Behold the Man

Let us pray.

Father God,

we don't take for granted the privilege of prayer,

the gift and blessing that you have given us of communion with you,

of coming to speak as a son to a father,

knowing as we do through the grace that you have lavished on us in salvation

and the working of the Holy Spirit,

that your heart is inclined to us,

that you delight in us,

that you care,

that we understand and are blessed and strengthened by the truth that you've given to us in your word.

And this morning I am thankful for the fact that I,

as well as your people who are here saved by your grace,

can rely upon the work of the Holy Spirit to take the sweetness of the Scriptures

and open them for us,

that we,

seeing the Lord Jesus Christ,

might grow in our love for Him.

if you do not work,

my words are fruitless,

our hearts are unchanged,

and so we plead with you

to so lift up Jesus through the enabling of the Holy Spirit

that we are changed from glory into glory.

I ask this in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

You who have known me know that I am an individual who,

I'm hardwired with a certain level of emotional tenor.

How's that?

And it's just the way it is.

It was a long journey for me to come to the place of recognizing that that's the way God made me.

And to suppress it,

or to overplay it,

would be wrong.

And I have to tell you that I mention that because this morning's passage,

John chapter 19,

John 19 · chapter mention

at least so far in my studies in the Gospels,

is one that has gripped my heart in a way that I have a hard time expressing adequately.

I remember when Pastor Saul preached on John 3.16.

And you may remember that he took his shoes off that day.

Do you remember that?

Well, I would think that it's appropriate for me to take my shoes off in this case,

but I won't.

But I think it's appropriate to tell you ahead of time what I believe the Holy Spirit's intention is

in our looking at this passage.

In Ephesians chapter 3, verse 14 through 19,

Ephesians 3:14–19

Paul prays for the church, and he prays this,

that we would have the Holy Spirit's enabling, the strength,

to comprehend with all the saints.

Can anybody finish it off for me?

God is supremely interested,

maybe supremely is overstatement,

but he is very interested in you being overwhelmed with the beauty of the love of Christ.

I've got to tell you,

apart from the enabling of the Holy Spirit,

I cannot preach,

and you cannot comprehend that truth.

But the passage that we are going to be looking at here in this text in John chapter 19

John 19 · chapter mention

is one that if your heart is tuned by the Spirit of God,

cannot help but grow in your affection and your awe and your overwhelming thanksgiving,

that the Lord of glory, the creator of this universe, loves you.

It's overwhelming.

I think of 1 Peter chapter 1,

1 Peter 1 · chapter mention

and I want you to keep your finger in John chapter 19,

John 19 · chapter mention

but go to 1 Peter chapter 1 just for a moment.

1 Peter 1 · chapter mention

As Peter

deals with the subject of

our affections for the Lord Jesus Christ,

verse 8,

I've got to stop and ask you the question,

is that entirely true?

Does that characterize

your thoughts

and your affections?

Though you do not now see him,

you believe in him

and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible

and filled with glory.

Peter

reflects on Jesus

and says,

wow,

my heart is so filled

with love

and thanksgiving

and affection

for Jesus

that,

as he says there at the last part,

it is with a joy that is inexpressible

inexpressible

and full of glory.

You look there in verse 12

and talking about the sufferings of Christ

that are referenced in verse 11,

it says,

it was revealed to them

that they were serving

not themselves

but you

in the things

that have now been announced

to you

through those who preach

the good news to you

by the Holy Spirit

sent from heaven

things

into which

angels

long

to look.

What you and I

have in front of us

this morning

is

spiritual reality

that is of such a nature

that angels still

ponder

with curiosity

and awe

and a lack

of full comprehension

of that which you and I

have been the recipients of

and God intends for us

to appreciate

and be affected by.

That being said,

let me have you turn to the text

in John chapter 19

John 19 · chapter mention

and take up the passage.

Then Pilate

took Jesus

and flogged him

and the soldiers

twisted together

a crown of thorns

and put it on his head

and arrayed him

in a purple robe.

They came to him

saying,

Hail,

King of the Jews

and struck him

with their hands.

Pilate went out

and said to them,

See,

I am bringing him out

to you

that you may know

that I find no guilt

in him.

So Jesus came out

wearing the crown of thorns

and the purple robe.

Pilate said to them,

Behold the man.

When the chief priests

and officers saw him

they cried out,

Crucify him!

Crucify him!

Pilate said to them,

Take him yourselves

and crucify him

for I find no guilt

in him.

The Jews answered,

We have a law

and according to that law

he ought to die

because he has made himself

to be the son of God.

What John records for us

here in this passage

is the scene

of the creator

of this universe,

the one who sustains

all things by his word,

our God and Savior

and the one who someday

will be the judge

of all the living

and the dead,

being grossly abused

and mistreated

by religious leaders

and by the Roman authorities

at the moment.

And John pictures for us

a Savior

who is marching stalwartly

and as it says

in the scriptures,

his face set as a flint

towards the cross

in order to be our Redeemer

and our Savior.

And as we look

at this passage,

I would plead with you

that you,

dependent upon the Holy Spirit,

might allow the reality

of what

he has chosen

to reveal to us

to so affect you

that you do not live

the way you did before

after you ponder

adequately

the truth

of what we have here.

The purpose of God

giving us his truth

is that we,

seeing it,

beholding as it says

in 2 Corinthians

in a mirror,

are changed.

And I trust

that you are changed

by your growing affection

for the Lord Jesus Christ

and an understanding

of what he did

in dying for your sins

and rising again

and being your Savior

and never stopping

in his affection for you.

Let's take up

number one,

verse one,

and look at the flogging.

The account tells us

that after the crowd

had already rejected Jesus

and had chosen Barabbas,

who was a murderer,

seditious,

and Pilate had

granted their request,

he then,

subsequent to that granting,

had Jesus flogged.

Now,

I want you to know

that there is some disagreement

as to whether or not

Jesus was scourged

once or twice.

And I can't say

that there is a passage

that completely puts the weight

on one or the other,

but I think that

my inclination

is to believe

that Jesus was actually

flogged twice.

The reason for that

is that the Romans,

being who they were,

very, very meticulous

and conscientious

about the execution of law,

had actually three different

kinds of flogging

that were administered.

I don't know

if any of you are here

to remember

when a young man

from Dayton

decided that he would,

what did he do,

throw gum

on the sidewalk

in Singapore.

You remember that?

And the poor guy

was going to be caned.

And there was just

all this,

this,

you know,

breast beating

and whining

over here in America.

The thought of a poor boy

being spanked

with a cane

four strokes

was just beyond the pale.

I mean,

people were just

going off on it

and finally I think

he got a couple

light strokes.

Caning in Singapore

is not designed

as a kind of

demonstration of affection.

It's designed

to make people

adequately afraid

that they don't want

to do whatever

they were doing

previously.

Roman flogging

far exceeded

what caning

in Singapore

ever comes close to.

There were actually

three forms

or three steps.

One was

kind of a

damaging scourging

that you would end up

carrying the marks

because the scourge

designed as it was

had little bits

of metal,

had bone,

had pieces of lead

in the straps

and when you struck

a man with that

it actually

break the flesh

and leave lasting

marks.

The individual

was stripped naked,

his hands tied

above his head

on a post

and the scourge

was applied

to all exposed parts

adequately and liberally.

There was no

number that was

attached to the scourging.

In the Jewish

system of punishment

you were not

to exceed

forty strokes.

Does anybody know

why?

There was a barrier

put lest there be

a disregard

for the man

and so generally

what happened

is in Jewish

flogging

you only had

thirty-nine strokes.

The Romans

had no such

hindrance

and they did

whatever they

wanted to.

The first level

of scourging

was for a

minor punishment.

It was something

that was

inflicted publicly

and people

who watched it

thought to themselves

whoa

I don't want

to be that guy.

A more

severe

system

of flogging

was used

specifically

for extracting

a confession

of someone

that was accused

of a crime

and

here's how

those floggings

went.

Generally

the person

was flogged

enough

to bring him

to the point

whether he

committed the crime

or not

he was willing

to say

what?

I did it

I did it

I just

stopped

the beating.

The third

form of

flogging

or scourging

was reserved

for those

who had

already been

condemned

to crucifixion

and the

crucifixion

was the

final act

the scourging

was the

kind of

the opening

act

to that

brutality

and

not atypical

of that

scourging

the

scourge

that was

used

and bits

of bone

and lead

and glass

and whatever

else

would literally

cut through

the skin

down to

the very

bones

and cause

such damage

that in

some cases

the individuals

did not

make it

to the

cross.

The reason

Jesus

had to have

his cross

carried

was not

because it

was exceptionally

heavy.

The reason

he had to

have his cross

carried

is because

the scourging

was of such

a nature

that it

caused

damage

that he

couldn't

do it.

I assure

you of

this

our

Savior

in his

resolute

march

toward

Calvary

had no

intention

of avoiding

the burden

that he

had.

It was

beyond the

ability

of human

existence

to do

it and

so someone

stepped in

to help.

It does

seem

that the

first scourging

along with

the abuse

that we

read of

in John

John 19:1

19

verse 1

was designed

by Pilate

to satisfy

an angry

crowd.

All right

you want

judgment

you want

something done

with this

guy that

you dislike

and so

I'll do

something that

will satisfy

your anger

and your

irritation.

I had the

privilege of

being father

to four

children.

I hate to

confess this

and I

shouldn't tell

the story

on my

children

but there

were moments

in my

children's

lives

where the

other

children

were quite

interested

in the

judgment

being

administered

to their

brother or

sister

because they

were deeply

offended by

the crime

that had

taken place.

How many

of you

understand

that?

I remember

on one

occasion

bringing in

one of the

highly indignant

but very

satisfied

members

of the

children

that I

was raising

and I

gave them

a similar

dose.

I said

you're really

happy with

the judgment

and the

punishment

that your

brother is

my brother

you know

my boys

yep

okay

you're happy

with what

they're

receiving

let me

tell you

something

your heart

ought to be

broken for

their suffering

oh no

I'm happy

I said

well then

join me

inside

Pilate

hoped

that if

he abused

Jesus

adequately

and shamed

him publicly

it would

satisfy the

crowd

and so

what you

see there

in verse

one

Pilate

took

and he

flogged

him

and the

soldiers

twisted

together

a crown

remember

the

accusation

that the

Jews

had brought

first of

all

was

this

guy

wants

to

be

king

oh yeah

well I'm

going to

cram a

crown of

thorns

down on

his head

and you

want to

be king

I gave

you a

crown

and we

throw a

robe

around him

and the

soldiers

were

abusing

and mocking

him

I want

you to

stop for

a moment

and in

the middle

of that

gross

mistreatment

by those

soldiers

and an

activity that

was designed

to satisfy

the blood

lust of

godless

wicked

people

I want

you to

imagine our

savior stooping

down to

allow sinful

men to lie

about him

and mistreat

him

that's what

he did

for you

that's what

he did

for me

and if

you ever

find yourself

in a

situation

where you

are fully

persuaded that

you are being

maligned and

mistreated and

you don't have

it coming

I want to

remind you

what Jesus

did for

you and

he did

it because

you deserved

it and

he did

it in

your place

after this

gross

mistreatment

that I

believe took

place for

no other

reason than

to satisfy

the ugly

and ill

spirited

crowd

Pilate

comes out

to the

crowd

and what

does he

say

verse 4

see I

am bringing

him out

to you

that you

may know

I find

no guilt

in him

now remember

three kinds

of scourging

one

punishment

for minor

offense

two

scourgings

that were

designed

to bring

out a

confession

hey

I've put

him through

the ringer

and this

guy's

okay

you can

see

that he

has

suffered

and there's

no indication

of his

guilt

during the

middle ages

how many of

you have

seen those

pictures of

trial by

fire

or trial

by drowning

I mean

do you ever

see those

pictures

in history

class

where a

person

would be

dunked

and if

they were

innocent

they would

come out

regardless

well I gotta

tell you

if you hold

anybody under

long enough

guess what's

gonna happen

they're gonna

be guilty

it just

happens

and here is

Pilate

bringing out

Jesus

and says

hey

it's okay

there's nothing

wrong with

this guy

and here is

Pilate

saying

he's

innocent

and then

I look at

that little

statement

there

behold the

man

in verse

5

I don't

believe there

is any

deep theological

implication to

this

it is just

Pilate saying

here's the

guy

and you

have to

understand

that the

Jews had

presented

Jesus as

this usurper

this man

who intended

to be a

rebel against

Rome and

was going to

be the king

of the Jews

and now

Pilate

brings him

out as

this

kind of

pathetic

beaten

individual

and says

there he

is

look at

him

Pilate's

efforts

to deliver

Jesus

met with

nothing

other than

increased

anger

and hatred

you look

there in

verse 6

when the

chief priests

and officers

saw him

they cried

out

crucify him

crucify him

Pilate said

to them

take him

yourselves

and crucify

him

for I

find no

guilt

in him

now if

you were

to go

to the

synoptic

gospels

you would

find that

in one

of the

gospels

it refers

to the

fact that

Pilate

as he was

listening

to the

growing

agitation

and anger

of the

crowd

he was

fully

afraid

that there

was going

to be

some

kind

of

rebellion

or

some

kind

of

violence

break

out

if you

were a

student

of history

you would

know that

Pilate

had already

gotten himself

in trouble

for over

reacting

to

Jewish

attitudes

and punishing

them severely

and killing

a number

of them

in fact

the

Caesar

had then

demoted

Pilate

for a

period of

time

and so

here he

is

he's in

a touchy

situation

he doesn't

want to

deal with

the crowd

and create

any further

difficulty

with Caesar

and so

he hears

them crying

crucify

and here

he says

take him

and crucify

him

yourself

take him

crucify

him

yourself

find no

guilt

in him

by the

way

did

the Jews

have the

right

to crucify

Jesus

the answer

is

no

verse 7

the Jews

answered him

we have a

law

according to

that law

he ought

to die

because

he has

made

himself

to be

the son

of God

I do want

you to know

that if you

listen long

enough

eventually

what people

really think

comes to

the surface

isn't that

right

huh

that's the

way it

is

it's one

of the

reasons

why it

says in

first

Timothy

don't lay

hands

on any

man

suddenly

some

men's

sins

are

evident

very

quickly

and others

take a

little

while to

come to

the

surface

or eventually

come out

and so

over time

what's inside

comes outside

and here

we find

the real

heart

of the

Jewish

accusers

centered in

on

what Jesus

had said

about himself

and their

violent reaction

against that

truth

and so now

I want you to

recognize a

second part

in this

story

and that

is the

frightened

spirit

of

Pilate

the text

records

in verse

8

that what

he heard

now

frightened

Pilate

and Pilate

was afraid

of condemning

Jesus

and why

is that

Pilate

heard this

statement

and he

even

was more

afraid

I want you

to turn

in your

Bible

just for a

moment

you're there

in John

keep your

finger

we're

going to

come

back

but go

back

to

Matthew

Matthew 27:19

chapter

27

verse 19

Matthew

Matthew 27:19

chapter

27

verse 19

there it

says

besides

while he

was sitting

in the

judgment

seat

on the

judgment

seat

his wife

sent

word

to him

have

nothing

to do

with that

righteous

man

for I

have

suffered

much

because

of him

today

in a

dream

you get

the scene

Pilate

in the

process

of judging

Jesus

in comes

a messenger

leans

down

close

to his

ear

and says

by the

way

your

wife

wants

you

to know

that

you

really

shouldn't

bring

judgment

down

on this

guy

because

he

is

a

righteous

man

and

your

wife

wants

you

to

know

that

she

suffered

a

lot

last

night

how

many

of you

guys

really

have

learned

that

it's

a

good

idea

to

listen

when

your

wife

talks

to

you

about

serious

things

Pilate

would have

been

well

served

to say

ooh

but

going

back

to

John

John 19 · chapter mention

chapter

19

we

find

here

that

he

is

afraid

but

I

want

you

to

understand

that

his

fear

and

his

concern

about

the

issue

of

injustice

and

even

the

dream

that

his

wife

had

had

did

not

override

the

concern

and

fear

that

he

had

for

the

crowd

and

I

want

you

to

understand

that

Pilate

was

actually

more

afraid

of

the

crowd

and

their

accusation

than

he

was

of

causing

injustice

in

the

case

of

Jesus

look

there

at

verse

12

from

that

time

on

Pilate

sought

to

release

him

but

the

Jews

cried

out

if

you

release

this

man

you

are

not

Caesar's

friend

everyone

who

makes

himself

a

king

opposes

Caesar

guess

what the

career

path

was

for

any

professional

Roman

diplomat

or

leader

who

opposed

Caesar

guess

what

it

was

there

was

a

significant

demotion

and

depending

upon what

the crime

was

it

could

be

actually

execution

a

Pilate

as I

said

earlier

history

records

he'd

already

gotten

in

trouble

with

Caesar

once

and

so

here

we

have

the

Jews

ready

to

go

on

riot

and

Caesar

or

Pilate

is

facing

this

angry

violent

belligerent

crowd

and

when

he

says

I

don't

find

anything

wrong

with

this

guy

they

just

inflamed

the

more

shouting

crucify

crucify

and

he

comes

out

again

and

comes

to

grips

with

the

reality

that

all

these

people

wanted

was

Christ

death

and

they

insist

if

you

let

him

go

you

are

not

Caesar's

friend

and

the

implication

is

and

we

will

let

Caesar

know

that

you

turned

him

loose

someone

who

is

claiming

to

be

the

king

of

the

Jews

we

can

kind

of

sense

Pilate's

irritation

at

being

manipulated

look at

verse

14

now

it

was

the

day

of

preparation

of

the

Passover

it

was

about

the

sixth

hour

and

he

said

to

the

Jews

what

behold

your

king

they

cried

take

him

away

take

him

away

crucify

him

Pilate

said

to

them

shall

I

crucify

your

king

we

have

no

king

but

Caesar

so

he

delivered

them

over

he

delivered

him

over

to

them

to

be

crucified

how

much

you

think

through

with

me

what

this

scene

represents

here

is

here

is

Pilate

dealing

with

his

sense

of

the

impropriety

the

dishonesty

the

problem

of

condemning

an

innocent

man

and yet

he

is

quite

willing

to

do

that

because

of

his

fear

of

the

crowd

and

his

fear

of

what

would

happen

to

him

if

he

didn't

do

that

he

was

afraid

of

Caesar

he

was

afraid

of

people

he

really

wasn't

afraid

of

the

injustice

and

God

the

judge

but

we

find

that

he

does

kind

of

look

to

strike

in

his

anger

against

the

Jews

and

he

brings

up

this

issue

well

hey

do

you

want

me

to

crucify

your

king

well

here

he

is

here

is

your

king

and

their

answer

is

very

interesting

we

have

no

king

but

Caesar

later

AD

74

you

know

what

would

happen

to

Jerusalem

it

was

going

to

be

torn

down

stone

for

stone

right

down

to

the

ground

and

just

countless

thousands

put to

death

because

they

had

rebelled

against

the

king

that

they

said

they

had

we

have

no

king

but

Caesar

incidentally

in

one

of

the

synoptics

these

same

people

that

said

we

have

no

king

but

Caesar

said

this

remember

when

Pilate

washed

his

hands

I'm

innocent

of

this

incidentally

you're

turning

him

over

to

be

crucified

and

you

think

pouring

water

over

your

hands

makes

any

difference

and

when

he

said

I

am

innocent

of

this

they

said

what

his

blood

be

on

us

and

on

our

children

this

morning

as we

look

at

this

passage

I

want

you

to

understand

that

we

are

looking

at

a

perfect

illustration

of

how

sin

blinds

a

person

to

do

and

say

vile

things

that

will

bring

down

unimaginable

sorrow

do you

realize

that

we

have

in

this

instance

a

throng

that

was

ready

to

crucify

an

innocent

man

who

had

done

nothing

but