The Trial of Jesus

Matthew 26:57-68
Broadcast Featured Image

At first glance, the trial of Jesus may seem remote from us. While we understand Jesus died and rose for us, it may not be immediately clear what His trial has to do with us today.

Pastor Colin emphasises that everything Jesus did was for us. He was born for us, fulfilled the law for us, and every act of His life was for us. This includes His trial, which was also for our sake.

In introducing the sermon, Pastor Colin observes that the people who judged and condemned Jesus were the high priest, scribes, and elders. He points out a significant comment by Bishop Ryle, stating that it wasn’t the Jewish people but Caiaphas and the chief priests who pushed for Jesus’ condemnation. This highlights that there is no basis for antisemitism in the Easter story.

The sermon then focuses on three themes: the trial, the charges, and the outcome. When Jesus was tried, he stood in our place before the Law of God. Pastor Colin explains that the trial was necessary for Jesus to take our place under the law, despite the perversion of justice during His trial.

Jesus answered affirmatively under oath when asked if He was the Christ, the Son of God. Pastor Colin stresses that we will all stand before the judgment seat of Jesus Christ one day, and it’s important to remember this as we make our daily decisions about following Him.

Jesus was not only tried in our place, but He was also accused of blasphemy—putting Himself in the place of God—a charge that mirrors our own guilt of making ourselves gods in our lives.

1 00:00:00,160 –> 00:00:02,200 We’re looking today in our series, 2 00:00:02,200 –> 00:00:03,720 The Darkness before the Dawn, 3 00:00:03,720 –> 00:00:07,160 as we prepare for the celebration of Easter next week 4 00:00:07,160 –> 00:00:11,640 at the subject of the trial of Jesus. 5 00:00:11,640 –> 00:00:15,480 Now, at first sight, this is a part of the story 6 00:00:15,480 –> 00:00:18,820 that might seem remote from us. 7 00:00:18,820 –> 00:00:20,639 We know that Jesus died for us. 8 00:00:20,639 –> 00:00:23,040 We know that Jesus rose for us, 9 00:00:23,040 –> 00:00:27,160 but it is not, perhaps, immediately obvious 10 00:00:27,200 –> 00:00:31,719 what the trial of Jesus has to do with us today. 11 00:00:31,719 –> 00:00:33,279 And I want to remind us 12 00:00:33,279 –> 00:00:37,560 that everything that the Lord Jesus Christ did was for us. 13 00:00:37,560 –> 00:00:40,000 He was born for us. 14 00:00:40,000 –> 00:00:42,160 He fulfilled the law for us. 15 00:00:42,160 –> 00:00:47,160 In that sense, every single day of the life of Jesus, 16 00:00:47,259 –> 00:00:52,099 every act of obedience of Jesus was for us. 17 00:00:52,099 –> 00:00:55,139 And when he was put on trial, 18 00:00:55,200 –> 00:01:00,200 it was, as I want us to see today, for us as well. 19 00:01:00,880 –> 00:01:04,779 I want to make one observation by way of introduction 20 00:01:04,779 –> 00:01:07,339 and then to focus on three themes 21 00:01:07,339 –> 00:01:09,680 from the story this morning. 22 00:01:09,680 –> 00:01:12,480 If you will look with me at verse 57, 23 00:01:12,480 –> 00:01:13,599 we read there then, 24 00:01:13,599 –> 00:01:17,639 those who had seized Jesus led him to who? 25 00:01:17,639 –> 00:01:20,160 To Caiaphas the high priest 26 00:01:21,080 –> 00:01:26,180 where the scribes and the elders had gathered, 27 00:01:26,180 –> 00:01:31,180 so the people who judged and condemned Jesus 28 00:01:33,120 –> 00:01:38,120 were the high priest, the scribes, and the elders. 29 00:01:41,059 –> 00:01:43,720 Now, Bishop Reil has this important comment 30 00:01:43,720 –> 00:01:45,500 that I wanted to bring to you today. 31 00:01:45,500 –> 00:01:49,620 He says it is not so much the Jewish people 32 00:01:49,620 –> 00:01:52,019 who pushed forward this wicked deed 33 00:01:52,019 –> 00:01:54,820 that is the condemnation of Jesus 34 00:01:54,820 –> 00:01:59,820 as it was Caiaphas and his companions, the chief priests. 35 00:02:00,260 –> 00:02:02,739 That’s a very important statement for this reason. 36 00:02:03,620 –> 00:02:08,619 There is no basis whatsoever for antisemitism 37 00:02:08,699 –> 00:02:11,179 in the Easter story, that is very important 38 00:02:11,179 –> 00:02:13,779 for every Christian to grasp. 39 00:02:13,779 –> 00:02:14,860 None whatsoever. 40 00:02:15,639 –> 00:02:20,300 There is no basis for antisemitism 41 00:02:21,179 –> 00:02:24,419 in the Easter story, none whatsoever. 42 00:02:24,419 –> 00:02:27,500 In fact, and this is surely the point of Palm Sunday, 43 00:02:29,259 –> 00:02:33,020 the Gospels make clear that there were large numbers, 44 00:02:33,020 –> 00:02:38,020 huge numbers of Jewish people who were drawn to Jesus, 45 00:02:38,639 –> 00:02:41,020 just four days before the incident 46 00:02:41,020 –> 00:02:43,399 that we’re looking at here on the Thursday night, 47 00:02:43,440 –> 00:02:45,759 the night that Jesus was betrayed. 48 00:02:45,759 –> 00:02:48,880 The Gospels record and we celebrate today, 49 00:02:48,880 –> 00:02:52,960 large crowds singing the praise of Jesus. 50 00:02:52,960 –> 00:02:55,139 Crowds listening to him. 51 00:02:55,139 –> 00:02:59,440 The Gospels record every day in the temple. 52 00:03:01,320 –> 00:03:04,740 And so how come Jesus was condemned and crucified? 53 00:03:04,740 –> 00:03:06,059 What we’re being told here 54 00:03:06,059 –> 00:03:11,059 is there was an elite group of religious leaders 55 00:03:11,580 –> 00:03:15,539 who wanted him killed. 56 00:03:15,539 –> 00:03:16,940 And very significantly, 57 00:03:16,940 –> 00:03:20,059 Matthew tells us that when they planned their strategy, 58 00:03:20,059 –> 00:03:23,220 I’m looking at chapter 26 verses four and five, 59 00:03:23,220 –> 00:03:27,899 they plotted together in order to arrest Jesus by stealth. 60 00:03:27,899 –> 00:03:28,720 Why? 61 00:03:29,960 –> 00:03:31,940 Because they said not during the feast 62 00:03:31,940 –> 00:03:34,300 lest there be an uproar among the people. 63 00:03:35,139 –> 00:03:37,100 The Jewish people are with him. 64 00:03:37,100 –> 00:03:38,440 That was the point. 65 00:03:39,320 –> 00:03:42,660 The Jewish people won’t let us touch him. 66 00:03:44,220 –> 00:03:47,000 That is why the arrest took place at night. 67 00:03:48,520 –> 00:03:50,000 And later in the story, 68 00:03:50,000 –> 00:03:52,119 which we will remember this week, 69 00:03:52,119 –> 00:03:53,800 where there was a much smaller crowd, 70 00:03:53,800 –> 00:03:55,360 it must have been a much smaller crowd 71 00:03:55,360 –> 00:03:58,240 because it was so, so early in the morning 72 00:03:58,240 –> 00:04:01,679 when Jesus was brought before Pontius Pilate. 73 00:04:02,580 –> 00:04:04,000 And Matthew records, 74 00:04:04,000 –> 00:04:06,199 you remember, that when there was this issue 75 00:04:06,440 –> 00:04:08,679 of perhaps Jesus could be released 76 00:04:08,679 –> 00:04:10,600 or perhaps it could be Barabbas, 77 00:04:10,600 –> 00:04:13,080 it was the chief priests and elders 78 00:04:13,080 –> 00:04:15,500 who persuaded the crowd, 79 00:04:16,619 –> 00:04:19,559 persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas 80 00:04:19,559 –> 00:04:23,079 and to destroy Jesus. 81 00:04:23,079 –> 00:04:27,079 So I want to say to all of our Jewish friends today, 82 00:04:27,079 –> 00:04:29,980 Jesus is your Messiah. 83 00:04:31,019 –> 00:04:34,279 His Gospel is for the nations of the world, 84 00:04:34,320 –> 00:04:36,399 but it is for the Jew first. 85 00:04:36,399 –> 00:04:39,279 That’s what the Jewish apostle Paul says 86 00:04:39,279 –> 00:04:41,720 in Romans chapter one and verse 16. 87 00:04:41,720 –> 00:04:46,720 So there is every reason for any Jewish person 88 00:04:48,640 –> 00:04:52,799 to take a fresh look at Jesus Christ, 89 00:04:53,839 –> 00:04:56,619 to regard him as your own. 90 00:04:57,640 –> 00:05:02,040 And there is no basis whatsoever in the Gospel account, 91 00:05:02,040 –> 00:05:07,040 the story of Easter for any antisemitism, none whatsoever. 92 00:05:09,040 –> 00:05:10,420 That’s the introductory comment. 93 00:05:10,420 –> 00:05:13,100 Now I want to focus on three themes 94 00:05:13,100 –> 00:05:15,359 that are at the center of these verses 95 00:05:15,359 –> 00:05:16,480 that are before us today. 96 00:05:16,480 –> 00:05:21,480 They are the trial, the charges, and the outcome. 97 00:05:23,119 –> 00:05:24,359 First, then the trial. 98 00:05:24,359 –> 00:05:27,239 And I want us to see that when Jesus was tried 99 00:05:27,239 –> 00:05:32,239 before the Law of God, he stood in our place. 100 00:05:33,519 –> 00:05:35,119 Verse 37. 101 00:05:35,119 –> 00:05:37,299 When those who had seized Jesus led him 102 00:05:37,299 –> 00:05:39,600 to Caiaphas the high priest, 103 00:05:39,600 –> 00:05:43,679 where the scribes and elders had gathered. 104 00:05:44,760 –> 00:05:48,920 Now I have been helped here by the work of James Phillips, 105 00:05:48,920 –> 00:05:51,480 a Scottish minister now with the Lord, 106 00:05:51,480 –> 00:05:53,579 who asked a very simple question. 107 00:05:54,839 –> 00:05:56,559 Why was there a trial? 108 00:05:58,140 –> 00:05:59,380 Why was there a trial? 109 00:06:01,019 –> 00:06:03,079 I mean, why not an assassination? 110 00:06:04,519 –> 00:06:06,720 I mean, the chief priests, as we saw last time, 111 00:06:06,720 –> 00:06:08,459 arrived in the Garden of Gethsemane 112 00:06:08,459 –> 00:06:12,399 with a great crowd armed with swords and clubs. 113 00:06:12,399 –> 00:06:14,519 When they made the arrest, the Bible tells us 114 00:06:14,519 –> 00:06:18,179 that all the disciples forsook Jesus and fled, 115 00:06:18,179 –> 00:06:22,760 so why did the arresting party not execute Jesus 116 00:06:22,760 –> 00:06:25,040 right there and then in the garden, 117 00:06:25,040 –> 00:06:29,440 especially given that they knew that public opinion 118 00:06:29,440 –> 00:06:32,000 was not, as we have seen, on their side? 119 00:06:32,880 –> 00:06:35,559 At night, the Garden was completely deserted, 120 00:06:35,559 –> 00:06:37,660 the whole thing could have been done in secret. 121 00:06:37,660 –> 00:06:40,679 If Jesus had been executed there, 122 00:06:40,679 –> 00:06:44,019 if that had been what they had pursued, 123 00:06:44,019 –> 00:06:46,279 the people then would have wakened up 124 00:06:46,279 –> 00:06:49,279 and over the next days a story would have emerged 125 00:06:49,279 –> 00:06:53,540 about the strange mystery of the disappearance of Jesus. 126 00:06:53,540 –> 00:06:54,839 No one would have known. 127 00:06:56,000 –> 00:07:00,380 So why then do they go through this whole process 128 00:07:00,380 –> 00:07:01,380 of a trial? 129 00:07:03,459 –> 00:07:05,760 I suspect there’s an answer from their side 130 00:07:05,760 –> 00:07:08,119 and there certainly is an answer from God’s. 131 00:07:09,200 –> 00:07:13,459 From their side, of course, if death comes by assassination, 132 00:07:13,459 –> 00:07:17,059 then the one who kills is guilty before the law 133 00:07:17,059 –> 00:07:19,799 and the one who is killed in an assassination 134 00:07:19,799 –> 00:07:22,859 is innocent before the law. 135 00:07:22,899 –> 00:07:26,040 The chief priests don’t want to be in that position. 136 00:07:27,359 –> 00:07:32,160 But if a death comes by a judicial process, 137 00:07:32,160 –> 00:07:35,160 then the one who is killed is guilty before the law 138 00:07:35,160 –> 00:07:37,540 and the ones who kill are innocent 139 00:07:37,540 –> 00:07:40,519 and that’s where the priests want to be. 140 00:07:40,519 –> 00:07:44,859 They want Christ condemned as guilty before the law of God. 141 00:07:44,859 –> 00:07:46,160 That’s what they want. 142 00:07:46,160 –> 00:07:48,239 They are there to uphold the law of God 143 00:07:48,239 –> 00:07:50,000 and they want Jesus Christ condemned 144 00:07:50,000 –> 00:07:52,420 as guilty before the law of God 145 00:07:52,420 –> 00:07:56,179 while they stand as the righteous upholders 146 00:07:56,179 –> 00:07:59,220 of the law of God. 147 00:08:00,920 –> 00:08:03,799 But beyond whatever may have been in their mind, 148 00:08:04,940 –> 00:08:06,820 the bigger story here, of course, 149 00:08:06,820 –> 00:08:09,420 is the great purpose of God. 150 00:08:10,459 –> 00:08:14,260 Which was surely, that when Jesus was placed on trial, 151 00:08:14,260 –> 00:08:19,260 he took our place under the law of God. 152 00:08:19,899 –> 00:08:23,200 And the New Testament explains that this was the very reason 153 00:08:23,200 –> 00:08:25,260 for which Jesus came into the world. 154 00:08:25,260 –> 00:08:29,380 Galatians chapter four, when the fullness of time had come. 155 00:08:29,380 –> 00:08:31,700 It’s a verse that we often read at Christmas. 156 00:08:31,700 –> 00:08:35,340 God sent forth his son born of a woman. 157 00:08:35,340 –> 00:08:36,159 How is he born? 158 00:08:36,159 –> 00:08:38,700 Born under the law. 159 00:08:38,700 –> 00:08:40,559 And why was he born under the law? 160 00:08:40,559 –> 00:08:44,179 Because he came to redeem those who were under the law. 161 00:08:44,179 –> 00:08:47,979 That’s us, that we might receive 162 00:08:47,979 –> 00:08:51,140 the adoption of sons. 163 00:08:51,140 –> 00:08:53,179 So, Jesus Christ born under the law, 164 00:08:53,179 –> 00:08:55,919 coming into the world to redeem those who were under the law 165 00:08:55,919 –> 00:09:00,799 that is why judicial process matters in this story. 166 00:09:02,400 –> 00:09:07,179 Now, for sure, what happened at the trial of Jesus 167 00:09:07,179 –> 00:09:09,400 was not justice. 168 00:09:10,580 –> 00:09:13,940 There are whole books written on the ways in which 169 00:09:14,880 –> 00:09:18,099 justice was perverted in the trial of Jesus 170 00:09:19,380 –> 00:09:23,099 but it was a legal process. 171 00:09:23,099 –> 00:09:26,380 It wasn’t justice but it was a legal process. 172 00:09:26,380 –> 00:09:29,460 And that of course is why they brought in witnesses. 173 00:09:29,460 –> 00:09:30,440 Why bring in witnesses 174 00:09:30,440 –> 00:09:32,580 when they’ve already decided the outcome? 175 00:09:32,580 –> 00:09:34,159 Well, they’re at least going through 176 00:09:34,159 –> 00:09:37,099 some semblance of legal process. 177 00:09:37,099 –> 00:09:39,780 That’s what’s being described for us in these verses. 178 00:09:39,780 –> 00:09:40,859 Verse 59. 179 00:09:40,940 –> 00:09:42,419 The chief priests of the whole council 180 00:09:42,419 –> 00:09:45,760 were seeking false testimony against Jesus 181 00:09:45,760 –> 00:09:47,340 that they might put him to death. 182 00:09:47,340 –> 00:09:48,659 So that’s why it’s not justice. 183 00:09:48,659 –> 00:09:50,400 They’ve already decided the outcome. 184 00:09:50,400 –> 00:09:51,979 But it is a legal process. 185 00:09:51,979 –> 00:09:55,539 Many false witnesses came forward. 186 00:09:55,539 –> 00:09:57,080 And Mark, as you may remember, 187 00:09:57,080 –> 00:09:59,659 tells us that the problem with the false witnesses 188 00:09:59,659 –> 00:10:02,500 of course, was that they contradicted one another. 189 00:10:02,500 –> 00:10:03,900 They were heard one at a time 190 00:10:03,900 –> 00:10:05,380 and they came out with different things 191 00:10:05,380 –> 00:10:07,140 that canceled each other out. 192 00:10:07,960 –> 00:10:12,059 Eventually two witnesses, verse 61 came forward, 193 00:10:12,059 –> 00:10:15,000 they misquoted some words of Jesus 194 00:10:15,000 –> 00:10:18,299 that are recorded in John chapter two and verse 19. 195 00:10:19,500 –> 00:10:23,140 When Jesus was asked early in his ministry 196 00:10:23,140 –> 00:10:25,419 what sign he would show, 197 00:10:25,419 –> 00:10:28,020 John records that Jesus said, 198 00:10:28,020 –> 00:10:30,719 destroy this temple, 199 00:10:30,719 –> 00:10:32,299 and I will rebuild it 200 00:10:32,299 –> 00:10:35,219 and in three days I will raise it up. 201 00:10:35,219 –> 00:10:36,299 And John then tells us 202 00:10:36,299 –> 00:10:38,539 the Lord was speaking about his own body. 203 00:10:38,539 –> 00:10:39,780 Destroy this temple. 204 00:10:39,780 –> 00:10:41,580 You’re gonna destroy this temple. 205 00:10:41,580 –> 00:10:42,419 He’s saying. 206 00:10:43,320 –> 00:10:44,179 That’s what you’re gonna do. 207 00:10:44,179 –> 00:10:45,940 Referring to his crucifixion. 208 00:10:45,940 –> 00:10:47,520 You’re gonna destroy this temple. 209 00:10:47,520 –> 00:10:49,200 I’m gonna raise it up. 210 00:10:50,140 –> 00:10:52,380 But the false witnesses come forward 211 00:10:52,380 –> 00:10:55,580 and they twist what Jesus has said. 212 00:10:55,580 –> 00:10:59,460 The earlier one seems to have lied by invention. 213 00:10:59,460 –> 00:11:02,179 These witnesses lie by distortion. 214 00:11:03,260 –> 00:11:05,559 Two ways of being falsely accused. 215 00:11:06,460 –> 00:11:11,460 And they present these words as if Jesus 216 00:11:11,700 –> 00:11:15,239 had determined to destroy the most prestigious building 217 00:11:15,239 –> 00:11:19,659 in the City that it taken 46 years to put up. 218 00:11:19,659 –> 00:11:20,539 This man said, 219 00:11:20,539 –> 00:11:22,979 I am able to destroy the Temple of God 220 00:11:22,979 –> 00:11:24,640 and to rebuild it in three days. 221 00:11:24,640 –> 00:11:28,880 And again, Mark tells us that even these two witnesses 222 00:11:28,880 –> 00:11:32,739 were not able to agree. 223 00:11:32,780 –> 00:11:34,719 Well, Caiaphas, the high priest 224 00:11:34,719 –> 00:11:37,419 who is presiding over all of this, 225 00:11:37,419 –> 00:11:41,140 realizes that with witness after witness coming forward 226 00:11:41,140 –> 00:11:44,539 and their testimonies basically canceling each other out, 227 00:11:44,539 –> 00:11:47,140 even the two that focused on the same thing 228 00:11:47,140 –> 00:11:49,059 didn’t manage to agree together. 229 00:11:50,020 –> 00:11:53,799 He decides then to take matters into his own hands 230 00:11:53,799 –> 00:11:57,619 and become not so much the judge as the prosecutor. 231 00:11:57,619 –> 00:11:59,380 So he takes that role himself. 232 00:11:59,380 –> 00:12:01,059 He kind of steps forward. 233 00:12:01,260 –> 00:12:02,219 That’s enough from the witnesses. 234 00:12:02,219 –> 00:12:03,539 That’s not getting us anywhere. 235 00:12:03,539 –> 00:12:05,059 And so he takes an initiative. 236 00:12:05,059 –> 00:12:09,400 Verse 63, the high priest said to Jesus, 237 00:12:09,400 –> 00:12:13,159 I adjure you or I put you on oath by the living God. 238 00:12:14,580 –> 00:12:19,580 Tell us if you are the Christ the Son of God. 239 00:12:22,739 –> 00:12:24,179 What a moment that was. 240 00:12:27,039 –> 00:12:29,099 Jesus placed under oath, 241 00:12:29,099 –> 00:12:30,580 note that that would make any difference 242 00:12:30,940 –> 00:12:33,280 because every word he ever spoke was the truth, 243 00:12:35,479 –> 00:12:40,479 but under oath the high priest asks Jesus 244 00:12:41,520 –> 00:12:43,659 the greatest of all questions. 245 00:12:45,799 –> 00:12:48,299 Tell us if you are the Christ. 246 00:12:50,900 –> 00:12:52,179 Are you the Son of God? 247 00:12:55,179 –> 00:12:59,059 Tell us, are you God with us? 248 00:13:01,159 –> 00:13:03,380 Are you the one on whom 249 00:13:03,380 –> 00:13:07,940 the hopes of all in the world depend? 250 00:13:07,940 –> 00:13:08,760 What a moment. 251 00:13:11,940 –> 00:13:16,799 In verse 64 Jesus says you have said so, 252 00:13:18,239 –> 00:13:20,080 you said it. 253 00:13:22,099 –> 00:13:24,719 Now, there can be absolutely no ambiguity 254 00:13:24,719 –> 00:13:28,539 in Jesus’ answer here, and that is very clear 255 00:13:28,580 –> 00:13:33,539 because if you look back to verse 25 at the Last Supper 256 00:13:33,539 –> 00:13:38,380 you will find that Jesus uses exactly the same words. 257 00:13:38,380 –> 00:13:40,840 And it happened at the Last Supper 258 00:13:40,840 –> 00:13:43,059 where Jesus told the disciples 259 00:13:43,059 –> 00:13:47,739 that one of them would betray him, 260 00:13:47,739 –> 00:13:50,679 and you remember that at that point one after another 261 00:13:50,679 –> 00:13:54,280 they all began to say, Lord is it I, Lord is it I, 262 00:13:54,280 –> 00:13:55,799 is it me, Lord? 263 00:13:56,679 –> 00:14:01,679 And then Matthew records that Judas said, is it I? 264 00:14:04,039 –> 00:14:07,940 And verse 25 Jesus said, you have said so. 265 00:14:07,940 –> 00:14:09,419 Exactly the same words. 266 00:14:09,419 –> 00:14:10,500 You said it. 267 00:14:14,039 –> 00:14:18,179 Tell us, are you the Christ? 268 00:14:20,179 –> 00:14:21,919 Are you the Son of God? 269 00:14:22,880 –> 00:14:24,820 You said it. 270 00:14:26,739 –> 00:14:27,840 For a moment. 271 00:14:29,219 –> 00:14:34,219 And then Jesus said these remarkable words. 272 00:14:34,799 –> 00:14:39,820 Verse 64, you have said so, 273 00:14:41,020 –> 00:14:45,380 but I tell you, from now on you will see 274 00:14:45,380 –> 00:14:50,260 the Son of man seated at the right hand of power 275 00:14:51,580 –> 00:14:55,419 and coming on the clouds of heaven. 276 00:14:56,799 –> 00:15:00,659 See what’s happening here, Jesus stands before them 277 00:15:00,659 –> 00:15:04,979 no doubt bound with the rope in the dock 278 00:15:06,539 –> 00:15:09,859 under the law of God 279 00:15:12,679 –> 00:15:17,580 and he says to them, this will never happen again. 280 00:15:19,400 –> 00:15:24,400 Never again will I be in your court from now on. 281 00:15:26,520 –> 00:15:28,000 You are in my court 282 00:15:29,679 –> 00:15:33,099 and you will see the son of man seated 283 00:15:33,099 –> 00:15:35,880 that’s of course in the place of judgment. 284 00:15:37,340 –> 00:15:41,320 Caiaphas, right now you are on the bench 285 00:15:41,320 –> 00:15:42,919 and I am in the dock. 286 00:15:42,919 –> 00:15:44,659 This will never happen again. 287 00:15:44,659 –> 00:15:45,500 Right now. 288 00:15:45,500 –> 00:15:46,619 I am in your court. 289 00:15:48,640 –> 00:15:50,000 But the day is coming, Caiaphas, 290 00:15:50,000 –> 00:15:52,059 where you are going to stand in my court. 291 00:15:52,059 –> 00:15:53,640 The roles will be reversed. 292 00:15:53,880 –> 00:15:54,960 You will be in the dock 293 00:15:54,960 –> 00:15:56,840 and I will be on the bench, 294 00:15:56,840 –> 00:16:00,760 seated at the right hand of power. 295 00:16:00,760 –> 00:16:02,140 And you’re gonna see it 296 00:16:03,419 –> 00:16:08,419 when the son of man comes in his glory. 297 00:16:10,820 –> 00:16:13,140 Friends, here’s where this takes us. 298 00:16:13,140 –> 00:16:18,140 We must all stand before the judgment seat of Jesus Christ. 299 00:16:18,219 –> 00:16:23,440 Let’s stand before the judgment seat of Jesus Christ. 300 00:16:23,440 –> 00:16:28,440 Here we are in church considering the claims of Jesus. 301 00:16:31,799 –> 00:16:34,840 We’re making our decisions week by week 302 00:16:34,840 –> 00:16:39,000 and day by day about Jesus will we obey him? 303 00:16:40,080 –> 00:16:41,359 Will we trust Him? 304 00:16:42,479 –> 00:16:43,700 Will we follow Him? 305 00:16:44,419 –> 00:16:48,539 Remember while you’re making your decisions about Jesus 306 00:16:48,539 –> 00:16:53,140 that, one day, He is making a final decision about you. 307 00:16:54,299 –> 00:16:55,799 That’s what’s being said here. 308 00:16:57,380 –> 00:17:02,380 We will all be placed on trial under the law of God 309 00:17:04,020 –> 00:17:06,500 and Jesus Christ will be the judge. 310 00:17:06,500 –> 00:17:11,300 We must all stand before the judgment seat 311 00:17:11,300 –> 00:17:12,479 of Jesus Christ. 312 00:17:14,599 –> 00:17:17,219 Of Christ. 313 00:17:19,339 –> 00:17:20,180 It’s a trial. 314 00:17:21,380 –> 00:17:22,219 You. 315 00:17:23,219 –> 00:17:27,579 You will see, the Son of Man. 316 00:17:28,900 –> 00:17:31,660 This Jesus who lays claim to your life today. 317 00:17:31,660 –> 00:17:36,239 You will see Him seated in judgment. 318 00:17:37,219 –> 00:17:40,400 The right hand of power, the Almighty God himself 319 00:17:40,839 –> 00:17:45,839 and you will see him coming on the clouds, with glory. 320 00:17:49,500 –> 00:17:52,300 That’s the great reality that Jesus places 321 00:17:52,300 –> 00:17:54,839 before the man who’s making a judgment about Him. 322 00:17:57,040 –> 00:18:00,959 That’s a trial the second theme that again speaks to us 323 00:18:00,959 –> 00:18:04,000 so powerfully is the accusation. 324 00:18:04,000 –> 00:18:06,760 Not only is it the case that when Jesus was tried, 325 00:18:06,760 –> 00:18:08,780 he stood in our place. 326 00:18:08,859 –> 00:18:13,339 It is also the case that when Jesus was accused, 327 00:18:13,339 –> 00:18:15,079 he stood in our place. 328 00:18:15,079 –> 00:18:17,979 Now look at the accusation in verse 55 if you would. 329 00:18:17,979 –> 00:18:21,140 Then the High Priest tore his robes 330 00:18:21,140 –> 00:18:22,660 and he said, 331 00:18:22,660 –> 00:18:27,660 he has uttered blasphemy. 332 00:18:28,979 –> 00:18:31,520 What further witnesses do we need? 333 00:18:32,880 –> 00:18:37,420 You have now heard his blasphemy. 334 00:18:39,420 –> 00:18:44,199 Now remember our Lord Jesus endured two trials 335 00:18:44,199 –> 00:18:49,199 and in them faced two different accusations. 336 00:18:50,420 –> 00:18:51,900 The reason for this of course 337 00:18:51,900 –> 00:18:54,920 was that Israel was under Roman rule, 338 00:18:54,920 –> 00:18:58,060 the Jews lived under Roman law. 339 00:18:58,060 –> 00:18:59,979 Remember in the Christmas story we read 340 00:18:59,979 –> 00:19:03,819 it was Caesar Augustus who issued a decree 341 00:19:03,819 –> 00:19:06,900 that all the world should be registered. 342 00:19:07,219 –> 00:19:11,500 This is why Joseph and Mary went to Bethlehem. 343 00:19:11,500 –> 00:19:16,500 Rome in other words, had the power of raising taxes. 344 00:19:17,979 –> 00:19:21,380 They had the power of executing criminals 345 00:19:21,380 –> 00:19:24,020 and it was for this reason that garrisons 346 00:19:24,020 –> 00:19:28,020 of Roman soldiers were placed in Jerusalem 347 00:19:28,020 –> 00:19:29,979 and indeed we know from the gospels 348 00:19:29,979 –> 00:19:34,060 in other more rural regions around the country. 349 00:19:34,079 –> 00:19:38,420 They were there to maintain law and order. 350 00:19:38,420 –> 00:19:40,900 Now the importance of this trial 351 00:19:40,900 –> 00:19:44,599 in the Court of the high priest 352 00:19:44,599 –> 00:19:47,540 is that here because the high priest 353 00:19:47,540 –> 00:19:51,500 was responsible to uphold the law of God 354 00:19:51,500 –> 00:19:56,500 Jesus is being tried, not before the secular state 355 00:19:56,540 –> 00:19:57,900 but in this court. 356 00:19:57,900 –> 00:20:01,339 Jesus is being tried before the law of God. 357 00:20:01,339 –> 00:20:03,660 Before the high priest who’s job 358 00:20:03,979 –> 00:20:08,979 is to uphold all the commandments of God. 359 00:20:09,319 –> 00:20:10,619 Always remember by the way, 360 00:20:10,619 –> 00:20:12,420 little caveat here, 361 00:20:12,420 –> 00:20:17,140 there is an important distinction to be made 362 00:20:17,140 –> 00:20:20,400 between the law of God and the law of the state. 363 00:20:20,400 –> 00:20:22,260 While they obviously overlap, 364 00:20:22,260 –> 00:20:24,140 they are not the same 365 00:20:24,140 –> 00:20:27,199 and the distinction especially in our time 366 00:20:27,199 –> 00:20:30,040 is very important for Christians to understand. 367 00:20:30,979 –> 00:20:34,939 See, the law of God says you shall not murder, 368 00:20:34,939 –> 00:20:37,239 the law of the state says the same. 369 00:20:37,900 –> 00:20:40,859 The law of God says you shall not steal, 370 00:20:40,859 –> 00:20:42,739 the law of the state says the same. 371 00:20:42,739 –> 00:20:43,680 There’s a clear overlap. 372 00:20:43,680 –> 00:20:46,640 But the law of God says you shall not covet. 373 00:20:47,339 –> 00:20:50,540 The state has no parallel to that nor can it have 374 00:20:50,540 –> 00:20:53,020 because coveting of course is a matter of the heart. 375 00:20:53,020 –> 00:20:54,280 How could the state ever try that? 376 00:20:54,280 –> 00:20:56,219 Only God can try that. 377 00:20:56,540 –> 00:20:57,859 And the law of God says, 378 00:20:57,859 –> 00:20:58,979 in the first commandment, 379 00:20:58,979 –> 00:21:02,239 you shall have no other gods before me, 380 00:21:02,239 –> 00:21:03,599 before Yahweh. 381 00:21:04,619 –> 00:21:06,640 The state has no parallel to that. 382 00:21:07,459 –> 00:21:09,180 Nor would we want it to. 383 00:21:10,040 –> 00:21:11,780 We cherish religious freedom. 384 00:21:12,760 –> 00:21:14,660 We are not a theocracy. 385 00:21:15,900 –> 00:21:18,579 We do not believe that religion can be imposed 386 00:21:18,579 –> 00:21:20,060 by the law of the state. 387 00:21:21,420 –> 00:21:24,699 So the distinction between the trials is very important 388 00:21:25,020 –> 00:21:27,780 for us to understand that this trial 389 00:21:27,780 –> 00:21:29,319 is the one of supreme importance 390 00:21:29,319 –> 00:21:33,140 because this is where Jesus is placed under not the state 391 00:21:33,140 –> 00:21:34,660 but the law of God. 392 00:21:36,140 –> 00:21:38,520 And that’s why you see the charge 393 00:21:38,520 –> 00:21:40,119 that is brought before him here 394 00:21:40,119 –> 00:21:41,699 is a charge under the law of God 395 00:21:41,699 –> 00:21:44,420 that wouldn’t have any interest to Pontius Pilate 396 00:21:44,420 –> 00:21:47,060 but it’s of huge importance for us 397 00:21:47,060 –> 00:21:49,219 when Jesus is tried under the law of God, 398 00:21:49,219 –> 00:21:50,500 he is accused of what? 399 00:21:50,500 –> 00:21:51,780 Blasphemy. 400 00:21:52,239 –> 00:21:53,079 What? 401 00:21:54,300 –> 00:21:56,500 Verse 65, the high priest torn his robes 402 00:21:56,500 –> 00:21:59,660 and said he has uttered blasphemy. 403 00:21:59,660 –> 00:22:01,500 What further witnesses do we need? 404 00:22:01,500 –> 00:22:02,959 What is blasphemy? 405 00:22:04,780 –> 00:22:05,979 Simple definition. 406 00:22:07,699 –> 00:22:12,119 Blasphemy is putting yourself in the place of God. 407 00:22:15,300 –> 00:22:18,699 And you see that that that’s actually 408 00:22:18,699 –> 00:22:20,619 the meaning of blasphemy very, 409 00:22:20,619 –> 00:22:24,939 very clearly in a story that Mark records in chapter 2. 410 00:22:24,939 –> 00:22:27,359 Remember that story, amazing story about 411 00:22:27,359 –> 00:22:31,680 the paralyzed man who was brought by his friends 412 00:22:31,680 –> 00:22:33,959 on his mattress and they couldn’t get in 413 00:22:33,959 –> 00:22:35,780 and so they went on the roof, dug through the roof 414 00:22:35,780 –> 00:22:37,380 and lowered the man beside Jesus. 415 00:22:37,380 –> 00:22:39,260 Remember what Jesus said to him? 416 00:22:39,260 –> 00:22:42,319 He said your sins are forgiven. 417 00:22:44,219 –> 00:22:46,020 Remember what happened after that? 418 00:22:46,959 –> 00:22:50,060 Your sins are forgiven, Jesus said. 419 00:22:50,979 –> 00:22:53,640 And then Mark records, now some of the scribes 420 00:22:53,640 –> 00:22:55,280 were sitting there and they were questioning 421 00:22:55,280 –> 00:22:58,640 in their hearts why does this man speak like that? 422 00:22:58,640 –> 00:23:03,640 He is blaspheming for who can forget sins but God alone. 423 00:23:07,160 –> 00:23:09,020 See, what he’s saying? 424 00:23:09,020 –> 00:23:10,540 This is their logic. 425 00:23:10,540 –> 00:23:13,939 Only God forgives sins. 426 00:23:14,900 –> 00:23:19,339 This man says he forgives sins, 427 00:23:19,339 –> 00:23:22,199 he is putting himself in the place of God, 428 00:23:22,199 –> 00:23:25,180 therefore he is blaspheming, that’s what blaspheming is. 429 00:23:25,180 –> 00:23:27,420 It’s putting yourself in the place of God. 430 00:23:27,420 –> 00:23:30,420 It’s arrogating to yourself what belongs to God alone. 431 00:23:31,859 –> 00:23:34,560 It is the defining sin of our culture. 432 00:23:37,420 –> 00:23:42,420 Our Lord Jesus Christ could never be guilty of blasphemy 433 00:23:44,099 –> 00:23:45,819 for this very obvious reason. 434 00:23:45,819 –> 00:23:47,459 He is God. 435 00:23:49,140 –> 00:23:50,020 He is God. 436 00:23:51,819 –> 00:23:53,060 He is God with us. 437 00:23:53,060 –> 00:23:57,979 He is God in the flesh, but this very significantly 438 00:23:57,979 –> 00:24:02,300 is what he was accused of. 439 00:24:03,939 –> 00:24:06,640 And blasphemy, 440 00:24:06,640 –> 00:24:07,979 and you can check the law out 441 00:24:07,979 –> 00:24:11,380 in Leviticus chapter 24 verses 15 and 16, 442 00:24:11,400 –> 00:24:15,459 blasphemy was one of actually only a few offenses 443 00:24:15,459 –> 00:24:16,500 in the Old Testament law 444 00:24:16,500 –> 00:24:19,300 that actually carried the death penalty. 445 00:24:19,300 –> 00:24:21,180 Sometimes folks have the idea that death penalty 446 00:24:21,180 –> 00:24:22,180 was for just about anything 447 00:24:22,180 –> 00:24:23,819 the Old Testament law was not. 448 00:24:23,819 –> 00:24:25,380 It was reserved for the things 449 00:24:25,380 –> 00:24:26,859 that were most significant, 450 00:24:26,859 –> 00:24:29,520 taking another life and blasphemy 451 00:24:29,520 –> 00:24:32,060 because putting yourself in the place of God 452 00:24:32,060 –> 00:24:34,819 is the ultimate offense against the ultimate of being. 453 00:24:36,020 –> 00:24:38,739 Now they had to take him to Pontius Pilate 454 00:24:38,800 –> 00:24:40,979 and of course when they took him to Pilate 455 00:24:42,199 –> 00:24:44,140 the charge had to be changed 456 00:24:44,140 –> 00:24:45,660 because Pilate had no interest 457 00:24:45,660 –> 00:24:48,739 in a religious charge of blasphemy. 458 00:24:48,739 –> 00:24:51,040 So they had to change the charge to treason. 459 00:24:51,040 –> 00:24:54,119 Then the chief priests tell Pilate, 460 00:24:54,119 –> 00:24:58,260 oh this man forbids us to give tribute to Caesar 461 00:24:58,260 –> 00:24:59,699 and says that he’s a king 462 00:24:59,699 –> 00:25:03,339 and so Pilate’s all on, are you a king? 463 00:25:03,339 –> 00:25:05,660 And remember the inscription had the charge 464 00:25:05,680 –> 00:25:08,140 on which Jesus was condemned by Pilate 465 00:25:08,140 –> 00:25:12,239 was this is Jesus, the king of the Jews. 466 00:25:13,979 –> 00:25:16,099 But Pilate’s a story for another day. 467 00:25:17,459 –> 00:25:18,939 What we’re concerned with here 468 00:25:18,939 –> 00:25:22,540 is that Jesus stood trial under the law of God, 469 00:25:22,540 –> 00:25:23,920 not the law of the state. 470 00:25:24,939 –> 00:25:27,339 He did it in the house of the high priest 471 00:25:27,339 –> 00:25:29,900 and when he was accused under the law of God 472 00:25:29,900 –> 00:25:32,579 he was accused of blasphemy 473 00:25:32,579 –> 00:25:36,739 which means putting yourself in the place of God. 474 00:25:36,739 –> 00:25:38,500 Now here’s the point. 475 00:25:40,859 –> 00:25:45,219 We will all stand before the judgment seat of Christ 476 00:25:47,540 –> 00:25:50,780 and when we do what would be the first accusation against us 477 00:25:51,859 –> 00:25:53,420 what is the first commandment? 478 00:25:54,900 –> 00:25:58,439 You shall have no other gods before me. 479 00:25:59,319 –> 00:26:04,319 The first accusation that all of us would face 480 00:26:06,619 –> 00:26:09,640 before the throne of God on the judgment day 481 00:26:09,640 –> 00:26:13,479 is surely this, you have put yourself 482 00:26:13,479 –> 00:26:15,640 in the place of God. 483 00:26:16,839 –> 00:26:19,160 You’ve made a god of your own desires, 484 00:26:20,880 –> 00:26:23,439 you’ve made a god of your own self. 485 00:26:23,479 –> 00:26:24,300 Keep yourself. 486 00:26:26,599 –> 00:26:29,140 The very first commandment of the Almighty, 487 00:26:29,140 –> 00:26:33,959 your Creator, is you shall have no other god before me. 488 00:26:33,959 –> 00:26:36,900 That’s the first commandment and there isn’t a single 489 00:26:36,900 –> 00:26:39,439 one of us in the church today who can say 490 00:26:39,439 –> 00:26:42,579 that we’ve kept it, not a single one. 491 00:26:44,500 –> 00:26:47,439 So are you beginning to see the significance of this? 492 00:26:47,439 –> 00:26:50,540 When Jesus stood trial, he stood in our place 493 00:26:50,540 –> 00:26:52,400 under the law. 494 00:26:52,400 –> 00:26:56,060 When Jesus stood trial under the law, 495 00:26:56,060 –> 00:26:58,119 the charge that was laid against him 496 00:26:58,119 –> 00:27:00,280 was the very first charge that is against us 497 00:27:00,280 –> 00:27:03,060 in a sense the charge that encapsulates all the others. 498 00:27:03,060 –> 00:27:05,800 We haven’t kept the first commandment. 499 00:27:05,800 –> 00:27:08,660 It’s why, by definition, we haven’t kept the rest either. 500 00:27:10,319 –> 00:27:13,140 And surely that is the significance of what we have 501 00:27:13,140 –> 00:27:17,560 here in verse 63 where we read these remarkable words. 502 00:27:17,560 –> 00:27:20,280 Many accusations are being brought before Jesus. 503 00:27:20,280 –> 00:27:25,280 Picture the scene, but Jesus remained silent. 504 00:27:28,859 –> 00:27:32,520 Not only is that a fulfillment of prophecy. 505 00:27:33,719 –> 00:27:36,979 A lamb before its shearers, silent, Isaiah says. 506 00:27:38,119 –> 00:27:41,479 But it is a representation 507 00:27:41,479 –> 00:27:44,959 of Jesus’ standing in the place of sinners. 508 00:27:47,459 –> 00:27:48,640 The book of Romans tells us this, 509 00:27:48,640 –> 00:27:50,079 we know that whatever the law says, 510 00:27:50,300 –> 00:27:51,959 it speaks to those that are under the law 511 00:27:51,959 –> 00:27:55,319 so that every mouth will be stopped. 512 00:27:57,160 –> 00:27:58,560 You know what that’s saying? 513 00:27:59,760 –> 00:28:02,160 When sinners stand before 514 00:28:04,040 –> 00:28:06,400 the judgment seat of Jesus Christ, 515 00:28:06,400 –> 00:28:08,859 what is there to say, that’s the point. 516 00:28:11,199 –> 00:28:12,140 James Phillips says, 517 00:28:12,140 –> 00:28:15,660 Christ assumed the guilt of the world’s sin 518 00:28:15,660 –> 00:28:18,000 and guilt stops a man’s mouth. 519 00:28:18,000 –> 00:28:19,760 He has nothing to say 520 00:28:19,900 –> 00:28:21,900 because there is nothing to say 521 00:28:21,900 –> 00:28:23,959 for guilty man before a holy God. 522 00:28:25,959 –> 00:28:29,780 We will all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. 523 00:28:29,780 –> 00:28:34,079 Picture yourself standing before the Almighty, 524 00:28:34,079 –> 00:28:36,479 charged with blasphemy. 525 00:28:36,479 –> 00:28:38,500 You’ve been your own God. 526 00:28:38,500 –> 00:28:42,239 You’ve lived life as if you were the captain of your soul. 527 00:28:42,239 –> 00:28:45,439 As if you were the Lord of your own life. 528 00:28:47,560 –> 00:28:48,920 And of course we may imagine 529 00:28:48,979 –> 00:28:51,520 that we will have plenty to say when we stand before God, 530 00:28:51,520 –> 00:28:53,420 but that’s because we know so little about Him 531 00:28:53,420 –> 00:28:54,979 and we’ve never seen His glory. 532 00:28:56,800 –> 00:28:59,819 Isaiah was one of the godliest people of his generation 533 00:28:59,819 –> 00:29:02,800 and when he saw even a vision of the glory of God, 534 00:29:02,800 –> 00:29:05,020 not the reality of it, just a vision of it, 535 00:29:05,020 –> 00:29:06,699 he said, I’m ruined. 536 00:29:09,119 –> 00:29:12,560 And the pompous of the earth will be silent 537 00:29:14,959 –> 00:29:18,160 before the throne of God where the first accusation is 538 00:29:18,160 –> 00:29:19,599 you have become your own God. 539 00:29:19,599 –> 00:29:21,680 You’ve done that thing that Satan tempted 540 00:29:21,680 –> 00:29:22,880 way back in the garden. 541 00:29:22,880 –> 00:29:24,300 You shall be as God. 542 00:29:26,520 –> 00:29:30,260 Christ was silent because He really did stand 543 00:29:30,260 –> 00:29:34,280 under the condemnation of the law for us. 544 00:29:35,939 –> 00:29:39,000 That takes me to the last thing, which is the outcome. 545 00:29:39,880 –> 00:29:42,640 When Jesus was tried, He stood in our place, 546 00:29:42,640 –> 00:29:46,160 when Jesus was accused, He stood in our place 547 00:29:46,199 –> 00:29:49,579 and at the outcome, when Jesus was condemned, 548 00:29:49,579 –> 00:29:52,020 He stood in our place. 549 00:29:52,020 –> 00:29:53,000 Verse 66. 550 00:29:53,000 –> 00:29:54,300 What is your judgment? 551 00:29:54,300 –> 00:29:59,099 And they answered, He deserves death. 552 00:30:01,640 –> 0030:04,180 My friends, here is why we celebrate Easter. 553 00:30:04,939 –> 00:30:08,300 Here is why all that Jesus endured, including the trial 554 00:30:08,300 –> 00:30:11,239 and then all that followed as a result of it on the cross, 555 00:30:11,239 –> 00:30:14,660 here is why it is such good news for us. 556 00:30:15,479 –> 00:30:20,420 The holy Son of God stood in the place of sinners 557 00:30:20,420 –> 00:30:24,439 under the law of God and endured its condemnation. 558 00:30:25,479 –> 00:30:30,479 All that God could ever charge against His people 559 00:30:30,479 –> 00:30:32,819 was charged against Jesus. 560 00:30:32,819 –> 00:30:35,520 He took our place under the law 561 00:30:35,520 –> 00:30:39,520 and He bore the penalty offered the law for our sins. 562 00:30:39,520 –> 00:30:41,839 That’s why He died on the cross, 563 00:30:42,199 –> 00:30:45,280 that’s what this trial is all about. 564 00:30:46,979 –> 00:30:50,939 For anyone who works best with visual imagery, 565 00:30:50,939 –> 00:30:53,479 the Old Testament is so marvelous. 566 00:30:53,479 –> 00:30:56,160 The Old Testament tells us about the day of atonement 567 00:30:56,160 –> 00:30:58,959 when a live goat, 568 00:30:58,959 –> 00:31:00,180 try to picture this now, 569 00:31:00,180 –> 00:31:05,160 a live goat was led by a rope to the high priest 570 00:31:08,079 –> 00:31:10,739 and when that happened the high priest 571 00:31:10,959 –> 00:31:14,739 would lay his hands on the head of the live goat 572 00:31:14,739 –> 00:31:19,760 and would confess the sins of God’s people 573 00:31:19,900 –> 00:31:22,500 over this goat. 574 00:31:22,500 –> 00:31:23,479 Let me read the Scripture. 575 00:31:23,479 –> 00:31:26,579 Aaron, that’s the high priest shall lay both hands 576 00:31:26,579 –> 00:31:29,380 on the head of the live goat 577 00:31:29,380 –> 00:31:31,780 and confess over it all the iniquities 578 00:31:31,780 –> 00:31:32,979 of the people of Israel. 579 00:31:34,140 –> 00:31:36,739 And he shall put them that is the iniquities 580 00:31:36,739 –> 00:31:39,140 on the head of the goat 581 00:31:39,219 –> 00:31:41,060 and shall send it away into the wilderness 582 00:31:41,060 –> 00:31:42,719 and the goat shall bear 583 00:31:42,719 –> 00:31:46,719 all their iniquities on itself. 584 00:31:48,420 –> 00:31:52,339 The goat led by a rope 585 00:31:53,540 –> 00:31:55,099 to the high priest 586 00:31:56,680 –> 00:32:00,640 and the condemnation laid on the goat. 587 00:32:00,640 –> 00:32:02,560 It was called The scapegoat. 588 00:32:02,760 –> 00:32:06,099 The scapegoat. 589 00:32:06,099 –> 00:32:07,380 Here’s Jesus 590 00:32:08,859 –> 00:32:13,699 and He’s led, bound by the rope 591 00:32:13,699 –> 00:32:16,079 before the high priest 592 00:32:18,099 –> 00:32:23,040 and He becomes the scapegoat. 593 00:32:24,500 –> 00:32:27,660 The bearer of the condemnation 594 00:32:29,180 –> 00:32:32,479 for all who turn to Him. 595 00:32:33,459 –> 00:32:37,459 In faith and in repentance. 596 00:32:38,900 –> 00:32:43,900 Friends, the reason why those who are in Christ 597 00:32:44,599 –> 00:32:49,439 have peace with God and one day will enter into heaven 598 00:32:49,439 –> 00:32:53,060 is not that there is nothing that God could charge 599 00:32:53,060 –> 00:32:54,160 against us. 600 00:32:56,239 –> 00:32:58,780 The reason that those who look to Jesus 601 00:32:58,780 –> 00:33:02,160 have peace with God and one day will enter into heaven 602 00:33:02,199 –> 00:33:05,099 is that everything that could ever have been charged 603 00:33:05,099 –> 00:33:08,920 against us was charged by God to him. 604 00:33:08,920 –> 00:33:12,239 And He took the place in our judgment 605 00:33:12,239 –> 00:33:14,199 under the law of God and therefore 606 00:33:14,199 –> 00:33:16,160 took our condemnation that followed 607 00:33:16,160 –> 00:33:20,119 for all the charges that could ever be leveled against us, 608 00:33:20,119 –> 00:33:24,359 that is why in the light of the cross, 609 00:33:24,359 –> 00:33:29,359 the justice of God is the greatest assurance 610 00:33:30,280 –> 00:33:31,979 of our pardon, 611 00:33:32,719 –> 00:33:37,300 see if your sin has been charged against Jesus, 612 00:33:38,640 –> 00:33:42,760 then a just God will and can never 613 00:33:42,760 –> 00:33:46,160 charge that again against you. 614 00:33:46,160 –> 00:33:49,640 This is why John says in a very striking word, 615 00:33:49,640 –> 00:33:51,619 if we confess our sins, 616 00:33:51,619 –> 00:33:56,619 he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins. 617 00:33:57,260 –> 00:34:02,260 Our since to cancel all the accusations against us, 618 00:34:02,939 –> 00:34:05,739 he does it justly, why? 619 00:34:05,739 –> 00:34:08,459 Because they’re under the very court 620 00:34:08,459 –> 00:34:11,780 in which the law of God, was the judge. 621 00:34:11,780 –> 00:34:15,020 He stood under the condemnation. 622 00:34:15,020 –> 00:34:19,260 He took the charges that were against us. 623 00:34:19,260 –> 00:34:22,699 He substituted for us in his death. 624 00:34:22,699 –> 00:34:25,540 He substituted for us in the judgment 625 00:34:25,540 –> 00:34:27,780 that brought the condemnation 626 00:34:27,780 –> 00:34:30,979 of death brothers and sisters. 627 00:34:32,060 –> 00:34:36,280 Jesus stood under the condemnation 628 00:34:37,139 –> 00:34:39,040 of the law of God for us. 629 00:34:40,179 –> 00:34:42,739 He was declared guilty, 630 00:34:44,159 –> 00:34:46,820 so that we might be declared righteous. 631 00:34:48,219 –> 00:34:51,000 The righteous one was condemned, 632 00:34:52,000 –> 00:34:55,520 so that we whose sins are many would be justified. 633 00:34:57,239 –> 00:35:02,239 And He was silent before the law of God 634 00:35:03,379 –> 00:35:06,879 so that when the day of judgment comes for us 635 00:35:06,879 –> 00:35:09,520 we will all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. 636 00:35:09,520 –> 00:35:14,300 He was silent before the law of God 637 00:35:14,300 –> 00:35:17,600 so that when the day of judgment comes 638 00:35:17,600 –> 00:35:20,919 you will have something to say. 639 00:35:21,739 –> 00:35:25,020 And what you will be able to say is something like this. 640 00:35:25,020 –> 00:35:28,399 Jesus paid it all. 641 00:35:29,500 –> 00:35:32,719 All to him I owe. 642 00:35:33,679 –> 00:35:37,159 Sin had left a crimson stain 643 00:35:38,639 –> 00:35:42,459 but he washed it white as snow. 644 00:35:43,439 –> 00:35:46,719 Hallelujah, what a Savior. 645 00:35:46,719 –> 00:35:49,580 Father, as we embark on this week of Easter 646 00:35:49,580 –> 00:35:52,379 we do indeed lift our hearts and voices 647 00:35:52,379 –> 00:35:55,780 to praise your name because we have some sense 648 00:35:55,780 –> 00:35:58,580 of the wonder of what you have done for us 649 00:35:58,580 –> 00:36:01,840 in our Lord Jesus Christ. 650 00:36:01,840 –> 00:36:05,959 And we thank you for all that is contained 651 00:36:05,959 –> 00:36:08,020 in this story that is before us today. 652 00:36:08,020 –> 00:36:10,939 Let us, we pray, live in the good 653 00:36:10,939 –> 00:36:15,219 and the peace and the joy of all that Christ endured 654 00:36:15,219 –> 00:36:17,820 and all that he accomplished. 655 00:36:17,820 –> 00:36:21,320 In these things we ask in the Savior’s name, Amen.

Details

Sermon Series
Date
Primary Audience

Monthly Offer

Get your free copy of ‘The Advent of Glory’ by R. C. Sproul when you set up a monthly gift of at least £5, or a one-off gift of at least £50…

Donate

Colin Smith

Trustee / Founder and Teaching Pastor

Colin Smith is the Senior Pastor of The Orchard Evangelical Free Church in the northwest suburbs of Chicago. He has authored a number of books, including Heaven, How I Got Here and Heaven, So Near – So Far. Colin is the Founder and Teaching Pastor for Open the Bible. Follow him on X formerly Twitter.

Linked resources

No linked resources found.

Search

Search

Header Submit Search