The One Jesus Loves, Part 38: The King on Trial

 

THE ONE JESUS LOVES – 38

The Gospel of John

 

The King on Trial

John 18:28-19:16

 

Three Phases of Jesus’ Religious Trial

 

Phase 1: Jesus tried before Annas (the former high priest)

Phase 2: Jesus tried before Caiaphas (the current high priest)

Phase 3: The charges are established before the Sanhedrin

 

Three Phrases of Jesus’ Roman Trial

 

Phase 1: Jesus’ first appearance before Pilate

Phase 2: Jesus’ first appearance before Herod Antipas

Phase 3: Jesus’ second appearance before Pilate

 

“John reports far more details of his trial before Pilate then do the three [other gospel writers] combined…Theologically, the dominant theme is the kingdom, the authority of Jesus.”  - D.A. Carson

 

John 18:28-30 (ESV) Then they led Jesus from the house of Caiaphas to the governor's headquarters. It was early morning. They themselves did not enter the governor's headquarters, so that they would not be defiled, but could eat the Passover. 29 So Pilate went outside to them and said, “What accusation do you bring against this man?” 30 They answered him, “If this man were not doing evil, we would not have delivered him over to you.”

 

John 18:31b (ESV) The Jews said to him, “It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death.”

 

John 18:30 (ESV) They answered him, “If this man were not doing evil, we would not have delivered him over to you.”

 

John 18:38b (ESV) “I find no guilt in him.”

 

1.  The PERFECT King.

 

2.  The SOVEREIGN King.

 

John 18:31-32 (ESV) Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.” The Jews said to him, “It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death.” 32 This was to fulfill the word that Jesus had spoken to show by what kind of death he was going to die.

 

 

Mark 10:33 (ESV) saying, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles.

 

John 12:32 (ESV) And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.”

 

John 19:10-11 (ESV) So Pilate said to him, “You will not speak to me? Do you not know that I have authority to release you and authority to crucify you?” 11 Jesus answered him, “You would have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above. Therefore, he who delivered me over to you has the greater sin.”

 

3.  The TRUTH PROCLAIMING King.

 

Luke 23:2 (ESV) And they began to accuse him, saying, “We found this man misleading our nation and forbidding us to give tribute to Caesar, and saying that he himself is Christ, a king.”

 

John 18:33 (ESV) So Pilate entered his headquarters again and called Jesus and said to him, “Are you the King of the Jews?”

 

John 18:34 (ESV) Jesus answered, “Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it to you about me?”

 

John 18:35 (ESV) Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered you over to me. What have you done?”

 

John 18:36 (ESV) Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.”

 

John 18:37-38a (ESV) Then Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” 38 Pilate said to him, “What is truth?”

 

4.  The REJECTED King.

 

John 18:39-40a (ESV) But you have a custom that I should release one man for you at the Passover. So do you want me to release to you the King of the Jews?” 40 They cried out again, “Not this man, but Barabbas!”

 

Jesus or Barabbas

 

 

John 19:12-16 (ESV) From then on Pilate sought to release him, but the Jews cried out, “If you release this man, you are not Caesar's friend. Everyone who makes himself a king opposes Caesar.” 13 So when Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The Stone Pavement, and in Aramaic Gabbatha. 14 Now it was the day of Preparation of the Passover. It was about the sixth hour. He said to the Jews, “Behold your King!” 15 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.” 16 So he delivered him over to them to be crucified.

 

Acts 4:11 (NLT) For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says, ‘The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’