Jesus Before Pilate

Maybe it was when you tried out for a sports team,

or a musical group, or a theater troupe.

Maybe it was when you were vying for a promotion at work.

Maybe it was from a spouse,

or from a family member,

you were rejected.

We all know what rejection is.

We've all experienced rejection in some measure.

Maybe you felt rejection from even a church.

People who should be committed to you,

but you felt like they rejected you.

This morning, I want to let you know that

Jesus thoroughly understands what it means to be rejected.

This morning, we're going to look at a passage in Matthew chapter 27,

Matthew 27:11–26

verses 11 through 26.

And in this passage, we're going to see Jesus,

the Messiah, the long-awaited King,

the one in whom the whole Old Testament is anticipating to come

and take up David's throne and bring in a forever kingdom.

He's going to be rejected today.

He was innocent,

but he went willingly,

and he was rejected.

This morning, we're going to look at the trial of Jesus,

the Roman trial of Jesus before Pilate,

and this trial is going to unfold in three scenes.

The first scene is Pilate asking Jesus some questions,

and the second scene is Pilate asking a Jewish crowd some questions,

and the last scene is the verdict.

Who makes the verdict?

Scene one.

Jesus is questioned by Pilate.

Matthew 27, this is verses 11 through 14.

We read,

Now Jesus stood before the governor,

and the governor asked him,

the governor is Pilate,

Are you the king of the Jews?

Jesus said,

You have said so.

But when he was accused by the chief priests and elders,

he gave no answer.

Then Pilate said to him,

Do you not hear how many things they testify against you?

But Jesus gave him no answer,

not even to a single charge,

so that the governor, Pilate, was greatly amazed.

Now, you may be asking the question,

What is Jesus doing there,

standing before this Roman magistrate?

Verse 11,

Now Jesus stood before the governor.

How did that happen?

Here's what this passage is going to tell us.

How a Jewish Messiah ends up on a Roman cross.

As part of Roman occupation and control of Jerusalem in Israel,

part of the authority structure in understanding of the time was this.

Only Romans had the authority to kill somebody.

Only they could exercise capital punishment.

And so there's a reason why Jesus is standing before Pilate,

the Roman magistrate of that place and time.

The chief priests and elders did not have the authority to legally kill Jesus,

even if they found him guilty of death.

Which brings us back to Matthew chapter 26, 63 through 66.

Matthew 26 · chapter mention

It's Caiaphas' house.

He's the high priest, the Sanhedrin,

this kind of Jewish at this moment.

It's a little bit of a kangaroo court.

They pronounce Jesus guilty of blasphemy in verse 65.

He's claiming to be someone he's not.

And then in verse 66, they condemn him to death.

But they don't have the authority to kill him.

So they need to get the Roman magistrate on board.

It's Pontius Pilate that has to condemn Jesus to death

in order for him to die.

And so what we see happening in chapter 27, verses 1 and 2,

it's early morning now.

It's been an all-nighter by the Sanhedrin.

They've been up all night.

And now they have brought a charge.

Jesus is a blasphemer worthy of death.

And in 27, 1 and 2, when morning came, early morning,

all the chief priests and the elders of the people

took counsel against Jesus to put him to death.

How to put him to death?

And they bound him and led him away

and delivered him over to Pilate the governor.

The whole Sanhedrin trial,

the Jewish trial of Jesus took place in Caiaphas' house.

And so what happens in 27, 1 and 2,

they bind Jesus up and they bring him to Herod's castle,

which was the praetorium.

This is where the Roman magistrate would be

when he was in Jerusalem.

And so they parade him through Jerusalem early that morning.

The first morning, the first Good Friday morning.

And so what we see happening in 27, 1 and 2,

these chief priests and elders taking counsel together against Jesus.

Do you realize what they're doing?

They're trying to figure out how they can get Pilate to condemn this Jew.

And they come up with a plan.

Because they know that when they bring them before Pilate,

if they say,

Pilate, we bring this lawbreaker to you,

this blasphemer to you,

and this blasphemy is worthy of death.

Do you know what Pilate would say?

Not in the eyes of Rome.

It's not grounds for capital punishment.

So they had to think of a different charge.

And do you know what the charge they came up with?

Sedition.

Treason.

They're going to charge Jesus with being a king

who's seeking to undermine the Roman rule

and ultimately be opposed to Caesar.

Now that's something Pilate would have to take seriously.

And so what we see happening in 27, 11.

Now Jesus stood before the governor

and Pilate asked him this question.

Are you the king of the Jews?

Charges have already been brought.

He's claiming to be the king of Israel.

The Jews, Pilate.

Do something about it.

So Pilate asks him,

Are you the king of the Jews?

Are you a threat to Caesar?

Are you a threat to Rome?

Pilate's asking this question

because these are the charges

that the chief priests and elders

have leveled against Jesus.

He's being charged with being a rival king.

Jesus answers this

and his answer is measured.

You have said so.

It's an interesting answer.

You have said so.

You're saying it.

It's coming out of your mouth.

If Jesus had just said yes,

Pilate would have understood him

as making a claim of being an earthly king.

And Jesus is saying,

I'm beyond an earthly king.

We see that played out in John 19, 33 through 38

where actually John records a conversation

between Jesus and Pilate

and Jesus makes it clear

that his kingdom is not of this world.

Now if Jesus said no,

he would be denying his kingship.

And so Jesus says,

you've said so.

And so he maintains his innocence

and forces Pilate to have to make

a really difficult decision.

And then we see the next question

which comes in verse 13.

Then Pilate said to him,

do you not hear how many things

they testify against you?

Look at verse 12.

But when he was accused

by the chief priests and elders,

he gave no answer.

So here's the situation.

Throughout the praetorium,

we learn from John

that the chief priests and elders

don't go into Herod's palace

because that would defile them

on the day before the Sabbath.

And so they're staying outside

while Jesus is inside

and Pilate's kind of going back and forth

and Jesus can hear the whole thing.

And these chief priests and elders

are making accusations about Jesus

in addition to him claiming to be

an insurrectionist,

to be treasonous.

They're loading it up.

And so Pilate's hearing all this

being accused of Jesus.

And Jesus doesn't answer them a thing.

And it gets Pilate's attention.

And so in verse 13, he asks,

do you not hear how many things

they testify against you?

Are you not hearing this?

Jesus, are you not hearing this?

They want to kill you.

Do you not get how serious this is?

And in verse 14,

Jesus doesn't answer Pilate.

But he gave Pilate no answer,

not even to a single charge,

so that the governor was greatly amazed.

So Jesus is silent to the charges

of the chief priests and elders.

He's silent to Pilate's asking of a question

for why aren't you responding?

Here's what should be going through your mind.

Isaiah 53, 7,

he was oppressed and he was afflicted,

yet he opened not his mouth

like a lamb that is led to the slaughter.

Remember, this is Passover.

And like a sheep that before its shearers

is silent,

so he opened not his mouth.

His silence was purposeful.

He's intentionally being quiet.

And it impressed Pilate.

He's greatly amazed.

Jesus is not seeking to defend himself

at all costs.

I mean, how many of these trials

has Pilate overseen?

And when a charge like this,

he's used to people freaking out

and trying to defend themselves

at all costs.

They don't want to die.

Jesus is not saying a word.

It leaves an impression.

So here at the end of scene one,

we have this accusation made against Jesus,

but he's not saying anything.

He's standing before Pilate

and he's not responding.

He's silent.

He's silent.

Pilate.

What we start to see here is that

Pilate doesn't believe he's guilty.

Pilate's starting to see

this man is no threat to Rome.

He's amazed that he's not responding,

but this guy,

he's no threat to Caesar.

and so what we're going to start seeing is that

not only is Pilate unconvinced of the guilt of Jesus

he says so much in John 19 I find no guilt in him

what we're going to start seeing now is Pilate starts to seek a way to

release Jesus so what's being established here by

Matthew is that Jesus is under trial

by Pilate, Pilate is finding him

innocent Jesus is remaining silent and he's getting

accused by his own

scene 2, Pilate questions the crowd

now remember this is all during the feast this is all during the Passover

just hours before Jesus has practiced Passover

observed it with his disciples and he completely renewed it

to focus on him, his body breaking of the bread

his blood this cup

he's retooled Passover to be about his great sacrifice that he's going to make

so in verse 15 we learn about a custom that took place in Jerusalem during the Passover

and it's this now at the feast the governor was accustomed to release for the crowd any one prisoner whom they wanted

now we don't know how long this custom had been going on

but apparently there's this practice with which the Roman governor of the time Pontius Pilate appointed by Rome to maintain Roman rule

he would grant on Passover amnesty for one prisoner a prisoner of the crowd's choosing

it was great political maneuvering

it was great political maneuvering

and so this custom is taking place

the

the chief priests and elders would have known

about it and of course

Pilate would have known about it

and of course the Jews living in Jerusalem

would know about it

that's why they're at the Roman

Praetorium right now

in verse 16

we read

and they had

then a notorious prisoner called Barabbas

it's really important for you to understand who they is a reference to

they is a reference most likely to the Jewish crowd

they had already picked their prisoner

Barabbas

and what we read

is that he was notorious

the original language is more like notable

to Romans he was notorious

to the Jews living in Jerusalem

he would have been more like a hero

like a freedom fighter

we learn from Luke 23 19

that Barabbas was actually an insurrectionist

and a murderer

what he would represent

is for all those in Jerusalem

who wanted to be free of Roman rule

this guy

this guy was the guy

he was using violence

to try to get Rome

out of Jerusalem

he would have been a freedom fighter

so for many in Jerusalem

he would have been thought of as a hero

Rome would have seen him as a threat

what we know is that he was a political figure

representing the will of many in Jerusalem

and what I want you to understand is that

they most likely refers to the Jews in Jerusalem

and here comes question three

the first question to the crowd

so when they had gathered

Pilate said to them

whom do you want me to release for you

Barabbas or Jesus

who's called

the Christ

so what

Pilate is essentially doing is

is

I know you want me to release Barabbas already

but

but how about this Jesus

you know

the Christ

Messiah

your king

Pilate doesn't think

Jesus is guilty of the charges

that have been made against him

and so

he's seeking to use this custom

to release Jesus

he's given this crowd an opportunity

Pilate at this point

would have known that Jesus

had gained a following in Jerusalem

that he was well thought of by many in Jerusalem

and so what he's putting to this Jewish crowd is

who are you going to choose

you're going to choose the insurrectionist

Barabbas

murderer

or are you going to choose

the Christ

Jesus

the king

who are you going to pick

in verse 17

we start

learning of

what

is behind

this

decision to

offer Jesus

with Barabbas

verse 17

it says

Pilate knew that the chief priests

and elders

were envious

of Jesus

and it was out of envy

that they had delivered him up

excuse me

that's verse 18

they were envious

of Jesus

fame and favor

with the crowds

and they resented

his public rebukes

so Pilate

is giving this crowd

an opportunity

to circumvent

the envy

of the chief priests

and elders

he's giving them

an opportunity

to

through this custom

to choose Jesus

despite the envy

of the chief priests

and elders

he's saying

who do you want to pick

who do you want to pick

who do you want me

to release to you

the murderer

or Jesus

and in verse 19

there's still further reason

why we see

Pilate

doing this

we learn about

his wife

besides

while he was sitting

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

I'm in a dream

Pilate's wife

sent him a message

while he's on

his judgment seat

while he's

exercising decisions

now

it must have been urgent

so for my wife

to send me a text

or to call me

while I'm in a staff meeting

or an elder meeting

something like that

I know this is urgent

and she says

have nothing to do

with that righteous man

in reference to Jesus

for I have suffered much

because of him today

in a dream

we're not told

the content

of the dream

we just know

that she suffered

because of it

but what we know

about Romans

is they believed

that dreams

were omens

from the gods

and this would have

been a bad omen

but in Matthew

this is not the first time

we read about dreams

in Matthew 1 and 2 alone

there are five dreams

that God uses

to direct people

to do his will

so in light of that

it makes sense

that we have this

kind of idea

that behind this troubling dream

is God

God's at work

and this dream

of

this dream of hers

affects her

and she contacts

her husband

and it affects him

goes into

why he wants

to release Jesus

by the way

that word

for righteous man

you gotta hear

what he's saying

he's done

no wrong

now I need

to clarify something

there's nothing

in the gospels

that would make

one conclude

that Pilate

or his wife

was a follower

of Jesus

neither of them

are pronouncing

that he's

lord of their life

but what we are

seeing here

is that this

gentile magistrate

despite the

accusations

of the Jews

he sees

the innocence

of Jesus

he's not guilty

and his

maneuvering

to try to

release

Jesus

is putting

Pilate

at odds

with the Jews

now

between

this

question

in verse

17

and then

the question

that we read

in verse

21

it's essentially

the same

question

but there's

an interval

of time

in between

it

and so

Pilate

says

hey

who do you

want me to

release to you

Barabbas

or Jesus

in verse

17

and he comes

back to it

in verse

21

so who have

you decided

so there's

this period

of time

in between

and in that

period of time

verse 20

now the chief

priests

and the elders

persuaded the

crowd to ask

for Barabbas

and destroy

Jesus

and so

when we get

to verse 21

which of the two

do you want me

to release

to you

without hesitation

the crowds

respond

Barabbas

they've made

their decision

and yet

Pilate isn't

done seeking

to release

Jesus

look at the

next question

he asks

the crowd

in verse 22

then what

shall I do

with Jesus

who is called

Christ

it's almost

like this

God

using this

Gentile

magistrate

to speak

a word

to the

Jewish people

what do you

want me to

do with

the Christ

now that

you have

rejected

him

what do you

want me to

do with him

if I'm not

going to

release him

to you

what do you

want me

to do

with him

again

he's hoping

that there

are enough

in this

crowd

to recognize

that Jesus

is not

guilty

but it

totally

backfires

on him

the crowd

doesn't

fight

they all

said

let

him

be

crucified

they're

doing

what the

chief

priest

and

elders

have

persuaded

them

to do

but

they're

doing

it

it's

out

of

their

mouth

release

Barabbas

destroy

Jesus

and in

verse 23

we have

Pilate's

last question

of this

sequence

they're all

questions

so far

and again

he asks

the crowd

why

what evil

has he

done

he doesn't

get it

he doesn't

get why

they're

doing

this

but again

his question

goes to

Jesus

innocence

what evil

has he

done

he hasn't

done

anything

he sees

no guilt

in Jesus

that would

require

crucifixion

capital

punishment

but the

crowds

insist

and they

shout

all the

more

let him

be

crucified

you

remember

what

happened

just days

before

when Jesus

was coming

into

Jerusalem

the crowds

who were

with him

were coming

from Galilee

upon his

entrance

into

Jerusalem

they

had spread

their cloaks

on the road

they had

spread palm

branches

and they

shouted

Hosanna

to the

son of

David

blessed

is he

who comes

in the

name

of the

Lord

Hosanna

God

saves

in the

highest

and while

they were

praising

and declaring

this

the people

of Jerusalem

the residents

there

they were

asking

who is

this guy

and now

this crowd

in verse

23

they're

shouting

let him

be

crucified

days

earlier

the king

has come

and now

crucify

him

so by

the end

of scene

two

we have

the sense

of Jesus

innocence

but he's

being condemned

to the cross

by his own

which leads

us into

scene

three

the decision

some kind

of decision

who's making

this decision

verse 24

we read

this

so when

Pilate

saw that

he was

gaining

nothing

but rather

a riot

was beginning

he took

water

and washed

his hands

and before

the crowd

saying

washing his

hands

before the

crowd

and saying

I am

innocent

of this

man's

blood

see to

it

yourselves

now

remember

this would

have been

a powder

crag

moment

politically

Passover

Jerusalem

is usually

30,000

in the city

it's swelled

up to

180,000

and so

this kind

of event

man

it's loaded

politically

charged

a lot

of lives

are at stake

here

if

Pilate

keeps on

pushing

then who

knows

what's

going to

erupt

a riot

is forming

and so

what we see

here happening

is Pilate

is making

a decision

of expedience

not of

principle

and he

seeks to

absolve

himself

of any

responsibility

he takes

a play

out of a

Jewish

handbook

and washes

his hands

for all

the Jewish

crowds

to see

what's

he going

to eat

that's

not a

Roman

practice

that's

a Jewish

practice

he washes

his hands

in front

of them

and he

says

I am

innocent

of this

man's

blood

his blood

is not

on me

see to

it

yourselves

we bumped

into that

phrase

see to

it

yourself

just

recently

it's

when

Judas

returns

the 30

pieces

of silver

and the

chief priests

and elders

say to him

see to it

yourself

Judas

what they're

saying

hey his

blood

that money

is not

our fault

we're not

responsible

for it

but they

were

responsible

for it

and even

though

Pilate

is trying

to absolve

himself

of responsibility

oh he

is not

innocent

here

there's

nobody

innocent

here

no one

is innocent

there's

one

innocent

person

Jesus

but everybody

else

they have

a role

in this

Pilate

has some

responsibility

in this

Jesus

says as

much

in John

19

11

where he

tells

Pilate

those

who

delivered

me

over

to you

or have

greater

sin

than you

but he's

still

saying

you have

a responsibility

in this

Pilate

he's not

nearly as

guilty as

the chief

priests

the elders

and the

Jewish

crowd

Pilate

would have

been between

a rock

and a

hard place

the chief

priests

and elders

have played

their hand

out really

well

they're

forcing

Pilate

to give

into what

they wanted

to put

Jesus

to death

and

eventually

we learn

from John

that they

even played

the Caesar

card

if you

release this

man

you're not

Caesar's

friend

everyone

who makes

himself a

king

opposes

Caesar

it's called

political

leverage

hey Pilate

if you

don't

condemn him

we're going

straight to

Caesar

that you

released

a king

that would

have been

the end

of Caesar

or Pilate's

career

upon hearing

the words

I am

innocent

of this

man's

blood

see to

it

yourself

you

take

the

responsibility

what we

read in

verse 25

is absolutely

striking

in verse 25

and all

the people

answered

his blood

be on us

and on

our

children

his blood

be on us

and on

our

children

we hear

you

Pilate

his blood

on us

and our

children

this is the

Passover

folks

this is the

Passover

lamb

his blood

be on

us

they're not

talking about

his blood

to deliver

them

they're not

talking about

his blood

to forgive

them

they're talking

about blood

guilt

we take

responsibility

for his

death

we're killing

him

his death

is on

us

they're not

thinking about

Jesus

his blood

shed for

them

to deliver

them

they want

him dead

there's

something very

subtle

that happens

in verse 25

and in order

to help you

see it

we got to

back up a

little bit

in verse 15

we read this

now at the

feast the

governor was

accustomed to

release for

the crowd

any one

prisoner whom

they wanted

the crowd

it was the

Jews who

are living in

Jerusalem who

had come to

Herod's palace

to make a

case for

Barabbas

and then in

verse 20

now the chief

priest and the

elders persuaded

the crowd

the same

crowd this

Jewish crowd

in Jerusalem

in verse 24

we read this

Pilate washed

his hands

before the

crowd saying

I am innocent

of this man's

blood see to

it yourself

and then in

verse 25

we read this

and all the

people answered

Matthew's

use of that

word

people

the normal

use

is to talk

about the

Jewish nation

this crowd

is now a

representative of

the Jewish

nation and

they are

rejecting

Jesus as

their messianic

king

and they're

claiming

responsibility for

it by saying

his blood is

on our heads

and on our

children's

in less than

40 years

Jerusalem is

sacked

the temple is

raised

they are

judged

there his

blood was

on their

head

and they

ceased to

be the

people of

God they

once were

they rejected

their king

and they

rejected their

standing before

God

so in this

last scene

of this

Roman trial

of Jesus

we have

essentially

the Roman

crowd

or the

Jewish

crowd

making

the

judgment

they

reject

Jesus

as the

Christ

the king

and they

force

Pilate

to crucify

him

and

Pilate

concedes

but the

greater guilt

is on

the people

and in

verse 26

Pilate

releases

Barabbas

and he

has Jesus

scourged

and delivered

over to

be crucified

to be

scourged

was horrific

if you were

there to see

it it would

turn your

stomach

they would

use a

flagellum

called a

cat of

nine tails

and what it

was a

leather whip

with nine

separate whips

and what it

would entail

is they

would weave

in bone

and metal

and what they

would do

is they

would whip

a person

whose

back is

exposed

and then they

would drag

it across

their skin

and it

would open

up their

back

it

fillet

them

and they

would do

it in

order to

prepare them

for crucifixion

that they

would die

faster

but here's

what you

need to

notice

Matthew

doesn't go

into the

details of

scourging

do you

know why

the emphasis

is on the

rejection

of Jesus

by his

people

the emphasis

on this

passage is

on Jesus

innocence

he was

not guilty

of sedition

Barabbas

was

Jesus

says as

much

as

27

4

when he

says

I've

betrayed

innocent

blood

he's

talking

about

Jesus

blood

Pilate's

wife

was

scared

by the

dream

and he

says

don't

have

anything

to do

with

this

righteous

man

this

innocent

man

Pilate

himself

tried

to

release

Jesus

multiple

times

and finally

asks

what evil

has he

done

the emphasis

here is on

Jesus

innocence

but I'm

here to

tell you

there's a

far more

profound

innocence

of Jesus

you must

know about

it

he's not

just

innocent

of the

charge

of treason

against

Rome

he is

innocent

of any

charge

of any

sin

against

God

he

lived

a life

none

of us

ever

could

he pleased

God

every

moment

of

every

day

his

innocence

is an

innocence

before

Rome

but it's

an

innocence

before

God

he did

what none

of us

could do

further

emphasis

is on

Jesus

silence

he's

purposely

silent

remember

in the

garden

when he

was

arrested

Peter

slices

Malchus

his ear

off

Jesus

heals

his ear

and he

says

to

Peter

Peter

I

could

call

down

12

legions

of

angels

if I

wanted

to

and the

point

is

he

didn't

want

to

he

was

doing

the

will

of

his

father

and he

had

to be

arrested

my

point

here

Jesus

is

willingly

going

to be

rejected

he's

purposefully

not

saying

anything

he's

fulfilling

Isaiah

53

7

in order

to go

to his

death

he's

giving

himself

he's

about

the

father's

will

he's

the

innocent

one

willingly

going

to

his

death

last

emphasis

I want

to draw

your

attention

to

is

Jesus

the

Jewish

Messiah

is

rejected

by the

Jews

living

in

Jerusalem

at

that

time

they

choose

a

murderous

insurrectionist

over

the

loving

Messiah

who

is

innocent

the

Jewish

crowd

has

given

a

choice

and

they

decide

and so

humanly

speaking

the

crowd

persuaded

Pilate

to have

Jesus

crucified

but if

you

would

flip

over

to

your

Bibles

in

your

Bibles

to

Acts

Acts 2:23

chapter

2

verse

23

Peter

preaching

on

Pentecost

to

Jews

says

to

them

this

Jesus

delivered

up

according

to

the

definite

plan

and

foreknowledge

of

God

it

was

all

God's

plan

it's

all

God's

plan

you

crucified

and

killed

by the

hands

of

lawless

men

they

were

responsible

but

God

is

reigning

and

in

control

this

is

carrying

out

his

purpose

so

here's

the

point

of

all

this

here's

why

this

is

here

the

Jews

rejection

of

the

Jewish

Messiah

resulted

in

the

rescue

of

countless

Gentiles

the

Jewish

nations

rejection

of

their

king

opened

up

this

Jewish

king

to

make

a

whole

new

people

a

whole

new

nation

for

himself

comprised

of

people

men

and

women

boys

and

girls

from

every

tribe

tongue

and

nation

around

the

world

God

ordained

the

Jewish

Messiah

to be

rejected

by the

Jewish

people

people

in

order

for

Gentiles

to be

brought

into

his

new

people

it's

amazing

so

here's

let me

leave you

with

this

there

might be

some

people

with

Jewish

ancestry

in

this

room

but

the

majority

of

us

are

Gentiles

how

do

a

bunch

of

Gentiles

living

nearly

2,000

years

after

Jesus

was

rejected

by

Jews

in

Jerusalem

how

do

we

respond

to

this

well

the

first

is

this

choose

your

king

choose

your

king

who

are you

going to

live

for

you

either

reject

Jesus

and you

deny

him

or

you

receive

Jesus

in order

to receive

him

as

your

king

you

got

to

deny

yourself

and

follow

after

him

so

the

first

response

is

choose

your

king

and

don't

reject

him

please

the

second

is

this

for

those

of

us

who

have

chosen

Jesus

as

our

king

this

should

sober

us

to

see

what

he

did

in

order

to

rescue

us

it

should

humble

us

Romans

Romans 11 · chapter mention

chapter

11

if

you

haven't

read

that

read

it

it

helped

Paul

talks

about

why

God