INTRODUCTION
• SLIDE #1
• We are quickly closing in on Easter, and as we prepare for Resurrection Sunday, we have been examining why the events leading up to the resurrection of Jesus matter.
• The fact that Jesus was born of a virgin, that He was in Bethlehem, that He is was from the line of David, these details are vital in our quest for following the Messiah.
• Last week, Jerry took you through a journey through the Old Testament to as we examined the important details of the Triumphal Entry of Jesus.
• Today we will dive back into the book of Isaiah as we examine why the trial of Jesus mattered.
• When the Jewish leaders were unhappy with Jesus, why didn’t they just hire someone to kill Him, that way they could claim they had no part in His death.
• One cannot really say it was because they were against murder, on several occasions they sought a way to do just that. Those leaders had no conscience when it came to protecting their turf, and Jesus was cutting into their territory.
• I love the book of Isaiah because of the time frame of the writing of the book, it was over 700 years from the time Isaiah wrote the book until the events of Jesus’ life unfolded.
• We will not have to do a lot of page turning today, we will mainly be in the book of Isaiah as we examine why the Trial of Jesus matters.
• Let’s turn to Isaiah 53, we will begin in verse 3!
• SLIDE #2
• Isaiah 53:3 (HCSB) — He was despised and rejected by men, a man of suffering who knew what sickness was. He was like someone people turned away from; He was despised, and we didn’t value Him.
• SLIDE #3
SERMON
The trial matters because…
I. The trial represented our rejection of Jesus.
• When we think of what happened to Jesus, it is easy to think about how horrible it was for those loser Jews to do what they did to Him.
• One cannot become indignant when they think about the injustice that was heaped upon Jesus.
• I think a great number of people would think that in no way did Jesus deserve what He received from His own people.
• I mean, for the most part, the Romans did not want to have anything to do with crucifying Jesus.
• When Jesus was brought before the Roman authorities, they were not eager to do anything with Him.
• SLIDE #4
• Luke 23:4 (HCSB) Pilate then told the chief priests and the crowds, “I find no grounds for charging this man.”
• Pilate did not want to get involved in what he perceived as a religious matter.
• So Pilate find a way out; he found out that Jesus was a Galilean.
• SLIDE #5
• Luke 23:6–8 (HCSB) — 6 When Pilate heard this, he asked if the man was a Galilean. 7 Finding that He was under Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent Him to Herod, who was also in Jerusalem during those days. 8 Herod was very glad to see Jesus; for a long time he had wanted to see Him because he had heard about Him and was hoping to see some miracle performed by Him.
• Herod was glad to see Jesus, not so he could crucify Him, but rather, he wanted to see Jesus perform a miracle.
• After mistreating Jesus, Herod sent Jesus back to Pilate.
• People progressed from failure to desire Jesus to despising Him and rejecting Him, refusing to even look at Him.
• Jesus was the object of rejection by the Jewish leaders, those who listened to them as well as the Roman officials who finally put Him to death.
• The trials before Jewish authorities, the religious trials, showed the degree to which the Jewish leaders hated Him because they carelessly disregarded many of their own laws.
• There were several illegalities involved in these trials from the perspective of Jewish law: (1) No trial was to be held during feast time.
• (2) Each member of the court was to vote individually to convict or acquit, but Jesus was convicted by acclamation.
• (3) If the death penalty was given, a night must pass before the sentence was carried out; however, only a few hours passed before Jesus was placed on the Cross.
• (4) The Jews had no authority to execute anyone.
• (5) No trial was to be held at night, but this trial was held before dawn.
• (6) The accused was to be given counsel or representation, but Jesus had none.
• (7) The accused was not to be asked self-incriminating questions, but Jesus was asked if He was the Christ.
• Now, with all that said, are we any different today?
• I mean we do not literally put Jesus on the cross, or do we?
• People despise and reject Jesus yet today. For some, the name of Jesus is a name not to be uttered.
• SLIDE #6
• Hebrews 6:4–6 (HCSB) — For it is impossible to renew to repentance those who were once enlightened, who tasted the heavenly gift, became companions with the Holy Spirit, tasted God’s good word and the powers of the coming age, and who have fallen away, because, to their own harm, they are recrucifying the Son of God and holding Him up to contempt.
• Interesting thought.
• Next let us turn to verse 4-6.
• SLIDE #7
• Isaiah 53:4–6 (HCSB) Yet He Himself bore our sicknesses, and He carried our pains; but we in turn regarded Him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted. 5 But He was pierced because of our transgressions, crushed because of our iniquities; punishment for our peace was on Him, and we are healed by His wounds. 6 We all went astray like sheep; we all have turned to our own way; and the Lord has punished Him for the iniquity of us all.
• SLIDE #8
The trial matters because…
II. The trial shows how Jesus took the fall for our sin.
• Why did Jesus have to die?
• The simple answer is that God created mankind.
• God created us because He wanted to have fellowship with us, He wanted to love us, which He does, and He wants us to love Him.
• In order to have true love, free will must exist. So when God created us, He created us with a free will, a will to love or a will to hate Him.
• Once man chose the path of sin, God, being holy (without sin), could not be in fellowship with sinful people, so there needed to be a way to satisfy God’s justice, payment for sin, and God’s mercy, forgiveness of sin.
• So God sent His Son to die on the cross for you so that your fellowship with God can be restored and you can enjoy eternal life in God’s presence!
• People today wonder why Jesus was the one who had to die for this to happen, it was because sin is so abhorrent to God, that His holiness required the most perfect of sacrifices to atone for sin.
• SLIDE #9
• Hebrews 10:4 (HCSB) For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.
• The heart of the song provides a critical turn as the reason for the suffering of God’s faithful servant comes to light, as does the tragic irony of his rejection by man.
• The striking feature of these verses is the juxtaposition of third person pronouns (he/his/him) and first person plural pronouns (we/our/us). Briley, T. R. (2000–). Isaiah (p. 213). Joplin, MO: College Press Pub.
• 5 But He was pierced because of our transgressions, crushed because of our iniquities; punishment for our peace was on Him, and we are healed by His wounds. 6 We all went astray like sheep; we all have turned to our own way; and the Lord has punished Him for the iniquity of us all.
• This verse gets a bit into the crucifixion which we will cover next week in the same passage, but if not for the trial, the crucifixion would not have happened!
• The trial showed us that Jesus was innocent, and Isaiah told us All that happened to Him was because HE took our place, He was the ultimate sacrifice for sin!
• We can PRAISE GOD BECAUSE THROUGH THE BLOOD OF JESUS, WE CAN ALL BE SAVED!
• WE DID THE CRIME, HE DID THE TIME!
• Most religions require you to earn something, in Christ, it is FINISHED!
• Verse 6 says it all!
• SLIDE #10
• 6 We all went astray like sheep; we all have turned to our own way; and the Lord has punished Him for the iniquity of us all.
• Let’s turn to verse 7 for a final thought!
• SLIDE #11
• Isaiah 53:7 (HCSB) He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth. Like a lamb led to the slaughter and like a sheep silent before her shearers, He did not open His mouth.
• SLIDE #12
The trial matters because…
III. The trial reveals the depth of God’s love for you.
• Verse 7 is important; how many times have you seen a guilty person proclaim their innocence from the rooftops?
• Pretty much everyone is innocent aren’t they? I know folks are hooked on podcasts that talk about certain cases, one side proclaims the innocence of the incarcerated party another podcast will tell you why they are guilty!
• Now, imagine you are on trial and you KNOW you are innocent, what would you do?
• I would go down kicking and screaming, I would not go down without a fight if it looked like I was losing the case; yet what did Jesus do?
• Isaiah 53:7 (HCSB) He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth. Like a lamb led to the slaughter and like a sheep silent before her shearers, He did not open His mouth.
• He was silent!
• In the midst of the false accusations, Jesus was SILENT!
• SLIDE #13
• Matthew 26:63 (HCSB) But Jesus kept silent. Then the high priest said to Him, “By the living God I place You under oath: tell us if You are the Messiah, the Son of God!”
• SILENCE………
• Why?............
• Why?............
• It is because For God so LOVED THE WORLD THAT HE GAVE HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON THAT WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NEVER PERISH, BUT HAVE ETERNAL LIFE!
• I seems so cliché, but God does love you!
• Jesus fulfilled what Isaiah said be being silent, but not screaming from the rooftops concerning his innocence.
• We cannot not fathom that, but that is because we cannot fathom the depth of God’s love for us!
CONCLUSION
• The trial, just another detail, or just another reason we can trust that Jesus is Lord!
• Not only does one need to be born of a virgin, in Bethlehem, from the line of David, who entered Jerusalem on a donkey, but, they also had to stand trial before they were crucified for crimes they did not commit!
• Who has done all that, plus more. I will tell you who, HIS NAME IS JESUS!
