“So
Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released Barabbas for them; and after
flogging Jesus, he handed him over to be crucified.”
-
Mark 15:15
The
annals of history tell us Pontius Pilate was a vindictive, cruel, and corrupt
Roman prefect, less interested in governing the Jews of Judea than terrorizing
them. His willingness to continually disregard and disrespect Jewish customs
earned him enmity, and the fury with which he put down rebellions earned him
fear.
Yet
the gospels show us a different Pilate than the monster that historians like
Josephus describe. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John describe a man motivated not
by cruelty, but cowardice, a governor whose chief concern was avoiding a mob.
The Pilate they describe didn’t condemn Jesus to death because of any personal
malice against him or because he wanted to see an innocent man suffer. Rather,
Pilate placed our Lord’s fate in the hands of the mob, offering to grant freedom
to either Jesus Christ, the King of the Jews, or Jesus Barabbas, a notorious
murderer. “The choice is yours,” he said. Pilate’s was not a sin of
malevolence, but of passivity—he simply gave the people what they wanted.
That
Friday morning, Pilate learned something that is still true today: people
rarely want Jesus. Sure, they want parts
of him—his healing miracles, his compassion, his power, his forgiveness. But
when the full picture comes into view, they get uneasy. Sell your possessions
and give the money to the poor? Love your enemies and pray for those who
persecute you? Take up your cross and follow? No thanks. Given the choice
between a Barabbas—a bad choice, but a familiar one—and the unyielding holiness
of Christ, it is only the leading of the Holy Spirit that allows us to even
consider choosing Jesus.
So,
with the crowd rejecting Jesus, Pilate had the unique opportunity to be part of
something bigger than himself, bigger than Rome even, to stand for what was
right and say, “I will not doom someone unworthy of condemnation.” But instead
he took the easy, convenient route and gave the people what they wanted. Every
day you face a similar test: to act on Jesus’s behalf or sit back and hope for the
best, to bear witness to his saving power or leave that duty to the preacher,
to serve the Lord or serve yourself. Pilate made his choice, and is remembered
for it still today. In your life, will you give the people what they want or will
you give God what He deserves?
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