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Well, you can turn with me in 
your Bibles to John's gospel as we continue working our way 
through the fourth gospel. We're in John chapter 18, Jesus 
before Pontius Pilate in that Roman phase of the trial. Pilate is the one who ultimately 
has to give the order to execute. And so the Jews have delivered 
him up to him for that verdict. So I wanna read beginning in 
verse 28 to the end of the chapter, but our focus will be verses 
33 to 40. So beginning at John 18 at verse 28. 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, 
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. Then 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? Then they all cried again saying, 
not this man, but Barabbas. Now Barabbas was a robber. Amen. Well, let us pray. Our 
Father in heaven, we thank you for this beautiful day. We thank 
you for the majesty of God revealed in the created order. We thank 
you for the graciousness and the kindness and the mercy of 
God revealed to us in that redemptive order. We thank you for what 
our Lord Jesus Christ went through on behalf of the salvation of 
His people, even this trial before Pontius Pilate. We pray that 
Your Spirit would guide us and lead us as we consider this section 
of Scripture. We pray that we would see the 
glory of the Savior and all that He did in terms of accomplishing 
our redemption. And God, may this be the day 
of salvation for sinners. May you effectually call sinners 
unto yourself to faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. Forgive us 
now for all sin and all unrighteousness, and we pray in and through the 
name of our blessed Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Well, 
we've come now to the Lord Jesus before Pontius Pilate. It's a 
great travesty. It is a great injustice. All 
that happens in this particular account should cause us to reflect 
that there ain't nothing new under the sun. In other words, 
it's not just today that we see injustice in the civil courts, 
but Jesus faced that kind of injustice as well. And when we 
look at this particular narrative and we see our Lord's response, 
it should cause us to stand in awe to praise, to wonder, and 
to glorify, and to see the great love that our Savior has for 
us. Now, in terms of the timeline, 
or in terms of the chronology, there is a preliminary hearing 
that Jesus has with Annas, the high priest, in John 18 at verses 
12 to 14, and then in verses 19 to 23. He is then sent by 
Annas to Caiaphas, the high priest, the official high priest, who 
is the leader of the Sanhedrin. And so Jesus has that trial before 
the Jewish Sanhedrin. And we saw that in Matthew's 
gospel in chapter 26. He is then sent by the Sanhedrin 
to Pontius Pilate, as we see in this particular instance. 
He will stand before Pilate. Pilate will then understand the 
jurisdiction and that Herod is involved. So Pilate sends Jesus 
over to Herod and then Herod sends Jesus back to Pilate and 
then Pilate gives the decision in terms of the death penalty 
for our Lord. So that's the situation that 
we find. We pick up the narrative, as 
I said, in verses 33 to 40. So there are two things going 
on here. In verses 33 to 38, we have the 
examination by Pilate, and then in verses 39 and 40, we have 
the compromise of Pilate. Pilate is trying to get out of 
what is a difficult situation. No doubt he expects them to request 
the safety and the release of Jesus, but they demand that Barabbas, 
a notorious robber as the text describes him, but will argue 
that he's even worse than that particular English translation. 
They want Barabbas released, and they want the Son of God 
executed. So, as I said, it's gross injustice, but it is for 
us men and for our salvation. Verse 32 reminds us that what 
we have here is ordained by God. It's the sovereign purpose and 
plan of God. Yes, Jesus is delivered up by 
the Jews. Yes, Jesus is ultimately delivered 
up by Pontius Pilate to the death of the cross. But we know, theologically, 
He's delivered up by the Father. It pleased Yahweh to bruise Him, 
putting Him to grief in order to save us from our sins. So 
let's look at the examination by Pilate under two heads. First, 
the question of his identity in verses 33 to 35, and then 
the confirmation of his identity in verses 36 to 38. So note first 
the question in verse 33. Pilate enters the Praetorium 
again, called Jesus and said to Him, Are You the King of the 
Jews? Now remember, this is what the 
Jews said in order to formalize the charge against him, according 
to Luke's gospel in 23.1-5. They couldn't just say to Pontius 
Pilate, yeah, he's a blasphemer and he should be put to death 
by the civil state. That's not gonna fly with reference to the 
civil state. So they call false witnesses 
to the Sanhedrin, and they say that this man wants to destroy 
the temple. That would have been a capital 
offense, or that would have been a reason for Pilate to act, but 
that's not what Pilate asks about. Are you planning on destroying 
the temple? Are you planning on leading an insurrection? Are 
you planning on overthrowing the Roman emperor? That's ultimately 
why he's standing before Pilate, but he asks this simple question, 
are you the king of the Jews? So the Jews had a theological 
problem with our Lord Jesus Christ. They had to frame it in such 
a way that Pontius Pilate would execute him by the power of the 
civil state. And so it's a very interesting 
dialogue that is conducted here between our Lord and between 
Pontius Pilate. There's nobody around at this 
point. Jesus now goes in. He has a private hearing with 
Pilate. The Jews delivered him up because of envy. The Jews 
delivered him up because they wanted to destroy him. And Pilate 
knows this in his heart of hearts. Three times he confesses, I find 
no fault in this man. In Matthew's gospel, his wife 
has a dream and comes out from her bedchamber and tells Pontius 
Pilate to have nothing to do with this righteous man. Pilate 
himself stands before the people and he washes his hands and he 
wants to rid himself of this particular problem. And so here 
specifically, he asks Jesus, are you the King of the Jews? 
Notice then the clarification from our Lord. Verse 34, Jesus 
answered him, are you speaking for yourself about this or did 
others tell you this concerning me? I think the origin of this 
question is simple. Are you legitimately concerned 
Pontius Pilate, governor of Judea for the Roman state? Are you 
legitimately concerned with reference to the emperor? In other words, 
are you the one that initiated this proceeding or are you simply 
a toady? Are you simply submitting to 
the Jewish unbelievers? Are you simply taking a position 
that is consistent with what they've already determined? Jesus 
wants to get to the point. Jesus wants to narrow this down. 
This man was sent by the emperor to be the governor of these particular 
people, but he is being governed by this particular people in 
this travesty of justice that is going to end up with Jesus 
crucified. Again, That injustice, notwithstanding 
it's the glory and power of God to provide that perfect Passover 
sacrifice for us men and for our salvation. So note then the 
answer of Pontius Pilate in verse 35. He says, am I a Jew? Your 
own nation and the chief priests have delivered you to me. What 
have you done? He is acting as a puppet. He 
is submitting to the Jewish people. He is functioning simply as a 
toady. He is not going to do his job. He's not going to bring about 
justice. He is not gonna render the verdict that is absolutely 
requisite in a situation where you have a man that's innocent. 
And I think it's intriguing as well when he says this, your 
own nation and the chief priests have delivered you to me. What 
have you done? What have you done? What kind 
of a question is that from a judge to an accused man? Why are you 
here? Well, this just further underscores 
that when the Jews delivered him up, there was no charge, 
remember? What charge do you bring against 
him? Well, if he wasn't an evildoer, we wouldn't bring him to you. 
Oh, okay. That flies. That's justice. No, it's not. They beg the question. They assume that their ecclesiastical 
court is enough to convict them of a capital crime while they 
are subject in the Roman Empire. They're absolutely destroying 
the notion of justice here. And so now Pilate says, what 
have you done? In other words, let me in on 
what's happening between you and these unbelieving Jews. Again, 
he knows there's no fault in Jesus. He knows that they're 
filled with envy. He's going to know that his wife 
says, have nothing to do with this man. He himself is going 
to try to get him released in terms of the custom at Passover 
time. And he's going to, again, in 
verse 12, basically try to get him released. 1912, notice. From then on, Pilate sought to 
release him, but the Jews cried out, saying, if you let this 
man go, you are not Caesar's friend. Whoever makes himself 
a king speaks against Caesar. The governor is governed by the 
unbelieving Jews. A theology debate has ended up 
in a criminal court and a capital court, and now Pilate wants to 
know what's happening. What have you done? Now that 
brings us then to the confirmation of his identity. Notice what 
we have there in verses 36 to 38. There's three things we should 
see. First, the nature of his kingdom, 
verse 36, the affirmation of his kingship in verse 37, and 
then the mockery of his kingship. And we'll turn briefly over to 
Luke's gospel in chapter 23. But note first the affirmation 
or the nature of his kingship. So he asks the question, am I 
a Jew? Your own nation and the chief 
priests have delivered you to me. What have you done? So 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. So notice he affirms that he's 
a king. That's what Pilate asked him. 
Are you the king of the Jews? Are you a king? He affirms that 
by saying, my kingdom, he's inferring or implying or making very clear 
that he is in fact a king. So he's answering in the affirmative 
in terms of the kingship issue. But then note how he describes 
his kingdom in verse 36. My kingdom is not of this world. 
Now, I think people get a little bit mixed up by this statement. I take it this way. It doesn't 
originate from the world. He's not a successor in a dynastic 
kingship. I mean, he is on the one hand, 
but not in this context. And he's not voted in. There 
were no dominion voting machines that kind of went awry, and Jesus 
fell into this particular situation. My kingdom is not of this world. 
What's he saying? Pilate, you have nothing to fear 
in terms of the civil state. You have nothing to fear in terms 
of the emperor that you are presently serving. My kingdom does not 
originate from this world. It certainly includes it. It's 
certainly comprehensive enough to include all of the world. 
We see that in Matthew 28, go therefore and make disciples 
of all the nations. Why? Because God the Father had 
given the nations to his son. We see his universal empire in 
Ephesians chapter 1, verses 19 to 23. He's had over all things 
for the church. And the kingdom that Jesus is 
referring to in this particular instance isn't his by virtue 
of being the second person, the Trinity. No, it's the mediatorial 
kingdom. 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. He's speaking about 
the kingship received from the Father in terms of mediator in 
the new covenant. So when he says this, he affirms 
his kingship, and he affirms that this kingship is not, or 
this kingdom rather, is not a threat to Pilate, and it's not a threat 
to the Caesar. It's not a threat. in a way of 
normal kingship or other kingship. And then he proves that. Look 
at what he says, my kingdom is not of this world. And then as 
a proof of that, he says, 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. The wisdom 
of Christ is very obviously on display. He's answering Pilate 
truthfully. He's affirming everything that 
is asked of him, and he's doing it with absolute and perfect 
honesty and consistency. My kingdom's not of this world. 
If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would fight. My servants 
would destroy Pilate, would destroy Judea, would destroy the unbelieving 
Jews, would destroy the emperor, would destroy the Roman Empire. 
Notice that Jesus legitimizes violence in a fallen world. Romans 13, one to four, the government 
has the sword. Why? To protect the citizenry 
from foreign invaders and to execute criminal offenders within 
the body politic. There is the use of the sword 
in this fallen age. And Jesus advances that notion. If my kingdom were of this world, 
my servants would fight. And by the way, when my servants 
fight, they win. They don't leave any stone unturned. They don't leave any wretched 
sinner undealt with. So Jesus is affirming His kingship, 
His kingdom, but that it's not a present threat to the Roman 
Empire. He is doing this for the glory 
of God Most High and for the salvation of His people. But 
then as well, notice the identification of the primary enemy. It says, 
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. That's the issue at play here. Notice again in chapter 
19, verse 11, 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. He is speaking here very clearly. The contrast, and as he's responding 
to Pontius Pilate, what have you done? What have I done? I've 
simply come to declare the glory of God the Father. I've simply 
come to declare and exegete that one in whose bosom I am. And yet every step of the way, 
they resist me. Every step of the way, they reject 
me. And every step of the way, they want to destroy me. And 
now they've delivered me up. So if my kingdom were of this 
world, my servants would fight. I would not be delivered into 
the hands of the Jews. But notice what he goes on to 
say at the end of verse 36, but now my kingdom is not from here. So that brings us to the affirmation 
of his kingship. Verse 37 and 38, are you a king 
then? I mean, Pilate's a two-bit governor 
in the province of Judea, and he's not a great man. He's not 
a righteous man. In fact, he's filled with cowardice. 
But he's bright enough to follow the logic. Are you a king, then? He's just spoken of his kingdom. 
So, Pontius Pilate asks the inevitable. Are you a king, then? Is what 
they're claiming, you're claiming valid? Is what they're claiming, 
you're asserting, is it true? So Jesus has already distanced 
himself from the thought of an earthly king that was voted in 
or brought about by dynastic succession and an earthly king 
that's in competition with the Roman empire, whose servants 
are gonna launch a full-on assault upon Rome and upon her pilot 
and upon her emperor. He's already, you know, disabused 
him of that notion. Now he comes to this kingship 
issue. Are you a king then? Note the 
response. He says, you say rightly that 
I am a king. For those of you who've been 
in our church for any amount of time, this is a Christmas 
sermon for me. I usually preach, well, not always 
this sermon, but for this cause I was born. Matthew and Luke 
contain birth narratives. Matthew and Luke show us the 
birth of the baby Jesus. John doesn't give us a birth 
narrative. John rather highlights the incarnation 
of the Word. In the beginning was the Word, 
the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The Word became 
flesh and dwelt among us. So John speaks of incarnation, 
but in terms of John speaking of Jesus' birth, this is it. This is the place. This is the 
only instance in John's gospel, and notice what it's related 
to, kingship. You say rightly that I am a king 
for this cause I was born, prophet, priest, king. Notice what he 
goes on to say. He says, 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. The only reference to his birth 
in John's gospel has to do with his kingly office. And just imagine, 
if you will, for a moment, let's just say we could transport ourselves 
back to this praetorium guard, this praetorium headquarters, 
and we could see what's happening. We see the back of Jesus, so 
we don't do a 2CV violation or anything like that. But I can't 
imagine Jesus looked royal. I can't imagine he looked regal. He wasn't, you know, contemptuously 
mocked by Herod and clothed with a gorgeous robe at this point. 
What does he look like? He looks like a man of sorrows, 
acquainted with grief. He looks like one who has no 
form or comeliness that when we see him, we should esteem 
him. He's probably looking a bit rough. I mean, this has happened 
all night, all night Thursday into early Friday morning. You 
know, if you and I don't get our six hours of beauty sleep, 
we look pretty haggard. We look a bit worn out, don't 
we? He didn't look like he purported to be, but that is exactly how 
the prophets envisioned him to come. And so Pilate hears this 
statement, hears this is the reason for which he was born. 
Listen to Spurgeon on Micah 5.2, another famous Christmas text. He says, or after commenting 
that men are born princes, but never kings. He says the moment 
that he came on earth, he was a king. He did not wait till 
his majority that he might take his empire. But as soon as his 
eye greeted the sunshine, he was a king. From the moment that 
his little hands grasped anything, they grasped a scepter. As soon 
as his pulse beat and his blood began to flow, his heart beat 
royally and his pulse beat an imperial measure and his blood 
flowed in a kingly current. He was born a king. he came to 
be ruler in Israel. And as is consistent in his defense 
up to this point, his kingdom and his kingship is not a threat. 
Notice what he goes on to say, 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. He's not 
going to overthrow the Roman Empire with guns a-blazing. He's 
not going to overthrow the Empire with B-2 bombers. He's going 
to overthrow the Empire with the proclamation of the truth 
of the gospel. That's his instrument. That's 
his power. That's the means he comes to 
propagate in terms of the expansion of his kingdom. In other words, 
Pilate, you don't have to worry about a typical overthrow. Now, 
down the road, there will be an overthrow. The Roman Empire 
no longer stands. The Roman Empire is still not 
persecuting Christians and feeding them to lions. But it wasn't 
overthrown through military might and savvy. It was overthrown 
through the proclamation of the truth. Christ came to speak the 
truth. No one has seen the Father at 
any time, but the only begotten Son who is in the bosom of the 
Father, He has declared Him. John 1, 18. Jesus propagates 
the truth. Jesus makes subjects by the truth. John 8, 31 to 36. Whoever commits 
sin is a slave of sin. But if you believe the Son, you 
shall be free. You shall be free indeed. It's 
the truth that identifies and characterizes this particular 
kingdom. It grows by proclamation. It grows by propagation. It grows by declaration. It grows by God using that gospel 
to plunder the kingdom of darkness and to transfer sinners out of 
that dark realm into the kingdom of the Son of His love. And this 
kingdom is still advanced in like manner. That's why Pastor 
Cam prayed that the Spirit comes when we preach the word. Why? 
So if you're dead in your trespasses and sins right now, you by grace 
can look upon the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved. The reality 
is, brethren, is that that's the way that Christ advances 
His church, the way that Christ builds His kingdom. It's through 
the propagation of His glorious truth. Turn to Revelation and 
you'll see that the Son makes war by truth. Notice in Revelation chapter 
1, specifically at verse 16. He had in his right hand seven 
stars out of his mouth when a sharp two-edged sword and his countenance 
was like the sun shining in its strength. Notice as well, chapter 
two at verse 16. Chapter two, verse 16, repent 
or else I will come to you quickly and we'll fight against them 
with the sword of my mouth. He's talking about the truth. 
How does he rule in the midst of the churches when there's 
heresies abounding? It's through the word of truth. 
It's not talking about the civil sword handed to ecclesiastical 
officers to chop off heretical heads. It's not what he's doing. 
He's talking about the sword that proceeds from his mouth 
as being that discerner of the thoughts and intentions of men. 
It is that sword by which he wages and wins war. Notice in 
Revelation 19, Revelation chapter 19, specifically at verse 15. 
Now out of his mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it he should 
strike the nations. And he himself will rule them 
with a rod of iron. He himself treads the winepress 
of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he has on his 
robe and on his thigh a name written, King of kings and Lord 
of lords. Then I saw an angel standing 
in the sun, and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the 
birds that fly in the midst of heaven, come and gather together 
for the supper of the great God, that you may eat the flesh of 
kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the 
flesh of horses, and of those who sit on them, and the flesh 
of all people, free and slave, both small and great. And I saw 
the beasts, the kings of the earth, and their armies gathered 
together to make war against him who sat on the horse and 
against his army. How does he defeat them? It's 
truth. That's what he says before Pontius 
Pilate. Are you a king then? 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. Brethren, we cannot underestimate 
the power of the truth. Jesus makes much of truth in 
John's gospel. The psalmist, who I think is 
Jesus vocalizing prayer, in Psalm 31, refers to God the Father 
as the Lord God of truth. When Jesus discusses the ministry 
of the Holy Spirit in the upper room, who does he, or how does 
he refer to him? The spirit of truth. When Jesus uses that I 
am statement in John 14, 6, I am the way, the truth, and the life. 
No one comes to the Father except through me. This modern mindset 
of dispensing with truth and putting in its place entertainment 
in some churches is woefully bad. This modern mindset of moving 
pulpits over and having story time is woefully bad. This mindset where we move the 
pulpit and put a Roman Catholic altar of abomination, woefully, 
woefully bad. What does Jesus say is the primary 
vehicle by which he advances, by which he maintains, by which 
he defends, by which he rules, by which he governs, but the 
truth? Why do you think in the epistles 
of the apostle Paul that we call the pastoral epistles, 1st and 
2nd Timothy and Titus, the emphasis falls not on tongue speaking, 
Not on therapy, not on group hugs, but on sound doctrine. Why do you think Paul, in his 
last corporate command, tells Timothy, preach the word. Be 
ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort with 
all longsuffering and teaching. Why do you think he does that? 
Because Christ before Pilate says, it is by means of truth 
that my kingdom stands. It is by means of truth that 
my kingdom advances. It is by means of truth that 
my kingdom is sustained." So, Pilate, you don't need to worry 
about helicopters coming into the emperor's fly zone to gun 
him down. And then notice what we have 
in terms of our Lord's last statement in verse 38. Everyone who is 
of the truth hears my voice. Everyone who is of the truth 
hears my voice. A similar thought to what he 
says in John 10, 27. My sheep hear my voice and I 
know them and they follow me. Don't you love that? What's a 
believer? What's a Christian? What's a 
person that's not going to go to everlasting hell and punishment? 
Well, it's someone who hears the voice of the master. Isn't 
that it? When all is said and done. We 
talked about this recently. Maybe it was a Wednesday night 
or maybe it was a Saturday morning. As you get older, all the days 
start looking the same. But, you know, this idea of he's 
a good Christian. I've always wondered what a good 
Christian is. I'm probably betraying my position as a pastor, but 
what's a good Christian? We usually think good Christians, 
they don't go to places like that. Good Christians don't look 
at things like that. And there's a sense where that's 
true. Good Christians don't go to a 
black mass. Good Christians don't engage 
in child sacrifice. Yeah, there's a broad application 
for sure. But a Christian is a Christian, 
not because they're good, but because their master is good. 
And what is definitional about a Christian is that they hear 
the voice of the master. And when the master says, believe 
on me and you will be saved, they come. When the master says, 
all that the father gives me will come to me and the one who 
comes to me, I will certainly not cast out, they come. When 
the master says, when he bids all those who are weary and heavy 
laden to come to him, they come. And those who have come, by grace, 
continue to listen to the Master's voice. I love the description 
of Revelation 14, they followed the Lamb wherever He goes. That's 
definitionally a Christian. Now, of course, when you're following 
the lamb, wherever he goes, you're not going to a black mass, you're 
not going to a child sacrifice, you're not going to various places. 
So yeah, good Christian, yeah, there's a place for it. But a 
Christian is a Christian because of the gospel that they believe. 
A Christian is a Christian because of the master they, by grace, 
follow. A Christian is a Christian because of what Jesus has accomplished 
in terms of life, death, and resurrection. He was delivered 
up because of our offenses and he was raised for our justification. And the glorious reality is that 
those who look to him in faith will have everlasting life. So 
Jesus says those are identifiably his because they hear his voice. And then that brings us to Pilate's 
response. What is truth? Again, I mentioned 
last week, I'd love to know how he said this. It's actually wrong. I mean, the question itself in 
the context is wrong. He should have been saying, who 
is truth? He's looking for a what when 
the who is standing right before him. Maybe he wants Jesus to 
wax eloquent on Aristotle or Plato. He wants to, you know, 
visit the various schools of philosophy. He says this, what 
is truth? And again, it could be exasperation. It could be frustration. It could 
be mockery. It could be, you know, snickering, 
eh, what's truth? But he is standing before the 
truth incarnate and he misses it. He doesn't wait for the answer. 
You know, if we had flown back to that praetorium, I think I'd 
be saying, Pilate, you should really listen at this point. 
You ask truth incarnate, what is truth? You really should wanna 
listen to that answer. You should really want to spend 
some time getting to know this one, but he doesn't do that. 
Notice, Pilate said to him, verse 38, 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. This shows Pilate's gutlessness, 
brethren. I mean, what we see continuing 
in the narrative. He finds no fault in him. Matthew 
Poole says, whatever the quality of the kingdom was of which our 
Savior spake, Pilate judged that his pretensions to it were not 
prejudicial to the authority of the emperor, nor the tranquility 
of the state, and would have dismissed him from their unjust 
prosecution. Right? That's exactly right. 
I find no fault in him. What does that mean? He's not 
a threat to me. He's not a threat to the emperor. 
He's not a threat to this civil state. Yeah, he asserts being 
a king, but he's talking about his kingship being predicated 
on the advancement of truth. That's not gonna bring down the 
emperor. That's not gonna stop the empire. I find no fault in 
him at all. And you know, when Pilate mentions 
this again in verse four of chapter 19, when Pilate mentions this 
again in verse six of chapter 19, and when in 1912a, we see 
that he continually tried to release him, do you know what 
it really does underscore for us? that Jesus was not there 
for his sins and his crimes. Guilty, vile, helpless we, spotless, 
Lamb of God was he. Full atonement can it be? Hallelujah, 
what a savior. He's not there for his rebellion. He's not there because he fomented 
revolution. He's not there because he's coming 
after Pilate and then the emperor. He's not there for any sin or 
any crime or any misdeed that he had done on his own. He was 
holy, harmless, and undefiled. He was, in the language of the 
holy angels that praised him in Isaiah 6, holy, holy, holy. Always found that interesting. 
Pilate confesses it thrice, just like those angels, before the 
throne of Jesus, his pre-incarnate state in Isaiah chapter 6. Holy, holy, holy is the Lord 
of hosts. The whole earth is filled with 
his glory. The fact that Pilate confesses 
this, the fact that his wife says have nothing to do with 
him, the fact that the thief on the cross says, we're here 
for a reason and he's not, it underscores that reality, the 
just for the unjust. Now Pilate sends him over to 
Herod. You can turn to Luke 23. Luke 
23. We won't spend much time here, 
but this is what happened. Luke 23 at verse 6. When Pilate 
heard of Galilee, he asked if the man were a Galilean. And 
as soon as he knew that he belonged to Herod's jurisdiction, he sent 
him to Herod, who was also in Jerusalem at that time. Pass 
the buck. Get somebody else involved. I 
don't want to have to adjudicate this on my own. I find no fault 
in him. I'm in a rock and a hard place. 
So let me see if I can get Herod pinning on him. Now, when Herod 
saw Jesus, verse eight, he was exceedingly glad for he had desired 
for a long time to see him because he had heard many things about 
him and he hoped to see some miracle done by him. Now, probably 
it's owing to things that I have seen in terms of images or paintings 
or, you know, the screen. I just have this mental picture 
of Herod. that he's soft, that he's doughy, 
that he's lazy, that he's just terrible. I don't get that with 
Pilate. You know, he's a Roman. He's 
got, you know, grittiness in his bones. He wants to keep the 
empire safe. He wants to make sure that the... 
Herod doesn't strike me that way. Just a soft, pathetic, just 
a waste. Sorry, but that's, you know, 
if I ever meet him in the afterlife, maybe he got converted and he's 
gonna say, wow, that was rough back then in June 8th. But notice 
this in verse nine, he questioned him with many words, but he answered 
him nothing. Again, as a sheep before its 
shearers is silent. Prophet Isaiah was bang on with 
the conduct of our Lord. Verse 10, And the chief priests 
and scribes stood and vehemently accused him. Then Herod, with 
his men of war, treated him with contempt and mocked him, arrayed 
him in a gorgeous robe and sent him back to Pilate. This is what 
our Savior went through for us. Brethren, we don't like it when 
somebody doesn't ooze all over us because we're us. And he's 
being treated like garbage. He's being treated like filth. 
He's mocked by these soldiers, he's mocked by the Sanhedrin, 
he's spat upon by the Sanhedrin, he is slapped and buffeted by 
the Sanhedrin. Notice as well verse 12, that 
very day Pilate and Herod became friends with each other, for 
previously they had been in enmity with each other. Isn't that interesting? 
A common hatred for our blessed God brings lots of people together 
under a banner. Psalm 2. Why do the nations rage? 
Why do the peoples plot of vain things? Why do the rulers of 
the earth and the kings of the earth, you know, take counsel 
together? Because they hate God and they 
hate his Christ. And that's exactly what we see 
played out before us. And then that brings us to his 
compromise. Actually, we're gonna stop there. I don't wanna just 
sort of run over the compromise. We'll connect it with what we 
find in verses one to four in chapter 19. But in terms of this 
particular situation, at this point, you know the outcome. I just think there's three things 
we ought to observe here. The cowardice of Pontius Pilate, 
the wretchedness of the unbelieving Jews, and the glory of the blessed 
Savior. Look at Pilate here. You're a 
governor in the Roman Empire. You're a man of war, most likely. You're a man of power and a man 
of authority. You don't listen to any accusation. You don't rebuke them out of 
your court for showing up and just assuming that we wouldn't 
have brought him here if he wasn't guilty. This man's a coward. This man is terrible. Again, 
has more integrity along the way, though. The fact that he 
does the hand-washing ceremony shows something of the tension 
in his own heart. He's missed it by a little, but 
by a million miles. He's standing before truth incarnate 
and he says, what is truth? And he doesn't stop to hear the 
answer or response. He's a coward. He wants to release 
Jesus. He barters a trade in verses 
39 and 40. They cry, give us Barabbas, who 
was an insurrectionist and a murderer. He wasn't just, you know, we 
read robber and we think, you know, Walmart, guy goes in, steals 
some stuff and heads out. There were three crucifixions 
scheduled for that day, brethren. Guess who was gonna be in the 
center? It was gonna be Barabbas. Barabbas didn't work alone. He 
had two compadres and they're on either side of him on the 
cross. So let me just give you a foretaste of what we see there 
in verses 39 and 40. Something that we've already 
seen, holy, harmless, undefiled, stands in the place of the wretched, 
the unholy, the harmful, and the completely defiled. Do you 
see substitution here where Jesus takes the place on the cross 
of Barabbas? I'm not necessarily saying Barabbas 
is in heaven. He could be. He very well could 
be. But what's the emblem set forth 
in this exchange? The just for the unjust. The righteous for the unrighteous. That whole imagery of exodus 
and Passover. Why do you think that they had 
to kill that lamb and throw the blood on their doorpost? because 
of substitutionary curse bearing. Because when the angel of the 
Lord passed over and he saw the blood, he continued to go. Why? Because without the shedding 
of blood, there is no remission. When he sees that blood, that 
person, that family group, that entity is covered. What we have 
in this account is the righteous son of God standing before unrighteous 
and ungodly men and doing everything laid upon him by the father for 
the salvation of all those whom had been given to him. So Pilate 
comes out very bad. The wretchedness of the unbelieving 
Jews. If we combine John and Matthew, 
consider that they conspire to commit murder, Matthew 26, three 
to five. They bargain with the betrayer, 
Matthew 26, 14 to 16. They condemn the Lord in the 
trial before the Sanhedrin. What further need of witnesses 
do we have? We've heard the testimony. Away with him, away with him, 
crucify him. They reject the claim that Christ 
is innocent. They deliver Jesus to the Roman 
governor so he will carry out capital punishment. And as well, 
they persistently urge the multitudes to side with their decision in 
Matthew 27, 20. It's interesting because in Luke 
23, one and two specifies the charges with reference to Jesus 
and his criminal activity before the civil state. And then in 
verse five, you know what it says? from Judea to Galilee, 
he goes about stirring up the people. Oh no, we can't have 
somebody stirring up the people. It's not like today, we don't 
like people stirring up the people. If it looks like it's going against 
the ecclesiastical tyranny or against the civil state, we've 
got to silence the guy who stirs up the people. But interestingly, 
they stir up the people in the release of Barabbas and in the 
crucifixion of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. They come off really 
bad. They manipulate Pilate in order 
to carry out their design. Again, 1912. If you let this 
man go, you're not Caesar's friend. Whoever makes himself a king 
speaks against Caesar. You see the political pressure 
they're laying upon Pontius Pilate. Again, I'm not saying Pilate's 
somehow okay because of that, but he is being laid upon by 
these men who have become the governors in the Roman province 
of Judea. It ain't Pilate, it's them. And 
they deliver up the Lord Jesus Christ to be crucified. Their wickedness is compounded 
by Pilate's attempts to not crucify Jesus. Their wickedness is compounded 
by the various voices testifying to Jesus' innocence. Listen to 
RT Friends. Even Judas the traitor, the Gentile 
woman, Pilate's wife, and the hard-bitten Roman governor can 
see what the leaders and crowd refuse to acknowledge. There's 
no guilt in him. There's no sin in him. There's 
no crime in him. There's no threat to the empire 
from him. He advances his kingdom with 
truth. He is not going to overthrow 
the emperor. And yet he's delivered up under 
such pretense. And that underscores his glory, 
submission to his father, compliance with a godless civil court, and 
a willingness to go through that for our salvation. Brethren, 
we have a great and glorious Lord Jesus Christ. who went through 
this, not for his sins, not for his crimes, but for our sins 
and for our crimes. It is the glorious truth of the 
Christian gospel that whatsoever sinner, bad as you may be, not 
even as bad as you may be, but all that look to him in faith 
will have everlasting life. Because the unjust receive mercy 
as a result of what the just went through on behalf of those 
whom the father had given him. Listen to Peter. He says, for 
Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, 
that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh 
and made alive by the spirit. Praise God for this glorious 
gospel. Praise God that our Lord Jesus 
is still advancing his kingdom by the proclamation of the truth. 
And as the church and as believers, we must make much of that truth. Well, let us pray. Our Father 
in heaven, we thank you for your word. We thank you for what our 
Savior went through on our behalf, the lengths to which he went, 
to save us from our sins. We bless you, we praise you, 
we give glory to you for this wonderful transaction for the 
reality that all of this was predetermined by the God of heaven 
and earth for the salvation of guilty, vile, helpless sinners. 
And we praise you in Jesus' name. Amen. Well, let us stand and 
sing