Operation: The entire flow of events during Jesus' trial is confusing, and principle among those confusing elements is the fact that Pilate had the authority to crucify an innocent man. That is the nature of Pilate's behavior here. He has heard the charges, questioned Jesus, and publicly declared more than once that Jesus is innocent of any crime. However, he then says he can - and in fact does - sentence Jesus to death.
Jesus is of course correct in stating Pilate only has the "authority" given to him by God. However, the fact that everyone involved here thinks it is a normal thing for the Roman governor to declare a Jew innocent of any crime, and then secondarily decide whether or not the person should be punished by death ... well, there is almost no way to reconcile this logic. Yet even the Jewish leaders concur that the Romans have the authority to kill a person who is found innocent of any crime, pushing the matter over and over until Pilate relents.
Application: I have assessed both the confusion and nuance of Jesus' trial before, which includes issues like ... Jesus truly becoming a replacement in death for another human, the Jews pursuing their laws while ignoring those same laws, and many other aspects. Today, I am struck by a different reality ... a universal acceptance by everyone in the story that it's okay to just decide to kill a Jew for no reason.
This is troubling, but it is also likely consistent with the treatment of the Jews as God's people. Under any sane reading of this passage, anyone should be concerned with the idea that the government could put a person on trial, find them innocent, and then just shrug and say, "but I guess we'll throw him into the electric chair anyway because some of y'all don't like him."
When it comes to Jesus, I have never once heard that reaction from anyone.
And still today, we see people supporting terror groups who kill Jews because some are confused about who may or may not own land in the middle east. Terrorists attack hundreds of unarmed teens, and our own teens and young adults are not horrified, but think "well maybe they shouldn't have been there." Other nations send the largest missile assault in history at Israel, and around the world people are angry that Israel mostly defended itself from said attack, and then had the audacity to reciprocate.
I just don't know what to say. Why are people not shocked by how the Jews have been treated for thousands of years? And how in the world would anyone not look at those facts and realize that there is something going on here that is bigger, deeper, and more evil than simply a political debate about who should be allowed to live in what desert.
Prayer: Lord, I pray for Israel specifically, and for Jews around the world in general. I know several, and I know they are your chosen people. Our salvation comes through the Jews. Please protect them as individuals, and please broadly protect the nation of Israel. May more and more people become aware and perceive that there is way more at stake here than a few villages in a place they've never been. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment