The Pompous, Pious Pontius Pilate
In my last article, "What is Truth?", I wrote about the irony of that question.
Pilate stood and stared right into the face of truth and still didn't recognize it.
Then this prompted me to consider what it was about him that he didn't recognize Christ as the Truth.
I suppose it's the same reasons that people today don't know what truth really is.
This all begins with the condition of a person's heart.
Since the fall of man, we are all sinful creatures not worthy to stand in the presence of One so holy and just.
God's Word says that like sheep, we have all gone astray.
It's natural for people to do wrong things.
It's not how God made us but what sin created in us.
The miracle is that any one of us should come to repentance and be saved.
This is a supernatural event that a heart made of stone should be transformed into one of flesh.
God's Word already tells us that we all fall short of God's glory because we all sin.
I believe the hardest thing for people to realize is that their good works will not save them from God's final judgment and wrath.
Please understand that aside from His Son's atoning blood sacrifice, there is nothing we have to offer that God will accept as pure and holy.
And I pray you won't miss this.
The gospel message is not about us, it's about Christ and what He came to do in accordance to His Father's will.
The reason Christ walked the earth and willingly died a brutal death was because of God's love for us.
So, please understand that it's not what we can do for God, but what He has done for each one of us who has or ever will accept the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross.
It has nothing to do with who we think we are in the eyes of the world.
It's not our attitudes that people judge us by that matter.
Unless we have an 'attitude of gratitude' towards Jesus, our self importance will get us nowhere.
Pontius Pilate had such an attitude.
On the surface we read how he found Christ blameless and washed his hands of the whole thing.
It almost makes us feel sorry for him.
He took the fall so to speak.
But, let's be honest, shall we? His pompous and pious attitude was his choice because he had alterior motives.
He cared more about his own image and future power than to take the time and recognize the Truth in the person of Jesus.
I'm sure we can recognize someone in our own lives like this.
They are the people who believe they are in total control of their own destiny.
Two words come to mind for this kind of attitude; pious and pompous.
After all, this is what drove Pontius Pilate to giving Christ over to be crucified.
He was more concerned with his personal image before the Jews and the Romans.
In the Meriam-Webster dictionary, it describes pious as a hypocrite, deserving commendation.
I came aross another meaning that really got my attention.
It described pious as a cultural center for peaceful resolutions of societal conflicts.
The word pompous is described as exhibiting self importance or arrogance.
Let's dig deeper into what scripture is actually saying about this man.
"Therefore when Pilate heard this statement, he was even more afraid; and he entered into the Praetorium again and said to Jesus, 'Where are You from?' But Jesus gave him no answer.
" John 18:8-9 Pilate realized that the Jews already passed sentence on Jesus for blasphemy.
It was a Levitical law that they had from Leviticus 24:16, "the one who blasphemes the name of the Lord shall surely be put to death.
" But the Romans were a superstitious group of people.
Since the Jews already interpreted Jesus' claims as messianic, given the title of "Son of God", for the Romans, they thought of Him as a "divine man", gifted with supernatural powers.
Pilate was worried that he had just whipped and beaten someone who could bring down curses and vengeance upon him.
Just exactly Who was he dealing with? "So Pilate said to Him, 'You do not speak to me? Do you not know that I have authority to release You, and I have authority to crucify You?' " John 18:10 This was a bit pompous and pious on Pilat'e part.
He was exhibiting some pretty heavy self importance at this point.
But Jesus set the record straight.
"Jesus answered, 'You would have NO authority over Me, unless it had been given you from above; for this reason he who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.
' " John 18:11 Imagine that, Jesus telling this powerful ruler that power is given by God.
This is quite a blow to his ego! So no matter what Pilate rules, Jesus is letting him know that he is just a pawn in this power play for control.
Who was the one who delivered Jesus to Pilate? He couldve been talking about Ciaphas the high priest since he took such an active role in plotting against Him.
Or Jesus could've meant Judas for his betrayal.
What is important is not who, but what.
What they did led to guilt.
Their actions were deliberate and premeditated.
It was high handed and coldly calculated especially after seeing and hearing the undeniable truth that Jesus was the Messiah and the Son of God.
Pilate was not guilty of this crime.
After hearing this, Pilate tried to persuade the people again into releasing Jesus.
"As a result of this Pilate made efforts to release Him, but the Jews cried out saying, 'If you release this Man, you are no friend of Caesar; everyone who makes himself out to be a king opposes Caesar.
' " John 18:12 This was so ironic for the Jews to even say.
They hated Rome and they certainly were no friends of Caesar's.
But they knew how much Pilate feared Tiberius Caesar.
This powerful emporer ruled ruthlessly and since Pilate had already created some problems in Rome, he didn't want to be on Caesar's black list.
Pilate's fear of not doing the right thing for Caesar meant more to him than doing what was right before the Lord.
So being pressed in at all sides, Pilate capitulated under pressure and prepared to pass judgment on the original sedition against Rome.
His friendship with the world meant more than his friendship with God.
So he went to the judgment seat to render the official verdict.
"Therefore when Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out, and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The Pavement, but in Hebrew, Gabbatha.
" John 18:13 Here's the perfect irony of Pilate's pompous and pious attitude.
While he rendered judgment on the One whom the Father Himself entrusted with ALL judgment would be the same One Who would also render a just condemnation on Pilate! God's Word tells us that Christ is our mediator in heaven, all power and authority belong to Him.
When Satan stands before Him as our accuser, Jesus defends all those who have been given to Him by our Heavenly Father.
"For not even the Father judges anymore, but He has given all judgment to the Son.
" John 5:22 God did this so that everyone will honor Christ as they honor God, they are One in the same.
If we don't honor what Christ has done on our behalf, then God says it's impossible for us to honor Him.
He wants us to have a relationship with His Son, because He loves us for ourselves, not for what others think we should be.
If you desire Him to be your Lord and Savior but don't know Him yet, just repeat this simple prayer: "Dear Heavenly Father, I am a sinner.
Please forgive me of all my offenses against You.
Wash me white as snow.
I believe that Your Son Jesus died for me upon the Cross.
I also believe He rose to life after 3 days and now sits at Your right hand in heaven and intercedes for me.
I thank You for calling me Your child.
Thank You Father, in Jesus' name.
Amen.
" If you said this prayer and truly invited Jesus into heart, just know there is a heavenly chorus singing right now on your behalf! "Happy Re-Birthday!" If we could earn our salvation, Christ would not have died to provide it.
All scripture taken from the MacArthur Study Bible~American Standard version
Pilate stood and stared right into the face of truth and still didn't recognize it.
Then this prompted me to consider what it was about him that he didn't recognize Christ as the Truth.
I suppose it's the same reasons that people today don't know what truth really is.
This all begins with the condition of a person's heart.
Since the fall of man, we are all sinful creatures not worthy to stand in the presence of One so holy and just.
God's Word says that like sheep, we have all gone astray.
It's natural for people to do wrong things.
It's not how God made us but what sin created in us.
The miracle is that any one of us should come to repentance and be saved.
This is a supernatural event that a heart made of stone should be transformed into one of flesh.
God's Word already tells us that we all fall short of God's glory because we all sin.
I believe the hardest thing for people to realize is that their good works will not save them from God's final judgment and wrath.
Please understand that aside from His Son's atoning blood sacrifice, there is nothing we have to offer that God will accept as pure and holy.
And I pray you won't miss this.
The gospel message is not about us, it's about Christ and what He came to do in accordance to His Father's will.
The reason Christ walked the earth and willingly died a brutal death was because of God's love for us.
So, please understand that it's not what we can do for God, but what He has done for each one of us who has or ever will accept the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross.
It has nothing to do with who we think we are in the eyes of the world.
It's not our attitudes that people judge us by that matter.
Unless we have an 'attitude of gratitude' towards Jesus, our self importance will get us nowhere.
Pontius Pilate had such an attitude.
On the surface we read how he found Christ blameless and washed his hands of the whole thing.
It almost makes us feel sorry for him.
He took the fall so to speak.
But, let's be honest, shall we? His pompous and pious attitude was his choice because he had alterior motives.
He cared more about his own image and future power than to take the time and recognize the Truth in the person of Jesus.
I'm sure we can recognize someone in our own lives like this.
They are the people who believe they are in total control of their own destiny.
Two words come to mind for this kind of attitude; pious and pompous.
After all, this is what drove Pontius Pilate to giving Christ over to be crucified.
He was more concerned with his personal image before the Jews and the Romans.
In the Meriam-Webster dictionary, it describes pious as a hypocrite, deserving commendation.
I came aross another meaning that really got my attention.
It described pious as a cultural center for peaceful resolutions of societal conflicts.
The word pompous is described as exhibiting self importance or arrogance.
Let's dig deeper into what scripture is actually saying about this man.
"Therefore when Pilate heard this statement, he was even more afraid; and he entered into the Praetorium again and said to Jesus, 'Where are You from?' But Jesus gave him no answer.
" John 18:8-9 Pilate realized that the Jews already passed sentence on Jesus for blasphemy.
It was a Levitical law that they had from Leviticus 24:16, "the one who blasphemes the name of the Lord shall surely be put to death.
" But the Romans were a superstitious group of people.
Since the Jews already interpreted Jesus' claims as messianic, given the title of "Son of God", for the Romans, they thought of Him as a "divine man", gifted with supernatural powers.
Pilate was worried that he had just whipped and beaten someone who could bring down curses and vengeance upon him.
Just exactly Who was he dealing with? "So Pilate said to Him, 'You do not speak to me? Do you not know that I have authority to release You, and I have authority to crucify You?' " John 18:10 This was a bit pompous and pious on Pilat'e part.
He was exhibiting some pretty heavy self importance at this point.
But Jesus set the record straight.
"Jesus answered, 'You would have NO authority over Me, unless it had been given you from above; for this reason he who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.
' " John 18:11 Imagine that, Jesus telling this powerful ruler that power is given by God.
This is quite a blow to his ego! So no matter what Pilate rules, Jesus is letting him know that he is just a pawn in this power play for control.
Who was the one who delivered Jesus to Pilate? He couldve been talking about Ciaphas the high priest since he took such an active role in plotting against Him.
Or Jesus could've meant Judas for his betrayal.
What is important is not who, but what.
What they did led to guilt.
Their actions were deliberate and premeditated.
It was high handed and coldly calculated especially after seeing and hearing the undeniable truth that Jesus was the Messiah and the Son of God.
Pilate was not guilty of this crime.
After hearing this, Pilate tried to persuade the people again into releasing Jesus.
"As a result of this Pilate made efforts to release Him, but the Jews cried out saying, 'If you release this Man, you are no friend of Caesar; everyone who makes himself out to be a king opposes Caesar.
' " John 18:12 This was so ironic for the Jews to even say.
They hated Rome and they certainly were no friends of Caesar's.
But they knew how much Pilate feared Tiberius Caesar.
This powerful emporer ruled ruthlessly and since Pilate had already created some problems in Rome, he didn't want to be on Caesar's black list.
Pilate's fear of not doing the right thing for Caesar meant more to him than doing what was right before the Lord.
So being pressed in at all sides, Pilate capitulated under pressure and prepared to pass judgment on the original sedition against Rome.
His friendship with the world meant more than his friendship with God.
So he went to the judgment seat to render the official verdict.
"Therefore when Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out, and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The Pavement, but in Hebrew, Gabbatha.
" John 18:13 Here's the perfect irony of Pilate's pompous and pious attitude.
While he rendered judgment on the One whom the Father Himself entrusted with ALL judgment would be the same One Who would also render a just condemnation on Pilate! God's Word tells us that Christ is our mediator in heaven, all power and authority belong to Him.
When Satan stands before Him as our accuser, Jesus defends all those who have been given to Him by our Heavenly Father.
"For not even the Father judges anymore, but He has given all judgment to the Son.
" John 5:22 God did this so that everyone will honor Christ as they honor God, they are One in the same.
If we don't honor what Christ has done on our behalf, then God says it's impossible for us to honor Him.
He wants us to have a relationship with His Son, because He loves us for ourselves, not for what others think we should be.
If you desire Him to be your Lord and Savior but don't know Him yet, just repeat this simple prayer: "Dear Heavenly Father, I am a sinner.
Please forgive me of all my offenses against You.
Wash me white as snow.
I believe that Your Son Jesus died for me upon the Cross.
I also believe He rose to life after 3 days and now sits at Your right hand in heaven and intercedes for me.
I thank You for calling me Your child.
Thank You Father, in Jesus' name.
Amen.
" If you said this prayer and truly invited Jesus into heart, just know there is a heavenly chorus singing right now on your behalf! "Happy Re-Birthday!" If we could earn our salvation, Christ would not have died to provide it.
All scripture taken from the MacArthur Study Bible~American Standard version
