The Word Made Plain

Guest (Male): Welcome to the Word Made Plain with senior pastor Tony Clark of Calvary Chapel Newport News in Virginia. Currently, Pastor Tony is teaching in the book of John. Please open your Bible to John chapter 19 verses 1 through 6.

Tony Clark: All right, let's dive into the word of God together. Turn with me in your Bibles to John chapter 19. As we continue to study the word of God, we find ourselves in chapter 19 looking at verses 1 through 6. And Father, we pray that as we study your word that you would speak into our hearts the truths that are in your word. And we pray, Lord, that you will reveal the secrets of our hearts. And Lord, that we will leave here knowing that you are in this place, that you're in the midst of us. So speak, Lord, today in Jesus' name.

Amen. John chapter 19 looking at verses 1 through 6. Uh the title of this message is autopilot part one. Autopilot If you notice the spelling of pilot part one. Now we have been studying the trial of Jesus before the Roman governor Pontius Pilate. However, we have seen that it is really Pilate who is on trial because how he handles this case would have devastating consequences in this life and in the life to come. We saw last week in chapter 18 that Pilate was trying to appease the crowd by taking the middle ground and satisfying the religious leaders' desire to kill Jesus and free himself of the responsibility of condemning an innocent man.

So he tries to appeal to a Jewish custom in verse 39 of releasing a prisoner during Passover. We saw that it didn't work because in verse 40 they said, not this man, but but Abba. Then John tells us that he was a murderer. You remember I mentioned last week that I would go more in detail on Barabbas. I said I would do that this week. Well, here we are this week. And so let me just go into a little more detail about Barabbas and to show us that whether we believe it or not, whether we want to accept it or not, we are Barabbas too.

Or let's look at this. Barabbas was not just an ordinary common thief like verse 40 seems to suggest. Matthew 27 verse 16 calls him a notorious prisoner. Mark 15 7 calls him an insurrectionist or a rebel. Luke 23 verse 19 and Acts 3 verse 14 says that he was a murderer. And many scholars believe that he was a part of the revolt that took place in AD 66 through 70. Some even say that he was part of this rebel group called the Zealots that tried to overthrow Rome using hand-to-hand combat. Now what is so interesting is that his name Barabbas comes from two Aramaic words, Bar which means son and Abba father.

So his name means son of the father. Oh, it gets better than this. History tells us that his first name was Yeshua or Jesus. And so Pilate said that, you know, Pilate So what Pilate could have said or how he could have read is like this, who do you want me to release, Jesus Barabbas or Jesus son of the father? You want Barabbas or Jesus? Do you want a murderer or the master? Do you want an insurrectionist or the resurrectionist? However, Jesus goes to the cross and Barabbas is set free. Oh, the same is true today with us.

As I mentioned earlier, we are Barabbas too. Jesus went to the cross in our place so that we can be set free. I'm Barabbas and so are you. Barabbas was a notorious prisoner. And how many of us are notorious for being in the prison of unforgiveness? How many of us are notorious for holding a grudge? So we we are Barabbas too. Barabbas was a murderer and so are we. Oh, how many times have we murdered people with our anger, which Jesus said is at the root of all murders? Barabbas was an insurrectionist or rebel. And how many times have we stirred up a revolt in our homes or on the job causing a rebellion to take place?

Is you and the kids against the father? Oh, we are Barabbas. Barabbas was a robber. And how many times have we taken things that didn't belong to us? Yes, we are Barabbas and we deserve death on the cross, but Jesus took our place so that we can be set free like we see in these verses here. Oh, what happened next? Look at verse one. So then Pilate took Jesus and scourged him. Pilate had already declared in chapter 18 and verse 38 that Jesus was innocent, that he found no fault in him at all. So by taking Jesus and scourging him shows that he was going deeper into the pit of injustice to try to appease the crowd.

And seeing that his plan of releasing Jesus failed, he thought, what can I do to appease this blood thirsty crowd just short of crucifying an innocent man? He said, I will scourge him like verse one says. Now scourging was a cruel process that Romans used to get information out of people. And they would take the individual hands and tie them behind a pole with their bare back exposed. And they would take a instrument called the flagellum, which was a wooden handle with 12 leather straps. And at the end of each strap were small balls which were made of crushed bone and metal.

And they will have a scribe next to the victim who will write down the confession of their crimes. And Roman soldiers often would take turns and they will alternate. When one got tired, another would start beating. When he got tired, the other one was up. And many times the victims would die under scourge under this scourging process because of the loss of blood and also because their veins and muscles and internal organs would be exposed by the whipping. And under Jewish law, a person could get up to 40 lashes, but they would stop at 39 which is the number of mercy.

Roman law didn't have such limits and the whipping could last until the commander stopped it or the victim died. Now keep in mind that Jesus went through all of this even before the cross. He went through this with us in mind. And surely after this scourging, after this beating, turning the back of Jesus into hamburger of some sort, surely this was this was it. They were done with them. What happened next? Look at verse two. And the soldiers twisted a crown of thorns and put it on his head. And they put on him a purple robe.

Now if the beating or if the whipping was not enough, the Roman soldiers amused themselves in a kind of mock worship. And they placed a crown of thorns on the head of Jesus. And this was not some common rose bush thorns. These thorns were a inch and a half long. Then Matthew 27 and verse 29 says that they put a reed in his hand as a kind of scepter. And they bowed the knee mockingly saying, hail king of the Jews. And it is believed that prior to giving Jesus the reed, they used it to beat the crown of thorns on his head penetrating his skull with the thorns causing blood to run down his face.

And this is why I believe that we need to teach our children about what Jesus endured and went through for us. Or what Jesus went through today will be called bullying. He was mocked and made fun of. He was beat up by Roman soldiers all because the religious leaders were envious and jealous of him. Isaiah 53 and verse 3 says that Jesus is a man of sorrows acquainted with grief. And for those of us who have children who are being bullied, we need to tell your children that Jesus was bullied too and he understands what they are going through.

Then on the cross, Jesus tells some of these same soldiers who did this to him. Jesus prayed to the Father and said, Father, forgive them for they know not what they do. Jesus endured all of this because of his great love for us. And as a parent, you do all you can to protect your children by going up to the school, talking to other parents. But don't forget to teach them these verses and tell them that Jesus understands and loves them and to pray for their bullies just like Jesus prayed for these Roman soldiers who bullied him.

Now truly they were finished mocking Jesus, right? Look at verse three. Then they said, hail king of the Jews. And they struck him with their hands. Now as these Roman soldiers approach Jesus to pretend to bow down and worship him, suddenly they changed their minds and struck him in the face with their hands. Oh, these soldiers played a cruel Roman game called hot hand where they will blindfold an individual and strike them in the face. And you had to guess who it was who hit you. And this is so devastating because God made our our bodies with incredible reflexes.

The Bible says we're fearfully and wonderfully made. These reflexes protect our bodies from injuries. Our reflexes cushion the blows coming against the body. It allows the body to soften the blows coming against it. And as many of you know, a quarterback gets hurt when he is blindsided because he can't see the blow coming against him and allow his reflexes to react. And just think about it. Jesus had 600 soldiers playing this game with him. So this means that he took the beating of 600 soldiers while blindfolded. And when they finished, you know that he was disfigured beyond recognition.

Oh, some scholars even suggest that this is one reason why some people didn't recognize him after the resurrection because of this beating he endured at this time. And then can I pause right here, may may I please just pause right here and say maybe you have someone in your life playing hot hand with you. And God has never made you to be a punching bag for anyone. No one should be playing hot hand with you. You should never settle for this. Jesus was beaten so you would never have to be beaten. And so if this is happening to you, the first thing is to get them in some serious counseling.

If that doesn't stop, then you get out while you can before you're beaten beyond recognition or worse yet, you even lose your life. So now what happened next? Look at verse four. Pilate then went out again and said to to them, behold, I'm bringing him out to you that you may know that I find no fault in him. Now the first part of this verse shows that Pilate went back out to this angry mob and said, behold, I'm bringing him out to you that you may know I find no fault in him. Oh, the phrase, behold, I'm bringing him out to you seems to imply that Pilate sat back and and watched as Jesus was being whipped and beaten up by the soldiers thinking that it would appease the crowd.

Oh, let me say never teach your children to sit back and watch someone else get beat up or mistreated as the crowd of children have their phones out recording the whole situation. Because in essence, this is what Pilate did. Parents, adults, never sit back and watch someone on the job or out in public get mistreated. Oh, I'm not saying that you have to physically get involved, but everyone has a cell phone. Therefore, call someone who can do something about the situation. And if you don't do something, you're no different than Pilate here watching as his Roman soldiers did this to Jesus because he was too afraid to do the right thing and let Jesus go.

Never be afraid to do the right thing. He says the second time at the end of this verse, I find no fault in him. Oh, I have to pause here and just ask us, what what are your enemies saying about you? I guarantee you whatever it is they're saying about you that is true. Oh, she thinks she's all that. You know why? Because you think you all that. Oh, he's prideful. He's cocky. He's you know, this. Whatever they're saying about you and about me is probably true. This is what the enemies of Jesus were saying about him.

I find no fault in him. The the wife of Pilate said have nothing to do with this righteous man. The centurion at the cross said truly this was a righteous person. Judas, I have betrayed innocent blood. This is what the enemies of Jesus were saying about him. I find no fault in him. This is the second time he said this. Look what he says there in verse five. Then Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate said to them, behold the man. Now here is Jesus emerging from the shadows of the Praetorium into the light of the early morning wearing a crown of thorns with blood running down his disfigured face.

A purple robe on. And Pilate said to this angry mob, behold the man. Pilate was hoping that Jesus in this condition would provoke them to having sympathy on him. And when Pilate said behold the man, he was also saying that this man is no threat to you nor to Rome. Look at this man. Pilate saying behold the man could also mean to us look at what he went through for us. Isaiah 52 and verse 14 says that Jesus was marred more than any man. In other words, when Jesus went through the whipping and the the the beating by 600 soldiers, you could not even tell that he was a man.

I believe that sometimes we can hear what Jesus went through for us. And over time it loses impact upon our lives. I would suggest that sometime in the near future that in the quietness of the early morning before everyone wakes up or late at night when everyone has gone to bed, that you think about and meditate on these verses that talks about what Jesus went through to purchase our salvation, to bring us back to God either by meditating on these verses or by watching that portion in the movie The Passion of the Christ that graphically depicted what Jesus endured during the scourging process.

Because sometime like water off a duck's back, it sometime over time what Jesus accomplished to purchase our salvation has lost something in our lives that we it it doesn't move us to tears to think about what he went through for us. It it's just words that we read. It doesn't impact and we go back to thinking about our selfish thoughts and our selfish life and what we don't have and what we need and what we want to see happen, what we want God to do for us. And it loses something that when we hear about this scourging and we haven't even got to the verses dealing with the cross yet, that it doesn't move us emotionally.

We're almost like this crowd. When Jesus came out, they saw Jesus. Pilate thought it would move them to be compassionate toward them. And instead they said, crucify him. And I I I just think that when we hear and we when when I try to paint a picture for us what Jesus went through for us that it doesn't move us to compassion, doesn't move us emotionally. And we're no different than the crowd here. Look what it says there in verse six. It says therefore when the chief priest and the officers saw him, they cried out saying, crucify him, crucify him.

Pilate said to them, you take him and crucify him. I find no fault in him. The third time he says this. Pilate's desire to elicit any sympathy backfired because the chief priest and officers saw him. And like sharks that sense blood in the water, they cried out, crucify him, crucify him. And Pilate tried to put the responsibility upon them again like he did in verse 31. You take him and crucify him for I find no fault in him. You know, history tells us that shortly after this Pilate was released of his duties and was sent to Sicily, Rome and there committed suicide.

I believe that Pilate was haunted by the thought of not standing up for a man that he knew was innocent, haunted by the thought that he didn't do the right thing, haunted by the thought that his wife told him in another gospel, have nothing to do with this righteous man for I suffered many things in the dream because of him. And I believe he's haunted by those thoughts of the bad decision that he made. And he took his own life. And maybe you're here and you have made some bad decisions in your life like Pilate did here.

And you're haunted by the thought of your bad decisions and you are having suicidal thoughts. Please understand that Jesus died in your place so that you can live. Live for Jesus today. Jesus said, I have come that you might have life, that you might have it more abundantly. Jesus wants you to live. He died so you can live. And this is what we have to see. The Bible is made very clear in Psalm 139. It made it very clear that, hey, that God knows the days that we're going to live upon this earth before we even take one of them.

So allow that appointment with death be what God sets for you and not what you set. Let it be what God sets unless the Lord comes back and takes us. And that's a whole different thing. But Jesus died so you can live. So how did these religious leaders respond to Pilate? Well, we will see God's will next week when we pick it up in verse seven. And we're going to see some things in these verses is just going to be amazing. Let me conclude with this. We saw how Pilate stood by and allowed for Jesus, an innocent man, to be whipped, beat up and mocked.

Let us not put our conscious on autopilot and sit by as innocent people are being mistreated, talked about or bullied. Don't allow your children to do this either all in the name of I don't want to get involved. And if you like Pilate have made some bad decisions and you're having thoughts of suicide, please realize that Jesus died so that you can live. Live for Jesus today. Live for the one who died for you. And finally, if you're here and you've never repented of your sin and accepted Christ as your Lord and Savior today is the day of salvation for you.

The Bible says today if you will hear his voice, don't harden your heart. Also take some time in the very near future to meditate on what Jesus went through for you to purchase your salvation. He died for your mess, your sin, your anger, your jealousy, your envy, your lust. Oh, he's died for us. And take time to meditate what he what he went through even before he got on the cross. And if it doesn't move you in some kind of way, then say God, something's not right with my heart. Lord, search me, search my heart.

Something's not right in there. Because if it doesn't move you, something's not right in your heart. I'm serious. And I'm not talking about just move us. Ladies, you can be moved by this. Men, we are we're we're just when it comes to being moved emotionally, it it it almost would take the earth coming to an end to move us in any kind of way. So we need to we need to Lord, something's not right here. Lord, soften our hearts. Help us to understand what you've gone through for us. I think we look at this thing called salvation.

We look at it as, okay, I believe I believe in God. I come to church occasionally. I don't read my Bible. I pray. And I And And I I just I just think our brand of Christianity today I was talking to my wife about this. When when I got saved over 30 years ago, there's a different Christianity. Christianity that we see today we called carnal Christians, lukewarm. We called you're not even a believer at all. But today those people are looked at as right-on believers today.

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