HoHum:
A wise man said: Nothing arouses ambition so much in the heart as the trumpet-clang of another’s fame.
WBTU:
A. Why would anyone want to kill Jesus of Nazareth?
1. Great teacher- “The Jews were amazed and asked, “How did this man get such learning without having studied?”” John 7:15, NIV.
2. He was above reproach in his morals. “Then Pilate announced to the chief priests and the crowd, “I find no basis for a charge against this man.”” Luke 23:4, NIV.
3. He was always helping the less fortunate. “The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.” Matthew 11:5, NIV.
4. Jesus was a great proponent for non violence. “But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” “But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,” Matthew 5:39, 44, NIV.
B. But Jesus of Nazareth had such strong opposition that he was crucified on a cross. Why and how did that happen? Why such strong and violent opposition?
C. Jesus Christ was not murdered by ruthless barbarians, he was put to death by people much like us. Our sin nailed him there. “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities” Isaiah 53:5, NIV.
D. One of the main players in the Passover Plan involved the religious leaders. They are the ones who conspired to have Jesus eliminated. Why? “For he (Pilate) knew it was out of envy that they had handed Jesus over to him.” Matthew 27:18, NIV.
E. The leaders were consumed with envy. That envy twisted their thinking, seared their consciences, and killed Christ. Not just them but the envy in every person did this.
Thesis: Let’s talk about envy and the Passover Plan concerning the religious leaders
For instances:
I. Let’s take a look at the men who were Jesus’ primary enemies. John 11
1. There were the Pharisees. This was the ultra conservative party of that day. Not just follow the Bible but also the tradition and customs that came down over the years. The Pharisees did not like Jesus because they thought he was too liberal. Jesus did not follow their traditions.
“So the Pharisees and teachers of the law asked Jesus, “Why don’t your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders instead of eating their food with ‘unclean’ hands?”” Mark 7:5, NIV. “And he said to them: “You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!” “You nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like that.”” Mark 7:9, 13
2. Chief priests were opposed to Jesus. They felt like Jesus was disrespectful of their position and authority since they were over the temple. Jesus went into the temple and drove out the money changers and those selling animals. “Jesus entered the temple courts, and, while he was teaching, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him. “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you this authority?”” Matthew 21:23
3. The Sadducees were opposed to Jesus. “Then the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin. John 11:47, NIV. The Sanhedrin was made up of some Pharisees and many Sadducees. The Sadducees were the ultra liberal party. This group had sold out to the Romans. They only held to the first 5 books of the OT. “(The Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, and that there are neither angels nor spirits, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all.)” Acts 23:8, NIV. The Sadducees considered Jesus too conservative. One time the Sadducees came to Jesus with a question and Jesus rebuked them with this. “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.” Matthew 22:29, NIV.
When Jesus became very popular among the people, they called this meeting together in John 11 to see what they could do to stop him. A group that would not come together in many things, now comes together to get rid of Jesus. Why? Envy. Jesus had just performed his most spectacular miracle, raising Lazarus 4 days after his death. “Therefore many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, put their faith in him.” John 11:45, NIV.
Notice their main concern: ““What are we accomplishing?” they asked. “Here is this man performing many miraculous signs. If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.”” John 11:47, 48
We don’t have envy as Christians. Oh really! We want to be the best, be first or at least be noticed and recognized for our position or accomplishments. Success means beating or outperforming everyone else. To be somebody we have to distance ourselves from those around us, we have to make the best grade, we have to make the most money, we have to have the smartest children, we have to live in the nicest house, we have to wear the biggest title. Envy is a natural byproduct of that worldly mindset. If we cannot outdo them then we resent others. This is a challenge to one’s self worth. Not doing as good as others then we are lesser than others. As Christians we are not except from envy
Jesus’ enemies were so eat up with envy that they devised plan to execute him.
The high priest, who should have been godly, instead, was the worst because of envy. He laid out the vision for this plan. “Then one of them, named Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, spoke up, “You know nothing at all! You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.”” John 11:49, 50, NIV.
John adds this comment: “He did not say this on his own, but as high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the Jewish nation, and not only for that nation but also for the scattered children of God, to bring them together and make them one.” John 11:51, 52, NIV.
“So from that day on they plotted to take his life.” John 11:53, NIV. 3 main obstacles here:
1. Jesus’ popularity with the people. The crowds loved him. “They looked for a way to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowd because the people held that he was a prophet.” Matthew 21:46, NIV.
2. Jesus availability to arrest. “Therefore Jesus no longer moved about publicly among the Jews. Instead he withdrew to a region near the desert, to a village called Ephraim, where he stayed with his disciples. When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, many went up from the country to Jerusalem for their ceremonial cleansing before the Passover. They kept looking for Jesus, and as they stood in the temple area they asked one another, “What do you think? Isn’t he coming to the Feast at all?” But the chief priests and Pharisees had given orders that if anyone found out where Jesus was, he should report it so that they might arrest him.” John 11:54-57, NIV. Talked about this in the morning. They needed to find Jesus without a crowd around him in order to arrest him. This is where Judas Iscariot comes in.
3. The resistance of Rome. The Jews could not execute anyone legally. Only the Romans could execute anyone in Palestine. Blaspheme was not a capital offense in the Roman courts. Now, leading a rebellion against Caesar, claiming to be a king without Roman approval, treason might work. “And they began to accuse him, saying, “We have found this man subverting our nation. He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Christ, a king.”” Luke 23:2, NIV. “From then on, Pilate tried to set Jesus free, but the Jews kept shouting, “If you let this man go, you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who claims to be a king opposes Caesar.”” John 19:12, NIV.
When the plan worked see how they treat Jesus: “They crucified two robbers with him, one on his right and one on his left. Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and saying, “So! You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, come down from the cross and save yourself!” In the same way the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked him among themselves. “He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself! Let this Christ, this King of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe.” Those crucified with him also heaped insults on him.” Mark 15:27-32. See what envy can do
“A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones.” Proverbs 14:30, NIV. Envy ruins our contentment, envy fosters indebtedness, envy clouds our judgment, envy destroys friendships. Envy dissolves romances and marriages, envy will shoot tension through any office, envy will nullify unity in a team, envy will ruin a church. Envy will ridicule another’s success, envy will rationalize hatred, envy motivates revenge.
So What?:
3 things we can do to overcome envy:
1. Recognize its wickedness. Envy was the primary sin that nailed Jesus to the cross. “Anger is cruel and fury overwhelming, but who can stand before jealousy?” Proverbs 27:4, NIV.
2. We need to change our mindset. “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world (squeezed into society’s mold- Phillips), but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Romans 12:2, NIV. “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.” 1 Corinthians 13:4, NIV.
3. Pray for those who fill us with jealousy and envy. When God’s answers our prayers and they are blessed, how can we be angry over them when God answers our prayers. There once was a preacher who was surrounded by great preachers, he prayed for their church buildings to be full of people and in the process his church was full too.
