9 When morning came, all the chief priests and elders of the people plotted against Jesus to put Him to death. 2 And when they had bound Him, they led Him away and delivered Him to Pontius Pilate the governor.
Matthew 27:1-2
They just couldn’t understand Jesus. Their whole lives was guided by scheming, politics, backstabbing and the desire to increase and so when the religious leaders looked at this humble man, he was a mystery. And when you don’t understand something, you fear it and try to destroy it. That is what was happening here as they conspired to have Jesus killed. They’re own sinful lives created a mistrust in Jesus’ honestly. They truly believed that he was there to destroy and undermine them. They had convinced themselves that only they could keep Israel to gather; only they could keep Judaism from falling. Their evil thoughts were covered in a false religious piety.
Could we fall into the same trap? Could we also believe that God needs our help in keeping the church from falling apart? In my years in the church, I’ve also seen scheming, politics, backstabbing and the desire to increase within the church at many levels. I’ve seen in in church elections and in board meetings. I’ve seen it in district, conference and union dealings. In almost every case, it was done with an idea that they were doing what was best for others and the church. The problem of course is that God doesn’t work within those means. That is the domain and work of the devil.
3 Then Judas, His betrayer, seeing that He had been condemned, was remorseful and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, 4 saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” And they said, “What is that to us? You see to it!”
Matthew 27:3-4
Judas was one that fell into that hole of self-deception. Only after seeing Christ taken away and realizing that he wouldn’t fight back but allow himself to die, did Judas understand his sin. In trying to help Jesus by forcing him to take the crown, he condemned him to death. He tried to fix his mistake but he went to the wrong people. Instead of going to God, he went to those he conspired with. They of course didn’t care about his guilt or anything about him. He was just a tool for them. In misery he left without his sins forgiven.
Many times when we make a mistake, we fail a second time in trying to fix it. How many times do people try and fix a lie with another lie? It’s not good enough to want to fix a mistake but you must know how to do it. God is the only one who can truly take away our sins and he is also the only one who knows the right plan to correct a misstep. Always go to Christ first.
69 Now Peter sat outside in the courtyard. And a servant girl came to him, saying, “You also were with Jesus of Galilee.” 70 But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you are saying.”
Matthew 26:69-70
Imagine having one of your worst moments recorded in a book that would then be read by literally billions of people. That is the story of Peter. When you read the gospels, you would think that he was the most supportive of Jesus and willing to sacrifice whatever it took for his master but in this moment we see the real face of Peter. We do have to give him credit for at least staying close by from Jesus. He cared enough to stay at a distance and see what was going on but there was nothing in him to stand up or defend Christ.
71 And when he had gone out to the gateway, another girl saw him and said to those who were there, “This fellow also was with Jesus of Nazareth.” 72 But again he denied with an oath, “I do not know the Man!”
Matthew 26:71-72
The second time he is questioned the Bible says that he made an oath. As people question him, he digs himself deeper and deeper into his weakness and sin. How often do we as humans double down in our faults? How much easier would it be to just admit the mistake? It is on the third that we truly see the original Peter, pre-Christ, appear.
73 And a little later those who stood by came up and said to Peter, “Surely you also are one of them, for your speech betrays you.” 74 Then he began to curse and swear, saying, “I do not know the Man!”
Matthew 26:73-74
Satan is really good at what he does. Even after spending years with Jesus, Satan is able to bring Peter to his knees in a matter of minutes. This of course is the danger of not completely committing to God. Peter was so close. While the others ran, except for John, he stayed close. He cut a man when they came to arrest Jesus. He wanted to believe and wanted to do what was right but without his whole heart in the game, he fell apart. The beauty of course is that Jesus still didn’t give up on Peter. Jesus kept working on him and the day came when Peter would not deny. Let us strive to give ourselves completely and also keep God’s amazing mercy always in our mind.
67 Then they spat in His face and beat Him; and others struck Him with the palms of their hands, 68 saying, “Prophesy to us, Christ! Who is the one who struck You?”
Matthew 26:67-68
How should a child of God behave? How should a religious leader behave? How should someone who claims to know and follow God’s law behave? I’m sure that everyone would have a slightly different answer to those questions but hopefully no one would say what is written in these verses. Even if the man they had before them was a thief, liar and blasphemer, a true worshiper of God would still not have behaved as these so called learned men. Not only do they unlawfully strike, mock and degrade Jesus but then they mock God by foolishly speaking of prophesying and calling him Christ.
It wouldn’t be too far of a stretch to believe that Satan was within these men’s hearts and urging them to do what they were. Although it’s not specifically mentioned in scripture, their actions are clearly a sign of this. Which then gives us a big warning. It is possible to be part of God’s true church, which Judaism still was in this moment, and still be completely lost to the devil. Just because you sit in a church, doesn’t mean that you are suddenly immune to making bad decisions and going down the wrong path.
What truly troubles me is the steady increase of anger that I see not just out in the world but within the church as well. People, more and more, are not showing patience, love and empathy. Paul was right when he prophesied about our future.
1 But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, 4 traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!
1 Timothy 3:1-5
I don’t believe that these verses are pointing to the future anymore. We are living this reality. And so I then ask those first questions again. How should a child of God behave? Are you living up to the standard set by God or are you letting Satan blind your sin by appearing to make it seem as if you’re doing the will of God? These religious leaders, with all the knowledge of God’s Word, found themselves completely blind. They did Satan’s bidding while thinking they were doing God’s. Make sure you are not going in the same direction.
65 Then the high priest tore his clothes, saying, “He has spoken blasphemy! What further need do we have of witnesses? Look, now you have heard His blasphemy!
Matthew 26:65
Jesus spoke the truth to people who knew the scriptures and the promise but he was still called a blasphemer. Similar to Job, who was also attacked by his friends even though they could never actually stick or prove any accusations against him, Jesus too was being attacked with baseless accusations. Jesus always had a biblical answer for everything they accused during his ministry. The biggest problem of course is that the Jewish leaders had becomes accustomed to the physical ‘real’ world and Jesus bringing in a spiritual and heavenly dimension was too much for them. They could neither compete with such a message and movement, not to mention that most couldn’t even fully understand it. The idea that heaven actually coming to them was not part of their religious beliefs or ideals. They were happy just leading and commanding sinful people. They enjoyed the power, money and influence that it gave them. They liked the feeling of being ‘better’ and ‘holier’ than everyone else. Jesus was putting all of that at risk.
What is most interesting is as the high priest accuses Jesus of blasphemy and going against God and His word, the man himself goes against God in his own actions. The Bible clearly says that he tore his clothes which was forbidden in the Scriptures.
10 ‘He who is the high priest among his brethren, on whose head the anointing oil was poured and who is consecrated to wear the garments, shall not uncover his head nor tear his clothes;
Leviticus 21:10
With this, one can’t but remember the parable of Jesus- take out your own plank before trying to take the speck out of your brother. All of these leaders were breaking and going against God in so many ways and yet they could only see the apparent ‘sin’ in Jesus. And what was their response?
66 What do you think?” They answered and said, “He is deserving of death.”
Matthew 26:66
This unfortunately is the character of sinful humanity. We see the faults in others but rarely in ourselves. We decree judgement and even death for others but don’t realise that our own words condemn ourselves. Let us not be so quick to judge as the Jewish leaders. Sometimes we may be on the wrong side of God.
God bless,
Pr. Steven Couto
https://brontesda.com/allfiles/2018/01/bronte-new-logo.png00adminhttps://brontesda.com/allfiles/2018/01/bronte-new-logo.pngadmin2023-03-10 13:40:582023-03-10 13:40:58Deserving Death
62And the high priest arose and said to Him, “Do You answer nothing? Whatis itthese men testify against You?”63ButJesus kept silent. And the high priest answered and said to Him,“I put You under oath by the living God: Tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of God!” Matthew 26:62-63
The creator of the world was in court being judged by his creations. More than that, a perfect man was being judged by imperfect sinners. The absurdity of this night cannot be overstated. Imagine if Jesus had decided to play his hand. Imagine if he suddenly called a legion of angels and they appeared within that place? Imagine if Jesus was to show his true glory to them as they sneered? Imagine if God the Father were to spoke up in defense of his beloved son? But none of that happened. Those sinful, prideful men were allowed to play their games and fulfil their schemes. Jesus kept quiet.
Not until they put Jesus under the third commandment of using the Lord’s name and setting Jesus under an oath by the living God does Jesus finally speak. He doesn’t do anything to try and defend himself, however, but instead seals his fate by telling the truth. In John 8 Jesus says that the truth sets us free, but apparently not for Jesus.
64Jesus said to him,“It is asyou said. Nevertheless, I say to you,hereafter you will see the Son of Mansitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.” Matthew 26:64
I always wonder if those men’s hearts were full of fear. Deep down they must have known that Jesus was truly the Messiah and that he was with God. They must have known that all of their actions had nothing to do with the word of God but was instead about their own ambition and power. Did they fear or was their hearts so darkened that they truly believed their own lies?
As human’s, it can be hard to know when to be silent and when to speak. We know so little of God’s plan in our life that it can be a real dilemma. Part of the problem is that many of us don’t know our purpose. Jesus did. He knew that it was the cross where his Father needed him. He could have spoken up and defended himself but that would only disrupt his goal. When he did speak, they were words that made his future sure. It was not a bright or happy short term future but he knew it was God’s will. We must also struggle to find our purposes. If we know where God wants us to be, we will have better insight in the words we speak and the actions we take. Let us strive to connect with God and know his thoughts and plans for our lives.
59 Now the chief priests, the elders, and all the council sought false testimony against Jesus to put Him to death, 60 but found none. Even though many false witnesses came forward, they found none. But at last two false witnesses came forward 61 and said, “This fellow said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and to build it in three days.’ ”
Matthew 26:59-61
This might sound odd, but I find these verses to be beautiful. The Jewish leaders had for a while now planned on killing Jesus. Plans were put into play, traps were set and people bribed. Up until this point, none of their plans had worked. Jesus had always outsmarted and out-explained the Holy Scriptures to them. He had always managed to slip away and avoid being stoned or killed. At every turn, Jesus simply explained that it was still not yet his time to die.
Things were different now. Judas was bribed and successfully delivered Jesus in chains to them. He could not escape at least not in human terms. Then the council members, those wise and studious leaders, began to try and develop an accusation against Jesus. They tried hard but nothing true that Jesus did could condemn him. With his perfect life unusable to them, they had to go to plan B. They began bringing in false witnesses who could say something about Jesus to condemn him and yet, amazingly again, they could not.
This is what I find beautiful. How very perfect was Jesus’ life that even liars and false witnesses could not trap him. There was something about his life that was so pure that even lies seemed to not be able to stick to him. How very different are we compared to him. I know that if people were to search hard enough, all sorts of negative and harmful evidence could be found against me and I’m sure against you as well. I always find it amazing that a politician’s previous life and actions so commonly come up in the news to disgrace or tarnish their name. I always wonder how they could chose such a public job knowing what their past is filled with. But truthfully, everyone has something in their past that they are ashamed of.
Not Jesus. They went through his entire life with a fine tooth comb and came up with nothing. Even evil lies were too out of character to be believed. What a beautiful life Jesus led.
Finally two men were found who could share some of Jesus’ actual words but twisted in a way to sound bad. They claimed that Jesus said that he himself was able to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days but Jesus actually said, “Jesus answered and said to them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” John 2:19
Even with their own twist, it actually still wasn’t enough to condemn him but it was the best they could do. Jesus truly was too good for this world and yet he gave himself willingly for it. May we all strive for the same character and love that was found in Jesus.
…Then all the disciples forsook Him and fled.57 And those who had laid hold of Jesus led Him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled. 58 But Peter followed Him at a distance to the high priest’s courtyard. And he went in and sat with the servants to see the end.
Matthew 26:56-58
Just hours before, Jesus had asked his disciples to pray with him. He had a meal with them and washed their feet. Now they were all gone. This unfortunately is a common result when you rely on human beings. They will often let you down. How many times do you feel alone in this world?
Jesus gave himself willingly to his enemies. He did this because he knew that this was his purpose. The very people he was trying to save, the very families he had saved and delivered in Jewish history, were now trying to kill him. He would not fight it. He would also not rely on humans from this point on. He knew that what needed to happen next was for him alone.
There are many ways that he could have freed himself. He could have used his power but that would have been a failure to his mission. He could have groveled at the feet of the Jewish leaders or bribed them with power and influence, but that would only have helped him and no one else. Jesus wasn’t thinking about himself during this time but all of us whom he would be sacrificing himself for.
It must have been strange to stand before the High Priest of Israel. Jesus had created the position. He had set the rules and obligations. He had blessed the original High Priest; Aaron. Now he stood before this man who claimed to be the intercessor of God and yet Jesus knew that his heart wasn’t anywhere near God. The world had chosen an imposter and rejected the real thing.
Only Peter stayed close, and according to another gospel so was another apostle (John 18:15-16). Most say that it was John who was also there. Either way, none of them ever tried to help Jesus.
In all of our lives, there will be a moment when we feel alone. This is practically unavoidable because God needs us to depend on him even when we can’t feel him close. For our faith in him to grow, he must allow us to go through these events. What is important is to never forget that feelings and reality are often not the same. Just because we might not feel God close, doesn’t mean that he isn’t. Jesus promised that he would always be with us. This is where growth is truly done.
You might feel alone right now. I know many people are. Realize that Jesus went through the same thing in his life. He knows how it feels but he also got through it. You can to. Trust in him. He will never let you pass through more than you can take.
Evil Thoughts
/in Pastors BlogEvil Thoughts
9 When morning came, all the chief priests and elders of the people plotted against Jesus to put Him to death. 2 And when they had bound Him, they led Him away and delivered Him to Pontius Pilate the governor.
Matthew 27:1-2
They just couldn’t understand Jesus. Their whole lives was guided by scheming, politics, backstabbing and the desire to increase and so when the religious leaders looked at this humble man, he was a mystery. And when you don’t understand something, you fear it and try to destroy it. That is what was happening here as they conspired to have Jesus killed. They’re own sinful lives created a mistrust in Jesus’ honestly. They truly believed that he was there to destroy and undermine them. They had convinced themselves that only they could keep Israel to gather; only they could keep Judaism from falling. Their evil thoughts were covered in a false religious piety.
Could we fall into the same trap? Could we also believe that God needs our help in keeping the church from falling apart? In my years in the church, I’ve also seen scheming, politics, backstabbing and the desire to increase within the church at many levels. I’ve seen in in church elections and in board meetings. I’ve seen it in district, conference and union dealings. In almost every case, it was done with an idea that they were doing what was best for others and the church. The problem of course is that God doesn’t work within those means. That is the domain and work of the devil.
3 Then Judas, His betrayer, seeing that He had been condemned, was remorseful and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, 4 saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” And they said, “What is that to us? You see to it!”
Matthew 27:3-4
Judas was one that fell into that hole of self-deception. Only after seeing Christ taken away and realizing that he wouldn’t fight back but allow himself to die, did Judas understand his sin. In trying to help Jesus by forcing him to take the crown, he condemned him to death. He tried to fix his mistake but he went to the wrong people. Instead of going to God, he went to those he conspired with. They of course didn’t care about his guilt or anything about him. He was just a tool for them. In misery he left without his sins forgiven.
Many times when we make a mistake, we fail a second time in trying to fix it. How many times do people try and fix a lie with another lie? It’s not good enough to want to fix a mistake but you must know how to do it. God is the only one who can truly take away our sins and he is also the only one who knows the right plan to correct a misstep. Always go to Christ first.
God bless,
Pr. Steven Couto
Denying Christ?
/in Pastors BlogDenying Christ?
69 Now Peter sat outside in the courtyard. And a servant girl came to him, saying, “You also were with Jesus of Galilee.” 70 But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you are saying.”
Matthew 26:69-70
Imagine having one of your worst moments recorded in a book that would then be read by literally billions of people. That is the story of Peter. When you read the gospels, you would think that he was the most supportive of Jesus and willing to sacrifice whatever it took for his master but in this moment we see the real face of Peter. We do have to give him credit for at least staying close by from Jesus. He cared enough to stay at a distance and see what was going on but there was nothing in him to stand up or defend Christ.
71 And when he had gone out to the gateway, another girl saw him and said to those who were there, “This fellow also was with Jesus of Nazareth.” 72 But again he denied with an oath, “I do not know the Man!”
Matthew 26:71-72
The second time he is questioned the Bible says that he made an oath. As people question him, he digs himself deeper and deeper into his weakness and sin. How often do we as humans double down in our faults? How much easier would it be to just admit the mistake? It is on the third that we truly see the original Peter, pre-Christ, appear.
73 And a little later those who stood by came up and said to Peter, “Surely you also are one of them, for your speech betrays you.” 74 Then he began to curse and swear, saying, “I do not know the Man!”
Matthew 26:73-74
Satan is really good at what he does. Even after spending years with Jesus, Satan is able to bring Peter to his knees in a matter of minutes. This of course is the danger of not completely committing to God. Peter was so close. While the others ran, except for John, he stayed close. He cut a man when they came to arrest Jesus. He wanted to believe and wanted to do what was right but without his whole heart in the game, he fell apart. The beauty of course is that Jesus still didn’t give up on Peter. Jesus kept working on him and the day came when Peter would not deny. Let us strive to give ourselves completely and also keep God’s amazing mercy always in our mind.
God bless,
Pr. Steven Couto
Who Struck You?
/in Pastors BlogWho Struck You?
67 Then they spat in His face and beat Him; and others struck Him with the palms of their hands, 68 saying, “Prophesy to us, Christ! Who is the one who struck You?”
Matthew 26:67-68
How should a child of God behave? How should a religious leader behave? How should someone who claims to know and follow God’s law behave? I’m sure that everyone would have a slightly different answer to those questions but hopefully no one would say what is written in these verses. Even if the man they had before them was a thief, liar and blasphemer, a true worshiper of God would still not have behaved as these so called learned men. Not only do they unlawfully strike, mock and degrade Jesus but then they mock God by foolishly speaking of prophesying and calling him Christ.
It wouldn’t be too far of a stretch to believe that Satan was within these men’s hearts and urging them to do what they were. Although it’s not specifically mentioned in scripture, their actions are clearly a sign of this. Which then gives us a big warning. It is possible to be part of God’s true church, which Judaism still was in this moment, and still be completely lost to the devil. Just because you sit in a church, doesn’t mean that you are suddenly immune to making bad decisions and going down the wrong path.
What truly troubles me is the steady increase of anger that I see not just out in the world but within the church as well. People, more and more, are not showing patience, love and empathy. Paul was right when he prophesied about our future.
1 But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, 4 traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!
1 Timothy 3:1-5
I don’t believe that these verses are pointing to the future anymore. We are living this reality. And so I then ask those first questions again. How should a child of God behave? Are you living up to the standard set by God or are you letting Satan blind your sin by appearing to make it seem as if you’re doing the will of God? These religious leaders, with all the knowledge of God’s Word, found themselves completely blind. They did Satan’s bidding while thinking they were doing God’s. Make sure you are not going in the same direction.
God bless,
Pr. Steven Couto
Deserving Death
/in Pastors BlogDeserving Death
65 Then the high priest tore his clothes, saying, “He has spoken blasphemy! What further need do we have of witnesses? Look, now you have heard His blasphemy!
Matthew 26:65
Jesus spoke the truth to people who knew the scriptures and the promise but he was still called a blasphemer. Similar to Job, who was also attacked by his friends even though they could never actually stick or prove any accusations against him, Jesus too was being attacked with baseless accusations. Jesus always had a biblical answer for everything they accused during his ministry. The biggest problem of course is that the Jewish leaders had becomes accustomed to the physical ‘real’ world and Jesus bringing in a spiritual and heavenly dimension was too much for them. They could neither compete with such a message and movement, not to mention that most couldn’t even fully understand it. The idea that heaven actually coming to them was not part of their religious beliefs or ideals. They were happy just leading and commanding sinful people. They enjoyed the power, money and influence that it gave them. They liked the feeling of being ‘better’ and ‘holier’ than everyone else. Jesus was putting all of that at risk.
What is most interesting is as the high priest accuses Jesus of blasphemy and going against God and His word, the man himself goes against God in his own actions. The Bible clearly says that he tore his clothes which was forbidden in the Scriptures.
10 ‘He who is the high priest among his brethren, on whose head the anointing oil was poured and who is consecrated to wear the garments, shall not uncover his head nor tear his clothes;
Leviticus 21:10
With this, one can’t but remember the parable of Jesus- take out your own plank before trying to take the speck out of your brother. All of these leaders were breaking and going against God in so many ways and yet they could only see the apparent ‘sin’ in Jesus. And what was their response?
66 What do you think?” They answered and said, “He is deserving of death.”
Matthew 26:66
This unfortunately is the character of sinful humanity. We see the faults in others but rarely in ourselves. We decree judgement and even death for others but don’t realise that our own words condemn ourselves. Let us not be so quick to judge as the Jewish leaders. Sometimes we may be on the wrong side of God.
God bless,
Pr. Steven Couto
Keeping Silent
/in Pastors Blog62 And the high priest arose and said to Him, “Do You answer nothing? What is it these men
testify against You?” 63 But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest answered and said to Him, “I
put You under oath by the living God: Tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of God!”
Matthew 26:62-63
The creator of the world was in court being judged by his creations. More than that, a perfect man
was being judged by imperfect sinners. The absurdity of this night cannot be overstated. Imagine if Jesus
had decided to play his hand. Imagine if he suddenly called a legion of angels and they appeared within
that place? Imagine if Jesus was to show his true glory to them as they sneered? Imagine if God the Father
were to spoke up in defense of his beloved son? But none of that happened. Those sinful, prideful men
were allowed to play their games and fulfil their schemes. Jesus kept quiet.
Not until they put Jesus under the third commandment of using the Lord’s name and setting Jesus
under an oath by the living God does Jesus finally speak. He doesn’t do anything to try and defend
himself, however, but instead seals his fate by telling the truth. In John 8 Jesus says that the truth sets us
free, but apparently not for Jesus.
64 Jesus said to him, “It is as you said. Nevertheless, I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of
Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.”
Matthew 26:64
I always wonder if those men’s hearts were full of fear. Deep down they must have known that
Jesus was truly the Messiah and that he was with God. They must have known that all of their actions had
nothing to do with the word of God but was instead about their own ambition and power. Did they fear or
was their hearts so darkened that they truly believed their own lies?
As human’s, it can be hard to know when to be silent and when to speak. We know so little of
God’s plan in our life that it can be a real dilemma. Part of the problem is that many of us don’t know our
purpose. Jesus did. He knew that it was the cross where his Father needed him. He could have spoken up
and defended himself but that would only disrupt his goal. When he did speak, they were words that made
his future sure. It was not a bright or happy short term future but he knew it was God’s will.
We must also struggle to find our purposes. If we know where God wants us to be, we will have
better insight in the words we speak and the actions we take. Let us strive to connect with God and know
his thoughts and plans for our lives.
God bless,
Pr. Steven Couto
False Witnesses
/in Pastors BlogFalse Witnesses
59 Now the chief priests, the elders, and all the council sought false testimony against Jesus to put Him to death, 60 but found none. Even though many false witnesses came forward, they found none. But at last two false witnesses came forward 61 and said, “This fellow said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and to build it in three days.’ ”
Matthew 26:59-61
This might sound odd, but I find these verses to be beautiful. The Jewish leaders had for a while now planned on killing Jesus. Plans were put into play, traps were set and people bribed. Up until this point, none of their plans had worked. Jesus had always outsmarted and out-explained the Holy Scriptures to them. He had always managed to slip away and avoid being stoned or killed. At every turn, Jesus simply explained that it was still not yet his time to die.
Things were different now. Judas was bribed and successfully delivered Jesus in chains to them. He could not escape at least not in human terms. Then the council members, those wise and studious leaders, began to try and develop an accusation against Jesus. They tried hard but nothing true that Jesus did could condemn him. With his perfect life unusable to them, they had to go to plan B. They began bringing in false witnesses who could say something about Jesus to condemn him and yet, amazingly again, they could not.
This is what I find beautiful. How very perfect was Jesus’ life that even liars and false witnesses could not trap him. There was something about his life that was so pure that even lies seemed to not be able to stick to him. How very different are we compared to him. I know that if people were to search hard enough, all sorts of negative and harmful evidence could be found against me and I’m sure against you as well. I always find it amazing that a politician’s previous life and actions so commonly come up in the news to disgrace or tarnish their name. I always wonder how they could chose such a public job knowing what their past is filled with. But truthfully, everyone has something in their past that they are ashamed of.
Not Jesus. They went through his entire life with a fine tooth comb and came up with nothing. Even evil lies were too out of character to be believed. What a beautiful life Jesus led.
Finally two men were found who could share some of Jesus’ actual words but twisted in a way to sound bad. They claimed that Jesus said that he himself was able to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days but Jesus actually said, “Jesus answered and said to them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” John 2:19
Even with their own twist, it actually still wasn’t enough to condemn him but it was the best they could do. Jesus truly was too good for this world and yet he gave himself willingly for it. May we all strive for the same character and love that was found in Jesus.
God bless,
Pr. Steven Couto
Feeling Alone
/in Pastors BlogFeeling Alone
…Then all the disciples forsook Him and fled. 57 And those who had laid hold of Jesus led Him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled. 58 But Peter followed Him at a distance to the high priest’s courtyard. And he went in and sat with the servants to see the end.
Matthew 26:56-58
Just hours before, Jesus had asked his disciples to pray with him. He had a meal with them and washed their feet. Now they were all gone. This unfortunately is a common result when you rely on human beings. They will often let you down. How many times do you feel alone in this world?
Jesus gave himself willingly to his enemies. He did this because he knew that this was his purpose. The very people he was trying to save, the very families he had saved and delivered in Jewish history, were now trying to kill him. He would not fight it. He would also not rely on humans from this point on. He knew that what needed to happen next was for him alone.
There are many ways that he could have freed himself. He could have used his power but that would have been a failure to his mission. He could have groveled at the feet of the Jewish leaders or bribed them with power and influence, but that would only have helped him and no one else. Jesus wasn’t thinking about himself during this time but all of us whom he would be sacrificing himself for.
It must have been strange to stand before the High Priest of Israel. Jesus had created the position. He had set the rules and obligations. He had blessed the original High Priest; Aaron. Now he stood before this man who claimed to be the intercessor of God and yet Jesus knew that his heart wasn’t anywhere near God. The world had chosen an imposter and rejected the real thing.
Only Peter stayed close, and according to another gospel so was another apostle (John 18:15-16). Most say that it was John who was also there. Either way, none of them ever tried to help Jesus.
In all of our lives, there will be a moment when we feel alone. This is practically unavoidable because God needs us to depend on him even when we can’t feel him close. For our faith in him to grow, he must allow us to go through these events. What is important is to never forget that feelings and reality are often not the same. Just because we might not feel God close, doesn’t mean that he isn’t. Jesus promised that he would always be with us. This is where growth is truly done.
You might feel alone right now. I know many people are. Realize that Jesus went through the same thing in his life. He knows how it feels but he also got through it. You can to. Trust in him. He will never let you pass through more than you can take.
God bless,
Pr. Steven Couto