If you turn in your copy of God's Word now to Matthew's Gospel. Continue our study there this morning in chapter 27. I believe that's on page 991 of your Pew Bibles. And I'll begin reading there at verse 15. Let's give attention to the word of God. Now at the feast, the governor was accustomed to release for the crowd any one prisoner whom they wanted. And they had then a notorious prisoner called Barabbas. So when they gathered, Pilate said to them, whom do you want me to release for you, Barabbas or Jesus, who is called Christ? For he knew that it was out of envy that they had delivered him up. Besides, while he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent word to him, have nothing to do with that righteous man, for I have suffered much because of him today in a dream. Now the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus. The governor again said to them, which of the two do you want me to release for you? And they said, Barabbas. Pilate said to them, then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ? They all said, let him be crucified. And he said, why? What evil has he done? But they shouted all the more, let him be crucified. So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, I am innocent of this man's blood. See to it yourselves. And all the people answered, his blood be on us. and on our children. Then he released for them Barabbas. And having scourged Jesus, delivered him to be crucified. As far in the reading of God's word. Amen. Please be seated. Would you pray with me? Father and our God, these are difficult passages for us to read. So we pray Holy Spirit help us not merely to understand the history, but Lord we pray by your Spirit that you would work in our hearts, convicting us of our own sin and yet reminding us, reminding us of the power of the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Help us now, Lord. We ask all this in Jesus' name. Amen. Are you seeking to be released? seems to be an appropriate question for our passage today. Consider the Israelites in Egypt. We read that short passage from Exodus 12 this morning God had met with Moses at the burning bush and if you know that particular account, the Lord speaks to Moses out of the bush which was not consumed even though it was on fire and said, I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, meaning the Israelites. Deliver them or release them. That was the Lord's purpose, to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land flowing with milk and honey. That's what the Lord was doing through Moses. And then as we go through the plagues that have fallen upon Egypt with Pharaoh refusing to release the Israelites, they come to the 10th plague in which the firstborn children of all the Egyptians were slain. but not in the houses of the Israelites. For the blood of the lamb had been placed upon the doorposts and the lintels protecting that one inside, the firstborn inside of that home. It's called the Passover. The blood of the lamb provided that coverage in order for that one to be released. And so the Israelites were commanded to eat the Passover meal annually as a memorial, as a remembrance of the way in which they had been delivered. In a sense that stands behind our text this morning. Jesus has gone to Gethsemane. He's prayed to his father. He's asked for the cup to be taken from him. And yet he has submitted himself to his father's will. He's been betrayed. He's been arrested. He's been tried before the chief priests. If we can call that a trial, he's been denied by Peter. He's now been bound and sent to Pilate as Judas hung himself. and Jesus has remained silent. That brings us to our text this morning. And the narrative here is really fairly straightforward. A question has been asked of the crowd as they've gathered around Pilate as he is, in a sense, trying Jesus Christ for the second time. And he's asked them that question, whom do you want me to release for you, Barabbas or Jesus? That custom was that he would release one prisoner during the feast. We also understand through this passage that Pilate understands that Jesus is innocent. He knows that he's a righteous man. He even asked the crowd, what evil has he done? And ultimately, Jesus is tried by the people who've determined and called for his crucifixion. And they've said this, his blood be on us and our children. Jesus is then sentenced to death, scourged, and Barabbas is released. We might sum up the teaching here in this passage this way, that the release of sinners from the guilt of sin is attained as the blood of Christ is poured over them. The release of sinners from the guilt of sin is attained as the blood of Jesus is poured over them. We'll see that this morning in three simple points. First, release is pictured by the feast of Passover. Secondly, release is necessitated by the heart of depravity. And finally, release is attained by the blood of Christ. As we go throughout this passage this morning, I want you to be asking yourselves again, Am I seeking to be released? Well first, release is pictured by the feast of Passover. There's some really big concepts or ideas within this passage. They're not hidden, they're there on the surface and it's possible for us to skim over them but I hope that we don't this morning. We need to dig into some of them and the first one is this idea or concept of release. We see there's a custom for the governor who's been appointed by Rome over the Jews to release a prisoner of the Jews, a prisoner who is Jewish, during the feast. John puts it this way, you have a custom that I should release one man for you at the Passover, so do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews? It's a custom. It's not described here how this custom comes about, but there's this idea of being acquitted. The governor has that power to set someone free, to release them, to declare them, in a sense, innocent. It's exactly what happened as Jesus told that parable of the 10,000 talents owed by a slave to his master and the master of that servant released him and forgave the debt. That's the idea behind release. The only question is, why now? Why at the Feast of the Passover? That's what's going on. That's what this feast was all about. Or some would refer to it as, as we have it in Scripture, the Feast of Unleavened Bread. That's why we read that passage in Exodus this morning. Passover Feast or the Feast of Unleavened Bread was a memorial. It was a reminder to remember what the Lord had done as the Israelites were slaves to the Egyptians as they were being oppressed. The Lord descended and calls Moses to bring the people out And we know that that didn't happen until the 10th plague, that plague of the death of the firstborn. And we know that the blood of the lamb placed upon the doorpost and the lintels was that which protected or covered the firstborn inside the Israelite house. And so the feast was a remembrance, remembrance of what the Lord had done. saving the firstborn in each of the Israelite houses and bringing about the release of all of the Israelites. It was a day to remember, a feast of the nation, a feast of the oppressed people. It was their release that they were remembering from the persecution, the enslavement of the Egyptians. And so now we have to ask, well, what's the connection? And we're seeing it unfold. This idea, the time of the feast, this memorial or remembrance of being released. And the Roman governor now has the concept, the idea, and tying it to the release of a Jewish prisoner. And so as the people were celebrating, as they were fasting, they were to remember what the Lord had done at that first Passover. And in a sense, the Roman governor was duplicating that. And that's what was happening. That's what was going on. Release or deliverance is pictured in the Passover and was now seemingly carried forward even as Pilate considered the release of a prisoner. Indeed, the idea, the theme of release carries throughout this passage. It seems to be all about release. Who would be released from imprisonment, from the possibility of being punished by death? At the end of the passage, we know it's Barabbas who is released. Jesus is scourged. Jesus is sentenced to death. He's now off to the cross. Barabbas is set free. What about you this morning? Are you seeking to be released? You know, the Jews didn't think that they were in need of release. John records for us in his gospel as Jesus is speaking to the Jews, some of them who believed, so to speak, if you abide in my word and are truly my disciples, you will know the truth and the truth will set you free. They answered. worthy of the offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say you will become free? The Jews didn't think they needed to be released. They thought they were already free because of the blood flowing through their bodies from Abraham. But Jesus told another account, the truth will set you free. You need to be set free. He's telling them that they were enslaved and yet they denied being prisoners and denied being needful of being released. Do you know that you're a prisoner? Barabbas knew that he was a prisoner. Jesus knew that he had been imprisoned, but Barabbas was the only one who actually felt the guilt and knew it. Barabbas had been imprisoned for his guilt, for his breaking of the law, for murder, for insurrection. Barabbas was likely hoping for that release that was given during the season of the Feast of the Passover. What about you? Do you know that you're a prisoner? No, you're not behind bars, you're not in a prison cell, you're not confined to a particular small space awaiting a criminal trial, but you're guilty. Each one of you, each one of us. We're guilty, we've been sentenced to death as a result of our sin against God. Scripture tells us that there's none righteous, no, not even one, Romans 3. And scripture tells us that the wages of sin is death. And so if we're honest, we're going to recognize and confess, even confess that as a result of our sins, our own sins, each of us have been made prisoners awaiting divine judgment. And we know that divine judgment will be the proclamation of eternal death, meaning eternal fire and hell, damnation. That is each and every person's guilt before a holy and pure God. You're awaiting judgment for your sins. You're a prisoner without bars. Prisoner of your own sin. The only question this morning is do you acknowledge it? Do you readily acknowledge and confess your incarceration or your prisonership? It does bring us to our second point, that release is necessitated by the heart of depravity. You may be thinking right now, well, what is brought about my confinement? You're saying that I'm confined, I'm imprisoned. Why was Barabbas confined? Why was he imprisoned? I know that he was an insurrectionist and a murderer, but what caused him to participate in insurrection? What caused him to murder? Or, in other words, why am I a sinner? What happened to me? What brought me to this place of being unrighteous? What has brought about my imprisonment? Those are good questions and I think we have an answer here in this passage and first it's good for us to consider that choice that's set before the people who were around Pilate that day. Pilate said to them, whom do you want me to release, Barabbas or Jesus who is called Christ? Now it's interesting that the text records for us that he asks this question two times, not just once. And it gives us the impression that it was their decision, two times confirming that it's up to the people Who do you want me to release for you? A question. He gave them a choice. They had a decision to make. They had the option to ask for the return of Jesus or the return of Barabbas. They could select freedom for Jesus or they could select freedom for Barabbas. Which one? What's your decision? And so we come to that choice, those who listened to Pilate that day, come to that choice of wanting the holy, righteous, pure, innocent, loving Jesus Christ, who was living his life completely in accordance with the word of God, or wanting the insurrectionist, the murderer, the sinner Barabbas. They were given that choice of desiring the rule and reign, the continued rule and reign of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords to be over them, or the lack of rule, the lack of authority, through the absence of the Master, the Lord, Jesus Christ, all represented by Barabbas. So now we see the choice made by those at the doorstep of Pilate, so to speak, give us Barabbas, crucify Jesus. How is that possible? That's the question we should be asking this morning. those who saw the wonders of Jesus Christ, those who had either seen or heard of what Jesus had done, healing, feeding thousands, turning water into wine, walking on water, calming winds and waves, exercising demons or evil spirits, and raising the dead from the grave. They heard as Jesus forgave sin. They heard the good news that he would suffer, be killed and rise again. They've heard the call to repent and believe. They sat in the presence of the only son of God, the sinless one, the innocent, pure and merciful Jesus Christ. How? How could these choose the release of a murderer and crucifixion for Jesus? It's because that was their desire. It's that simple. It was because they desired the death, the removal of Jesus from their sight and from their hearing. It was because they desired to see him suffer, bleed, and die so that they would no longer hear his words of truth. It was because there was no desire to be in his presence or near this Jesus, this Son of God. This is what we call total depravity. They disdain the one who is spiritually good and sought to be with the one who is spiritually or morally corrupt, just like they were. This is the reality of hearts of men made in the image of Adam, the one who refused to obey And this is the answer to the question of how. How could these desire the crucifixion of Jesus? Because they were trapped, confined, imprisoned in their depravity. Webster's defines depravity as wickedness, corruption of moral principles, destitution of holiness. Their hearts were constantly inclined away from God. such that their desire was everything but Jesus. Their desire had trapped them in this bubble outside of Christ. Their desires kept them from wanting Jesus to the point that they only desired his death. They were confined and imprisoned and would not admit it. But their depravity had trapped them such that they needed to be released and set free. See, throughout scripture, we have choices given, don't we? Every single person is free to make choices. We see that as Adam is made in the image of God. What does that mean? Well, it means several things, but at least it means this, that he had the ability to choose, didn't he? He had the ability to choose whether or not to obey God, to eat the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil or not. Every person has the freedom to choose to love or to hate God, don't they? Don't you? Everyone has the freedom to follow Jesus or the freedom to take the route of following Satan. Isn't that what Moses wrote to the people as he penned the book which we now call Deuteronomy? I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, and I've set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore, choose life. that you and your offspring may live. That's what it means to be a moral creature. That's what it means to be made in the image of God. No other creature, no other creature other than humans are made in the image of God and thus are moral, have the ability, have the freedom to choose. I see it in the Israelites as they crossed the Red Sea, don't we? They had the freedom. They could stay on this side of the Red Sea. They didn't have to walk through on dry ground. They had the freedom to choose whether or not to trust that God would continue to hold up the walls of the Red Sea. What about a little later on when Moses was on Mount Sinai and they were waiting for him to come back? They had the freedom to choose to wait or the freedom to make that golden calf. They had a choice. And we know that they chose to fabricate to make that Idle, casting off the idea of serving the living God according to his perfect law and sought to live according to no law at all. This passage sets forth before us our depravity. And you may be thinking, well, how do you know that? How do you know that these were totally depraved? Well, it's in the text, isn't it? Even as Pilate proclaimed the innocence of Jesus in attempts to wash his hands of the guilt that he was about to incur, the people in a sense attempted to relieve him of that future guilt which he would bring upon himself by saying, his blood be upon us. You see, there was no light in their hearts. Anticipating the possibility that Jesus might be released by Pilate. The people reassure Pilate, no, no, don't be concerned about guilt being upon you. It'll be upon us. It'll be our responsibility. Put him to death. We'll take the responsibility. We'll take the guilt. His blood be upon us. How could they utter those words unless their hearts were so darkened? There's absolutely no light within any of them. There's no spiritual light. such that they could say, his blood be on us and on our children. This is the definition of what it means to be totally depraved. He came to his own and his own people did not receive him. The light has come into the world and the people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. This choice was made out of hearts which were completely, totally depraved. They loved evil and relished wickedness. What's your desire? What do you want? Isn't that what the text is asking us this morning? Isn't it what you choose? Every time a choice is set before you, aren't you saying, well, this is what I want? Isn't that why Jesus told Nicodemus that he could not even see the kingdom of God unless he was born again? You see, Nicodemus didn't even know what he should want because he couldn't even see the kingdom. You see, we're just like those who cried out, his blood be on us and on our children before conversion. Before conversion, each and every one of us were totally depraved. None of us wanted Jesus around. None of us wanted Jesus close by. None of us would have chosen Jesus. We would each have chosen Barabbas. Before conversion, every intention of the thoughts of your heart was only evil continually. You were trapped in your desire to sin. Does that describe you this morning? Are you sure this morning trapped that your only desire is to break the law of God. The only thing you desire to do is to fulfill your wicked and evil thoughts. This is the reason you need to be released. You see, that depraved heart necessitates release. In your depravity, you oppose Jesus Christ. And so if that describes you this morning, cry out to Christ for release, that you might be set free from your wicked desires. Run to Christ, plead with Him, ask that you be set free. That brings us to our third point, that release is attained by the blood of Christ. And we do have a solution set forth here. It hasn't been good news up to this point, but I think there is good news in this passage. And it's in that place where we would least expect it. People are seeking release, aren't they? Pilate sought release. He sought release from guilt. He knew that Jesus was innocent. His wife told him that Jesus was righteous. She said it had nothing to do with him. He's even asking the question of the people, why, what evil has he done? He has not found any evil in the Lord Jesus. He could not find any evil in the Lord Jesus Christ. And so what does he do? In order to avoid a riot, He begins washing his hands in front of the people saying, I'll do what you want, but I'm going to declare myself innocent. I'm going to declare myself released from this guilt, which I'm already experiencing in my heart. That ceremonial washing takes place. It's a last ditch effort to avoid the guilt of Jesus' blood being upon him, meaning Pilate, and so he declares his own release, which is actually no solution at all, is it? Passage does end with release, doesn't it? It ends with Barabbas being released. Did you notice that the only way for Barabbas to be released was by the continued confinement for Jesus? There were only two options. Release Jesus or release Barabbas. And if one was to be released, it meant the other was to remain confined and that's exactly what happened. That meant for Barabbas to be released, Jesus had to remain confined and thus sentenced to death. In other words, for Barabbas to live, Jesus had to die. Let me say that again. In order for Barabbas to be released and to live, Jesus had to remain confined and have his body broken, his blood shed, and die. Now we can't tell from this passage whether Barabbas was actually spiritually saved, and I'm not saying that. But he was certainly saved physically that day from the cross. Barabbas was released upon the utterance of those words, his blood be on us and on our children. Now we're thinking at this point that's the depth of our depravity, aren't we? As we hear those words, it's hard for us to actually read them and to hear them. We're shocked at the exclamation of the crowd, the crowd convincing Pilate to release Barabbas and sentence Jesus to death, that they would take the guilt upon themselves and send it to their children as well as they cry out, crucify him. But I want you to see it another way this morning. I want you to see how powerful the blood of Jesus is. It's so powerful that it's able to wash you clean. His blood be on us. It's a two-sided coin, isn't it? It shows us the blackness of the heart, which must be washed whiter than snow. And the only way possible is in the blood. It's in the immersion of the blood of Christ. So while we usually take these words in the negative, which I believe was their initial purpose, you need to see the meaning of these words on the other side of that coin. You see, it's only the blood of Jesus Christ poured out upon you that can cleanse you from the wickedness of your sin. It's only the blood of Jesus can cleanse because he was the innocent one and he hung on a cross and suffered the eternal wrath of his father for your sins if you're trusting in him this morning and it's only his blood which was pure. Only his blood is the way that you can be forgiven of the evil of your sins and in his pure and perfect and powerful blood Do you see that? Do you see that in those words? Have you cried those out? His blood be on me. Have you sought release from your guilt, asking for the blood of Jesus Christ to be on you by crying that out? It's the only way for you to be released from your guilt. You must be rid of it. You must be released of your guilt. If not, you'll be required to pay the price for your own sins, personally. But you can be released. And it's only by giving your guilt to Jesus Christ, the punishment for your sins. You see, that's the only thing you have to give to Jesus. Your hands filled with the guilt of your sin is the only thing you can offer to Jesus Christ. And you see, you must, if you're to be released, so that He might take it and bring it to the cross where it's fully and completely satisfied, so that you can be released People cried out before Pilate in the disdain and hatred of Jesus Christ, His blood be upon us, but you must cry out to Jesus Christ, His blood be upon me. Out of a changed heart, which desires and longs for fellowship and communion with the living God through His Son, Jesus Christ, through His blood. Yes, the release of sinners from the guilt of sin is attained only as the blood of Jesus is poured upon them. The Israelites needed to be released from the Egyptians. We need to be released from the guilt of our sins. friends, and the only way that that can happen is if you cry out for the blood of Jesus to be upon you. Amen. Father and our God, thank you for this passage. While it's hard for us to envision the events of that time, yet we see the significance of them for us today. Oh, Lord God, we confess we are prisoners. I've been imprisoned by our guilt, by breaking of your law, and yet, and yet in Christ, by and through his blood, you have released us. And so we ask even now, Father, help us to use this freedom for your glory and for the exaltation of your son. We praise you. We praise you. Holy Spirit, help us now. Help us to proclaim Christ. We ask all this in his precious name. Amen.