Choosing Barabbas Over Jesus | Mark 15:6-15 | Pastor Daniel Batarseh (Gospel of Mark Bible Study Series)

One of the most powerful prayers in all of the Bible is found in

Psalm 73, verse 25, where Asaph tells the Lord, Whom have I in

Psalms 73:25

heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth I

desire besides you. Only those who have tasted of

the goodness of the Lord and experienced His all satisfying

presence can Amen such a verse. There is truly no substitute for

Him in this life. No one, no thing can come close

to bringing the needy human soul to this height of happiness and

this depth of wholeness. The only God can provide.

And I really hope and pray that everyone of us in this place can

genuinely say that knowledge of God and communion with God has

no comparison. To walk with him, to talk to

him, to sit alone at his feet and discover him.

There is nothing else that can come close to the joy, the

thrill, the fulfillment of that kind of pursuit.

It is no wonder that the prophet Jeremiah said in Jeremiah 923 to

24. Thus says the Lord, Let not the

wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in

his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him

who boast, boast in this, that he understands and knows me,

that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and

righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight,

declares the Lord, wisdom might riches do not come close to the

one who knows him. And if you're there, then

perhaps at one point in your journey you have asked yourself

this. Why and how do people choose

other things over this? How does someone reject a saving

relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ?

And I've I've pondered over that question many times, especially

in the early years of my walk with Christ.

As I've observed, loved ones and close friends and coworkers and

classmates have such a tight grip on falsehood and idols

instead of their Creator and Redeemer.

And if you've wondered that yourself, then know this, that

we're going to arrive at some answers to this mystery.

Because what we have before us in our main text today is a

scene, a dramatic scene with a variety of characters who have

this one striking trait in common.

They renounce the Lord Jesus Christ and shockingly, chose an

inferior option. And as I meditated on what we're

about to read, I realized that though these parties all had the

same decision, they did so for different reasons.

In other words, there were different factors at work that

encouraged each of these parties to deny Jesus Christ, and we're

going to explore those reasons in detail.

But let's first read this text and see how the stage is set for

this strange decision to be made.

Mark 15 beginning in verse 6. Please meet me in that place and

we will read down to verse 15. Mark 15, verse 6 reads Now at

Mark 15:6

the feast he used to release for them one prisoner for whom they

asked. And among the rebels in prison

who had committed murder in the insurrection, there is a man

called Barabbas. And the crowd came up and began

to ask Pilot to do as he usually did for them.

And he answered them, saying, Do you want me to release for you

the king of the Jews? For he perceived that it was out

of envy that the chief priest had delivered him up.

But the chief priest stirred up the crowd to have him released

for them Barabbas instead. And Pilate again said to them,

Then what shall I do with the man you called the king of the

Jews? And they cried out again,

Crucify him. And Pilate said to them, Why,

what evil has he done? But they shouted all the more,

Crucify him. So Pilate, wishing to satisfy

the crowd, released for them Barabbas, and having scourged

Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.

Lord, we need your help with this word.

May the Holy Spirit be our portion and our help.

And Lord, we just ask that not just the accurate explanation of

this text, but the precise, empowered delivery of this word

would be as you wish. And Lord, we do ask, we all ask

together, that we would only see and hear your Son Jesus Christ.

And so, Lord, do miracles today. We believe that your word can

perform miracles, but we don't trust just in human words.

We need what First Thessalonians 15 tells us.

We need power, we need conviction, we need the Holy

Spirit, and we ask and trusted that will be true today in Jesus

name, Amen. Evidently there was a tradition

that Pilot established with the Jews during his reign, during

his political career, and it's made known to us in this

passage. Once a year, around the feast of

the Passover, Pilot would release for the Jews any

criminal that they would want to be free.

Now we are not given any explanation for this custom, but

we can guess. There's a strong guess.

Why Pilot instituted such a thing?

It's very likely because he wanted to be on good terms with

the Jews, especially because when you look at, yes, in the

Bible, even in history, Pilate did not do a lot of things that

made the Jews happy. And so this is one thing to give

them some kind of relief, some kind of understanding that Rome

is somewhat merciful. And so he gave them a level of

supposed power and authority, though it was very limiting.

And we see here that Herod, even in the Bible acted in a similar

way. You don't have to turn there.

But in Acts chapter 12, when we're told there that Herod

Acts 12 · chapter mention

killed James, the brother of John, he perceived that it

pleased the Jews. And so he proceeded to arrest

Peter also. So this is this is what Pilot is

doing. He's doing what a lot of

politicians like to do. He's promising them a yearly

amnesty here to maintain and enhance his popularity and

political standing. But on this particular Passover,

things are different, very different.

Pilot is known as a brutal man, a cold man.

But even a man like Pilot, after briefly investigating the Lord

Jesus Christ, determined he's innocent, He's not deserving of

any of this. And you get the sense as you

read the Gospels that this man, yes, tough, yes, powerful, yes,

very indifferent to the Jewish people, is wrestling.

He's wrestling with this specific case.

He doesn't want to deal with it lightly.

He doesn't want to deal with it unjustly.

And so you find him here now hoping to release Jesus, hoping

that through this custom though the religious leaders are

convinced that they want this man dead.

Perhaps the populace, the majority, the masses in their

vote with this custom will overrule the religious leaders

and they can't do anything about it.

That is what Pilot is hoping for.

And if you have any doubt that this is what he wants, let me

quote to you Luke 23 verse 20. It's a very brief verse just to

Luke 23:20

prove my point. It says there Pilot addressed

them once more desiring to release Jesus.

He wanted to set this man free. Then you see with the

combination of the Gospel accounts how even in Providence

there are different ways that Pilate perceived that he had to

he had to try to disassociate himself with this.

You remember his wife had a dream about Jesus and she

approached Pilate says have nothing to do with this man.

But what do we read? Pilate never releases Jesus.

Instead, he releases a man named Barabbas.

Who is this Barabbas? We don't know much about him,

but what we do have suffices. In verse 7, he is a rebel.

He was in prison. He had committed murder, but he

was not just a murder. He was part of an insurrection.

An insurrection is a violent uprising against any

authoritative body or government, and to do that at

this time warranted a death sentence.

In another Gospel account, we're told that Barabbas was a

notorious criminal. He was a famous prisoner.

Ironically, his name, Barabbas, means Son of the Father.

And what do you have here? You have the people choosing a

murderer though, Son of the Father instead of Jesus the

sinless son of the Heavenly Father.

How could this happen? How could bloody Barabbas

receive pardon while Jesus, the spotless Lamb of God face a

horrific death? Simple answer.

Barabbas was the People's Choice.

Staggering, isn't it? Indeed it is.

And I want to present to you in this brief time before we break

bread together, at least three reasons why the people exchanged

Jesus for Barabbas. And what you're going to realize

is that the very same reasons that explain why the people did

this will also give some kind of commentary to why people today,

maybe even in this room, are replacing Jesus for another

option. Number one, some people reject

Jesus, replace Jesus because they want to be their own God.

Look at verse 9 and 10 again with me.

And he answered them saying, do you want me to release for you

the king of the Jews? For he perceived that it was out

of envy that the chief priest had delivered him up.

Pilate wasn't dumb. He was a smart man, a strategic

man, and he could read people, at least to an extent.

And at this point he could easily pick up that this whole

proceeding was fueled by one thing, jealousy.

It's not very difficult to see how this is boiled over because

of envy. In fact, most people who are

envious tend to expose themselves when they resent

somebody else for something that they have or something that they

do. They tend to reveal themselves

in a way that they might not even realize.

And one of the ways that they do that is they desperately try to

find something in that person to denounce.

And it is indeed a reach. And they want to do so in order

to disqualify that person in one way or another.

And that's exactly what these Pharisees are doing.

But Pilot isn't buying it. He sees right through it, and he

understands that this is personal.

This is not about law. This is not about righteousness.

This is about insecurity. This is about power, this is

about position. But why?

Why are the Jews envious of Jesus?

He healed, He restored, He forgave, He fulfilled.

Well, it's clear there are at least two things that Jesus

Christ of Nazareth possessed that these religious leaders

lack. Two things number one, authority

#2 popularity. Authority and popularity.

You have to understand that before Jesus Christ arrived on

the scene, these religious men were esteemed as the pious

theologians and experts they demanded, and they secured the

praises of the people. And all that would change in

such a short amount of time, because now this rabbi from

Nazareth comes and he performs miracles, and he does so with

great power, unparalleled ability, and his teachings, his

words, even compelled the crowds.

They would make Him have people wait out in the wilderness for

three days without eating because they wanted to hear what

He had to say and they wanted to see what He can perform.

And So what these Pharisees and the Sanhedrin and the chief

priests and elders knew and enjoyed was taken away from

them. Do you remember what the

Pharisee said and reaction to Jesus when he healed more than

just healed when he resurrected Lazarus from the dead?

Let me remind you. And if you want to see with your

own eyes, you can in John chapter 12, verse 18 and 19 and

John 12:18

John 1218 and 19, it says here the reason why the crowd went to

meet Him was that they heard He had done this sign.

What sign? He raised Lazarus from the dead.

That's authority. That's power from heaven.

Christ had the Spirit without measure.

And so people were coming to Him, flocking to Him because He

had done this sign authority. But look at verse 19.

So the Pharisee said to one another, you see that you are

gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after

Him. That's popularity.

And these Pharisees looked at one another, and they couldn't

help but confess it. Look what's happening.

You're losing. We're losing.

The world is going after him. And because they realized that

this was being taken away, they determined we're going to get

rid of him. That's how the Pharisees felt.

This man is robbing us of what we ultimately desire.

That's why they said you are gaining nothing.

And what was it of the ultimate desire?

Praise, prestige, power. And they lusted after that so

much that they were willing to kill for it.

Do you know why some people reject Jesus?

Because they feel that if Christ takes his rightful place in

their hearts, that he will take something from them that they

really want to keep. They see Jesus Christ as an

obstacle, more than a treasure, as a hindrance, more than as a

savior, as an intrusion, more than a glorious intervention.

Someone that threatens their self-made image, their ambitions

that give them purpose and worth, their cherished

relationships, the resources that they invested, blood, sweat

and tears and, and oh this one. We can't forget about this one,

right? Their favorite sins.

It's as simple as that, my friends.

In John 319 we are told that this is the judgment that has

come to the world, that light has come to the world, but

people loved darkness rather than light, for their works are

evil, saying why do why? Why do people turn their back on

Jesus? You ready for this deep insight?

They love something else more, their idols, their sins, their

autonomy, their ability to govern, the sense of freedom

that I have. Nobody who is telling me what to

do. And if you think that this is a

new thing in our day, no, no, no.

It's ancient. It's been there since the

beginning. So there are some people who

reject Jesus, like these Pharisees, because they feel as

though if I invite Jesus in, he's going to take over.

No, I'm not trading this. I'm going to protect it.

And if protecting it means that I have to choose Barabbas over

Jesus, give me barabbas #2 Why do some people reject, replace,

deny, choose an inferior thing over Jesus?

Because some people are impressionable and easily

persuaded. Come here and look at verse 11

and Mark 15. But the chief priests stirred up

the crowd to have him released for them.

Barabbas instead stirred up the crowd.

In Matthew's account in 27 Matthew 2720, we're told that

the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd.

They persuaded the crowd. Now, you have to remember that

this setting is in Jerusalem, and it's very, very, very likely

that most of the people who were in that crowd before pilot this

morning, we're also there a few days earlier, chanting honor and

praises for Jesus as he entered into Jerusalem on a donkey.

Now, most of us are familiar with that insight.

The same crowd that said Hosann are the same people who said

crucify him. But have you ever just sat and

meditated on how this happened? How were they able to switch so

easily? How were they able to change

their minds? Especially because check this

out, there was no investigation made on their part.

There's no idea here that there was reflection and contemplation

and compare comparison. No careful analysis at all.

They just accepted whatever they were being told from supposed

trusted voices. And I make the case today that

this crowd reflects the masses who put little to no thought on

the claims of Christ and Christianity, and because of

such negligence and apathy, they ignore and ultimately deny Jesus

Christ. I've seen it throughout the

years, especially in those days where we evangelize on the

streets for many months and you ask people, why do you believe

what you believe? And here's what you get.

This is what I saw at least on so many occasions.

Again, with apathy. I, I don't know.

I just, you know, I guess this is just how I grew up.

But why do you believe what you believe?

I never really thought about it. I like, look, we all have our

truth, I guess, and this is my truth.

Listen, if you think like that and you're sitting here today,

please, I say this in love. Eternity is too long to be wrong

about this. Well, I just read a book and I

just heard this guy, oh, this guy that I looked up to said

this and I thought it was pretty convincing.

No scrutinizing of the legitimacy of things, no

thought. Like if Jesus Christ claims to

be Lord and Savior of the world and he is not my Lord and

Savior, why why isn't he? What convinced you to be on this

side? 1,000,000 millions are like

this. Just whatever is the newest

thing. Just going with the crowd.

This is what I heard. This is what I've been taught in

my living room, in my classroom. No challenge, no pushback, no

litmus test, no pondering, no reflection.

Just this is what? OK, Yeah, your soul, are you

gambling with eternity? You are gambling with eternity.

This crowd is a sobbing illustration of how susceptible

we are, we all are, to believing lies and even believing them to

be absolute truth. And you know, when I was musing

over this part, I wondered if there was any way to know what

the Pharisees said, what they whispered with their slippery

snake like tongues to whip this crowd up in a frenzy.

And you know what? I believe there is a major clue

in this very chapter that we just read together, at least

this section of the chapter. Look back at verse 7.

And among the rebels in prison who had committed murder in the

insurrection, there was a man called Barabbas.

He was not just a murderer, he was an insurrectionist.

You know what that means, right? That Barabbas was a Jewish man

who was part of a revolt aimed at toppling the oppression of

the Roman regime. So in the eyes of the Romans,

Barabbas is a man worthy to be put to death.

But in the eyes of the Jewish population, it's very likely

that he was seen as a hero. Now, you have to remember that

most of the Jews at this time, we're so attracted to Jesus

because he displayed and manifested such power.

And he had these claims and they put it together and they

thought, here is this man who is very likely going to fulfill the

political aspects of the messianic promise.

But on this morning, what they saw, I'm sure, deflated whatever

misguided hype they had. Because the same Jesus who

healed people with his hands and commanded demons to flee with

his word is now standing sheepishly at the mercy of Rome,

bloody, with dry spit on his face and hair.

This is the one that we've been shouting about just a few days

earlier. Look at him.

All Pilate has to say is he's done and he's done.

And I have a hunch that these clever Pharisees took advantage

of this. And so they split up and they

went to pockets of people and they began to remind them your

hopes in this Jesus being the son of David.

Look at it. You think this is your savior?

If you really want liberation, which is all.

This is what they really wanted, freedom, liberty.

If you really want liberty, your best option out of the two is

Barabbas, because he proved it before.

He was willing to put his life on the line to overturn Rome.

So why don't we give him another chance?

Look at Jesus. He didn't do anything like

Barabbas said. Barabbas is our better option.

Pick him. Do you see?

I was going to make this a separate point, but I'll just

say it here. The reason why some people

choose something else over Jesus is because they believe that

something else has something better to offer than Jesus.

Barabbas has more promise that there are better saviors out

there, that there are better masters out there, including

yourself. And I was going to say that

Barabbas here, though he did promise something.

It was cheap and limiting. I hope you know this well.

And if you don't, let me tell you this good news.

Only the Lord Jesus Christ can offer a lasting and meaningful

healing, restoration, and forgiveness, because what He

brings reaches the innermost parts of your being, a

redemption from the penalty and the power of sin.

No other option can grant that. And yeah, there is an allurement

out there, many allurements, just like Barabbas was enticing.

But what kind of comparison is there?

No comparison. Oh, I was reading this late last

night and this text came to mind.

Let me share it with you. In Isaiah 55 verse 2 where the

Isaiah 55:2

prophet says on behalf of the Lord, why do you spend your

money for that which is not bread and your labor for that

which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me and eat

what is good and delight yourself in rich food.

Look at that second line. Doesn't it move your soul?

Why do you spend your money for that which is not bred and labor

for that which does not satisfy? How many are doing that?

How many? Maybe there's somebody in you're

laboring. People outside of Christ are

working very hard to know satisfaction.

You understand that, right? They're not doing it aimlessly.

So there's a quest out there. There's a universal quest that

people are on to know this kind of completeness, the sense of

serenity and wholeness that I, I, I have wait to my life now.

I'm not just floating around here.

I actually have a sense of purpose.

That's something that people are searching for and working hard

for. And they try to find it in

career paths. They try to find it in having as

many children as they can. They try to find it in even

ministerial positions. They try to find it in money.

They try to find it in their bicep size, they try to find it

in health, they try to find it in influence.

They're looking for something and they're investing and

paying, whether it's money or health or energy or

relationships. I need, I need to be satisfied.

And here's the prophet who says why do you spend your money for

that which is not bread and your labour for that which is not

satisfied? In other words, you're not going

to find satisfaction. Apart from what the last part,

listen diligently to me. That's where you're going to

find your satisfaction. Listen diligently to me and eat

what is good and delight yourself in rich food.

Rich food. OK, well, you piqued my

interest. Now I am looking for

satisfaction. And I can say that confidently

about perhaps some here because I myself at 20 was looking for

satisfaction. I know what it's like to hunger

and have that ache in your belly.

So you piqued my interest. What does it cost?

Do I have to go to school for it?

Do I have to? What kind of investments do I

need a guru? What does it cost for me to know

the satisfaction? The price is found in verse one.

Come everyone who thirst come to the waters and he who has no

money come by and eat. Come buy wine and milk without

money and without price. It's free.

There is no price tag attached to it.

There is not anything that you have to do to yourself or for

yourself in light of the gospel. Jesus Christ paid the price.

He shed His blood in order to wash your heart and to make it a

home for the presence and the glory of God to abide in.

He made a way. And what you do is you realize

that yes, your soul needs saving, it needs your your

record of sin to be dealt with, but your soul also needs

satisfaction and Christ provides it.

And when you realize the price that has been paid, you come and

you open your hands and you receive it.

And not only do you receive a theoretical idea or confession

or a worldview, you receive satisfaction.

God the Holy Spirit will make his way in your life where you

know you know. In the same way that you know

you're full. When you stuff your face, you

will know. There's something in the

innermost part of my being that's settled, and it's free.

That's why we as Christians call this the Good News.

Not one penny, so to speak, needs to be reached for

everything has been covered by the cross of Christ.

But unfortunately, some people don't even want to look into the

claims that I'm making. You know, if we really believe

we are people of truth, then we are not intimidated by scrutiny.

Take it. Don't take my word for it.

Take the Bible. Look at these things, examine

them and see if they're true. Some people, unfortunately, are

so impressionable, so easily persuaded, so mindless, just

want to float around in life and not consider the implications of

their existence, of death, of afterlife.

And that's a shame because unfortunately, it's many of them

just like this crowd. Let's come to our final thought

of why some people replace, reject, deny, choose an inferior

option to Jesus. Some people, some people are

afraid to choose Jesus because of the potential repercussions.

Come back to Mark 15. Let's read the final verses

together, verse 12. And Pilate again said to them,

then what shall I do with the man you called the king of the

Jews? And they cried out again,

crucify him. And Pilate said to them, why,

what evil he has done. But they shouted all the more,

crucify him. So Pilate, listen to this

devastating phrase. So Pilate wishing to satisfy the

crowd released for them Barabbas and having scourged Jesus, he

delivered him to be crucified. You know how you're supposed to

rightly understand this? So Pilate wishing to satisfy

himself satisfied the crowd saying, what do you mean?

Turn to this passage to understand in John chapter 19

John 19:12

verse 12, when Pilate was so close to giving the word to say

set the Nazarene free. We read this in John 1912.

From then 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.

Read between the lines. This is a threat.

This is a threat that's being made against Pilot.

In essence, what they're saying is this.

If you release this Jesus who claimed to be a king, then you

are challenging and betraying the authority of Caesar, making

yourself an enemy. You want us to report you to

Caesar after you released this man who claims to be a king?

Pilot understood the threat and Pilot understood I'm not willing

to get myself in that kind of trouble.

And so this was really the final thing that pushed Pilot over the

edge. It boiled down to this, my

friends self preservation. He caved since he could not

imagine facing Caesar with such accusations.

But do you know what Pilot overlooked?

Something that some people perhaps even hear overlooking.

Pilot will one day stand before God, never mind standing before

Caesar. Who's Caesar?

He's going to stand before God. You know, history tells us that

an AD 36 Pilot made another very unwise decision.

He called for an ambush against some Samaritan worshippers who

were making pilgrimage to Mount Gerasim, and he slaughtered them

at the foot of that mountain. And so great was this slaughter

that the Samaritan leaders called to the governor of Syria.

And this all ended up having Rome recall Pilot and remove him

from his position. We're not certain what happened

to Pilot after this, but he just seems to fade from the public

scene and more than one historian tells us that

eventually Pilate, the same pilot who years before that had

Jesus of Nazareth put to death, ended up committing suicide.

However this man may have died, one thing is for certain, he has

an appointment with the judge of all the earth, and the same one

who thought he had the fate of Jesus in his hand will have his

eternal fate in the hand and the decision of Jesus.

There's some people who do not want to choose Jesus because

they are afraid, so they go with Barabbas.

They fear what it might cost them in this life, what their

family might say or do, how their spouse might react, what

their employer might say, what their childhood friends, because

some of them are Muslim or Hindu or Buddhist or gay activists or

agnostics. What, what will they say if I

become a true follower of Jesus? Never mind what Caesar has to

say. God is going to get the last

word, and God's Word is all that matters.

If you really frame your life, especially this decision in

light of eternity, you find a lot more courage and boldness

and strength. If you're limiting yourself and

your understanding of what happens in this life based on

your decisions is especially with the most important decision

in your life, you're setting yourself up for unnecessary

obstacles to the greatest way of life you can imagine.

And who cares? Honestly, in this day of age,

you should be more bold than ever.

Look at the craziness of the world out there.

Look at what you get when you deny God over time.

If anybody has a reason to be embarrassed, it's them.

So here's Jesus Christ, who in his love for me was willing to

be exposed and hung on a cross. And I'm ashamed publicly to say

I serve him. Far be it from me, far be it

from me. Let the world deny Christ.

He died for me. By His grace, I will live for

Him. Some people, though, can't see

it that way. They're so earthbound.

They fail to remember that one day your breath is going to give

up and you're going to leave everybody behind.

And on that final day, everybody will be in the backdrop.

The only one that will take center stage is the one who came

and died on the cross for you. That's where it's all leading

to, and I have determined, and I hope you have determined to make

your decision based on that reality.

How much more can be said? You can imagine, but let me end

it by saying this. This portrait offers us more

than just an exhibition of the depths of man's wickedness and

depravity that they're willing to choose a Barabbas over Jesus.

I argue that what you have at the same time here is an

incredible manifestation and demonstration of the love of

God. You're saying how?

Because although the religious leaders had a say, and although

the crowd was persuaded, and although Pilate finally gave in,

the one who really had a choice in this matter was Jesus Christ.

I lay down my own life. No one takes it from me.

No pilot, no crowd, no Pharisees.

I make a decision to do this. So ultimately the destiny of

Christ is up to Christ. So you know what Christ does in

this moment. He lets Barabbas go free, and he

willingly chose to take his place.

This is a gospel picture, my friend.

The guilty are made innocent, while the innocent one is made

guilty. What's the story about Barabbas?

Yeah, it is about how people are willing to choose, for different

reasons, something inferior to Christ.

But it's also, more importantly, a picture of how Jesus was

willing to take this man's place as a precursor of taking a place

for all those who put their faith and trust in Him.

He can take your place if you have not yet repented and

believed on Him. A verse came to my mind that I

want to read to you. In closing, before we relish and

rejoice over this divine exchange in the gospel.

It's what Jesus said, and I want you to see it.

So if you haven't turned your Bibles much today, turn it to

this place in John 14 verse 30. And I think this will be a

John 14:30

wonderful way to prepare ourselves for this ordinance.

John 1430, Jesus says, I will no longer talk much with you, for

the ruler of this world is coming.

Look at this last part. He has no claim on me.

Have you ever thought about that?

The ruler of this world, he's not talking about Rome.

He's not talking about Caesar. He's not talking about Pilate.

He's not talking about Caiaphas. He's talking about Satan, who is

known as the Prince of the power of the air.

And at this time he was beelining it towards Jesus

Christ, thinking that he had some say and some claim on him.

And here's what Jesus says. He has no claim on me.

That means many things, but let me drive this one point.

What Christ is getting is that Satan had no legal claim on

Christ. He has an accusation against

every single one of us since Adam.

There is sin in us. There is sin that we've

performed, that we have done that gives Satan some ammunition

to use to even come before the throne of God and say he

deserves your wrath. She deserves your judgement.

But when it came to Jesus Christ, Satan could find

nothing. Nothing.

No thought, no word, no deed, no reaction, no action, no mis

action, nothing. And Jesus could confidently say

this is a declaration of his perfection.

He has no claim on me. He has no say in my fate.

I'm spotless, I'm perfect. I'm the exact imprint of his

nature, God's nature. And we rejoice in that because

we say, yes, he is perfect, He is God who became man.

But you have to understand something with the complete

story of the Bible. Jesus says he has no claim on

me. But then we're told that through

the transaction of faith we receive Christ's righteousness.

Paul uses the word that we are clothed in his righteousness.

He uses the word that we are hidden in Christ so

positionally, not because of our own merit, not because of our

own efforts, but positionally. When Jesus says he has no claim

on me, we can also say he has no claim on us because we belong to

him. You're saying, Oh no, you're

taking this too far. No, no, I'm saying this is

exactly what the gospel is. And Paul said in his own way in

Romans 833. Who then can condemn the elect?

For it is God who justifies. Nobody can.

Nobody can condemn us. Nobody can change our position

before God, even Satan himself, because of what Christ has done.

He has no claim. He has no claim.

That is a legal truth. That is something that nothing

can obliterate. It has been set for eternity if

you truly belong to Him. That's how secure we are in Him.

He has no claim on me. I'm talking to a people today

who are ready to take some bread and drink from the cup, who

believe with all their hearts I'm free.

That even if Satan with all his hordes of demons choose to

whisper in my ear or even make an attendance before the throne

of God to say condemn him, destroy him, get rid of him,

because of what Christ has done on my behalf, there is no claim

against me. Totally free, totally redeemed,

totally secure because of Jesus Christ our Savior.

Let's pray. Help us, Lord, rejoice in that

truth, especially for those who have truly been born again, who

love you, who long for you, who desire you, but feel as though

their performance might cause them to doubt their

justification. Help us remember, Lord today,

that it's what You did on our behalf that wins our

righteousness. And Lord, if there is anybody

here today who does not believe on you, trust in You who has not

yet chosen you, Reveal to them the reasons why and show them

that these reasons do not compare to who You are and what

you have to offer. May faith be born in the hearts

of even one person here who has not trusted in Christ, who has

not surrendered their lives to the Lordship of Christ.

And so Lord, we thank you. We want to sing your praises

today as we reflect on the fact that we are redeemed and that

there is no accusation that can be made against us forever and

ever. We thank you.

In Jesus name we pray, Amen. Amen.

As a praise thing comes up, it is my duty to exhort you in this

manner. For those who you may not be a

Christian, we welcome you. We're so glad that you can join

us at this church service. But this, what we're about to

participate in, is reserved for Christians, for people who have

put their faith and trust in Christ and who are following

him. And so we ask that you would

just respectfully observe as people approach this table and

receive these elements. But we also want to look at you

and say, oh, we hope that one day you can join us at this

table. And the way that you can enjoy

this meal is when you understand your need for Christ.

Christ died for you. He wants to forgive you every

single sin that you've ever committed.

He does not delight in the death of the wicked.

The Bible says he delights more in granting mercy and in his

love. He wants to wash you and cleanse

you and transform you. And the way that takes place is

not through religious formalities.

It's not through jumping hoops. It's from you just realizing

your need, confessing with your mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord,

and believing in your heart that God raises them from the dead.

It's a personal decision that you make you between you and

God, even in this very room, can take you from death to life.

A believer, you're here to do something in honor of Christ and

help of your faith. As you approach this table

positionally, you are reminded that I am saved.

But also Christ wants us to come in an honorable manner.

And so if our practice knowingly is not aligned to our

profession, it's better for us to stop and to reconcile with

our brother, repent of our sins before we rush mindlessly to

this table. And so I encourage you now, even

as we sing, reflect on your heart, reflect on your life.

This doesn't mean that you have to be perfect because this whole

table is meant to tell you're not perfect.

Christ is perfect. But if there is any sin that you

know of that you have not repented of and you're holding

on to for whatever reason, let go of it before you grab hold of

anything here that will honor Christ more than anything else.

Let us stand together, shall we? Let's worship the Lord before we

worship at the table.