1 Then the whole council rose and led Jesus away to Pilate. 2 And they began to accuse Him, saying, “We found this man subverting our nation, forbidding payment of taxes to Caesar, and proclaiming Himself to be Christ, a King.”

3 So Pilate asked Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?”

“You have said so,” Jesus replied.

4 Then Pilate said to the chief priests and the crowds, “I find no basis for a charge against this man.”

5 But they kept insisting, “He stirs up the people all over Judea with His teaching. He began in Galilee and has come all the way here.”

REFLECTIONS

Written by Tina Bogg

After a completely biased trial before the council of chief priests and scribes, we now see them take Jesus to Pilate, the Roman governor. They present Pilate with false claims about Jesus opposing Caesar as they push their own agenda, and once again the corrupt justice system fails. Pilate finds Jesus innocent of any crime and yet does not release him, because he is swayed by the chief priests and the crowd. As I read this section this time, it makes me consider how tense the political environment must have been. Pilate had the Roman Empire backing him, yet the situation is so threatening that he decides not to release an innocent man.

Human justice systems are so imperfect. I'm sure there are still many places in the world where justice is not determined by what is lawful or right, but solely by powerful people determining what will happen. That was what happened in Jesus’ trial, and yet this shambles of a justice system was all part of how God fulfilled his plans through Jesus. I guess it is comforting to know that no injustice happens outside of Jesus’ control. But I am also glad that God's perfect justice is not swayed by our crooked ideas, power plays or trends.

As I read Jesus' response, I love his humility and quiet confidence. He is not defensive or argumentative, since he knows that they will not listen to the truth anyway. Pray with me that we can trust in God's perfect justice even when our justice systems fail, and that we can face opposition with Jesus as our example. Pray that God will give us the wisdom to know if our listeners will have ears to hear, and that we will not be defensive or argumentative but will always speak the truth in love. If we are not able to speak, pray that God will help us to suffer silently with our trust in him.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tina is a member of our Bossley Park Morning congregation.