Pontius Pilate knew Jesus was innocent, yet he chose to placate the people rather than release Him. But the courage he lacked, you can show today.
Notes:
Focus verses - John 18, 19
By definition, a coward is someone who lacks the courage to face difficult or painful things.
Pontius Pilate saw an angry crowd that threatened his position.
He was more afraid of the consequences than he was of God.
#1 The Prefect Meets the Perfect
John 18:28-38
Jesus, the PERFECT Son of God stands before Pontius Pilate, the Roman appointed PREFECT Governor of Judea.
Prefect Governor means he was a military focused governor.
The religious leaders knew exactly what they were doing when they brought Jesus to Pilate.
The man known for using power harshly becomes hesitant and weak when confronted by Jesus.
“What is truth?”
Jesus was the incarnation of truth.
Read verse 37.
Jesus came to bring truth.
Truth divides.
Like Pilate, we all must make a decision regarding Jesus. Neutrality is not an option.
Pilate attempts to appeal to the crowd logically, in an attempt to get Jesus released.
#2 Pilate Blinks
John 18:39-19:6
Just like Neville Chamberlain blinked in the face of tyranny, Pilate blinks in the face of Truth.
He knows Jesus is innocent.
But instead of releasing Jesus, he tries to placate the people.
Pilate offers the crowd a choice: Jesus or Barabbas.
No better picture of the gospel than this right here. The cross Barabbas was to die on was already constructed, the arrangements were made, and he had hours left to live. Barabbas was guilty, but Jesus was innocent.
This is what Jesus has done for us.
We’ve committed a crime by violating God’s commands, we’re guilty, and the penalty is death. But God made a way for us to be delivered out of death, out of our guilt, and that’s what Jesus ultimately did on the cross.
2 Corinthians 5:21
Jesus took Barabbas’ place on that cross.
The crowd chooses Barabbas.
Pilate didn’t need any Passover custom to release an innocent man, he just needed to do what was right.
When the crowd decided against Jesus, he thought he might have one more trick up his sleeve.
He released Barabbas, and scourged Jesus in hopes it'd satisfy the angry crowd.
Pilate brought Jesus out one final time.
He thought that if he give the crowd a little bit of what they want they’ll be happy, they’ll change their minds, they’ll reverse course.
Pilate blinked.
He thought he could use diplomacy and compromise to get himself out of a difficult position.
Compromise doesn’t calm the mob, it fuels it.
Compromise is part of life.
But when it comes to THE Truth, when it comes to Christ, compromise should not be part of the equation.
To compromise on who Jesus is, is to invent another Jesus.
Only the real Jesus saves.
Pilate’s appeasement of the crowd is not just a political failure—it’s a picture of what happens when leaders, Christians, and even churches try to compromise truth to satisfy the demands of culture.
If you play both sides, offering a little truth, softened by a lot of concession and mix in some human empathy, and you end up with the crucifixion.
A complete and utter rejection of everything Jesus is and was.
We cannot untether EMPATHY from TRUTH.
Just because someone feels a certain way does not mean we abandon truth.
As Christians we are called to offer COMPASSION not COMPROMISE.
Let’s bring this message to a close now.
Read John 19:12–16
#3 Pilate judged the Judge.
Pilate crucifies Him.
The fear of man outweighed the fear of God.
Jesus threatened to disrupt Pilate’s cushy role, and so he gave in to peer pressure and he judged the Judge.
In Revelation 20 at the Great White Throne judgement, the judged will face the Judge.
Pilate symbolically washed his hands of Jesus.
But you cannot wash yourself of your sins.
You either receive Him or reject Him.
“You are either for me or against me.”
Have you trusted Jesus as Savior and made Him the Lord of your life?
The courage that Pilate lacked, you can show today.
Jesus said "Everyone who acknowledges me publicly here on earth, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven" (Matthew 10:32 NLT)
We are just like Barabbas.
Guilty and headed for judgement.
But Jesus came in, not accidentally, but intentionally and took that punishment we deserved and He died on a cross for our sin.
Like those soldiers around Jack Lucas, he dove on those grenades and absorbed their destruction, that’s what Jesus did for us!
He absorbed God’s righteous judgement and drank the cup of His wrath that was going to be poured out on us because of our spiritual rebellion against God.
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