John 18:1-40
This chapter records the events leading up the the crucifixion. As I read over these once again the unfairness of all of these situations stands out to me. There is so much evil in each situation and I am ashamed to realize that all of these same actions and attitudes are bound up in my sinful heart. But for God's grace I would do all of these and more. As we look at each stage of this process I want to examine the evil attitudes that are displayed along the way and hopefully learn to avoid these in my own life.
THE BETRAYAL OF CHRIST: The fact that Judas had spent so much time with Christ and seen all that He did and still was so greedy for money that he betrayed Christ into the hands of these evil men is astounding to me. It shows me just how dangerous money can be and how it can motivate us to do desperately wicked things. The other thing that just astounds me in this situation is that when Christ identified Himself as "I am He" they all fell down and then had the audacity to get up, dust themselves off and then continue doing what they were doing in the first place. We must beware of the fact that sin will be very persistent in our lives and we will often be blind to our own depravity.
THE TRIAL OF CHRIST: Theses religious leaders meet under the cover of darkness to try to accuse Jesus of some wrong doing. They pretend to be holy and just as they lie, hide and manipulate everyone around them in order to be able to continue with their sinful abuse of power. Self preservation and self promotion are instincts that each of us posses that can lead us into all kinds of sinful attitudes and actions. We must not allow our own ambitions to blind us to the consequences of our deeds.
THE DENIAL OF CHRIST: Peter can see what is happening to Christ and knows that any association with Christ at this point in time would likely result in him experiencing the same treatment. What Peter forgot in all of this situation was the sovereignty and omnipotence of God. He had earlier declared that Christ was God so he knew that nothing could happen to him without it being a part of God's plan and purpose. He should have boldly defended Christ and proudly confessed his association and loyalty to Christ. In so doing, he would have demonstrated his trust in the Lord and been a shining example for all of us to follow in the face of persecution. Later on Peter did this very thing but in this instance he failed. We must never allow fear of men to cause our hearts to sin by turning our backs on God or the truths of His Word.
THE REFUSAL OF CHRIST: Pilate had no desire to judge Christ or involve himself in any of this process. He was bullied into doing so by political pressure and his desire to please the people. Pilate knew that Christ was innocent and tried to release Him, but the people refused to receive Christ who had healed many in their midst, taught them the truth of God's Word, miraculously provided food for them and even raised people from the dead in their presence. It is so easy to forget the grace of God and His many gifts in our lives. It is also for us to be very stubborn in our sin and blind to what we are doing. We must pray that we will have a sensitivity to God and His work in our lives as well as a willingness to recognize our errors.
THE BETRAYAL OF CHRIST: The fact that Judas had spent so much time with Christ and seen all that He did and still was so greedy for money that he betrayed Christ into the hands of these evil men is astounding to me. It shows me just how dangerous money can be and how it can motivate us to do desperately wicked things. The other thing that just astounds me in this situation is that when Christ identified Himself as "I am He" they all fell down and then had the audacity to get up, dust themselves off and then continue doing what they were doing in the first place. We must beware of the fact that sin will be very persistent in our lives and we will often be blind to our own depravity.
THE TRIAL OF CHRIST: Theses religious leaders meet under the cover of darkness to try to accuse Jesus of some wrong doing. They pretend to be holy and just as they lie, hide and manipulate everyone around them in order to be able to continue with their sinful abuse of power. Self preservation and self promotion are instincts that each of us posses that can lead us into all kinds of sinful attitudes and actions. We must not allow our own ambitions to blind us to the consequences of our deeds.
THE DENIAL OF CHRIST: Peter can see what is happening to Christ and knows that any association with Christ at this point in time would likely result in him experiencing the same treatment. What Peter forgot in all of this situation was the sovereignty and omnipotence of God. He had earlier declared that Christ was God so he knew that nothing could happen to him without it being a part of God's plan and purpose. He should have boldly defended Christ and proudly confessed his association and loyalty to Christ. In so doing, he would have demonstrated his trust in the Lord and been a shining example for all of us to follow in the face of persecution. Later on Peter did this very thing but in this instance he failed. We must never allow fear of men to cause our hearts to sin by turning our backs on God or the truths of His Word.
THE REFUSAL OF CHRIST: Pilate had no desire to judge Christ or involve himself in any of this process. He was bullied into doing so by political pressure and his desire to please the people. Pilate knew that Christ was innocent and tried to release Him, but the people refused to receive Christ who had healed many in their midst, taught them the truth of God's Word, miraculously provided food for them and even raised people from the dead in their presence. It is so easy to forget the grace of God and His many gifts in our lives. It is also for us to be very stubborn in our sin and blind to what we are doing. We must pray that we will have a sensitivity to God and His work in our lives as well as a willingness to recognize our errors.
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