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where you can turn with me and 
your Bibles to John's Gospel, John chapter 19. John 19, just a bit of a reminder 
in terms of where we've been with reference to the passion 
of our Lord Jesus Christ. There is a preliminary hearing 
before Annas in John chapter 18, then he is sent to the Sanhedrin, 
Caiaphas leads that, and Jesus is tried before them, and they 
condemn him on the charge of blasphemy specifically. Well, 
knowing they can't very well turn him over to Pilate to execute 
him for blasphemy, they say that he stirs up all the peoples, 
that he forbids paying taxes, and that he is a rival king to 
Caesar. So then Jesus appears before 
Pontius Pilate. Pilate finds out that he's a 
Galilean, so he sends him over to Herod, because Herod had jurisdiction 
there. Of course, Herod doesn't do anything 
but mock him, and then sends him back before Pilate. So we 
come to chapter 19 specifically verses 5 to 16 where we have 
the decision or the verdict of Pontius Pilate. So I'll read 
beginning in verse 5. Therefore, when the chief priests 
and officers saw him, they cried out, saying, Crucify him! Crucify him! Pilate said to them, 
You take him and crucify him, for I find no fault in him. The 
Jews answered, We have a law, and according to our law he ought 
to die, because he made himself the son of God. Therefore, when 
Pilate heard that saying, he was the more afraid and went 
again into the praetorium and said to Jesus, where are you 
from? But Jesus gave him no answer. 
Then Pilate said to him, are you not speaking to me? Do you 
not know that I have power to crucify you and power to release 
you? Jesus answered, 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. 
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. When Pilate therefore heard that 
saying, he brought Jesus out and sat down in the judgment 
seat in a place that is called the pavement, but in Hebrew, 
Gabbatha. Now it was the preparation day 
of the Passover and about the sixth hour. And he said to the 
Jews, behold your king. But they cried out, Away with 
him, away with him, crucify him. Pilate said to them, Shall I 
crucify your king? The chief priests answered, We 
have no king but Caesar. Then he delivered him to them 
to be crucified. Then they took Jesus and led 
him away. Amen. Well, let us pray. Our 
Father in heaven, we thank you for the written word of the living 
and true God. We thank you for what is recorded here concerning 
the incarnate word. that One who came from heaven 
and assumed our humanity, who lived for us, who died for us, 
and who was raised again for us, such that everyone who looks 
to Him in faith will have everlasting life." As we survey this particular 
passage, we see what the Savior went through on behalf of all 
those whom the Father had given Him. So may you draw out from 
us worship and praise and adoration and love to the one who is altogether 
lovely and the one who is chief among 10,000. Forgive us now 
for all of our sins and unrighteousness, guide us by your Holy Spirit. 
We pray that you would edify, sanctify, strengthen the people 
of God and save those who are dead in their trespasses and 
sins. May they see the glory of Christ set forth by the Apostle 
John. And we ask this in Jesus' name, 
amen. Well, remember, as we come to 
this particular verdict of Pontius Pilate, last week we looked at 
the tension with Pilate in verses 5 to 8. We see that Pilate has 
a problem with the Jews. There are several times when 
Pilate confesses the innocence of our Lord Jesus. He says it 
three times, and then again in verse 12 it says, from then on, 
Pilate sought to release Him. So Pilate is between a rock and 
a hard place, and we see they only increase the pressure as 
we move through our material this morning. So the first section, 
verses 5 to 8, is the tension with Pilate. So we'll consider 
next the authority of Pilate in verses 9 to 11, and then finally 
the verdict of Pilate in verses 12 to 16. And as I said in prayer, 
we ought to rehearse the reality that our Savior went to these 
lengths on our behalf. Sometimes our prayer meetings 
are sad. I would almost say depressing, but depressing kind of implies 
that there's no hope. You can be sad and hopeful because 
you trust in God and in his providence and in his sovereign power. But 
prayer meetings are sad. Why? Because we typically pray 
for the sick. We pray for Myanmar, where they 
have not only sick, but no food. They have constant battles around 
them. They have flooding. They have 
earthquakes. Those are sad things. We pray 
for others who've lost loved ones. We prayed for a young man 
from Ethiopia who was killed because he committed the crime 
of preaching the gospel in a Muslim village. So those are sad things. Well, when we come to the book 
of Hebrews, for instance, just by way of introduction, we see 
these statements concerning our Lord Jesus. And perhaps the author 
has in mind what we find in sections like we're in, in Jesus before 
Pontius Pilate. In Hebrews 2 at verse 17 it says, We mustn't fall into the trap 
of only remembering John 1, 1. In the beginning was the Word, 
and the Word was with God, and the Word was God, the true divinity 
of our Lord. We need to remember John 1, 14. That self-same Word became flesh 
and dwelt among us. and it was true humanity. So 
everything affecting man affected Jesus. Have you ever had anybody 
falsely accuse you? You may not be guilty of this, 
but you're guilty of that somewhere. Jesus was holy, harmless, and 
undefiled, standing before a godless man, surrounded by godless men, 
and hearing the shouts, away with him, away with him, crucify 
him. In Hebrews 4.14 we read, seeing 
then that we have a great high priest who has passed through 
the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest 
who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points 
tempted as we are, yet without sin. And then Hebrews 5, 7, who 
in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and 
supplications with vehement cries and tears to him who was able 
to save him from death and was heard because of his godly fear, 
though he was a son, yet he learned obedience by the things which 
he suffered. So those sad things that we pray 
for in prayer meetings, our Lord Jesus is conscious of. He experienced 
those things. True humanity under false accusation, 
I would imagine, provokes some sadness. It provokes some disheartedness. And so let us appreciate what 
the Savior went through on our behalf according to His humanity 
as the Word of God. So let's look then at the authority 
of Pilate in verses 9 to 11. Got movement with Pilate. You've 
got his fear, verses 7 and 8. You've got now his confusion 
in verse 9 and that will pivot to arrogance in verse 10. But here, notice his confusion, 
the question of verse 10. Then Pilate said to him, are 
you not speaking to me? I'm sorry, this is verse 9 is 
what I meant to read. and went again into the praetorium 
and said to Jesus, where are you from? But Jesus gave him 
no answer. Now, the immediate context is 
verses seven and eight. When the Jews saw that they weren't 
going to prevail upon Pontius Pilate with the allegation that 
Jesus was a rival king to Tiberius, when they couldn't prevail upon 
him because Jesus was a tax evader and one that promoted tax evasion, 
they say he claims to be the son of God. And Pilate becomes 
afraid at that saying. Why does Pilate become afraid? 
Because in the Roman mindset, in terms of their religion, the 
gods could descend and become men. And so Pilate is now consciously 
aware that he has an innocent man, but he could be a god. He could be the son of a god, 
and Pilate could be crossing the threshold to engage in deicide 
or the murder of a god. So he is afraid, according to 
verse 8. And then he asks this question 
in verse 9, showing some degree of confusion on the part of Pilate, 
but wanting to dig down a bit deeper after this statement that 
he is a son of God. So Pilate asks him, very clearly, 
unequivocally, he said to Jesus, where are you from? But Jesus 
gave him no answer. Now, Pilate knew that Jesus was 
a Galilean. We've seen that in Luke chapter 
23. When he found out he was a Galilean, he sends him over 
to Herod to be tried there. So he knows where Jesus is from 
in terms of a geographical location on the map. But with this suggestion 
or with this claim by the Sanhedrin or by the religious leaders here 
that he claims to be the son of God, Pilate's now a bit concerned. As I said, I think the man is 
in a horrible place, and I'm not, you know, pro-pilot, I'm 
not sympathetic to his plight, I'm not here to defend him or 
be his apologist, but he's in a rough spot. He's standing before 
the only one that has ever been wholly harmless and undefiled. 
He's standing before one he has thrice confessed, I find no fault 
in him. And he is hearing the mob, led 
by the religious leaders, away with him, away with him, crucify 
him. He's heard the statement that he might possibly be a son 
of God. And so Pilate's now, where are 
you from? Is there any merit to this? Is 
there any legitimacy to this? Are you, in fact, a son of God? 
Because if you are a son of God, that puts us into a different 
arena, and I might be able to jockey some favor with these 
complainants. Now, of course, Jesus doesn't 
respond, and I think the reason why Jesus doesn't respond is 
twofold. One, the prophetic scripture, 
Isaiah 53, 7. He was oppressed and he was afflicted, 
yet he opened not his mouth. He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, 
and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his 
mouth. Prophet foretold that he wouldn't be there debating 
and arguing. That doesn't mean he hasn't said 
anything. Or will never say anything before 
the Sanhedrin or before Pontius Pilate. He answers Pilate in 
1836 concerning his kingdom and concerning his reign in verse 
37. But the reality is, and the second reason, is that he knows 
he is subject not to Pontius Pilate. He knows that he is subject. I mean, he is according to his 
humanity as a civilian, as a citizen. He's not subject ultimately to 
the bloodthirsty Sanhedrin. He's not subject ultimately to 
the crowds that are saying, away with him, away with him, crucify 
him. He is subject to the will of the Father. It is for this 
purpose I have come, Jesus says when He talks about the cup. 
And He speaks about that hour, that hour that He must die, He 
must be raised again, and He must be exalted on high. And why does He do this? For 
us men and for our salvation. Why is the word made flesh according 
to John 1 14 so he could live for us in obedience to the father 
so he could die for us as the Lamb of God who takes away the 
sin of the world and so that he could be raised again for 
us for our justification? In other words, what Jesus is 
doing here is absolutely positively necessary and necessary for the 
salvation of all those whom the father had given him. And it 
is for the glory of his father. So, after fear, verse 8, and 
then confusion, verse 9, we see his assertion of authority in 
verse 10, Pilate's. Then Pilate said to him, are 
you not speaking to me? Do you not know that I have power 
to crucify you and power to release you? In other words, do you know 
who you're dealing with here? I'm the governor of Judea in 
the Roman Empire. I answer directly to Tiberius 
Caesar. I have jurisdiction in this region. He's flexing his muscles. He's 
posturing. He's trying to intimidate, perhaps 
trying to break the witness so that Jesus will say, well, I'll 
do whatever it is that you say. Now notice, in terms of this 
assertion, are you not speaking to me? Do you not know that I 
have power to crucify you and power to release you? This is 
arrogance. Probably the last card that he 
has to play. Remember, he's between a rock 
and a hard place. He's standing before an innocent man, might 
be engaging in deicide, and yet he's got a mob of people outside 
saying, away with him, away with him, crucify him. But as well, 
this is a very false assertion. Notice what he says. Do you not 
know that I have power to crucify you and power to release you? 
He does, but when certain things are in order, like a guilty verdict 
based on rules of evidence, based on cross-examination, based on 
due process, based on a pronouncement of guilt upon the party that 
is going to be executed, You just can't willy-nilly kill people 
if you're a Roman governor in Judea in the first century. Gil 
says his assertion is false, for he had no power, neither 
from God nor man, to crucify innocent men and release criminals. And moreover, he himself must 
be self-condemned, who had a power, as he says, of releasing him, 
and yet he did not do it, though he had once and again declared 
he found no guilt in him. Again, look at His words there. 
Do you not know that I have power to crucify you and power to release 
you? This is self-condemning. You have power to release Him 
and He's innocent? You have power to release Him 
and thrice you've confessed that you find no fault in Him? You're 
out of your mind, pilot. You are not authorized to engage 
in the execution of innocent people. You are not authorized 
to engage in the release of Barabbas, who was anything but an innocent 
person. He was an insurrectionist, he 
was a terrorist, he was a murderer, he was a revolutionary. One that 
actually did challenge Tiberius Caesar, by the way. So then notice, 
Jesus sets him in order with reference to authority. Verse 
11, Jesus answered, 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. The source of Pilate's 
authority is not Tiberius. The source of Pilate's authority 
is not the Sanhedrin. The source of Pilate's authority 
is not ultimately the people, the hoi polloi. The source of 
Pilate's authority is God Most High. And Jesus makes this counter 
declaration that is factually true. Proverbs 8.15, Christ speaking 
His wisdom says, By me kings reign. What do we read in Romans 
13? Let every soul be subject to 
the governing authorities, for there is no authority except 
from God. We learn in Proverbs 21 1 that 
the heart of the king is in the hand of Yahweh and he turns it 
like he does the rivers of water. Didn't Nebuchadnezzar learn this 
lesson? Remember Daniel 4 when Nebuchadnezzar 
is looking out on Babylon and in his pride and in his arrogance 
he is just strutting his stuff and saying, look at all the things 
that I have made. Look at all the great things 
I have amassed. Look at the rule that I have 
provided. Well, what happens? God humbles 
him. He needs to learn that men reign by virtue of the fact of 
God most high. And so Jesus is putting this 
in its proper theological context. This is one of the rationales 
as to why he's not arguing. He's not debating. No, I didn't 
do this. No, I didn't do that. No, I didn't go here. No, I didn't 
go there. He's subject to the actual authority that's involved 
behind all of this. And what John wants us to never 
forget as we move through the Passion narrative is that this 
is all according to plan. This isn't, you know, the train 
off the tracks. This isn't, what's going to happen 
now to our hero? The hero has subjected himself 
to the Father. The hero has purposed to go off 
the tracks for us men and for our salvation. When Jesus says 
what he says here, you could have no power at all against 
me unless it had been given you from above, he is underscoring 
what he has spoken of in many instances about the hour. about 
the cup, about the wrath of the Father that he must undergo. 
His announcements in Matthew 16, Matthew 17, Matthew 20, I 
must go to Jerusalem, I must be tried, I must be handed over, 
I must be crucified. Jesus, according to his humanity, 
reading the Old Testament scriptures and what they testified concerning 
him, he would be a man of sorrows, he would be acquainted with grief, 
he would be that Messiah cut off in accordance with Daniel 
9. He would be that one crucified according to Psalm 22. So Jesus 
knew exactly what was happening. Ritterbaugh says, by saying this, 
the beginning of verse 11, Jesus not only explains Pilate's position, 
but also his own. In that providential arrangement 
given from above, Pilate's interrogation of Jesus is a stage in the process 
in which Pilate himself must fulfill the will of God. Therefore, 
Jesus is in God's hands and not in Pilate's. He keeps silent 
because he must drink the cup that the Father has given him 
to drink. Part of that cup is the necessity of submitting to 
Pilate's arbitrary use of power and letting himself be crucified 
as a criminal, thus bearing the sin of the world, John 1, 29, 
and being made to be sinned by God, 2 Corinthians 5, 21. So 
John is not going to let us forget the train's not off the tracks. 
The train is precisely where it ought to be because God Almighty 
is in control. And for Pilate's arrogant assertion, 
don't you know I have the power to kill you? Don't you know I 
have the power to release you? And for Jesus to just so simply 
declare you'd have no power at all unless it had been given 
to you from above. Christ is in control here. It's not Pilate. Now, notice 
at the end of verse 11 what he says, therefore, the one who 
delivered me to you has the greater sin. That implicates Pilate, 
greater sin implies lesser sin, right? He's not saying, Pilate, 
you're just between a rock and a hard place. You've got, you 
know, a bad shake, too bad for you. No, no, Pilate's in sin. Again, Roman governors in the 
province of Judea can't just execute innocent people, not 
according to Roman law, not according to God's law. They weren't supposed 
to do that any more than they're not supposed to do that today. 
The basic fundamental principle between government and the governed 
is that, yeah, we're just not gonna execute for no reason. I mean, I'd like to think that's 
a basic fundamental principle that's in place still. And yeah, 
we're not gonna release violent criminal offenders into the population. So when this happens, Jesus says 
to Pilate, you're in sin. but he speaks concerning the 
greater sin of those who delivered him up. Therefore, the one who 
delivered me to you has the greater sin." Now, there's a couple parties 
there. Judas, who betrayed him, and 
then the Sanhedrin, who handed him over to Pontius Pilate to 
be executed by crucifixion. There's a degree of sin. There's 
greater sin and lesser sin. I'm not saying the Bible looks 
favorably upon lesser sin. Go ahead and do those lesser 
sin. No, no. Every sin deserves God's wrath and curse both in 
this life and that which is to come. But brethren, there is 
a fundamental difference between Pilate here operating according 
to cowardice and the Sanhedrin operating according to prejudice. 
Remember the whole verse 7 thing? When they say to Pilate, he says 
he's the son of God. We have a law and in that law 
it specifies that we execute blasphemers. He's a blasphemer 
because he says he's the son of God. Remember that illustration 
last week? You come home from, you know, 
Wal-Mart and you say to your wife, I met a guy and he claims 
to be the son of God. your wife would probably just 
say, nut job, as you probably would have already said as you're 
walking back from, you know, Walmart into your car. That was 
odd. So for them to just willy-nilly say this to Pontius Pilate, oh 
yeah, he claims to be the son of God. It's what they don't 
say that's very, very disturbing. Oh, and by the way, that book, 
that Bible, that Old Testament, promised a man to be Messiah, 
promised that that man would also be divine, promised that 
he would do mighty miracles and works and signs and wonders, 
promised that he would be self-consciously so, and this one who claims to 
be son of God, we've seen him raise dead people. We've heard 
it out of his own mouth, him making himself equal to God. We've heard him interpret Old 
Testament scriptures and apply them to himself. See, they don't 
mention all that. They just want to paint him in 
the most negative light so that Pilate will say, away with him, 
away with him, crucify him. This is a kangaroo court. The 
Lord Jesus went through this for us. It's absolutely amazing. Especially for those of us who 
have a high defined sense of justice and righteousness, which 
we should all have. But if you feel slighted, or 
you feel discounted, or you feel brushed off by someone. Well, 
nobody understands. Look at what the Son of God went 
through on our behalf, who for us men and for our salvation 
came down from heaven. And notice, for those of us who 
like our confession of faith, chapter five of divine providence, 
notice that the first cause, God, does not mitigate the guiltiness 
of the second cause. He's just confessed in verse 
11 that God Most High is sovereign. Pilate doesn't have authority 
apart from God. And yet, sinners who sin are 
held liable by God. Well, I can't really get that. 
I can't really understand that. Yeah, it's a bit of a melon scratcher, 
but you gotta confess and affirm that the Bible confesses and 
affirms it. God's absolute sovereignty never 
lets you off the hook for your sin. God's absolute sovereignty 
never relieves you from your guiltiness. In other words, you 
can't say, well, God's sovereign, providence, he governs all his 
creatures and all their actions. That must mean that when I go 
out and do horrible things, that's the will of God. You don't get 
that argument in scripture. You know where you get that argument? 
In a sinful heart. You get that argument in a sinful 
mind. You get that argument from somebody who's trying to justify 
their sin. And sometimes it's like that, 
right? I can't really figure out election and predestination. 
I don't really know about this providence. I can't quite get 
my mind wrapped around sovereignty and all that. So I'm just gonna 
continue to sin? Never underestimate the ingenuity 
of sinners. If they can blame their sin on 
anything else, even God and the way that he governs his universe, 
they will. They do. They hide behind predestination 
and election. Well, if God has purposed all 
things according to his own powerful plan, then it really doesn't 
matter what I do, what I say, what I think. You won't find 
that in scripture. In fact, Paul counters it in 
Romans 9. What shall we say then? Is there 
unrighteousness in God? May it never be. Just because 
you may not be able to figure something out doesn't mean it 
isn't true and taught in Holy Scripture. If you've been under 
preaching or teaching that stresses the sovereignty of God to the 
neglect of the responsibility of men, may I encourage you to 
go to Scripture. Because the scripture doesn't 
do that, and here's a perfect instance of that. The one who 
delivered me up has the greater guilt, the greater sin. In other 
words, Pilate, you've sinned, but so have they sinned, and 
they've sinned even more, but that's not mitigated because 
Acts 2 says this is the predetermined plan and purpose of God. Well, 
how does it work? Again, study scripture. Study 
Reformed theology. You'll start to get at it. You'll 
start to appreciate it, but you need to understand that the sovereignty, 
the power, the glory of the first cause is never an argument to 
justify or to mitigate or neglect the sins of the second causes. That brings us then to the decision 
or verdict of Pilate in verses 12 to 16. There's three things 
here. The accusation, verse 12, the 
response, verses 13 and 14, and then the verdict proper in verses 
15 and 16. Note the accusation in verse 
12. It's not against Jesus. That's 
already assumed. Jesus is guilty. What's the disposition? What's the determination? What 
should be done with Jesus? We've already said that, away 
with him, away with him, crucify him. The accusation proper in 
verse 12 is pilot. And if you think this sounds 
like political blackmail, you're thinking along the right lines. They may be wretched, their guilt 
and sin may be greater, but they ain't dummies, not in the least. Verse 12, from then on Pilate 
sought to release him, but the Jews cried out saying, if you 
let this man go, you're not Caesar's friend. Whoever makes himself 
a king speaks against Caesar. They are applying pressure, severe 
pressure, charges of treason pressure. Now up to this point, 
I doubt Pilate had an impeccable record In fact, there were instances 
and things that he had done. He botched up a few things as 
the governor in Judea. It wasn't just Gavin Newsom that 
does dumb things. Governors have that tendency, 
right? Anybody in management or leadership 
has the tendency to do really dumb things. But when you're 
a governor, they seem to be amplified because you've got a lot more 
responsibility. So Pilate's not the choir boy. Pilate's not wholly harmless 
and undefiled. Pilate's probably wanting to 
keep his job, his life, his house, his car, his summer home, his 
expense account. Pilate wants those things. He's 
a typical politician. So who are they going after now? They're going after Pilate. I 
think this amplifies and underscores something we've seen over and 
over and over again, the innocence of Jesus. The case does not make 
itself. The case has not been argued. 
Charges haven't even been brought formally according to John 18. 
So if we can't get it on Jesus, let's get Pilate. Let's put him 
in a vice and let's just start squeezing a bit. That's a brief 
statement. Verse 12, it's brief, but it's 
packed. It's political blackmail. Let's 
look at it. If you let this man go, one can 
almost see their fingers wagging at this point. One can almost see the veins 
popping out of their head at this point. If you let this man 
go, you are not Caesar's friend. Whoever makes himself a king 
speaks against Caesar. That's pressure. So you're a 
pilot, you want to keep your car, you want to keep your house, 
you want your wife to like you, you want your kids to grow up 
and go to the best college, all that. Now these guys are saying, 
If you side with this man, you're siding against Caesar. Tiberius 
will hear. We will advise. He will know. We'll march right to his palace 
right now and tell him the horrible things that Pontius Pilate has 
done in the province of Judea. This is huge pressure. Again, 
not a pilot apologist, not defensive pilot, but man, he's in a rough 
spot. You think you've had some rough 
spots in your life? This is a rough one. I'm not sure how much rougher 
they get in terms of internal turmoil and tension. You're standing 
before the Son of God. You've got a crowd of people 
away with him, away with him crucified. You know the Son of 
God isn't guilty. And now they pull this card? 
They invoke this? You're gonna rat me out? You're 
gonna call Tiberius Caesar and tell him that I let a guilty 
man go? I'm glad I'm not Pilate in this 
particular passage, because that's a tough one. Notice, then, the 
response in verses 13 and 14. So they say, whoever makes himself 
a king speaks against Caesar. And again, this isn't like free 
speech today. I'm on Twitter, and sometimes 
you see congressmen or senators mean tweet the other party. It's pretty commonplace. I see 
it about Canada, too. I think the political leaders 
and followers, we do that. We say mean things. They're not 
just accusing him of saying a mean thing. They're accusing him of 
state treason. If you don't kill this man by 
crucifixion, you are not Caesar's friend. Whoever makes himself 
a king speaks against Caesar. Do you think Caesar wants Pontius 
Pilate and various governors in the empire speaking against 
his authority, speaking against his rule, speaking against the 
decisions? Of course he doesn't. I mean, 
you know, as far as jobs go, Caesar, Roman Empire, it's a 
pretty powerful one, pretty big one. You got tensions with the 
Senate, you got political machinations, you got all that going on. But 
in terms of the big kahuna, emperor in the Roman Empire, yeah, it's 
a pretty big calling. And if you are allegedly speaking 
against him and you are in his employ, I can't imagine that 
contract's gonna last. Tiberius is gonna say, get over 
there and silence that guy and take from him his head. So notice, verse 13, when Pilate 
therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus out and sat 
down in the judgment seat in a place that is called the pavement, 
but in Hebrew, Gabbatha. So this is now the official verdict. 
They prevailed. We might say it this way, they 
won. Not based on a good case, not based on good evidence, not 
based on good witnesses, not based on good arguments, not 
based on cross-examination, none of that. They won based on pressure 
applied. They won based on blackmail. They won based on their own prejudice. But they won. They got it. But remember, God's in control 
of all these things. Don't want to forget that. So 
this is an official setting. And it is intriguing. He brought 
Jesus out and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that 
is called the pavement. But in Hebrew, Gabbatha. Now 
it's pretty straightforward and commonly understood that Pilate 
sat down on this judgment seat. The original language is a bit 
ambiguous. He could have placed Jesus on 
that judgment seat and when he says, behold your king, it was 
a mocking taunt of all of them. The ambiguity there And again, 
I think it's probably Pilate sat on the seat, but just for 
the sake of argument, suppose he puts Jesus on that seat to 
mock, to taunt, not just Jesus. He wants to have a little bit 
of payback at these guys that have just put his arm behind 
his back and made him give a guilty verdict with reference to the 
Son of God. When he does this, or if he does 
this, it's somewhat similar to what we find in John 18. Who's 
the high priest? Is it Annas or is it Caiaphas? 
I tried to successfully explain why it was Caiaphas, but Annas 
had been So Annas wanted to take that first kick at the can in 
terms of preliminary hearing. But the vagary or the vagueness 
of John 18, for instance, verse 19, the high priest then asked 
Jesus about his disciples and his doctrine. Who's the real 
high priest in that scene? If you say Annas, you're wrong. 
If you say Caiaphas, you're wrong. It's Jesus. He's the high priest 
in that passage. Maybe the ambiguity is such that 
if Pilate did station Jesus in that judgment seat, the underscore 
here is the true judge, the true king, the true emperor, the true 
authority, the one who set Tiberius in place, the one who put Nebuchadnezzar 
in place, the one who puts our civil government in place. Might 
be something of that going on. Notice the particular time according 
to verse 14. Now some find discrepancy between 
John and the synoptics. the way that the phrasing is 
used. I don't think there's a discrepancy. 
I don't think there's a contradiction. But I do know there are several 
pages to read to sort of resolve it. And we don't have time to 
read several pages right now. So I'll just say preparation 
day is Friday, the preparation for the Sabbath. Passover not 
only refers to the specific feast, but to the entire week of the 
feast. So it was Friday during the Passover feast week. That's 
how the language should be interpreted as far as I understand it. So 
verse 14, now it was the preparation day of the Passover and about 
the sixth hour or noon, and he said to the Jews, behold your 
king. Now this preparation for the feast, what did it involve? It involved killing animals. It involved the sacrificial lambs. It involved taking that knife, 
putting it to its throat, handing it over to the priest. Is it 
accidental that this is the time of the crucifixion? Is this, 
wow, that's a happy accident. That's pretty amazing, isn't 
it? Or is John telling us Passover and Exodus 12, the blood splashed 
upon the doorposts, all had as its primary referent, the Lamb 
of God who takes away the sin of the world. Yeah, it's that. 
This is the moment for which the Son of God had come. Yes, 
to show us ethical lessons. Yes, to teach us how to love 
one another. Remember Paul in 1 Corinthians 
1, he says, Jews, they seek signs. Greeks, they want wisdom or philosophy. But we preach Christ and Him 
crucified. Yes, Jesus is a wonderful and 
marvelous ethical teacher. Yes, Jesus is a wonderful example 
on how we ought to love one another. The primary emphasis in the coming 
of the Son of Man is to save His people from their sins. And 
how does He do that? Through a life of obedience and 
perfection, through the death of the cross as a sacrifice and 
a substitute, and from resurrection, a resurrection the third day. 
It is no accident that the Lamb of God is going to be butchered 
by these savages at the time of the preparation, because He's 
the Passover. Paul tells us that in 1 Corinthians 
5, 7. Christ is our Passover. That old covenant Israelite, 
taking the blood, splashing it on the doorpost, was preaching 
Jesus, was preaching Christ and Him crucified. He was invoking 
substitutionary atonement and wrath bearing and curse bearing. 
All of that, it wasn't just a religious festival. It was typical, it 
prefigured, it proclaimed the coming of the Son of Man to save 
His people from their sins. Klink says, the allusion to the 
slaughtering of the lambs is intended to declare that Jesus 
is the true Passover Lamb first announced by the Baptist. The 
motif of Jesus as the Lamb of God is one of the primary theological 
statements the gospel is making, through which all of Jesus' authority 
as judge and king must be understood. Then notice at verse 14. At the end of verse 14, behold 
your king. So again, if he's planted Jesus 
on that judgment seat, and Jesus is bloodied, broken, gory, tired, 
sweaty, spat upon, and then he says behold your king, oh yeah, 
it mocks Jesus, but it mocks them. This is the kind of king 
you deserve. Now, we know that the man, Christ 
Jesus, is the King of kings and the Lord of lords. He is a man, 
verse 5, behold the man. He is the Son of God, verse 7, 
and he is a king, all of which were prophesied in the Old Testament 
and all of which are announced to us throughout John's gospel. 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. The prologue, John 
1, 1 to 18, theology. Who's the word in relation to 
the Father? Who's the son that assumed our 
humanity? And the economy, or what God 
does, starts at 129. And it's no accident that the 
Baptist sees Jesus and says, behold, the Lamb of God who takes 
away the sin of the world. I think John wants us, by verse 
29, when that comes in John 1, to go, really? The Word of 1-1, 
who became flesh, 1-14, is the Lamb of God who takes away the 
sin of the world? I know that image of Lamb of 
God invokes fuzzy, cute, furry, albeit incorrigible creatures. 
Lamb of God, as the Baptist uses it, is a sacrifice. It's a substitute. Why splash 
blood on the doorpost? Because something died and its 
blood is in our place. So the angel of death can pass 
over it. What we have in these brief statements 
is glorious, wonderful Christian theology, all executed, all done 
by the Son of Man. And that brings us then to the 
verdict. Notice in verse 15, the demand for crucifixion. It's 
not tampered. It's not patted down. In fact, 
some might suggest that Pilate's provoked it even more, which 
again gives me some thought that he stationed Jesus on that judgment 
seat, but I'm, you know, free to go other ways. But they are 
upset. So he says, behold your king, 
but they cried out, away with him, away with him, crucify him. So Pilate asks the question now, 
shall I crucify your king? I don't think he's asking it 
for information. Shall I do it? It's mocking. It's taunting. Shall I crucify 
your king? Look at what they say. The chief priests answered, we 
have no king but Caesar. Remember last week in our scripture 
reading on Sunday night? I know it's a long time ago. 
We went to the interior on Monday, Tuesday, came back on Wednesday. 
It feels like it was a million years ago. It's like, yeah, there's 
a distant memory that we were by the lake and it was a hot 
day. You know, time just seems to do that with us. But remember 
last Sunday night, scripture reading, Judges 15? Remember 
what happens to Samson? Samson's just chilling. And the Philistines want to come 
and get him. The Philistines want Samson. Why? Because Samson's 
good at his job. What's Samson's job? He happens 
to kill Philistines. I get why the Philistines want 
Samson. What I don't get, what I'll never get, is why Judah 
wants to give up Samson. Well, I do because the text tells 
us. Judges 15.11, the Judahites say 
to Samson, do you not know that the Philistines rule over us? What is this you have done to 
us? I mentioned after the scripture 
reading that Samson is a type of Jesus. You could connect the 
two right here, right here at this place. shall I crucify your 
king? The chief priests answered, we 
have no king but Caesar. Now, what was their accusation 
of Pilate? If you don't do what we say, 
you are an enemy of Caesar. In an odd, strange, theological 
reversal, them, confessing allegiance to 
Caesar is tantamount to declaring they're not friends with Yahweh. 
Logic seems to fit. You don't murder Jesus, you're 
against Caesar. We want to murder Jesus. We subscribe 
to Caesar. Ergo, how could you possibly 
think that the living and the true God is on your side? It's kind of an interesting sort 
of thing going on in the passage. And again, I see Samson sort 
of imagery going on here. The accusation, you are not Caesar's 
friend, is hereby reversed. Their allegiance to Caesar demonstrated 
that they were not friends of the living and the true God. 
And then the crucifixion, the sentencing to crucifixion. Notice 
in verse 16. Then he, Pilate, delivered him, 
Jesus, to them to be crucified. Then they took Jesus and led 
him away. Judas, the Sanhedrin, Pontius 
Pilate. Exodus 23, 2, you shall not follow 
a crowd to do evil, nor shall you testify in a dispute, so 
as to turn aside after many to pervert justice. But even then, 
you could still do this without Moses. Roman law was good when 
applied. I think laws in most countries, 
I mean, I'm sure there's exceptions, and you probably have 10 of them. 
But for the most part, they're good. Don't murder people. Don't 
steal from people. Don't commit adultery with people's 
wives. Those are good things. Right? Very, very good. But Roman law, Pilate here is 
a gutless wonder. Pilate here is more concerned 
for his house. He's more concerned for his kids' 
college. He's more concerned for his summer home and for his 
reputation and for how Tiberius will view him and whether or 
not he keeps his job. So, in essence, we move, in terms 
of Pilate, from fear, verse 8, confusion, where you from, verse 
9, arrogance in verse 10, to capitulation here. I don't know 
what else to do. Jesus isn't a threat because 
after all, he's wholly harmless and undefiled. He's already told 
me that my kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were 
of this world, my servants would fight. So in Pilate's mind, Jesus 
isn't the threat in terms of his life and occupation and at 
least temporal happiness. The Sanhedrin, though? The multitudes, 
though? The ones crying out now, away 
with him, away with him, crucify him? For Pilate, at this point, 
the decision is easy. Well, probably not easy. I can't 
imagine he slept well that night. Remember, his wife had the dream, 
too. Have nothing to do with this just man. He tries to absolve 
himself by washing his hands in front of everybody. He knows 
this is wrong. And yet he goes right along with 
it. There ain't nothing new under 
the sun, brethren. The temptation in my heart is to look at our 
political leaders and say, what gutless wonders. Yeah, that's 
kind of part and parcel of political leader. They do what people want 
instead of what is right. Where Jesus' kingdom is governed 
by what? Truth, righteousness, justice. So let us never forget, then 
he delivered him to them to be crucified. Then they took Jesus 
and led him away. The responsible agents, Judas, 
the Sanhedrin, Pontius Pilate, the multitudes. Theologically, 
providentially, soteriologically, which is the doctrine of how 
God saves sinners, this is all from the Father. Isaiah 53.10, 
it pleased the Lord to bruise him. Acts 2.23, him being delivered 
by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have 
taken by lawless hands, have crucified and put to death. Romans 
8, 32, he who did not spare his own son but delivered him up 
for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us 
all things? Or 2 Corinthians 5, 21, he, God the Father, made 
him, God the Son, who knew no sin, to be sin for us that we 
might become the righteousness of God in him. This led Octavius 
Winslow to say, who delivered up Jesus to die? Not Judas for 
money, not Pilate for fear, not the Jews for envy, but the Father 
for love. He's not saying they didn't do 
it that way, but he's saying the second causes did their part. That's not the end of the story. 
God so loved the world, John tells us in 316, that he gave 
his only begotten son. And the giving of the only begotten 
son isn't simply him coming. But it's Him going to the cross. 
It's Him crucified. It's Him beaten. It's Him battered. 
It's Him broken. It's Him spat upon. It's Him 
mocked. It's Him with the crown of thorns 
embedded in His head. It's Him hoisted upon the cross. 
It's Him dying by way of asphyxiation. It's Him. That's the giving of 
the Father for sinners, not for good people. This wasn't a gift 
for well done, well played. God so loved the world that He 
gave His only begotten Son. When you think world in that 
passage, what do you think? A lot of bad theology says, well, 
it means everybody. No, it doesn't. A lot of bad 
theology might indicate, well, the world is so lovely, that's 
why God does what He does. No, I don't think that's it either. 
God so loved the world. The filthy, wretched, rebellious, 
sinful, vile world. Harlots and the publicans come. The multitudes of sinners come. The broken, the wretched. In 
our reading, or your reading next week, I'll be in Surrey 
on Sunday morning, but in the reading that follows what Mark 
read, we've got that woman which was a sinner. She comes into 
the house of Simon the Pharisee, Jesus is there, and she takes 
her hair, she takes her tears, and she washes his feet. What 
does the Pharisee do? If this man were a prophet, he'd 
know what manner of woman this is. What's the implication? He'd 
kick her away. That's the glory and the beauty 
and the majesty and the excellence of the Christian gospel. He came 
sinners to save. Why does Jesus do what Jesus 
does in this passage? It's for wretches. It's for sinners. It's for transgressors of the 
law of God. It's for those who have made a mess of their lives. 
It's for those who haven't complied, those who have been idolaters, 
those who have been blasphemers, those who are Sabbath breakers, 
those who are insubordinate, murderers, adulterers, thieves, 
liars, and covetous. Christ says himself, I didn't 
come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance. The fact 
that harlots and publicans enter into the kingdom of God while 
these religious leaders are clutching their pearls and scoffing at 
our Lord and then delivering them over to be crucified. That's 
the glory of the Christian message. Remember Luke 15, all the sinners 
and the tax collectors, they draw near to hear Jesus. Why? Because Jesus speaks the words 
of eternal life. Why wouldn't we draw near Him? 
But what happens when all the sinners and tax collectors draw 
near to Jesus to hear Him? How do the religious leaders 
respond? What do they do? They condemn Him. They despise 
him. This man, again, I see their 
fingers waving. I see the veins popped out. This 
man receives sinners and eats with them. It's just disgusting. The words polluted their holy 
mouths. This man receives sinners and 
eats with them. As I've said it on many an occasion, 
we're gonna end in just a moment so we can go enjoy the beautiful 
day in a Sabbatarian way. If I was the sinners and the 
tax collectors, and I was drawing near to hear Jesus, and I heard 
the religious leaders say, this man receives sinners and eats 
with them, you know what would happen to me? I'd wanna hear how he 
answers. I'd wanna know his response. 
I'd want to know if he says with them, no I don't, I hate sinners, 
I'm like you guys, I'm too polished, I'm too pure, I'm too holy, I 
want nothing to do with this riffraff. I don't know why they're 
drawing near to me. Well then I'd know. I'm not going 
to get any help from him, just like I don't get any help from 
the Pharisees. Wouldn't you? You draw near to hear what he 
has to say. They make this complaint that 
he receives sinners and eats with them. Don't you want to 
know? Is that valid? Is that right? Is that true? 
Because I'm a sinner and I want to be received. And I'd sure like to 
eat with him." How does Jesus respond? Not yes or no, but three 
beautiful parables. on how vigorously and how earnestly 
and how joyfully he does receive sinners and eats with that. He 
tells about a shepherd who loses 99 sheep or has 100 sheep and 
he loses one. What does he do? He leaves the 
99, he goes finds the one, puts the one on his shoulders and 
comes back and there's rejoicing. It's like a woman who has 10 
coins and she loses one of the coins. She doesn't just say, 
well, you know, that's the way it goes. She moves the furniture, 
she gets out the broom, she dusts, she sweeps, she finds the coin. 
And what happens? There's joy. Or like that man 
who had two sons and the one son said, father, give me my 
share of the inheritance. In other words, you're better 
off to me dead than alive, but give me my share of the loot 
right now. So the father gives it to him. What does the son 
do? Goes out and invests it, puts his dad in a good retirement 
home. No, the kid goes out and blows 
it. Prodigal living. We call him the prodigal son. 
So when he's at the bottom, and not in repentance, I don't think 
he's saved until the father has dealings with him. I don't think 
he's saved and then comes back to the father and gets the ring 
and gets the robe. I think it's the ring and the robe that represent 
the salvation of the father that's happening at this time of the 
son. So the son comes back, and what does it say? Well, he was 
a long way off. I love that. He was a long way 
off. The father runs to him. One of 
the most undignified stories that could be told, Jesus told. 
The fact that a son would do that to his father, the fact 
that a father would receive that son back, the fact that the father 
would run to that son, not with a stick to beat him, not with 
a gun to shoot him, but with love to surround him. That's what happens. So if I'm 
one of those sinners or tax collectors listening to how is he going 
to respond, this man receives sinners and eats with them, I'm 
going to be like, yeah, that's great. That's what I want. That's the Savior for me. He's 
not here to scold me. I mean, you know, in sanctification, 
the Spirit does convict us. That's a reality. But on my coming 
to acceptance with God, it's by grace through faith in His 
Son. That's why Jesus does what Jesus 
does in this passage. It is for us men and for our 
salvation. May the believer be encouraged, 
strengthened, built up, and helped as you appreciate afresh what 
the Savior went through on our behalf. And unbeliever, the only 
thing I can say is belief. Look and live. This man does 
receive sinners and he does eat with them. This man brings forgiveness 
of sins. He brings a righteousness wherein 
now we can enter in to the presence of God Almighty. Look to him 
and live. Let us pray. Our Father in heaven, 
we thank you for your word. We thank you for the glory of 
Christ as it's set forth so clearly in a passage like this. We thank 
you for what the Savior did on behalf of sinners, and we pray 
that this gospel would be preached throughout the world, that your 
Holy Spirit would bless it, that sinners would come to taste and 
see that you are good by grace through faith in our Lord Jesus 
Christ. And we pray this in his most 
blessed name, amen.