Guilty as Charged
Mark 14:53-65
I teach Introduction to Ethics through NCMC in the fall semester
-to demonstrate ethical dilemmas, as well as to stimulate thought
and discussion, I show films
--these particular films aren’t easy to watch because they portray
unethical behavior and its devastating consequences or they
show someone paying a hefty price to stand against evil
It’s an interesting phenomenon
-without fail, these films elicit strong reactions from my students
--they cry at the
end of The Spitfire Grill
--they are
stirred by Rules of Engagement
--they get quiet when they have to grapple with the end-of-life
issues that are in Million Dollar Baby
--they are speechless at the genocide depicted in Hotel Rwanda
--and they are angry when the innocent Tom Robinson is found
guilty of rape in To
Kill a Mockingbird
-no doubt you, too, would respond just as strongly
But imagine if I’d walk into the classroom this Thursday night and
read this à Read Mark 14:53-65
Forget my class’ reaction...and instead consider how you reacted
-did you pay attention? did your mind wander?
-were you thinking about your weekend plans...or lunch?
-were you bored because you’ve heard it a million times?
-did you remain emotionally unaffected...comfortable...nonchalant?
-do you usually show a stronger response to a fictional story about
fictional characters than you do to the ugly truth?
How many of us were appalled by the first round of Jesus’ trial?
How many of us were shaking our heads at the conspiracy?
How many of us were incredulous that no one came to His defense?
How many of us were outraged at the injustice of the whole thing?
How many of us were stunned by the totally senseless violence?
How many of us were moved to tears...or to silent prayer?
How many of us were ashamed that we—you and I—had more than
“just a hand” in the death of an innocent man?
Dorothy Sayers
graphically reminds us à It is
curious that people
who are filled with
horrified indignation whenever a cat kills a
sparrow can hear the
story of the killing of God told Sunday after
Sunday and not experience any shock at all.
Why is that?
-The Spitfire Grill is not a true story, but when I showed it in class on
Thursday night, I was thankful the lights were out because I cried
again—just like every other time I’ve watched it!
--but I read a true story, like Mark 14-15...and I have to wonder—
when did my heart grew so cold, so indifferent?
---I am not suggesting that our spirituality can be measured
by our emotional response (in fact, my newsletter article
this coming week is all about that)...but it does concern
me that I am moved more by a late hit to a quarterback
than I am by repeated hits to the face, stomach, and
kidneys of Jesus
-but let me suggest a few possible explanations for our inexcusable,
embarrassing behavior
We can’t grasp all
the illegalities of even the first part of His trial
-first, a bit of
background
--the great Sanhedrin ruled
in
---it was composed of 70
men plus the high priest
----23 were chief
priests
----24 were elders
----24 were scribes
--while its purposes and functions
differ from our Supreme Court,
the
great Sanhedrin was the highest
ruling council in
Yet the proceedings of that darkest night over and over again violated
Scripture, as well as the Sanhedrin’s own laws—here are a few...
1. Jesus’ arrest was illegal. There were no formal charges, they basically kidnapped him. On top of that, some of those who took Jesus bribed Judas and were about to become the judge and jury.
2. The charges were illegal because they originated from the judges, not the testimony of witnesses. The Sanhedrin did not have the authority to indict anyone.
3. Jewish law allowed only daytime trials—but the initial proceedings were held at night, in secret, and at the wrong location, so there was no chance anyone would be available to testify on behalf of Jesus.
4. The trial of a
capital offense could not occur on the day prior to a Jewish festival or the
day prior to the Sabbath. Jesus’ trial was
on a Friday and on the day before the Festival of
Unleavened Bread.
5. Sanhedrin law states,
"If a sentence of death is to be pronounced, [the trial] cannot be
concluded before the following day." This was done to allow sufficient opportunity
for any witnesses in support of the accused to present themselves. Jesus' trial was conducted in private and
completed in less than nine hours.
7. They could only
get witness to agree about Jesus’ claim to destroy the
8. He was
condemned on His own testimony. However,
according to Jewish law, a person could not be condemned by their testimony.
9. Sanhedrin laws
requires: "The judges shall weigh
the matter in sincerity of their conscience.” Instead, the court pronounced sentence without
deliberation!
10. The sentence was delivered in a place forbidden by law.
The trial took place at the high priest's house, but a death sentence
could lawfully be pronounced only in the court's appointed place.
11. The high priest tore his
clothes. While this was a traditional
expression of grief or was done in response to blasphemy, it was illegal for a
member of the Sanhedrin (much less the high priest) to do so. This was to prevent such actions from swaying
the others.
12. The court
switched the charges from blasphemy to treason when the case went before
Pilate. Jesus' opponents wanted him
killed but they didn’t want to do it themselves; so they charged him with
treason—a crime against
In Jesus’ so-called trial, there was deliberate violation after deliberate
violation of any sense of justice
-yet I respond more strongly when I think about how the Cardinals
were robbed of the ’86 World Series crown because of one
horrible, but unintentional call by Doug Dinkinger
--I’ll ask you—what’s wrong with this picture?
It was
done by us
-perhaps we don’t
dwell on the injustice of those events because it’s
too much like looking in a mirror
--Jesus was
brutally beaten and executed...
---because a
religious system reacted violently to someone
who
threatened its power, credibility, and position in society
---a weak
politician chose to keep the vocal minority happy
rather
than to do what he knew was clearly right
---a mob of people who blindly went
along with the crowd
without
ever consulting with the truth of Scripture
Still, today, we might argue that we’re not responsible—we weren’t
there—we can’t be held accountable for what happened over 1900
years before we were even born...but
-2 Corinthians 5:21 à God
made Him who had no sin to be sin
for us, so that in Him we might become
the righteousness of God.
-1 Peter 3:18 à For
Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous
for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.
-1 Peter 2 à ...Christ
suffered for you...‘He committed no sin, and
no deceit was found in His mouth.’ When they hurled their insults
at
Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no
threats.
Instead, He entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly.
He Himself bore our sins in His body on
the tree, so that we might
die to sins and live for righteousness;
by His wounds you have
been healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but now
you
have returned to the Shepherd and
Overseer of your souls.
In an hour or so—when we’re contemplating dessert, how many of us
will have given even one more second of thought to the damning
truth that our sin—your sin, my sin—makes us directly accountable
to God for the death of His Son?
-and if we were to give it any serious thought, would it make any
significant difference?
It should
-2 Corinthians 5:15 à And He
died for all, that those who live
should no longer live for themselves but
for Him who died for them
and was raised again.
Until we can accept the truth that Jesus’ death was done by us, we
cannot accept the
truth that Jesus’ death was done for us
-and that’s another aspect of this whole thing that hinders us from
coming to terms with the reality of it all—we have a difficult time
believing that, since we are the ones who killed Him, His death
would wind up bringing
our salvation...but it’s true
One final factor: It was done for us
-back in the early
90’s a National Geographic article tells about a
young man from
a boiler
explosion. To save his life, doctors covered him with 93
square inches of
donor skin, as well as sheets of skin cultured
from a
stamp-sized piece of his own unburned skin.
--a journalist once
asked him, "Do you ever think about the donor
who saved
you?"
---the
young man replied, "To be alive because of a dead
donor
is too big, too much, so I don't think about it."
I really think that’s a lot of it
-the cross, His suffering, the
whole unspeakable unfairness of it all
is simply too much to get our
minds and hearts around
--and then to comprehend on
any level that it was all done by us
and for us...frankly, it’s just easier to get wrapped up in fiction,
sports, and things that
don’t matter
---and we
keep Jesus at a safe distance...and we don’t have to
think
about it...we don’t have to deal with the fact that it was
our sin
that killed Jesus...and it was for
our sin that Jesus
willingly allowed Himself to be beaten beyond recognition, to
be flogged so His back was shredded, to be humiliated, and
to suffer the utter shame of the cross
Doesn’t make much sense, does it?
-grace never claims to be logical
Listen...
Read Romans 3:10-23
We stand condemned before God—all of us, because of our sin
-our sin condemns us and it separates us relationally from God
--but do you
remember what incredible declaration 2
Corinthians
5:21 made?
---God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us,
so that in
Him we might become the
righteousness of God.
--so, too, here in Romans 3
---v. 22 refers to this righteousness from God comes through
faith in Jesus Christ...and
this thought is carried over into v.
24 [Read]
----not only does God declare us “not guilty,” He also
declares us righteous
----because of God’s grace working through our faith in
Jesus, God credits us with Christ’s righteousness
Our sins kill God’s Son...yet God’s grace is so amazing that when we
trust in the One we killed, God redeems us
-He buys us back...because He knows we cannot, He pays the
price to set us free...free from sin, free from guilt, free from death
And how, exactly, can we every be weary of hearing His
story?