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John

John 
Day 
Day 287

John 18:28-40 "MORE INFORMATION NEEDED"

Day 287 – John 18

MORE INFORMATION NEEDED

Pilate had to do his part in investigating Jesus before he could sentence Him. He was satisfied that Jesus posed no threat whatsoever to Rome. Why were the Jews so incensed against Jesus? If for no other reason, Pilate wanted to know as much about Jesus as possible. Personally, he found the accusation laid against Jesus most difficult to comprehend. He was a Roman. He was an equestrian military officer promoted to rule Judea as the governor. But he never fully understood the people he ruled, nor the many complex religious customs they practised.

“Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the
chief priests have delivered You to me.
What have You done?”
John 18:35

For a Roman like Pontius Pilate, the intrigues of “the chief priests” were beyond him. He was missing something somehow. If Jesus could help him out, by giving him His side of the story, perhaps he could find some means to release Him legally. His statement, “Am I a Jew?” was one of exasperation! Why were these Jews so incensed against Jesus that they had delivered Him over to be tried under Roman law?

Pilate knew for a fact that the Jews had no likings for people they called “Gentiles”. The Romans were even more hated because they were their rulers! Suddenly, the chief priests were sending one of their own people to him for judgment. And they were asking for no less than the death penalty to be pronounced against Jesus! What had Jesus really done?

Obviously, the information given to Pilate was not sufficient. He would have loved to spite these hypocritical chief priests who felt that they would be defiled if they were to step into his Praetorium. Yet, they were asking that Jesus be sentenced to death! It would help greatly if Jesus were to talk to Pilate concerning His life and ministry.

DISCUSSION CONCERNING THE KINGOM OF JESUS

One of the topics raised up was the question of the kingdom of Jesus. The Jews had angled this against Jesus so that Pilate could sentence Him for treason. Jesus obliged and spoke to Pilate about His kingdom.

“My kingdom is not of this world. If My
kingdom were of this world, My servants
would fight, so that I should not be delivered
to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not
from here.”
John 18:36

1. The Gospel of the Kingdom of God

How easy it would be for the Jews to accuse Jesus of preaching about “a kingdom”. Did Jesus mention the word “kingdom” when He spoke to people? Yes, but wait, what exactly did He say about that “kingdom”?

To Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews, Jesus said this about the Kingdom of God.

“Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is
born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God…

Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born
of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the
kingdom of God.”
John 3:3, 5

Did Jesus speak about a kingdom? Yes! But always in the context of a spiritual and eternal kingdom! Was it against the laws of Rome to speak of God’s spiritual and eternal kingdom? Surely not!

2. Jesus’ rejection of an attempt to make Him a political king

There was one occasion when some Jews tried to force Him to become their king. What did Jesus do on that occasion?

“Therefore when Jesus perceived that they
were about to come and take Him by force
to make Him king, He departed again
to the mountain by Himself alone.”
John 6:15

The phrase “He departed” may be understood in the following ways:-

a. He wanted nothing to do with the Jews who wanted to force Him to be king.
b. He distanced Himself from this band of Jews.
c. He rejected their worldly understanding of kingship.
d. He stuck to His original idea of preaching an eternal and spiritual kingdom of God.

3. Jesus stopped His Disciples from using violence

When Jesus was in the Garden of Gethsemane, one of His disciples had used a sword to defend Him. However, He stopped Peter and forbade all His Disciples from using violence as a means to protect Him (John 18:11). Surely that must indicate that the kingdom that Jesus proclaimed was not a threat to Rome.

If Jesus’ kingdom had been of this world, then His servants would receive His endorsement to use every means to defend His realm. Surely all these would prove that He had been wrongly accused!

4. “My Kingdom is not from here”

Jesus could not deny that He did preach the concept of a kingdom. However, if one takes the trouble to understand Him properly, then the conclusion would be obvious! His kingdom was real, but it was a spiritual and eternal kingdom.

Did this explanation help Pilate in any way? How would he assess all that Jesus said? Would he be able to find a legal loophole that would enable him to free Jesus from the evil designs of the Jews? Deep in his heart, Pilate knew that Jesus was innocent. However, he had to satisfy himself completely that Jesus posed no threat to Rome!