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 account of Luke, the Sanhedrin (Jewish governing council of priests) is charging Jesus with blasphemy against God, and Rome is charging him with sedition against the Caesar. Neither the blasphemy charge nor the sedition charge approaches a standard of “guilty beyond a reasonable doubt”, and the penalty they seek for Jesus is his crucifixion; one of the harshest forms of execution! That said, neither the Sanhedrin nor the Romans has any serious concern about guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

Blasphemy

Near the end of Luke Chapter 22, after He is betrayed by his disciple Judas Iscariot, 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 this, saying “you rightly say that I am” (Luke 22:70). At this point, the Council charges him with blasphemy because he has claimed 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 who, at that time, came under the jurisdiction of the Roman Empire. Now the leaders of the Sanhedrin make all sorts of accusations against Jesus, namely, that he has tried to discourage the Jews from paying their taxes to Caesar and also that he claims to be a King. Both of these actions, they allege, will undermine the authority of Caesar. Thus, by determination of the Roman authorities, Jesus is officially charged with sedition against the Empire.

Defense of Jesus on both charges

Jesus did claim many times, both directly and indirectly, to be “One with the Father”, “the Son of God”, “The Christ”. He even stated explicitly in John 14:9: “He who has seen Me has seen the Father”. As a believer in Christ, I believe Jesus spoke the Truth, and there is ample evidence in the Bible to backup this claim. When one earnestly reads the Bible in context and looks at Jesus’ marvelous works, His unparalleled wisdom, His grace and mercy and, above all, His death and resurrection, it’s not difficult to conclude that He truly IS–if they can simply let themself believe it–God!

Nevertheless, the Sanhedrin doesn’t see it that way and they charge him with blasphemy. Unluckily for them, the Roman government does not allow the Sanhedrin to carry out the execution of a Jew who has violated Jewish Law. Even with that as an obstacle, however, the Romans do not preclude themselves from sentencing anyone to death who has violated Roman law. So the charge of sedition against Rome stands, and they believe this 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 one prisoner of their own choosing–and without restriction–back to the people. Barabbas was said to be a notorious criminal and a rabble-rowser who had been found guilty of many crimes, including murder. Pilate presents this prisoner to the people, along with Jesus, believing that they will surely choose to release the innocent Jesus rather than the egregious criminal, Barabbas. To his horrified surprise, the people demand, instead, that Barabbas should be released, and that Jesus must be put to death.

One Final Plea

Seeking to appease the crowd, and hoping this will be enough, Pilate has Jesus savagely scourged with 39 lashes from a whip laden with pieces of bone and sharp glass. This is a punishment that often kills its recipients well before it can be fully administered upon them. Nevertheless, the people remain unrelenting in their Insistence upon his execution, and they threaten to tell the highest authorities about Pilot’s refusal to carry out the death sentence. Due to this extreme pressure (basically, fearing men more than God), and probably anticipating retribution from the ruling powers in Rome, he returns Barabbas to the people, thus sealing the fate of Jesus. He is nailed to the cross on Mount Golgotha later that morning.

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, when all is said and done, the Righteous Jesus, (Son of the Father) dies a brutal and inhumane death on the cross so that the unrighteous Barabbas (son of the father) can be set free. Now, It may sound harsh to say this, but I believe that all of us, at least in our hearts, are much closer to Barabbas than we are to Jesus. The following verse 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)