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well good morning everybody welcome to free grace Baptist Church it's a blessing to be praising our God this morning well our called the worship this morning comes from Psalm number nine you'll turn with me in your Bibles to Psalm number nine we're gonna look at verses 11 through 20 as are called to worship Psalm 9 verses 11 through 20 sing praises to the Lord who dwells in Zion declare his deeds among the people when he avenged his blood he remembers them he does not forget the cry of the humble have mercy on me O Lord consider my trouble from those who hate me you who lift me up from the gates of death that I may tell of all your praise in the gates of the daughter of Zion I will rejoice in your salvation the nation's have sunk down in the pit which they made in the net which they had their own foot is caught the Lord is known by the judgment he execute the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands say law the wicked shall be turned into hell and all the nations that forget God for the needy shall not always be forgotten the expectation of the poor shall not perish forever arise O Lord do not let man prevail that the nation's be put be judged in your sight put them in fear o Lord that the nation's may know themselves to be but men say law well you can turn with me in your larger trendy hymnal to ham number 12 our first team is hymn number 12 if you're able we'll stand and sing together [Music] baby seated well let us go to our great God in prayer the Lord we know that you are our Father and we thank you O God of heaven and earth that you dwell with your people you dwell with your children we do thank you for your house o God we thank you for the gates of Zion you love it more than all the dwelling places of Jacob O God is your house and you've called forth your people out of this world to come into your house to hear you preach and teach to them to hear what your word says concerning who you are and concerning the Lord Jesus Christ and we do pray O God that you would dwell with us this day that you would help us and aid us and strengthen us O God we pray that your spirit would be amongst us showing who you are showing us our sin who we are and showing us our great need for Jesus Christ for those that know Christ O God may there be conviction of sin may there be comfort concerning who Jesus is may there be assurance of faith because of the great work of Jesus Christ for those that do not know Christ O God we pray that you would work in them by the Holy Spirit that they might come to saving knowledge in Jesus Christ according to your word of God we pray that you would open the heavens and come down and be with us O God for you promise to never leave your people nor forsake them and we do thank you for this house O God that you build your church and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it we thank you that you are pleased to dwell with man o God through Jesus Christ for who is man that you are mindful of him O God how can lights dwell with darkness may we consider these things may we ponder these things and may we consider it a great privilege to be in your house to hear what you say concerning your son our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ through your preacher again dwell with us by your spirit and we pray that you would be glorified this day in the name of Christ amen well our second ham be also in the larger trendy hymnal you can turn with me in that hymnal to him 298 if you are able we'll stand and sing together ham 298 [Music] you may be seated well for our consecutive Scripture we D reading you can turn with me to the Gospel of Mark chapter 14 that's Mark's Gospel chapter 14 we're gonna read verses 52 53 to 72 mark 14 versus 53 to 72 this is the word of the living and true God and they led Jesus away to the high priest and with him were assembled all the chief priests the elders and the scribes but Peter followed him at a distance right into the courtyard of the high priest and he sat with the servants and warned him warmed himself at the fire now the chief priests and all the council sought testimony against Jesus to put him to death but found none for many bore false witness against him but their testimonies did not agree then summer Sun rose up and bore false witness against him saying we heard him say I will destroy this temple made with hands and within three days I will build another made without hands but not even then did their testimony agree and the high priest stood up in the midst and asked Jesus saying do you answer nothing what is it these men testify against you but he kept silent and answered nothing and again the high priest asked him saying are you are you the Christ the Son of the Blessed and Jesus said I am and you will see the Son of man sitting at the right hand of the power and coming with clouds of heaven then the high priest tore his clothes and had said what further need do we have of witnesses you have heard the blasphemy what do you think and they all condemned him to be deserving of death then some began to spit on him and been to blindfold him and to beat him and to say to him prophesy and the officers struck him with the palms of their hands now as Peter was below in the courtyard one of the servant girls of the high priest came and when she saw Peter warming himself she looked at him and said you also were with Jesus of Nazareth but he denied it saying I neither know him nor understand what you are saying and he went out on the porch and a rooster crowed and the servant girl saw him again and began to say to those who stood by this is one of them but he knighted again and a little later those who stood by said to Peter again surely you are one of them for you are a Galilean and your speech shows it then he began to curse and swear I do not know this man of whom you speak and a second time the rooster then Peter called to mind the word that Jesus had said to him before the rooster crows twice you will deny me three times and when he thought about it he wept amen well let us go to our great God in prayer once again our Lord God Almighty the god of salvation we thank you for the salvation that is found in Christ our Lord we thank you O God that he made the good profession before men how he is I am and we will see the Son of man coming on the clouds oh god and we thank youuh God that he is mighty he is powerful Oh God that he stood on our behalf before before you O God who died on behalf of sinners that sinners may have everlasting life for we are weak O God we are feeble we are like Peter Oh God we thank you for Christ who confessed that he is the true in the Living God who confessed that he is I am that he is Yahweh of Israel that he is the creator of heaven and earth we give you praise and honor for this O God we give you praise and honor for him o God for he died on behalf of sinners that sinners may have everlasting life that sinners may dwell with you O God and we thank you O God that we dwell with you by the Holy Spirit who reveals us the things concerning Jesus Christ help these things to give us comfort help these things to give us hope knowing that we can go to you O God we can bold the approached throne of grace through our high priest Jesus Christ as we were reminded of this morning do we thank you that we can do this O God by your Holy Spirit that because of what Christ has done because of our great high priest that when we sin Oh God that when we transgress your law that when we then we do not do as we ought oak god that we can come to you an offer and confess our sins to you and you are faithful and just to forgive us and cleanse us of all unrighteousness we confess all God that we have sinned against you we have sinned against your holy law we've sinned in our minds and in our hearts and we've sinned with our hands well Oh God we confess that these things are wrong but we thank you for our advocate Jesus Christ the righteous who is the propitiation not only for the sins of those spiritually elite but also for those for the rest of the people around the world for the whole world Oh God we thank you for the categories of men that are saved in Christ our Lord and Christ our King that there's neither Jew nor Greek slave nor free male nor female but all those can come and believe on the Savior Jesus Christ we thank you that he is the one who died on behalf of his people of God we pray O God that if for any of those who are struggling physically today o God aid them strengthen them by your Holy Spirit help them to look and be be reminded of the truth of the gospel we remind of the truth of our Savior O God that they might give you might give them that longing for heaven that desire for home oh god help them and aid them this day for those that struggle spiritually Oh God help and strengthen them that they might know a sense of your holy spirit but they might die more and more unto sin that we all might die more and more into sin and grow more and more into the image of Christ our Lord Christ our King that we might shine as lights in a crooked and perverse generation we pray that you would strengthen us O God by your spirit that you would aid us and strengthen us by your word as we hear it today we thank you for your word and we pray that your would word would go forth when we pray that you would be glorified in all things in the name of Christ amen well our him before the preaching comes from the red trendy Psalter we're going to sing Psalm number two to a familiar tune so turn with me in your red salt or two Psalm number two [Music] well please turn with me in your Bibles to Matthew chapter 27 Matthew chapter 27 we're considering Jesus Christ before Pontius Pilate the section is in verses 15 to 26 this morning we're going to take up 15 to 23 and God willing look at the remit remainder part next Sunday don't want to rush through that question of responsibility that is raised in verses 24 to 26 but as I said we're gonna look at verses 15 to 23 Christ before Pontius Pilate but I'll begin reading the chapter at verse 1 when morning came all the chief priests and elders of the people plotted against Jesus to put him to death and when they had bound him they led him away and delivered him to Pontius Pilate the governor then Judas his betrayer seeing that he had been condemned was remorseful and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders saying I have sinned by betraying innocent blood and they said what is that to us you see to it then he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed and went and hanged himself but the chief priests took the silver pieces and said it is not lawful to put them into the Treasury because they are the price of blood and they consulted together and bought with them the potter's field to bury strangers in therefore that field has been called the field of blood to this day then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the Prophet saying and they took the thirty pieces of silver the value of him who is Christ whom they of the children of Israel priced and gave them for the potter's field as the Lord directed me now Jesus stood before the governor and the governor asked him saying are you the King of the Jews jesus said to him it is as you say and while he was being accused by the chief priests and elders he answered nothing and Pilate said to him do you not hear how many things they testify against you but he answered him not one word so that the governor marvelled greatly now at the feast the governor was accustomed to releasing to the multitude one prisoner whom they wished and at that time they had a notorious prisoner called Barabbas therefore when they had gathered together Pilate said to them whom do you want me to release to you Barabbas or Jesus who is called Christ for he knew that they had handed him over because of envy while he was sitting on the judgment seat his wife sent to him saying have nothing to do with that just man for I have suffered many things today in a dream because of him but the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitudes that they should ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus the governor answered and said to them which of the two do you want me to release to you they said Barabbas Pilate said to them what then shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ they all said to him let him be crucified when the governor said why what evil has he done but they cried out all the more saying let him be crucified when Pilate saw that he could not prevail at all but rather that a tumult was rising he took water and washed his hands before the multitude saying I am innocent of the blood of this just person you see to it and all the people answered and said his blood be on us and on our children then he released Barabbas to them and when he had scourged Jesus he delivered him to be crucified Amen well let us pray our Father in heaven we thank you for the written word and certainly what is written here is truly amazing that the Son of God would go through such things to save his people from their sins we know it to be the truth we know it to be prophesied in the Old Testament we know that in the fullness of the time you sent forth your son born of a woman born under the law to redeem those under the law and he became a curse for us so that the curse of the law may no longer fall upon our heads we rejoice in the gospel of free and sovereign grace we rejoice in your goodness and in your kindness we rejoice in the fact that you have forgiven us that you have given us a righteousness that avails with you we know it's not because of our works not because of our merit it's not because of anything good in us but everything good and the Saviour everything good in the Son of God everything good in this one who remained silent before his judge before his his accusers this one who went to the cross this one who fulfilled all that the father gave for him to do this one who does indeed display resolute determination to save to the uttermost all who draw nigh unto God through him we ask that you would encourage our hearts this morning that as we look at Christ displayed in this passage our hearts would be drawn out in love and worship and adoration in God for sinners who are still in their sins we pray that today would be the day of salvation may they see indeed the glory of the gospel of Jesus Christ and may they by your grace taste and see that the Lord is good may they come unto you may they believe on him may they look and may they live and just forgive us now for our sins and our transgressions cleanse us in the blood of Christ and fill each and every one of us now with your Holy Spirit and we pray through Jesus Christ our Lord amen well as we have been considering the passion narrative of our Lord Jesus if you just remember back in chapter 26 jesus stood first before the Jewish Sanhedrin the High Court of Israel the religious leaders who made up the Sanhedrin at that particular time accused him of blasphemy the decision is made to deliver him up to Pontius Pilate because the Jews at that time had no authority to impose a capital sentence they wanted to destroy Jesus but they didn't have the authority to destroy Jesus so they deliver him up to Pontius Pilate we see that there in chapter 27 verses 1 to 2 Matthew then gives us the record concerning Judas Iscariot in verses 3 to 10 3 to 10 and then the narrative returns to Christ before Pontius Pilate notice in 11 to 13 to 14 last week we considered the interrogation of Jesus Pilate is a Roman magistrate Pilate had been in this job for about 10 years total probably about 6 or 7 at Tinie heard this particular case and he was seasoned in this and he knew there was a proper procedure and Roman prefect to Roman judges didn't want to send a man to the death penalty or impose the death penalty if it was not in fact due process so he levels the charge or he asks the question are you the King of the Jews Christ answers in the affirmative then the religious leaders who are accompanying this the Jewish leaders begin to level several accusations Christ remains silent in accordance with the prophet Isaiah chapter 53 verse 7 Christ demonstrates through this silence this resolute determination to do the will of his father he is going to go to the cross he is going to undergo all that has been prophesied he is going to undergo all that is being imposed upon him because this is the purpose for which he came he didn't come in the first place to start a new religion he didn't come in the first place simply to teach us how to live toward one another he came in the first place to save his people from their sins he came in the first place to live to die and to be raised the third day so that everyone who looks to him in faith will have every lever lasting life this message scandalized first century Jews this message appeared foolish to first century Greeks and I suspect it is still a scandal and it is still foolishness to those who are outside of Jesus Christ but today we know along with the Apostle Paul in first corinthians want christ has both the power and the wisdom of god we understand why he went through this we marvel and stand in awe when we consider the great weights with which our savior went in order to save us from our sins so jesus faces his accusers now notice in verses 15 to 26 i'll just give you the two final heads first we have the attempt to grant amnesty to Jesus by Pilate in verses 15 to 23 and then the cha the section ends with the sentencing of Jesus by Pilate verses 24 to 26 but as I said we'll take up those ladder to a ladder versus God willing next week so we're gonna look at this attempt to grant amnesty to Jesus by Pilate as I've already alluded to Pilate was a man who wasn't sinless he wasn't holy he wasn't harmless he wasn't a godly man but nevertheless he was a Roman judge and as I demonstrated last week even by appealing to to Festus to Mary for these Roman judges to just rubber-stamp death penalty cases and we are actually observe here in this passage the sort of difficulty if I may that Pilate undergoes now there are some who Christianized Pilate I'm not doing that there are some who Christianized pilots wife I probably won't even do that but brethren we have to understand the unique position that he is that he is in he knows that Christ is innocent he knows that Christ is not guilty of the charges that have been offered he knows that the motivation behind the religious leaders is not because they saw Jesus commit blasphemy or that Jesus is a is a competitor to the Roman crown they hand him over because of envy so Pilate is in a very difficult and very precarious position and I will suggest as we move through the exposition that he actually abdicates his role he puts the decision concerning amnesty into the hands of the people this just further demonstrates his cowardice it further demonstrates his gutless Ness as he proceeds in this whole matter so I want to look at five things this morning first the custom concerning amnesty in verses 15 to 17 secondly the motivation of the religious leaders in verse 18 the warning by pilots wife in verse 19 forth the demand of the multitudes in verses 20 to 22 and then some cross-examination by Pilate in verse 23 but let's look first of all at the custom highlighted notice in verse 15 now at the feast this is Passover the governor was accustomed to release to the multitude one prisoner whom they wished now I suggest that pilots shouldn't have given this decision to the people pilot could have just as easily made this decision on his own he probably no doubt thought that the people would of course choose Barabbas when he sets before them the two options in verse 17 he probably thinks that it's a it's a no-brainer that the crowd will choose to release Jesus and keep Barabbas incarcerated I think that we see with Davies and Alison that we learn that pilots title is ironic the governor here leaves the governing to others but notice as well the options given by Pilate and verse 16 it says and at that time they had a North notorious prisoner called Barabbas now your margin may say some manuscripts say Jesus Barabbas some of the manuscripts do contain Jesus Barabbas now not many to be sure but it was a very old reading at the time of origin an origin died in about two 54 to 56 an origin made the statement that many manuscripts do not contain the name Jesus Barabbas which at least implies some manuscripts did and if indeed the word is in the original we have Jesus Barabbas Jesus Barabbas Barabbas means son of the Father so you've got this notorious vicious Jesus son of the Father and then you've got the glorious holy wondrous jesus the son of the Father and there's a juxtaposition here and certainly as Pilate presents the two again he's not thinking theologies not thinking in terms of variant readings that may arise but he is setting before them into a notorious prisoner a man that is indeed a wretch a man that is indeed a very vile and wicked man we asked the question how vile is he we often consider the fact that the Scriptures testify that he was a robber that he was a thief in fact John 1840 refers to Barabbas as a robber now we need to understand something about the term robber a famous dictionary defines it this way it can mean robber highwayman or abandoned it can mean somebody who thieves who commits acts of theft but it also means revolutionary insurrectionist or gorilla gorilla doesn't mean the big simian creature that beats on his chest gorilla gue RI ll a typically someone involved in an end of independent movement that engages in warfare that engages in military-style fighting and so this word bears this significance I'll submit in this passage mark 15-7 tells us they had committed murder in the rebellion Luke 23 19 says concerning Barabbas who had been thrown into prison for a certain rebellion made in the city and for murder consider as well that neither theft nor even violent robbery would be consider capital offenses so that Barabbas is in a situation equitable to what Jesus Christ is facing in terms of an imposition of the death penalty it is suggested here that Barabbas was indeed a whole lot worse than somebody who goes down to Walmart and shoplift he was a vicious vile criminal Carson says neither theft or violent robbery was a capital offense but insurrection was the term this particular Greek term was used by Josephus for those who fought against the Roman occupation you've heard of the zealots in fact one of Jesus disciples was a zealot we hear the word zealot we typically think it means somebody who's full of zeal somebody who's full of earnestness somebody who's full of a lot of excitement but zealot in this particular context meant someone that was akin to a revolutionary somebody that didn't like the Roman government somebody that was subject to them and wanted to see them overthrown that's what a zealot was so I've always been intrigued by Matthew and Jude a sign I'm gonna Judas the zealot the name has escaped me which one Simon yes Simon the zealot and Matthew the man who had been a goth a government official in terms of of Taxation how they got along together could only be by the grace of God through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ but that's probably what we're dealing with and brethren I'll suggest this is probably one of the reasons why at least some of Israel wanted to see Barabbas released see the Jews would see him or at least some of the Jews might see him as a bit of a hero a revolutionary he wants to stick it to the man he wants to put down the Roman government again I think it's outlandish to consider the fact that these wicked people would side with a violent revolutionary and insurrectionist over the Son of God we ought not to forget that but just trying to flesh this out France says he would have been a freedom fighter to the Romans and insurrectionist but to the Jews perhaps a patriot now something else we ought to observe before we leave this particular point concerning the nature of his crimes we ought to consider the other participants in his crimes I've already read for you Matthew 15 7 when it speaks of Barabbas it says they had committed murder in the rebellion mark matthew 27 38 you can probably just glance over there from where you're at Matthew 27 38 then two robbers were crucified with him one on the right and another on the left the same Greek word here robbers bandit Highwaymen or it may contain the idea of revolutionary insurrectionist guerrilla i suggest that Barabbas was planned honor it had been planned on to crucify that day he would have been in the center of these two other insurrectionists these two other revolutionaries these two other men they were friends they were companions they were cohorts there were going to be three crucifixions on that particular day Davies and Alison say Pilate had already made ready crosses before he passed judgment upon Jesus and that after the amnesty Jesus was nailed to a cross original intended for Barabbas now note the question in verse 17 so setting up the stage looking at the custom verse 15 giving the background in terms of the options verse 16 now Pilate in verse 17 when they had gathered together Pilate said to them whom do you want me to release to you Barabbas or Jesus who is called Christ now again it should be a no-brainer shouldn't it I think the Internet has helped us to reduce filing cabinets or it's on its way to completely getting rid of filing cabinets used to be that if you saw something interesting in the newspaper you would clip the article you would write it down and you put it in your files boy with a web browser you can save anything and everything right one of the things I save and you're gonna probably go that's weird and wacky is violent-crime not on a regular basis but just atrocities crimes that just make somebody you know hang their head in shame that they're part of the human race got a particular file for abortion you know again on your web browser you can just save whatever it is you want we come across some pretty horrific things in this world don't we I mean probably just in this past week you've seen many a story that makes you hang your head in shame that you're part of the human race along with some other gorilla Geor il la like that who performs such things this is a dark time in our history our fellows act in this passage in a most horrific and terrible way the worst time in our history because whatever crimes I may save in the web browser whatever crimes you may say wow that's just terrible Jesus was holy harmless and undefiled he had done absolutely nothing wrong there was no reason whatsoever they should have engaged in this pursuit so Pilate asks the specific question do you want a violent revolutionary that's a danger and a threat to the city do you want one that's notorious that works in concert with at least two others for the overthrow violently of government or do you want Jesus again it seems like a no-brainer it seems like something so obvious the notice the motivation of the religious leaders verse 18 is a bit of an aside it sort of breaks up the flow of the narrative therefore verse 17 when they had gathered together Pilate said to them whom do you want me to release to you Barabbas or Jesus who is called Christ verses 18 and 19 or Matthew's sort of commentary or theology with reference to the whole situation you could just as effectively take 18 and 19 out and the passage would keep flowing so reason why Matthew wants us to to spend a moment to consider this to think through the implications so Pilate understands what's happening he understands what's going on with reference to Jesus but Matthew the omniscient narrator tells us what Pilate understands concerning their wretched hearts now I don't think this required any special knowledge on pilots part I don't think the Lord visit him by an angel to give him this insight I don't think he read it in as you know fortune-cookie that morning I don't think he had to go to a fortune-teller to try and figure out what's what's driving these religious leaders it was obvious the man that was standing before him silent was indeed innocent Pilate confesses that three times in Luke he confesses it three times not for a total of six but he confesses it three times in John and I suggest that he confesses it several times in this very narrative he knows that Jesus hasn't done anything wrong he knew that the Sanhedrin had found him guilty of blasphemy he knew that the Sanhedrin had indeed shaped the charge so that it would be political in nature he knew that they had shaped it in such a way by framing it in terms of the question are you the King of the Jews he knew what was driving these religious leaders at this particular time the religious religious leaders would ultimately use this as leverage in order to manipulate Pilate to condemn Jesus to death so the governor here knows that their motivation isn't blasphemy charge isn't this what sinners do we hide our sin under some pious thing well I was vicious and unkind and ungodly to that person because I'm maintaining the glory of God Wow yippee for you do you see what they're doing brethren we have heard the blasphemy he deserves to die that's not what they're concerned about in John 19 at verse 12 when they tell Pilate any man whom who sympathizes with a rival to Caesar is no friend of Caesar what they say to Pilate you talk about in giving pressure to a Roman governor they said that if you make yourself a friend of him who says that he's a king then you're no friend of Caesar and then in 1915 you know what these Jewish leaders say we have no king but Caesar it's not Christ's blasphemy that bothers them it's not Christ's challenge to the civil authority in Rome it's Christ's popularity that really bugs them this is power religion and its finest exhibiting itself and it's stronghold this is the essence of cultism maintaining social control over others by trying to weed out the field of any competitors notice this is what Matthew says Pilate knew and we don't have any reason to suggest again that it was some extra special knowledge that Pilate received it was just the reality this wasn't the first time Pilate had stood on in court this wasn't the first time Pilate had seen proceedings he was wise enough to know what was happening he knew that they had handed him over because of envy it wasn't Christ blasphemy nor his alleged threat to Caesar nor his alleged threat to the political order that motivated the religious leaders but their own envy their own rivalry their own pettiness again he blasts fiend he's making himself out to be the king he will do that won't we we'll take what appears to be pious to try to mask the wretched motivation of our own hearts instead of just being honest yeah I'm an envious rival you know having wretch that wants to maintain control on people on one sense I think I'm saying that's a good thing that's not a good thing but at least it's a lot more honest to say it in such a way we don't like the threat that Jesus produces when when the multitudes follow him we were moved to indignant when he entered into Jerusalem and the crowds were saying Hosanna to him this really bothered us no that's not what they do they're not honest men they're not faithful men they're not good man they are slimy men they are wretched men that in the guise of prosecuting him for blasphemy are using that as a mask to mask their wicked hearts of envy toward the Son of God listen to Davies and Alison again the real motive for handing Jesus over here over is here uncovered not a fence at blasphemy but desire for power over the populace the leaders of Jerusalem were so Matthew implies threatened when significant numbers gave heed to Jesus instead of them their envy came from thirst for power you all see that right what does this do yeah further exacerbates the guilt of the Jewish leaders it shows what drove these men remember last week I had a bit of a tirade we're not supposed to be anti-semitic we're not supposed to judge animosity to Jews based on this passage but I also suggested there's another extreme by cowering to certain people we don't actually preach the reality that these guys bear a lion's share the guilt he speaking in delivering up the Son of God to crucifixion it was Envy that drove them to this garden-variety wicked green-eyed envy if ever there's a lesson in Scripture that we ought to moralize or take from this we ought to guard against envy see their jealousness to maintain the dignity of the name of Yahweh he has committed blasphemy let's get rid of them it's a sham they're jealous Nash to protect Caesar and the civil order was a sham they didn't like the fact that Jesus was taking followers away from them they didn't like the fact that Jesus was more popular than them they didn't like the fact that Jesus was being you know praised with hosannas while they themselves are getting all upset and indignant according to Matthew 21 now notice thirdly this warning by pilots wife verse 19 while he was sitting on the judgment seat that's an intriguing thing the timing couldn't be better he's sitting on this judgement seat this is the language of formality this is the actual procedure this is the actual courtroom if it was in our situation Ebola he would have already entered everybody would have rise they would have all sat down he would have taken his seat at this particular time court was in session it was an official proceeding and note what happens while he's in sachet his wife sent to him saying have nothing to do with that just man for I have suffered many things today in a dream because of him now there are several other instances of dreams occurring in Matthew Matthew chapter 1 and then several times in Matthew chapter 2 in terms of the birth narrative of our Lord Jesus God communicates via dream now it doesn't say here that God communicated to her by a dream those other dreams typically specify that it came from the Lord so there's some question was this supernatural did God give her this specific dream I don't know but what I know is that the message of her dream was absolutely spot on notice she sends to her husband who's in court have nothing to do with that just man for I have suffered many things today in a dream because of him she declares Christ's righteousness he's a just man isn't this one of the primary emphases of JA of Matthew's Gospel isn't this how the gospel starts in Matthew chapter 3 we see Jesus go to John the Baptist to get baptized and the Baptist says no I shouldn't be baptizing you you should be I shouldn't be baptizing you you should be baptizing me and Jesus says permit it for we must fulfill all righteousness see that's a vital requirement in terms of the gospel we are unrighteous we are ungodly we are unholy so one must take our place not only in the cross to satisfy divine justice but one in obedience to the father's law and this woman understood that this woman says that this woman says have nothing to do with that just man she recognizes the precarious position that her husband is in sure he heard a lot of court cases in his 10 years on the bench he had never heard one like this he had never seen one like this if you or I were framed for a particular crime and we were hauled before the judge he wouldn't see us as wholly harmless and undefiled we may not have committed that crime but we've committed something he can't say that with Jesus you can't say that with this one and this woman this Gentile woman again it exacerbates the guilt of these Jewish leaders everybody recognizes Jesus righteousness Judas says he's innocent this Gentile woman says he's innocent Pilate says he's innocent and yet these Jewish leaders lead the crowds to cry out away with him away with him crucify him this woman confesses the righteousness of Jesus Christ upon which you and I hang our souls have nothing to do with that just man for I have suffered many things today in a dream be cause of him John Calvin comments on Christ's righteousness is innocence is just Nets he says God the Father took many methods of attesting the innocence of Christ that it might evidently appear that he suffered death in the room of others that is in our room you know what Calvin says but the passion narrative there are all these voices declaring the righteousness of Christ you know what you're supposed to ask why why did it happen why if he's righteous why if he's just why if he's innocent why if he hasn't ever done anything wrong is he going through this and when you asked that question you've opened the door to hear the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ he went through that because we sinned he went through that because we had violated God's law he was silent before Pontius Pilate because we use the tongue to blaspheme we used the tongue to curse we used the tongue to lie we used the tongue to murder we used the tongue to cheat so Christ and that sublime silence scans before not only the judge but his accusers so if you ask the question why are all these different voices proclaiming the innocence of Jesus Christ and yet he goes through this the answer is simple he went through this because it was the plan and purpose of God most I in order to save his people from their sins he went through this to rescue us from our transgression and our sin and our rebellion and our raised fist at God Most High he went through this and did it justly righteously and innocently such that when by God's grace we look to him that righteousness becomes ours Calvin makes the comment in another place I'll quote it God willing next week what kind of conscience sir what kind of peace should this passage afford the conscience of those who are in Christ Jesus there's no double jeopardy brethren if Christ has indeed secured our salvation this passage ought to afford us a great degree of for not comforting a sick sadistic twisted whale look at him die there with all the gore no but in the proper understanding that God made him who knew no sin to be sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in him in other words we rejoice we confess we delight in what he did at this particular point as I said the gravity of the guilt of the Jewish leaders France says the innocent intervention of pilots wife serves only to deepen the guilt of the Jewish leaders even a Gentile woman can see that Jesus is innocent let's look for three at the demand of the multitudes the first instance we have this persuasion by the religious leaders don't mix miss the juxtaposition or the contrast pilots on his judgement seat pilots wife sends a message to do what to persuade him to turn him to change his mind and while Paulette pilots wife is engaged in that particular activity what are the Jewish leaders doing they are seeking to persuade the multitudes they are seeking to change their minds that popular favour that Christ enjoyed when he entered into Jerusalem they got a root that out they got to get that out they've got to manipulate this crowd in such a way that they not only say release to us Barabbas but destroy for us Jesus that's what these men are busying themselves with this crowd had once supported Jesus in the triumphal entry in chapter 21 we know as well that the religious leaders has what had once feared the crowd because they did support Jesus remember this was one of the things that they kept them back according to 26:5 we can't do it during the feast we have to do it stealthily we have to do it privately we have to do it away from the the rank-and-file because it will cause an uproar the city has received in as a prophet this received and he he he wandered into the city on the the coal of adore the full full of a donkey we can't just go and violently grab and to take him off the streets because in the crowd will turn against us this what drove their their their bargaining betrayal with Judas Iscariot what's Judas promised Judas promises I can take him for you in a private place so it will won't draw attention to the crowd they don't care anymore do they they don't care anymore again brethren this is the darkest chapter in human history you say Oh what about Adam and Eve the crucifixion of our Lord Jesus notice these men are now calling upon the crowd that Jesus must be destroyed verse 20 the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitudes that they should ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus see the issue of amnesty hasn't been settled yet we've seen the costume we've seen the motivation of these men we see the warning a pilot's life but the answer concerning amnesty hasn't been given yet far as pilots concerned this is still up in the air who do you want Jesus what do you want Barabbas which son of the Father do you want the son of the father the devil or the son of the father God which is it so wow they are engaged in this or while Pilate is asking this question what is the Jewish leaders doing and what are they doing they're stirring up the crowds ask for Barabbas ask for Barabbas ask for the notorious vile rebel if there had been some in the populace that saw Barabbas as a as a hero as a patriot as a as a as an advocate for Jewish rights certainly the Sanhedrin shouldn't have seen him that way certainly the Sanhedrin would have a vested interest in Barabbas going to the cross I mean Barabbas was a wretch and yet they're persuading the multitudes to ask for his release and to send Jesus to his destruction notice very specifically in verse 20 that they should ask for Barabbas and destroy jeezus Chamblin says during the interval in which this Gentile woman seeks to influence or Gentile husband the Jewish leaders act to persuade the Jewish crowd Matthew's writing here is brilliant too by the way sometimes we just read through verses and we don't stop to consider hey this is happening here this is happening something simultaneously but in a different sort of locale pilots wife is concerned with getting Jesus let go the Jewish leaders the men who had the Old Testament Scriptures the men who were studied in the Old Testament Scriptures the men who should have seen him as the Messianic character from those Old Testament Scriptures they are now calling upon the crowd to cry out for his destruction notice the demand of the multitudes verses 21 and 22 the governor returns or we return to the governor asking the question the governor answered and said to them which of the two do you want me to release to you they said Barabbas listen to CH Spurgeon the Lord of glory had been sold by Judas for the price of a slave and now a robber a murderer and a leader in sedition is a greater favorite with the people than the prints of life remember many many years ago hearing a series of sermons by Andy Hamilton on sexual purity in a sensual age very good messages but as he's mentioning one particular sin he says you know that the Bible has to tell us not to engage in this particular sin ought to cause us all to hang our heads in shame you get that as parents sometimes you actually have to tell your kid not to do such-and-such come on you should be ashamed of yourself I shouldn't have to tell you that the Bible shouldn't have to command us certain things but that it does ought to embarrass us because it's in us to do those certain things you know we can sit on our moral high-ground and on our moral high horses and say those Jewish leaders are terrible that Pontius Pilate is terrible that crowd is terrible brethren I don't know that we would be the the three or four isolated individuals from the crowd with our sign saying no free Jesus and send Barabbas to a cross it's an arrogant position to maintain well I would have been different I would have handled it differently well perhaps you wouldn't have been the conniving Jewish leader here you may not have been the screaming Jewish multitudes here but you could have been the passive spineless wimp Pilate who allows it to happen see there's two kinds of evil and I think Pilate definitely displays this there's the kind that actually goes out and perpetuates a crime there's the kind that goes out and actively commits a horrific horrific act but then there are those who have the power to stop it and they don't they don't stop it they allow it fact again we might say that passivity is even worse I think I mentioned to you first Kings chapter 21 we learned that Jezebel incited a have to do much of the evil that they have did the biblical authors not telling us well as a result have favorable views of Ahab no the biblical author is saying to us that not only as they have a ratch for participating in crimes but he's a further wretch for submitting to his wife for letting a woman and again you're gonna go home and say Butler sounds very antique woman and very chauvinistic and just indulge me for a moment letting a woman tell him to go and kill Namath so he can increase his land holdings when the Scriptures indicate that somebody incited them they're still guilty they're still wrong we have it in the crowds as well what does Jesus say in Matthew 15 if the blind leads the blind then only the one who leads then falls into the ditch I think that's how we understand it we you can't blame them because they got caught up in this cult you can't blame them because they were incited to it you you can't blame him for engaging in this homicidal act because his his parents didn't hold him when he was a baby brother and I'm not suggesting that there's external influences that there's no influence that external things have on a person but weren't very desirous in our day and age to let everybody off the hook the Bible doesn't do that you can't do that this morning I would have done that I would have been the lone voice purged and asked the question wasn't there anybody in the crowd that would stand up for him not one person who had seen him heal who'd eat his food would seen and heard what he had done there was not one person know the text is conspicuous here are our fellows give us Barabbas what do you want me to do with Jesus Pilate then asks notice in verse 21 what then shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ they all said to him let him be crucified the pilot had lesser forms a capital punishment that he could inflict whipping in some instances would kill a man type of whipping that's administered to our Lord Jesus here oftentimes made it such that the victim wouldn't be on the cross as long as a general rule you're not fit and healthy to stand on the cross after you've been scourge within inches of your life so there were other forms of execution that were available to Pilate but notice what they go for notice what they say notice what's in their hearts let him be crucified see that's man's view of God we have this delusion that I'm a I'm an okay person if I met this Jesus I I'd listen I'd follow no you wouldn't you would join the angry mob who says let him be crucified what does John tell us the dark the light came into the world and what did the darkness deal oh we thank you for coming and illuminating our way no the darkness hates the light darkness doesn't want to come to the light why unless or lest its evil deeds be exposed this is man in seeing let him be crucified they don't or Pilate at this point doesn't realize that the crowd is not just Pro Barabbas but they are certainly and definitively anti Jesus this got out of hand for him again you're gonna go home and save others pretty sympathetic toward Pilate not at all at all whatsoever but man what a terrible day to be a Roman prefect you need your jobs hard do you think you've got a tough one coming tomorrow you think that 3 o'clock appointment is gonna be difficult man this is this guy I don't know how he did it notice they demand that the Lord of glory be crucified this has been the express desire of the Jewish leaders in chapter 12 chapters 21 26 and it's now realized through the crowd that they had persuaded now let's look finally at the cross-examination by Pilate in verse 23 so here's their cry here's what they say let him be crucified and then verse 23 then the governor said why what evil has he done see I I don't think pilots just rubber-stamping an execution here I don't think he's just rubber stamping this and saying ok just you know let it go I don't care whatever you do he is acting the part of a Roman prefect at this point he says Why What evil has he done the question is necessary to validate a capital sentence what happens to Pilate if he sends a man to the cross that was innocent pilot gets fired that's what's driving pilot I'm not suggesting he's got some extra noble thoughts here he doesn't want to lose his job pilot was notoriously wretched to the Jews in South so some have suggested that the character of pilot recorded for us not only in the pages of the New Testament but in outside sources as well doesn't really fit with what we have in terms of pilot here you would think that pilot this an enemy of the Jews would be would we we would be salivating at the thought of getting Jesus sent to the cross now pilots a politician pilot understands consequences Pilate knows that whatever decisions he makes here on this Friday is going to affect whether or not he comes back to work on Monday as far as pilots concerned he needs proof pony up set forth the evidence you're calling out for crucifixion which is the highest form of capital punishment and you haven't provided one iota of proof yet and isn't that what this demonstrates as well when Pilate says this we've already seen the Jewish leaders before Pilate in his court in verses 11 to 14 in verse 12 a couple of those men from the Sanhedrin served as accusers it was Court it was official this was witness testimony they were saying what Jesus is guilty of but it didn't convince Pilate this crowd has said give us Barabbas but crucify Jesus it hasn't persuaded Pilate listen to Matthew Henry he says it is much for the honor of our Lord Jesus that though he suffered as an evildoer yet neither his judge nor his prosecutors could find that he had done any evil I think that's brilliant it is much for the honor of the Lord Jesus that though he suffered as an evildoer yet neither his judge nor his prosecutors could find that he had done any evil he had heard his wife's warned he had heard the accusations made by the leaders he had heard their allegations voiced over and over again and yet his conscience was still not captive when they cry out for the form of punishment that they think is fitting for the Lord Jesus Christ let him be crucified he says Why What evil has he done you know what I think I think that Pilate is witnessing resolute determination yes we see it in the sublime silence of the Son of God as he stands before Pilate in eleven to fourteen but we see an alternate form of resolute determination now it's not Christ's the Christ has it it's theirs what's happened the governor is gone the mob rules to tabal situation it's a horrific situation law order jurisprudence due process all gone now it's just the angry voice of a mob and this is their response why what has he done but they cried out more saying let him be crucified you've got to hear that in contrast to the cries in chapter 21 popular opinion has shifted radically for the son of God it goes from Hosanna to the son of David to away with him away with him crucify him they had been shaped and molded to be sure by the Jewish leaders but they're culpable they're responsible if the blind leads the blind then both fall into the ditch maybe there's a lesson here for all of us that we ought to be very careful before we jump on another person's bandwagon without hearing the requisite proof it has been my experience that we oftentimes black proverbs 18 17 pilot isn't neglecting proverbs 18 17 that text says the first to plead his cause seems right until his neighbor comes and examines him why don't we pay attention to that latter part why do we hear one report we jump on the bandwagon pilot at least had the wherewithal to say Why What evil has he done now he doesn't quell the crowd he doesn't stop the crowd he doesn't rush the crowd he he essentially empowers the crowd to carry out their vicious vile wicked will but it is intriguing why what evil is he done show the proof demonstrate the evidence put him at the place of the crime if you can't do that he doesn't deserve it does this have sway on the minds and the hearts of these people now they cried out all the more saying let him be crucified the the multitude ignores pilots demand for proof they did just ignore it they don't even say what evil is he doing well he did this that the other I mean at least the Jewish leaders in verse 12 brought allegations and accusations crowds beyond this mob rules they can taste the blood they want his blood they want to see the Son of God crucified not because of any redemptive privilege in verse 25 some have read it that way it is not that way his blood be on us in terms of forgiving us and Clinton know as well I don't think it's a self malediction may what happened to him happened to us no I think they're just assuming responsibility in verse 25 and that responsibility is visited upon them in AD 70 but at this particular point let him be crucified the religious the multitudes ignore pilots demand for proof just like the religious leaders denied or or ignored Judas what happens when Judas says he's innocent who cares I know that sounds pretty nearly a low level to say it that way but that's what they said we don't care see to it yourself deal with it yourself the fact that the man is innocent as you claim or or the thought that he might be in it that this is gonna stop us you ought to see depravity you ever meet with somebody in your workplace so you meet with a neighbor you meet with a friend you meet with a bow so well I just think man is essentially good take him here man is not essentially good man is rotten to the core the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked that's Jeremiah's indictment Paul says all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God there is none righteous there is not one there is none who seeks after God he crowns it in Romans 3:18 by saying there is no fear of God before their eyes man is not essentially good if you're operating under that delusion this morning man I call you to reconsider this is what man is man doesn't care about proof man doesn't care about evidence man doesn't care about facts man doesn't care about jurisprudence man doesn't care about due process man only cares about killing Jesus at this instance the multitude cries out all the more for his crucifixion this I suggest parallels Christ's resolute determination Jesus had it they had it and they are going to see to it that Christ is crucified well in conclusion I've already started to touch on this the depravity of man I can only imagine someone outside of our church and maybe someone inside of our church would say what a what an unhappy thought for a beautiful sunny Sunday at noon you should be scaling down now thinking in terms of you know benedictions and doxologies and pot roasts and cakes and naps and all that sort of thing nobody wants to hear about the depravity man I know we don't but we need to don't we it's only when we recognize what the problem is do we do we do we value the solution we see the depravity of the Roman governor he does attempt to grant amnesty to Jesus because he knew he was innocent some might see this as nobility on the part of Pilate I don't I see it as further demonstrations of his cowardice of this passivity of his limp-wristed Ness when it came to this whole affair that he willingly by his passivity gave up Jesus to crucifixion the knowledge that the religious leaders handed Christ over because of envy imagine that you're a judge and you know what's driving this whole affair and you just watch it play out before your eyes and you never intervene the neglect of his wife's intervention I mean man is a general rule if your wife gives you this kind of warning you probably should listen now she may be nutty and has dreams that are odd of course value it weigh it survey it but in this instance it was bang on the recognition of the resolute determination of the multitudes he has this in verse 23 and then ultimately the deliverance of Jesus to crucifixion without any proof of his wrongdoing whatsoever isn't that our verse 26 ends again we'll see it more detail next week and when he had scourged Jesus he delivered him to be crucified if you were just reading this for the first time what would you say at that point you'd probably say why your no knowledge of Christianity you had no knowledge of the gospel you had no knowledge of the passion narratives you start in chapter one you see this man who only goes about doing good you see this man who teaches wonderful truth in the Sermon on the Mount you see this man who heals people you see this man who feeds people you see this man who raises people from the dead you see this man who only ever goes about doing good so again no conscious whatsoever gospel no consciousness of Christianity whatsoever you're reading this court case now with a bit of interest because this intrigues you what's gonna happen why is even here why is it gotten to this point and after all of this verse 26 it says that Pilate delivered him to be scourge and crucified what is the normal response from any sane individual why why did this happen because God is in the heavens and he does whatever he pleases and this was the purpose and sovereign plan of God to save his people from their sins isn't that beautiful last week I said that the courtroom is conspicuously pilots according to Matthews Scripture here he's called governor several times he's called a Pilate several times all eyes are on him as he enters into this place but John nineteen thirteen Jesus says you'd have no authority over me whatsoever unless it had been given to you from above God's in control of all this even the wicked acts of men he takes a crooked Pilate crooked religious leaders crooked crowds and he makes something beautifully straight out of it namely the salvation of our wretched Souls CH Spurgeon says he who has power to prevent or wrong is guilty of the act if he permits others to do it even though he does not actually commit in himself Cicero a Roman politician and lawyer he said there are two kinds of injustice the first is found and those who do an injury the second in those who fail to protect another from injury when they can that's Pilate brethren he's totally depraved secondly we see the depravity of the religious leaders we already know that they have delivered up Jesus do Pontius Pilate so that Pilate can give the capital kill order because they don't have that particular authority they are motivated not by a desire or a commitment to Old Covenant law the the prohibition against blasphemy means nothing to these men for all of their posturing notwithstanding when they in the Sanhedrin he's committed blasphemy he were is worthy of death they don't care about that they don't care about the name of God they don't care about the honor of God they don't care about Rome they don't care about Caesar they don't care about Pilate they care about their power it's sickening disgusting as it's displayed here in verse 19 he knew they handed him over because of envy they persistently urged the multitudes to side with their decision brethren they're successful for you and I to persuade someone to come to Jesus we need the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit the devil's already got it in the bag it's quite easy to persuade men to oppose Jesus it's quite easy to persuade men to deliver up Jesus and in this instance it was quite easy to get this rabble to cry out crucify him they manipulate Pilate in order to carry out their design John nineteen twelve from then on Pilate sought to release him but the Jews cried out saying if you let this man go you are not Caesars friend whoever makes himself a king speaks against Caesar I believe that their guilt or their wickedness or their sinfulness is compounded by pilots attempts to not crucify him be another thing you had no consciousness of the Christian gospel no understanding of Christianity you're reading this you'd be saying and these guys are bad this this Roman judge whose job it is to do this is extremely reluctant reluctant and is looking for any way possible to let this Jesus go and they keep pushing they're like that kid that you've told no and he says but don't ask again that's what we have in the text royal says the behavior of Pilate afforded the chief priests and elders an occasion of reconsidering what they were about the difficult he raised about condemning our Lord gave time for second thoughts but there were no second thoughts in the mind of our Lord's enemies they pressed on their wicked deed you see what he's saying then he's wandering a pilot's judgment scenes hey we think that I ought to be crucified alright let him know no there's attempt an attempt an attempt made by Pilate to not not see him crucified they had just shut it shut their hearts to it and then we see the multitudes they want a murderous rebel they allow themselves to be persuaded by murderous rebels you see brethren they're at fault when they say you know crucify him let him be crucified we're not supposed to let people influence us to do evil again in our you know victim mentality day and age a guy can do horrific things well well you can't blame him because you know he didn't get a pony when he was 15 we don't like imposing guilt on anybody so so we can't blame these multitudes it was the Jewish leaders these multitudes should have said no why is that not an option anymore why is it not an option to say no to somebody who tries to induce us to commit evil this is just basic garden-variety ethics it ought not to be the champion of morality that does say no to the crowds that's our job we're supposed to resist evil they should have resisted evil they allowed themselves to be manipulated by the murderous religious leaders to commit a moral atrocity they unhesitatingly request crucifixion for Jesus when asked to give proof they cry out all the more not with proof not with evidence but with let him be crucified Ryle says let us never be surprised at the wickedness there is in the world let us mourn over it and labor to make at less but let us never be surprised at it and there is nothing which the heart of man is not capable of conceiving or the hand of man doing again that's not 12:15 gonna go home and eat a burrito kind of thought that we like to entertain but I think rile is right on there's nothing in our hearts or there's nothing outside of the purview of the wickedness of man look look at abortion I mean murdering babies and their mothers wombs for convenience and cash people actually questioned depravity there's professing Christians that haven't got on board with total depravity if you've seen the abortion bills you've heard of euthanasia persons in their weakest and most vulnerable state let's kill them this is barbarism this is vile this is wretched it's horrific the the situation facing us today not just out there those wicked barbarians put right in here it's depressing you get that ethos from Paul don't you in Romans 7 the old rating not the newer one good that that I want to do I I don't do and the evil eye I don't want to do I find myself doing a wretched man that I am who will deliver me from this body of death see brethren not only would I reject a concept that you shouldn't preach this at 12:15 on a beautiful Sunday afternoon I think it ought to be thought on meditated upon and contemplated by all of God's people pretty regularly you need to understand what you're capable of and you need to pray for the grace to restrain you you need to see with the hem writer prone to wander prone to leave the god I love because it's in that state that you'll cry out for grace it's in that state you'll say right should man that I am who will deliver me from this body of death it is in that state you will acknowledge your absolute dependence upon Jesus and side with him in John 15 when he says apart from me you can do nothing not only is it not the case that we shouldn't consider sin we ought to consider it a whole lot more because finally when we do it shows us the beauty the glory the excellency and the majesty of Jesus Christ all the more doesn't it visit that this view of our sin this view of our depravity this view of what we are capable of and then realizing he went through this to save us from our sins the innocence of Christ is conspicuous throughout this passage the innocence of Christ is continually placed before us that the just is that the just Ness the righteousness of Christ is constantly displayed here I think it's Matthew's way to show us the just stands for the on Jos not Pilate not Barabbas as some have argued but Jesus does this for his elect Jesus does this for those who believe Jesus does this for all that the father had given him and when we see sin and all of its grotesque Ness it ought to send us to Christ and appreciate him in all of his beauty to realize that at one point we may have been standing right there saying away with him away with him crucify him but at this point now we say we are thankful that he was crucified not because we lusted for his blood but we were thankful that through his blood we have everlasting life we praise him for that Ministry of mercy we praise him for that resolute determination we praise him that he did not shrink back we praise him that he underwent this on our behalf and if you're not a believer here this morning I'll and as I always do believe look to him trust in him he is the holy harmless undefiled one he is the one who I know in whom alone there is forgiveness the one in whom alone there is righteousness the one in whom alone there is salvation don't tarry don't wait don't resist don't say no see yourself as a guilty vial helpless sinner and see Christ as the one who is altogether lovely who is chief among 10,000 and who has the power to save to the uttermost every one who draws nigh unto God through him well let us pray our Father we thank you for your word we thank you for what Jesus went through on our behalf we thank you for deliverance and for salvation and redemption and reconciliation and all the language that the Bible applies to this great transaction for God we are desperately sinful and wretched and vile we rebelled against every one of your laws we lack conformity unto every one of your laws we resisted you every step of the way but through the life and the death and the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ you have saved us maybe this caused us to worship may it cause us to praise may it cause us if we are not converted men women boys or girls to flee to the Lord Jesus to believe on him to look and live go with us now we pray and we ask in Jesus name Amen we'll close with the brief time of meditation and then be dismissed you