 We are Matthew chapter 27. We're going to be looking today at verses 1 through 26 as we continue our verse by verse study in the Gospel of Matthew. Now here's the thing about Matthew 27 is I normally would have actually taught this in two different segments. I'd have taken you into verses 1 through 10 and then the next time I'd have taken you from verse 11 into verse 26. That's what I've done in the past but today I want to actually not so much speed up, but I want to cover more more ground. I began teaching Matthew in 2014. So I'm going to kind of speed it up at this at this point here or else. I'll be taking you until Jesus returns. And so what we have here as we look at these verses is really would have been two different studies and you're going to see that because in the first study that we look at verses 1 through 10 I'm going to be sharing with you concerning that portion but emphasizing the doctrine of repentance. You're going to see that in the life of a man by the name of Judas and is spoken of as Judas as one who was remorseful. And I'm going to share with you the difference between feeling regret and biblical repentance because feeling regret is something everybody can feel. But repentance is something entirely different. You'll see that. Then we're going to move on into verses 11 through 26 with Jesus standing before Pontius Pilate. And so in fact what you're going to see is two different Bible studies entirely with just a segue from verse 10 into verse 11 and a basic introduction. You'll see that in a moment, but I'm preparing you for that because in fact, they're going to be two different style studies combined into a single one beginning at verse one. Matthew chapter 27. When morning came, all the chief priests and elders of the people plotted against Jesus to put them to death. And when they had bound him, they led him away and delivered him to Pontius Pilate the governor. Then Judas's betrayers seeing that he had been condemned was remorseful and brought back the 30 pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders saying, I have sinned by betraying innocent blood. They said, what is that to us? You see to it. Then he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed and went out and hanged himself. But the chief priests took the silver pieces and said it's not lawful to put them into the treasury because they are the price of blood and they consulted together and bought with them the potters field to bury strangers in. Therefore, that field has been called the field of blood to the state. Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet saying, and they took the 30 pieces of silver, the value of him who was priced whom they of the children of Israel priced and gave them for the potters field as the Lord directed me. So Jesus as we know has been before first Annas who was the former high priest and Annas had questioned Jesus concerning his disciples as well as his doctrine because what he was trying to do was formulate a capital charge against Jesus Christ. But because he was trying to entrap him, Jesus as he was before him remained silent. He was unable to move Jesus to self-incrimination so he sent him to his son-in-law who was the reigning high priest at that time, a man by the name of Caiaphas. And Caiaphas asked, actually made a demand of him. He said to him in verse 63, tell us if you are the Christ, the son of God. And so he had said that in Matthew 26, 63. He had said, you tell us. And so what he was wanting to do and when Jesus gave the answer was he was wanting to formulate a charge against Jesus Christ and he formulated that charge. He made it a formal charge and it was blasphemy. Now as Jesus was being interrogated, his disciple Peter was also being interrogated. And as this was happening, we saw how that the apostle Peter folded. He succumbed to the pressure and he had denied the Lord Jesus Christ. Even as Jesus had said, he denied Jesus three times. And as we were looking at this last time, after his third denial, Jesus turned and Jesus looked at him and that made him remember what Jesus had said. It broke him and last time we were looking at the passage together even as it says in verse 75, he went out and he wept bitterly. And so mourning has now come according to verse 1 here in chapter 27. And all the chief priests and the elders of the people are plotting against Jesus in order that they might put him to death. And when they had bound him, they led him away and delivered him to Pontius Pilate who was the governor. And so at dawn they have reconvened the Sanhedrin because they're trying what is called a capital offense and rabbinic law stated that such trials needed to be conducted during the day. They actually had two charges that they had formulated. One of the charges related to Jesus Christ claiming to be the Son of God, which would have been a religious charge. But in order for Jesus to be executed, it had to go beyond having a religious charge. They needed to have a secular or a civil charge. So what was motivating them, even as you study your scriptures, you'll see this, is that they see him as guilty of blasphemy. But in order to get the Roman government to put him to death, they need to have a charge that would cause the government to move and therefore they formulated a charge and the charge was sedition. Now the word sedition is speaking of conduct or language that incites rebellion against the government. In Luke 23 verses 1 and 2 it says, the whole assembly rose and led him off to Pilate and they began to accuse him saying, we have found this man subverting our nation. He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Christ a king. And so the charges that will get Jesus executed are not the religious charges, they will be the civil charges. And that's why they're bringing Jesus before the governor punches Pilate. Now as all of this is taking place, notice verse 3, Judas, his betrayer, seeing that he has been condemned, was remorseful and brought back the 30 pieces of silver to the chief priest and elder saying, I have sinned by betraying innocent blood. And they said, what is that to us? You see to it. Then he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed and went out and hanged himself. But the chief priest took the silver pieces and said, it's not lawful to put them in the treasury because of the price of blood. That's when they consulted together and they bought the Pottersfield, the very strangers in which fulfilled the prophecy of Jeremiah, the prophet that was recorded in Zechariah chapter 11 verse 12. So at this point, Matthew desires to focus his attention on Judas. It may have been that Judas was present during the interrogation as well as during the condemnation. And as he sees this, something goes on in his heart, something happens within him. He's watching as Jesus is taken away and the impact may have done something. And so immediately he has a wave of anguish and regret. And that prompts him to do something. Verse 3, it prompts him to be remorseful and he brings back the 30 pieces of silver to the chief priest and he says, I have sinned by betraying innocent blood. So we're going to be looking at this for just a moment. This is something I want to share with you as it relates to the remorse of Judas. And I want to develop that with you as we look at this passage together. Notice with me that it says in verse 4 that Judas said, I have sinned by betraying innocent blood. Let me develop this with you. Judas is not experiencing repentance. Judas is experiencing regret. He's experiencing remorse. He's acknowledging that he has sinned. But to simply acknowledge that you have sinned and to feel badly about it does not save you. Repentance and remorse, repentance and regret are not the same thing. And I want to develop that because I think it's necessary. The Apostle Paul, when he was writing to the Corinthians in 2 Corinthians chapter 7, verse 10 said this. He said, Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret. But worldly sorrow brings death. Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret. Worldly sorrow brings death. Regret. Regret is a general sense of sorrow, but normally is associated with someone getting caught for doing something and feeling badly about that. So what we have here is a good example of one who regrets what he's done, somebody who is sorry, somebody who's distressed, but somebody who is not repentant. When you look at the word repentance in Scripture, the word repent means a change of mind or a change of purpose, a reversal, reformation, turning away from sin, a sincere and thorough changing of the mind and disposition in regard to sin. Repentance is not simply feeling badly about doing something. There are a lot of people who feel bad about what they've done. They feel bad that they stole that car. They feel bad that they got drunk and abused somebody. They feel bad for the things that they've done, but a lot of times they're feeling bad because they got caught. They're feeling bad because they hurt somebody they care about, but they're not repenting. They're simply remorseful. They're simply feeling bad about it. Jails and prisons are filled with people who are remorseful, people who are doing time for the things that they've done and wish that they hadn't done but that doesn't mean that they've changed. It doesn't mean that anything has changed at all because repentance is a change of mind, especially concerning sin and especially concerning a relationship that they have with God. When somebody really repents, there's a change of mind that is taking place in their heart. The word repent in the Greek language is the word metonoeia. Metonoeia means a change of mind and it carries with it a deeper connotation than simply feeling bad. Again, a lot of us feel bad because we got caught. You're driving, you've been drinking, you get pulled over, you get a breathalyzer and they take you and they put you in the cell and you're there at first maybe a little belligerent, then you wake up the next morning and you look around and you say, how did I get here? What did I do? They had here. I've gone through that so have you. I've done things that made me feel bad about doing it. I wish I wouldn't have done that, but in fact, I never changed. I mean, I got arrested three times for being drunk in public and all. I know what I'm talking about where I awaken the next day and I'm saying, how'd I get here? Man, I feel terrible until the next time and then I felt terrible until the next time and it was never just regret. The regret never changed my life. As a kid, I wouldn't be good to girlfriends and I felt bad about it because they did the right thing. They broke up with me because I was a jerk and so I felt, man, I feel bad about this until the next girl. No, I'm going to change. I'm turning over a new leaf until the next girl and that's the way it worked. It just was never a repentance. It was never a sorrow of heart that led to a change of mind. It was never a sense that I sinned against God and man. It was more a matter of man. I blew it or man. I got caught or a man. I wish it wouldn't have. And that's how people are. That's Judas. He's remorseful but not repentant. I have betrayed innocent blood. It's not the same thing as saying, I have betrayed the Son of God. I feel bad about what I did and some of us in this room perhaps even right now feel bad about things you've done but have never really repented. You just simply feel bad about it. You hurt somebody. You got caught but you're not repentant. He felt sorry. He was distressed but he didn't repent because repentance isn't simply feeling badly about doing something. When you look at repentance, there are different things that comprise repentance if you will. There's the intellectual. Repentance is a change of view regarding your own self. When you're truly repenting, you're changing your view. Therefore sin is recognized as sin, not just a mistake or poor judgment. Because sometimes people will excuse their behavior because they'll say, well you know, it's the way I was raised. You know, I had to learn some things as a young married man because I was raised in a certain environment and certain behaviors were okay. You know, my mom was very outspoken and I learned as a boy that I could be an outspoken person and I was. I got in a lot of trouble for it over the years. I was just outspoken. I didn't think that I was being mean. I thought I was being real and so this is what I really feel. You want to know what I really feel? Yeah, then here it is and I would say it but I thought you asked. You must want to know then I'm hurting people's feelings. So I marry Marie and Marie's from a different background. She's from a quiet background and so my family, I mean you could come to the table sometimes while we're eating thinking we're fighting and we were just visiting whereas Marie's got a quieter background and see I had to learn and so in my mind it was, you know, she just needs to deal with it. Come on, this is life. I mean, come on princess. Then I'd hurt her feelings and I'd think get a backbone. This is life and she cry and we're newly married and I honest to goodness I would be so like what's wrong with you? I would even ask her. Listen, what's wrong with you? You hurt my feelings. Okay, but really what's wrong with you? I didn't get the Holy Spirit began to convict me as a young married man. Not like I'm perfect now forgive me if I give that impression. I am. I just don't want to admit it. It took me a long time to realize that what I was doing was hurtful. Thus it was sinful. I had to learn, but it wasn't just saying oh, I feel bad. It was that I came to realize it's sinful for me to be speaking in this way to somebody I love. It's wrong. You have to have a change of mind regarding the way that you're acting the things that you're saying and how you're impacting people. It's intellectual. It's something that is admitted to without an explanation or an excuse. Like I've been before the judge more than once and on one occasion I remember standing before the judge. It was a traffic violation and he said how do you plead and I said guilty with an explanation. Some of you have said that yourself. Guilty with an explanation because I was told that you could do that as a plea which was a way of saying yes, I broke the law, but let me tell you why I did it. Guilty with an explanation. You can't do that with the Lord. You can say I'm guilty with an explanation. He says bang, guilty. Let's not even talk about it because when you really repent there's no I just need to explain to you. It's the way I was raised. We all talk that way. I have to explain to you. It's my culture. I have to explain to you. It's my financial situation. I have to explain to you this is what I did because they didn't have enough education. You don't do that with the Lord. When you really repent it's just God I am guilty. I am so guilty. King David had a relationship we all know of with a woman by the name of Bathsheba. David was there in the time when kings went out to war. He was standing there and he's looking from his castle, his palace. He's looking down the hill and as he looks down the hill right directly below there is a beautiful woman. Her name is Bathsheba and she's bathing and he's looking at this amazingly beautiful woman and the lust begins to rise in his heart and after all he is the king. He can have anybody he wants in the kingdom and I want her. So he says go and tell Bathsheba that I want to see her and when he speaks and says that to his messenger the messenger says you realize of course that this is Uriah. They hit Ty. It's his wife. So he's warned. He says bring her to me and we all know the story. She comes and then she says listen I've made my offerings and all she's speaking to him and what she's telling him is she's saying I'm fertile. I can become pregnant if you proceed to do what I know you're planning on doing. That's what she's saying to him but he doesn't care. He doesn't care. He sleeps with her. She sends word to him I'm pregnant. Now what is he going to do? So we all know the story how he got Uriah and brought him off the line. They were out there doing battle and all but he brings them in and he has a conversation. He says why don't you go on home? But Uriah won't go home. He's too noble to do that. He refuses to go. Comes back in another time. David once again says why don't you go on home? Be with your wife because he's wanting Uriah to think that the child that is born is going to be his and he'll get away with it. But Uriah is more noble than David and once again he refuses to go. And finally he realizes well I'm going to have to do something and that's when he sends Uriah out. He gives an order to the general says to the general you make sure that he's in the heat of the battle then you withdraw the troops and that's what happens. Uriah is there being a loyal soldier fighting for his king. They withdraw from him. Not only does Uriah die but others die alongside of him. Word comes back to David. He takes a little while pretending to mourn. Marries her but he doesn't get away from him. He doesn't get away with it. The Bible tells us that he he wrote concerning what he went through in Psalm 51. He said this in verses 3 and 4. He said I know my transgressions. My sin is ever before me. In other words when I wake up in the morning I think of what I did. When I go through the day I can't get away from it and even at night when I'm putting my head on a pillow I remember what I've done. My sin is ever before me. And then he said against you you only have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight so that you are proved right when you speak justified when you judge. So repentance has an intellectual component. It's not excused away. It's not explained away. True repentance is when you say it is against you that I have sinned and done this thing. A second thing about it is it's a decision of the will. It's something that comes from within. It's volitional. There's a voluntary inward turning of your heart toward God. A voluntary turning. It comes from within. You have determined what I've done is wrong. I repent and I'm turning to God. That's why Jesus in Matthew 4.17 would preach and say repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. This is a decision you make. Repent because the kingdom is coming. And then third it can have an emotional aspect. Genuine sorrow and grief can't, over sin can occur. Not always. There are times when you simply will say I'm a sinner. I'm in need of God's grace and you enter into the kingdom and there doesn't seem to be any evidence of grief or sorrow over what you've done. You simply walk into the kingdom like C.S. Lewis did. C.S. Lewis in British intellectual claims that he climbed into a taxi cab as a deist or a theist and he exited the same cab as a Christian. In the same drive from being picked up and dropped off, he said somewhere in between being picked up and dropped off, I committed my heart to Jesus Christ. And he wrote his autobiography of his testimony and he called it surprised by joy because he wasn't expecting that at all, the joy that comes through salvation. And so there may be a certain emotion that you experience over it. Genuine sorrow over sin and real grief can occur. Again in Psalm 51 verses 7 through 9, David said, cleanse me with hyssop. I will be clean. Wash me. I will be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness. Let the bones you have crushed rejoice. Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. In verse 17 of Psalm 51 he said, the sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and contrite heart. O God, you will not despise. Jesus speaks of a parable of a public and in a self-righteous man as they were praying. And he speaks of this public man, public and a tax collector in Luke 18, 13 who simply said, God have mercy on me. I'm a sinner. And so there can be a sense of grief. There can be a sense of sorrow. And then what do you do? Well, one, you confess. When God's Holy Spirit convicts you, you confess. We confess our sin. He is faithful and just to forgive us our sin and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. So you confess your sin. And the second thing is you forsake that sin. Proverbs 28, 13 says, he who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy. So you confess, you forsake, and then you turn to God in faith. Isaiah 55, 7, let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the Lord and he will have mercy on him to our God, for he will freely pardon. You confess, you forsake, and you turn to God. Those are the elements of repentance and the result will be joy, which is the fruit of righteousness. Romans 4 verse 8 says, blessed is the man to whom the Lord shall not impute sin. Blessed means, oh, how happy is the man. So the sorrow of the world results in death because it doesn't lead to forgiveness. When you're only remorseful or regretting, there's no joy, there's no restoration, and there's no reconciliation with God. Again in verse 4, Judas only saw that he betrayed an innocent man and he regretted doing so. And that's what's prompting him here. So when he says in verse 4, I have sinned by betraying innocent blood, they said, what is that to us? You see to it. They had no more concern for Judas than they had just shown for Jesus. As long as they got what they wanted, Judas no longer mattered to them. They used him for their own profit. His response rather in verse 5 is he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple. He went out and he hanged himself. Judas committed suicide. Suicide. Let me share a little bit about that, but not that much. He went out and hanged himself. I was around 27 years old. It's hard to believe five years have passed. At 27 years old, I was right in that area when I did my first funeral. The first funeral that I ever officiated was a funeral for a man who was a pedophile. That was my very first funeral. The people in attendance at that funeral were the outcasts of the world. When I grew up, there was a phrase that used to be used. It wasn't a common phrase then, but I recognize it because it was still a phrase that was used. It was a phrase that was used to speak of prostitutes. They used to be referred to in the old days as ladies in red. I don't know how many of you have ever even heard that term. Some of you have. I look out there. I see some white hair. They're called ladies in red. My mom used that phrase when I grew up. They're ladies in red. I didn't know what she meant by that. Eventually, as I grew older, she said, well, that's a word that used to be used in the older days. It's referring to the women who are prostitutes because they would wear bright red dresses and they'd put on bright red lipstick. My mom explained why they called them that. They were in red light districts. Yes, they do have red light districts. I was in Amsterdam and I accidentally, and this is the truth, accidentally found a hotel. I was going on $10 a day and I found a $10 place to stay. You can imagine a surprise. I was when I walked out with my friend. At night, we walked out. My friend Nick and I were walking through Amsterdam and all the lights, there were red lights throughout the whole place. I said, what place is this? This is the red light district. I mean, there really is a phrase red light. There really are ladies in red and all of that. Now I forget what I was going to tell you, but it was really interesting. So I did this funeral and as I was doing the funeral, there were women with dyed dyed dyed white platinum hair, bright red lipstick wearing red dresses. And the others were, they were gamblers and you just name it. That was my very first funeral with these women in red and these gamblers for a pedophile. My second funeral that I did within the year after that was for a suicide. I used to be a chaplain coach for the softball team in the church that I was the assistant in and I still remember at one of our practices talking to a fella who said this to me. He said, you know how you love your wife? Because even at that point, I guess I must have made it obvious that Marie means something to me. So he says, you know how you love your wife? I said, yeah, I'll never forget this conversation. He looks at me and he says, that's how I love mine. His wife had gotten a job. His wife had an affair. She had an affair with one of her co-workers. The second funeral I did was for this man who hanged himself in his garage. And I did his funeral remembering how he had said to me, you know how you love your wife? That's how I love mine. She went out on him. He killed himself. I did his funeral. Been around suicide. Paul said, the sorrow of the world produces death. Remember with me that the apostle Peter also denied the Lord. Godly sorrow produces repentance. It draws you back to the Lord, but the sorrow of the world produces death. You have a man, the apostle Peter, who said three times, I don't know him. And yet when Jesus gave him that look, his heart was broken. He went out, wept bitterly, was restored to relationship. Judas, I have betrayed an innocent man. He went out and he hanged himself. My mother went through illnesses from the time she was 24 years old. My mom has spent the majority of her life in pain and one former another from epilepsy to lupus rheumatoid arthritis. The last year of her life, my mom fell, broke her back, broke her hip. My mom had a bag that she used to have to wear. She couldn't get out of her bed for the last year of her life. This is a woman who knew pain in a way that others don't. They didn't know pain. When I hurt myself, I realized I don't know pain like my mom did. And my mom lived with pain for many, many, many years of her life, over 60 years of pain. And when she was going through her last season prior to going to be with Jesus, mama, and I were talking on one occasion and my mama said to me, is suicide acceptable to God? And I knew where she was going with that one. She wanted permission to end her own life. She wanted permission. She wanted me to say, God is gracious. God is good. God forgives every sin, mama. I knew where she was going with that. And I said, I wouldn't take the chance of something like that. Well, why not? Well, suicide is sin. It's been said every human being is made in the image of God and belongs to him. No one has the right to murder anyone else, including himself. Suicide is self-murder and rebellion against God's sovereign right over life and death. It is an act of sin and unbelief. It violates the sixth commandment, you shall not murder, Exodus 2013. We have in the King James, thou shalt not kill, but the word kill in the original language, Hebrew, thou shalt not murder, which speaks of intentional assassination, slaying, or what we call murder. I am not one who will ever stand up in this pulpit or in private counsel and conversation, ever encourage anybody to that direction. I have no idea of the pain that some people go through and I don't want to be glib about this and I'm just making a quick comment. This isn't a thorough statement. It's just a quick comment on the fact that Judas betrayed an innocent man, went out and hanged himself, and that's what happens when you have the sorrow of this age. But at the same time, I'm not one who would ever say to you, this is what I understand, go and take your own life. I could never encourage you to do something like that, no matter what the situation may be. Judas is a great example of somebody who had the sorrow of this age, the sorrow of the world. The fact is, in Christ we have life and he is the giver of life and we need to trust him in all things. Judas did not and the result was that he went out, the scripture says, and hanged himself. As this took place, verse six, the chief priest took the silver pieces and said, it's not lawful to put them into the treasury, they're the price of blood that consulted together and bought with them the potter's field to bury strangers. In the potter's field, it was a place where they would go to get clay for clay pots. It was also a place that they would discard those that were broken. And it became a phrase that is used for the burial. You would bury strangers in the potter's field. The strangers could be visitors to Jerusalem who were not citizens there and had no place to be buried and thus were placed there. They also could be Gentile converts that were buried there. Finally, they could be strangers who were actually pagans who died in the city of Jerusalem. And because they were unclean, they would be placed in a potter's field. They were buried in a place that was bought by unclean money. The fact is, this fulfilled according to verse nine, the prophecy of Jeremiah that you see in scripture. Now in verse 11, this is the second message. Jesus stood before the governor. The governor asked him, saying, are you the king of the Jews? Jesus said to him, it is as you say. And while he was being accused by the chief priests and elders, he answered nothing. And Pilate said to him, do you not hear how many things they testify against you? But he answered him not one word. So the governor marveled greatly. So it's early Friday morning. It's around five. Jesus is before Pontius Pilate. John tells us that it was early morning and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness, the Jews would not enter into the palace. So because they wouldn't go to him, Pilate went out to them. John 18, 29 through 31 says, Pilate came out to them and asked, what charges are you bringing against this man? If you were not a criminal, they replied, we would not have handed him over to you. Pilate said, take him yourselves, judge him by your own law. But we have no right to execute anyone the Jews objected. So he's saying, what are your formal, what are your legal charges against Christ? That demands my attention. Again, remember earlier, they had determined that they would put him to death because of blasphemy, but they had put together the charge of sedition. So they said, we have found this man subverting our nation. He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Christ the king. Obviously, this was false because Pilate would have heard that and would have already charged him. As this is taking place, so in verse 11, the governor asked him, saying, are you the king of the Jews? So he begins to speak to him and Jesus said, it's as you say. Now once again in John, John records in verses 34 through 38 in John 18, Jesus answered him, are you speaking for yourself about this or did others tell you this concerning me? Pilate answered, am I a Jew? Your own nation and chief priest had delivered you 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 fight so that I should not be delivered to the Jews. But now my kingdom is not from here. Pilate therefore said to him, are you a king then? Jesus answered, you say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born and for this cause I've come into the world that I should bear witness to the truth. Listen, everyone who is of the truth, here's my voice. Pilate said to him, what is truth? When he had said this, he went out again to the Jews, said to them, I find no fault in him. Jesus said, everyone who is of the truth, here's my voice. See, my kingdom is not of this world. It is by truth alone that I influence the minds and govern my subjects. I'm not trying to to produce an army of righteous warriors who are going to physically bring in my kingdom. My kingdom is modeled after the kingdoms of this age. I influence hearts. I transform lives. We're not battling with swords other than the sword of the spirit. And if a person is one of my followers, they hear me when I speak truth. And Pilate says, what is truth? Pilate was a career politician. He'd been in other places. He heard other versions of truth. I've heard many philosophies over a lifetime of government service. So what truth do you think you're bringing to me now? Listen, I have no interest in dialoguing with you. I don't want any part of this. This isn't something I need. You see, Pilate had already gotten in trouble on more than one occasion for the way he was governing there in Israel. He didn't need any more grief. So he doesn't want a conversation. He wants to get this done. He wants it over with. He's refusing responsibility about making a decision concerning the Lord. So he's saying, well, you know, I find no fault in this man at all. There's no legal charge that can be rendered against him. Well, as this is taking place, it already states in verse 12 of chapter 27 that Jesus was answering nothing. Pilate had found nothing of which to accuse him, but they wouldn't let him go. He continues answering nothing. So what more can he say? Pilate knows he's not guilty. So he says in verses 13 and 14, do you hear how many things they testified against you? But he answered not a word. In other words, he didn't defend himself. This caused according to verse 14, the governor to marvel greatly. The word marvel means to be holding him in admiration. You see, a person who said nothing in his own defense was unheard of. These are serious charges. Jesus could be put to death, but he's not resisting. He's not offering a defense for himself. That's unlike all others, Pilate has ever seen, because the natural response in such a situation is to proclaim your own innocence. Like it says in Proverbs 21 verse 2, every way of a man is right in his own eyes. We will proclaim our own innocence. It's a natural thing. Skin for skin, all that a man has you'll give for his life. And Jesus is standing before Pontius Pilate. A ruler is capable of proclaiming a death penalty. He even said to Jesus, he said, don't you know that I have authority to put you to death? And Jesus said, you have no authority unless it's granted to you. You have no authority over me. And Pilate had no ability to respond to such a man. And he's watching this man whom he knows is innocent. It's so obvious. And this one who is innocent is not even offering a defense. Now, 700 plus years before Isaiah the prophet in Isaiah 53 verse 7 said concerning Messiah, he was oppressed. He was afflicted. Yet he opened not his mouth. He's brought as a lamb to the slaughter. And as a sheep before his shears is dumb, he opens not his mouth. Now he's trying to find a way, Pontius Pilate is trying to find a way to release Jesus. It says in verse 15, at the feast the governor was accustomed to releasing to the multitude one prisoner whom they wished. So they had a system that they would release somebody. He would release the one that they asked for. Well, at that time they had a notorious prisoner called Barabbas. Therefore, when they had gathered together, Pilate said to them, whom do you want me to release to you Barabbas or Jesus who's called Christ? He knew they had handed him over because of envy. The word Barabbas, the name Barabbas literally means son of a father. He was a violent revolutionary. Mark 15 says a man called Barabbas was in prison with the insurrectionists who had committed murder in the uprising. So the question is asked, who do you want me to release to you Barabbas or Jesus? Again, he knows that Jesus was delivered up because of envy. The word envy means displeasure. It's the displeasure that is aroused when someone has what you do not want them to have. And Pilate knew power and the whole that authority could have on a person. He saw through the pretended religious zeal and he saw exactly what their motive was. Now as this is all taking place, notice verse 19. He's sitting in the judgment seat. His wife sent to him saying, I have nothing to do with that just man. I've suffered many things today in a dream because of him. That's the little pressure. Don't condemn Jesus. Don't get involved in this. Now, by the way, nobody knows the source of the dream. Some say it could have been prompted by her conscience, but it's not known. It's just a warning. As this is taking place, verse 20, the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitudes that they should ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus. The governor answered and said to them, which of the two do you want me to release to you? They said, Barabbas, Pilate said to them, what then shall I do with Jesus who's called Christ? They all said to him, let him be crucified. The governor said, why? What evil has he done? They cried out all the more saying, let him be crucified. It's nice and quiet in here, but can you imagine how it was before Pontius Pilate? How loud that crowd was becoming. The yelling amongst them, crucify him, crucify him. Pilate's surprised. What do you want me to do with Jesus who's called Christ? Jesus is innocent, but Pilate is afraid to fight for his release. Verse 22 simply says they cry, let him be crucified. They're demanding nothing less than the death of Christ. But again, he tries to reason why. What evil has he done? This one is completely innocent, but he can't prevail. And what does he do? Verse 24, he saw that he could not prevail at all, but rather that a tumult or a riot was rising. He took water and washed his hands before the multitude saying, I'm innocent of the blood of this just person. You see to it. And all the people answered and said, his blood be on us and on our children. He released Barabbas to them when he scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified. I want nothing to do with this. The washing of hands is symbolic. In Psalm 26 verse six, it simply says, I wash my hands in innocence. In the Old Testament book of Deuteronomy 21 verses six and seven, there is a hand washing ritual that is provided when judges are unable to render justice. So it's symbolic of wanting to distance myself from this. So he says, I wash my hands of this just person, this innocent person, you deal with it. Their response is blood be on us and on our children. We are responsible. We are willing to be responsible for what he's done. And he delivered him to be scourged and crucified. Scourging has been called the living death. Again, it is something that I'll go into some detail with you next time we're together about this, but it was something that was a torture that was beyond torture. Whole chunks of skin and flesh would be removed. The scourging would not only hit the chest, but it would hit the chest, the back, the legs, the thighs, and even the face. There were times when the prisoner's eyes were actually torn out of their sockets. They were mutilated and disfigured. It was a cataclysm. It was a catanine tails and had leather straps embedded within the straps were broken pieces of ceramic pottery or sharpened stones. It was handled by one who was referred to as a lictor, and he knew how to torture. And that's what he's doing here. He's trying to provoke some sympathy from these people. We'll see that next time we're together where Jesus is scourged and humiliated, and he says, behold the man. He's trying to elicit some human sympathy, but it's not working. Jesus is delivered. We're now entering in to the most sober portions of our New Testament. Portions that deal with the torture and death of our Savior. These are portions that I become much more sober-minded as I'm teaching, because these are the things that in my early days of walking with Christ, when I began to embrace what Jesus did for me, it changed the entire direction of my life. When I got saved, and I'll close with a real brief story, when I got saved, I was just freshly saved. It was, for some reason, there was a movie called Ben Her. The original book has a longer title that speaks concerning the Messiah of Israel, because it was really written with the Christian theme, Ben Her, made into a movie. And I happened to see that movie as a brand new Christian, brand new Christian. Brand new Christian. And I was 20 years old. I still remember it. My father and mother's den, the family watching Ben Her. And there was a certain portion in that movie when Ben Her encounters the Christ. And you know, I know you won't believe this. I started to cry. I never cry, but I did then. I've been crying for a long time. And I saw a portrayal of what Jesus did for me. And it was one of the things that the Lord used in my life, slowly, to turn the direction of my life. And to not take the things of God lightly. I believe that many people have a light touch on the grace of God, because a lot of people love their sin more than they love their Lord. And they've taken the word grace and extended it as permission over living an ungodly, callous, unholy life, because Jesus loves me the way I am. Jesus loves you indeed, but he hates your sin. He hates it. He hates my sin. Why? Because it destroyed me. And he loves me. And he hates what sin does to his people. When we continue living in sin, it's like kissing the tip of the spear that pierced the side of your Savior. He died to set you free, not so that we could live live, just running through life, drinking all we want, sleeping around all we want, doing what we want, and going to heaven. He died to set you free from the bondage that you're in because of that sin. Thank you, Jesus. That's Christianity. That's Christianity. Never make Jesus a co-conspirator in your carnality. He died to release you from it. Am I perfect? Sure. No, am I perfect? Of course not. But do I want to be a better man for Christ's sake? Absolutely. Why? Because he demands that of me? No, because he loves me. And I love him. That's why. That's why. It's that simple. It's that simple. We will look more closely at this as we go through the following pages of our scriptures.