Hebrews 12:2 “We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the
champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him,
he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of
honor beside God’s throne.”
Gethsemane
Oswald Chambers in My Utmost for His Highest states, “It was
not death on the cross that Jesus agonized over in Gethsemane. In fact, He
stated very emphatically that He came with the purpose of dying. His concern
here was that He might not get through this struggle as the Son of Man. He was
confident of getting through it as the Son of God— Satan could not touch Him
there.”
Jesus had laid down his deity when he came to earth and
walked 100% as man. While he still had
constant communion with the Father, he did not walk as God on earth. You will remember that when Satan tempted
Jesus (Matthew 4:1-11); Jesus used the Word to defeat him. If he had been
walking as God he could have just vanquished the enemy with one look or wave of
his hand. It is not surprising that he
struggled in Gethsemane with what he knew lay ahead. Crucifixion was an awful death. As man he knew he would feel every bit of the
pain and agony inflicted upon him.
Betrayal
It is sad to note that Judas went to the religious leaders;
they did not seek him out. Matthew
26:14-16 “Then Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve disciples, went to the leading
priests and asked, ‘How much will you pay me to betray Jesus to you?’ And they
gave him thirty pieces of silver. From that time on, Judas began looking for an
opportunity to betray Jesus.”
In Bible days, thirty pieces of silver was the price one
paid to purchase a slave. Exodus 21:32
“But if the ox gores a slave, either male or female, the animal’s owner must
pay the slave’s owner thirty silver coins, and the ox must be stoned.” Judas
sold out the Messiah for the price of a slave.
The one who could give him eternal life and freedom is the very one he
betrayed. He gained a small amount of
money at the cost of eternal life.
Matthew 26:24 “For the Son of Man must die, as the Scriptures declared
long ago. But how terrible it will be for the one who betrays him. It would be
far better for that man if he had never been born!”
Judas knew about Jesus’ habit of going to Gethsemane with
the disciples. It was to the Garden that
Judas led the contingent of Roman soldiers and Temple guards. Matthew 26:48-49 “The traitor, Judas, had
given them a prearranged signal: ‘You will know which one to arrest when I
greet him with a kiss.’ So Judas came straight to Jesus. ‘Greetings, Rabbi!’ he
exclaimed and gave him the kiss.”
Arrest
John 18:3-9 “The leading priests and Pharisees had given
Judas a contingent of Roman soldiers and Temple guards to accompany him. Now
with blazing torches, lanterns, and weapons, they arrived at the olive grove.
Jesus fully realized all that was going to happen to him, so he stepped forward
to meet them. ‘Who are you looking for?’ he asked. ‘Jesus the Nazarene,’ they replied.
‘I am he,’ Jesus said. (Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them.) As
Jesus said ‘I am he,’ they all drew back and fell to the ground! Once more he
asked them, ‘Who are you looking for?’ And again they replied, ‘Jesus the
Nazarene.’ ‘I told you that I am he,’ Jesus said. ‘And since I am the one you
want, let these others go.’ He did this to fulfill his own statement: ‘I did
not lose a single one of those you have given me.’”
Luke 22:49-51 “When the other disciples saw what was about
to happen, they exclaimed, ‘Lord, should we fight? We brought the swords!’ And
one of them struck at the high priest’s slave, slashing off his right ear. But
Jesus said, ‘No more of this.’ And he touched the man’s ear and healed him.”
John 18:11b “Shall I not drink from the cup of suffering the
Father has given me?”
Matthew 26:56 “At that point, all the disciples deserted him
and fled.”
Trial
When the soldiers left the Garden, they took Jesus first to
the home of Annas, the father-in-law of Caiaphas the high priest. For some reason Annas would not be present at
the trial before the council.
“Dr. Lightfoot thinks Annas was not present, because he had
to attend early that morning in the temple, to examine the sacrifices which
were that day to be offered, whether they were without blemish; if so, there
was a significancy in it, that Christ, the great sacrifice, was presented to
him, and sent away bound, as approved and ready for the altar.” (Matthew Henry’s
Commentary)
Jesus stood “trial” twice. Here we will look at each trial.
1. Trial before the
religious council at the home of Caiaphas, the high priest.
Jesus was taken by those who arrested him to the home of
Caiaphas. A few things stand out to me from this trial.
A. The trial took
place in the dead of night. While the
community innocently slept, the religious leaders enacted their unlawful “trial”
of the Messiah. John 3:19 “And the
judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people
loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil.”
B. The religious leaders tried to find out
about Jesus’ followers and what he had been teaching them. The council
badgers Christ about what he taught his followers. John 18:20 “Jesus replied, ‘Everyone knows
what I teach. I have preached regularly in the synagogues and the Temple, where
the people gather. I have not spoken in secret.’” I find his reply, that he never did anything
in secret but in the open for all to hear, interesting. For, just two nights before this trial, the
council had met secretly to plot how to kill Jesus. While he was open and honest about his
teaching and dealings with mankind, mankind (the religious leaders) were
deceptive and secretive in their dealings with/about him.
C. The religious
leaders, who were the spiritual leaders of the people, were trying to find “false”
witnesses to condemn Jesus. Matthew
26:59-61 “Inside, the leading priests and the entire high council were trying
to find witnesses who would lie about Jesus, so they could put him to death. But
even though they found many who agreed to give false witness, they could not
use anyone’s testimony. Finally, two men came forward who declared, “This man
said, ‘I am able to destroy the Temple of God and rebuild it in three days.’”
Because they had no real evidence against him, they had to
search for dishonest men to lie about Jesus.
It is ironic that his statement foreshadowing his death (- ‘I am able to
destroy the Temple of God and rebuild it in three days.’) is the statement they
latch onto to condemn him.
D. Jesus remained
silent during the trail. This fulfilled
the prophecy in Isaiah 53:7 “He was oppressed and treated harshly, yet he never
said a word. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter. And as a sheep is silent
before the shearers, he did not open his mouth.”
E. The outcome of the trial
was determined before the “case” was heard.
John 18: 14 “Caiaphas was the one who had told the other Jewish leaders,
‘It’s better that one man should die for the people.’” The religious leaders
had already determined to put Jesus to death before they had him arrested. The trial was a cover up for their pre-made decision.
2. Trial before
Pilate.
John 18:28-32 “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. So Pilate, the governor, went
out to them and asked, ‘What is your charge against this man?’ ‘We wouldn't
have handed him over to you if he weren't a criminal!’ they retorted. ‘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. (This fulfilled Jesus’ prediction about the
way he would die.)”
The Jews were not being fully truthful here, for we know
that in the case of Stephen in Acts 7:54-60 the religious leaders drug Stephen
outside the city and stoned him to death after he stood trial before them. In the case of Jesus it is more likely that
they were trying to make an example of him to prevent others from doing as he
had done. They were also fulfilling
prophecy by their actions (not their intention I am sure!)
Pilate questioned Jesus and found him guilty of nothing
deserving of death. He tried to reason
with the religious leaders but they would not listen. John 18: 38b-40 “Then he went out again to the
people and told them, ‘He is not guilty of any crime. 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’?’ But they shouted back, ‘No! Not this man. We
want Barabbas!’ (Barabbas was a revolutionary.)”
Matthew 27: 22-26a Pilate responded, “Then what should I do
with Jesus who is called the Messiah?” They shouted back, “Crucify him!” “Why?”
Pilate demanded. “What crime has he committed?” But the mob roared even louder,
“Crucify him!” Pilate saw that he wasn't getting anywhere and that a riot was
developing. So he sent for a bowl of water and washed his hands before the
crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s blood. The responsibility is
yours!” And all the people yelled back, “We will take responsibility for his
death—we and our children!” So Pilate released Barabbas to them.
All Scripture is NLT unless otherwise stated.
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