PREPARING FOR THE CROSS
Luke 23:1-25
#Easter2022
SCRIPTURE READING: LUKE 23:1-25 [person from the congregation]
INTRODUCTION…amacdonaldlaw.com/blog/2016/may/what-is-the-difference-between-innocent-and-not-guilty [adapted]
As we begin today, we are going to jump into some simple law terms. Innocent. Not Guilty. When we think about law and criminal cases and court rooms, there is a difference… I think a big difference… between being ‘not guilty’ and ‘innocent.’ Those are two different truths even though the outcome is the same.
What is the difference between ‘not guilty’ and ‘innocent?’ Innocent means that a person did not commit the crime of which they are accused. Not guilty means that the prosecution could not prove ‘beyond a reasonable doubt’ that a person committed the crime. That is the way it is supposed to work in the courts in the United States. Therefore, the court does not pronounce someone as ‘innocent’ but rather ‘not guilty.’
What is innocent? In the United States, when one is charged with a crime, one is assumed to be innocent until proven guilty. By the end of a criminal trial, the person will either be declared ‘guilty’ or ‘not guilty.’ I found it interesting that in the laws of the United States, technically, the court never declares someone ‘innocent’ because it is not necessary to prove actual innocence in order to be acquitted. The prosecution's job is to convince the jury that the defendant is guilty ‘beyond a reasonable doubt.’ Going the extra step of proving actual innocence is not required in order to avoid conviction. It is a part of our country's justice system that one does not need to be proven innocent in order to be declared ‘not guilty.’
What is ‘not guilty?’ As mentioned before, the prosecution has to prove that a defendant committed a crime ‘beyond a reasonable doubt.’ This means that even if the jury largely thinks that a defendant committed a crime, they must not have any doubt about it. Doubt can be inserted into a case by the defense calling the prosecution's case into question in many ways like differing witnesses or alibis. Being found "not guilty" doesn't necessarily mean you are innocent. Instead, it means that the evidence was not strong enough for a guilty verdict.
So… what is the difference between ‘not guilty’ and ‘innocent?’ In the justice system of the United States, the difference in the end, does not matter. No one needs to prove that they are innocent in order to avoid conviction for a crime. Our criminal justice system does not require proof of innocence, but rather, that the jury have no reasonable doubts about whether or not a person committed the crime. If they do have doubts, a person will be declared ‘not guilty’ and charges will be dropped, regardless of whether or not the person was actually innocent or guilty.
I bring up the terms ‘not guilty’ and ‘innocent’ because we are preparing ourselves for Easter which is next week (today is Palm Sunday!). Last week, we looked at Matthew 26 and the emotions that Jesus felt in the Garden of Gethsemane as He prepared Himself for everything that would happen to Him. He knew everything that would happen and it weighed heavily on Him. He suffered through and committed Himself to the will of God. Jesus obediently suffered for you. Jesus obediently suffered for me. Jesus obediently suffered for us.
This morning we are moving on ahead as Jesus is preparing for the cross and we see that Jesus endured much before His death on the cross, including at minimum, three trials:
He had one trial before the Jewish Sanhedrin in the middle of the night.
He had one trial, broken up in two parts, before Pilate the Roman governor.
He had one trial before King Herod, in the middle of the trial before Pilate.
Those two terms are important as we read what happened to Jesus. The terms ‘not guilty’ and ‘innocent’ are important as we make our way through Luke 23.
THROUGH LUKE 23
RE-READ LUKE 23:1-25
Then the whole company of them arose and brought Him before Pilate. 2 And they began to accuse Him, saying, “We found this Man misleading our nation and forbidding us to give tribute to Caesar, and saying that He Himself is Christ, a king.” 3 And Pilate asked Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?” And He answered him, “You have said so.” 4 Then Pilate said to the chief priests and the crowds, “I find no guilt in this Man.” 5 But they were urgent, saying, “He stirs up the people, teaching throughout all Judea, from Galilee even to this place.”
Jesus of Nazareth is arrested at night in the Garden of Gethsemane after He is pointed out by Judas Iscariot. He is taken into custody and taken to an illegal trial by the Sanhedrin in the middle of the night. The Sanhedrin, which was the religious leaders of the Jews at that time, accused Jesus of many things, but nothing really could be proven. After mistreating Jesus and lying about Him, they decide to take Jesus to Pilate, who is the Roman governor and the only one with the legal ability to put Jesus to death.
The religious leaders lie about Jesus. They say Jesus taught others to no pay taxes to Caesar. Did Jesus say that? What did He say? We find the answer in Luke 20.
READ LUKE 20:22-25 (ESV)
“Is it lawful for us to give tribute to Caesar, or not?” 23 But He perceived their craftiness, and said to them, 24 “Show Me a denarius. Whose likeness and inscription does it have?” They said, “Caesar's.” 25 He said to them, “Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.”
Jesus said to give the government whatever it was owed and to give to God what He was owed. That accusation might have gotten the folks in the door with Pilate, but it wasn’t going to stick because it wasn’t true.
Pilate talks with Jesus and after talking with Jesus… and this is important… says in verse 4, “I find no guilt in this Man.” Pilate did not have enough evidence to convict Jesus of being against the government or trying to start a rebellion or anything else the Sanhedrin had dreamed up. The folks in arguing against Jesus mention that He was from Galilee. Pilate sees a possible way out and passes Jesus off to the local ruler of Galilee.
RE-READ LUKE 23:6-12
“When Pilate heard this, he asked whether the Man was a Galilean. 7 And when he learned that He belonged to Herod's jurisdiction, he sent Him over to Herod, who was himself in Jerusalem at that time. 8 When Herod saw Jesus, he was very glad, for he had long desired to see Him, because he had heard about Him, and he was hoping to see some sign done by Him. 9 So he questioned Him at some length, but He made no answer. 10 The chief priests and the scribes stood by, vehemently accusing Him. 11 And Herod with his soldiers treated Him with contempt and mocked Him. Then, arraying Him in splendid clothing, he sent Him back to Pilate. 12 And Herod and Pilate became friends with each other that very day, for before this they had been at enmity with each other.
Pilate was trying to avoid killing people or a riot or anything else that would make his superiors in Rome upset with him. Rome was very much the ‘parent who didn’t care what you did as long as it was quiet.’ The Roman governor and the local king in Galilee did not get along, but often ‘politics make for strange bedfellows.’ This was a political situation Pilate was trying to avoid and Herod wanted to meet Jesus.
Herod asked Jesus question after question and we see in verse 9 that Jesus did not answer any of his questions. Verse 10 tells us the Sanhedrin just kept falsely accusing Jesus over and over. The picture we get is Jesus did not react to the accusations or the questions and He did not do any kind of miraculous sign before Herod. I assume because Jesus would not play Herod’s game, Herod and his soldiers mocked Jesus and dressed Him up and got tired of Him and sent Him back to Pilate.
Luke 23 continues:
RE-READ LUKE 23:13-17
Pilate then called together the chief priests and the rulers and the people, 14 and said to them, “You brought me this Man as One who was misleading the people. And after examining Him before you, behold, I did not find this man guilty of any of your charges against Him. 15 Neither did Herod, for he sent Him back to us. Look, nothing deserving death has been done by Him. 16 I will therefore punish and release Him.”
King Herod doesn’t do anything with Jesus other than dress Him up, make fun of Him, and send Him back to Pilate to be dealt with. I find it very interesting and we need to make sure we see that in verses 14-15, Pilate reiterates that Jesus is not guilty of anything and also states that Herod as well found Him guilty of nothing. Two judges have now stated Jesus was ‘not guilty.’ From the sham of a trial in the middle of the night with the Sanhedrin to two judges declaring there was nothing to charge Jesus with, I hope you see that Jesus did not deserve to be mistreated and He certainly did nothing for which He should die.
The crowds that had gathered spurred on by the religious leaders did not want to take ‘let Him go’ for an answer. They wanted Jesus dead. Luke 23 continues:
RE-READ LUKE 23:18-25
But they all cried out together, “Away with this Man, and release to us Barabbas”— 19 a man who had been thrown into prison for an insurrection started in the city and for murder. 20 Pilate addressed them once more, desiring to release Jesus, 21 but they kept shouting, “Crucify, crucify Him!” 22 A third time he said to them, “Why? What evil has He done? I have found in Him no guilt deserving death. I will therefore punish and release Him.” 23 But they were urgent, demanding with loud cries that He should be crucified. And their voices prevailed. 24 So Pilate decided that their demand should be granted. 25 He released the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, for whom they asked, but he delivered Jesus over to their will.
There was a tradition for Rome to release a prisoner during Passover. Pilate had selected Jesus to be released and then this political situation would be resolved. The people ask for Barabbas to be released instead of Jesus. Barabbas was the worst of the worst. He was someone who led a rebellion against Rome and was a murderer. A convicted guilty person was to be released while the non-convicted not guilty person was to die. This made no sense top Pilate.
I want you to please notice, for the third time, that in verse 22, Pilate again declares that Jesus is not guilty of any crime. To try and satisfy the crowds, he said he would punish Jesus and then release Him. That was not good enough. The crowd wanted Jesus dead. That was the goal. Pilate saw the situation getting out of hand.
After declaring Jesus ‘not guilty’ three different times, Pilate relents to have Jesus killed. And not just killed mind you, but crucified which is one of the worst manners of death human beings have invented. We get our word ‘excruciating’ from crucifixion. Matthew 27:24 comments about what Pilate says:
READ MATTHEW 27:24 (ESV)
“So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this Man's blood; see to it yourselves.”
SUMMARY
I want to summarize just a moment, then I want to remind you of something, and then I want us to jump down a few verses in Luke 23. Jesus is arrested in the middle of the night in the Garden of Gethsemane and is taken to an illegal trial where He is falsely accused. They decide on some charges that will get them into see the Roman governor and he states Jesus is ‘not guilty.’ Another judge looks Him over and does not judge Jesus guilty. Three times in this passage Pilate declares that none of the charges brought against Jesus are true or should result in His death.
Jesus is ‘not guilty’ and yet Jesus is sentenced to death!
NOT GUILTY VS. INNOCENT REMINDER
I would also like to remind you about the thoughts we began with in terms of ‘not guilty’ and ‘innocent.’ Innocent means a person did not actually commit any crime at all. ‘Not guilty’ means the prosecution could not convince a jury or judge of guilt. There is a difference.
ILLUSTRATION… Speeding Ticket (p)
The difference between ‘not guilty’ and ‘innocent’ stands out to me one time when I got a speeding ticket. I was on my way home from seeing my girlfriend and I was going too fast in a construction zone. I was speeding. I was pulled over. I got a ticket. When I looked at the ticket, the officer also charged me with a seat-belt violation. I had removed my seatbelt after I was pulled over to get my wallet out of my back pocket. The officer did not listen. I was willing to pay the fine for the speeding violation, but unwilling to pay the extra fine for the seat-belt violation. I was in the car by myself and decided to drive the two hours back to the little town to protest and to get the extra fine off the ticket. The judge looked at me and told me to pay the fine. I was so nervous I just paid the fine and drove home defeated. I was completely ‘not guilty’ of the seat-belt violation, but in no way was innocent. There is a huge difference.
Thus far, the words ‘not guilty’ have been used for Jesus. Three times now it was declared by a judge (two judges I might add!) that there was not enough evidence to convict Jesus of any crime. Please note, that the word ‘innocent’ hadn’t come up. Not once. The only one who said anything about innocence was Pilate trying to act innocent in this whole ordeal.
Was Jesus ‘not guilty?’
Was Jesus ‘innocent?’
Which is it because those words communicate two very different truths?
INNOCENCE DECLARED
To fully grasp what happened to Jesus and to answer these important questions, we don’t need to jump to another passage or go elsewhere, Luke 23 answers this for us. Pilate hands Jesus over to his soldiers and they carry out His execution. They parade Him through town. They beat and mock Him. They nail Him to a cross and hoist Him up for all to see. The soldiers watch over Jesus as He suffocates and bleeds to death. Luke 23 continues:
READ Luke 23:46-48 (ESV)
Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” And having said this He breathed His last. 47 Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God, saying, “Certainly this Man was innocent!” 48 And all the crowds that had assembled for this spectacle, when they saw what had taken place, returned home beating their breasts.
We have an exclamation by the commander in charge of Jesus in verse 47. This centurion would have overseen the beatings and Jesus’ trials. He would have heard the accusations and seen the crowds. He would have heard what Pilate said. He would have received from Pilate the orders to put Jesus to death. This centurion adds a key word in our understanding of Jesus. The centurion declares in verse 47: “Certainly this Man was innocent!”
It is important for us to understand that Jesus of Nazareth was not just a ‘not guilty’ person who was subjected to a trial. Jesus Christ was not Someone Who should have been punished for something because surely ‘He did something wrong sometime.’ Jesus was absolutely innocent. The centurion who watched the trial and saw Him die declared Him to be innocent. Jesus surpasses ‘not guilty’ status and we are told in the Scriptures Jesus was indeed ‘innocent.’
MEANING OF INNOCENCE
What does it mean that Jesus was not just ‘not guilty’ in a court of law, but that He was also ‘innocent?” It means quite a lot actually. Two verses among many give us a hint at why Jesus’ innocence is so important.
READ 2 CORINTHIANS 5:21 (ESV)
“ For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.”
READ HEBREWS 7:26 (ESV)
For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens.
The truth that Jesus of Nazareth was innocent of all crime and innocent of all sin means that He can pay for our sin with His death. It is Jesus’ innocence that allows for His blood and suffering and death to cover over our sin. If Jesus were guilty of anything, Jesus’ death would have paid for something He had done wrong. Yet, because Jesus was completely innocent, He is our holy and unstained and exalted Savior Who speaks to God on our behalf and covers our sin with His blood.
Jesus’ innocence means His blood pays for my sin.
Jesus’ innocence means His blood pays for your sin.
Jesus’ innocence means His blood pays for our sin.
CONCLUSION… merriam-webster.com/dictionary/innocent
If you were to look up the word ‘innocent’ in the dictionary, you would notice that there are many ways this word is used. It is the first two that caught my eye. The first two caught my eye because they both describe Jesus.
#1 Innocent: free from legal guilt or fault. Jesus Christ was declared innocent and yet He died on purpose for you and for me.
#2 Innocent: free from guilt or sin. Jesus Christ was innocent because He never sinned and when He died He was able to offer us eternal life and forgiveness and a relationship with the Almighty God.
Jesus’ innocence means His blood pays for our sin.
PRAYER
INVITATION
