King for Eternity
John 18:28-40
"'You are a king, then!' said Pilate. Jesus answered, 'You are right... In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world... Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.'"
(JOHN 18:37)
It must have been quite a conversation, this exchange between the governor and the King of the Universe. With his stature as a Roman authority, Pilate had probably overseen few cases like the one now in his courtroom, and seen even fewer prisoners like the Man standing before him. He was unsure what to make of Him, inconvenienced by a case he felt no responsibility for. But something about Jesus made Pilate curious.
Soon, he discovered there was no crime to convict Jesus, except that of attracting a following. Surely that was not enough. Jesus' own people had changed their mind about Him, and all Pilate could determine was that He was guilty of being a Jewish celebrity. Still, unlike Peter whose crisis of faith led to a genuine recognition of the Lord, Pilate really wasn't interested in knowing the truth. Instead, he wanted to maintain his own authority and keep things as they were.
Pilate's dilemma is like most of ours: whose authority matters? Choose Jesus, the Truth for every part of your life.
INSIGHT
INVITE THE KING TO BE YOUR AUTHORITY AND LORD OF YOUR LIFE TODAY.
READ THROUGH THE BIBLE IN A YEAR
Deuteronomy 30-31
Psalm 94
Acts 18
John 18:28-40
Jesus Before Pilate
28 Then the Jews led Jesus from Caiaphas to the palace of the Roman governor. By now it was early morning, and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness the Jews did not enter the palace; they wanted to be able to eat the Passover. 29 So Pilate came out to them and asked, "What charges are you bringing against this man?"
30 "If he were not a criminal," they replied, "we would not have handed him over to you."
31 Pilate said, "Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law."
"But we have no right to execute anyone," the Jews objected. 32 This happened so that the words Jesus had spoken indicating the kind of death he was going to die would be fulfilled.
33 Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him, "Are you the king of the Jews?"
34 "Is that your own idea," Jesus asked, "or did others talk to you about me?"
35 "Am I a Jew?" Pilate replied. "It was your people and your chief priests who handed you over to me. What is it you have done?"
36 Jesus said, "My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place."
37 "You are a king, then!" said Pilate.
Jesus answered, "You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me."
38 "What is truth?" Pilate asked. With this he went out again to the Jews and said, "I find no basis for a charge against him. 39 But it is your custom for me to release to you one prisoner at the time of the Passover. Do you want me to release ‘the king of the Jews’?"
40 They shouted back, "No, not him! Give us Barabbas!" Now Barabbas had taken part in a rebellion.
THE PLACE OF CRUSHING
The myth of the Holy Grail has fascinated storytellers for ages, but the real cup of Christ is far more significant. Do you know what the cup of Christ represents and what it means for you?
No comments:
Post a Comment