"As You Say"

“Then the entire council took Jesus to Pilate, the Roman governor. 2 They began to state their case: “This man has been leading our people astray by telling them not to pay their taxes to the Roman government and by claiming he is the Messiah, a king.”

3 So Pilate asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?”

Jesus replied, “Yes, it is as you say.”

4 Pilate turned to the leading priests and to the crowd and said, “I find nothing wrong with this man!”

5 Then they became insistent. “But he is causing riots by his teaching wherever he goes—all over Judea, from Galilee to Jerusalem!”

6 “Oh, is he a Galilean?” Pilate asked. 7 When they said that he was, Pilate sent him to Herod Antipas, because Galilee was under Herod’s jurisdiction, and Herod happened to be in Jerusalem at the time.”

We have been reminded Jesus was alone. But there were 70 members of the “entire” Jewish council. The High Priest made 71. Luke writes, “then the entire council took Jesus to Pilate…” Picture it, 71 Jewish religious leaders, and Jesus alone on the way to Pilate. What caused these teachers of Jewish law to oppose Jesus with such intense anger, even violent hatred?

Jesus had called them hypocrites. Jesus had accused them of being frauds in public. They had been humiliated.

Jesus did not observe their laws about the Sabbath. Jesus had healed a blind man, a man with a withered hand, and a woman crippled for 18 years. All of them were healed on the Sabbath. Coincidence? Jesus told them, “The Son of Man is Lord, even over the Sabbath.” Jesus overruled their rules.

Jesus associated with people the Jewish leaders considered “unclean.” Jesus went to the house of Zacchaeus a notorious, highly disliked tax collector. Jesus associated with sinners.

Jesus claimed He was the Son of God. In the eyes of these leaders, this was blasphemy. To them, what Jesus claimed was the worst insult to God.*

To Jewish people blasphemy of God equaled a death sentence. But with Rome in charge, the Jewish religious leaders could not sentence anyone to death; only Pilate could. These leaders had come to end of any tolerance they had with Jesus. Pilate would sentence Him to death. Pilate asked Jesus one question: “Are you the king of the Jews?” Jesus answered Pilate in six words, “Yes, it is as you say.”

What happened next? Pilate told the entire Jewish council, “I find no basis for a charge against this man!”

Pilate, the Roman Governor of Israel, quickly found Jesus innocent.

Jesus spoke the truth. He is the Son of God. Pilate found no guilt in Jesus. This was truth.

The Jewish council could not accept this. Perhaps Herod, the Jewish ruler appointed by Rome, would give them what they wanted. Once more no one stood in defense of Jesus before Herod either.

Was Jesus a subversive? Was he leading a rebellion against Rome? He was neither. The Jewish council could not see who Jesus truly was. Their rules and traditions blinded them. No wonder Jesus angered them. Jesus came to save the world from sin, not to follow man made rules.

Can we see who Jesus is? The things that blinded the Jewish leaders eyes and hearts can blind us as well. This is an important question: can we see who Jesus is?

Yes, we can.

Look at the cross.

Next, Jesus stood alone before Herod. He was on the way to His death…an innocent man.