Blasphemy, Sedition, and Barabbas

I recently listened to a livestream broadcast of a sermon that describes the process by which Jesus is condemned to die on the cross. In this rendering of the story from the gospel of Luke, the Sanhedrin (Jewish governing council of priests) is charging Jesus with blasphemy against God, and sedition against Rome. Neither the blasphemy charge nor the sedition charge is anywhere near airtight, especially since the penalty they seek for Jesus is his execution; and a very harsh form of execution at that.

Blasphemy

Near the end of Luke Chapter 22 after He is betrayed by his disciple Judas, Jesus is arrested, mocked, severely beaten, and then released to the Sanhedrin to be questioned. The chief priests and scribes ask him if he is The Christ. Jesus answers, in part, by saying “hereafter the Son of Man will sit on the right hand of God” (Luke 22:69). The priests then ask him if he truly is the “Son of God”. Jesus again confirms “you rightly say that I am” (Luke 22:70). At this point, the Council charges him–or at least feels justified in charging him–with blasphemy for claiming to be the Christ, the Son of God.

Sedition

The persecution continues in Luke chapter 23 as they bring Jesus to Pontius Pilate, the sitting governor of Judaea, which is, at that time, under the rule of the Romans. Here they make all sorts of accusations against Jesus, namely that he tries to discourage the Jews from paying their taxes to Caesar and also that he claims to be a King. If true, both of these actions, they assert, will undermine the authority of Caesar. Thus, by determination of the chief priests and scribes, Jesus is charged with sedition against the Roman Empire.

Defense of Jesus on both charges

Jesus did claim many times and in various ways that he was “One with the Father”, “the Son of God”, “The Christ”. He even stated very directly in John 14:9, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father”. As a Christian, I truly believe that Jesus was telling the truth. When you really read the Bible in context and look at Jesus’ marvelous works, His unparalleled wisdom, His grace and mercy and, above all, His death and resurrection, it’s difficult NOT to conclude that He truly IS–if you can just let yourself believe it–God!

Nevertheless, the Sanhedrin doesn’t see it that way and they charge him with blasphemy. Unluckily for them, the Romans don’t allow the Sanhedrin to carry out an execution on a Jew who has violated Jewish Law. On the other hand, the Romans do not preclude themselves from sentencing anyone to death who has violated their Roman law. So the charge of sedition against Rome, His accusers conclude, should accomplish their purpose. And yet Pontius Pilate, after extensively questioning Him, proclaims to the angry crowd that Jesus has committed no crime and, in no way, does he deserve to be put to death (Luke 23:4).

Barabbas

Each year at the Passover, the Romans allowed the Jewish people to release, of their own choosing and without restriction, one prisoner. Barabbas was said to be a notorious criminal and a rabble-rowser who had even been found guilty of murder. Pilate presented this prisoner to the people, along with Jesus, believing that they would surely choose to release Jesus. To his horrified surprise, they demanded, instead, that Barabbas be released and Jesus put to death. Seeking to appease the crowd, Pilate had Jesus savagely scourged with a whip, yet they remained unrelenting in their Insistence. Due to this extreme pressure (basically, fearing men more than God), and possibly anticipating retribution from the ruling powers in Rome, he returned Barabbas to the people, thus sealing the fate of Jesus. He was nailed to the cross on Mount Golgotha.

Ironic Twist

One of the great ironies of this final resolution is the fact that the name Barabbas, in Greek, means “son of the father”. So in the end, the Righteous “Son of the Father” died a brutal and inhumane death so that the unrighteous “son of the father” could be set free. For all practical purposes then, we are all Barabbas. Essentially, this scripture describes one of the primary tenets of Christianity.

“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18a)