Matthew Ch27v11-44 - Jesus Mocked

Matthew chapter 27. As you're turning up your Bibles, I should say a special welcome back

Matthew 27 · chapter mention

to Helen. Helen, it's lovely to see you today. You've been away for a good number of weeks,

not because you've been dossing, but because you've been recovering. And we have been praying

for you, and we're just delighted to see you again in person. So welcome again, Helen.

Well done for making it. Matthew chapter 27. We're going to be picking it up in verse 11.

Matthew 27 · chapter mention

Just some context before we read. Matthew's Gospel is always heading, as each of the Gospels

are, towards the death and resurrection of Jesus. So what's happened just in the immediate

chapter before, Jesus has been arrested, and the religious leaders have brought their various

charges about him. Basically, the charge that he claims to be God, the Son of God. They don't

have authority to punish him or sentence him, so they bring Jesus then before the ruling authorities,

which is Pilate, the governor. And that's where we pick up the account. So Matthew chapter 27,

Matthew 27 · chapter mention

starting at verse 11, let's hear God's word. Meanwhile, Jesus stood before the governor,

and the governor asked him, Are you the king of the Jews? You have said so, Jesus replied.

When he was accused by the chief priests and the elders, he gave no answer. Then Pilate asked him,

Don't you hear the testimony they are bringing against you? But Jesus made no reply, not even to a single

charge, to the great amazement of the governor. Now, it was the governor's custom at the festival,

that was the Passover festival, to release a prisoner chosen by the crowd. At that time,

they had a well-known prisoner whose name was Jesus Barabbas. So when the crowd had gathered,

Pilate asked them, Which one do you want me to release to you, Jesus Barabbas or Jesus who is

called the Messiah? For he knew it was out of self-interest that they had handed Jesus over to him.

While Pilate was sitting on the judge's seat, his wife sent him this message,

Don't have anything to do with that innocent man, for I have suffered a great deal today in a dream

because of him. But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas

and to have Jesus executed. Which of the two do you want me to release to you? asked the governor.

Barabbas, they answered. What shall I do then with Jesus who is called the Messiah? Pilate asked.

They all answered, Crucify him. Why? What crime has he committed? asked Pilate.

But they shouted all the louder, Crucify him!

When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but instead an uproar was starting,

he took water, washed his hands in front of the crowd.

I am innocent of this man's blood, he said. It's your responsibility.

All the people answered, His blood is on us and on our children.

Then he released Barabbas to them, but he had Jesus flogged and handed him over to be crucified.

Then the governor's soldiers took Jesus into the praetorium and gathered the whole company of soldiers round him.

They stripped him, put a scarlet robe on him, twisted together a crown of thorns, set it on his head,

put a staff in his hand.

Then they knelt in front of him and mocked him.

Hail, King of the Jews, they said.

They spat on him, took the staff and struck him on the head again and again.

After they had mocked him, they took off the robe and put on his own clothes.

Then they led him away to crucify him.

As they were going out, they met a man from Cyrene named Simon,

and they forced him to carry the cross.

They came to a place called Golgotha, which means the place of the skull.

There they offered Jesus wine to drink mixed with gall,

but after tasting it, he refused to drink it.

When they had crucified him, they divided up his clothes by casting lots.

And sitting down, they kept watch over him there.

Above his head, they placed the written charge against him.

This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.

Two rebels were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left.

Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and saying,

You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself.

Come down from the cross if you are the Son of God.

In the same way, the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders mocked him.

He saved others, they said, but he can't save himself.

He's the King of Israel.

Let him come down now from the cross and we will believe in him.

He trusts in God?

Let God rescue him now if he wants him.

For he said, I am the Son of God.

In the same way, the rebels who were crucified with him also heaped insults on him.

Well, let's pray.

Let's pray.

Father, these words, this account can be familiar to all of us as we think about the death of Jesus.

So what we ask for today is that we would have a mind and a heart that comes to this in a fresh way.

That you would help us to see wonderful truth in your word.

Truth that helps us see why Jesus died for us today.

Help us to believe your word.

And may it change us to be more like your Son, Jesus Christ.

We need your help today and that is why we ask.

Knowing that you will help and you will give us understanding.

In Jesus' name we pray.

Amen.

Well, the last time we looked at Matthew's Gospel we were back in chapter 13.

But for these next few weeks, for the month of Easter,

we're going to be looking at the account of the death and the resurrection of Jesus

and then we'll go back again, further back in Matthew.

And today we want to start looking at the events leading up to Jesus' death.

So three things we're going to see from the text this morning.

We're going to look at the silence of Jesus,

the mocking of Jesus,

and the victory of Jesus.

The silence of Jesus, the mocking of Jesus,

and the victory of Jesus.

So first, the silence.

There's something extraordinary about the trial with Pilate.

And that is, Jesus is strangely silent.

Apart from a question and answer at the beginning,

look at verse 11,

where the governor Pilate asked,

Are you the king of the Jews?

Jesus replied,

You have said so.

That's it.

That's all Jesus says

through the whole trial.

He doesn't even try and defend himself.

He stays silent.

In fact, Jesus seems to be accepting

what is happening to him.

Look at verse 12.

When he was accused by the chief priests and the elders,

he gave no answer.

Then Pilate asked him,

Don't you hear the testimony they're bringing against you?

But Jesus made no reply,

not even to a single charge.

It's staggering, isn't it?

Jesus knows that if he doesn't speak up,

it's going to be certain death.

Unlike Pilate at the end of verse 14,

we're just amazed,

we're stunned.

We want to speak up for him

and say something like this,

Jesus,

defend yourself.

Say something.

But Jesus just seems to be accepting

of what will happen.

He remains silent.

But perhaps what's even more amazing

is the fact that Jesus is

completely innocent.

Look at verse 19.

While Pilate was sitting on the judge's seat,

so he's the one who's ultimately going to declare

whether Jesus is innocent or guilty.

As he was sitting on his judge's seat,

his wife sent him this message.

Don't have anything to do with that

innocent man.

For I've suffered a great deal today

in a dream because of him.

Mrs Pilate has obviously heard about Jesus.

She knows the truth.

And she's been desperately troubled

about a miscarriage of justice.

And it's weighing on her conscience.

Pilate, this Jesus person,

he's innocent.

And deep down,

Pilate knows this too.

Look at verse 23.

As the crowds come,

or as the religious leaders come to him,

calling for Barabbas to be released

and Jesus to be crucified,

Pilate questions them

and he says,

Why?

What crime has he committed?

Of course,

the religious leaders

have done their very best

to come up with a charge.

Have a look back at chapter 6

and verse 59.

Chapter 26, verse 59.

The chief priests,

chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin,

so they were the religious authorities,

were looking for false evidence against Jesus

so that they could put him to death.

But they did not find any,

though many false witnesses came forward.

Not one of the charges stick.

There's no evidence.

In fact,

the only crime of Jesus

is to speak the truth.

His claim to be God's son,

that he is God in the flesh,

that he is God's promised chosen king

who will redeem this broken world

and restore our disordered lives.

But yet,

throughout all this trial,

Jesus remains silent.

He doesn't open his mouth.

Although he's innocent,

he's accepting.

And so Jesus

is sentenced.

Chapter 27,

verse 26.

Then he released Barabbas to them,

but he had Jesus flogged

and handed him over to be crucified.

It's shockingly unjust.

The defendant is innocent,

while the judge who pronounces the sentence,

well, he's guilty for letting it happen.

But still there's not a word.

There's no last-minute evidence

that's brought to the judge's seat

that's going to reverse the situation.

If that were you or me,

wouldn't we be shouting from the sand,

I'm innocent!

Stop!

You must listen to me!

You've got it wrong!

By staying silent,

Jesus is signing his own death sentence.

Why would he do that?

Why does he not defend himself?

Why is Jesus

so silent?

Well, we'll answer that

in a minute.

Second, the mocking.

Despite the injustice

and the innocence

of what's going on,

there's no one

who comes running

to Jesus' defence.

In fact, the only person

who comes to the aid of Jesus

is Simon,

verse 32,

who came from Cyrene.

And they forced him

to carry the cross

of Jesus.

At best,

he's a reluctant volunteer.

Not only is Jesus silent,

but everybody else

has gone silent too.

Nobody is speaking up for him.

apart from their mocking.

Look at how the people

respond to this

miscarriage of justice.

First, we have the soldiers

who see Jesus

as irrelevant.

Verse 28,

they stripped him

and put a scarlet robe

on him,

twisted together

a crown of thorns

and set it on his head

and put a staff

in his right hand,

dressing him up

to look like a king.

Then they knelt

in front of him

and mocked him.

Hail,

King of the Jews,

they said.

And they spat on him

and took the staff

and struck him again

on the head

over and over.

The soldiers knew

there was one king

and for them

their king

was the Roman emperor.

For them,

the only voice

that they should be

listening and obeying

was the voice

of the emperor.

Why should they

listen to Jesus?

To him,

he was a complete

irrelevance.

They had one master.

Why would they

need Jesus?

Then there's the crowd

who see Jesus

as a fraud.

Look at verse 39.

Those who passed by

as Jesus was crucified

hurled insults at him,

shaking their heads

and saying,

you who are going

to destroy the temple

and build it

in three days,

save yourself.

Come down from the cross

if you're the son of God.

what?

Well,

they were right,

weren't they?

Because Jesus

had said,

destroy this temple

and I will

rebuild the temple

in three days.

but they were only

partially right.

Matthew doesn't

record it for us

but John does.

John in his gospel,

another eyewitness,

tells us

what this means.

If you just jump

forward to John's gospel,

Matthew,

Mark,

Luke,

John.

John chapter 2

John 2:19

verse 19.

It's the occasion

where he

overthrows

the tables

where they were

exchanging money

because the temple

should be open

to all people.

In other words,

that everybody

has a right

to go to God.

And the Jews,

verse 18,

chapter 2,

verse 18,

responded to him,

what sign

can you show us

to prove your authority

to do all this?

Jesus answered them,

destroy this temple

and I will

raise it again

in three days

or I will

rebuild it again

in three days.

They replied,

it has taken

46 years

to build this temple

and you are

going to raise

it in three days.

But the temple

he had spoken of

was his body.

And after he

was raised

from the dead,

his disciples

recalled what

he had said.

Then they believed

the scripture

and the words

that Jesus

had spoken.

Go back

to Matthew

Matthew 27 · chapter mention

chapter 27.

You see,

the problem

with the crowd

is,

though they had

heard Jesus

say these things,

they couldn't

see it

nor understand it.

To them,

Jesus was a fraud.

He makes

these great

big promises

but he fails

to deliver.

So the soldiers

see him as irrelevant,

the crowd

see him as a fraud.

And the religious

leaders

see Jesus

as a threat.

verse 41.

In the same way

the chief priest,

the teachers of the law

and the elders

mocked him.

He saved others,

he said,

but he can't

save himself.

He's the king

of Israel.

Let him come down

now from the cross

and we'll believe him.

You see,

they had become

envious of Jesus,

hadn't they?

Because Jesus

had come

disrupting

and disturbing

their little

religious club

and they wanted

to get rid of Jesus.

And now they see

him nailed up

on a cross

and to them,

well,

the threat

was now

eliminated.

We've got rid

of him.

And the rebels,

well,

they see Jesus

as a fool.

Verse 38.

Two rebels

were crucified

with him,

one on his right

and one on his left.

Verse 44.

In the same way,

the rebels

who were crucified

with him

also heaped

insults

on him.

Why would anyone

who is innocent

put themselves

through this suffering?

That's what they're

thinking.

They knew their crime

and their guilt.

They deserved

to be crucified.

They understood

the horrors

of crucifixion.

crucifixion.

One author

described

crucifixion

like this

and the suffering

that takes place.

Crucifixion

was unspeakably

painful

and degrading.

The victim

endured

countless moments

of physical shock

and surging pain

as he pulled

with his arms,

pushed with his legs

to keep his chest cavity

open for breathing.

The victim

would then

collapse

in exhaustion

until the demand

for oxygen

renewed

the physical shock

and surging pain.

This cycle

could go on

for days

ending at last

by suffocation,

cardiac arrest

or loss of blood.

So,

the rebels

as they're

hanging there,

they're thinking

why would you

willingly

accept such

punishment

if you're

innocent?

The rebels

thought he was

a fool.

It's astonishing,

isn't it,

as we think

about the mocking

that takes place.

No one

stands up

for Jesus.

No one.

Instead,

they all

join in

the mocking

in one way

or another.

But what

about you?

What about

me?

How do you

see Jesus

as he hangs

on the cross?

Yeah,

I know what

the right answer

is,

but how do you

treat him?

Is he

in irrelevance

to you?

You have

your own

way of living

and your own

way of doing

things.

Why would I

ever listen

to Jesus?

Why would I

bother listening

to his word?

Or maybe

Jesus is a

fraud to you.

He makes

great claims

about establishing

an eternal

kingdom,

but you all

find it

rather disappointing

and demanding

because it's

about serving

and sacrifice.

Maybe you

see Jesus

as a threat

to your own

life.

You prefer

to believe

your own

truth

and don't

like the

claims that

Jesus makes

on you,

so you

intentionally

block him

out.

Or maybe

you just

simply see

Jesus as

a fool,

a good

person who

said and

did some

great things,

but then it

just got a

bit out of

hand.

He got a

bit ahead

of himself

and it

all ended

badly.

He's just

a fool.

Well,

as much

as we

like to

think of

ourselves

as better

than any

of these

things,

the truth

is we

have all

joined in

the mocking.

You see,

none of us

naturally

side with

Jesus.

We don't

like to

stand up

for him.

We prefer

to keep

quiet,

don't we?

We want

to stay

silent.

That is,

apart from

the mocking.

Okay,

we might

make jokes,

we might

be laughing,

we may

never verbalise

it,

but don't

we live

at times

as if

Jesus is

a complete

irrelevance

to our

life,

a fraud,

a threat,

and a

fool.

Look at

those

surrounding

the cross

as Jesus

is crucified.

Look

closely at

all the

people are

there,

look

closely

and you'll

see me

and you'll

see yourself.

So we

have the

silence of

Jesus

and the

mocking of

Jesus.

But then

there's the

victory.

As Jesus

silently goes

to his

death,

as the

people

mock and

insult him,

it all

seems to

be a

tragic

and painful

defeat.

After all

that Jesus

has done

and all

that he

claims,

it ends

in a

rather

disappointing

way,

doesn't it?

Look at

the cross,

naked,

bloody,

grasping

for breath.

Jesus is

hanging as a

condemned

criminal.

death.

Yet what

appears to

be a

crushing

death is

a life

saving

victory.

Well,

where's the

victory in

this mess

on a

cross?

Well,

let's think

about this

together.

First,

we've got to

know that this

was a planned

death.

You see,

Jesus'

silence

before his

accusers

may seem

strange to

us.

But Jesus

doesn't need

to defend

himself.

He knows

he must

die.

Leading up

to these

events,

three times,

Jesus had

made it

explicitly clear

to his

disciples,

I'm going

to Jerusalem

and I'm

going to

die.

Have a

look back

at chapter

20.

chapter

20,

verse

18.

So this

is the

third time

Jesus has

spelt it

out in

simple

terms.

Chapter

20,

verse

18.

We are

going up

to Jerusalem

and the

Son of

Man,

remember

that's his

title for

himself.

The Son of

Man will

be delivered

over to

the chief

priests and

the teachers

of the law.

They will

condemn him

to death

and will

hand him

over to

the Gentiles

to be

mocked

and flogged

and crucified

and on the

third day he

will be raised

to life.

You can't

get more

simple than

that, can

you?

You see,

Jesus'

death,

before it

happened,

before his

crucifixion,

was all

planned and

purposed by

God.

It's not a

mistake.

The events

surrounding the

trial of

Jesus may

have been

orchestrated by

religious rulers.

The final

sentence may

have been

pronounced by

Pilate.

The soldiers

may have nailed

him to the

cross, but

all of their

actions and

all of their

deeds have

all been

woven together

into God's

foreordained

plan.

The writers

of Scripture

won't let us

off the

hook.

Over and

over again

they want

this point

to be

clear to

us.

Luke, the

author of

Acts, tells

us this, you

can read on

screen.

This man,

speaking of

Jesus, was

handed over

to you by

God's

deliberate

plan and

foreknowledge.

And you, with

the help of

wicked men, put

him to death

by nailing

him to the

cross.

Jesus may

die, but

let's be

absolutely clear

on this, he

is sovereign

over his

own death.

He is God's

chosen king

with absolute

power and

supreme authority.

Nothing is

taken Jesus

by surprise

and no one

has control

over the

life of

Jesus.

He

deliberately

and

intentionally

goes to

his death.

He goes

silently.

He endures

the mocking

because that

is his

purpose for

coming to

earth.

He came

to die.

He came

to die.

But why

did he

die?

Well, it

was a

substitutionary

death.

A terrible

injustice

takes place

at Jesus'

trial.

Look back

at verse

15,

chapter 7,

verse 15.

It was the

governor's

custom at

the festival

at the time

of Passover

to release a

prisoner

chosen by

the crowd.

So obviously

the prisoner

is a criminal,

he's done

wrong,

he's been

imprisoned.

At that

time they

had a

well-known

prisoner

whose name

was Jesus

Barabbas.

So when

the crowd

had gathered,

Pilate asked

them,

which one

do you

want me

to release

to you?

Jesus

Barabbas

or Jesus

who's called

the Messiah?

The one

who claims

to be

God,

to be

king.

For he

knew it

was out

of self-interest

or envy

that they

had handed

Jesus over

to him.

Pilate

knew their

schemes.

They wanted

Barabbas

freed.

But he

also knew

that this

Jesus was

innocent.

So what

was he

going to

do?

Verse 20,

the chief

priests and

the elders

persuaded the

crowd to

ask for

Barabbas

and to

have Jesus

executed.

Which of

the two

do you

want me

to release

to you?

asked the

governor.

Barabbas

they answered.

What shall

I do then

with Jesus

who is

called the

Messiah?

Pilate

asked.

They all

answered,

crucify him.

Why?

What crime

has he

committed?

But they

shouted all

the louder,

crucify him.

Pilate knows

what he has

to do.

He just

needs to be

the honourable

faithful judge,

do what's

right and

free Jesus.

Jesus.

But,

verse 24,

Pilate saw

that he was

getting nowhere

and that

instead an

uproar was

starting,

literally a

riot was

beginning to

take place.

So he

took water,

washed his

hand in

front of the

crowd.

I am

innocent of

this man's

blood,

he said.

It is your

responsibility.

All the

people answered,

blood is

on us and

on our

children.

Then he

released

Barabbas to

them,

had Jesus

flogged,

and handed

him over to

be crucified.

It's a

travesty.

But yet if

Jesus has

control over

his death,

does he not

have control

over the

circumstances of

his death?

You see,

the prisoner

exchange that

is taking

place,

the setting

the guilty

prisoner free

and sentencing

the innocent

one,

is exactly

what Jesus'

death means

for us.

It's a

substitutionary

death.

What happened

at the trial

is what

happens at

the cross

for all

who would

believe.

Jesus comes

to exchange

places with

us.

He is

treated as

guilty for

us so

that we

might be

declared

innocent

like him.

It's a

staggering

reversal of

our situation.

We're the

guilty mockers.

We've

rejected

Jesus as

king.

We've

shut him

up.

We've

shut him

out.

We want

to be the

king.

It's us

who deserve

to die.

But Jesus

dies as

our

substitute

in our

place.

Do you

see what

Pilate

does?

He knows

Jesus is

innocent.

But what

does he

do?

He takes

a bowl

of water

and symbolically

washes his

hands as if

to say,

well, I

know what

the truth

is, but

I'm taking

no responsibility.

I'm not

going to be

guilty in

any of

this.

Well,

the point

he is

guilty.

And no

washing of

water could

ever wash

Pilate's

guilt away.

But that's

why Jesus

has come.

You see,

this is what's

happening.

Think of the

shame of

your past.

Think of the

secrets that

we bury

deep down in

our life.

the ones

that keep

us awake

at night.

Or the

guilt that

weighs upon

us, the

sins that

people know

and it

holds us

back from

entering into

service or

getting involved

a bit more.

Well, Jesus

is the one

who's come to

take my

guilt and

your shame

so that we

can be

declared

innocent.

Innocent.

set free

to live a

new life

as members

of his

kingdom.

It's a

planned

death, a

substitutionary

death, which

makes it a

victorious death.

You see, if

we're to know

this true

life, this

new life, this

innocence that

Jesus gives,

we must see

that Jesus

must die

for me.

He doesn't

die for

other people,

he must die

for me.

Look at how

the people

respond as

Jesus is

crucified.

Do you see

what they're

all saying

in verse

39?

Save

yourself.

Come down

from the

cross if

you're the

son of

God.

He saved

others, he

can't save

himself.

If he's the

king of

Israel, let

him come

down now

from the

cross, then

we'll believe

him.

They're all

demanding that

Jesus would

save himself.

If we're to

believe you,

Jesus, you've

got to do

something great.

Come down

from the

cross right

now, do

some miracle,

show us your

power, give

us what we

want, and

then we're

going to

believe.

But they're

all blind.

they can't

see that

Jesus is

doing the

greatest thing

possible.

He is

displaying his

power.

Something

supernatural is

taking place

as he hangs

on the cross.

Jesus doesn't

give in to

their demands.

He does

what they

need.

He stays

on the

cross.

and as

he gives

of his

own life,

he is

saving

your life.

I wonder

what is it

that you

demand of

Jesus?

What do

you want

Jesus to

do for

you so

that you

will believe

him?

What are

you shouting

at Jesus?

What are

you asking

for him to

do?

so that

you will

trust him

with your

future and

that you

will follow

him

absolutely.

Jesus,

give me

that secure

job and

then I'll

commit.

Jesus,

if you would

sort out the

mess of my

life and

just make

things a little

easier,

then I'll

start making

it regular

that I come

to church.

Jesus,

you do

this

and then

I will

do

that.

Just

think about

that for a

moment and

you fill in

the blank.

Jesus,

you do

this for

me

and then

I will

do that

for you.

God

God

will

do that.

No,

don't

demand.

Make no

demands.

Instead he

says I want

you to look

at the

cross and

see Jesus

who submits

to death

for you.

Jesus

stays silent.

He endures

the mocking.

He stays

on the

cross

to save

you.

He does

the greatest

thing

so that

you can

trust him

with

everything.

His death

is enough.

It's a

victorious

death

and it's a

death for

you

and it's a

death for

me.

Let's

pray.

Father,

we are

stunned

and amazed

that your

silence

the way

you take

your

mocking

the way

you make

no

defense

and you

humbly

walk to

the place

where we

deserve to

go.

You

stay on

the cross

and you

die for

me.

thank you

Jesus.

Thank you

for what

you have

done.

Help us

to entrust

our life,

our future,

our dreams,

our plans

to see

that all

that you

have done

is enough.

We could

never ask

of you

to do

more.

and because

you have

given us

the very

best,

help us

that we

might walk

with you

and follow

you

and trust

you.

Help us,

we pray.

Amen.

Amen.

We're

going to

sing.

We're

going to

sing about

how deep

the Father's

love for us,

the second

verse,

brings it

home and

brings it

personal.

Behold the

man upon

the cross,

my sin,

my sin,

my sin,

my sin,

my sin,