“JESUS THE NAZARENE, THE KING OF THE JEWS.” - Is He Your King too?

John 18:28-19:22    Jesus before Pilate

²⁸ Then they *led Jesus from Caiaphas into the Praetorium, and it was early; and they themselves did not enter into the Praetorium so that they would not be defiled, but might eat the Passover. ²⁹ Therefore Pilate went out to them and *said, “What accusation do you bring against this Man?” ³⁰ They answered and said to him, “If this Man were not an evildoer, we would not have delivered Him to you.” ³¹ So Pilate said to them, “Take Him yourselves, and judge Him according to your law.” The Jews said to him, “We are not permitted to put anyone to death,” ³² to fulfill the word of Jesus which He spoke, signifying by what kind of death He was about to die.

³³ Therefore Pilate entered again into the Praetorium, and summoned Jesus and said to Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?” ³⁴ Jesus answered, “Are you saying this on your own initiative, or did others tell you about Me?” ³⁵ Pilate answered, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests delivered You to me; what have You done?” ³⁶ Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm.” ³⁷ Therefore Pilate said to Him, “So You are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.” ³⁸ Pilate *said to Him, “What is truth?”

And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews and *said to them, “I find no guilt in Him. ³⁹ But you have a custom that I release someone for you at the Passover; do you wish then that I release for you the King of the Jews?” ⁴⁰ So they cried out again, saying, “Not this Man, but Barabbas.” Now Barabbas was a robber.

The Crown of Thorns

19 Pilate then took Jesus and scourged Him. ² And the soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on His head, and put a purple robe on Him; ³ and they began to come up to Him and say, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and to give Him slaps in the face. ⁴ Pilate came out again and *said to them, “Behold, I am bringing Him out to you so that you may know that I find no guilt in Him.” ⁵ Jesus then came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate *said to them, “Behold, the Man!” ⁶ So when the chief priests and the officers saw Him, they cried out saying, “Crucify, crucify!” Pilate *said to them, “Take Him yourselves and crucify Him, for I find no guilt in Him.” ⁷ The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and by that law He ought to die because He made Himself out to be the Son of God.”

⁸ Therefore when Pilate heard this statement, he was even more afraid; ⁹ and he entered into the Praetorium again and *said to Jesus, “Where are You from?” But Jesus gave him no answer. ¹⁰ So Pilate *said to Him, “You do not speak to me? Do You not know that I have authority to release You, and I have authority to crucify You?” ¹¹ Jesus answered, “You would have no authority over Me, unless it had been given you from above; for this reason he who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.” ¹² As a result of this Pilate made efforts to release Him, but the Jews cried out saying, “If you release this Man, you are no friend of Caesar; everyone who makes himself out to be a king opposes Caesar.”

¹³ Therefore when Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out, and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The Pavement, but in Hebrew, Gabbatha. ¹⁴ Now it was the day of preparation for the Passover; it was about the sixth hour. And he *said to the Jews, “Behold, your King!” ¹⁵ So they cried out, “Away with Him, away with Him, crucify Him!” Pilate *said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar.”

The Crucifixion

¹⁶ So he then handed Him over to them to be crucified.

¹⁷ They took Jesus, therefore, and He went out, bearing His own cross, to the place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha. ¹⁸ There they crucified Him, and with Him two other men, one on either side, and Jesus in between. ¹⁹ Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross. It was written, “JESUS THE NAZARENE, THE KING OF THE JEWS.” ²⁰ Therefore many of the Jews read this inscription, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Latin and in Greek. ²¹ So the chief priests of the Jews were saying to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews’; but that He said, ‘I am King of the Jews.’” ²² Pilate answered, “What I have written I have written.”

What tremendous irony we see at the beginning of the text. It says:   Then they *led Jesus from Caiaphas into the Praetorium, and it was early; and they themselves did not enter into the Praetorium so that they would not be defiled, but might eat the Passover.    These religious leaders were in the process of having the Son of God crucified. They had arrested Him, falsely accused Him, held a sham of a trial, all during the night which was against their law, and yet they are so concerned with their law and tradition that they will not go into the government building so that they would not be defiled and could eat the Passover, holding to their religious tradition.  It shows how blinded we can be to the things in our lives that we don't recognize as sin, even as we are living out a relgious life. It also brings to mind the scripture which Jesus spoke of end time conditions and said:   "These things I have spoken to you so that you may be kept from stumbling. 2"They will make you outcasts from the synagogue, but an hour is coming for everyone who kills you to think that he is offering service to God. 3"These things they will do because they have not known the Father or Me.…(John 16:1-3)

Misdirected zeal for God has probably caused some of the greatest tragedies and human abuses throughout history. Men who think they are serving  God, but in reality are serving man made religious institutions were part of what was behind the crusades, the martyring of Anabaptists during the reformation and much of the religious tensions that exist in the world today. That same spirit, a false zeal for God which is really protecting man made traditions and doctrines is also present throughout much of the institutional church when denominations and factions within the church attack each other over traditions and doctrine. Surely they are absolute truths that Christians cannot compromise, but in all  things we should seek to gain God's perspective, we only truly serve Him when we are doing His will. The verses from John 16 tell us that to do that we need to know the Father and Jesus. We need to have our focus and emphasis be on knowing God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, not on our own traditions and doctrines.

In verses 31-32 it says:   So Pilate said to them, “Take Him yourselves, and judge Him according to your law.” The Jews said to him, “We are not permitted to put anyone to death,” ³² to fulfill the word of Jesus which He spoke, signifying by what kind of death He was about to die.   Jewish law would have been to stone the one sentenced to death. Crucifixion was a Roman method of capitol punishment. It offered a cruel death, but also a public display of the killing of the convicted.

Jesus said:    "And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.”  It was this public display of Jesus death which enabled Jesus to publicly triumph over the true spirit behind His crucifixion, the devil.  Colossians 2:15 says:   When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him.

What the devil intended as an end to Jesus and what the zeal of men thought would secure their own tradition, the cross of Jesus, has instead become the symbol of eternal life and Christ's victory over sin and death. The cross whether cherished or despised is easily one of the most recognized symbols in the world.

We read then an interchange between Pilate and Jesus:     So Pilate *said to Him, “You do not speak to me? Do You not know that I have authority to release You, and I have authority to crucify You?” ¹¹ Jesus answered, “You would have no authority over Me, unless it had been given you from above; for this reason he who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.”

We need to have this same confidence and understanding of true authority in our own lives, in these times we live in. We need to understand that even unto death, if we are in Christ, God will keep us and give us peace. Jesus says: Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.(John 14:27)     These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”(John 16:33)

Religious people may cast us out of their institutions, political leaders may bring the full weight of human law against us, but their is no authority above the authority of God in heaven and if we are in Christ He will never leave us or forsake us. He will grant us peace and we like Christ will overcome the world. 

Our text ends with an acknowledgment of truth.  Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross. It was written, “JESUS THE NAZARENE, THE KING OF THE JEWS.” ²⁰ Therefore many of the Jews read this inscription, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Latin and in Greek. ²¹ So the chief priests of the Jews were saying to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews’; but that He said, ‘I am King of the Jews.’” ²² Pilate answered, “What I have written I have written.”

Pilate says "What I have written I have written" What Pilate wrote was a God inspired truth. It was not what the religious Jews wanted written, but it was and is the truth. Jesus is King. He not King only of the Jews though, Jesus is King of kings and Lord of lords.

Philippians 2:10 says:   at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, ¹¹ and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.    Sometimes we mistakenly say that we need to make Jesus Lord of our lives. We don't make Him Lord and King. Jesus is and always will be Lord and King. We only choose when we will acknowledge Him, when we will bow to Him and when we will submit to His rule and authority in our lives. Every knee shall bow and every tongue confess, the choice is not if but when.

Today and each day we choose. Will we zealously defend our own traditions, doctrines and preferences? Will we for the sake of preserving ourselves, put Christ again on the cross?   As for me I join with Joshua in Joshua 24:15.     " If it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”  

Jesus You are King of kings and Lord of lords, not because I say You are but because God says You are. I bow to You. I submit to You. I give over every area of my life to You. Jesus You have overcome the world and I look forward to walking with and serving You, that together the world will know Your peace, Your redemption and restoration. That the world will know and experience the power of the cross and Your victory through the resurrection.   Amen