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We left off last week in our study of John's Gospel with Jesus standing strong in front
of the high priest while Peter's falling before a servant girl.
We know from other Gospel accounts that Jesus is then examined hurriedly by the Sanhedrin,
that's the Jewish ruling council, convicted of blasphemy, and then now this morning rushed
to the Roman governor Pilate.
And we get in this encounter another study of contrasts.
Jesus and his kingdom up against the kingdom of this world.
And the question before us in this passage is, is he king?
I know many people who enjoy the show, Is It Cake?
If you haven't seen it before, contestants bake cakes to look like everyday objects, including
the Mona Lisa.
That's an everyday object, of course.
church.
And at the end, you have to look at them carefully and you have to see if you can decide which
one is really cake and which one is not.
Before, finally, they cut into it, that's what he's doing here, to find out what it's made
of.
Is it cake?
So this passage, is he king?
It may challenge some of our ideas of what we think kings and kingdoms look like, of power
and control.
Look carefully at this interaction and see if you can spot the true king.
We pick up the reading of God's holy word at verse 28 of John 18 at what's now nearing
six o'clock Friday morning.
Then they led Jesus from the house of Caiaphas to the governor's headquarters.
It was early morning.
They themselves did not enter the governor's headquarters so that they would not be defiled
but could eat the Passover.
So Pilate went outside to them and said, what accusation do you bring against this man?
And they answered him, if this man were not doing evil, we would not have delivered him
over to you.
Pilate said to them, take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.
The Jews said to him, it's not lawful for us to put anyone to death.
This was to fulfill the word that Jesus had spoken to show by what kind of death he was
going to die.
So Pilate entered his headquarters again and called Jesus and said to him, are you the king
of the Jews?
Jesus answered, do you say this of your own accord or did others say it to you about me?
And Pilate answered, am I a Jew?
Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered you over 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 have been fighting that I might not be
delivered over to the Jews.
But my kingdom is not from the world.
Then Pilate said to him, so you are a king.
Jesus answered, you say that I am a king.
For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world to bear witness to
the truth.
Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.
Pilate said to him, what is truth?
After he had said this, he went back outside to the Jews and told them, I find no guilt in
him.
But you have a custom that I should release one man for you at the Passover.
So do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?
Jesus, they cried out again, not this man, but Barabbas.
Now Barabbas was a robber.
Pray with me.
God, would it be that in this room today every knee would bow before the true king?
That every heart here would delight in the king?
By your spirit, would you work in us to that end?
Because we bow to lots of other kings and kingdoms.
And we need your help.
And we thank you for your word.
In Jesus' name.
Amen.
As the sun rises here in Jerusalem on this Friday morning, the Jewish leaders find themselves
in a complicated position.
They are in a hurry to finish Jesus off.
Passover is ramping up.
Tomorrow is the Sabbath.
And the religious leaders, they're worried about how many people are starting to flock
to Jesus.
They might lose what little freedom and control Rome allows them to have if the people get
too stirred up.
So they want Jesus dead and his followers snuffed out once and for all.
They want to deal with this guy.
And for that, they need the help of Roman power.
See, Rome gave the Jews some freedom.
They allowed them to handle a lot of their internal issues on their own.
Even the occasional stoning or two for things that got really bad.
But only Rome could crucify.
And isn't that exactly what would take care of Jesus and his followers?
His whole movement at the same time it would be taken care of.
The so-called Messiah would be dead and with two extra nails in his coffin.
Anyone crucified is cursed, right?
So no one would follow him anymore.
And secondly, this upstart pretender to the throne, so far from liberating Jews from Rome,
will be defeated by the power of Gentile Rome.
Can you imagine?
Clearly no Messiah to follow here, they think.
This will do it.
So, the Jewish leaders take Jesus to Pilate.
Only they can't go inside the seat of Roman power, can they?
Because they don't want to be ceremonially unclean from a Gentile house
and not be able to eat the Passover feast that they're in the middle of partying about, right?
Verse 28.
Isn't that ironic?
They're so careful with their religious ritual,
while at the same time so careless with the heart of their religion right there in front of them.
They're outside the house to stay clean,
while the one who would make them clean is inside.
They want to celebrate Passover.
It's a feast about deliverance by Yahweh and into relationship with Yahweh,
and they want to celebrate it without Yahweh.
The I am himself in the flesh.
See, religious people sometimes dispense with Jesus
so that we can relate to God on our own terms,
our own ways.
The Jewish leaders feel well on their way to God already.
So this Jesus saying,
He is the way,
that must be a distraction.
I'm very familiar personally with this way of relating to God.
Church attendance,
checking off Bible readings day by day,
coloring within the lines in my life.
To be honest,
it sometimes seems easier to control those things
than to have Jesus mess with the darkness in my heart.
Even if he promises he's going to clean it.
Just keep going and talk about Jesus some,
you know, I mean,
Christianity equals drop by church sometimes
and tip your cap to God before some meals,
but don't get too close to him, you know.
It might be uncomfortable.
He might disrupt things.
And we see here that religious ritual does not save,
but it can blind us from true spirituality.
We might even miss Jesus.
Confused religious people stuck outside.
But Pilate comes out to them.
What's the charge against Jesus?
He wants to know.
Well, their only established charge was blasphemy,
and they knew Pilate wouldn't care about that,
so they skirted the truth.
Hey, listen, don't worry about the charge.
Trust us.
This guy's trouble.
He'll create problems for you, Pilate.
If you don't take care of him, just do it.
Twisting the truth to get what they want, right?
They thought Pilate would go for it.
Pilate won't buy it.
Deal with him yourselves.
Take him back.
But that's a problem for the Jews, isn't it?
Because what do they want with Jesus?
They want Jesus executed, crucified, cursed.
They'll work the situation to get what they want
from this representative of power here.
Problem for them is they have significantly misunderstood,
underestimated Jesus.
In fact, just notice the dynamic going on here.
While the Jewish leaders and the Roman power broker,
while they argue about who's got the power,
who will call the shots about Jesus' death,
their back and forth,
who is actually in control?
Look at this.
Verse 32.
All this back and forth between the Romans and the Jews,
this was to fulfill the word Jesus had spoken.
To fulfill what Jesus said about how he would die.
Do you see this back and forth?
This just a manifestation of what a kangaroo court this is?
I mean, not only are they breaking all sorts of rules,
but the accused seems to be the judge.
He's the one in control.
So the Jews are convinced that crucifixion
is the way to stomp down the Jesus for Messiah movement
once and for all,
to remove Jesus from the hearts of his followers.
Jesus is convinced crucifixion
is the way he will be enthroned
in the hearts of his followers.
As lifted up means hung on a cross.
He draws, he says, all people to himself.
He's told us he will buy that,
give life to everyone who believes in him.
Do you see that as a very, very different kind of king?
Isn't it?
Is a king though?
Dear friends, I want to say this to you before we move on.
That you can trust.
That you can trust to be in control
in the worst times.
This seems like his low point.
And he is in control.
He is in control of whatever cross you're bearing right now.
Whatever uncertainty you're facing this week,
he is in control no matter what it looks like from your seat.
Don't be confused.
He's got you.
Well, Jesus is going to confuse Pilate too.
Pilate also misunderstood Jesus
because he knew about power
and we know a lot about Pilate from history.
He was practical.
He was pragmatic.
Pilate, whatever needed to be done to stay in power,
to keep the peace,
keep the Jews just happy enough not to rebel
and just humbled enough
that they wouldn't forget who was really in charge.
Pilate decides to ask Jesus himself,
are you the king of the Jews?
Apparently that's the basic idea
he took away from the crowd outside.
Well, that is a hard question to answer without context.
If by king, Pilate means a king
who will lead a Jewish uprising,
rebellion against Rome,
then no, he's not.
But if by king,
Pilate means the promised Jewish Messiah,
anointed one who will rescue his people,
then yes.
Pilate means.
So Jesus seeks to clarify
which one Pilate means.
And Pilate's very clear.
He knows which one he's talking about.
He misses, by the way,
that Jesus doesn't threaten local Pilate,
but does rival the power claimed by Caesar
as divine Lord.
If Jesus is Lord,
that's the problem for Rome.
But Pilate responds,
I don't care about your little
internal Jewish religious squabbles.
I want to know if you'll cause me problems.
If you're gonna mess with my life,
if you're gonna threaten my power,
that's all I'm checking out here, Jesus.
For many who are irreligious,
I think that's their issue with Jesus.
One such friend said to me not long ago,
if Jesus is king,
it changes everything about my life.
He can ask anything of me.
It's easier to dismiss him as an imposter,
to live without God,
than to have him boss me around.
That's honest.
Maybe you feel more or less that way.
You may not be wrong about what it means
for changing your life if Jesus is king,
but is there any chance
that it would be changed for the better?
Is there any chance
he would be a better king
than you would or I would?
Maybe a chance he'd be more than a boss.
He will be different.
That's for sure.
Keep listening to him
as he talks about his kingdom,
his rule and reign.
Listen to what his kingdom is like.
Verse 36.
Jesus says,
my kingdom is not of this world.
If my kingdom were of this world,
my servants would have been fighting
that I might not be delivered over to the Jews,
but my kingdom is not.
From the world.
This, y'all,
is really the crux of the contrast here.
Jesus is highlighting with very unusual
and intentional language,
my kingdom.
The particular rule that I exercise
is different from what you're used to.
That's what he's saying.
In fact,
my kingship is unlike anything else
in this world.
You're totally unfamiliar
with what I'm talking about, Pilate.
See, it's not of this world, is it?
That means it didn't start within this world.
Its origins are different.
Where'd the power come from?
He's talking about a divine source of power
outside this world.
Just think about that for a minute.
That's gonna change things, isn't it?
If you don't have to manipulate
and curry favor and campaign
to get power from other people,
if you've got another source,
that changes things.
If you can lead from below,
like washing people's feet,
and even if you're misunderstood,
it's okay.
It means the values of Jesus' kingdom
are different.
The goals are different.
But the realm over which he rules
is different.
He's looking to amass not land,
but lives.
He's wanting to gather not soldiers,
but souls.
He gives us one specific example
of what's unique about this.
Unlike the kingdoms of this world,
Jesus and his followers
don't have to fight, do they?
For control.
They don't have to accumulate
the most money,
collect the most votes,
win the most arguments.
It's not what it's about
in his kingdom.
I'll just tell you,
side note,
this is why we as a church
don't support
one particular political party.
Okay?
I mean, we like parties here, right?
Especially the kind
with cake and ice cream.
I love parties like that.
But this,
Jesus' kingdom
is not even third party.
It is above all parties.
And that's really important
because it means
that he challenges,
in this case,
for us,
Republicans and Democrats.
He challenges us
to examine our goals,
our methods,
inviting conservatives
and liberals
to find hope
and strength
in one place
in the power
of a God
who's been at work
in this world
long before
the American experiment
even began
and who's going
to continue reigning
long after
the last president
of the United States.
He says,
rejoice!
The Lord is king!
Right?
His kingdom
shall not fail.
He rules
over earth
and heaven,
over death
and hell,
over all nations,
over you,
over me.
He's the king.
There's one king.
So maybe we start
asking ourselves,
okay, I got it.
Jesus is,
he's otherworldly
and maybe if he is
so otherworldly,
is he like one
of those religious gurus,
one of those
philosophical thinkers
who just wants
for his followers
to escape this world,
to ignore the earth,
to avoid the people
and the communities
around them?
Is that what Jesus
is all about?
Well, no.
Again,
Jesus' kingdom
is quite different.
Pilate,
for his part,
is just glad
Jesus finally admitted
to being a king,
right?
Finally,
we're getting somewhere.
So you are a king!
Jesus said,
this response
is a way of saying,
yes,
let me explain.
You say that I am a king.
For this purpose
I was born
and for this purpose
I have come into the world
to bear witness
to the truth.
Everyone who is of the truth
listens to
my voice.
voice.
The king
from another world
has come into
this world,
right?
In fact,
he sends his followers
into this world too.
Remember,
he just prayed about that
in John 17.
While his kingdom
didn't start
from within this world,
it also does not
stay away
from this world.
We are told
to pray
for his kingdom
to come
on earth
as it is in heaven.
We are to put on
the armor of God
not for physical warfare,
right?
Read the armor.
What it's about
is for spiritual warfare,
for prayer,
for salvation being spread,
for truth being proclaimed.
Isn't that what Jesus
says here it's about?
Let me tell you
why I was born,
why I came into this world
to which I do not belong,
to bear witness
to the truth,
not to twist it
to my own comfort,
power,
pleasure?
No.
To reveal
the true king,
true power,
the true God.
Isn't that what John
has been telling us
all along
that Jesus has come to do?
To show us
in the flesh,
in the body of man,
what it looks like
for the true God
to live.
He's showing us
God in the flesh.
So now we know
what the true king
is really like.
So listen,
part of being
kingdom people,
if you're called
to be one of Jesus' people
and to be about
his kingdom,
part of that
is being people
of truth
everywhere,
right?
Opposing lies,
defending truth,
fighting distortion.
It matters
wherever you do it.
I love how theologian
Albert Walters
says it.
In the name of Christ,
distortion must be
opposed everywhere,
in the kitchen
and the bedroom,
in city councils
and corporate boardrooms,
on the stage
and on the air,
in the classroom
and in the workshop,
by the way,
in the leader you dislike
and in the party you love.
Everywhere,
creation calls
for the honoring
of God's standards.
Everywhere,
humanity's sinfulness
disrupts and deforms.
Everywhere,
Christ's victory
is pregnant
with the defeat of sin
and the recovery
of creation.
Where do you get to
declare in word
and deed
Christ's victory,
his truth?
Where has he sent you
to be about his truth?
What is truth?
I don't know
if Pilate is
giving up,
maybe,
or if he's
personally
really intrigued
by Jesus'
unique description
of his kingdom
and this personal
invitation
he just received.
Everyone
who's of the truth
listens to my voice.
What's he inviting
Pilate to do?
He's sitting right there
staring at him.
Pilate,
listen.
Listen.
You can know
the truth himself.
That's the irony.
Pilate's staring him
in the face,
the one who has said,
I am the truth.
And Pilate's
wondering what truth is.
But he doesn't even
consider an answer
from Jesus.
He asks this question
and instead
he just walks
back outside
with the Jewish crowds
now gathering
around his house.
Verse 38.
After he said this
he went back
outside to the Jews
and told them
I find
no guilt
in him.
He's finished
with his trial,
his questioning.
He's understood
enough to know
that Jesus
is not a threat
to him.
And he's got
an idea now,
right?
Passover.
The celebration
of freedom.
The release
of one Jew.
I see,
Pilate sees it
all coming together.
But you have
a custom
that I should
release one man
for you
at the Passover.
So do you
want me
to release
to you
the king
of the Jews?
They cried
out again,
not this man
but Barabbas.
Now Barabbas
was a robber.
A robber.
An insurrectionist.
A rioter.
Mark tells us
in his gospel
that Barabbas
had actually
committed murder
as a part
of the insurrection
so you can
understand why
some translators
translate this
word terrorist.
This is a bad
dude.
I think that
Pilate really
believes they're
going to pick
Jesus to be
released.
He's their king
after all.
He reminds them,
right?
He's trying to
help them out
here.
Pilate wanted
this innocent
man off his
hands and off
his conscience.
But remember
that even
religious people
at times
dispense with
Jesus so we
can relate to
God our own
way.
We do that.
Religiously
sometimes.
Or in this
case,
violently.
the choice of
Barabbas is
pretty clearly
not one for
truth and
godliness,
is it?
They're not
picking their
new chief
priest.
He was a
robber.
Choosing
Barabbas over
Jesus is a
choice for
power,
violence,
outrage,
rather than
suffering,
humility,
and sacrifice.
The people's
choice.
The crowds
have started
to gather.
What choice
are they going
to make?
Which one
is the real
king?
Not
Jesus,
but
Barabbas.
Now it
shouldn't
happen that
way with
God's
people,
right?
We should
know better.
We just
learned that
his kingdom
doesn't find
hope and
political power
and might
and fighting.
We sing
not with
swords loud
clashing or
roll of
stirring drums
but deeds
of love and
mercy,
the heavenly
kingdom.
comes.
But we
have this
tendency to
forget,
don't we?
Like Peter
did just a
few hours ago
when he
pulled his
sword out
in the
garden.
Like so
many who
fought bloody
crusades under
the banner
of the
cross.
Listen,
the teachings
of Islam
make sense
with protracted
religious
wars.
of the
teachings of
King
Jesus
do not.
And it's
as though
Jesus says
here so
powerfully,
if you want
to know
what my
kingdom is
like,
look how
my followers
act.
it will be
the proof
that my
kingdom is
not of
this world.
Can we
be honest
with ourselves
this morning?
What do we
tend to think
will advance
Jesus'
kingdom
most effectively?
Strength
or weakness?
Promotion
of self
or protection
of others?
Truth
or expediency?
See?
we love
power,
don't we?
I love
winning.
Don't you?
Isn't it
tempting to
think might
makes right?
It just
feels right.
right.
In
contrast to
that line
of thinking
Dietrich
Bonhoeffer,
pastor in
Germany last
century,
said,
Christendom
adjusts itself
far too
easily to
the worship
of power.
Christians
should give
more offense,
shock the
world far
more than
they are
doing now.
Christians
should take
a stronger
stand in
favor of
the weak
rather than
considering
first the
possible right
of the
strong.
That's a
good challenge.
where do we
fall prey to
the ease of
aligning with
power?
Where do we
think God's
kingdom will
advance if we
just back the
right horse,
right?
The one with
the physical
strength, the
worldly
resources to
rival Rome,
we're going to
get them with
the right guy?
Where do we
try to advance
the cause of
Christ with
the weapons of
this world?
Do you
remember when
God's people
wanted a king
the first
time?
What was
so important
to them?
What were
like things
at the top
of their
list?
They wanted
a guy who
looked the
part, didn't
they?
And Saul
was handsome
and he was
a head taller
than the rest
of them.
They wanted
a guy who
would stand
tough against
the Philistines
and Saul
was a mighty
warrior.
Until he
ended up
cowering
before
Goliath,
passing
his kingly
armor to
a much
smaller,
less
experienced
young man,
David,
whose only
qualification
was that he
trusted God.
God saw
his heart.
David's
performance
was far
from perfect.
but while
man looked
at the
outward
appearance,
God
looked at
the heart
and saw
a king
who would
in battle
and even
in repentance
lead
God's
people
after God.
And here
they have
another
such king.
He's so
different,
isn't he?
It's almost
hard to
recognize.
Could that
be the
king?
He's not
desperate
for power
and he's
not afraid
of those
wielding it
either.
He's not
promoting
himself but
he keeps
promoting
others.
He's not
concerned
primarily with
outward
appearance but
he is very
concerned with
the heart.
Could this
be the real
king?
If we cut
into him,
if we cut
him open,
what's he
made of?
what we
find is a
heart not
for self
but for
God and
his people.
Probably the
most unusual
thing about
this king
Jesus,
he is not
here first
and foremost
to boss you
around.
If that's
what you've
heard,
it's not the
Jesus you
read about
here.
Nor is he
here to
catch you
letting him
down and
abandoning your
post.
Nor is he
here to
check your
resume to
see if
you're worth
keeping
around.
It's what
the kings
of this
world do.
They demand
that their
subjects give
their lives
to protect
their king.
This king
gives his
life to
protect his
subjects.
He's going
to the
cross in
place of
Barabbas.
In place
of all
God's
people.
In place
of you.
In place
of me.
That's the
choice that
this king
makes.
We watch
him make
that choice.
He's got
two kinds
of kings
he could be.
There's two
kinds of
kingdoms he
could rule
over.
There's two
ways to
power for
him.
And the
choice that
king Jesus
makes is
not to
hold on
tightly to
power and
glory while
you might
slip away
out of his
hand.
No.
He makes
the choice
to let go
of power
and glory
to come
and grasp
tightly
onto you
and never
let you
go.
That's your
king.
Even as
the crowds
shout
for the
release of
Barabbas
and they
prepare to
celebrate
the Passover
feast
they shout
crucify him
for Jesus
and the
Passover lamb
prepares for
the slaughter
for their
very sins.
God
I want to
ask you
this morning
is he
your
king?
He only
becomes your
king.
He only
climbs onto
the throne
of your
heart
by climbing
onto the
cross
in your
place.
God
this night
he was
betrayed
he took
bread
he broke
it
and gave
it to
his
followers
as I
ministering
in his
name
give this
bread to
you
he said
take and
eat
this is
my body
given
for you
in your
place
do this
in remembrance
of me
and in the
same way
after supper
he took
the cup
and said
this cup
is the
new
covenant
in my
blood
shed
for many
for the
forgiveness
of sins
drink
from it
all of
you
for as
often
as you
eat
this
bread
and
drink
this
cup
you
proclaim
the
Lord's
death
until
he
comes
you
say
he's
my
king
if
Jesus
is
your
king
come
run
back
under
his
protection
again
today
he's
the
kind
of
king
who
gives
his
life
for
you
so
you
can
trust
him
for
whatever
you're
facing
today
come
taste
that
see
that
he's
good
but
maybe
you're
not
willing
today
to
bow
the
knee
to
king
Jesus
maybe
you're
holding
on to
something
that
the
king
says
is
sin
but
you
want
it
anyway
and
you
don't
want
to
let
go
maybe
you
have
thought
you
like
the
idea
of
Jesus
but
what
you've
seen
from
his
followers
is
so
distasteful
to
you
that
you
have
decided
you
no
longer
want
to
be
associated
with
him
at
all
if
that's
the
case
for
you
don't
come
to
these
elements
this
morning
and
take
bread
and
wine
but
we
invite
you
to
come
to
Jesus
listen
to
what's
so
wonderful
about
Jesus
as
king
that
even
when
his
followers
get it
confused
when
they
forget
what
his
kingdom
is
really
about
they
come
running
back
to
him
he's
the
only
one
who
gets
it
right
even
and
especially
in those
moments
where we
blow it
we run
to
him
that's
all of
us
who've
forgotten
who the
real king
is
let's
run
back
to
him
together
now
I
invite
you
whether
you
come
to
this
table
this
morning
or
not
to
come
to
the
true
king
whose
reign
is
marked
by
his
giving
his
life
for
you
rather
than
demanding
that
you
give
your
life
for
him
let's
pray
and
we'll
celebrate
him
together
Jesus
what
a
different
kind
of
king
you
are
and
we're
so
grateful
might
we
revel
in
your
love
rejoice
in
your
truth
find
our
joy
in
your
promised
hope
thank
you
for
being
our
king
and
thank
you
for
giving
your
life
use
these
elements
to
remind
us
we
can
trust
you
today
and
every
day
we
ask
in
your
name
amen
for
more
information
visit
us
online
at
southwood.org