Prepare To Die

We see in this passage, that to some people…

1. Jesus had turned into a real problem.

In fact, it was more than just an ordinary, run-of-the-mill problem.

Jesus had become a moral problem.

Because He had raised Lazarus from the dead, people could not remain neutral.

They were forced to make a choice.

To us, it seems like no choice at all.

It seems so easy to us.

He raises Lazarus from the dead and what choice is there?

But…

It is apparent that hearts were hardened.

There were some that actually saw the miracles and refuse to repent.

Isn’t it amazing that humanity can be so obstinate and stubborn, that it will persist in unbelief in the face of overwhelming evidence?

There are people that choose to oppose!

What is interesting to note here is that those that choose to oppose are not atheists and pagans.

They were very religious people.

And whether they were conservative or liberal when it came to their theology, that was set aside, because they all were mad.

People were believing in Jesus.

This had to stop!

People were convinced that Jesus was the Messiah, and, as a result, committed themselves to following Him.

So, there is a panic in the voices of the Jewish leadership.

They have been unable to keep up with Jesus.

He is outpacing them and the whole thing is getting out of hand.

Everyone is going to believe in Him, and not them.

This was a tragedy in their view.

For, it is their belief, that Jesus is going to lead a political uprising, and then the wrath of Rome will come to destroy the nation and the temple.

And, then, they are out.

They need help and so…

2. A solution is presented.

The solution comes from the high priest, Caiaphas.

Now Caiaphas was not chosen to be the high priest because of his positive moral qualities.

No, the job went to the highest bidder, because it was the Romans that determined who got the position, not the Jewish people.

In fact, Caiaphas must have been a man of considerable financial resource because he held the position for eighteen years.

And he obviously doesn’t care what his fellow priests thinks of him, because his words are filled with arrogance.

He calls them fools!

He says that they know nothing.

And because he desires to protect the threatened position of the privileged class, he says…

“…it is better for you that one man should die for the people, not that the whole nation should perish."

Interestingly, Caiaphas thought he had an original idea!

It was, “Eliminate Him!”

“Wipe Him out!”

“Waste Him!”

His sheer cynical approach was to kill Jesus so that people might be saved.

But do you know what God does?

God takes those evil intentions and twists them to do exactly what He intended.

So Caiaphas’ suggestion is much deeper and more significant than he realizes.

For Caiaphas clearly does not understand what he is saying.

He thinks either the nation dies or Jesus dies.

But what is true, though, is if Jesus dies, the nation lives.

Jesus would die so that they could live.

The gospel writer, John, clues us in on what is going on.

He tells us that Caiaphas was speaking through the office of the High Priest.