Crucify Him

Posted on by korgrocker

“Then Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate said, “Look, here is the man!” When they saw him, the leading priests and Temple guards began shouting, “Crucify him! Crucify him!” “Take him yourselves and crucify him,” Pilate said. “I find him not guilty.” The Jewish leaders replied, “By our law he ought to die because he called himself the Son of God.””
John 19:5-7 NLT

Why were those days so cruel, with such a form of execution that combined unending and endless torture that only came to an end when death arrived? Why not a simple and quick method that would achieve the same end? And why such a sentence for someone who makes a claim, any sort of claim, about himself? Were those people of Jesus’ time, the Jews and their leaders, a particularly unsophisticated and bestial people placing no value on a human life? Of course, we 21st Century people, would never behave in such a way. Or would we? People today are just as wicked and evil as the Jews who were shouting “Crucify Him” two thousand years ago. The same devil. The same sin. We only have to open a media news report to find just how bad people are. And the sobering question is, would we too have shouted “Crucify Him” as we stood there in the Jerusalem crowd?

In 1 Peter 2:22-24 we read, “He never sinned, nor ever deceived anyone. He did not retaliate when he was insulted, nor threaten revenge when he suffered. He left his case in the hands of God, who always judges fairly. He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed“. Why didn’t those Jewish leaders just leave things to God for Him to deal with them, because, as Peter wrote, doesn’t He deal fairly with people? But human beings demand justice in this life, as most think little about the life to come and the final judgement. Human justice is flawed when it comes to things about God. But humans cannot and mustn’t stand in God’s place casting judgement on fellow humans in cases where only God can see the truth and decide fairly. 

Around us there are many strident voices demanding “justice” that aligns with their particular ideologies. Church history is littered with stories of people being condemned for “crimes” that are imagined or superstitiously derived. The cruelties didn’t end at Calvary and we soberly consider the fate of those caught up in the Inquisition in the Middle Ages, or the deaths of the Covenanters. But today in our hearts, cruelties are still prevalent. We look at another person who has done us wrong, even inadvertently, and anger and thoughts of punishment rise up within us. And every time we sin we are in danger of crucifying Jesus all over again. We read in Hebrews 6:4-6, “For it is impossible to bring back to repentance those who were once enlightened—those who have experienced the good things of heaven and shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the power of the age to come— and who then turn away from God. It is impossible to bring such people back to repentance; by rejecting the Son of God, they themselves are nailing him to the cross once again and holding him up to public shame“. 

We pilgrims are dedicated followers of Jesus. There is no turning back for us. The journey before us may not be easy. There may even be times when we think that the road is too tough. But there is only one way into God’s presence and that is through Jesus. There will be many temptations on the way, trying to draw us up some cul-de-sac or other. Little voices may whisper in our ears that just once won’t really matter. But, as Jesus did, we look ahead resolutely to what is before us, and as we do we see the glow of Glory appearing on the horizon. For believers in Jesus, a new dawn is coming.

Dear Father God. You are the new dawn in our lives, reality in times of human cruelty. We pray for the opportunities to share Your love and grace with those around us. And we pray for all those in a place of leadership, that they will come to know You. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Understand Clearly

Posted on by korgrocker

“Pilate went outside again and said to the people, “I am going to bring him out to you now, but understand clearly that I find him not guilty.” Then Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate said, “Look, here is the man!””
John 19:4-5 NLT

Pilate’s words “understand clearly that I find him not guilty” have hung in the air ever since the Jews of that time condemned the Son of God to death. They killed their Messiah. Pilate made the correct legal decision over Jesus and he had Him brought out before the crowd to make his point. In Luke’s Gospel he wrote, “Then Pilate called together the leading priests and other religious leaders, along with the people, and he announced his verdict. “You brought this man to me, accusing him of leading a revolt. I have examined him thoroughly on this point in your presence and find him innocent. Herod came to the same conclusion and sent him back to us. Nothing this man has done calls for the death penalty” (Luke 23:13-15). Earlier in His trial Pilate declared that Jesus was innocent, ““What is truth?” Pilate asked. Then he went out again to the people and told them, “He is not guilty of any crime” (John 18:38). There was no doubt in the Roman authorities’ minds that Jesus was innocent of any crime and Pilate declared as such no less than four times. 

On what grounds did the Jewish people overrule the verdict of the civil court, instead finding Jesus guilty of the crime of blasphemy, in claiming as He did that He was the Son of God? Their decision was based on their interpretation of Old Testament prophecies, that said the Messiah will come to fulfil events that have yet to happen. They also failed to accept that God is Three-in-one, a Trinity of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. And that appears to a layman such as myself to introduce a great divide between the Jewish and Christian faiths. 

Pilate said “understand clearly”, and that is what we pilgrims must do today. We must “understand clearly” the basis for our faith. We must use our time wisely in prayer and reading God’s Word. We must align our Kingdom lives with God’s principles. We must avoid sinful situations. We must be steadfast, resisting the attempts of the enemy to draw us away into sin. We must discern areas of weakness and make them strong with God’s help. Hebrews 12:12-13, “So take a new grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees. Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong“. 

Do we pilgrims feel a bit tired today? A bit lethargic in our faith? Thinking about giving church a miss this week? The we must “understand clearly” what Jesus did for us. We must allow His love and grace to flood over us, flushing away all thoughts of giving up. There is no other way. Only Jesus has the words of eternal life.

Dear Father God. Thank You for Your blessings of grace and love. In the power of Your Spirit, we stir ourselves up once again and press on with our journey of faith in You. Amen.

Cruel Times

Posted on by korgrocker

“Then Pilate had Jesus flogged with a lead-tipped whip. The soldiers wove a crown of thorns and put it on his head, and they put a purple robe on him. “Hail! King of the Jews!” they mocked, as they slapped him across the face.”
John 19:1-3 NLT

Those days were indeed cruel and vicious. That a human being was put through so much pain and distress at the whim of another human being is incomprehensible to us in these “enlightened” 21st Century days. But Jesus, the Son of God, was painfully abused, both emotionally and physically. What were His thoughts as he took the punishment, feeling the acute pain in His back as the whip did its worst. The thorns digging into His head. The mocking tones and jeers of the rough and violent soldiers. This was a situation far beyond what anyone in the West would experience today. But before we head for the moral high ground we should reflect that our thoughts can sometimes be directed at causing another person harm. We get angry with other people and, although nothing physical results, the damage is done. Today, we don’t have to go far before we can find all sorts of abuse published on on-line platforms, abuse that contains nasty and damaging comments directed at another person. Jesus taught in Matthew 5:21-22,“You have heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.’ But I say, if you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of hell”. 

But we have to remember that it was our sins that put Jesus in that position. Without any sin there was no need for God’s plan for the sacrifice of His Son. The Prophet Isaiah could see this day coming and he wrote, “But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed” (Isaiah 53:5). Jesus knew from the beginning what he was facing, but it wouldn’t have made the event any easier. Rather, it is remarkable that Jesus was prepared to do all that he did, just for you and me. He never flinched from His mission. He never called for backup when in physical danger, even though there were many angels ready and waiting for His call. 

We pilgrims look back and marvel. It is impossible to fully appreciate all that Jesus did for us. How could the Creator of the Universe care so much about human beings that He put into place a plan for their salvation, so that they could be with Him forever? Sounds too good to be true? It’s too good not to be.

Dear Lord Jesus. Once again we thank You that You went to the cross for our sins, that You were whipped that we would be healed, that You suffered punishment through to death and traded Your righteousness for our sins. We are so grateful. Amen.

Barabbas Released

Posted on by korgrocker

““What is truth?” Pilate asked. Then he went out again to the people and told them, “He is not guilty of any crime. But you have a custom of asking me to release one prisoner each year at Passover. Would you like me to release this ‘King of the Jews’?” But they shouted back, “No! Not this man. We want Barabbas!” (Barabbas was a revolutionary.)”
John 18:38-40 NLT

In those days of the Roman occupation of Judaea, there were many insurrections, with an “underground” of guerillas always looking for opportunities to harass the Romans and try and bring about the autonomous state of the Jewish nation. So, the Roman governor had to walk a tight rope between provoking a fractious population and defending the Roman occupation when attacked. There was a custom every Passover for the Governor to release a prisoner, one who was imprisoned on death row. We know little about Barabbas. Matthew’s Gospel records Barabbas as being a “notorious prisoner”. Mark and Luke wrote that he was involved in a riot. But in the end he was captured and was awaiting his fate on a Roman gallows, another crucifixion carried out in those violent times. So that morning in the hours of darkness before the start of Passover at daybreak, the crowds were gathering in front of Pilate’s house, awaiting the announcement from the governor. We read in Matthew 27:15-18, “Now it was the governor’s custom each year during the Passover celebration to release one prisoner to the crowd—anyone they wanted. This year there was a notorious prisoner, a man named Barabbas. As the crowds gathered before Pilate’s house that morning, he asked them, “Which one do you want me to release to you—Barabbas, or Jesus who is called the Messiah?” (He knew very well that the religious leaders had arrested Jesus out of envy.)” I would have thought that there were many in the crowds who had seen Jesus, had heard His messages and had seen or even experienced His miraculous healings. But the Jewish leaders had stirred up the crowd against Him, probably leveraging the religious power that they had over the people of Jerusalem. 

Imagine standing in Barabbas’ shoes. What must have been going through his mind, as he faced into the horrors of crucifixion. The mental stress and anguish would have been unbearable, even in those violent and febrile days. Knowing that a day or two from then, he would be whipped and forced to carry a cross to the execution site, and there nailed to a cross, and left to die in excruciating agony. Perhaps he was looking through his cell bars as the crowds gathered. Perhaps he could hear the shouts. Was that his name he could hear? Did a glimmer of hope start to rise within him? Would he be released? But his thoughts would have been quickly suppressed – after all, why would they want him to be released when Jesus was the obvious choice. But in Matthew 27:26a, we read, “So Pilate released Barabbas to them …“. Imagine his relief, his gratitude, as he was returned alive to a family expecting his dead body. 

Tradition has it that Barabbas was also called Jesus. But whatever his name, was Barabbas the first to benefit from Jesus’ sacrificial death? Would he go on to believe in Jesus and turn his life of violence around? So many unanswered questions. But just as Barabbas was released from prison, he possibly went home unchanged, facing into an uncertain future on either side of the Great Divide. For us pilgrims, and, through Jesus, we were released from our own prisons of sin but the stark and eternal difference is that we have been washed clean by the Blood of the Lamb. We have a certain future and a hope of eternal life with God.

Dear Lord Jesus. Our words cannot express our gratitude for what You did that weekend two thousand years ago. We worship You today. Amen.

Not Guilty

Posted on by korgrocker

“Pilate said, “So you are a king?” Jesus responded, “You say I am a king. Actually, I was born and came into the world to testify to the truth. All who love the truth recognize that what I say is true.” “What is truth?” Pilate asked. Then he went out again to the people and told them, “He is not guilty of any crime.
John 18:37-38 NLT

We are fast approaching the pivotal point that night where Jesus’ future was decided. Pilate’s assessment of Jesus’ innocence was correct in the court of earthly law in force at that time.  Pilate was used to seeing revolutionaries who had a clear record of guilt and much evidence against them. Or thieves and robbers, convicted through acceptable testimonies. But the Man Jesus had no evidence that could convict Him, because there was none. He was the King of the Jews, a title soon after affixed to His cross of execution. He was the King of a Kingdom not of this world. And everything that Jesus said was truth, because that was who He was. Truth personified. There was no other period in history where there was such a clash of kingdoms. The worldly kingdom of the Roman Empire, strong and unforgiving. The religious kingdom based on the Law of Moses but almost skewed beyond recognition by sinful human practices. And the Kingdom of God, the rule of an eternal, sovereign God over all the universe. In that febrile environment, something had to give, and in worldly eyes Jesus was the problem but also, as we know, He became the solution to the sins of mankind. However, in worldly eyes, it was a solution that was the biggest miscarriage of justice this world has ever seen.

We pilgrims have read and re-read the Easter story. We stand as a fly on the wall, looking at Pilate’s dilemma. We stand in the baying mob calling for Jesus’ death. We stand poignantly with Jesus hearing the “not guilty” verdict, a verdict that He knew was the right one for the worldly court but the wrong one in terms of God’s plan for mankind. But ultimately we stand in the knowledge that the “not guilty” verdict would have been the wrong one for our salvation. Jesus was not guilty on His own account, but God’s plan was that He would take on my guilt so that the verdict over me would be “not guilty”. And that applies to all of us pilgrims, who have fallen to our knees in repentance before His cross. We were all guilty in the Heavenly court. We were all heading for a lost eternity. But along came a Man who, before the Judge, said that he would take the punishment due to me so that I would be “not guilty”. What a Saviour!

Dear Lord Jesus. You took on to Yourself the sins of mankind, past present and future, so that we would live with You forever. Thanks You. Amen.

Clash of Two Kingdoms

Posted on by korgrocker

““Am I a Jew?” Pilate retorted. “Your own people and their leading priests brought you to me for trial. Why? What have you done?” Jesus answered, “My Kingdom is not an earthly kingdom. If it were, my followers would fight to keep me from being handed over to the Jewish leaders. But my Kingdom is not of this world.” Pilate said, “So you are a king?” Jesus responded, “You say I am a king. Actually, I was born and came into the world to testify to the truth. All who love the truth recognise that what I say is true.””
John 18:35-37 NLT

In our world today different kingdoms, earthly kingdoms, are at war. Nations against nations. Peoples against peoples. Strife and discord everywhere. We see mini-wars between individuals being fought in court rooms, in council chambers, in neighbourhoods, even in families. But before Pilate Jesus pointed out that His Kingdom was not part of the global mish-mash of kingdoms. If not an earthly kingdom then it could only be a spiritual kingdom, a kingdom in a different sphere. In a different place. Of a different dimension. God’s Kingdom. So as far as Jesus was concerned there was nothing to defend in an earthly environment. The only adversary that Jesus had was the devil and he was already a defeated foe. The devil had failed to win a battle in Heaven, had been thrown out with a third of the angels there, and could only take out his frustrations, and proclivity for evil and wickedness, in the domain of the human being. And even here, with God on our side, he only has the power to cause mayhem if we let him. Peter wrote, “Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are” (1 Peter 5:8-9). From Ephesians 6 we pilgrims will be aware of the resources that God has made available for our defence against the devil and his minions. 

In the Bible, the two kingdoms, the kingdom of the world and the Kingdom of God, are often portrayed as darkness and light. Colossians 1:12-13, “and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves”. And it is easy to relate to the world order being a place of darkness, as we survey all the evil and wicked things that are going on. But to us pilgrims it is not an easy option, living at the same time in two kingdoms. In His High Priestly prayer, Jesus prayed for His disciples. We read, “I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one. …  My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one” (John 17:11, 15). 

How we live out our world in two kingdoms is always going to be a challenge and one in which we constantly need the help of the Holy Spirit to get right. Some people shut themselves away from worldly contact and head for the places of separation, living ascetically as monks or nuns. Others limit their life in God’s Kingdom to a pew on a Sunday morning, living in the other kingdom for the rest of the week. Jesus taught, “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:14-16). We are ambassadors of Christ to the kingdom that we once belonged to and renounced when we became born-again followers of Jesus. We shine as beacons, exampling God’s light to a dying world, constantly proclaiming the Gospel to those around us. Yes, there will occasionally be a clash between the two kingdoms as we go about our business as God’s children, but we know that one day we will enter our place of rest in a Kingdom where God reigns supreme and all vestiges of the earthly kingdom has disappeared. 

Dear Father God. “May Your Kingdom, may Your will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven”. Amen.

What Have You Done?

Posted on by korgrocker

“Then Pilate went back into his headquarters and called for Jesus to be brought to him. “Are you the king of the Jews?” he asked him. Jesus replied, “Is this your own question, or did others tell you about me?” “Am I a Jew?” Pilate retorted. “Your own people and their leading priests brought you to me for trial. Why? What have you done?””
John 18:33-35 NLT

In many ways, Pontius Pilate was in an unenviable position. Appointed to govern the Roman province of Judaea, the Jews who lived there never made his life very easy and he and his officials and soldiers were always suppressing trouble somewhere under their Roman jurisdiction. The difficulty that the governing authorities had to face into was based on the Jewish religion and its support by the population, support that was often fanatical in its application. So there always seemed to be an uprising going on somewhere, or a religious feast or some other custom that the Romans had to be sensitive of. Jesus even had a potential revolutionary in His own band of Twelve – Simon the Zealot. The Jews were desperate to be a self-governing nation and the political situation was fragile, so fragile that both the Romans and the Jewish leaders took extreme care most of the time to avoid provoking each other. 

So here was Pilate, summoned from his headquarters in the early hours of the morning to meet with a crowd of vociferous and aggressive Jewish leaders. They refused to enter his headquarters because of their customs, so he had to go out to meet with them. Pilate was walking a tight rope. The emperor in Rome, who was Tiberius at that time, would not have been pleased to hear about another problem in this province so Pilate was being careful to not provoke an issue. On the other hand who was the boss here? Anyway, he had Jesus brought in to him, and he started by asking the question “Are you the king of the Jews?” In Matthew’s Gospel he recorded that Jesus’ answer was “You have said it”. John recorded something else that Jesus said, “Is this your own question, or did others tell you about me?” But in it all, Pilate was probably shaking his head in disbelief, because a Man, albeit the One we know as Jesus, God’s Son, was before him on trial for saying something innocuous and hardly worth being on trial for, let alone deserving on being put to death. Pilate was no fool, and he was accustomed to all sorts of people being brought before him for sentencing, but he had never met anyone like Jesus. Hence his question, “What have You done?”, his attempt at trying to elicit information from Jesus, information that would help him understand what had so upset the Jewish leaders. He had heard the accusers, and now was trying to hear and understand the accused.

In many ways the Gospel accounts of the trial of Jesus are sparse with the details. But enough information is there to enable us to build a picture of the events of that momentous evening and night. And through them we can see clearly the clash of two kingdoms and feel the comfort to know that we are on the winning side. The devil and his kingdom were represented by the Jewish leaders, something we know because Jesus had pointed it out to them in an earlier conversation, which we can read in John 8. Jesus said to the Pharisees, “ … “If God were your Father, you would love me, because I have come to you from God. I am not here on my own, but he sent me. Why can’t you understand what I am saying? It’s because you can’t even hear me! For you are the children of your father the devil, and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:42-44). Jesus came to reveal to His people, the Jews, the Kingdom of God. He said to Nicodemus, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God” (John 3:3). In the Beatitudes there are many allusions made by Jesus to the Kingdom of God or Heaven. God’s Kingdom is founded on principles that are, for the most case, the opposite of the kingdom of the world. 

We pilgrims are in a suspended state, living in and between two kingdoms. On the one hand we are children of God, living as citizens in His Kingdom, but on the other hand we are part of the earthly kingdom, subject to all of its laws and challenges. The two kingdoms are incompatible and we seek God daily to help us live as His children amongst a people who are children of the devil and citizens of his kingdom. But we cannot be a citizen of both kingdoms, because the two are irreconcilable. Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 5:19-20, “For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!”” That night before Pilate Jesus proclaimed that He was the King of God’s Kingdom and He has been ever since. And we know that the King gave His life for the sake of His Kingdom – there is no greater sacrifice than that.

Dear Lord Jesus. How can we ever thank You enough, You the King of all kings and the Lord over all lords. We praise You today. Amen.

Criminality

Posted on by korgrocker

“So Pilate, the governor, went out to them and asked, “What is your charge against this man?” “We wouldn’t have handed him over to you if he weren’t a criminal!” they retorted. “Then take him away and judge him by your own law,” Pilate told them. “Only the Romans are permitted to execute someone,” the Jewish leaders replied. (This fulfilled Jesus’ prediction about the way he would die.)”
John 18:29-32 NLT

Jesus, branded a criminal because He claimed to be the Son of God. Someone to be executed because they proclaim the truth. A miscarriage of justice if there ever was one, and a verdict that has had repercussions throughout the last two thousand years. In those days of religious zeal amid a rigid interpretation of the Jewish Law of Moses and the plethora of rabbinical rules and regulations added on since, blasphemy became a crime. The name of God and God Himself became a taboo subject and anyone crossing the red line drawn by the Jewish lawyers, whether mentioned in the Scriptures or not, were in danger of stoning or some other form of execution. But this is not just a feature of the Jewish faith. It emerges in other faiths as well, such as Islam. We have seen in recent years the furore over cartoon pictures of the Prophet Mohammad or the disfigurement of the Koran. The fatwah issued in response to a book written by the author Salmon Rushdie. In the Book of Acts we find a silversmith who ran a company making idols, silver shrines of the goddess Artemis.  Demetrius said, “But as you have seen and heard, this man Paul has persuaded many people that handmade gods aren’t really gods at all. And he’s done this not only here in Ephesus but throughout the entire province!” (Acts 19:26). A riot ensued, and it was only through the political skills of the local mayor that the situation didn’t deteriorate further. 

But in our verses today from John 18, we find Jesus criminalised for speaking the truth. We pilgrims could perhaps find ourselves also criminalised for speaking out in the name of Jesus. Recently, a man in the UK was handed down a large fine and a criminal record for praying silently outside an abortion clinic. The scandal of infanticide continues in our land, legally protected by the Abortion Act of 1967, and in the Uk in 2022 alone there were 251,377 abortions carried out in the name of “healthcare”. In addition, the politicians are discussing other forms of legislation to make it a criminal offence to provide any form of “therapy” (including pastoral care and prayer) for people perhaps confused about which sex or gender they are. Another debate is continuing over changing the law so that people can end their lives with medical assistance. The ideologues call it assisted dying, but it is suicide without any doubts. There are plenty of opportunities for people, Christians and pilgrims like ourselves, to become criminalised for speaking out Biblical truths. But two thousand years ago, the truth that Jesus proclaimed in His “trial” before Caiaphas initiated a process that led to His execution, “ … so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16b).

Over the years since Jesus died there have been many martyrs who stood firm in their witness for the truths of God. The first Christian martyr was Stephen and we can read the account of his death in Acts 7. The words that sealed his fate can be found in Acts 7:55-56, “But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed steadily into heaven and saw the glory of God, and he saw Jesus standing in the place of honour at God’s right hand. And he told them, “Look, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing in the place of honour at God’s right hand!”” In previous verses we find that when Jesus left this world He returned to Heaven, ” ... where Christ sits in the place of honour at God’s right hand” (Colossians 3:1b). But as Stephen gazed upwards he received a vision of Heaven, with Jesus standing there, and I like to think that he was cheering Stephen on and preparing the way for him to enter Glory. Jesus hasn’t stopped cheering us on ever since, as we stand firm in our faith, declaring our allegiance to Biblical truths that declare God’s message for this lost generation.

Dear Lord Jesus. You willingly went to the cross for human beings like us. Because You took on our sins, we can now be righteous in God’s presence, for ever and ever. Amen.


Jewish Traditions

Posted on by korgrocker

“Jesus’ trial before Caiaphas ended in the early hours of the morning. Then he was taken to the headquarters of the Roman governor. His accusers didn’t go inside because it would defile them, and they wouldn’t be allowed to celebrate the Passover. So Pilate, the governor, went out to them and asked, “What is your charge against this man?” “We wouldn’t have handed him over to you if he weren’t a criminal!” they retorted.”
John 18:28-30 NLT

Again, as part of God’s plan, a series of events were unfolding. Having found Jesus “guilty” of what the Jewish leaders considered blasphemy, their next step was to get the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate, to rubber stamp their verdict. But his weakness became apparent immediately, by him pandering to the Jews and their Passover rules and regulations. The Jews considered that entering the house of a Gentile, or having any contact with them before the Passover would render them unclean and unable to celebrate thew festival. But such a rule cannot be found in the Old testament writings and was probably a rabbinical tradition such as alluded to in the conversation between Jesus and the Pharisees in Matthew 15:2-3, “Why do your disciples disobey our age-old tradition? For they ignore our tradition of ceremonial hand washing before they eat.” Jesus replied, “And why do you, by your traditions, violate the direct commandments of God?” Jesus obviously had no time for such traditions, and we even find Him willing to enter a Gentile’s house in Luke 7:2, 6, “At that time the highly valued slave of a Roman officer was sick and near death. … So Jesus went with them. But just before they arrived at the house, the officer sent some friends to say, “Lord, don’t trouble yourself by coming to my home, for I am not worthy of such an honour”. We can read about Peter and Cornelius in Acts 10, where we read, “But the voice spoke again: “Do not call something unclean if God has made it clean.”” (Acts 10:15). So, the fact that the Jews refused to enter the house of the Roman governor was not Scriptural and was a symptom of the way they had interpreted the Law for their own purposes.

Do we have any rules and regulations in our churches that we cannot find in the Bible? There are many I’m sure. For a start, the Bible doesn’t specifically call for buildings, called churches, to be built, although these can be convenient meeting place. And what about the custom of some who have introduced bells and incense at certain times in a formal time of worship. Where in the New Testament does that come from? The go-to verse for me is from Acts 2:46, “They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity—”. There is that sense of community not liturgy. Sharing with one another, not sitting in pews watching the minister. I have always favoured simplicity in my Christian life, without the added complications of forms of service or complicated liturgies. The Jewish faith became so complicated that Jesus gave the Pharisees a hard time when He said, “What sorrow awaits you Pharisees! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore justice and the love of God. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things” (Luke 11:42). When rules replace the love and worship of God then the worship is replaced by legalism. The sad thing is that the Pharisees thought that if they can follow all the rules then their salvation was assured. But there is a human tendency for favouring routine and neglecting the spontaneity of the Holy Spirit.

Traditions are not necessarily bad or to be avoided but, as Jesus said, we must not “ignore justice and the love of God”. It is a sometimes a scary life, to rely on the Holy Spirit. He will lead us into all sorts of situations, as we are obedient to His leading. But we must always remain close to God, because only He has the words of eternal life.

Dear Father God. We love you Lord. We praise and worship You every day and all day. Amen.

The Trial

Posted on by korgrocker

“Jesus’ trial before Caiaphas ended in the early hours of the morning. Then he was taken to the headquarters of the Roman governor. His accusers didn’t go inside because it would defile them, and they wouldn’t be allowed to celebrate the Passover.”
John 18:28

There are more details of Jesus’ trial before Caiaphas and the Jewish leaders in Matthew 26. In Matthew’s account, and standing before His accusers, we read that Jesus remained silent, as the leaders desperately tried to find anyone who could say anything, even lies, that would warrant the death sentence. Matthew recorded that there was no shortage of false witnesses, but what they had to say was not admissible even in this kangaroo court. Matthew 26:60b-61, ” …  Finally, two men came forward who declared, “This man said, ‘I am able to destroy the Temple of God and rebuild it in three days’””. They of course were quoting what Jesus said in John 2:19, 21, ““All right,” Jesus replied. “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” … But when Jesus said “this temple,” he meant his own body.” Even with this “evidence” presented to Him, Jesus still remained silent. And then we read the final question, “ … Then the high priest said to him, “I demand in the name of the living God—tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.” Jesus replied, “You have said it. And in the future you will see the Son of Man seated in the place of power at God’s right hand and coming on the clouds of heaven”” (John 18:63-64). Jesus didn’t have to say that, but I wonder if He realised that the trial wasn’t going very well for the authorities, and He had to say something that, although factually true, would enable the Sanhedrin to deliver a guilty verdict. If the trial collapsed then Jesus would not have been able to complete His mission on Calvary’s cross. The verdict was blasphemy and the council delivered their guilty verdict. But they weren’t out of the woods yet – the Jews did not have the power to execute anyone, so they now had to convince the Roman governor to rubber stamp their verdict.

What a sham! But if we try and superimpose Jesus’ advent on any other period in history, the outcome would probably have been very different. Today, Jesus would never have got anywhere near a court of any type, law or otherwise. The authorities would have written Him off as just one more deluded individual and ignored Him. But Paul wrote in Romans 5:6, “When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners“. God had a plan for the salvation of humans, and as He looked upon the history of the world laid out before Him, He could see when the right time would be. “Just the right time” occurred two thousand years or so ago, and God’s plan was completed, a plan that we pilgrims are so grateful for. 

This morning, as we consider what Jesus did for us, we bring to Him our humanity, our difficulties, our desire to please Him, our love for Him, our gratitude, and if fact everything we are, into the light of His presence, and on our knees in worship. In our minds we see a glimpse of what Jesus went through. He knew what issues we face today, but He experienced them too. We might struggle with religious persecution from secular authorities who think they know better than God. But so did Jesus. We might find ourselves being tempted by the devil, but so did Jesus. And today, as we face into many different issues, we know that there is a Man in Heaven interceding for us. Romans 8:34, “Who then will condemn us? No one—for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honour at God’s right hand, pleading for us“. Somehow, with this truth planted deep within our hearts, our problems don’t seem quite so bad. I look back over a life, a roller-coaster of good and bad times, and see the results of Jesus interceding for me. Helping me make the right decisions. Keeping me safe in times of trial and adversity. Lifting me up when I had fallen. Carrying me when I was unable to cope with what was around me. How can I ever stop thanking Jesus for all He has done for me? And I’m sure that applies for many of my readers today. Let’s join together in praise today to the One who never flinched when before a hostile court, but instead could see you and me floundering and dying in our sins, and willingly went to the cross to take the punishment we so richly deserved upon Himself instead.

Dear Lord Jesus. How can we ever thank You? One day we will join the angels as we praise You fore all eternity. Amen.

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