Yeah. Every person alive in the world today has a perception of life. Things that we see with our eyes, but not just that. We think about the things we see. We make something of these things and try and understand the significance of these things. And while most of us would agree that the sun shines and even that it is relatively stationary and we orbit around the sun and that our earth turns and that's why the sun seems to come up, there's not a whole lot other than that that we do agree on. Even in a small group like we have gathered here in this room today of Christians, we have different perceptions, different perceptions of the world. Whether we should be nervous and concerned or confident. Different perceptions of sitting in a crowded room. Different ways we feel about these things. And what accounts for these differences is of course that we are not infinite and we do not have perfect perception. We're finite. We're fallible because we're finite. We behold things only partially. And we come to learn things progressively, but never perfectly. But also, we're sinners. And sinners is the great distorter of all of reality. Now, we've seen a series of things that Luke has made very clear to us, clearer than in any of the other gospel accounts. They make other things clear to us that are not so clear in Luke's account and that's why we have four accounts of the one gospel of Christ. But Luke makes clear that there dwells in us no good thing more than any of the other gospel accounts of the sufferings of Christ. And we've seen this in the way he presents to us Judas and Peter and all the other disciples undergoing and failing in a trial of their love for and faithfulness to Jesus. When the pressure was on, every one of them forsook him. Judas the worst, betraying him, Peter denying him, but the others took flight from him, rather than stand with him in his trials. Those were his disciples. And in their perception, Jesus wasn't worth running the risk of being committed to him, still less relying upon him. As they saw, logically, As that ship went, so would they go if they were on it. And his ship was clearly sinking. But they weren't thinking theologically. We've seen Jesus endure this failure of his friends that led him to be turned over to his enemies. And those enemies were seated in the place of highest religious authority. And it wasn't a false religion. It was the true religion. For centuries, God had been revealing himself to the Jews. There's where the oracles, Paul says, God came first to his own people. And those were enemies to Jesus. Seated there, they saw to it that Jesus was abused, as no person should be in a trial by justice, mocked, beaten, and so forth. He was abused and then convicted of blasphemy, which is a sin against God. As with his failing friends, so in his religious trial, Jesus submitted to this miscarriage of justice. He didn't protest against it. He didn't argue in his own defense. He did this so that he might justly accomplish our redemption by taking onto himself our sins and their due punishment. Then two weeks ago, we considered yet another dimension of the sufferings of our Redeemer, the civil dimension, in which Jesus was charged with treason. That's a sin against the governmental authority and the order and the safety and security, at least relative safety and security that governments, civil governments provide. Paul tells us to obey them precisely because they are instruments of God for the general welfare. But as you would think, religion should, if it's all about God, religion and religious leaders especially, when they see God in the flesh, they should worship him. We find them determining to kill Jesus. And civil government, recognizing that order and the maintenance of that order and the maintenance of those who are in the position of being governors, kings, and so forth, civil authorities, that rests upon the authority of God. And when they behold God, you would expect they, too, would worship him. But this isn't what we see happening. It's this manward aspect of our salvation that we continue to consider in our passage this morning. We saw Jesus before Pilate, and Pilate determining initially that I don't see anything in him that is a chargeable offense. But when he learned that Jesus was from Galilee, he sent him off to Herod. to Herod, who had jurisdiction over that area, and let Herod deal with this hot potato. Herod, of course, was happy to see Jesus because he had carnal curiosity and wanted a spectacle. He wanted some miracles. But Jesus said nothing to him. And so Herod sent him back to Pilate. You see how Jesus is being shuffled off with the government officials here. It's a convicting thing, it's a humbling thing, should be a humbling thing when God is often treated with more kindness and respect and justice by unbelieving governments than by the church. The Jews, the Jewish leaders, determined he must be put to death. He's a blasphemer. He must be put to death. And you see both Herod and Pilate at least initially determining there's no guilt in him. They weren't as inclined towards misplaced, zealous, ignorant convictions As religious people are, we easily think it's all simple. It's just right or wrong and yes or no. And if we got it right, we've got it right. And there's nothing to argue about. You're just needing to change your position. There's a humility amongst those in government that can be lacking in the church. Because if you've ever tried to rule anything, any people, even being a chairman of a meeting of six or eight people, you realize very soon heavy-handed dictatorship will not work. It won't prevail. You have got to compromise. And you say, well, what's a religious person intending to say? Compromise is evil. Compromise is reality. You've got to do that. if you're ever going to get along with anybody in the church or the world. But still, this is showing us. Why is Luke setting all this out? It's showing us. in these disciples. They are not, when the most critical time in their life comes, to stand with God or not. They don't stand with God. There's no good thing in religion. When push comes to shove, religion will go against God. Every time. And there's not any good in governmental officials. They too will fail. Initially the failure was these two, Pilate and Herod, bouncing Jesus back and forth. But now he lands in our passage this morning back on Pilate's plate. And again, Pilate says, I find no guilt in him. He summoned the chief priests in verse 13, and the rules, and the people. He thought, OK, I was hoping Herod would deal with this and relieve me of this very complex and explosive matter. He didn't do it. He sent it back. But at least he sent Jesus back finding no guilt in him. So at least now my position's stronger, and I could state that to the people and calm them down. Notice how, again, we've said there are certain features that are admirable in governmental civil magistrates and so forth, even if they're not believers. There is always, though, the essential weakness. They, too, are just people. They want to get up in the morning and drink their coffee and have breakfast, kiss their wives goodbye, go to work, make some money so that they can buy food, raise their kids, and maybe retire in a comfortable old age. You can't do that. You just can't live a comfortable life. Nobody can. Herod and Pilate were susceptible to being swayed by the greatest pressure put upon them instead of the compelling evidence that was before them. But Pilate gives it a try, three tries. And in these three tries, we have, as it were, three witnesses to the innocence of Jesus. At the same time, the sinful compromise position of a governor. And by the way, Pilate was actually quite a good, relatively even-handed administrator. He was one of the best. Caesar had to send one of the best to Judea. Nobody, nobody had succeeded very well in ruling over these pestiferous Jews. So he sent his best man there. And he's the best man trying but failing. Pilate summoned the whole crowd and said, you brought this man to me. He's putting a burden on them. I didn't send out an arrest warrant for him. You took the initiative, you brought him as one who incites the people to rebellion and behold, look, open your eyes, see what's real, see what's true here. I've examined him, I've examined him before you and I find no guilt in this man regarding the charges which you made against him. And then he adds to this, it's not just me, it's Herod. Herod found no guilt in him. Nothing deserving of death. So there is the civil magistrate. In two ways, two witnesses agree, he's not guilty. They're better, they're truer, they see more clearly than the religious leaders who were just blinded by their prejudice and their hatred of Jesus. The way you and I are. when our besetting sin is touched by the Bible. I'm not giving that up, you say. Now as we grow, yes, we learn to even cry to the Lord to deliver us from our besetting sin. But not a person in this room who hasn't set the law of God aside numerous times this week. In view of what God's word said, we've chosen to do our own will contrary to it. And we maybe have done it in varying degrees of consciousness like this. Well, God is gracious, he'll forgive me anything I do. That's true, he will. But that truth is not meant to give us license to sin. But you see, we all set God aside when he touches something we don't want. We go with our instinct. The disease of sin is still in us. Though its dominion has been broken, we still wrestle with it. There still is in us no good thing in and of ourselves. These men are giving Jesus a more fair hearing, but even they, even Pilate, now shows that he's open, too open to popular persuasion. That should have been, in a just world, the conclusion of all the judicial process against Jesus. When the man says, I find no guilt in him, he's acquitting him, period. But that didn't end it. Pilate offers to punish Jesus. Pilate punishes Jesus. Why? Well, Pilate was acting as a judge, but Pilate wasn't truly a judge. He was also a governor, the governor of that troubled and troublesome region. And as the governor appointed by Caesar, he had all the might and all the authority of Rome to back him up. But even the might and the authority of Rome never, never broke the Jews. Not even in 70 AD, when they finally annihilated the nation, there still were Jews living in the land for centuries thereafter. But Caesar and Pilate both knew how notoriously difficult it was to rule over these Jews in Judea. Here is evidence of the essential weakness and the brittle fragility of all earthly governments. The Roman Empire was one of the best empires on earth. We have our laws tracing back, many of them, to that empire, to Roman law. And in terms of practical accomplishments, their roads, their military, all of these things, all of these are the best, the best representatives of human civilization and human civil government and human apprehension of religion, the best. It's like you and I sometimes do it ourselves or hear somebody else say, if I had been in that garden, if I had been in Adam's place, I wouldn't have taken the fruit. Yes, you would. Adam was the best, the best of humanity, the father of all humanity. The race only degenerated after him. Or David. If I had been King David, I would have gone out to battle. I wouldn't stay home and then watch that woman bathing and commit adultery with her. Yes, you would. David's a man after God's own heart. David wrote Psalms. Have any of us known God that closely, intimately? Of course we would do that. That's why Paul says, if you catch a man in trespass, treat him gently, seek to restore him, and look to yourself, lest you too be tempted. What's in that man, and he's fallen to that temptation, is in you too. You will fall if you're tempted sufficiently. It's in all of us. It's an ugly, nasty conceit for any of us to think, I would never do that against the Word of God and against my God. That's what Luke is showing us. We're drawing nearer to the cross and in that Sinfulness of sin is seen more clearly than ever anywhere else. In the best of human constructs, in the best of human lives, they see God and view Him, as Pilate and Herod do, as just an annoyance that needs to be gotten rid of, or an enemy to be hated and killed, as it was with the Jews. All earthly governments know that theirs is a matter of riding on a wild bucking bronco, which is never a matter of just jerking the reins tightly. It's far more a matter of delicate countermeasures in your own center of balance to counter that of the horse. They know that all must compromise with the people in order to retain their power. So Pilate applies corporal punishment to Jesus as a way to placate the Jews and save Jesus from the irreversible injustice of capital punishment. Now this is both to command and condemn Pilate. Condemning him, he's going to put Jesus to death. Condemning him, he shouldn't even punish him at this point. But commending him, if Pilate wanted to just go with the mob, he would have said, OK, you want him crucified? We'll do it. And then he'd go home and eat his lunch. But Pilate wasn't that kind of man. He had a conscience. So we find Pilate pleading with the people and the people persistently. determining they would have their way. The other gospel accounts bring in features other than what we have here in this attempt made by Pilate, such as Pilate's wife having a dream and warning her husband. And her husband took that warning very seriously. Pilate shows, to the extent that we see him as a married man, he shows that he had a good marriage. He respected his wife and took very seriously what she said. Also, there's Pilate's personal interview with Jesus. You find these and other things in the other gospel accounts, but Luke keeps his account spare for this purpose. Keep the focus on the people involved and the issues involved. And here they are. The people are sinners. The sinless Son of God is in their hands. How are they all treating him? And when it comes right down to it, every single one of them treat him the same way. Every single one, essentially. There's some form of fear and dread and hatred and determination to destroy. But Pilate pleads. Leads three times. Verse 16, I will therefore punish him and release him. Verse 20, Pilate wanting to release Jesus addressed them again. And then verse 22, the third time. Why? Why? What evil has the man done? Nothing is added to the charges. No further evidence is brought. They just keep saying, saying, saying, we want our way. We want our way. Which is the essence of sin. God said don't eat the fruit. Adam and Eve saw the fruit was good. It was pleasant to look at and it was desirable to make one wise. I want my way. That is the essence of sin. I'm king. Not God. I'm king. Not you. You're not even a fellow citizen. I'm king over you. If any of us want to try the experiment, just try it if you're brave enough to. And think how many times somebody says something and you counter with something else. I do this all the time. Why am I doing that? Because I'm king. I know you're a dummy. You don't know what's right. I'm king. But you do it too. And our kids do it. Eat those vegetables. I don't want to. The kid's saying, I'm king. We live in a world that is full of rebels, full of tyrants, usurpers, not just of governmental, civil power and authority, but we are much more bold than that. We try to seize God's authority. The people simply persist. Verses 17 to 19, they want Barabbas. Away with this man, release for us Barabbas. Now, that's based on that convention that the Romans said, we've got to placate these Jews in some way, so at least let's give them a little token and each year we'll release one prisoner of their choosing. So that's where that is. When the people, the popular people, I have a choice. They're going to choose somebody who abuses them and impoverishes them before they'll choose the God who will be gracious to them and bless them. They want Barabbas. Now, Luke adds, here's this guy. Here's his character. He was one who was thrown into prison for a certain insurrection. OK. Insurrections have always happened. Doesn't mean they're always bad. Some governments need to be overthrown. We glory in our government and the way it was established as we broke away from England. And you know why we broke away, don't you? Because they were hanging us and persecuting us and murdering us, weren't they? And it was a matter of life or death. We had to fight and we had to rebel in order to have life. No, no, we were paying taxes we didn't like. And we didn't get a vote. We weren't able to self-determine. But we had a revolution. And now everybody who has succeeded in a revolution thinks their revolution is glorious and necessary. And they celebrate it. So we're like so many other countries. The Cubans, the same thing. Same thing. But there are times when, you know, it's thoughtful, considerate. And our founding fathers were not inconsiderate rash men. think it's the only equitable thing to do here. So we do it. But even our own revolution cost countless civilian lives. And our civil war, many, many more civil lives added to the many combatant deaths and injuries. And we'd rather have rebels, set free. Give us this rebel, give us this insurrectionist. We want him. It would be an insurrectionist who would ultimately lead the Jews to their destruction until 1947. would lead them to rebel against the Romans, and the Romans would crush the nation. But we want an insurrectionist. And he not only was that, he wasn't a good fellow. He committed murder. Who do you want moving in next door to you? A flashy rebel leader who happens to kill people in his spare time just for the sake of doing it? Yes. Yes. You would choose that man. You have chosen such a man. You've chosen yourself over God many, many times, and I have too. This is the popular impulse. Give us Barabbas. And then when Pilate came out the third time and says, I found nothing in him, I'll release him. I'll punish him and release him. You've got to be satisfied with that. This is going to be no slight thing. They were insistent with loud voices, asking that he be crucified. And their voices, just because they kept shouting and shouting and shouting, began to prevail. The push comes to shove, every government has its breaking point. And it's not always because a righteous band of insurrectionists rise up to assert a better way of governing. All you have to do is be a thug and be committed and you'll wear down any government. You'll wear down your neighbor. You'll murder your neighbor if push comes to shove. So we see finally Pilate capitulating. And here the great exchange is shown in this highly significant substitution of Jesus for Barabbas. Barabbas is treated, though he was guilty, of insurrection and of murder and presumably blasphemy. You've got to go through God to get to another person. God is the one who says, thou shalt not kill. You've got to go through him. You've got to try and kill him first before you can lay hands on another person. He was guilty of all of that, and he was treated as though he were innocent. He was the acquitted one. He was let go. And Jesus, who had been, by his own deportment, by his own words and deeds, shown over and over again to be innocent and declared to be innocent by these civil authorities, he is put in the place of the guilty one. He will be killed. He will be crucified. So even the best governor caves in to commit judicial murder. The man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection, verse 25 says, and murder, was given to them. But he turned Jesus over to their I'll say it again, this is what Luke is emphasizing, their will. And what we have in these people, all of them, disciples, Sanhedrin, civil authorities, We have groups that represent all of humanity and all of our cultures and all of our configurations, our social configurations. And if we're to rightly understand the import of what's being shown us here, we have ourselves. Does it mean that those who were crying, uh, Hosanna, uh, uh, blessed as he who comes in the name of the Lord, the crowds that were lining the road, going into Jerusalem or Jesus triumphal entry, they were there and they had changed their minds. Not necessarily, but the word of God is showing us, giving us a perspective here and the innocence of Jesus. and the guilt of all humanity. Now we'll quibble because if we think all humanity, I know somebody, a little grandma who's always been loving and kind and she doesn't even go to church. She can't be, she probably doesn't even need salvation. We'll quibble. But if we want to understand what's being presented to us from God's perspective, it's this. All have sinned. All have sinned. Sin is essentially God. Murder. We've seen perspectives on Jesus. He's a robber. He's a disappointment to be rejected. That's Judas. He's a danger to be avoided. That's Peter. He's a blasphemer, insulting God by claiming to be God, when God is all-powerful and all-righteous. And Jesus is clearly weak and forsaken and beaten and bloody. And he endures mocking without striking back. He accepts these abuses and charges. He must be guilty. No innocent man would do that. He is guilty or he's becoming sin and bearing the guilt of sinners. And then he's a traitor to mankind, our perspective today. Which is it? Which is it? The determination of all mankind apart from grace. God's saving grace is this. All of those perspectives are true. All of them together. He's a robber. He steals things from me. He wants to kill all my joy. He's a disappointment to be rejected. I pray to him, don't let me get sick and miss the picnic. I get sick and I miss the picnic. So I'm going to just deny him. He's a blasphemer. He's not representing God rightly. God is loving. And Jesus talks about hell. He's a traitor to mankind. He's all of these. And we view him that way because we all have been conceived in sin and shaped in iniquity. Here again, quibbles. But you can have children born knowing the Savior. John the Baptist was leaping in the womb. Well, yes, maybe he was converted in the womb, but he wasn't conceived sinless, and he didn't grow to that point where he could leap in the womb as a sinless being. Neither does any other child. No matter how good you come out, no matter how strong your parents are in their covenant theology and their gracious and loving and faithful application of the ordinances of God, no matter what great preacher you have teaching you the word of God, we all are sinners naturally. We all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. We all have suppressed the truth of God and unrighteousness. None of us has naturally deserved or even desire to know God. That's the shocking thing we're being shown here. And the religious ones are right in the middle of it. In fact, the worst of the lot. Crucify him. You don't find a bunch of Romans coming out, Roman citizens coming out and say, yeah, he's stirring us up. Crucify him. We don't deserve it, don't desire to know God. And when he does come to our minds, we naturally seek to hide from him, to evade at best, to engage, to kill him at worst. And friends, the fault is totally in us. Totally in us. None in God. Our individual lives reek of sin. Our cultural constructions reek of sin. They're all set when push comes to shove against God. Humanity will rise up in one great chorus. They who would kill each other will in an instant embrace each other if they could together bring down God. That's what sin is in all of us. It may not be as fully developed. Total depravity says that it's in every aspect of our being. It doesn't mean it's as bad as it could be, but it will be that bad if not checked and eradicated by the saving intervention of God. For by the grace of God, nothing we do, nothing we cry out to him, no prayer we make to him, no sinner will make a prayer to God. He, while we were yet sinners, gave this infinitely precious, pure, perfect, righteous, just, holy, majestic, glorious son, his only begotten son, in whom he is well pleased, his beloved, he gave him while all of this was in us. And by his grace alone, we see him as the saving son of God who sees and knows us as sinners and blasphemers and haters of mankind. And instead of condemning us, he has died for us. Paul speaks of living his life by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. Talk about a religious man gone into a rage against God. He put to death, he consented to and participated in the judicial murder of Stephen. who is simply declaring the truth, the saving truth of the gospel, that salvation has come into the world in the person of Jesus. It's in all of us. He takes our sin and shame and guilt upon himself. and justifies us in God's sight through his giving to us his perfect righteousness. Now, if you and I were this bad before we ever came to know God in Christ, before God ever applied to us the redemption that Christ has accomplished for sinners, For God has ever called us effectually out of death into life, regenerated us. If we were this bad and if the traces of this monstrous sinfulness still remain in us and plague us, if we were this bad and God gave his son to die for us, How would we ever think anything but that with him now and we being his adopted children, he would give us all good things and lead us out, progressively out of our conceit that we're right and everybody else is wrong. And that we'll stand and fight and kill to assert our rights. because everybody else is wrong, including God, and all deserve to be killed. God loved us so much when we were that. Think of how grateful we should be that he has given his son, now pledged and committed himself to accepting us, loving us in the Christ that even we have at some point in our lives despised. Amen.