Monday Meditation
July 11, 2016
From the desk of A.J. Higgins
Pilate the Bully
“Knowest Thou not that I have power (authority) to crucify Thee,
and have power (authority) to release Thee?”
John 19:10
Picture the scene if you can. Only John relates these details of the private exchange between the Judge and his accused.
A petty Roman ruler is facing the Creator of the ends of the earth. In an attempt to intimidate Christ, Pilate flaunts his authority. He has the power to condemn or to release. How can Christ stand silently before a man who possesses so much “authority?” Doesn’t Christ know who Pilate is? The irony of the moment could not be greater, as it is Pilate who is ignorant of Who Christ is!
But what makes the encounter even more ironic, is that before Pilate stands the Man Whom John’s Gospel asserts has all authority committed to His hands. Trace how John has emphasized this throughout his record.
He Gives Authority to become Children of God
In the very prologue of his unfolding story, John tells us that this “Word” Who has come from the Father, the “Light” that has come into the world, is the One Who has the authority to make those who believe on Him, the children of God (John 1:12). No other human being could do this. Human relationship, resolve, and resources could not accomplish this. The Son had come into the world to make children for God.
He has been Given authority to Execute Judgment
John 5 is a treasure trove of truth concerning the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ. Among the statements which punctuate this chapter, the Lord Jesus states that “The Father has committed all judgment to Him” (v 22) with a view that all men should honor Him even as they honor the Father. He then adds that as Son of Man, He has been given authority to carry out judgment.
Little did Pilate know that even though he bore the title of judge for a brief few years, before him stood the Judge of the entire universe. Imagine Pilate looking back from eternity and realizing that he attempted to bully the Judge of all with his claim to have authority!
He has been Given Authority to Lay Down His Life and to Take It Again
In John 10:18, the Lord Jesus announced what must have been startling words to His listeners: He had the authority to lay down His life – the ability to dismiss His spirit. But He also had the authority to raise Himself from the grave. There have been people innumerable who have taken their own lives. That is not the same as “laying down” a life. And there has been no one who had the authority or ability to rise out of death. But the Lord Jesus, while dead, had the authority to raise Himself out of death and rise to life!
He has Authority over All Flesh to Give Eternal Life
In the upper room with the shadow of a cross stretching over the scene, the Lord Jesus lifted His eyes into heaven and spoke with His Father. Among the many precious things uttered, He spoke of the fact that He had the authority to grant eternal life to men and women. Pilate claimed the power to take life. Christ alone could give life, eternal in character, to all that the Father had given Him.
What a contrast that day in the judgment hall! What a sad spectacle as Pilate tried to bully Christ into a confession. Yet what grace and longsuffering on the part of the Lord Jesus Christ. He never asserts Himself; He never calls Pilate to task and reveals to him that He is the ultimate Judge. Bowing to the will of God, He submits to the cruel treatment of this self-possessed governor of Judea, and with majestic bearing, allows Himself to be scorned and condemned, and goes out to be impaled to a tree.
_____________________________________________________________