Who is this Man? Holy Week - Luke 22.63-71

Jesus finishes his time of agonizing prayer, and returns to his men, barely in time for his friend, Judas, to step forward and kiss him . . . ensuring those who had come to arrest him, that he was indeed The Man.  Luke continues with the events of that night:

The men who were guarding Jesus began mocking him and beating him. They blindfolded him and demanded, "Prophesy! Who hit you?" And they said many other insulting things to him. At daybreak the council of the elders of the people, both chief priests and teachers of the law, met together, and Jesus was led before them. "If you are the Christ," they said, "tell us." Jesus answered, "If I tell you, you will not believe me, and if I asked you, you would not answer. But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God." They all asked, "Are you then the Son of God?" He replied, "You are right in saying I am." Then they said, "Why do we need any more testimony? We have heard it from his own lips." Luke 22.63-71

Good Morning.

Thus begins the "official" trial of Jesus of Nazareth in the high-ceilinged Hall of Justice, at the east end of the temple.  The trials of Jesus can be divided into religious and civil; effectively, this would be the third religious trial.

The chief priests and teachers of the law already knew what they were going to do with Jesus, so this meeting was merely a formality, to satisfy the technicality that such trials must take place in daylight. Once Jesus answers their question, "Are you then the Son of God?" with "You are right in saying I am," it has the political overtone of a threat to Rome, a form of sedition, and it is all the council needs to send him to the Roman governor, Pilate. The council could condemn Jesus to death on the basis of blasphemy, but they could not carry out the death penalty under Roman law. The Romans had to find Jesus guilty in order for him to be put to death--and that was their goal. "By the end of the third trial, the religious leaders had what they felt they needed. Jesus claimed to be the Christ, whom Jews widely regarded as their hope of expelling their Roman oppressors. Certainly, the empire would want to rid itself of a potential revolutionary; and if Jesus were executed, the people would reject him as another false Messiah."++  (Do you see the complexity of this?)

Just who were these men on the Sanhedrin, the ruling council? They were leading Jewish scholars who knew the 613 points of the Law well, along with the supporting Scripture. They generally lived morally upright lives, were schooled in the sciences and spoke the languages of the Greeks, Romans, and Egyptians. Here's the interesting thing--their oaths bound them to interpret the law in favor of the prisoner whenever they could. There was no appeal to their verdicts, so they made every effort to protect those on trial. What happened, then? Well, they all had an axe to grind because Jesus had publicly criticized their religiosity and hypocrisy. They clung to their political power and public influence, and he was a threat to both.

High priest, Caiaphas, clad in his lavish garb, led this trial, with great pomp. Just what did Jesus do that was so bad? They were accusing him of blasphemy, claiming to be God. In truth, Jesus accused himself by answering Caiaphas' question, "You are right in saying I am." These men knew the significance of Jesus' I AM statement; in this way, Jesus identified himself with God when he used this familiar Old Testament title for God.

The irony is this: the only reason Jesus was standing in front of them was because he was exactly who they were 'trying' him for being! Theologians, philosophers, scientists and college professors regularly set out to debate the claims of Jesus Christ in our present day . . . the very thing that was at issue and for which they brought him to trial. History, science, (including archaeology), fulfilled prophecies and changed lives all serve to shore up the validity of his claims to being the Son of God. Whether we debate the matter aloud, or discuss it with others, or totally ignore it, sooner or later, every individual must decide what he will do with this same Jesus--oh, not in the flesh anymore, but seated at the right hand of God, interceding for his children, and coming again!

'...at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord' Philippians 2.10

The lights go down on the set with Jesus standing before his accusers, who believe they have 'enough' on him to hand him over to the Romans. . .

"O, Jesus, I am so sorry for your fate. I am sorry for the lonely agony you were enduring . . . sorry for what history has shown us will come next for You. Amen"

Christine

podcast:

++from Jesus: The Greatest Life of All, Charles Swindoll