Luke 23:1-12
1. Have you ever felt misunderstood or
treated unjustly? How did it feel? Maybe we are so familiar with the trial of
Jesus that we miss the injustice and underestimate how it felt for Jesus to be
treated in this way.
2. It can be hard to get a fair trial,
especially if the crime the person is accused of is high profile. We can think
of examples of how hard it is to get a fair trial in a free democratic country
- how much more so in a dictatorship or a country ruled by an occupying army.
That is the kind of place where Jesus was tried and so perhaps the unjust
verdict, the sentencing to death of this innoccent man is not such a surprise.
3. However one of the many ironies in the
story is that the Roman legal system correctly finds Jesus innocent. It is his
own people's religious leaders, those responsible for leading people to God and
worshipping and obeying God who manipulate the situation to turn the crowd and
Pilate against the prisoner, who IS God in human form, and ensure his
crucifixion.
4. We should be shocked by the depth of
hatred these servants of God have for the man whose words and deeds have
revealed him to be the Son of God. Before they take him to Pilate we see that
it is this "blasphemy" (it would
be blasphemy if it were not true) which has led them to demand the execution of
Jesus. But this is not the accusation they make before Pilate...
5. Pilate would not have been interested in
some religious dispute amongst Jews, so they presented Jesus to him as a
violent agitator of trouble against Rome, the leader of an insurrection. It is
a completely false charge and even Pilate can see this immediately. (The fact
that Barabbas is freed instead of Jesus is packed with irony; more of that
during Holy Week).
6. The silence of Jesus in the face of this
cruelty and injustice is remarkable. He has so often stood firmly and
outspokenly against cruelty and injustice but now, when it is all aimed at him,
when he is the chosen scapegoat, he just stands and takes it...
7. We know that at the end of the story God
will overrule the rejection, the condemnation and the execution by the
resurrection of Jesus, turning evil's greatest victory into its defeat
(Resurrection rather than Insurrection turns out to be the answer to
injustice!) More about that next Sunday! It is tempting to press the “fast
forward” button, but we need to reflect on how and why it happened this way.
8. So for now let's focus back on the
thoughts and actions of Pilate and the Jewish religious leaders and Herod - and allow ourselves to be challenged. Would we
have decided and acted differently from them? How often do we know the right
thing to do but allow ourselves to do the wrong thing (or allow ourselves to be
talked into doing the wrong thing)?
9. The religious leaders’ error – blinded
by prejudice and jealousy, they fail to recognise the works of God or even the
person of God right in front of them. They end up opposing him violently and
maliciously. What prejudices do you and I have and how are these affecting our
loyalty to God, our working with God in what He is doing?
10. Herod’s error – He just wanted to be
entertained and amused by Jesus, for Jesus to dance to his tune and give him
what he wanted without challenging his corrupt ways. Isn’t the same true of us
sometimes? Don’t we sometimes come to Jesus with this attitude too? Are we
happy to have him entertain us but back away from him when he starts to
challenge the things which are wrong in our lives?
11. Pilate’s error – Giving in to pressure
and condemning an innocent man. We usually know what is right and just and
fair, but how often and how easily do we capitulate and just let the crowd
dictate what we do?
12. All these people had power, authority
and leadership positions but used them unworthily. The one who had all power,
authority and leadership available to him used his power differently. He
allowed evil, sin, injustice to have their way, trusting that his death for the
sins of the world would bring new life for himself, for those who loved him and
even for those who hated him.
13. How should we respond and how should we
use our own power and influence? Can we resist the temptation to follow the bad
examples set by the religious leaders and Herod and Pilate and instead follow
Jesus through the door he has opened into a new way of life?
Posts
here in London there are so many reminders everywhere of people who sacrificed their lives, the most recent which we saw walking by Hyde Park corner, a new memorial opend by the Queen in her Jubilee year 2012, to the airmen, 54,554 of them, who lost their lives during the WW II.
ReplyDeleteYour challenge needs to be repeated again. Christ set us a fearful example but the least hone can do is to have that example constantly in mind and pray for Christ, when opportunities occur, take us in hand to do what he would, give us courage.