Quid est Veritas

In the tremendous conversation between Pontious Pilate and Jesus we see the quintessential condition of the human heart. Allow me to give you the context to this story.

Jesus has been arrested, after many attempts, by the hand of one of His own. It took a betrayal of one that was closest to Him for Him to be brought into custody and sure death. Now that He was under arrest, He was sent back and forth between the Roman government and the Pharisees in order for ‘due process’.

Finally He is taken to the Roman governor, Pontious Pilate, to be questioned by the governor himself.

Now since this was a religious season for the Pharisees, in order to maintain cleanliness for the upcoming ceremonies they were not allowed to enter the house of a gentile. So they send Jesus in under Roman guard alone and is brought to Pilate.

“Are you the king of the Jews?” Pilate asked, seeking confirmation in the accusations brought against Jesus.

“Is that your own idea, or did others talk to you about me?” Jesus replied.

“Am I a Jew? It was your people and your chief priests who handed you over to me. What is it that you have done?”

“My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would come to fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place.”

“You are a king, then!”

“You are right in stating that I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”

Pilate looks down at the ground and shrugs his shoulders. He looks back at Jesus and says,
“What is truth?” he walks away and then allows Jesus to be crucified.

Are you the king of the Jews, Pilate asks at first. He’s looking for truth. There have been accusations brought to Him and the defendant is neither confirming nor denying this. Upon the answer that Jesus’ gives, Pilate can discern if Jesus is a liar, lunatic or Lord.

But always seeking the heart of men, Jesus responds by giving a question back to Pilate getting him to open up on his own personal assumptions.

Who’s asking that question? Do you really not believe me? Has someone else prompted to doubt what I say? Even when there is substantiated proof of my claims you reserve judgement. A man honestly seeking truth would see the evidence of people’s hearts and the actions it unfolds…not some accusation coming from a political force.

Pilate retorts by removing himself from the equation. Am I a Jew? What personal stake do I have in this issue? What consolation will I receive if I judge one way or another? Who are you and what have you really done to upset this many people who demand your death?

Humbly Jesus submits that He is a king, but a king that Pilate has not seen before. My kingdom, Jesus says, is not of this world.

You are a king? Pilate is now intrigued that this rational and calm man is providing an answer Pilate can ascertain. If Jesus really is a king of a earthly kingdom and is innocent of these charges, Pilate can release Him. If Jesus is not a king, a simple judgement will do.

Again causing Pilate to show his true motivation, Jesus appends by saying that His kingdom is not of this world. In fact, His kingdom is so powerful He could have prevent His arrest by the Jews. He could have overthrown the Jews, and quite possibly be a threat to the Empire. But that’s not why He came…He has come to testify to the truth that He is King.

Jesus is essentially bringing this conversation to an end, by forcing Pilate to conclude on his own assumptions, and not the persuasion of others.

Without God, Pilate could find no truth.

“What is truth?” He turns and walks away, as many of us do when faced with Christ.

Here was Christ the King before this man saying that He is the truth that Pilate has been searching for. When we think the question is more important in the answer, when we think that the answers cannot be obtained or when it’s easier to walk away from what’s in front of us; we miss the Christ standing before us offering truth.

“I am the way, the truth, the life. No man comes onto the Father except through Me.”
-Jesus

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-Andrew

God save America

“Behind the debris of our solemn supermen and imperial diplomatists stands the gigantic figure of a person; because of whom, by whom, in whom and through whom mankind may still survive; the person of Jesus Christ.”

-Malcom Muggeridge 

 

Having been a supportive Republican, a moderate Republican, a staunch Independent and now something that goes without a title, I would like to show you what God has shown me about politics. Especially in light of this political season where we have many people proclaiming to follow the Lord running for the office (in fact…all of them have), but yet the fruit has yet to be seen.

I know that many of you at times find yourself amidst a political struggle, because you can’t decide who’s better fit for office. A lesser of two evils sort of scenario. I confess it’s happening to me more frequently, in fact the last few elections of any political office I see in retrospect I have never agreed to a comfortable level with any candidate.

I know it’s hard to find a candidate that you can agree on 100%, or even 85%, but in recent years and the conviction God has placed on my heart, the numbers are dwindling. I see more and more of my brothers and sisters in Christ being hoodwinked by the slightest trick of these men and women running for public office and claiming to follow Christ at the same time.

Let me quote part of a sermon by Alistair Begg as a conclusion to this note. His words are far better than mine, and he brings God’s truth to light better than I can.

“Tonight on earth, it’s total confusion.

You see the collapse of the City of Man should not be seen as the curtailing the building of the City of God. As distracting and distressing the actions of the wicked may be, when we focus on the fact that God is on His throne we can view the tottering foundations and crumbling occasions in a totally different fashion.

And at a time where there are unique opportunities for the Gospel, at a time where people are asking deep seated questions because they recognize the foundations are crumbling too, and at a time where they are just about prepared to drink a cup of coffee and seek a sensible answer, the bombastic ugly ‘Christian’ is manning the battiers (battle mounts) of right wing politics! Joining coalitions, endorsing political agendas, advancing legislative remedies, and in doing so with every further move we lose the ability to say with Paul, “We do not wage war the way the world wages war.”

The church cannot say it, because it wouldn’t be true.

The tragedy that since the foundations are being destroyed and since activism is a very large part of our culture, the Christian the determines that they will become an activist. It isn’t wrong it become an activist. It is wrong to become a slanderer, it is wrong to become combative and ugly and it is wrong to forget that separates me from some guy who tonight is boozing it up in some saloon; is not that I’m smarting than him, but it’s the grace of God to me.

So until the church learns how to cry, the church loses any right to shout. Until we learn to do what we’ve been told to, we dare not do what has been granted to us with no mandate at all.

Here’s the strangest thing, if I may make an aside. Conservative Christianity hammered for the longest time mainline Christian churches in America. For what? Their desertion of the Gospel and their commitment to politics. They said, ‘These people do not preach the Gospel because they are so involved in politics. Look at them! They’re arm in arm with the Sandinistas, with the Liberators, with the Freedom Fighters, of what a bad group of people they are!’

Well did we get inoculated from their condition? Don’t we see ourselves in the mirror?

For the last 2 decades we’ve been doing the same thing. Oh, it’s not left wing liberalism, it’s right wing radicalism. The foundations are being destroyed and we know we must do something, we’re not going to run but we’re sure going to stay and fight so we’re wielding arms with all these strong concoctions of people.

We will re-construct our society by coercive legal and political means. We will establish some sort of legal misrepresentation of God’s kingdom; We’re like the disciples in the garden of Gethsemane; out with the swords ready to chop the people’s heads off and Jesus is putting ears back on all around us saying, ‘Guys have you learned nothing in 2,000 years?! Didn’t you read what I wrote in the book that my kingdom is not of this world? If it were my servants would come and fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But the reason that they don’t is because the very crushing of my body is going to be the blood that fuels the birth of my church.’

Listen, God has no special countries.”