John 19:13-16

John 19:13-16 When Pilate heard this, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judge’s seat at a place known as the Stone Pavement (which in Aramaic is Gabbatha). It was the day of Preparation of Passover Week, about the sixth hour. “Here is your king,” Pilate said to the Jews. But they shouted, “Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!” “Shall I crucify your king?” Pilate asked. “We have no king but Caesar,” the chief priests answered. Finally Pilate handed him over to them to be crucified.

Throughout the proceedings leading up to Christ's death, Pilate's actions and words provide a picture of a powerful man in conflict with a people he rules and a man he little understands. From his initial contact, Pilate does not want to involve himself in the matter. When he asks about the charges against Jesus, he tells the Jews, “Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.” When Pilate does question Jesus, they engage in a philosophical discussion on truth with Pilate allowing Jesus freedom to speak of his kingdom and the reason for his birth. Finally he tells the people, “I find no basis for a charge against him [Jesus]," and Pilate says perhaps half seriously and half mockingly to irritate the religious leaders, Do you want me to release ‘the king of the Jews’?” (See John 18:34, 38 & 39) Nonetheless, whatever his reasons, representing Jesus as their king would have enraged this angry crowd. The Jewish elite and those who followed them forcefully responded, “Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!” They were not going to accept Jesus even in derision as king, for Jesus and his teachings were an anathema to the Jewish leaders who sought his death. Even on the day of Preparation of Passover Week, they felt so threatened by Jesus, their hearts were full of rage. They would not believe God sent Jesus to usher in the long awaited new covenant: “The time is coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. “This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares the LORD. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the LORD. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” (Jeremiah 31:31-34)

If Jesus came from God as He said, the Jewish leaders knew their preferred place, their role in the religious activities and culture, would change dramatically or possibly disappear. Jesus spoke of a kingdom established in the hearts of men, a kingdom of righteousness through faith and service to God. His kingdom necessitated a born-again experience: new wine in new bottles. If the old life with its intrinsically important and meaningful Jewish rituals passed away and Jesus established a new order or a new kingdom, where would that leave the Levitical priesthood and the present leadership of the Jewish people? If new life came through a personal spiritual experience and this experience led to a new form of worship, what about the old ways of worshipping God? If a new covenant truly came forth from this man Jesus to replace the old ways and He was the promised Messiah, then scripture would be fulfilled: God's words would no longer merely exist on tablets of stone and holy scrolls but would be found in the hearts of men. Flesh and blood would be cleansed and made holy by the shed blood of the Lamb of God and the indwelling Holy Spirit. Men and women would be the new temple, God's dwelling place. When Solomon built the Temple, the glory of the LORD filled the temple; and God said, I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for myself as a temple for sacrifices. He also warned them of his wrath if they disobeyed him how the people would speak of the disaster He would bring upon them. (See 2 Chronicles chapter 7) Knowing the wickedness of their own hearts that they kept the law outwardly while inwardly they were far from God, the Jewish elite could not allow this man Jesus to exist. If He was the promised One, He would turn their world of preference upside down. They were not ready to trade their decorated robes for the robes of humble servants. They enjoyed sitting at the head table and receiving homage and the praise of men. They would not consider a kingdom built upon humility, contriteness, kindness, forgiveness, and love. This, the Jewish leaders could not accept. They cried: Take him away! Crucify him! In reality, they said, "We have no king but OURSELVES. We serve ourselves."

At times we are guilty of making Jesus into our own image. We ask him to construct our lives as we want them, not to change them and make them according to his perfect will. Is He the Jesus we see in the manger scenes with light brown hair and blue eyes, the Jesus we want to fix all our problems and to take away all our weaknesses? Have you ever thought of how many people right now are asking Jesus for something or telling him what He needs to do, like little chicks begging their mother to drop the worm from her beak? Is this our religious life, our worship, our sacrifice of praise to him? Are we really praying: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven? Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. (Matthew 6:9-13) Do we really want God's will to be done in our lives if He turns our world upside down? The Jewish leaders did not want Jesus in their lives because they knew Jesus intended to turn their lives 180 degrees. They did not want this commitment, this loss of control. They had good reason to fear what He might do because they had a lot to lose; yet they had so much to gain. They were not ready to lose their position of prestige and preference, control over their personal lives. Are we ready? When things do not work right in our lives, when our prayers for security and well-being hit a blank wall, are we ready to yield control and to allow God to change our lives drastically? When hard times come do we stop seeking God's presence, reading the Word, praying, worshipping, gathering together. Do we begin to ostracize Jesus from our personal lives. Are we saying in our hearts: Take him away! If so, we are saying, “We have no king but Caesar." Jesus does not turn away from you. He is waiting and watching, loving you just the same, all of the time. Reach out to him today. God loves you with an everlasting love. His mercies are new every morning, fresh TODAY!