התמלול המלא של #12: AC - suffered under Pontius Pilate

priests and the scribes heard it and were seeking a way to destroy Jesus, for they feared him because all the crowd was astonished at his teaching. 00:02:29.680 --> 00:02:32.479 But John may give us the clearest insight of what was going on. 00:02:32.639 --> 00:02:38.400 And he writes, So the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered the council and said, What are we doing? 00:02:38.639 --> 00:02:41.120 For this man performs many signs. 00:02:41.280 --> 00:02:48.159 If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation. 00:02:48.400 --> 00:03:00.639 And from the account in Matthew we also read, So they plotted together in order to arrest Jesus by stealth and to kill him, but they said, Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar among the people. 00:03:00.879 --> 00:03:09.439 In this thread we find that the religious rulers were afraid of how the crowds would react if Jesus were arrested during the day while he was teaching. 00:03:09.599 --> 00:03:15.039 They knew if they were going to act, they were going to have to act by stealth to rid themselves of this Jesus. 00:03:15.360 --> 00:03:23.599 Then one of the twelve disciples, whose name was Judas Iscot, went to the chief priest and said, What will you give me if I deliver him over to you? 00:03:23.840 --> 00:03:26.319 And they paid him thirty pieces of silver. 00:03:26.479 --> 00:03:31.919 And from that moment Judas Iscariot sought an opportunity to betray Jesus. 00:03:32.159 --> 00:03:44.719 And as we know, as documented in the Gospels, Judas betrayed Jesus in the garden of Gesetamine to a group with clubs and swords were sent by the chief priests and the elders of the people, at night and away from the crowds. 00:03:44.960 --> 00:03:50.000 And under the cover of night they led Jesus to a group gathered for this trial. 00:03:50.240 --> 00:03:55.039 The high priest, the chief priest, the elders, and the scribes. 00:03:55.599 --> 00:04:03.919 The high priest here we're told is Annas, the father in law of Caiphus, and it's here that Annas questions Jesus about his disciples and his teaching. 00:04:04.240 --> 00:04:08.400 During this time Jesus responds with, I've spoken openly to the world. 00:04:08.639 --> 00:04:13.280 I've always taught in the synagogues and in the temple, where all Jews come together. 00:04:13.439 --> 00:04:15.360 I've said nothing in secret. 00:04:15.599 --> 00:04:16.959 Why do you ask me? 00:04:17.279 --> 00:04:20.879 All those who have heard what I've said, they know what I said. 00:04:21.199 --> 00:04:27.839 So after this question, Jesus, who is bound, is led from Annas to Caipus, who was the high priest that year. 00:04:28.160 --> 00:04:31.040 This is about sunrise, probably just before six AM. 00:04:31.600 --> 00:04:38.560 Now just to clarify, possible point of confusion, the Mosaic Law allowed for only one high priest for life. 00:04:38.800 --> 00:04:54.560 But it appears that during this time in Jewish history, as we have two men referred as high priests, Annas, who was the previous high priest, and Caiphus, the current high priest, it's possible that the role during this time in Jewish history may have expanded to include diplomatic responsibilities. 00:04:54.959 --> 00:04:59.600 So it's here, soon after sunrise, and Jesus is before Caiphus. 00:04:59.839 --> 00:05:07.120 Mark tells us, Now the chief priests and the whole council were seeking testimony against Jesus to put him to death, but they found none. 00:05:07.439 --> 00:05:12.160 For many bore false witnesses against him, but their testimony did not agree. 00:05:12.399 --> 00:05:22.319 And some stood up and bore false witnesses against him, saying, We heard him say, I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and in three days I will build another not made with hands. 00:05:22.480 --> 00:05:26.319 Yet even about this their testimony did not agree. 00:05:26.639 --> 00:05:30.319 Now, among this there's just a bit of subtle humor. 00:05:30.720 --> 00:05:40.240 There is no aligned testimony against Jesus, and without aligned testimony, charges cannot be made against Jesus, even it appears at a secret trial. 00:05:40.480 --> 00:05:46.959 And then we read, and the high priest stood up in the midst and asked Jesus, have you no answer to make? 00:05:47.279 --> 00:05:50.240 What is it that these men testify against you? 00:05:50.480 --> 00:05:55.839 In other words, he was trying to find a way to provoke Jesus to be emboldened against these lies. 00:05:56.079 --> 00:05:58.319 But Jesus, knowing this, remained silent. 00:05:58.639 --> 00:06:06.079 Next, the high priest asked that first order question, the primary question, the foundational question. 00:06:06.399 --> 00:06:08.879 Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed? 00:06:09.120 --> 00:06:11.519 And Jesus did not deny who he was. 00:06:11.839 --> 00:06:18.079 He said, I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of power and coming with the clouds of heaven. 00:06:18.319 --> 00:06:23.279 At this, Jesus is charged with blasphemy, and the guards begin to hit him and spit on him. 00:06:23.519 --> 00:06:28.959 The council conferred, there in that early morning, and then they sent Jesus on to Pilate. 00:06:29.199 --> 00:06:34.720 Now, when the Pharisees show up to Pilate with Jesus, the Pharisees change their charges. 00:06:34.959 --> 00:06:48.160 The charges are now no longer blasphemy, and they begin to accuse Jesus, saying, We found this man misleading our nation and forbidding us to give tribute to Caesar, and saying that he himself is Christ, a king. 00:06:48.399 --> 00:07:01.040 Now, as history tells us, Pilate is no friend of the Jews, and the Jewish leaders knew that Pilate had no interest in their religious affairs, so the council of priests created new charges that they thought would get Pilate's attention. 00:07:01.279 --> 00:07:10.160 One, misleading the Jewish nation, two, forbidding tribute to

Caesar, and three, setting himself up as a king, someone to compete with Caesar. 00:07:10.319 --> 00:07:13.680 But initially we're told that Pilate, in short, just didn't care. 00:07:13.920 --> 00:07:20.000 In John 18, we read, Pilate said to them, Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law. 00:07:20.160 --> 00:07:24.160 But the Jews said to him, It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death. 00:07:24.399 --> 00:07:36.800 In other words, the Pharisees wanted Jesus to be gone, and the only way to do it was to have him executed, and they knew for that execution to be lawful, according to Roman rule in which they were subject, the Romans would have to do it. 00:07:37.040 --> 00:07:41.439 Now after questioning Jesus, Pilate were told didn't find him guilty of anything. 00:07:41.600 --> 00:07:48.000 But learning that he was from Galilee, sent him over to Herod, who had jurisdiction over Galilee and happened to be in Jerusalem at that time. 00:07:48.160 --> 00:07:52.319 This is Herod Antipos, the same Herod who had John the Baptist beheaded. 00:07:52.560 --> 00:07:56.560 Herod, of course, found no reason to have Jesus executed either. 00:07:56.720 --> 00:07:59.199 Herod then sent Jesus back to Pilate. 00:07:59.439 --> 00:08:01.360 Now, a note on this Pilate. 00:08:01.519 --> 00:08:17.199 History describes this fellow as a man of very inflexible disposition, as exceedingly angry, and in all times a man of most ferocious passions, and that he also had a habit of insulting others cruelly and murdering people untried and uncondemned. 00:08:17.680 --> 00:08:23.120 This same Pilate saw no reason to press charges or to execute Jesus. 00:08:23.439 --> 00:08:28.000 So Pilate, discerning the jealousy of the Pharisees, decided to release Jesus. 00:08:28.240 --> 00:08:34.240 We're then told in John that the Jews cried out, If you release this man, you are not Caesar's friend. 00:08:34.399 --> 00:08:37.440 Everyone who makes himself a king opposes Caesar. 00:08:37.600 --> 00:08:42.559 Again, this is one of the charges that the Jews had fabricated when they brought Jesus before Pilate. 00:08:42.799 --> 00:08:48.879 By this time it appears that some crowd had now gathered outside the Predatorium where Pilate conducted his business. 00:08:49.039 --> 00:08:50.399 So Pilate appeals to the crowd. 00:08:50.559 --> 00:08:53.360 Instead of making the decision himself, he decides to crowdsource it. 00:08:53.600 --> 00:08:59.360 It appears that there had been this custom to release a prisoner each year at the time of the Passover in that region. 00:08:59.600 --> 00:09:03.600 So Pilate offers up Jesus and Barabbas as the two candidates for release. 00:09:03.759 --> 00:09:08.639 Now Barabbas, as we're told, had been arrested and prisoned on charges of insurrection and murder. 00:09:08.879 --> 00:09:14.799 The Jewish priests, desperate to rid themselves of this Jesus, were told persuade the crowd to choose Barabbas. 00:09:14.960 --> 00:09:20.480 And it appears it's not long before the crowd chooses Barabbas for freedom and demands judgment on Jesus. 00:09:20.639 --> 00:09:23.200 And we're told they begin to yell, crucify him. 00:09:23.679 --> 00:09:30.000 So Pilate, trying to keep the peace, decides it's better to send an innocent man to the cross than to deal with a mob. 00:09:30.240 --> 00:09:31.200 And about 9 a.m. 00:09:31.440 --> 00:09:33.759 Jesus was led to the cross and put on it. 00:09:34.000 --> 00:09:39.840 Now as for crucifixion itself, I won't go into a lot of details today, but we know a few things about it. 00:09:40.159 --> 00:09:43.519 It was a particularly cruel form of punishment. 00:09:43.840 --> 00:09:52.240 Hanging was a lesser penalty as the gallows killed the victim immediately, but this process of crucifixion was designed to prolong suffering before death. 00:09:52.480 --> 00:09:59.759 We have a particular image of crucifixion through retelling of Jesus' death, but as it turns out there was little in the way of a normal process, if you will. 00:10:00.000 --> 00:10:02.000 But there were a few things that were common. 00:10:02.159 --> 00:10:04.960 The Romans were known for flogging prior to crucifixion. 00:10:05.200 --> 00:10:11.120 The victims were known to carry their own beam to the side of crucifixion, and they would often have their arms outstretched. 00:10:11.360 --> 00:10:18.559 After that, and I quote, crucifixion was a punishment in which the caprice and sadism of the executioner were given full reign. 00:10:18.799 --> 00:10:34.320 As for this process of flogging, as we understand it, it consisted of braided leather that had bits of metal and bone woven into it, and this would create both bruising and would tear the flesh of the person being flogged, and this flogging would have extended from the shoulders down the back of the legs. 00:10:34.559 --> 00:10:49.440 In Rome, crucifixion was considered the highest penalty and was reserved for crimes such as desertion to the enemy, betraying secrets, incitement to rebellion, murder, prophecy about the welfare of rulers, magic, and theft. 00:10:49.840 --> 00:10:56.159 It was usually inflicted on those in lower social classes and generally not for Roman citizens. 00:10:56.399 --> 00:11:02.000 It was often used as a deterrent because if you saw someone crucified, you certainly did not want to be crucified. 00:11:02.240 --> 00:11:14.799 As for the actual act of crucifixion, it was designed to make it difficult to breathe by putting a person's body in just such a position that it would slump under its own weight, compressing the lungs and the diaphragm. 00:11:14.879 --> 00:11:22.799 And really the only leverage points the person had to pull themselves upright to take a fuller breath of air were those points that were run through with spikes. 00:11:23.039 --> 00:11:30.639 As you can imagine, this led to excruciating pain, and this pain only amplified the weariness and suffering of the person being crucified. 00:11:30.799 --> 00:11:36.799 So

through exhaustion, suffocation, and blood loss, crucifixion was designed to kill. 00:11:37.120 --> 00:11:40.000 So we read that Jesus was led to the cross about 9 AM. 00:11:40.240 --> 00:11:45.360 And then in three of the four accounts, we read of darkness that covered the land from about noon to three. 00:11:45.519 --> 00:11:48.559 In other words, a bit longer than your average solar eclipse. 00:11:48.720 --> 00:11:53.200 And about the ninth hour of the day, or about three PM, Jesus cried out and died. 00:11:53.360 --> 00:11:59.840 And then, at evening, we read of Joseph, a wealthy man from Arimathea, who was also a disciple of Jesus. 00:12:00.080 --> 00:12:02.639 He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. 00:12:02.879 --> 00:12:10.320 Pilate approved, and Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen shroud, and laid it in his own tomb, which had been cut in the rock. 00:12:10.559 --> 00:12:14.240 As we read, he rolled a large stone in front of the entrance and went home. 00:12:14.559 --> 00:12:18.559 So we read of the historical event of Jesus' crucifixion. 00:12:18.720 --> 00:12:21.600 But we have to ask, why did Jesus go to the cross? 00:12:21.840 --> 00:12:25.919 To answer that, we have to go back to the beginning, back to the beginning of time and space. 00:12:26.159 --> 00:12:27.519 Let's start with Genesis. 00:12:27.840 --> 00:12:32.960 God loved, God created, God created man and woman, and said it was very good. 00:12:33.200 --> 00:12:38.960 And we read that the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and to keep it. 00:12:39.120 --> 00:12:44.480 But Ab and Eve rebelled and chose sin and condemnation rather than God's command. 00:12:44.639 --> 00:12:48.879 And this rebellion brought the judgment of death to the image bearers of God. 00:12:49.039 --> 00:12:52.639 And as Paul writes to the Romans, the wages of sin is death. 00:12:52.879 --> 00:13:02.559 But God, from his love, instead of condemning the entire human race to death, promised a redeemer, and at the divinely appointed time God acted on that promise. 00:13:02.879 --> 00:13:04.639 John three, sixteen, seventeen. 00:13:04.799 --> 00:13:11.519 For God so loved the world that he gave his only son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 00:13:11.759 --> 00:13:17.600 For God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 00:13:18.159 --> 00:13:22.399 Some seven hundred years before Jesus' crucifixion, Isaiah prophesied about this. 00:13:22.720 --> 00:13:26.480 He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities. 00:13:26.639 --> 00:13:31.120 Upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. 00:13:31.360 --> 00:13:43.200 God's promise from that faithful day in the Garden of Eden is fulfilled by Jesus in the form of a man who died on that cross, who died for the ungodly and reconciled saints back to a right relationship with God. 00:13:43.440 --> 00:13:47.360 But when we come to this event in history, we don't despair of the cross. 00:13:47.600 --> 00:13:50.159 Jesus does not bring us to this point to despair. 00:13:50.399 --> 00:13:53.759 We're to come to the cross humbly and thankful. 00:13:54.000 --> 00:13:56.399 For we know that we deserve to be eternally condemned. 00:13:56.559 --> 00:14:00.159 We know that we're to be eternally separated and away from the beauty of God. 00:14:00.320 --> 00:14:04.080 But Christ bore that sin on our behalf on that cross. 00:14:04.240 --> 00:14:10.559 We don't understand exactly what happened there, but we know that our sin at that moment had been lifted from us. 00:14:10.720 --> 00:14:18.480 And Jesus' perfect righteousness and perfect love was given to the saints from all eternity past to all eternity future. 00:14:18.720 --> 00:14:20.960 Grace and forgiveness freely given. 00:14:21.120 --> 00:14:26.559 And so Paul writes, how could there be anything more important than the good news of Jesus and Him crucified? 00:14:26.720 --> 00:14:29.120 The cross is the apex of history. 00:14:29.279 --> 00:14:31.360 It is the culmination of salvation. 00:14:31.600 --> 00:14:35.679 God's people look to this as the second most important moment in history. 00:14:35.840 --> 00:14:38.000 And so what's the most important moment in history? 00:14:38.159 --> 00:14:42.080 Well, that would be Jesus' second coming, and we're still waiting for that. 00:14:42.320 --> 00:14:43.679 Hey, thanks for listening. 00:14:43.759 --> 00:14:46.080 Check out the show notes for links and more information. 00:14:46.240 --> 00:14:47.519 Until next time.