Three Criminals and One King

I've asked Sharon, if she would, to come read our passage today in the Gospel

of Luke. And this will be Luke chapter 23, by the way, Luke 23, verses 1 through 25.

Luke 23 · chapter mention Luke 23:1–25

Luke 23, 1 through 25.

Then the entire council took Jesus to Pilate, the Roman governor.

They began to stake their case. This man has been leading our people astray

by telling them not to pay their taxes to the Roman government and by claiming he is Messiah. A king!

So Pilate asked him, Are you the king of the Jews? Jesus replied, You said it.

Pilate turned to the leading priests and cried and said, I find nothing wrong with this man.

Then they became insistent, But he is causing riots by his teaching wherever

he goes, all over Judea, from Galilee to Jerusalem.

Oh, is he a Galilean? Pilate asked.

When they said that he was, Pilate sent him to Herod Antipas because Galilee

was under Herod's jurisdiction and Herod happened to be in Jerusalem at the time.

Excuse me herod was delighted at the opportunity to see jesus because he'd heard

about him and had been hoping for a long time to see him perform a miracle he

asked jesus question after question,

but jesus refused to answer meanwhile the leading priests and the teachers of

the religious law stood there shouting their accusations then herod and his

soldiers began mocking and ridiculing jesus finally they put a royal robe on

him and sent him back to pilot,

herod and pilot who'd been enemies before became friends that day.

Then Pilate called together leading priests and other religious leaders along

with the people and he announced his verdict.

You brought this man to me accusing him of leading a revolt.

I thoroughly examined him at on this point in your presence and find him innocent.

Herod came to the same conclusion and sent him back to us.

Nothing this man has done calls for the death penalty so I'll have him flogged

and then I will release him.

Then a mighty roar rose from the crowd, and with one voice they shouted,

Kill him and release Barabbas to us!

Barabbas was in prison for taking part in an insurrection in Jerusalem against

the government and for her.

Pilate argued with him because he wanted to release Jesus, but they kept saying,

Crucify him! Crucify him!

And for the third time he demanded why what crime has he committed i have found

no reason to sentence him to death so i'll have him flogged and then i will release him,

but the mob shouted louder and louder demanding jesus be crucified and their voices prevailed,

so pilate sentenced jesus to die as they demanded and as they had requested

he released barabbas to man in prison for insurrection and murder,

But he turned Jesus over to them to do as they wished. Thank you.

Today, we're going to look at three criminals over these next two weeks,

three criminals and one king.

Three criminals and one king. But Luke's account of the events leading up to

the crucifixion moves forward. Y'all at a breakneck pace here.

I mean, full of these short vignettes and memorable interactions that you see

and hear read about as you read here in Scripture, chapter 23 actually shows

humanity at its very worst.

Y'all know what I'm saying? You can also see it on Facebook,

okay, if you hadn't seen it.

Cowardice, duplicity, and hatred are the order of the day.

But it is in the deepest darkness, church, that we see the strength,

the love, and the dignity of Jesus shine even more brightly.

Woo, come on, I'm telling you. Yeah, he claims to be a king as we look here.

Following the determination by the Sanhedrin that Jesus was guilty of blasphemy.

We'll see this back in chapter 22, verse 71. We already looked at that.

The proceedings moved to Governor Pilate's headquarters here that Sharon read

this morning, starting with verse 1 of chapter 23.

And in order to have Jesus put to death, they had to overcome two related obstacles.

First of all, Rome reserved the right to execute criminals and did not permit

the Jewish authorities to put anyone to death.

You can see that also back in John 18 or forward there in John 18 verse 31.

John 18:31

And then second, and linked to that political reality, even if Jesus was guilty

of blasphemy, the Roman authorities would not consider that to be a crime worthy of punishment.

Rome, they didn't care a whit for the religious scruples of other cultures.

And so Jesus's enemies would have to accuse Jesus of a crime that Rome would find worthy of death.

And so to that end, as we see in this passage, the Sanhedrin lodges three charges

against Jesus that might serve to get Pilate's interest.

And we start seeing that in verse two. But first they claim that Jesus has been subverting our nation.

Jesus has been subverting our nation. The heart of the accusation here is that

Jesus is dangerous and might start a mob rebellion against Roman rule, right?

And then second, they claim, look at the scripture there, that Jesus opposes

payment of taxes to Caesar.

Now, we just studied a little bit back here, right, in chapter 20,

that he said what, to pay Caesar?

Well to see he i mean obviously he does they're making this stuff up right but

he opposes payment of taxes to caesar certainly this would interest pilot though

because even though it was manifestly false as we know,

and then the third charge i want you to know today,

is both true and explosive okay you ready that Jesus they tell Pilate claims to be.

Messiah a king and it is that last charge Eastwood that gets Pilate's interest

he turns his attention to Jesus and questions him directly as to whether he

claims to be a king of the Jews you see that in verse 3,

and we can imagine that Jesus standing there having been bound,

blindfolded, and beaten, sleep-deprived, and spit-covered,

didn't look particularly regal at that moment, right?

And so perhaps Pilate's question here

in this passage should be understood sarcastically. You're the king of the.

Well, Jesus' answer is really reminiscent of his response to the Sanhedrin all

the way back in chapter 22, verse 70.

He does not deny what is true, for he's just claimed to have received a kingdom

from his father, right? 22, verse 29.

But neither does he engage in pointless banter, if you will,

with somebody who's not really interested in God's truth.

I tell you, this is a good thing to realize in this passage.

Don't engage in pointless banter with someone who really doesn't care about God or his truth.

Don't go down that path, okay? Jesus didn't. We shouldn't either.

Jesus was most definitely not a king after the pattern of rulers like Pilate and Caesar.

He had no interest, church, in a political kingdom established through politics or force.

None at all in fact Pilate could sense quickly according to this text that that

Jesus presented no immediate threat to Rome's rule and so he initially,

refused to take action against Jesus didn't he,

finding no basis for a charge he says in verse verse four,

but the Jewish leaders man you see that in the text they were not going to be

dissuaded are they and their next play was to accuse Jesus of being an agitator.

In verse five, just an agitator.

And surely Pilate would take interest in somebody who might destabilize,

if you will, the region, again, stir up mob violence, so to speak.

And they overplayed their hand though.

When they mentioned that Jesus' ministry began where? In the region of where?

Galilee. Pilate saw a potential way out of the situation in verses six and seven, didn't he?

Since Galilee actually fell under the authority of Herod Antipas,

and he happened to be in the city for the Passover.

How convenient, right? Awesome. I mean, Pilate could send Jesus to him,

get this church, in what would seem like a gesture of respect and was ultimately

received as such, as we see in verse 12,

but would also allow Pilate to avoid responsibility, he thinks, for Jesus' fate, right?

It's like this little scapegoat thing he's got.

Herod, though, as you see in the text, he was greatly pleased,

for he had been waiting to see and perhaps even kill Jesus for a very long time.

And in keeping with what we know about Herod, his interest in Jesus,

y'all, was not motivated by a sincere desire to understand the truth, was it?

Instead, he hoped to see a sign, to have an interesting conversation here in verses 8 and 9.

But Jesus, again, would not answer him, even as his enemies continued to accuse him.

It says in verse 10, vehemently.

In other words, they didn't let up. They just kept on and on.

But I think there's a terrible irony in what happens next.

When Herod and his soldiers mockingly, did you see it in the text that Sharon read? Did you hear it?

They mockingly dressed Jesus up in an elegant robe of the sort that a king would

wear. Talks about in verse 11.

The idea that Jesus could be a king, don't miss this, was ludicrous to them.

But little did they know the truth, that he really was the long-awaited king of the Jews.

Jesus was the descendant of the great King David, who would reign on his throne forever.

Just as God had promised to David in 2 Samuel chapter 7, and also in Luke 1 32.

2 Samuel 7 · chapter mention

What Pilate and Herod couldn't understand was that this king's kingdom was not

coming through military might or political skill.

He would come to his throne, through a cross, a brutal instrument of execution.

The mocking inscription, if you remember above the cross, spoke the truth.

This is the king of the Jews.

Herod and his men dressed Jesus in this royal robe as a mocking response to his claim to be a king.

But when a Christian thinks about Jesus in that robe, think about Jesus in that

robe today for a minute, enduring those taunts and ridicule of the soldiers.

You know what? We see the proof that Jesus is the heroic king that we've always wanted, y'all.

He is worthy of our allegiance. Amen. Worthy of it and our trust,

both in the face of difficulties, y'all, that we face today and with our eternal destiny.

Consider what Jesus went through on your behalf today.

The king of the universe willingly was sped on and mocked and ridiculed.

Literally covered in spit for you and for me.

The verdict was in church. Herod sent Jesus back in verse 11 with a not guilty verdict.

We see that in verse 15. And which he gives and now Pilate adds his own vote

to that same verdict in verse 14.

To the crowd that has, you know, he has called together.

It's important I think for us to remember that Pilate is absolutely convinced

y'all that Jesus is innocent.

Otherwise nothing that follows in this text will seem quite as horrible as it should.

Repeatedly through this text Pilate meets the blood thirstiness of the crowd

with the desire to release Jesus.

Verse 20 another example and a reminder y'all that Jesus has not actually committed

any crime at all, as it tells us in verse 22.

But Pilate is ultimately too much of a coward to do the right thing.

He fears the crowds, and so he tries several times to appease them.

Without having to actually put Jesus to death.

In fact, it's kind of a terrible plea bargain.

He offers to have the innocent man punished, but,

in verses 16 and 22, even though he knows he's not guilty, but the crowds respond by shouting what?

Yes, crucify him or away with this man in verse 18.

And Pilate's next move is to set Jesus free under the terms of an annual prisoner release program.

Or at least that's how we see it in this text. Not that this verse includes

an introduction to that idea, but I know in Matthew 27.

Verse 15, I believe Mark 15 talks about this a little bit more,

but it's not present in the best manuscripts of Luke 23.

And it should be understood as a later edition. You probably see that note in

your Bible, but not much is known about Barabbas. But this is one thing we do know in this passage.

We don't know if there really was that annual release. I mean,

if that was that critical there, but he was willing here to.

They were wanting him instead of Jesus. We're going to see that.

Not much is known about him beyond the fact that he was in prison for what?

Remember, insurrection and murder.

We see it in verse 19.

But we can assume that he was the worst prisoner on hand. For Pilate,

y'all, clearly wanted to give the crowd the worst option possible, didn't he?

So he could avoid choosing Jesus for death.

And we see that also in Matthew 27, verse 21. But the crowd was what?

Matthew 27:21

Unwilling, insisting that Jesus be done away with, crucified,

while Barabbas here was released instead.

And by this point, don't miss this, Pilate was running out of options.

He pressed again for Jesus' release, again, verse 20, as we talked about,

but the crowd became all the more enraged and demanded his crucifixion.

In verse 21, he appealed to the crowd a third time, pressing on them the reality

of Jesus's innocence and offering one more time to have him punished before

releasing him in verse 22.

But the crowd, what does it say there? Insistently demanded.

That Jesus be crucified. And you know what? Pilate eventually caved in to their desires.

Barabbas was released and Jesus was condemned, verse 25.

And here's a dramatic picture, Eastwood, of what Jesus was about to do for his

people at the cross and what he's done for you, if you know Imagine for a minute,

y'all go on a journey with me for just a moment.

Imagine what it would be like to be Barabbas on that day.

Sitting in a Roman jail, awaiting the most gruesome death imaginable.

On this fateful day, you hear a mob outside. Clearly, something's going on.

Has word gotten out that today's your day?

The day of your death? It sounds like it.

You can hear the crowd screaming, what?

Come on, what were they screaming?

But when the guard comes to you to get you, instead of placing you on the cross,

and putting it on your back for right now to start with, putting that cross

on your back, you know what he does?

He unlocks your shackles and sets you free. And you stand there.

You watch another man stumble off the weight, under the weight of that cross, of his cross.

The very cross that you had imagined would be yours.

And when you ask somebody in the crowd what this man has done to deserve this

fate, the answers are surprisingly vague.

All you know is that you've been chosen for life and he has been chosen for death.

Imagine you were Barabbas.

Barabbas was a terribly guilty man. There's no doubt that he deserved the cross that waited him.

But what we see this morning in this text is that Jesus went off to die in his place.

Come on, what's the gospel in four words? Jesus in my place.

My brother J.D. got it right. Jesus in my place.

Barabbas, the guilty man, went free, and Jesus here, the innocent man,

was treated like a criminal.

Jesus bore the guilt and shame and curse and disgrace and death that Barabbas

deserved, while Barabbas received the release, the freedom, and the life that Jesus deserved.

Barabbas walked out that day, church, a free and innocent man as far as the law was concerned.

Jesus was the condemned one.

In the same way, you and I are sinners. Yeah, you are Barabbas.

I am Barabbas.

We sit in a spiritual prison, bound hopeless, awaiting the day that we get the

just punishment that we deserve.

But then Jesus has gone off to the cross in our place, in your place, in my place.

He got what we deserve. we get what he deserves,

that my friend is the great teaching of substitution,

how do we account for the vitriol and hatred of the crowd this was not the work

of a few isolated agitators was it Luke tells us it was the whole crowd in verse

18 consisting of the chief priests the rulers and the people.

They were united, church, and calling for Jesus to be taken away.

This was a universal, unanimous verdict of people from every walk of life and social class.

Peter's words to the people of Jerusalem, as you look ahead and you look down

in Acts 3, 13 through 15, we see that.

If Barabbas is a picture of the individual, you and I,

condemned for his sins and in need of a substitute to bear his punishment perhaps,

i think today possibly brother ronnie i believe this.

We're meant to see in the crowd the natural enmity that all people have toward

God, including you and me.

When it came down to a choice, these people preferred, don't miss this,

these people, am I saying that?

You preferred, and I preferred, to have a murderer live among us than the Son of God.

Rightly has the pastor and theologian R.C. Sproul called this scene outside

of Pilate's Hall, you know what he called it?

God in the hands of angry sinners.

God in the hands of angry sinners. In his book, The Holiness of God.

You know, sinful human beings simply cannot be neutral toward a holy God.

Did you hear what I said? That's us. I'm talking about us.

Sinful human beings cannot be neutral toward a holy God.

We are rebels against him, and he is a threat to our way of life.

He stands, you know where? Between us and our passionate commitment to live

our lives exactly the way we want to live them.

We call the shots, in other words, is what we want. I come to church when I feel like it.

I give to the church when I feel like it. I serve Jesus when it's convenient for my schedule.

And so when God came in human flesh, the only options open to humanity,

that's us, were to worship him as Lord or to kill him as an enemy.

That's it. There's no third option.

And I want to say this today, and remember, I preached to me before you.

Don't be overly confident that you would have acted differently if you had been

in that crowd, because you wouldn't have.

Throughout Luke's gospel, Jesus has been teaching that his salvation is not for good people.

How many of you think you're good? It's not for you, but for the worst of sinners.

That's who we are. That's who you are.

If you don't see yourself as the worst of sinners, you ain't going to be saved. You can't be saved.

He didn't come from the well. He came from sick. Nowhere is it more clear that

when we meditate on the reality that when Jesus died, church,

he died for the very people that wanted to kill him, that wanted him dead.

Dare I say it? It's true. People just like you and me.

In the end, though, the hatred here of the crowd, what happens?

Shows us our guilt, doesn't it? But it also shows us what else?

The love of God, doesn't it? The love of God that secures our forgiveness, y'all.

Horatius Bonner, he was a 19th century Scottish pastor.

He wrote a poem about this event that I think helps us to meditate on our great

salvation. Here's what he said.

I see the crowd in Pilate's hall, their furious cries I hear,

their shouts of crucify, appall, their curses fill mine ear.

And of that shouting multitude, I feel that I am one.

And in that den of voices rude, I recognize my own.

I see the scourgers rend the flesh of God's beloved Son, and as they smite,

I feel afresh that I am one.

Around the cross the thing I see that mocked the sufferers groan,

yet still my voice, it seems to be as if I mocked alone.

"'Twas I that shed that sacred blood. I nailed him to the tree.

I crucified the Christ of God.

I joined the mockery.

Yet not the less that blood avails to cleanse me from my sin,

and not the less that cross prevails,

to give me peace within.'" I would so hate at church if anyone here,

spends eternity separated from God forever in hell.

I'm reminded this morning of 2 Corinthians 5.21, says he made him,

talk about God, Jesus, talk about Jesus.

He made him who knew no sin, sin for us, just like we sang about this morning,

that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

I want to unpack those 15 Greek words for just a moment with you.

He, God, made Jesus sin. What do you mean he made Jesus sin? Only in one sense.

He treated him as if he had committed every sin ever committed by every person who would ever believe.

Though in fact, church, he committed none of them.

Hanging on the cross, he was holy, harmless, undefiled, hanging on the cross. He was a spotless lamb.

He was never for a split second a sinner.

He is holy God on the cross, but God is treating him, I'll put it more practically

this morning, as if he lived my life.

God punished Jesus for my sin, and yours by the way, and turns right around

and treats me as if I had lived Jesus' life.

That is the great doctrine of substitution, church.

And all that doctrine turned the whole reformation of the church.

This is the heart of the gospel, Eastwood. When you get it, it's complete forgiveness,

covered by the righteousness of Jesus. Come on, complete forgiveness, church.

The blood of Jesus can cover any sin, any, no exceptions.

He looks at the cross, he sees you. And when he looks at you, he sees Jesus.

If there's one thing in my life that I want to make sure I understand, that's it, Eastwood.

It is the gospel of Jesus Christ.

I hope today, perhaps some of you have seen yourself as Barabbas and maybe have

a thankful heart that Jesus has saved you, that he took your place.

I hope some of you today may have realized possibly for the first time,

there's nothing good I can do.

Jesus lived the life I couldn't live.

And he died in my place. He took all the punishment, all the wrath of God. He drank it to the dregs.

Every last bit of it, every last drop of it went to Jesus that should have went to you and me.

If that doesn't break your heart, if that doesn't cause you to rejoice, I don't know what will.

Today, I encourage you and I challenge you to stand in awe of what your Savior has done for you.

Boy, that kind of love, that's motivating love, isn't it? Isn't that motivating love, church?

That's the kind of love that makes you want to get up on Sunday morning to come to Sunday school.

Come on! That's the kind of love that makes you want to be faithful to Jesus

in every area of your life.

To not be a Sunday morning only Christian.

It's the kind of love that makes you want to share your faith with people who

are lost and dying in this community.

Not talking about a spectator sport here. We're talking about life.

We're talking about life more abundantly.

Y'all, that's the kind of love that makes you forgive other people when they wrong you.

You hear me? Come on, church. You hear what I'm saying? That's the kind of love

when you realize that your sin is so filthy and bad that Jesus' blood covered you.

You are the Barabbas. you're Barabbas. And until you grasp that,

I don't think you understand the gospel.

Until you grasp it, you're just religious.

You go through the motions. But when you grasp it, when God's Holy Spirit gets

a hold of you, I promise you, your heart will be broken and you will come before

him in repentance and faith saying, Lord, thank you for your forgiveness.

And I promise you, when you look at the foot of the cross and your sin,

just yours, nobody else's, Yours is enough.

When you look at yours, you won't ever be able to point your finger at somebody else again.

Because you're going to say, whoa, if Jesus forgave me of the mess in my life, he can forgive anybody.

If that's not how you feel, you don't know the gospel.

You have never tasted the grace of Almighty God. Never. I challenge you today.

Be amazed at your king, what he did for you.

Man, get real. This may be your last day to repent. I don't know.

I'm not trying to scare you. I'm just telling you the truth.

Some of you, you may not have another chance.

Today's your day to say, Jesus, forgive me. Lord, I see what you did for me.

And for some, it may be the day you just need to go to somebody and ask their forgiveness.

Say, forgive me for my attitude towards you. Forgive me for holding something

against you that Jesus has forgiven.

Okay, that may be something you need to do. It may be that you need to come

to this altar and say, Lord, forgive me of my attitudes.

Forgive me of my wondering.

See, judgment begins at the house of God. Revival begins with me and you, right?

That's the heart. Lord, send revival. Start with me. Is that your prayer today?

Is your heart right with God? Have you been forgiven?

Have you experienced what Barabbas experienced, church?

Can you imagine the joy this murderer, this insurrectionist had that Jesus took

his place and he didn't have to die?

And us far greater spiritually speaking, Jesus stood in my place and yours.

You deserved it. He took it.

And now don't miss that last part. And I'm being quiet. Don't miss it.

When God looks at your life, he doesn't see your sin anymore. What does he see?

He sees the blood of Jesus and he sees the righteous life that Jesus lived in your place.

That's the only reason any of us get to heaven is Jesus' righteous life.

You can't be good enough ever, even after being a Christian.

Jesus' righteous life is the only thing that gets you to heaven.

And God crediting that life lived on your behalf.

Paid in full. Jesus paid it all. All to him I owe. Let's stand.

Father God, I pray this morning that your Holy Spirit is moving in this place, Lord.

I pray people respond to the gospel today and to what you've done for them in obedience and faith.

In Jesus' name. As Ms. Sharon plays, you pray, you respond, you do business

with God. I don't matter.

Take me out of the equation today. don't do it for me, never do it for me I

don't matter, I'm irrelevant Jesus is the one who's relevant today you respond

to what his Holy Spirit has called you to do.