Pilate's Staircase (Dr. Steven Grabiner, 03/15/25)

So this morning, I want to study something about

the life of Pilate. In Rome, there's a staircase

that individuals climb up, oftentimes on their

knees. You're probably familiar with Martin Luther

doing something like that, and partway up, thinking

to himself, does this make any sense? And hearing

the words from the Book of Romans, that just

shall live by faith. So those stairs were transported

by Constantine's mother. She went to Jerusalem

in the 300s looking for sites that were connected

with the events in the life of Jesus. And there

is a fortress there, the Antonian Fortress, which

is next to the Temple Mount. And there was a

set of stairs that she believed were the stairs

that Jesus walked out of when he was condemned

by Pilate. The authenticity of the stairs is

100 % contested. But the truth is, Jesus did

leave Pilate's courthouse. And the stairs that

he walked down, I'm using as a metaphor this

morning for the stairs that Pilate walked down

or the steps that Pilate took that turned him

away from Jesus. And that's what I want to study

with you this morning. The steps, the decisions

that led Pilate, who had this close interaction

with Jesus. that led him, instead of surrendering

to Christ, led him away from Christ. So if you

have your Bibles, turn with me back to the Gospel

of John, John chapter 18. I want to get a little

John 18 · chapter mention

bit of context this morning. John chapter 18.

John 18 · chapter mention

And there's a number of interesting historical

points that are going on here. By the way, my

background is Jewish. I was converted. when I

was in my early 20s. So I have a particular interest

in Jewish history and things particularly that

are pertaining to scriptures. And we know that

Jesus was arrested in the evening and then hurried

to a trial before the Sanhedrin. That group of

individuals condemned Jesus and then they bring

him to Pilate. But there were several irregularities

in that trial. First of all, you were never supposed

to try somebody at night. That was against Jewish

law. Second, the high priest was never to be

involved in a trial. Third, there was supposed

to be at least a day or two between the trial

part and the condemnation. Also, you would never

have a trial on a... Friday evening or before

a festival like the Passover. So all sorts of

Jewish law was broken in the very act of examining

Jesus and ultimately condemning him. So but in

John chapter 18, starting in verse 28, they lead

John 18 · chapter mention

Jesus from Caiaphas into the praetorium. Praetorium

was the... the place where Pilate had his residence

and a judgment seat. And if you go to Jerusalem,

it's fairly connected with what's called the

Citadel of David today. But we notice also something

else here. They themselves, verse 28, would not

enter into the praetorium. For what reason? Why

wouldn't they go in? They didn't want to defile

themselves. Think for a moment of the... Mental

blindness. Here they break all these laws, and

they're about to condemn this man to death, but

what don't they want to do? They don't want to

defile themselves. I wonder, is it ever possible

for us to be so focused on a minutia of something

that we miss larger issues, that we miss greater

matters of the law in our desire to protect something?

Very small. So that's what happens. So they come.

It's early morning. And then in verse 29, it

says, Therefore Pilate went out to them and said,

What accusation do you bring against this man?

And as you read through the story carefully,

particularly in the Gospel of John, we're going

to look at John, Luke, and Matthew this morning.

But particularly in the Gospel of John, you see

this movement out and in. Pilate goes out, and

then he comes back in, and the scenes shift back

and forth, and the whole trial is built around

this movement back and forth. So verse 29, Pilate

goes out to them and asks, what accusation do

you bring against this man? What's their response?

What's the charge? And then how do they respond?

He is evil. What does it say? If he wasn't guilty,

what? We wouldn't have brought him to you. What's

the implication there? Pilate, just find him

guilty. You don't need to waste any time on this.

Just do what we'd like you to do. And I'm sure

there have been past times when Pilate did that,

but for a variety of reasons. It's early morning,

they disturb him, a host of different issues.

Something is different here. In verse 30, they

declare, if he wasn't an evildoer, we wouldn't

bring him to you. Verse 31, well, you take him

and you charge him yourself. But the Jews were

not permitted to put anyone to death. Verse 32,

to fulfill the word of Jesus, which he spoke

signifying by what kind of death he was about

to die. Verse 33, therefore Pilate entered again

into the praetorium. And summoned Jesus and said

to him, are you the king of the Jews? Just imagine.

Try to picture the scene, please. Here you are.

You're the governor. You're in charge of this

region. You've been disturbed. You're upset.

There's this man before you. And you ask him

this question, are you the king of the Jews?

And notice the response that Jesus gives. Verse

34. Jesus answered, are you saying this on your

own initiative? Or did others tell you about

me? In other words, are you saying this because

you're interested? Are you saying this because

you have a question? Or simply because of what

others said? I've often done evangelistic series

or Bible studies. And there comes a point in

every person's life, all of our lives, where

we are confronted with truth, like Pilate was

this morning, this particular morning. And sometimes

emotions rise up. Notice what Pilate's response

is. Pilate is asked a question by Jesus, why

are you asking me? And I believe inside Pilate's

heart, Pilate really wanted to know. Are you

the king of the Jews? And there was this longing

to know what was true. But when confronted, Pilate

takes a step down the staircase. And how does

he respond? Verse 35. Pilate answered, I'm not

a Jew, am I? Your nation and the chief priests

delivered you to me. What have you done? What

rises up in Pilate's heart? I'm not a Jew. I

mean, the Jews are slaves. I'm a Roman. How would

we call that attitude? Pardon me? Pride. Exactly

right. One of the first steps that Pilate takes

is that he allows his pride to well up. And pride

often keeps us as a barrier from following biblical

truth. Well, I'm not going to humble myself in

repentance. I'm not going to confess. In my conversion

story, just a small snippet of it, in my teenage

years, I had a habit of stealing things. Not

proud to say it, but I did have a habit of stealing

things. And when I was converted, I was convicted

that I needed to go back and make restitution.

And so I had like a list of places that I had

to go back to and say, you know, I took this

and I'd like to pay for it. It was a humbling

experience. But for me, it was part of my process.

But sometimes pride wells up inside. So that's

the first step that Pilate takes on this metaphorical

stairway. Verse 36, notice what Jesus answers.

My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom

were of this world, then my servants would be

fighting so that I would not be handed over to

them. Hand it over to the Jews. But as it is,

my kingdom is not of this realm. Therefore, Pilate

said to him, so you are a king. Could you imagine

that? Here, Pilate, like, I don't know, in my

imagination, you know, he almost lifts up out

of his throne. You're really a king? And Jesus

responds, you say correctly that I am a king.

For this I have been born and for this I come

into the world to testify of the truth. And everyone

who is of the truth hears my voice. Verse 38,

notice the question. And Pilate said to him,

what? What is truth? He is in front of the one

who said, I am the way and the truth. And the

light. He is in front of the one who is truth

embodied. And he asks the question. What is truth?

But he doesn't wait for an answer. What happens?

When he said this. He again went out to the Jews.

Maybe the crowd called him. Maybe he heard some

noise outside. Maybe they began to yell. But

whatever it was. He got distracted from an opportunity

to hear from the lips who was truth. What is

truth? I'm sure Jesus would have answered the

question. But instead of spending that time with

Jesus, something distracted him. Do we ever get

distracted in our life? Want to have a devotional

moment? Some quiet time? And then, oh, I don't

know. Do you ever get notifications on your phone?

Like a ding and a bip. You know, just distractions.

Leadership tip, turn off all notifications on

your phone. Like, just turn them off. But something

distracted Pilot. He got busy with the work at

hand. And sometimes that happens to us as well.

Just the pressures of life keep us from getting

an answer to the question. that we ask in prayer.

We're just too busy. And so this is another step

that Pilate takes. First, it's pride rises up.

I'm not a Jew. I'm not going to listen to this.

Then when he asks this question, pregnant with

meeting, what is truth? What a lost opportunity.

How many lost opportunities do we have? Something

just comes, and we're in that spiritual moment,

and we get distracted. And you know what it's

like. You begin to get distracted. Oh, yeah,

I just need to check this one thing, and then

20 minutes later, where are you? So Pilate is

making steps, and we repeat those same things

sometimes. Pride, we get too busy. Again, it

continues in verse 38. He goes out to the Jews,

and he says to them, I find no fault in him,

no guilt in him at all, but you have a custom

that I will release for you someone at Passover.

Who do you wish that I release for you? Do you

wish, rather, that I release for you the king

of the Jews? And they cried out again, saying,

Not this man, but Barabbas, a robber. So it's

interesting. Let's pause there for a moment.

Let's flip over to Luke chapter 23. Luke 23.

Luke 23 · chapter mention

Luke adds an insight into the story that John...

Excludes Luke chapter 23. But it's around the

Luke 23 · chapter mention

same exact point. Starting in verse 19, Luke

Luke 23:19

23 verse 19, Pilate has just come out. He said

he has no guilt in him. And he asks, who should

I let go? Verse 15. No, nor has, excuse me, back

up in verse 4, pardon me, back up in verse 4.

Then Pilate said to the chief priests in the

crowds, I find no guilt in him. Pilate does this

twice. But they kept insisting, saying, he stirs

up the people, teaching all over Judea, starting

from Galilee, even as far as this place. And

when Pilate heard it, he asked whether the man

was a Galilean. And when he learned that he belonged

to Herod's jurisdiction, he sent Jesus to Herod.

So Herod happened to be in Jerusalem at that

particular time. Herod had a palace there. Herod

had palaces in many different places. And when

Pilate comes out and tells the Jewish leaders,

I find no fault in him, they begin to push back

at him. So he gets this idea. Well, this is what

I'll do. I'll send him over to Herod. And I'll

let Herod make a decision. In other words, he's

moving his responsibility. And in spiritual things,

That is something you and I cannot escape. Sometimes

we want to see that. Well, you know, if so -and

-so does this, then I'll do it. If my spouse

does it, well, then I'll do it. We wait for someone

else to make a decision, thinking that we can

turn our responsibility over to someone else.

But in spiritual things, we cannot escape our

responsibility. We might ignore it. We might

delay it. We might try to pass it off onto somebody

else. But our responsibility is ours. And that

was the next step that Pilate took away. Well,

maybe I can send him over to Herod. Unfortunately,

that doesn't work out very well for Pilate. And

I think all of this really, in honesty, is designed

because Jesus is wanting to save Pilate. And

this whole scenario, Jesus is praying. Now, before

Herod, Jesus doesn't say a word. He has no words

any longer for Herod who put to death John the

Baptist. And so Luke tells us that they send

Jesus over to Herod's palace and they mock Jesus

and they beat him. Let's look here back in Luke

Luke 23:8–12

chapter 23, verses 8 through 12. But Herod doesn't

condemn Pilate, excuse me, Herod doesn't condemn

Jesus either. And so then... Pilate receives

Jesus back again. So let's go back to John chapter

John 19 · chapter mention

19. So at the end of chapter 18, Pilate has already

taken several steps. His pride rose up. He became

too busy. He decided he was going to shift his

responsibility, move it to somebody else. Chapter...

19 of the Gospel of John. Now, notice, Pilate

had just declared that Jesus was innocent. What

do you do with an innocent man? You let them

go, right? Pilate comes up with another idea.

Verse 19. Then Pilate took Jesus and scourged

him. And the soldiers twisted a crown of thorns

and put it on his head and put a purple robe

on him. And they began to come up and they say,

Hail, King of the Jews, and slapped him in the

face. And Pilate came out again and said to them,

said to the crowd, He brings Jesus out now. And

he says, Behold, I'm bringing him out to you

so that you may know that I find no guilt in

him. Verse 5. Jesus then came out wearing the

crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate

said to them, Behold the man. Think for a moment.

Pilate's been convicted, but his pride rises

up. Pilate has an opportunity to hear what truth

is, but he turns away. Pilate realizes this man

is innocent, but he tries to move his responsibility.

It comes back to him. He says Jesus is innocent,

but then he beats him and then brings the beaten

Christ out before the crowd Compromise. Okay,

well maybe we can meet part way. Maybe if you,

if I just beat him, and then you'll feel sympathetic,

but then we can really let him go. Compromise

is probably the most deadly thing in spiritual

life. Now there are plenty of places we should

compromise. You want a different color of the

carpet? Let's compromise. You know, food? Let's

compromise in certain areas. You know, let's,

there's plenty of places we can compromise. But

when, The Word of God speaks to us and we're

convicted. Compromise isn't an option. We need

to follow the conviction of the Holy Spirit.

But Pilate doesn't. He compromises here in the

hope that the crowd will say, let him go. That

doesn't work very well. Have you ever had that

experience in your life? You try, well, let me

try to compromise a little bit and see what happens.

Usually we end up sliding further and further

away from our convictions. Pilate came out, brings

them before them, and just envisioned that scene.

Jesus has been beaten. The soldiers took the

time to, like in Jerusalem grows these little

thorny bushes, and so they took the time to get

these thorny bushes and weave them into some

kind of a crown -like shape and thrust it on

his head. Sweat, blood coming down his face,

his back lacerated. Behold the man. Even the

Roman soldiers were becoming convicted that Jesus

should be let go. But the crowd cries out, crucify

him, crucify him. And the crowd starts moving.

It becomes very hard to... turn its direction

in a different way. So, still going on in Matthew,

excuse me, in John chapter 19. Verse 6, chief

John 19 · chapter mention

priests and the officers, they cried out, crucify

him, crucify him. Pilate said, take him yourselves

and crucify him. I find no guilt in him. Verse

7, then the Jews answered him, we have a law.

and by that law he ought to die because he made

himself the Son of God. Therefore, when Pilate

heard this statement, he was even more afraid.

At this point in time, in Pilate's experience,

he hears about another dimension. He's noticed

the godlike appearance of Christ. He could tell

that there is something different here. And when

the Jewish leaders make this statement, he has

made himself to be the son of God, Pilate becomes

greatly concerned. Let's flip over to Matthew

Matthew 27 · chapter mention

chapter 27 for a moment. Matthew chapter 27.

Matthew 27 · chapter mention

Pilate does another step that's very similar

to compromise, but it's a little different. Matthew

27, 15 through 18. Now at the feast, the governor

was accustomed to release for the people someone

they wanted. We had read that earlier in the

Gospel of John. The custom, we have no idea where

it came from. It had not a shred of justice behind

it, some kind of a custom. At the time, they

were holding, verse 16 of Matthew 27, at the

time they were holding a notorious prisoner called

Barabbas. And when the people gathered together,

Pilate said to them, Who do you want me to release

for you, Barabbas or Jesus, who is called Christ?

For he knew that because of envy, they, the Jewish

leaders, had handed him over. What's Pilate doing

here? He's letting the crowd decide. He's going

with, we could call it, majority opinion. Again,

a deadly mistake in spiritual affairs. We don't

decide truth by numbers that we can see here.

We decide truth because of the word of God. And

Pilate is continually trying to find a way out

of this corner that he's painted himself into.

He's walked down this staircase. He's walked

further from the light of Christ. Pride, too

busy, compromise, majority opinion, all these

different steps he's taking. And it's leading

him further and further away from Christ. Let's

go back to the Gospel of John. Gospel of John,

John 19 · chapter mention

chapter 19. Pick up the same thing where they

ask the question, where Pilate has asked the

question, and now he's brought them back into,

Jesus back into the praetorium. And he says in

verse 10, Pilate said to him, why don't you speak

to me? Do you not know I have authority to release

you? I have authority to crucify you? Jesus says

in verse 11, you would have no authority over

me unless it had been given to you from above.

For this reason, he who delivered me to you has

the greater sin. As a result of this, Pilate

made efforts to release him. Pilate is convicted,

but he's been walking, further into darkness.

He's binding himself into his own chains of his

own circumstances. He keeps walking away and

now he's like, I want to let you go. But he begins

to hear the crowd. And the crowd is yelling out,

crucify him, crucify him. The Gospel of Matthew

also gives us an insight here. It's back in Matthew

27. You don't have to turn there. I'll just relay

it for you. At this time... according to the

Gospel of Matthew, just before Pilate makes his

final decision, he gets a message from his wife.

And his wife says, I suffered many things of

this man in a dream that night. Don't condemn

this man. Please, try to picture this. Here's

Pilate getting tighter and tighter, bound in

his own decisions, and at the last minute, in

answer to the prayers of Jesus, I believe, Pilate's

wife sends a messenger into the whole situation

and says, let this guy go. Desire of Ages tells

us that in her dream she saw the second coming,

where she saw the trial, she saw the condemnation,

she saw the death of Christ, and she saw the

second coming. And she writes this message, let

this man go. And at that same moment, the crowd

cries out, crucify him. Don't let him go. You

are not a friend of Caesar. What's the final

step? You're going to lose your job. You're going

to lose your position. You're going to lose your

influence. You're going to lose everything if

you follow this. John chapter 19. Verse 12, as

John 19 · chapter mention

a result of this, Pilate's made effort to release

him, but the Jews cried out saying, if you release

this man, you are no friend of Caesar. Everyone

who makes himself out to be a king opposes Caesar.

Fear was the final step that bound Pilate. He'd

been walking into darkness, and this fear of

his livelihood, fear of his position, fear of

what people would say, found him fully. into

his decision. Verse 13, therefore Pilate went

out. When he heard these words, he brought out

Jesus and he sat down on the judgment seat at

the place called the pavement, but in Hebrew,

Gabbatha. Now it was the day of preparation for

the Passover. It was about the sixth hour. And

he said to the Jews, behold your king. Verse

15, they cried out, away with him, away with

him, crucify him. Pilate said. Shall I crucify

your king? The chief priest answers, we have

no king but Caesar. So many decisions taking

place that way. Pilate made his decision as well.

Verse 16, he hands Jesus over to be crucified.

Key tipping point. Now, there were many points

along the way. If he hadn't compromised, if he

hadn't asked for majority opinion, if at the

very beginning Pilate had said, no, this guy's

innocent. Get out of here. I'm not going to do

it. If he had stood for the truth right at that

point, everything would have been easier. But

even up to this point, he could have turned away.

Yes, it would have been more difficult, but he

still could have made that difference. But when

the enemy put his finger on his livelihood, fear,

what's everyone going to say about you? You're

going to be no friend of Caesar. And Pilate already

had enough political troubles. And so he takes

Jesus out and crucifies him. Two years later,

Pilate is summoned back to Rome. He loses his

position. He dies in exile. Shame, not to do

with the crucifixion, but just because of his

management. The thing that he tried to avoid

came upon him in addition to giving up the opportunity

of setting Jesus free. So friends, I don't know

really, I know some of you briefly, but what's

going on in your lives? Where are you on Pilate's

staircase? I hope you're not on the staircase

at all. But maybe there's some steps that impact

you. Maybe you're compromising. Maybe you're

too busy. Maybe you're afraid of what God's calling

you to do and what the results are going to be.

Maybe you just don't take the time to listen

to the answers to your questions before God.

Good news is, today's the day of salvation. And

Jesus is still pleading for each one of us. And

we have an opportunity today, no matter where

we are on that staircase, we can turn around,

we can jump right off of it and get back on the

path of eternal life. That's where God wants

us to be. That's the purpose of Jesus' death.

Now, some of you may be thinking, yeah, but if

Pilate let him go, what would have happened?

Jesus had to be crucified. Well, Jesus would

have been put to death. I'm sure there was another

way. But Pilate, did not have to be the one responsible

at this point. He could have made a different

decision, just like each of us can make a decision

to follow Christ. Father in heaven, as we consider

the decisions that Pilate took that led him away

from a surrender to you, we ask that you'd point

out similar areas in our own lives. Father, keep

us from making wrong decisions, decisions based

on fear. Keep us from making decisions that are

in opposition to the influence of your spirit.

Fulfill your promise in each one of us to create

in us clean hearts, new hearts, that long not

to walk in the stairs of Pilate into darkness,

but long to walk in the light of life. We thank

you in Jesus' name. Amen.