Will You Dismiss Him?
John 18:28-40
Introduction
We are asking the question, What Will You Do With Jesus? We are focused on the last hours of Jesus’ life as he goes to the cross.
It was part of the eternal plan of God that Jesus would go to the cross as the perfect sacrifice and die for the sins of mankind. The Jews did not know that, in spite of the prophecies. The Disciples didn’t know it, even though Jesus told them. Certainly the Roman Government didn’t know.
John 12:32-33 And when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to myself.” He said this to indicate how he was going to die.
Jesus has been bound and beaten, led through the night in various illegal trials. To get through before Passover, they rushed him toward execution. Now he is before the Roman governor, Pilate. Pilate was “Governor of Judea” at time of trial / death of Jesus. He normally lived in Caesarea, about 70 miles away, a city that was built by Herod the Great to resemble Rome. He was in Jerusalem for Passover because large crowds would give opportunity for uprisings against Rome. A large number of Roman soldiers would be there. Pilate He was known as a brutal leader. Historians Philo and Josephus describe his violence, his thefts, his assaults, his abusive behavior, his frequent executions of untried prisoners, and his endless savage ferocity.
N. T. Wright observes: “He was a career politician, perhaps, or a soldier who had risen to be a provincial governor, though a junior one. He probably hoped that an effective tour of duty in Judaea would lead to better things: senior postings, better pay and if possible an easier local situation to deal with. It was not to be. He was eventually removed from office … he vanishes from history in about ad 37.”
Read Text John 18:28-38
John 18:28-40
28 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.
29 So Pilate went outside to them and said, “What accusation do you bring against this man?”
30 They answered him, “If this man were not doing evil, we would not have delivered him over to you.”
31 Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.” The Jews said to him, “It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death.”
32 This was to fulfill the word that Jesus had spoken to show by what kind of death he was going to die.
33 So Pilate entered his headquarters again and called Jesus and said to him, “Are you the King of the Jews?”
34 Jesus answered, “Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it to you about me?”
35 Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered you over to me. What have you done?”
36 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.”
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.”
38 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.
Today we want to identify and avoid four mistakes of Pilate.
1. The Four Mistakes of Pilate
First: He Caved In to the Pressure (29-32). Pilate had pressure in every direction. The Roman government wasn’t high on Pilate, and any dust ups that created problems would be amplified. The Jewish rulers could definitely create issues for him. (JN 19:17 "If you let this man go, you are no friend of Caesar.…”) He wants them to take care of this matter themselves. He doesn’t believe Jesus is guilty, but appeases the Jews.
Second: Pilate Ignored the truth in front of him (33-35). Pilate seemed disinterested in the truth. Think of how Jesus looked. “Are you the king of the Jews?” Some suggest the emphasis should be on the “you” … Wright: "He sees before him a poor man from the wrong part of the country. He has a small band of followers and they’ve all run away. Of course he’s not the king." Jesus didn’t appear to be king of anything. Pilate couldn’t find anything wrong with Jesus, but he thought he had to have done something! (35)
Third: Pilate allowed cynicism to direct his heart (38 “what is truth?”). Pilate is dismissive of Jesus and truth, and the whole thing. “It is a cynical, weary answer, the response of someone who has been trying to find a way out of his troubles, but has lost all confidence in religion or any other guide.” - Ray Stedman
Fourth: Pilate was focused on himself above all. He entertained the Jews, and engaged with Jesus. But in the end, he served himself first.
None of us would claim to be like Pilate, but no doubt our faith has been put under pressure, we have ignored the truth we know so that we can continue in our own ways, we have allowed cynicism to direct our hearts, and we have focused on ourselves above others.
How can we stay strong for Christ when we are facing some of these inward struggles?
Five Powerful Truths from Jesus (36,37)
First: Jesus Has a Kingdom (“My kingdom …”). John 3:3, 5 "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” … unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” The Kingdom of God is the heart where Jesus reigns. Giving ourselves to Jesus means submitting to His Lordship, His Reign, and worshiping Him as our King.
Second: Jesus Calls His Followers Out of the World (“is not of this world…”). John 1:10 "He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him." The world doesn’t know Jesus. If they did, they would love Him! Being a follower of the King is about coming out of this dark world - a lost and dying world - into His life.
Third: Jesus calls us to be different (“If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting…”). John 12:46 "I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness." We cannot be identical to the world in our lives - this is the pressure under which our faith stands.
Fourth: Jesus bears witness to the truth (“For this purpose I was born … - to bear witness to the truth.”). John 17:16-17 "They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth." The word of God is the truth that leads us to strength, faith, and the promise of eternal life. Jesus came to tell us what we all need to know! John 8:31 “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
Fifth: Jesus’ followers listen to his voice (“Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.”). John 10:27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. Are we listening to Jesus today? Pilate heard his words, but did not listen to him. There’s a difference!
Conclusion
Pilate’s mistakes kept him from following after Jesus - he caved in to pressure, ignored the truth, allowed cynicism to rule in his heart, and focused mostly on himself. Jesus calls us to acknowledge him as King, calling us out of the world, to be a different people, to hear him as the ultimate truth. What will you do with Jesus? An encounter with Jesus is life changing. If not, then we are dismissing him as optional, irrelevant, or unworthy.
Our text today ends with another reason we should give our hearts to Jesus. Pilate tries to appease the Jews with a substitute scapegoat. (Vs. 38-40 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?” They cried out again, “Not this man, but Barabbas!” Now Barabbas was a robber.) If you wonder what it must have felt like to Barabbas to be set free while Jesus went to the cross…then just reflect on your own faith journey. We are all Barabbas… all of us set free from our past, our sin, our weakness, our failings by the blood of Jesus. Jesus was rejected by his own people, dismissed by Pilate, sacrificed in place of Barabbas … but he still went to the cross for you.
As you encounter Jesus I encourage you to believe Him, trust Him, accept His offer of grace and mercy by faith, being baptized into Christ – believing that by his power you will be raised up to live a new life. (Romans 6:1-5)
What will you do with Jesus? Pilate dismissed him, will we?
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Video of this message will be available on the YouTube channel for Forsythe Church of Christ located at
https://www.youtube.com/c/ForsytheChurchofChrist
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Discussion Questions for John 18:28-40
1. Describe the irony/hypocrisy of the Jews being unwilling to "enter the governor's headquarters, so that would not be defiled, but could eat the Passover" (vs. 28).
2. What do you think about the answer the Jews gave Pilate in verse 30? What do you believe is the motive behind such an answer?
3. What are some terms you would use to describe Pilate? He is still present in our text next week (John 19:1-16), how do you regard him?
4. Of the four mistakes of Jesus, which one do you think is most prevalent among Christians today? Why is that?
What are some of the situations we face today that can tempt us to compromise our loyalty to Christ?
5. What are some ways that Jesus' kingdom is different from earthly kingdoms?
6. What does it mean to be "in the world but not of the world" (John 17:16)? If we are called out of the world, how would you describe our relationship to the world?
7. Barabbas is given the gift of freedom at the expense of Jesus. John tells us that he was a "robber". What does Mark tell us about him (Mark 15:7)? In what ways is Barabbas a symbol of all Christians?
8. What else did you want to talk about from today's text/lesson?
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Resources
Stedman, Ray. Sermon at https://www.raystedman.org/new-testament/john/the-way-to-the-cross
Swindoll, Charles R. Swindoll's Living Insights: John. Tyndale, 2014.
Wright, T. (2004). John for Everyone, Part 2: Chapters 11-21 (p. 111). Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge.
