Take your Bibles now and turn to John 18. John 18, although we'll be looking also into John 19-16. We are speaking here of Jesus' trial just prior to His crucifixion. We've looked at this text for the last two Lord's days. First of all, from the perspective of Jesus and the Jews. Then secondly, from the perspective of Jesus and Peter. And now today, there's one more major character in this story that the Scripture gives to us that we need to pay careful attention to in order to glean what the Word of God has for us. And that is Jesus and Pilate. Jesus and Pilate. Throughout the Gospel of John, we have seen many people come face to face with Jesus. Going all the way back to John the Baptist, Andrew, Peter, Nathaniel, Nicodemus, the Samaritan woman at the well, a Gentile official, a lame man at the pool of Bethesda, the Jewish leaders, the disciples, a blind man, Mary and Martha, even some Greeks who said, we wish to see Jesus. All these people have come face to face with Jesus. And in each and every case, they have had to deal with who Jesus was and how they were going to respond to Him. And now in our text today, really in a climactic way in the gospel, the same exact thing happens to a Roman governor named Pilate. As we learn the story of Jesus before Pilate, The Word of the Living God, I believe, is confronting you with the exact same questions that confronted Pilate. Who is Jesus? And how are you going to respond to Him? We see, first of all, in our text here, this man named Pilate. And I want to present him to you today as Pilate, who is truthless and powerless. Truthless and powerless. And we know from other historical sources that this man Pilate, who's mentioned to us here in the text, that Jesus comes before, was the prefect of the province of Judea in the Roman Empire for about 10 years, roughly AD 26 to 36 or 37. The Jewish historian Josephus called him greedy, inflexible, cruel and oppressive. From everything we know about Pilate from secular sources, Pilate despised the Jews and treated them and their customs with contempt. He had no love lost at all for these people that he was put in charge of ruling. In fact, the trial of Jesus is not the first time that Pilate and the Jewish leaders have clashed. For instance, one occasion that's recorded for us in history, he had seized some Jewish funds in order to build an aqueduct for the city. And so the next time he visited Jerusalem, he was besieged by an angry mob. So he instructed his soldiers to clothe themselves in civilian garments with clubs hidden inside their garments and disperse themselves out amongst the crowd. And then in a prearranged signal, remove their clubs and begin to attack the protesters, which of course they did, killing many of them. So there was lots of bad blood between Pilate and the Jewish leaders, even when we come to the trial that's recorded for us in the scriptures. But this, of course, makes it all the more amazing that the Jews brought Jesus to Pilate. The Jews brought Jesus to Pilate. They led Jesus, verse 28 of chapter 18, from the house of Caiaphas to the governor's headquarters. Why did they do that? Well, basically it was because they had to. The Romans would not allow the Jews to crucify someone. And these Jewish leaders, as we've already seen in looking at them in this text, were so committed to executing Jesus, they hated him so much that they would do anything to see him crucified. They would do whatever it took to make sure it happened, even if that meant having to work with this man Pilate. They were willing to do that. But I think this also helps us to understand why Pilate is so dismissive of them when they first come to him. Look at what they say here in v. 29 and following. So they come to his headquarters. They wouldn't go inside because they didn't want to be defiled so they could eat the Passover. So Pilate went outside to them, v. 29, and said, what accusation do you bring against this man? They answered him, if this man were not doing evil, We would not have delivered him over to you. Pilate said to them, take him yourselves and judge him by your own law. The Jews said to him, it is not lawful for us to put anyone to death. This was to fulfill the word that Jesus had spoken to show by what kind of death he was going to die. You see, Pilate, as they approach him here, he didn't want to get involved in what he saw as just a silly Jewish religious squabble. I really don't want to even mess with this." He basically says to them, you go take him and you judge him according to your own law. Don't drag me into this. But he also realized that he didn't have an easy way out. That is, these Jews were pretty upset. And so he had to do something to make it okay and not have another rebellion on his hands. And so reluctantly here in our text, he begins to interrogate Jesus. We see in verse 33, So Pilate entered his headquarters again and called Jesus and said to him, Are you the king of the Jews? The first question Pilate asked, and this is recorded in all the Gospels, the very first thing he asked Jesus, Are you the king of the Jews? Now this gives us a clue, by the way, into what the Jews, what charges the Jews had brought against him. You remember the Jews wanted to crucify Jesus for blasphemy because he had made himself out to be the Messiah, the son of God. But obviously, Pilate wasn't worried about that. Pilate had no concerns about their religious issues. If someone called himself God, Pilate didn't care. So instead they framed their charge in political terms. Jesus made himself out to be a king. Ah, now there's something that Pilate would have to deal with if Jesus is seditious, if Jesus is trying to overthrow the government. And Pilate's going to have to deal with this. He can't just ignore that. That's something Caesar would be concerned about and he would want Pilate to take care of. So. Pilate somewhat contemptuously asks here, are you the king of the Jews? But at the same time, we see what's going on between Pilate and the Jews. I think this very fact shows us how God uses the schemes of man to bring about exactly what he wants. As is already said in verse 32, this was to fulfill the word that Jesus had spoken to show by what kind of death He was going to die. He had said repeatedly in the Gospel of John, He was going to be lifted up. That was how He was going to die. And God is here working through these rebellious Jews and through this contemptuous Roman governor to bring about exactly what He wants to happen. And then what this exchange between Pilate and Jesus brings to the forward in the Scriptures here today is really that Jesus really is the King. Why would Pilate ask that kind of a question? Why would he be concerned about it? Well, for political reasons. But God is working here, isn't He? Because He's revealing through this very exchange who this man really is. That Jesus really is the King. And at the same time, He does it in such a way that shows that the worldly conception of kingship is not accurate for Jesus. Yes, Jesus is the King, and you must believe in Him as such. But at the same time, no, He is not a King like you would think of one. And so this first interchange that we're coming to in the text here between Pilate and Jesus reveals something about Pilate. It reveals that Pilate is without the truth. He cannot see what is right. He cannot see what is real. And he cannot be faithful to what is right and to what is real, even when the truth is standing right in front of his eyes. Let's see what happens here. Pilate enters his headquarters again and calls Jesus and said to him, Are you the king of the Jews? Jesus answered him, Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it to you about me? Pilate answered, Am I a Jew? Your own nation, the chief priests have delivered you over to me. What have you done? Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting so that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from here. Then Pilate said to him, So you are a king. Jesus answered, You say that I am a king, For this purpose I was born, and for this purpose I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice," Pilate said to him. What is truth? So we have this first exchange between Jesus and Pilate, which shows very clearly that Pilate is without the truth. As Pilate opens up this interrogation and says, are you the king of the Jews? In response to that, Jesus gives him a question. Jesus gives him a question because he wants to uncover what Pilate is thinking. And I think Jesus does this quite effectively, by the way, in this interrogation. What Jesus does is tear down all the castle walls around Pilate's heart, all those things that Pilate felt secure in, all those things that gave Pilate his stability and his meaning and his purpose in life, things like his position in the Roman government, And by the end of this brief interchange, even as short as it is, Jesus has already dragged Pilate's heart out into the light and exposed it to the light of day so that Pilate knows, as well as everyone else, that he knows nothing. What is truth is all he can say. Now, Jesus did this by instructing Pilate about his kingdom. He said, Are you the king of the Jews? Jesus answered, Do you say this of your own accord or did others say it to you about me? He wants to again uncover what Pilate is really thinking. Pilate responds by another question. Am I a Jew? Your own nation, the chief priests have delivered you over to me. What have you done? Jesus begins to teach Pilate now. My kingdom is not of this world. Now, notice that Jesus does not say here, My kingdom has nothing to do with this world. That's not what he said. He did not say my kingdom is not active in this world. He said my kingdom is not of this world. In other words, it's not sourced here. It does not originate from here. It's not this kind of a kingdom. That means that his kingdom has a different kind of character than this world. It's a different type of kingdom than the kingdoms of this world. And of course, as we just read, to prove this, Jesus points out that his servants were not engaging in battle to deliver him. which they would have been doing if he had that kind of a kingdom. Actually, this is the kind of a kingdom that Pilate can't comprehend, that Pilate knows nothing about. It's something that, on the one hand, cannot be a threat to Rome, because there's no armed insurrection. Are Jesus' followers fighting? No. So how is this any threat to Rome? It isn't. Not in that sense. But on the other hand, it really is a kingdom. And that's why Pilate responds by saying, so you are a king. If you're saying you have a kingdom, you must be a king. And I think Jesus' response to that is very instructive. First of all, he affirms what Pilate said, in effect. He says, yes, it is true that I am a king. When he says, you say that I am a king. Actually, this is correct. But the very way he says that does a couple things. First of all, it helps Pilate realize that he doesn't understand what Jesus is talking about when he says, yes, I am a king. And secondly then, it puts the burden back on Pilate to determine what this means and what Pilate is going to do about it. So Jesus instructs Pilate. Jesus says, you say that I am a king. Okay, Pilate? I want you to understand, yes, I am a king. even though you need to deal with what that means. So let me tell you something, Pilot. For this purpose, I was born. And for this purpose, I have come into the world to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice. Here's why I've come, Pilot. I was born. Here's why I'm here. I have come into the world, He says. By the way, even what Jesus says here clearly affirms His pre-existence. He was, as the Gospel of John has been teaching us here, the Word made flesh. God now as a man. For this purpose I was born. For this purpose I have come into the world to bear witness to the truth. How does Jesus Explain what He's doing here. Well, He says He came to this world to bear witness to the truth. In other words, He is exercising His kingship by revealing God to men, by making known the truth. That's what Jesus does. That's how He exercises His kingship. That's how He brings about His kingdom. He reveals God to men. Now remember, truth, as we've already learned in this Gospel, It's not merely facts held in the mind. 2 plus 2 is 4. I know that. Therefore, I have this truth. That's not what Jesus is driving at here. Remember that truth is something much more than that. It is actually the self-revelation of God to men. It is God making Himself known to men. That's how men are saved. That's how they become subjects of God's kingdom. This is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent." And so Jesus is here explaining this to Pilate. He's showing Pilate what it really means to come to grips with this, and what Pilate needs. He needs to bear witness, excuse me, he needs to listen to the witness of the One who is the truth. The One standing right in front of him. And having explained that then to Pilate, Jesus puts before Pilate a tremendous opportunity, a marvelous opportunity. He says, I have come to bear witness to the truth. That's how men come to know God. That's how men come to be part of my kingdom. But then he looks straight at Pilate and he said, everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice. As you read that, I can just imagine Jesus saying those words to Pilate. And the room is silent. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice. Pilate is now on trial. How is he going to respond? Well, Pilate, sadly, replies to Jesus in verse 38. What is truth? What is truth? Perhaps cynically, here's a man who's been through all the machinations of empire. He knows how it works. It's not about being right. It's about having the right connections, having the right power. He had gotten his position because he was connected with the guy above him What is truth? Nobody knows anyway, right? I don't know. Perhaps Pilate wasn't cynical. Perhaps he was blissful. Perhaps he realized nobody knows what the truth is. But in these very words, he has basically admitted he doesn't know the truth. He doesn't know it. However he meant it, He's admitted he doesn't know the truth. And so now the tension is clear. Will Pilate listen to the truth and cast his lot in with Jesus? But Pilate wasn't ready to concede yet. Even though he could admit he didn't know the truth, even though he could realize he didn't know the truth, he was still a realist, we might call him today. A realist. You know, he had eyes in his head. He could see where the power was. And that had to be the best way to go, or so he thought. He was going to have to trust in power. That's what he's going to have to do. Who do you side with? You side with the one who has the power. Who has the power? Me, my position, the Roman government. That's who I side with, right? But the very next interchange then with Jesus, reveals that not only is Pilate truthless, it exposes the fact that he is also actually powerless. He's powerless. The Scriptures go on to describe what happens in the meantime in between these two exchanges with Jesus. Pilate goes back outside to the Jews, tells them, I find no guilt in him. And so, he tries to make a bargain. Okay, let's do something that will make you happy. that will satisfy me and my responsibility in this situation, you have a custom that I release somebody to you. So how about I release Jesus to you?" And the Jews cried out. They wanted instead Barabbas, a man who in our terminology today might be considered a terrorist. They said, release to us Barabbas. So Pilate goes to a different plan. He takes Jesus, chapter 19, and he flogged him. Mocked him, the soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head and arrayed him in a purple robe. They came up to him and him saying, Hail, King of the Jews, and struck him with their hands. And then Pilate went out again to the Jews and says, See, I am bringing him out to you that you may know that I find no guilt in him. And Jesus comes out then wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate says to them, Behold the man. Perhaps he was hoping that this would satisfy them. Perhaps he was hoping that this would quench their thirst for taking vengeance on this man and that they would say, OK, well, we'll let it pass. But it didn't work. When the chief priest and the officers saw him, they tried out crucify him, crucify him. Pilate still says, then, take him yourselves and crucify him, for I find no guilt in him. There's no... What am I supposed to do here? Right? You go take care of it. This is your problem. But the Jews answered him, we have a law, and according to that law, he ought to die because he has made himself the son of God. Now that clicks a little bit with Pilate. We don't know if it was because he was superstitious. Could have been. being the good pagan that he was. But I think it also might reflect the fact that in his heart of hearts, he knew he was dealing with somebody who was truly unusual. Here was a man that clearly was not guilty. I mean, Pilate could see it. There was absolutely no reason for what the Jews were insisting on here. And yet, in his very last interchange with this man, He had come on, Pilate had come on as the one who's in charge. OK, let me take care of you. And very quickly, Jesus had exposed him. Pilate knew in his heart of hearts that he was dealing with somebody very unusual here. And when he hears the Jews cry out that this man has made himself out to be the son of God, that scares him. What do we see him doing here? We see Pilate continuing to cling to his position of authority, his power, as he could see it. He comes down to this next exchange to Jesus in chapter 19, verse 8. When Pilate heard this statement, the Bible says he was even more afraid. He was even more afraid. And yet, as he begins to talk to Jesus here, Jesus forces the issue again. He enters his headquarters again and says to Jesus, where are you from? Remember what Jesus said to him just a moment ago. He said, for this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world. So Pilate asks Jesus now, where are you from? But what happens? Jesus gave him no answer. Jesus refused to answer him. On the one hand, as we think about why Jesus refused to answer Pilate, what could Jesus say? Pilate wasn't willing to hear the truth. What is truth? He wasn't willing to hear the truth. Jesus could have explained that He was the Word made flesh, but Pilate didn't want to hear the truth. But I think even more than that, There's a greater reason even why Jesus was silent here. And I think it's because Jesus brought to the forefront of the discussion what Pilate was trusting in. I think that's exactly why He refused to answer Pilate. Because it forces Pilate then to put his cards on the table. Because we see this in verse 10. So Pilate says to Him, You will not speak to me? Do You not know that I have authority to release You and authority to crucify You? What has that just done? That's made Pilate put his cards on the table. That's made Pilate reveal how he sees the situation, right? Okay, I have the authority, you have none. I'm the one in power, you're not. Right? That's the way Pilate saw it. And what does Jesus say to him in verse 11? Jesus answered him, You would have no authority over me at all, unless it had been given you from above. Therefore, he who delivered me over to you has the greater sin." When Jesus answered Pilate, he made it very clear that not only was Pilate truthless, but he was powerless. He had nothing to hang on to. There was nowhere to hide. God was the one who was in control of all this. I think Pilate's truthlessness and his powerlessness show completely then in the last section of this story, verses 12 through 16. And they show completely in the fact that he knew Jesus was not guilty. But in the end, he completely capitulates to the despised Jews in order to save his own political head. He reveals how he is completely a captive of this world system, just like the Jews were when he decided against Jesus and sent Him to be crucified. From then on, Pilate sought to release Him. But the Jews cried out, if you release this man, you are not Caesar's friend. Everyone who makes himself a king opposes Caesar. The Jews knew how to play their cards right too, right? They knew where Pilate was looking to. He was trusting in Caesar. And so if they could put it out here that he was not favorable to Caesar, Pilate would be in trouble. So when he heard these words, he brought Jesus out and sat down in the judgment seat at a place called the Stone Pavement and an Aramaic Gabbatha. Now, it was the day of preparation of the Passover. It was about the sixth hour, which would be about noon. He said to the Jews, Behold your King. They cried out, Away with him! Away with him! Crucify him! Pilate said to them, Shall I crucify your king? The chief priests answered, We have no king but Caesar. So, he delivered him over to them to be crucified. Pilate is exposed here as one who is without the truth and without any power. But what's the contrast here? the true king. I think if nothing else, this whole trial before Pilate clearly exonerates Jesus. If there had been anything at all that Pilate could have convicted him for, don't you think he would have done it? I mean, after all, that would have been the completely easy way out of the situation. The Jews want him crucified. Here's a charge I can tag him with. Satisfy both the Roman government and the Jews. Boom. Taken care of, I washed my hands of the problem. No guilt, no problem. He's crucified. If there had been any reason whatsoever that Pilate could have come up with to crucify Jesus, the easiest thing in the world would have been for him to just do it. But he didn't. And what has God done through this trial before this Roman governor? God has completely exonerated his son. He has proven for the whole world to see that Jesus was indeed innocent, that Jesus was indeed the way, the truth and the life, that he spoke the truth. Pilate knew there was no guilt in Jesus. And so God used this Roman governor who would not even listen to him to prove that Jesus was the truth. Jesus spoke the truth. Jesus did the truth. Jesus was the truth. And not only that, The trial before Pilate also clearly revealed that Jesus was the true king with a kingdom that comes from God himself. This is a kingdom that no merely earthly kingdom can overthrow. It's a kingdom that's built upon the truth. And so that brings us to you. Today, as you come face to face with Jesus in the scriptures, like Pilate, you have to answer the question, who is this man and how am I going to respond to him? Who is this man and how am I going to respond to him? Are you like Pilate today, recognizing that you do not know the truth, but choosing to put your trust in what seems most powerful to you as you evaluate the situation of your life Do you make your choice according to, well, this is what I can trust in. This is what it looks like to me I can hang on to. Perhaps it could be the government system that we live under, the United States government. Perhaps it could be your corporation, your job. Perhaps it could be modern medicine. Perhaps it could be your income, your money, your retirement account. Perhaps it could be your own family. But if these are the kinds of things you're trusting in, then realize today that like Pilate, you are truthless and powerless. Jesus said, everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice. And the question before you then today is, will you listen to Jesus? Will you submit to him as your king? Will you trust in him as the way, the truth and the life? Nothing else can give you life. Nothing else can give you the truth except for Jesus. So my admonition to you today would be don't end up like Pilate, trusting in what seemed to him to be the most powerful thing he could see, the Roman government, and ultimately losing everything. He trusted in a lie. On the other hand today, the words out of Pilate's mouth describe exactly what should happen in your soul as you see Jesus presented to you in the Scriptures today. Pilate said to the Jews, speaking far better than he really knew, Behold your King. Behold your King. As you look at the Scriptures today, is that what you see? Do you see your King here? Do you see Jesus as your King? He is the good King who achieves His power by giving His life for His people. He actually achieves His kingdom by going to the cross. He conquered sin and death and Satan and the world. And He subdues us then to His gracious rule. And He defends us as His own kingdom. And He restrains and He conquers all His and our enemies. That's Jesus. That's who we see in the text. And so I want to ask you today, as you consider Jesus before Pilate, does it inflame your heart to be eternally devoted to this humble King? Does it not make you want to trust Him? Trust His kingly leadership in all of your life? The Bible says that God has delivered us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins, Colossians 1. Jesus will reign until He has put all enemies under His feet, 1 Corinthians 15, 25, including death itself. This is the King. As you look at Jesus right here, this man who appears so weak, so powerless, so helpless, in the face of forces arrayed against Him, He is the one you must gladly embrace as your king, as the one you trust in. Because this is the king that you can trust wholeheartedly and follow without reservation. He has given his life for you. He's not a king like worldly kings. He is the king who gives you life when you submit to him and trust him. And so what I would ask you today to do in response to this text is exactly what Pilate said. Behold your King.