Mark 14:55-65, 15:1-15
Take Responsibility for Your Life
God bless us with the freedom of choice.
• We have in our hands the power of choosing what we want in life.
Every choice has a consequence. By not choosing, that itself is a choice.
• By not choosing, we are allowing life to go on without a deliberate intervention.
• That itself is a choice – we are deciding not to take sides, not to change path.
Bro/sis, your choice is important today; very important.
• Every choice, including simple decision like whether to wake up early today and go to church, whether I should attend Sunday School class afterwards, all has its consequences.
• Don’t think that by NOT making a decision, you’re not paying a price for it. You are!
• Even a simple thing like sleeping through on Sunday morning and skip church, you’re depriving yourself of worship of God, and His Word, and that means you’re not building up your faith (faith comes from hearing the Word), and your roots are not deepening.
Don’t let life go on in an auto-mode. By doing so, you are already making a choice to let things be.
• And you’re paying. You’re moving and you’re wasting your time.
• So treasure the power of choice that God has given us.
• Joshua tells the people of Israel (Josh 24:15): “But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then CHOOSE for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”
We want to look at the choices of three men – all men of authority – who were given the privilege of meeting Jesus face-to-face in His last week on earth. They questioned Him and made choices, and we’re going to learn from their mistakes.
1. High Priest Caiaphas – head of Sanhedrin, Jewish council.
2. Roman Governor Pontius Pilate – overseeing Judea
3. Ruler of Galilee Herod Antipas
The first one was the high priest Caiaphas (Matt 26:57) – he was the first person Jesus faced after His arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane. He was taken to the courtyard of this high priest - Peter followed, and denied knowing Him three times at this place.
[Read Mark 14:55-65]
• As the head of the Jewish council (Sanhedrin), Caiaphas questioned Jesus and then condemned Him - declaring Him guilty of blasphemy.
• It looked like a trial, but it wasn’t really a legal trial. Caiaphas has already in mind a pre-determined plan to remove Jesus. How can we be so sure?
John revealed it to us - John 11:45-50.
• If we allowed Jesus to go on, the outcome would be an uprising. Jesus is going to set up His Kingdom.
• The Roman government will surely react to crush this Jewish revolt, taking away their place (the temple) and their nation.
[Read John 11:51-52] Not realising, that by God’s Spirit, this will surely happen. Because it is God’s plan to sacrifice the Lamb Jesus to bring redemption, not just to the Jewish nation but to the whole world (the scattered children of God).
And so the Bible says in 11:53 “So from that day on they plotted to take his life.”
It was not in Caiaphas’ mind to give Jesus a fair trial. His plot was to remove Him.
• This trial was a cover-up, to justify their decision to kill Jesus.
• He has no intention to really understand Jesus or ponder about His claims. His questioning was to give support what he believes.
• He has already made his choice – a sinful choice.
Such an attitude has been there for quite some time.
Last Sunday night, Pastor Yang De Kang shared about the woman caught in adultery.
• I want you to see John 8:3-5. The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group and said to Jesus, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?"
They sounded so righteous, but then their motivation was fishy.
• Why did they bring her to Jesus, if they do not recognise him as an authority figure?
• In fact, why to Jesus? He is not a judge, not in the Sanhedrin or an official of the Jewish council.
• And where is the other party – the man guilty of the same crime.
We read on and we understand. Verse 6 tells us, “They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him.” Their intention wasn’t about a fair trial. Their concern wasn’t about justice or punishing this crime committed by the woman.
Their concern was Jesus – they wanted to nail Him down. That’s the motivation of these “religious” people.
SOME KIND OF A CAKE
A boy Nicholas earned his living selling eggs. A friend came to his shop one day and said, “Guess what I have in my hand.”
“Give me a clue,” said Nicholas.
“I shall give you several: It has the shape of an egg, the size of an egg. It looks like an egg, tastes like an egg and smells like an egg. Inside it is yellow and white. It is liquid before it is cooked, becomes thick when heated.”
“Aha! I know!” said Nicholas. “It is some kind of a cake.”
People choose what they want to believe. It is not an issue of evidence. They choose what they LIKE to believe. And nothing, sometimes in face of clear evidences, can change them.
Caiaphas has already the choice – he has chosen what he wants to believe, whatever Jesus says.
• His close encounter with Jesus did not change him, not because of a lack of evidence, but because of the hardness of heart.
• He wasn’t concern what Jesus has to say. The questioning was to support his decision to kill Jesus.
CHOOSE WISELY. Don’t be blinded by what your own heart says.
• What you like is not always right. Jer 17:9 “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure.”
• Listen to what God has to say. Don’t seek Him with a closed heart.
• Today we have to come to God with an open heart. A desire to seek the truth means we are open to God’s correction and discipline.
• If it is wrong, we have to change, and re-align ourselves back to the truth. That choice is ours.
Don’t rationalise. Don’t make excuses. Don’t justify yourself.
• Today many are experts at these – wrongs can even be explained as right.
• The religious leaders in this passage made FALSE statements against Jesus, openly without shame.
Question the integrity of our hearts in everything we do. What is our motive?
• What motivates us – is it greed or pride, a desire for recognition or acceptance?
And then they bring Jesus to the 2nd authoritative figure – Pilate, the Roman governor.
[Read Mark 15:1-15]
Pontius Pilate has full military and judicial authority in Judea, given by the Roman Emperor.
• So in a sense, he was the most powerful man in Judea then.
• Yet with all the authority in his hand, he was cowed into giving in to the crowd’s demands.
He tried to pass the buck.
• Luke tells us when he learned that Jesus was a Galilean, he sent him to Herod because that area was Herod’s jurisdiction and Herod was then in Jerusalem. It didn’t work. Herod questioned Jesus and passed him back.
• He tried to satisfy the crowd by beating Jesus and then release him. It didn’t work.
• He tried getting them to choose between the criminal Barabbas and Jesus. It didn’t work. They asked for Barabbas to be released instead.
Let us take a quick look at this 3rd authoritative figure that has the privilege of questioning Jesus: Herod Antipas, ruler of Galilee, Jesus’ home.
• He was the one who beheaded John the Baptist. John reprimanded him for his adulterous affair, because Herod, who was married, has taken his half-brother’s wife Herodias.
• At a royal birthday party, Herod granted Salome, Herodias’ daughter, a wish and under the prodding of her mom she requested the head of John the Baptist (Mark 6:21-29).
• Since he was under oath and did not want to lose face before his guests, Herod ordered John’s execution.
• We see again another man in authority falling under pressure, because of fame and power.
Don’t make your decision based on what others like. Don’t make your choice to please others.
Make the choice that will please God.
Finally Pilate, being the most powerful and influential person in Judea, has to make a decision.
He asked for a bowl of water and he washed his hands, and he said – “It’s not my fault.” (cf. Matt 27:24)
• He has the power and authority to make the right decision but he did not.
• He knew Jesus was innocent but verse 15 tell us, “wanting to satisfy the crowd” - he decided, against his conscience, to send an innocent man to his death.
Two things we must take note here: Firstly, don’t ignore your conscience.
• A lot of us do that. We give excuses, and justify our wrongs.
• Rom 14:12 “So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.”
• You can’t simply tell Him, “I was just doing what I was told.”
• The power to do right, and make right (the things we’ve done wrong) is in our hands!
Secondly, don’t run from your responsibility. God has given us His power to make things right.
• Fewer and fewer people accept responsibility for anything these days.
• It is easier to blame others or the situation for anything that happens.
BLAME THE WEATHERMAN
A woman heard a local weatherman predict fair skies and warm weather. She took him at his word and dressed accordingly. But the forecast proved to be wrong. The sky opened the rain fell and the temperature dropped dramatically.
As a result of dressing as the weatherman’s prediction indicated, the woman caught the flu, missed four days of work and income. She sued the weatherman and the station for damages as well as emotional distress!
While this story may be extreme, it does illustrate a problem today.
• There is comfort in blaming others because it takes the heat and the attention off you.
• Blaming shifts responsibility away from me to you.
• Blaming someone for a problem make me look better in the eyes of those who watch.
Of course, there are times when the problem is indeed caused by someone else. But we have to learn not to push the blame. Take responsibility for your own actions.
• We’ve often heard people saying things like, “It’s not my fault. I smoke because my parents are smokers. It took drugs because my friends pushed them to me.”
• When we attribute cause to someone else, we give up our control over the situation.
• And because we take no responsibility, we don’t try to make things better, or to learn from the mistake.
When you decide to take personal responsibility for your life, things can begin to change.
• Acceptance is important. You are where you are right now because of your doing.
• Don’t blame your current situation or even the devil (although he does cause us harm).
• Don’t list out excuses, like “nobody gives me a chance, there is no opportunity for me, my situation is unique, the party ended late last night and I can’t get up this morning…” Leave the party early, it’s YOUR choice.
In accepting full responsibility for your current situation, you are also accepting where you’ll be in the future – where will I be in a year’s time or five years down the road? It’s all down to you, today!
• You chose the paths that led you to where you are right now.
• Therefore, you can choose a better path to lead you to a greater destination.
• You are what you choose.
God is there to provide the resources we need, but the power of choice is in your hand.
• If you choose to do right, you’ll experience His blessing.
• If you choose to lean on Him, you’ll find His strength to enable you to go through.
• If you don’t take responsibility for what happens in your life, you’re allowing others to decide your life for you.
• And they may not always have your best interests at heart.
Taking personal responsibility means you give yourself the power to command.
• Why should anyone else have that authority? It’s your life.
• Resolve everyday that no matter what happens, you will lean on Christ and will overcome it.
• Resolve everyday to do God’s will and follow His ways.
• What you want to become is in your hands today.
Take responsibility for your choices today.
• Avoid the mistake of Caiaphas – blinded by his own selfish, sinful desires. Don’t rationalise your wrongs.
• Avoid the mistake of Herod – seeking to please others, and allow the world to lead us astray.
• Avoid the mistake of Pilate – blaming others won’t free you from your responsibility before God.
