In John chapter 18, we're going to consider Jesus Christ before Pontius Pilate. specifically verses 33 to 40, but I do want to read the larger context, so I'll begin reading in chapter 18 of John's Gospel at verse 28, just to sort of set the stage to let you know what is going on in this particular instance. The Lord Jesus had two trials. He stood first before the Jews and then before the Romans. The Jewish trial began with an informal examination by Annas, probably in front of the members of the Sanhedrin, or the religious council.
The Sanhedrin then made a formal decision concerning Jesus' guilt and sent him to Pilate in the morning. And that's what we see in this section. Now John does not record, but Luke does, that between chapters 18 and 19, Pilate sends Jesus over to see Herod. And then, of course, Herod sends Jesus back to Pilate.
And that takes up chapter 19. So that's sort of the context. And what we're looking at, as I said, is the king before the governor in verses 33 to 38, beginning in verse 28. And they led Jesus from Caiaphas to the praetorium, and it was early morning.
But they themselves did not go into the praetorium, lest they should be defiled, but that they might eat the Passover. Pilate then went out to them and said, what accusation do you bring against this man? They answered and said to him, if he were not an evildoer, we would not have delivered him up to you. And Pilate said to them, you take him and judge him according to your law.
Therefore the Jews said to him, it is not lawful for us to put anyone to death, that the saying of Jesus might be fulfilled which he spoke, signifying by what death he would die. Then Pilate entered the praetorium again, called Jesus, and said to him, Are you the king of the Jews? Jesus answered him, Are you speaking for yourself about this, or did others tell you this concerning me? Pilate answered, Am I a Jew?
Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered you to me. What have you done? Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would fight so that I should not be delivered to the Jews.
But now my kingdom is not from here. Pilate therefore said to him, Are you a king then? Jesus answered, You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth.
Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice. Pilate said to him, what is truth? And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews and said to them, I find no fault in him at all. But you have a custom that I should release someone to you at the Passover.
Do you therefore want me to release to you the king of the Jews? And they all cried again, saying, not this man, but Barabbas. Now Barabbas was a robber. Amen.
Well, let us pray.
Opening Prayer
Our Father, we thank you for the written word of the living God. We thank you for our Lord Jesus Christ, this one prophesied in 2 Samuel 7, the man to reign from the line of David, to be the King of kings and Lord of lords. We thank you for his life and his death and his resurrection on behalf of sinners. We thank you that you've included us in his gracious kingdom.
We ask God that more and more people today would be moved upon by the Holy Spirit and brought under conviction of sin and would be able to see the glory and the sufficiency of Jesus Christ to save to the uttermost all who draw nigh unto God through him. We pray that for our meeting here this morning. We pray that the truth of the gospel would be attended powerfully by the Holy Spirit of God. that you would bring salvation to bear upon men and women and boys and girls in this place this morning. We pray for the saints that you would strengthen and encourage us, cause us to reflect upon the glory of our king, cause us to reflect upon this one who loved us and who gave himself for us.
Even now we pray for the ministry of your spirit. We pray for the forgiveness of our sins. We pray for cleansing through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. And it's in his name that we pray.
Amen.
Introduction
As I said, our focus is verses 33 to 38, but just a couple of preliminary observations in the first section, the Jews before Pilate in verses 28 to 32. You need to
The Jews Before Pilate
notice something about these particular persons. They are not concerned with truth. They are not concerned with biblical accuracy. They are not concerned with the law of the living God.
Notice their hypocrisy in verse 28. It says, then they led Jesus from Caiaphas to the Praetorium, and it was early morning. But they themselves did not go into the Praetorium, lest they should be defiled, but that they might eat the Passover. On the one hand, they want to maintain ceremonial or ritual cleanliness.
On the other hand, they're offering up the Lord of Glory for crucifixion. It is absolutely inconsistent. On the one hand, we don't want to defile ourselves with reference to the Praetorium. But on the other hand, away with Jesus, crucify Him, crucify Him.
Notice as well, as they present before Pilate, Pilate asks the very specific question, what accusation do you bring against this man? Verse 29, notice in verse 30, they answered and said to him, if he were not an evildoer, we would not have delivered him up to you. Friends, that is called begging the question. They present no evidence.
They give no facts whatsoever. They simply assert he's guilty because we say he's guilty. This is a mock trial. These men are not concerned at all with the truth of Scripture, with the truth of their own holy law.
It is according to the will of God that his son be delivered up to die for the sins of his people. and to rise again on that third day." Now notice, as we look at Jesus before Pilate,
The Issue of Kingship
we'll look at four things here. First, the issue concerning kingship. Secondly, the clarification concerning the question. Third, the response given by Christ.
And fourth, the question of truth. Notice this issue is concerning kingship. Verse 33, Then Pilate entered the praetorium again, called Jesus, and said to him, Are you the king of the Jews? Now you need to understand that Jesus' beef or Jesus' dispute or Jesus' confrontation with the Jewish religious leaders was theological in nature.
He claimed to be the king according to Old Testament prophecy. In other words, he claimed to be David's son. He made himself equal with God. He claimed to be the divine Messiah.
We certainly know that that was an accurate claim. But the Jews couldn't turn Jesus over on a theological matter. Pilate and the Romans would never crucify a man or execute a man for an intramural debate concerning theology. So the Jews had to present Jesus as a contender for the Roman crown.
In other words, he asserts, he has said, he has demonstrated that he is a king. The idea being that he then presents himself as a challenge to the existing political order in Rome. So you see the Jews are actually diabolically wise in all of this. They deliver Jesus up, they say to Pilate he claims to be a king, Pilate has a responsibility before his king to make sure that any usurper or any attempted usurper to the throne is crushed and is smashed.
So that's the nature of the debate in this particular instance. or in this particular place. Now notice, specifically, Pilate has asked him, are you the king of the Jews? Secondly,
Jesus Clarifies the Question
Jesus clarifies this question. Are you speaking for yourself about this or did others tell you this concerning me? It's very intriguing because earlier in John's gospel, specifically in John 6, the Jews tried to take Jesus by force and make him a king. That's the context where Jesus is feeding the multitudes with bread.
Where the Lord Jesus is taking care of the economic needs. Where Jesus is satisfying the physical requirement for food. When that is in play, the people say, we want to take him and make him a king. Now that he's a threat to their theological order, they want to deliver him up so that he would be crucified at the hands of a godless state.
So Jesus says, are you speaking for yourself about this or did others tell you this concerning me? He wants to ferret this out. He wants to discover. He wants to put the onus upon Pilate in this instance.
Are you simply a puppet governor working for this sort of proprietary people that live under your realm? And it is the case that he is working as a puppet governor for these people. Pink says, he was sent to be the governor of these Jews. They nevertheless compelled him to be their slave, the executioner of their wrath.
Pilot responds, notice in verse 35, am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered you to me. What have you done? Am I a Jew?
Am I part of this theological debate? Is this something that concerns me? I simply need to know the political ramifications here. If you assert that you are, in fact, a king, then I, as Pilate, need to deal with you.
But if it's just a matter of theology between you and the Jews, well then hopefully we can just let you all work it out. You see what's pressing upon Pilate here. You see what's moving him. He is a wimp.
He is a coward. He is a populist. He simply wants to serve these people in this particular instance. As I said, the Jews aren't concerned about the truth.
Pilate isn't concerned about the truth. There is one in this section that is concerned about the truth, and he says that his kingdom is defined accordingly to truth. Now
Christ's Response: His Kingdom
notice the response given by Christ. Verses 36 and 37. It's both negative and positive. He will answer Pilate's question, but it is important that we understand how he answers Pilate's question.
As I said, it's negative in verse 36, and then a positive statement in verse 37. And what Jesus is doing is stressing to Pilate that his kingdom is not an immediate political threat to Rome. I say immediate because Daniel's prophecy tells us that the stone strikes the image and it's crushed. It's not an immediate threat to Pilate, it's not an immediate threat to Caesar, but that doesn't mean the Roman Empire will be around forever.
It's not the fact that Jesus and his servants are going to launch an armed revolt against the Roman Empire. That's what he stresses here in order to present himself before this particular man. Notice, we learn two things in this section. Something concerning the character of his kingdom, and secondly, the character of the king.
The first place, the existence of his kingdom. Notice in verse 36, my kingdom is not of this world. What does he answer Pilate? Yes, Pilate, I am a king.
Yes, Pilate, I am a king. Now imagine Pilate here for a moment. What do you think he's thinking? If you were a king, you'd have a big crown.
If you were a king, you would be wielding a royal scepter. If you were a king, you would be sitting on a royal throne. Pilate witnessed firsthand what Isaiah prophesied. There is no form, there is no majesty, there is no comeliness that when we see Him, we desire Him. presents himself as an ordinary, normal sort of a man.
And nevertheless he claims entitlement to and the rights of kingship. My kingdom is not of this world. Notice that. The second place, the kingdom's origin.
Now his kingdom is not of the world, but the kingdom certainly includes the world. Sometimes we miss that. We read this passage and we say, well, Jesus' kingdom is not of the world, so therefore Jesus doesn't have reign and rule over the world. That is not a logical conclusion.
It doesn't derive from. It isn't according to. In other words, Jesus wasn't voted into office. There was no political process that established Jesus upon the throne.
What process established Jesus upon the throne was a covenant God who gave him as the head to his people in the function of mediator as prophet, priest, and king. But my kingdom is not of this world. It is not owing to this world. It is not derived from the world.
Ryle defines it belonging to, dependent upon, springing from, or connected with. And now Jesus affirms this or proves this by an appeal to his servants. Note the logic. Verse 35, my kingdom is not of this world.
How do we know that? If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would fight so that I should not be delivered to the Jews, but now my kingdom is not from here. What's proof positive that his kingdom is not from the world? If his kingdom was from the world, Pilate and his minions would be dead.
The Jews would never get their bloodthirsty hands upon the Lord Jesus Christ. It would never be the case that this would be occurring as it is presently. In other words, Jesus' negative response affirms to Pilate that no immediate political overthrow is in view at this particular time. It's as if Jesus is saying, you need to just relax.
You're not going to be overthrown. You're not going to be overwhelmed. You're not going to be violently opposed. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would fight.
And what's the implication? And they would win. He's Jesus. His servants win.
He's the Lord Christ Almighty. His servants carry out His will perfectly and effectively and efficiently. So Pilate doesn't have anything to worry about with reference to the Lord Jesus. So Christ is answering the charge in a very wise and calculated manner so that everything will transpire according to plan.
Now notice positively
The Character of the King
the character of the king. He positively affirms. Notice in verse 37, Pilate therefore said to him, are you a king then? Not the brightest bulb in the chandelier, is he?
I mean, Jesus just said he is a king. Are you a king then? He just didn't have the categories to process this information. Because kings in this realm simply try and kill other kings and competitors so that kings in this realm can take their territory.
Pilate's not trafficking in the kingdom of God. Neither are the Jews, but Pilate is certainly missing the point, and so he asks candidly and clearly to the Lord Jesus, are you a king then? Now note, Jesus affirms this, and then he highlights something concerning his glorious person. He says, you say rightly that I am a king, for this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world.
Isn't that a beautiful statement? This is the only reference in John's Gospel to the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. And it's an intriguing reference, isn't it? Now, I'm not suggesting the Incarnation is not mentioned.
You remember John 1.14? I suspect, I believe Pastor Kim, did he preach on that last Sunday night? Yes, he's nodding back there. John 1.14.
The Incarnation. Well, picking up in John 1. 1, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Who is this Word? Verse 14, And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
It's a reference to the Incarnation. The second person of the Trinity comes into this world. He takes on the likeness of sinful flesh, accepting sin to be sure. He assumes humanity, assumes our nature.
He becomes identified with us. He is like us in all points, yet without sin. Incarnation is that blessed, beautiful doctrine that the Son comes into this world in order to save His people from their sins. The Son of God becomes the Son of Man in order that the sons of men can become the sons of God.
Augustine said that. It's been repeated throughout church history and it certainly affirms the doctrine or the idea of the Incarnation. But notice in John 18, for this cause I was born. Not so you could have a warm, fuzzy time each year.
Not so you could glut yourself on eggnog and, you know, gift-giving. I'm not here to condemn anybody. I'm not here to rain on anybody's parade. But why was Jesus born?
To be a king! It's an amazing reality. At this time of year, persons like Jesus in the manger I think this is where sinners always want Jesus. In a manger!
He's controlled. He's confined. He's tame. He's little.
We're not afraid of something we can pick up, are we? And in the minds of many, Christ is in that position at this time of the year. He's this little swaddled baby cooing while the animals low and moo and do whatever they do. That was one time.
Christ comes as a man. Christ lives in obedience to the Father's law. Christ dies as a substitute and sacrifice at Calvary. Christ rises on the third day.
Christ ascends on high. Christ is currently enthroned at the right hand of the Majesty on high, where Christ has promised to come again in glory to judge the living and the dead. He will not come tame. He will not come small.
He will not come manageably. He will not come in a way that is pleasing to us. The Apostle to us outside of him. For those inside, in Christ, they will look at that day and marvel.
Paul tells us that he will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead. Now, if you're a sinner, who do you prefer? this little baby in the manger that you can pick up and set somewhere else, or the King of kings and the Lord of lords who wages war and opposes his enemies through his truth. You see, Jesus says, for this cause I was born. Now, there are other causes.
He was born in order to teach the truth. He was born in order to live in obedience to the law. He was born in order to die. He was born in order to die and be raised the third day.
But with reference to Pilate and this question of kingship, when Pilate says, are you then a king? Jesus says, you say rightly, I am a king. For this cause, I was born. That's the whole purpose.
That's the function. That's the view. Christ as mediator. Prophet, priest, and king.
To fulfill all that the Father gave Him in the salvation of His elect. The Lord Christ came with mission. He came with purpose. He was defined.
He was focused. He didn't just sort of bounce around and let the winds take Him where it wished. Everything is according to plan. I said, after this section, Jesus is sent to Herod.
He comes back from Herod and he stands before Pilate. And later on, Pilate asks, Are you not speaking to me? Do you not know that I have power to crucify you and power to release you? Don't you love Jesus' response in 1911?
You could have no power at all against me unless it had been given you from above. Therefore, the one who delivered me to you has the greater sin. Christ knew every step of the way what was happening. Christ was.
The Son of God. And when he says, I was born to be king, he's referring to the mediatorial office. Christ is the second person of the Trinity as God. Christ is second person of the Divine Trinity, He is Creator, He is Lord, He is Governor, He is King.
He's talking about the messianic kingship. He's talking about the mediatorial reign. He is talking about what He will alert us to in Matthew 28. Remember I said His kingdom does not originate from the world, but it certainly includes the world because Jesus will say to His disciples, all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
Go, therefore, and make disciples of what? Of all the nations, those nations given to me by my Father, Allah, Psalm 2, those nations that I have absolute authority over as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Go and make disciples of them, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to observe all that I have commanded, and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." The point, brethren, of this particular section is that Christ is King. Christ is King.
By way of an aside, doesn't that encourage you? Doesn't that make you happy? A couple of fellows in the church and myself talk about politics. That can be discouraging, can't it?
Come on, if you talk about politics, you follow it at all, it can be discouraging. I mean, people lie, people cheat, people deceive, and people say things that are just the opposite of what you believe. How dare them, right? It is very discouraging.
Or to use a Renahanism, it's discouraging. What do we always come back to? That vision of Christ in Revelation 1. How does John describe him?
Before he looks to these beastly kingdoms of men. Before he looks to these anti-Christian systems. What does he do in Revelation 1? He tells us that Jesus is the ruler over the kings of the earth. whatever men may do in this world." Now, I'm not suggesting we don't pray, we don't encourage, we don't try and tell people, you know, that's just a foolish path to consider.
But in the final analysis, Christ is ruler over the kings of the earth. Isn't that afford comfort or doesn't that afford comfort to the weary saint? Doesn't that encourage you? That as bad as man may be, and as wretched and as reckless as he may be, nevertheless God is in control.
I mentioned that Jesus was not a present political threat to the Roman Empire. Not a present political threat to the Roman Empire when he stood before Pilate, but where's the Roman Empire now? Where are the kingdoms of man who oppose the Lord Christ? They end.
They cease. They become a part of his footstool. This is what Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 15. He must reign till he makes all of his enemies his footstool.
You can rest assured, brothers and sisters, that everyone that opposes, everyone that violates, everyone that rebels against the kingdom of Christ will ultimately be put under his rule. Beautiful, isn't it? It's encouraging, isn't it? It's a blessing, isn't it?
For this cause I was born. You can get out of bed tomorrow because Jesus was born to be king. You can carry on in your day because Jesus was born to be king. You can carry on on Thursday because Jesus was born to be king.
Why do we need a king? The Catechism asks. He defends us. He protects us.
He rules over us. And he commands us on how to live. We need that king and Christ is that king and he promises or he asserts or he declares as much in this instance. You say rightly that I am a king for this cause I was born and for this cause I have come into the world.
Now
The Method of Conquest: Truth
notice his method of conquest. How does he operate his kingdom? How does he successfully wage war? How does he engage in the activity of kingdom?
He tells us. He says, in this cause I have come into the world that I should bear witness to the truth. It's the primary vehicle for the advancement of God's kingdom. Your testimony might be an encouragement to others.
Your backyard barbecue might gather them together. It is the truth of God's holy word. It's not encouraging too. in this political cycle or in these political cycles or election cycles, what do they do the next morning or probably even a minute after the debate ends? They fact-check, don't they?
They fact-check the candidates. They fact-check to make sure that what they claimed or said was in fact accurate. Every time you fact-check the Lord Jesus Christ, it's accurate. Every time you fact-check the Lord of Glory, it's true.
Every time you fact-check something that comes out of His holy mouth, it is on spot. It's on target. He says this is the means by which His kingdom advances, that I should bear witness to the truth. He bears witness to the truth, John 1, 14 to 18.
No one has seen God at any time, but the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, has what? He has declared Him. He has expounded Him. Literally, He has exegeted Him.
He bears witness to the truth. According to Jesus in John 8, 31 to 36, He saves sinners by His truth. If you know the truth, the truth shall what? It'll set you free.
You want to be free today? You want to continue in your rebellion against God? You want to continue in your sin against God? Or do you want freedom?
Blessed freedom. Blessed liberty. It's not going to come through a moral reform. I'm not going to go do those bad things anymore.
It's not going to come through money. I'm going to throw some money in the box and that's going to get me out of the predicament that I'm in. It's not going to come through an external form of religion. If I just come to church tonight, like Pastor Kim said in the confession study, well then I'm going to be fine with God.
No. You want freedom today? Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. You want freedom from your sin?
Liberation? Redemption? Reconciliation with God? Do you want those things today?
If you don't, you should. Because if you are in your sin, you are under the wrath of God presently. He who believes the Son has everlasting life. But he who does not believe the Son shall not see life.
But, what happens? The wrath of God abides on him. Do you know that right now, if you're not a Christian, the wrath of God abides on you? Right now, if you are not a Christian, the wrath of God abides on you.
You think, how can that possibly be? I'm in the church. Because God's wrath doesn't respect roofs. Do you want freedom?
You know, in just a few moments we'll see where Pilate says, what is truth? Commentators wonder, how did he say that? Is he in earnest? What is truth?
I used to think there was a bit more to it. You know, he's kind of wrestling with all this because thrice he confesses concerning Jesus, I find no fault in him. He knew that Jesus was not guilty of the crime for which they presented him. But I'm more inclined to follow the reform, follow the commentators that say, it was just a shrug.
Eh, what is truth? The reason why is he doesn't wait for an answer. Is that your attitude this morning? Eh, what is truth?
Eh, I've heard this before. Eh, we get this every Sunday. Eh, we're going to get this into the new year. What is truth?
Why do I care? What does it matter? If you are under the wrath of God Most High, you presently do not understand what that means. But if you should breathe your last under the wrath of God, you will understand what that means.
You will understand fury. You will understand judgment. You will understand hell. You will understand the wrath of the living God.
You don't want to die that way. You don't want to exit the world that way. You don't want to continue that way. So look to him who is truth.
Look to the one who defines his kingdom in this particular manner. He says specifically, and for this cause I have come into the world that I should bear witness to the truth. Spurgeon says, our Lord in effect tells us that truth is the preeminent characteristic of this kingdom and that his royal power over men's hearts is through the truth. You see, in the first instance, being a Christian does not mean doing the right things.
Now, don't take this and go out and do the wrong things because Butler said so. In the first instance, it's believing the right things. Do you think you are going to stand before God on that day and hear, well done, good and faithful servant, because of your exemplary performance? Do you think on that day you're going to be welcomed into heaven and be promised the cessation of your labors and the beatitudes given to you because you're a great guy or a great girl?
Because of what Christ has done. Because of who Christ is. Because of His life, His death, His resurrection. What is the means by which we appropriate those blessings?
Faith. We believe the truth as it is in Jesus. by the grace of God. Certainly there is repentance, certainly there is reformation in terms of morality, certainly if we were cracked, smoking, prostitute, visiting wretches before, we will not do that as Christ's disciples. Or if we were self-righteous, empty formalists, we will not do that anymore when we are Christ's disciples.
But in the first place, what makes us to differ from the unconverted? It is the Christ in whom we believe. Truth is absolutely crucial and this is what our Lord highlights. Watt says he rules the world with what?
With truth and grace and makes the nations prove the glories of his righteousness. Jesus says the primary instrument of the vehicle by which his kingdom advances is the truth. It is not political, immediate political revolution with reference to Pilate and that world's empire, but it is the truth as it is in Jesus. Now notice
Christ's Loyal Subjects
he describes his loyal subjects. The end of verse 37, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice. Isn't that beautiful?
We hear his voice. So they say this in John 10, I know my sheep and my sheep know me. They know their shepherd's voice. Do you know the voice of Christ this morning?
Do you know the voice of the Redeemer this morning? Do you know the truth of Jesus this morning? Because Jesus says, everyone who is of the truth hears my voice. They follow him.
As Cam read in Revelation 14, how does it describe the conduct of the followers of the Lamb? They follow Him on Sunday. Yeah. They follow Him just on Sunday morning.
It doesn't say that. It says they follow Him wherever He goes. When Christ gives the command to the disciples with reference to the Great Commission in Matthew 28, teaching them to observe some of the things that I have commanded you, Teaching to observe those things that are pleasant to you? Teaching to observe those things that you approve of?
No, teaching to observe all that I have commanded you. You see, the loyal subject of Jesus Christ is one who is of the truth. The loyal subject of Jesus Christ is one who is conquered by truth. And the loyal subject of Jesus Christ hears his voice and does what he says and doesn't whine or grumble or complain or snivel.
How does this self-same John describe commandment keeping in his first epistle? The commandments are not burdensome. The commandments aren't grievous. Boy, John, come and preach to our churches today.
Because people whine and grumble and complain when you preach basic commandment keeping. Oh no, we're not under law, we're under grace. Whatever that means, it doesn't mean go ahead and sin. We're not under law, we're under grace.
So I can fornicate with whoever I want. I can put into my body whatever I want. I can always play in Christian liberty. No, you can't.
That may be the spawn of some modern theologians, but it's not what our Lord Christ says. He says very clearly, everyone who is of the truth, here's my voice. Now, the implication isn't just, hey, that's Jesus, but hey, we do what Jesus says. We follow the Lamb wherever He goes.
We don't pick and choose. We don't say, thus far and no further. Does this define your Christianity? Does this define the way that you live before a holy God?
As Pastor Porter said, we're not saved by law keeping, no one would ever be saved. Paul underscores that in Romans 3.20, therefore, by the deeds of the law, no flesh will be justified in his sight. Why? For by the law is or comes the knowledge of sin.
But we know as well, when Christ saves us by his grace, through faith, he points us to the law as that standard, as that rule of life, as that pattern for good works. Do you know what a good work is? The law specifies. When the Bible tells you, you need to be zealous for good works.
Do you think God wants you to go out and be innovative? Or God wants you to be obedient to what he's already said? Like it or not, brethren, God's not looking for innovation or creativity. He is looking for obedience.
We are not smarter than God. We are not better than God. We have not arrived more than God. We don't know our culture better than God.
God knows all things always. It's always present beforehand. And God has commanded and God has stipulated and God has said, do it this way. Jesus' kingdom is about truth.
Notice. Pilate's question, we already touched on this, what is truth? And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews and said to them, I find no fault in him at all. Which, by the way, he says three times.
Verse four, chapter 19, I find no fault in him. Verse six, I find no fault in him. What does this indicate concerning Pilate? He's a wimp.
He is a coward. He is afraid because if he has found no fault in Jesus, that should be it. But in typical political correctness manner, he lets the mob dictate what he's going to do. He is paradigmatic or archetypal of the sorts of political jelly fishery we see and witness today.
What happened to men that took a stand Men that said, no, you're only out because you are wretched. You only want him to be dead because you're wretched. Just put the onus where it belongs in this particular instance.
Pilate's Compromise and Barabbas
Notice his compromise. Verses 39 and 40. Do you have a custom that I should release someone to you at the Passover? Do you therefore want me to release to you the King of the Jews?
It's almost like he's going over, but just, you know, come on, let's not keep doing this. Remember, Pilate's wife had a pretty disturbing dream as well, and she says to him, have no dealings with this just man. Pilate, a hundred yards is probably not too little to be away from this just man. You have a custom at the Passover.
Do you want me to release to you Jesus the King of the Jews?" Notice what they say. They all cried again saying, not this man, but Barabbas. Now Barabbas was a robber. Chrysostom says, oh cursed decision.
They demanded those like-mannered with themselves and let the guilty go, but bid him punish the innocent." Now, we oftentimes think that Barabbas' crime was that he wandered into a Walmart and he took a DVD, or whatever the equivalence of that was in their setting. He'd boost a fish from the marketplace, or he would boost an apple from wherever he was during his daily ritual. He was a murderer. Most likely he was what was called a zealot.
A terrorist against the Roman state. And the two men that were crucified on either side of Jesus were most likely his companions. In other words, Barabbas was a right wretch. And yet, these people say, give us Barabbas.
What do I do with the King of the Jews? Away with him, away with him, crucify him. Now, you have to appreciate the emblem here, don't you? In many respects, verse 40 sets before our eyes the entirety of the Gospel.
The just sent to his death, the unjust released. from his punishment. Now I'm not suggesting Barabbas is necessarily saved, but I am suggesting that the emblem is strong in this passage. The just one goes to the cross and the unjust one is released from his debt. You see, for us, that's precisely why Jesus does what he does here.
Let's just bring it from Barabbas to our own selves. Let's just bring it into our own context. We are the unjust one who has benefited from the just one going to the cross on our behalf. I love the way Gill says it.
He says, Barabbas was an emblem of God's elect in a state of nature, released and set free when Christ was condemned. Isn't that the gospel? Isn't that what it's all about? God made him Christ who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in him.
The Lord Jesus goes to the cross having done no sin, committing no crime, engaged in no revolution against Rome, and Barabbas who engaged in revolution against Rome, Barabbas who didn't care about human life, Barabbas who was indeed a notorious threat to the empire. I'm sure I've told you before, brethren, that the cross, the crucifixion, was reserved for the most notorious criminals. Not somebody that boosts a candy bar from Walmart, but from an insurrectionist, from a political zealot, from somebody that no doubt marched against Rome. And yet these Jews say, these unbelieving Jews say, give us Barabbas.
It's terrible, isn't it? Now, remember, I said in Matthew 21, when Jesus comes into Jerusalem and they're crying out, Hosanna, Hosanna to the Son of David, it was primarily Galileans. The Galileans that came down to the Passover, they were the primary spokesman saying, Hosanna, Hosanna. So we mustn't say, well, you know, at the beginning of the week they're crying, Hosanna, Hosanna, and now they're crying, away with him, away with him.
It's probably not the case. The Galileans cried, Hosanna, Hosanna to the Son of David. These religious leaders and the people that followed them, under their particular sway, they say, not this man, but Barabbas. John wants to remind us that Barabbas was a robber.
What do we learn from this passage? We learn a lot of things, but
Instruction Concerning Christ's Kingdom
we'll just confine ourselves to a few. In the first place, the instruction concerning Christ's kingdom. The Bible elsewhere tells us that Christ's kingdom is gracious. You should love Colossians 1.13.
Go love it. I listened to a sermon by Ralph Davis last night and he cited a very interesting thing I had never heard. The man who authored hymn number 270 in our Trinity Hymnal, The Church's One Foundation, was a minister by the name of Samuel J. Stone.
Samuel J. Stone was one time walking in East London and he saw this girl being accosted by three ruffians. Davis' point was, God communicates to us, at times, His power. In other instances, He communicates to us His mercy.
Stone witnesses what's happening in this particular instance. Davis muses and says, you know, the girl didn't need to hear from Samuel Stone that he was a poet. that he was a hymn writer, that he was a pastor. All valid information and data to be sure, but if she's about to be raped by three ruffians, that's information that she probably didn't care a whole lot about. Instead, Samuel Stone took the first ruffian and gave him an uppercut so hard he knocked him out.
See, the ruffians and the girl didn't realize that he was in a school that taught boxing, and apparently he was just ripped. So he smacks the one. Guy number two, he lays into him. Guy number three runs off.
Girl's free. Girl isn't raped. The girl isn't attacked. Dr.
Davis says, isn't that glorious? Isn't it? We need to check our hearts, brethren. If we don't say yes, praise God, he saved that girl.
Davis says, it is glorious, I believe it is, and you should too. The point is, Colossians 1.13, he has transferred us from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of the sun of his love. The Kingdom of Christ is gracious. How do we enter?
It is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. We are blessed immeasurably. We have received everything at the hands of this King, by His grace. As well, this Kingdom is spiritual, to be sure.
It does have physical ramifications, though. It is spiritual. Christ saves us. But it has physical ramifications.
I've told you before, Martin Lloyd-Jones says that when a man is converted, the cat in his house benefits. Why is that? Because as an unconverted man, he'd come stumbling home from the bar and he'd kick the cat as if it was a ball. Now that he's converted, he doesn't kick the cat.
Perhaps he hearkens to Solomon, that a righteous man has regard for his beast. A man enters into this kingdom, he doesn't abuse his family anymore. A man enters into this kingdom, he seeks to be faithful. A man enters into this kingdom, he leads his family.
A man enters into this kingdom. It is spiritual in nature, but it has physical effects. On the more comprehensive level, as I said, Daniel 2. Daniel is told to interpret Nebuchadnezzar's dream.
Nebuchadnezzar has this dream of this great big image. It is constructed of various materials. It is representative of world empires. There is this one small stone, however, that is able to fall that great image.
What's Daniel's interpretation? For in the days of these kings, Daniel 2.44, I'll read it to you. So we can see it's spiritual, but it has physical, real life application. 2.44, and in the days of these kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed, and the kingdom shall not be left to other people. It shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.
And that brings us to that reality. It is eternal. Isn't this what is foretold with reference to Jesus' birth in John 1? John 1.31, And behold, you will conceive in your womb, and bring forth a son, and shall call his name Jesus.
He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest. And the Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever and of his kingdom. There will be no end. You get the privilege of voting out terrible political leaders.
No one can vote out Christ. Not that he's a terrible political leader. There is no end to his monarchy. There is no end to his reign.
Do you ever read the Old Testament and you say, how did the people function? When we get eight years with the same president, we start to get very, very weary. And NASA reigned for 55 years in Israel. Can you imagine that?
Wow. Terrible. The point is, 55 years is a drop in the bucket compared to what Christ will reign. Forever and ever and ever.
World without end. Amen. This is a most blessed and most wonderful and most comprehensive and eternal kingdom. The way of entrance is by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus.
The second place, we consider
The Incarnation of Christ
something concerning the incarnation of our beloved Lord. We just sang, veiled in flesh, the Godhead see. Hail the incarnate deity. When he says, for this cause I was born, who's the I in that statement?
It is the second person of the Trinity. From everlasting to everlasting, thou art God. The second person of the Trinity, instrumental in the creation of this world, instrumental in the government of this world, in that intra-trinitarian bliss with Father and Spirit. It is this that is the I of this statement.
For this cause, I was born. For this cause, I left heaven. For this cause, I assumed human nature. For this cause, I took on the seed of Abraham.
For this cause, I did that. Christ was born. Marvel of marvels. Our confession says the Son of God, the second person in the Holy Trinity, being very an eternal God, the brightness of the Father's glory.
I suspect that Pastor Kim read this last week. It bears repetition. This is Chalcedonian Christology in 17th century form. The Son of God, the second person in the Holy Trinity, being very an eternal God, the brightness of the Father's glory, of one substance and equal with Him who made the world.
Do you understand that? The second person of the Trinity is often one substance, and equal with the Father, who upholds and governs all things he hath made, did when the fullness of time was come. Take upon him man's nature, with all the essential properties and common infirmities thereof." Isn't that marvelous? Jesus crawled.
Jesus toddled. Jesus ate. Jesus wept. Jesus drank.
According to his humanity, Jesus was weary. Jesus was angry. Yet without sin, everything that is common to man was common to Christ except, of course, sin. You appreciate that reality?
It's not you or I becoming a servant. It's not you or I taking a lower place. It's not you or I humbling ourselves to go hang out with the riffraff. It is the second person of the triune God.
God of God, light of light, true light from true light. Goes on to say, yet without sin, being conceived by the Holy Spirit in the womb of the Virgin Mary, the Holy Spirit coming down upon her in the power of the Most High, overshadowing her. And so was made of woman of the tribe of Judah, of the seed of Abraham and David according to the Scriptures, so that two whole, perfect, and distinct natures were inseparably joined together in one person without conversion, composition, or confusion, which person is very God and very man, yet one Christ, the only mediator between God and man." That's enough to ponder and meditate on for a whole lot of Sundays, for a whole lot of time. Love the way the Nicene Creed states it.
Who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary and was made man and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate. He suffered and was buried, and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures, and ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father. And He shall come again with glory to judge the quick and the dead, whose kingdom shall have no end." So we see something concerning instruction of His kingdom, incarnation of the person of Christ,
The Instrumentality of Truth
Thirdly, the instrumentality of the truth. Don't you just love passages that combine the kingly office of Jesus and truth? Those are encouraging things, brethren, that we should never get tired of. Truth is what advances his kingdom.
Truth is what we must desperately have to be saved. Truth is what you should be under every Lord's day and every day. You're not a believer. The best thing for you is to be reading scripture.
Your parents' encouragements, your pastor's preachments, your friends' prayers are all helpful. But of his own will, he brought us forth by the word of truth. I have the great privilege of knowing a particular man. Thought he was converted.
Till he went away and he had some time. And he said, I was going to use that time to read my Bible. I read Matthew, I read Mark, I read Luke, I got to John in the upper room discourse. And this man said, everything made sense.
Everything made sense. Salvation, the Trinity, the Lord Jesus Christ. It was contact with the truth. I know there is the temptation.
I know there is the tendency, suffered even by pastors, to say, you know, I don't really feel like going to church today. But we need to be under the truth. We need to be under the Word. We need to hear it preached.
We need to read it. Take your Bible seriously, you young people and children. We're not going to just assume that you're Christians because you're brought up in a Christian home. We're going to press upon you the necessity to find Christ in the Bible, to find Jesus the Savior, to find this One who for this reason was born, that He should be King.
Get into the Scriptures. Resolve. January 1st is coming. Persons say, I want to lose weight.
I want to stop this. I want to do that. Just read the Bible. Do you ever get that?
When somebody says, oh, the Bible is filled with errors. They think they have sufficiently fact-checked Jesus and proved him to be unwanted. Just hand them the Bible and say, read it. The persons who haven't read the Bible know the most about it.
They know the inconsistencies. They know the errors. They know the inaccuracies. I love it to ask them, have you read the Bible?
No. I got it off a website. The Christian has no fear of handing the scriptures to anyone and everyone and saying, take, read. The same is true with you young people.
Read the scriptures, be in the scriptures, survey, search the scriptures. Don't say, well, I'm too busy. You're 15, you're eight, you're not too busy. Joshua was a military commander tasked with going in and executing Canaanites, and yet daily he was to be meditating on the law of God.
He says at the end of his life, ask for me in my house, we will serve Yahweh. The Lord Jesus was busy. So what does he do? He gets up a long while before daybreak and he goes and he prays.
Brethren, the I'm busy thing is a terrible excuse. Why do we have all the modern appliances? Why do we have all these modern conveniences? So that we won't be too busy.
Well, now I've got a washing machine, I can go and sin. No, that's not the point. Now that you have a washing machine, this is a little dated, I'm sorry, you can read your Bible. Parents, read to your children.
Take the religion of Christ more seriously, because it is the truth that is the vehicle by which that kingdom expands and extends. That's what our beloved Christ says. And finally, some commentators suggest that in Jesus' words here is even a hint, even an illusion, even a bit of an invitation to Pilate himself. See, Jesus is answering Pilate's question.
Jesus gives him some concrete information. Jesus ends with this statement in verse 37, everyone who is of the truth hears my voice. Jesus, according to the form of a servant, according to his humanity, as an evangelist, as a soul winner, perhaps he sets that forth so that Pilate will say, what is truth? But not to shrug it off.
Are you with Pilate this morning? Are you just watching the clock at least in your head? It's almost 12.30. I get to go.
Isn't it amazing that we can do things we like for hours at a time and never think twice about it? If you're a hockey fan, you can spend untold amount of hours watching a game where men are pushing a puck on the ice. And you're not thinking, is it 10? Is it 1014?
Is it 1018? Is it 1033? You're not thinking that. I would imagine if you are, you'd probably say, I'm going to leave the game, because I don't like this tedium.
And yet in the church, man, to go over by one minute, doesn't he realize? And yet, He would be heralded as a champion if he scored the point that brought them even, and then extended the game further. You see, I think parents can oftentimes set the tone with reference to an appreciation for the truth to their young people. The parent is wondering where the clock is.
If the parent is fidgeting, if the parent can't stay awake, then why would the child ever take these things seriously? Why? Why would they? But if a parent says on a Sunday morning, I was glad when they said unto me, let us go to the house of the Lord.
Kids, get up, eat your Cheerios, brush your hair, scrub your fangs, get in the car. We get to go to the house of God. We get to worship the God of the house. And as they're sitting there, you're watching.
One eye this way, one eye that way. You're saying, pay attention. Listen. Why, daddy?
Why, mommy? Because Christ extends His kingdom through its truth. And there is nothing more that I want in this world than that you are a part of that kingdom. Isn't that it, parents?
Isn't that what you most want? Yes, you want them to be successful. You don't want them to live under a bridge. You don't want them to eat cat food or dog food for life.
You want them to be saved. Isn't that it? Isn't that their goal? Isn't that what parenting as a Christian is all about?
Yes, try to make them responsible humans. Yes, try to make them show up on time. All those things to be sure. but press them toward the kingdom, press them toward Christ. And the means by which we press them is the truth as it is in Jesus.
We ought to have a high view and a high regard and a cherishing of the truth of our Lord Jesus Christ. Do not shrug it off today. Do not say with Pilate, meh, what is truth? And then wander out of here.
If you have a question, what is truth? Talk to us. Sit with us. We will explain to you the truth as it is in Jesus, the gospel.
Not my feelings, not my ideas, not my desires. The gospel is none of those things. The gospel is the message concerning Jesus. That he lived, that he died, that he rose again.
The response to that is that everyone who looks to him in faith will have everlasting life.
Closing Prayer
Well, let us pray and ask the Lord God of truth to seal these things to our hearts. Father, we thank you for our Lord Jesus. We thank you for this cause. He was born.
We thank you for his current session at the right hand of God Most High. And we praise you that he will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead. And our hearts desire and earnest plea is that everybody here would be ready for that day. That each of us would be found clothed in a righteousness that was imputed to us and received by faith alone.
That each of us would have received the forgiveness of sins, even cleansing through the blood of our Lord Jesus. We ask that you would go with us now, cause us not to just shrug off the truth, but cause us to think about it, to be concerned about it, to read the truth each and every day, to come and attend where the truth is preached. And may this be for your glory and for our soul's everlasting well-being. And we pray through Christ our Lord.
Amen.