caesar. God is faithful to us, but we need to continually examine ourselves to find any area of our lives that God is not our King, and work to correct it.

John 19:16
Then delivered he him therefore unto them to be crucified. And they took Jesus, and led him away.

Never before was a man pronounced innocent three times by his judge, and still condemned.

John 19:17~18
And he bearing his cross went forth into a place called the place of a skull, which is called in the Hebrew Golgotha: Where they crucified him, and two other with him, on either side one, and Jesus in the midst.

Isaiah 53:12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

They placed Him in the middle of Barabbas' gang, as if He was the worst one of them, and when they too reviled Him, He made intercession for them: In Luke 23:34, He says, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do."

John 19:19~21
And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross. And the writing was, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS. This title then read many of the Jews: for the place where Jesus was crucified was nigh to the city: and it was written in Hebrew, and Greek, and Latin. Then said the chief priests of the Jews to Pilate, Write not, The King of the Jews; but that he said, I am King of the Jews.

Even though they had just said "let his blood be on ours and our children's heads," they try to shift the blame onto Jesus.

John 19:22
Pilate answered, What I have written I have written.

Back in verse 37 of chapter 18, Pilate asks Jesus for the second time, "Art thou a king then?", and Jesus answered, "Thou sayest I am a king", but Pilate hadn't said it yet. In another example of Jesus being in control, and at the same time totally submitted to the Father, Pilate soon after does indeed assert that Jesus is a king. Unfortunately for Pilate, he only gave Jesus lip service. His actions on that day are the beginning of the end for him, career-wise and breathing-wise. As he sat down in his judgment seat to make a decision, the irony is that he himself is being judged on the basis of his response to Jesus Christ. No matter what decision Pilate made, and no matter what decisions we make, Jesus is the King of Kings, and He will be the One who judges the hearts of men. On this day, today, Jesus is calling on us to bear the cross, and its important for us to remember that He bore it first. The weight is much heavier on His end, and we should consider our afflictions light, and but only for a moment, if we carry them with Him.

This first part of chapter 19 teaches us how the Lord would have us act when we're facing unfair judgment. It teaches us how to endure the suffering we'll no doubt encounter during our lives, and it teaches us how trivial our sufferings are when compared to what our Lord Jesus went through. At this moment of great threat and great danger, He was in peace and at rest because He was absolutely certain that it was all happening according to the Father's plan. How much peace we have in our lives is directly proportional to the degree of belief that God is in control. The less belief, the less peace. Satan gains ground when we give more credit to the effect that people have in our lives than we do to God who allows it. You can't control the circumstances of your life closely enough to prevent being hurt, to prevent being the target of bitterness, hatred and false accusation, but you can rest in the relationship you have with God. Chapter 19 also teaches us that we can have no authority unless its given to us from above, and we must take that into account whenever we're called to make judgments. There are so many more lessons in this chapter that I haven't touched on, and to think that I was going to try and do the entire chapter today! The honest truth is that this is the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. Studying John 19 has been a real eye-opener for me, and I feel very inadequate when it comes to delivering a message from it. The events recorded here in chapters 19 and 20 are the very hinge of our faith, and I hope that later today, when you have fifteen or twenty minutes of quiet time, I hope that you would finish reading chapter 19, keeping a finger in Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53.