Paid In Full: An In-depth Look at the Defining Moments of Christ's Passion (16 page)

Our flesh always wants to retaliate when we’ve been wronged, but Jesus gave us the perfect example to follow. When He was cursed, He refused to be dragged down to the level of His attackers. No guile was found in His mouth.

How can you pattern your responses to wrong treatment to be more in line with Jesus’ responses? What inward and outward adjustments can you make in your own life?

Chapter 17:
Surrender and Release
Yourself Into the Loving
Care of God

Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you felt like you were surrounded and besieged by control freaks who were obsessed with keeping everything that moved under their monitoring direction? If you’ve been in a situation like this before, you know how hard it is to function in that kind of environment.

Well, at the time of Jesus’ ministry on earth, Israel was overwhelmed with scads of leaders who were obsessed with the notion of holding on to the reins of power. This paranoia was so epidemic that it had spread to both the religious and political world. The high priest, along with his scribes and elders, were suspicious and paranoid of anyone who appeared to be growing in popularity. The political leaders installed by Rome to preside over Israel were just as paranoid, looking behind every nook and cranny for opponents and constantly struggling to keep power in their grip.

Israel was under the enemy control of Rome, an occupying force that the Jews despised. They hated the Romans for their pagan tendencies, for pushing the Roman language and culture on them, and for the taxes they were required to pay to Rome. And that’s just a few of the reasons the Jews hated the Romans.

Because of the political turmoil in Israel, few political leaders from Rome held power for very long, and those who succeeded did so using cruelty and brutality. The land was full of revolts, rebellions, insurgencies, assassinations, and endless political upheavals. The ability to rule long in this environment required a ruthless, self-concerned leader who was willing to do anything necessary to maintain a position of power. This leads us to
Pontius Pilate
, who was just that type of man.

After Herod Archelaus was removed from power (
see
chapter 19 to find out more about the three sons of Herod the Great), Judea was placed in the care of a Roman procurator. This was a natural course of events, for the Roman Empire was already divided into approximately 40 provinces, each governed by a procurator — a position that was the equivalent of a
governor
.

It was normal for a procurator to serve in his position for 12 to 36 months. However, Pilate governed Judea for ten years, beginning in the year 26 AD and concluding in the year 36 AD. This ten-year span of time is critical, for it means Pilate was governor of Judea throughout the entire length of Jesus’ ministry. The Jewish historian, Flavius Josephus, noted that Pilate was ruthless and unsympathetic and that he failed to comprehend and appreciate how important the Jews’ religious beliefs and convictions were to them.

In addition to the normal responsibilities a procurator possessed, Pilate also ruled as the supreme authority in legal matters. An expert in Roman law, he had the final say-so in nearly all the legal decisions for the territory of Judea. However, even though Pilate held this awesome legal power in his hands, he dreaded cases having to do with religion and often permitted such cases to be passed into the court of the Sanhedrin, over which Caiaphas the high priest presided.

Pilate lived at Herod’s palace, located in Caesarea. Because it was the official residence of the procurator, a military force of about 3,000 Roman soldiers was stationed there to protect the Roman governor. Pilate disliked the city of Jerusalem and recoiled from making visits there. But at the time of the feasts when the city of Jerusalem was filled with guests, travelers, and strangers, there was a greater potential of unrest, turbulence, and disorder, so Pilate and his troops would come into the city of Jerusalem to guard and protect the peace of the population. This was the reason Pilate was in the city of Jerusalem at the time of Jesus’ crucifixion.

As a highly political man, Pilate knew how to play the political game — as did the Jews he ruled. In fact, so many complaints had been filed in Rome about Pilate’s unkind and ruthless style of ruling that the threat of an additional complaint was often all that was needed for the Jews to manipulate Pilate to do their bidding. This no doubt affected Pilate’s decision to crucify Jesus.

That day the high priest, the Sanhedrin, and the entire mob insisted that Jesus be crucified. Pilate wanted to know the reason for this demand, so they answered him, “…We found this fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar, saying that he himself is Christ a King” (Luke 23:2).

Pilate knew the Jews were jealous of Jesus. But politically the charges they brought against Jesus put him in a very bad position. What if the news reached Rome that Jesus had perverted the nation, teaching the people to withhold their taxes and claiming to be a counter King in place of the Roman emperor? It would be political suicide for Pilate to do nothing about that kind of situation. The Jewish leaders were well aware of this when they fabricated these charges against Jesus. They knew exactly what political strings to pull to get Pilate to do what they wanted — and they were pulling every string they held in their hands.

The Jewish people loathed Pilate for his cruelty and inadequate care of his subjects. The kind of brutality that made him so infamous and so hated can be seen in Luke 13:1, where it mentions that Pilate slaughtered a number of Galileans and then mixed their blood together with the sacrifices. As appalling and sick as this act may sound, it is in accordance with many other vicious actions instigated under Pilate’s rule as procurator of Judea.

Another example of Pilate’s callousness can be seen in an incident that occurred when a prophet claimed to possess a supernatural gift that enabled him to locate consecrated vessels, which he alleged had been secretly hidden by Moses. When this prophet announced that he would unearth these vessels, Samaritans turned out in large numbers to observe the event. Pilate, who thought the entire affair was a disguise for some other political or military activity, dispatched Roman forces to assault and massacre the crowd that had gathered. In the end, it became apparent that nothing political had been intended.
⁴

The Samaritans felt such great loss for those who died that they formally requested the governor of Syria to intervene in this case. Their complaints regarding Pilate became so numerous that Pilate was eventually summoned to Rome to give account for his actions before the Emperor Tiberius himself. But before Pilate could reach Rome to counter the charges that were brought against him, the Emperor Tiberius died.

Outside the Gospels, Pilate is not mentioned again in the New Testament. Historical records show that the procurator of Syria brought some sort of accusations against Pilate in the year 36 AD. These indictments resulted in his removal from office and exile to Gaul (modern-day France). Eusebius, the well-known early Christian historian, later wrote that Pilate fell into misfortune under the wicked Emperor Caligula and lost many privileges. According to Eusebius, this man Pilate — who had ruled Judea ruthlessly and mercilessly for ten years and who was ultimately responsible for the trial, judgment, crucifixion, and burial of Jesus — finally committed suicide.

With this history now behind us, let’s look at Matthew 27:2. It says regarding Jesus, “And when they had bound him, they led him away, and delivered him to Pontius Pilate the governor.” The word “bound” is the Greek word
desantes
, from the word
deo
, which is the same word that would be used to describe
the binding, tying up, or securing of an animal
. I am confident that this was precisely the connotation Matthew had in mind, for the next phrase uses a word that was common in the world of animal caretakers.

The verse tells us that they “led him away.” These words come from the Greek word
apago
. The word
apago
is used for
a shepherd who ties a rope around the neck of his sheep and then leads it down the path to where it needs to go
. Just as the soldiers had led Jesus to Caiaphas, they now slipped a rope about His neck and walked the Lamb of God to Pontius Pilate.

The Bible says that once Jesus was in Pilate’s jurisdiction, they then “…delivered him to Pontius Pilate the governor.” The word “delivered” is the word
paradidom
i, the same word we saw when Jesus
committed
Himself to the Father who judges righteously. However, in this case, the meaning would more likely be t
o commit, to yield, to transmit, to deliver
, or
to hand something over to someone else.

This means that when the high priest ordered Jesus to be taken to Pilate, he officially made the issue Pilate’s problem. The high priest took Jesus to Pilate, delivered Him fully into Pilate’s hands, and then left Pilate with the responsibility of finding Him guilty and crucifying Him.

Matthew 27:11 says, “And Jesus stood before the governor: and the governor asked him, saying, Art thou the King of the Jews? And Jesus said unto him, Thou sayest.” Pilate asked a direct question, but Jesus refused to directly answer him. Matthew 27:12 goes on to say, “And when he was accused of the chief priests and elders, he answered nothing.” So for a second time, Jesus refused to answer or refute the charges that were brought up against Him.

Matthew 27:13,14 tells us what happened next: “Then said Pilate unto him, Hearest thou not how many things they witness against thee? And he answered him to never a word; insomuch that the governor marvelled greatly.” Notice the Bible says Pilate “marveled greatly” at Jesus’ silence. In Greek, this phrase is the word
thaumadzo
, which means
to wonder; to be at a loss of words;
or
to be shocked and amazed.

Pilate was dumbfounded by Jesus’ silence because Roman law permitted prisoners three chances to open their mouths to defend themselves. If a prisoner passed up those three chances to speak in his defense, he would be automatically charged as “guilty.” In Matthew 27:11, Jesus passed up His
first chance.
In Matthew 27:12, He passed up His
second chance
. Now in Matthew 27:14, Jesus passes up His
final chance
to defend Himself.

At the very end of this time of interrogation, Pilate asked Jesus, “...Art thou the King of the Jews? And he answered him and said, Thou sayest it” (Luke 23:3). John’s Gospel tells us that Jesus added, “…My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence” (John 18:36). After hearing these answers, “then said Pilate to the chief priests and to the people, I find no fault in this man” (Luke 23:4).

As you will see in the next chapter, Pilate searched diligently for a loophole so he wouldn’t have to kill Jesus. John 19:12 says, “And from thenceforth Pilate sought to release him.…” But nothing Pilate could do was able to stop the Father’s plan from being implemented. Even Jesus passed up His three chances to defend Himself, because He knew that the Cross was a part of His purpose for being sent to earth.

Jesus passed up His three chances to defend Himself, because He knew that the Cross was a part of His purpose for being sent to earth
.

When Jesus finally answered Pilate’s question, He still didn’t defend Himself, knowing it was the appointed time for Him to be slain as the Lamb of God who would take away the sins of the world. But Pilate didn’t want to crucify Jesus. In fact, the Roman governor began looking for a loophole — for some way out of putting this Man to death.

But Pilate’s search for a way out was in vain; the plan
couldn’t
be changed because it was time for the Son of God to offer the permanent sacrifice for sin. As Hebrews 9:12 says, “Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.”

Are you certain of God’s plan for your life? Consider whether or not you are able to say with conviction: “I know what God has called me to do, and I’m willing to go where He tells me to go and pay any price I have to pay. My greatest priority and obsession is to do the will of the Father!” If you are
not
able to say this yet, ask the Holy Spirit to help you grow to the point where doing God’s will, regardless of the cost, becomes the most important thing in your life. Even if the life of obedience takes you through hard places as it did with Jesus, the end result will be resurrection and victory!