LUKE 23:14

 and said to them, "You brought me this Man as one who was inciting the people to rebellion.  I hve examined Him in your presence and have found no basis for your charges against Him." - Luke 23:14

Can you imagine if this happened today?  This is like the Supreme Court saying that someone did nothing wrong and then giving them the death penalty.  Also, what a horrible court system they had back then.  One guy got to decide what happened to someone.  No checks and balances, no jury...

Actually wait!  What happens in court if a jury decides that someone is guilty, but there is no evidence whatsoever that they did the crime?  Jesus should have really appealed this decision.  There is no way He would have lost.  

But, that's what is even more impressive.  You had some ways out.  You could have gotten out of this.  You, at the very least, could have been angry and said things that made the people look like fools.  But, You knew the mission.  You knew what had to be done.

And You were willing to do it.

LUKE 23:13

 Pilate called together the chief priests, the rulers and the people, - Luke 22:13

I always wonder why the Bible verse people would cut this off before the actual thing he said.  I guess Pilate's quote is kind of long, so that makes sense.

Is this the first time they incorporate the people?  At first, it's just the chief priests and religious leaders.  Then they go to Pilate who includes another political leader.  Now, they are going to the people.  

This verse does show the whole progression! Religious leaders, Political leaders, People.  My guess is that the third one was the only one You cared about.  And maybe that's exactly what Luke is doing here.  The religious leaders didn't find anything to convict you on, either did the government leaders.  It really did come down to us.

Sorry about that.

LUKE 23:12

 That day Herod and Pilate became friends - before this they had been enemies. - Luke 23:12

I am reminded of that classic line from Step Brothers, "Did we just become best friends?"

Again, something that doesn't make sense.  Pilate just sends Jesus to Herod because he doesn't want to make a decision.  He's putting it all on Herod.  Herod doesn't make a decision and just sends Him back to Pilate - forcing him to make a decision that he didn't want to make.  (Which also means there is another ridiculous part to this whole story - by law, Pilate was not supposed to make this decision.  So, Jewish law couldn't condemn Jesus.  Roman law couldn't condemn Him either.  Yet, He is crucified.)

Anyway, how do they become friends after this?  I'm not a great friend, maybe because I don't want friends who try to push off touch decisions on to me.  I don't want friends who think of themselves before me.  I don't want friends who don't do what's right.  But, apparently, those are just the kinds of friends Pilate and Herod love.

Really though - was it because they both knew that You were who You said You were?  Was it because they both felt like they were doing what Rome would want?  Why would any of this help them to become friends?  I don't get it.

LUKE 23:11

 Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked Him.  Dressing him in an elegant robe, they sent Him back to Pilate. - Luke 23:11

How does that work?  All of these people that mocked and ridiculed You - do they see You in Heaven?  Is there a time when You get to see the look on their faces when they realize who You were?  

Do You even care about that?  I know I wish I could have handled that situation the way You did.  Just keep quiet, know Your mission, know what has to be done, and do it.  But, I would want the satisfaction of having them see me later as the Lord of Heaven.  I don't even think I'd want payback or revenge, but I would love to show them who I am.  

But, I bet You don't care about that because You already know who You are.  You don't have to prove Yourself to anyone.  You don't have to let people see how valuable You are or that You are special.  In fact, this is just my opinion, but I bet thoughts like those didn't even enter Your brain.  You were probably so focused on the mission, focused on what You had to do, focused on The Father, that You did not even have time to think about what other people thought of You.

How do we get there?  When I think of how many of my sins come from me trying to get respect or feeling like someone is mocking or ridiculing me, it really seems ridiculous right now.  But, the problem is - I still feel it.  How do we not feel it?  How do we focus so much on You and the mission that we are not concerned about ourselves?  Help us to do that today.

LUKE 23:9-10

He plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer.  The chief priests and the teachers of the law were standing there, vehemently accusing Him. - Luke 23: 9-10

Plied is an interesting choice of words.  It means to work with a tool, usually with steady movements.  So, Herod was just going question after question after question.

Vehemently is another interesting choice.  I didn't want to look up two words in one post, and I knew that this made it sound like they were very angry.  Guess what.  That is exactly what Luke is trying to get through - they were forceful, passionate, intense.  It's all one sided here - this was not a discussion, nor was it meant to be.

What is also interesting is the the chief priests and teachers of the law were with him.  How long was this process?  Google says it was a couple hour trip.  So, the chief priests and teachers went with?  That had to be quite the convoy.  Guards, religious leaders and Jesus.  No wonder You didn't answer any questions - crowd was pretty much against You!  

 

LUKE 23:8

 When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had been wanting to see Him.  From what he had heard about Him, he hoped to see Him perform a sign of some sort. - Luke 23:8

I want Herod's attitude!  Excited to see Jesus.  Hoping for a miracle.  Looking forward to seeing Him.  Longing for the day when I could actually talk to Him in person.  

I think I forget sometimes how cool You are.  I like the buddy aspect, but I forget that You are not just a friend, but God.  As much as I look forward to seeing a Coco Gauff or Rinky Hijikata, how much more is the excitement of being in the presence of God.

Yes, it is different because I can't see You.  But, I get to meet You every day and I get to actually experience what it is like to have You talk to me, be near me, do what You do.  That's enough to get a guy excited every time he wakes up.

I bet this has not been written a lot - I hope to be like Herod!

LUKE 23:7

 When he learned that Jesus was under Herod's jurisdiction, he sent Him to Herod, who was also in Jerusalem at that time. - Luke 23:7

So Jesus couldn't even have been punished by Pilate according to the law.  It says in the Nicene Creed, "He was crucified under Pontius Pilate."  That wasn't supposed to happen.  It should have been Herod's call.  

This just gets more and more ridiculous.  Let's review.  All of Your friends, who You had just shared Passover with, ditched You.  You had not slept for a day and a half.  At no time did You say that You were the Messiah, but the chief priests said that You said You were the Messiah.  So, they were trying to get rid of You because they said You were the Messiah.  Pilate knew You did nothing wrong.  The chief priests argument was that You were getting the people excited.  And then, it wasn't even their decision.  The person that was supposed to decide Your fate didn't.

Again, in this world we are going to have trouble.  The level of horrible, unjust, ridiculous behavior is at unseen levels during this whole thing.  But, You did it anyway.

LUKE 23:6

 On hearing this, Pilate asked if the man was a Galilean. - Luke 23:6

I gotta give it to Pilate, he was trying everything not to make this decision.  He said he would just whip You and let You go.  He thought of a loophole - You were a Galilean.  The only thing he didn't try was to just make a decision and stand by it no matter what.  

Now, I have no idea everything that went into this, what kind of pressure he was under.  I don't know the implications of letting You just walk free.  I don't know what this would have meant for Pilate's job or even family.

But, I do know that there are a lot of things in life that just take one strong person of character to make the right decision.  Am I that person?  I don't know.  If I was Pilate, would I have done anything differently, I don't know.  (And I'm not sure it would have mattered!). 

When the time comes, I hope I am that person.  I hope that I am willing to make the tough decision no matter what.  I hope that no one gets hurt because I wasn't.

LUKE 23:5

 But they insisted, "He stirs up the people all over Judea by His teaching.  He started in Galilee and has come all the way here." - Luke 23:5

He stirs up the people?  That was their defense.  He got people excited.  He inspired people.  He made them want to serve others.  He inspired a few so much that they left everything they had to just follow Him.  

Stirring up people is what we are supposed to do as humans.  John 10:10 - I have come that they might have life and have it to the full.  If we do anything that helps another person to wake up and say, "I can not wait for today," that's a good day!  

He stirs people up?  Of course He did!

LUKE 23:4

 Then Pilate announced to the chief priests and the crowd, "I find no basis for a charge against this man." - Luke 23:4

Anyone could have stopped this.  Judas could have done what he later realized was the right thing and not turned Him in.  One of the chief priests could have said, "What if He is who He says He is?"  Instead of saying, "I find no basis for a charge against this man," Pilate could have said, "I am setting Him free."  And finally, Jesus at any point, could have just shut it all down with one word to the Father.

From a human stand point this makes no sense, but from a spiritual view it makes all the sense in the world.  This had to happen because of God's love for us.  

I think that's probably the case a lot in life.  Things make no sense.  We wonder what we could have done to stop them or what someone could have done.  And I'm sure there are some things that could be rerouted or changed, but maybe there are some things that just have to happen.  It won't make any sense, but later we will see that it was because of God's love for us.

LUKE 23:3

 So Pilate asked Jesus, "Are You the King of the Jews?"  "You have said so," Jesus replied. - Luke 23:3

We are in to chapter 23 and You still haven't said that You were a King.  You're tired.  You've been abandoned.  You've been beat and made fun of.  But, You continue to keep Your poise and answer with such wisdom.  I was going to say that You also don't buckle even when amongst authority, but I guess You are the ultimate authority so that doesn't really come into play here.

A lot of people act differently when around authority figures. I do.  But, that doesn't really make any sense.  They are just people like us, and there is really only one authority figure we have to be concerned with - You!  You're easy to be around.  

I am a 53 23/24 year old man who has the greatest authority in the universe on his side.  I think it's time I started to realize that.

AN ODE TO MY MOM!

 Mom, 

You were my biggest cheerleader.  Heck, you may still be!  You would always tell me I was great at stuff - one of the things was doing speaking which I really haven't done in a long time.  Maybe I should figure out a way to do that again.  

You also kept me in check.  When I started thinking I was better than everyone else (at everything), you would help keep me to see maybe that wasn't true.  I haven't really gotten better at that though, but at least it's on my radar.

You also gave me the confidence to do the right thing.  I still remember our talk and how you let me know that I shouldn't let anything else make my decision - that I could really do whatever I wanted.  But, you also helped me to be the easy going person I am.  Nothing was all that important and things were pretty simple - just love 'em.

I do think I got my love of nature from you.  Maybe you are the one that inspired me to try new stuff and not be afraid - I do appreciate that you let me do that growing up and even encouraged me to get into different things.  But, maybe the most important thing I learned from you was how to make the normal, average everyday things into a celebration.  The times at 317 Hale; especially as we got older, were some of the best times of my life.  It was just family being together, goofing around.  That's still my favorite thing to do!

Oh, but the main thing you ever did was to be the biggest fan of Tony Melton that there was.  You really listened, you really made me feel important, you really made me feel like I just had to be myself and that was incredible, and you really gave me confidence that I was awesome just the way I was.  Love ya!

LUKE 23:2

 And they began to accuse Him, saying, "We have found this Man subverting our nation.  He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Messiah, a king." - Luke 23:2

A lawyer would have a field day with this stuff.  At no point did you say anything about doing anything the undermine the power of the government at the time.  Also, the religious leaders had no concern for the "nation."  They all said to let a guy go who murdered people from the "nation" and led an actual, physical revolt against a nation.  You literally said, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's."  And Messiah doesn't have anything to do with overthrowing a government.  By the way, pretty sure You never called Yourself a Messiah.

Any time someone; especially someone in power, takes advantage of people to get what they want it bugs me.  However, now that I think about it - I do that.  In fact, I have been noticing a lot of the things that people were doing to You, I do.  The crazy thing is that You love me anyway - at least I'm pretty sure You do.  Yesterday I tried to do that, and it went pretty well.  Thanks!  

And thanks again for putting up with us - all of us.

LUKE 23:1

 Then the whole assembly rose and led him off to Pilate. - Luke 23:1

What is the whole assembly?  Is that all the chief priests, teachers of the law, the whole crowd that was trying to crucify You?  And they all thought the, "You say that I am" comment proved everything? 

And then they went to Pilate?  They were violating their own law if they killed You.  Ironic.  Their own law told them this was the wrong thing to do, but they did it.  Their own law told them they were wrong, but they went ahead any way.  The only people who violated any law whatsoever were them.

And then they had to tattle tale.  They couldn't take care of it themselves so they went higher up.  (That is frustrating me right now, so I just had to write it!)

This whole thing makes zero sense, until You look at it from an eternal perspective.  You had to be like, "Really? This is how it's going to happen?"  But, You still went through it and remembered The Kingdom along the way.  Incredible!

LUKE 22:71

 Then they said, "Why do we need any more testimony?  We have heard it from his own lips." - Luke 22:71

They did not hear it from Your own lips.  You never said that You were the Messiah.  Nicely played!  I'm not sure if that was to fulfill a prophesy or you were just trying to not give them the satisfaction.  But, they crucified You for a crime that You did not commit.

However, even if You would have said You were the Messiah, You would have not committed a crime.  

Wait, I've been getting so angry about being blamed for stuff I don't do and worrying about the actions of other people.  You had people crucify You because they didn't like You.  And they didn't like You just because other people liked You more than them.  I am just getting mutual concerns - I think I can put up with that if You put up with this.  

Thanks again for being a great role model, and I am sorry again that You had to deal with that.  How did You take it so well?

LUKE 22:70

 They all asked, "Are You then the Son of God?"  He replied, "You say that I am." - Luke 22:70

Why didn't You just say that You were?  I am trying to think of a time when you said specifically that You were the Son of God, but I don't think You did.  Was that because You want us to make our own decisions?  Even at this moment, you were giving them a chance to decide for themselves.

Whoa!  How about that?  You never said that You were the Son of God, but they killed You for being the Son of God.  So, it wasn't heresy.  You were killed because they thought You were the Son of God.  Ironic.

LUKE 22:69

 "But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God." - Luke 22:69

69! Classic!

So, is that where You are right now?  Seated at the right hand of God?  To be honest, doesn't seem like You.  Feel like You would be more active, out with the people.  I think of You being in disguise down here and us not even knowing it, or moving around heaven talking to the souls.  I don't envision You as a "sit on the throne type" leader.  You're more of a servant leader.

But, I guess that's not the point.  You are just letting them know that You are God and that You are the Messiah.  Were You kind of looking forward to that part of it?  Getting back to heaven?  (Sorry, more questions). But, honest answer, what did You like better - being on earth or being in heaven?  I'm guessing / hoping heaven if we're going to spend eternity there.

It also seems like You are not coming back from the "now on" part of that statement.  But, You are right?  Or have we read that the wrong way?  Sorry, I asked to understand, and all I did was ask questions.

LUKE 22:68

 "and if I asked you, you would not answer." - Luke 22:68

Why wouldn't they answer?  They called You a blasphemer.  Why wouldn't they just say that You are not the Messiah?  Were they afraid of what the people would do?  Were they afraid that they could be wrong?  Were they kind of like the politician that didn't want to put any opinions out there that would offend others?

I feel like they were pretty open about not believing in You.  I mean, they were the ones who sent the guards to arrest You.  Or is that why they needed Judas?  For some reason, they couldn't bring You in or accuse You - it had to be done by another person.

That's why they had to go through Pilate and Herod.  Did the Jewish law not allow them to put You to death?  Or did God's law not allow it?  

Just so weird.  They wanted to have You killed, but they would not answer the same question they asked You.  If they said, "No" then all of Your followers would cause problems.  If they said, "Yes" they would have to follow You.  And there was no way that was happening.

LUKE 22:67

 "If You are the Messiah," they said, "tell us."  Jesus answered, "If I tell you, you will not believe me,..." - Luke 22:67

How does Luke find this out?  Who was there that would give him this information?  Was it the guy He talks to who believes in Jesus?  (I forgot his name).  

This is what I'm talking about.  You were deserted by Your friends.  You were ridiculed.  You were beaten.  You hadn't had any sleep.  And You come up with the perfect answer!  "If I tell you, you will not believe me."

You didn't say You were.  You didn't say You weren't.  They would have to decide for themselves, but they'd already made that decision.

I guess it's the same for us.  Some of us have already made that decision.  No matter what You or anyone else says, they would not believe You.  Some are all in - they know for sure You are who You say You are.  And some would believe if You, or we, told them.  

That's our job - help the ones who could believe.  Don't waste our time on those who can't be swayed, focus on the ones who may be open.