July 5, 2020 - Behold Who?

1 Then Pilate took Jesus and flogged him. 2 And the soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head and arrayed him in a purple robe. 3 They came up to him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and struck him with their hands. 4 Pilate went out again and said to them, “See, I am bringing him out to you that you may know that I find no guilt in him.” 5 So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, “Behold the man!” 6 When the chief priests and the officers saw him, they cried out, “Crucify him, crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and crucify him, for I find no guilt in him.” 7 The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die because he has made himself the Son of God.” 8 When Pilate heard this statement, he was even more afraid. 9 He entered his headquarters again and said to Jesus, “Where are you from?” But Jesus gave him no answer. 10 So Pilate said to him, “You will not speak to me? Do you not know that I have authority to release you and authority to crucify you?” 11 Jesus answered him, “You would have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above. Therefore he who delivered me over to you has the greater sin.” 12 From then on Pilate sought to release him, but the Jews cried out, “If you release this man, you are not Caesar’s friend. Everyone who makes himself a king opposes Caesar.” 13 So when Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The Stone Pavement, and in Aramaic Gabbatha. 14 Now it was the day of Preparation of the Passover. It was about the sixth hour. He said to the Jews, “Behold your King!” 15 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.” 16 So he delivered him over to them to be crucified. So they took Jesus,

Alright - I think we get the scene here...

Jesus is making His way through this SHAM of a trial...

And one of the reasons this whole thing IS a sham...

Is due to the background story between Pilate and the Jews...

And if you knew that background, you’d know that Pilate wasn’t fond of the Jews...

And the Jews weren’t fond of Pilate

Philo and Josephus tell us in their (extra-biblical) writings of the CONSTANT FRICTION between the 2...

Pilate governed in a way to IRRITATE the Jews...

And they did what THEY could to make it hard on him....

Accusing him of cruelty…and every sort of crime

So - needless to say - the 2 sides didn’t like each other...

BUT in THIS CASE - the Jewish leaders wanting to KILL Jesus - saw an opportunity here that Pilate could help them with…!

But Pilate wasn’t an idiot - He had an idea what was going on here...

In Matthew we read this...

Matthew 27:17–18 ESV

17 So when they had gathered, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you: Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?” 18 For he knew that it was out of envy that they had delivered him up.

So Pilate was on to the Jewish Leaders - in some capacity...

He knew they were NOT being sincere here....with Jesus

And the last thing that Pilate wanted to do was to be the Hand-Puppet of the Jews...

And just DO whatever they said...

So what happens?

WHAT I WANT to DO TODAY - is - focus in on 2 phrases that Pilate uses to describe Jesus in relation to the Jews...

And I want to PULL those phrases out - and EXAMINE them more closely...

…as they impact us today...

So let’s read back now - quickly thru to the 1st phrase...

John 19:1–5 ESV

It’s this last phrase HERE - that I want to focus in on...

“BEHOLD THE MAN!”

This is HOW Pilate announces Jesus entrance out to the crowd...

Behold the Man!

There are many people in this world who look at Jesus as SIMPLY a:

good teacher

good man

…with good intentions

And what we NEED to do is to understand…that

SLIDE: Behold the Man: Jesus As Only Man Should Not be Trusted

Behold the Man

Why is this the case?

Here’s why...

John 8:58 ESV

58 Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.”

HERE Jesus claims to be God.

What else?

John 10:30 ESV

30 I and the Father are one.”

Matthew 24:30 ESV

30 Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

See - If Jesus was JUST a MAN…AND MANY claim that He was JUST a good man...

ONLY a man...

THEN we shouldn’t trust Him at all!!

Why?

Because He had said multiple times that He was God!

That He and God were EQUAL!

So - If Jesus WERE just a man - then that means - He was a LUNATIC!!

*QUESTION:

Let’s say you find out that your kids teacher keeps telling the students that they can FLY...

Like jump off a 50 story building and fly around…?

And then the teacher sends a note home letting the parents know of this ability…and that the teacher wants permission to take all the students on a field trip to the top of the SEARS tower in Chicago, so he can jump off and show them...

Who would let your kid go on that field trip??

This idea that Jesus was MERELY a good man…a good teacher…is absurd.

If He is just a man - then He is INSANE…!

So that doesn’t work...

There are 2 options when it comes to Jesus!

He’s either:

a CRAZY man!

He is who He said He is… (God in the flesh)

There is no MIDDLE ground (yeah - he was a good dude)...

NOW - when Pilate brought Jesus out before the crowd the first time...

And said = Behold the man!

John 19:5 ESV

5 So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, “Behold the man!”

The UNBELIEVING JEWS in the crowd - they ALL believed that was an ACCURATE label for Jesus...

A MAN!!

• See in Jewish theology, the Messiah was going to be born AS OTHER MEN...

• The belief was that the Messiah would be born as other men...AND that he would NOT be sinless...

• Now WE hear that and we think - that's crazy...

• BUT, when we look at Scripture....we see this belief play itself out...

Luke 9:18–19 ESV

18 Now it happened that as he was praying alone, the disciples were with him. And he asked them, “Who do the crowds say that I am?” 19 And they answered, “John the Baptist. But others say, Elijah, and others, that one of the prophets of old has risen.”

Matthew 16:13–14 ESV

13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

• Do you see where their minds DEFAULT to?

• The CROWDS saw Jesus...

• they saw His miracles...

• they saw the works He performed...

• And so - on ONE HAND they KNEW that this guy "Jesus" was doing things that no NORMAL man could do!

• BUT...

• on the OTHER HAND they COULD NOT say - this is GOD IN THE FLESH...

• remember - they understood “God is ONE” differently than we do...

• and so what was the conclusion??

• Who did they say Jesus was?

• Well, it's not GOD in the flesh - it MUST be John the Baptist (back from the dead)...

• Or it's Elijah (back from the dead)

• Or Jeremiah...

• Or one of the prophets...(back from the dead)

• And so in SEEING the works of Jesus, the people were willing to believe that God had sent these mere mortals back to earth to DO these things...

• but they wouldn't say that this was - God Himself...walking among them...

• ...because their theology wouldn't LET them say that.

And so to the Jews in the crowd that day - THEY ALL heard Pilate say - Behold THE MAN...

And they would have agreed!

SEE - with this being the case, we should know that ANY person that came along - that ended up CLAIMING to be God - was going to be charged with - Blasphemy!

AND SO - it didn’t MATTER what miracles Jesus did…It didn’t EVEN MATTER that Jesus CLAIMED to BE THE MESSIAH

The moment He claimed to be equal with God -

IN THE JEWS MINDS - He took Himself out of consideration to be the Messiah!

But it seems in the text - that Pilate begins to SEE this differently than the Jews!!

Let’s continue...

John 19:6 ESV

6 When the chief priests and the officers saw him, they cried out, “Crucify him, crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and crucify him, for I find no guilt in him.”

The Jews WANTED Jesus DEAD!

A severe beating was not going to cut it!!

John 19:7 ESV

7 The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die because he has made himself the Son of God.”

Here it is!

100 times - out of - 100 times - Jesus would have been executed…due to this Law..

BECAUSE Jesus - BEING THE SON OF GOD - would always find Himself having to deal with this law.

BUT THIS charge here by the Jews - causes Pilate to STOP and RETHINK what’s going on here...

John 19:8–11 ESV

8 When Pilate heard this statement, he was even more afraid. 9 He entered his headquarters again and said to Jesus, “Where are you from?” But Jesus gave him no answer. 10 So Pilate said to him, “You will not speak to me? Do you not know that I have authority to release you and authority to crucify you?” 11 Jesus answered him, “You would have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above. Therefore he who delivered me over to you has the greater sin.”

So here we see Pilate - getting MORE AND MORE NERVOUS about what was going on...

There are ACTUALLY many different takes on - WHY Pilate got nervous when hearing the charge...

But that’s not what I wanted to focus on today...

What I want to focus on TODAY is - How Jesus GOES FROM being introduced before the people as THE MAN...

…To what Pilate will address Him as next...

Let’s continue...

John 19:12 ESV

12 From then on Pilate sought to release him, but the Jews cried out, “If you release this man, you are not Caesar’s friend. Everyone who makes himself a king opposes Caesar.”

Now - the word “Caesar” is a title…it means - Emperor.

Jesus was born under Augustus Caesar...

But carried out His ministry under Tiberius Caesar...

One of the charges against Jesus was that He sought to OVERTHROW Caesar…making HIMSELF a king...

And so the JEWISH leaders used that to say to Pilate- If you release Jesus - you’re NO FRIEND of Caesar...

So Pilate - he seemed to SEE through all the fakery...

All of the ILL-MOTIVES of the Jewish Leaders...

John 19:13–14 ESV

13 So when Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The Stone Pavement, and in Aramaic Gabbatha. 14 Now it was the day of Preparation of the Passover. It was about the sixth hour. He said to the Jews, “Behold your King!”

How did Pilate introduce Jesus the first time?

Behold the MAN...

NOW - it’s...

Behold your King!

NOW - there are a couple different reasons why Pilate could have said this… “behold you King!”

God could have been working on his heart...

The Ethiopian Orthodox Church actually canonized Pilate as a Martyr...

they say that Pilate ended up getting saved…who knows.

Pilate could have been MESSING with the Jews to get under their skin

He often governed that way

What I want us to focus on is the Phrase - “Behold YOUR King!”

Yes some people view Jesus as MERELY a Good Man...

SLIDE: Behold Your King: Jesus as “A” King Has Destructive Power

Behold Your King

Remember - If Jesus is JUST a MAN - then that means - He was a CRAZY MAN...

NOW - If He’s “A” King…meaning - just another King -

THEN that means - He’s STILL a CRAZY MAN - but now - WITH POWER…!

How has THAT turned out in history?

Adolf Hitler

Joseph Stalin

Vlad the Impaler

Heinrich Himmler

Ivan the Terrible

Mao Zedong (responsible for the deaths of 70 million)

But we don’t even have to look to RECENT history...

Even if we STAY in our CONTEXT today...

Do you remember what Jesus said in our text LAST WEEK?

John 18:37 ESV

37 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.”

Everyone who is of the TRUTH - listens to my voice...

What did we INFER from this?

That EVERYONE who is an UNBELIEVER - is of - ERROR.

Their lives are founded on - ERROR - a lie

The Jewish Leaders at this time - They were LEADING people on the basis of - ERROR

On a foundation of ERROR

And it LEAD people to an ETERNAL destruction!!

That’s why - JESUS as just “A” King - leads to eternal destruction!

He would have been a CRAZY MAN - with POWER!

And even for Pilate - Notice he didn’t say - “Behold OUR King!”

He didn’t view Jesus as HIS king!

He didn’t view Jesus as HAVING ANY power OVER HIM...

But it was - Behold - YOUR- King

And this points to the concept of - RELATIVISM...

“What’s good for you is good for you...

And what’s good for me can be good for me”

What’s TRUE for you is TRUE for you, and what’s TRUE for me can be TRUE for me”

When it comes to JESUS - Relativism is EVIL!

There is no Relativism when it comes to Jesus!

We either choose Jesus As LORD - or we choose Destruction

And so back to Pilate -

Jesus WAS Pilate’s KING!

The RULE of Christ breaks down all RACIAL, all Ethnic divides!

Galatians 3:28 ESV

28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

And [this] means - Behold YOUR King - doesn’t work.

But how does our text finish out today?

John 19:14–16 ESV

14 Now it was the day of Preparation of the Passover. It was about the sixth hour. He said to the Jews, “Behold your King!” 15 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.” 16 So he delivered him over to them to be crucified. So they took Jesus,

It’s interesting that what we see here is this:

The Jews actually commit the crime they claim Jesus committed and are killing Him for.

John 19:15 ESV

15 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.”

We have NO king but Caesar...

That was the true blasphemy.

When Jesus said He was the Son of God, that was true.

When they said, “We have no king but Caesar,” that was a lie.

They would be blasphemers to kill the Son of God. They knew who their king was.

Listen to...

Isaiah 33:22 ESV

22 For the Lord is our judge; the Lord is our lawgiver; the Lord is our king; he will save us.

The Jewish Leaders KNEW this text!

That’s repeated many places in the Old Testament, that’s just Isaiah 33:22.

They literally will blaspheme God to kill Christ.

SO - If:

“Behold the man” doesn’t work...

And “Behold your King” doesn’t work...

What does work?

Who SHOULD we behold?

Let’s stay in this gospel of John!

John 1:29 ESV

29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!

So where “Behold the man” leaves us with a CRAZY MAN

And where “Behold your king” leaves us with a CRAZY MAN WITH POWER...

SLIDE: Behold the Lamb of God: Jesus as Lamb of God Saves the World

Behold the Lamb of God

John the Baptist introduced Jesus to Israel…as - the Lamb of God who take away the sins of the world...

And it brings us full circle back to our text today...

What did our text say? In the same verse where Pilate introduces Jesus as “Behold your King”....we read this...

John 19:14 ESV

14 Now it was the day of Preparation of the Passover. It was about the sixth hour. He said to the Jews, “Behold your King!”

What’s referenced here?

It says it was the “day of Preparation of the Passover”...

NOW - the “Day of Preparation” does not refer to a day of PREPARING for the Passover...

It actually refers to “the preparations for the Sabbath...”

Holy Week:

Thursday – Passover proper. The lamb is killed, and Jesus and His disciples eat the Passover meal in the upper room.

Friday – the Day of Preparation. Jesus is tried and executed (although never convicted). The Jews continue their “Passover” celebrations thru that week - with offerings made during the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

We should remember this: Passover was the first day of the week-long Feast of Unleavened Bread.

Saturday – the weekly Sabbath.

There are probably different connections here to Jesus being tried and executed on the Day of Preparation...

But what we DO KNOW - is that Jesus is - THE LAMB of GOD...

WHICH MEANS - He is EITHER your SAVIOR....or you HAVE NO SAVIOR...

So - - WHAT you believe about Jesus will determine where you spend eternity!

Acts 4:12 ESV

12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

Jesus said...

John 14:6 ESV

6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

It’s JESUS - or BUST!!

There are NO NEGOTIATIONS when it comes to Jesus Christ!

But what did mankind do in our text today?

God - speaking through John the Baptist - Introduces Jesus to the world as - THE LAMB of GOD who takes away the sin of the world...

BUT...

Mankind takes Jesus - and by the time we’re done with Him...

we’ve domesticated Jesus to LOOK just like us!

Behold, the man!

From Behold the Lamb of God....

Behold, the man.

And this actually takes us back to our sermon from last week-

The Kingdom of Man

The Kingdom of God...

Where the Kingdom of Man is founded on - ERROR

SUMMARY:

Behold The Man

Behold Your King

Behold the Lamb of God

Let’s pray!

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