John 18:28-40
(sermon note: 03-15-1 sermon note)
28 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. 29 So Pilate, the governor, went out to them and asked, “What is your charge against this man?”
30 “We wouldn’t have handed him over to you if he weren’t a criminal!” they retorted.
31 “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. 32 (This fulfilled Jesus’ prediction about the way he would die.)
33 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.
34 Jesus replied, “Is this your own question, or did others tell you about me?”
35 “Am I a Jew?” Pilate retorted. “Your own people and their leading priests brought you to me for trial. Why? What have you done?”
36 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.”
37 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.”
38 “What is truth?” Pilate asked. Then he went out again to the people and told them, “He is not guilty of any crime. 39 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’?”
40 But they shouted back, “No! Not this man. We want Barabbas!” (Barabbas was a revolutionary.)
This morning’s reading AND my recent trip to New York City reminds of the one about a mother and her young daughter were likewise visiting New York City. The mother was trying to hail a cab when her daughter noticed several wildly dressed women who were milling about on a nearby street corner. The mother finally hailed her cab and they both climbed in, at which point the young daughter asked, “Mommy, what are all those ladies waiting for by that corner?” The mother replied, “Those ladies are waiting for their husbands to come by and pick them up on the way home from work.” The cabby heard this exchange, turned to the mother, and said, “Ah, c’mon lady! Tell your daughter the truth! For crying out loud! They’re hookers!” A brief period of silence followed, and the daughter then asked, “Mommy, do the hooker ladies have any children?” The mother quietly replied, “Of course, dear. Where do you think cabbies come from?”
And that, my friends, is one of the many reasons we need mothers in the world! Their ability to wisely handle the inquisitiveness of children is second to none. Men, well, you heard how we tend to do it. Rather than protect children from some difficult truths in this world, men tend to speak freely with little concern for childish sensitivities. Oh, how men can be brutish at times! But we can’t be too critical of that cabby. Maybe he was just as ashamed of those hookers as the mother and was hoping that by telling the young girl the truth of who they were that she could work to avoid such a profession. Or better yet work to help other women in the future avoid such a profession. What a shameful profession to expect women to wildly advertise their bodies on street corners! No, we can’t be too critical of that poor cabby for wanting to expose the truth about the hookers regardless of the young girl’s sensitivities.
Nor can we be too critical of Pilate wanting to expose the truth of why Jesus had been sent to him by the religious leaders. It was rather unusual that anyone would bring a man to Pilate to be judged and hopefully condemned to death when the man hadn’t even committed a crime. Jesus hadn’t even committed a crime worthy enough to be arrested for, let alone put to death for! Unless, of course, it could be proven that Jesus believed he was mightier than Caesar which was a crime in ancient Rome. Hence, why Pilate tried to catch Jesus identifying as a king or someone with power greater than Caesar. Pilate was simply an authority figure presented with an unusual situation and trying to justify using his power to judge and condemn. And he was hoping that the truth of Jesus’ crime would somehow help. Unfortunately, Jesus hadn’t committed a crime. He didn’t even identify as a king or someone with power greater than Caesar. Sure, he had amassed great crowds of followers, but they were peaceful crowds, not the riotous crowds that the religious leaders tried to make them out to be. No, Jesus had committed no crime and therefore didn’t deserve to be judged or condemned.
At the height of this heated exchange between Jesus and Pilate, Pilate asked a profound question: “What is truth?” Both the cabby and Pilate wanted truth to be revealed. Heck, we ALL want an answer to this profoundly important question! Why? The cabby wanted the truth exposed possibly to rid the city of an unfortunate profession. Pilate wanted the truth exposed to justify the use of his power. Both men received unexpected results when it was exposed. A snide remark from a mother and the mob choosing Barrabas over Jesus. It appears that exposing truth comes with unexpected results so why would we even seek out an answer to the question, “What is truth?” What is so important about knowing truth? Perhaps because in truth there is redemption. In truth there is justification. In truth there is salvation. Friends, these are no small gifts from truth. All three of them lead to light and life. True life! True joy! When we are redeemed, justified, and saved, we can experience true joy in this life. Jesus tells us, “And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:32) In truth, we are freed of all that keeps us from joy in this life. We are freed to love and serve our neighbor the way that Jesus wants us to. This is the freedom of a Christian that Luther so boldly proclaimed about.
Jesus also said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.” (14:6) Pilate certainly didn’t understand exactly who was standing in front of him. He wanted to know why Jesus was standing before him, not necessarily who Jesus is. So it is with too many people. The only way to truly know Jesus is to place your trust in him, to let him lead your life. He IS the way, the truth, and the life! The psalmist tells us, “The Lord is close to all who call on him, yes, to all who call on him in truth.” (145:18) Let us welcome Jesus into our hearts and lives. Let us trust him and the truth he brings. Most importantly, let us give thanks for the truth within him. Thanks be to God!
In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
