Jesus is now brought before Pilate.
The Pharisees and Pilate do not care about the truth
In Jesus’ trials one thing becomes increasingly clear. The Pharisees do not care what is true and neither does Pilate. They are both far more concerned with maintaining power and position than they are with what is true. Throughout Jesus’ trials no one even tries to find out the truth. The Pharisees refuse to even listen to Jesus, and Pilate does not even care what the truth is.
Jesus is a King
Jesus emphatically declares that He is a King. He is a Ruler, and His people are subject to His decrees. The idea that you can be saved without making Jesus Lord of your life is complete nonsense. Jesus is King; you are either His subject or a rebel.
The Kingdom of God is not of this world
Jesus’ Kingdom does not look like anything you will see in this world. He is not concerned with power, position, or appearance. He stands in stark contrast to everything we see in this world. He is the antithesis of political parties, the business world, and your average person. His Kingdom is like nothing we have ever seen in this world.
The Kingdom of God is not advanced through violence
The Kingdom of God is advanced by truth not coercion, power, or dominance. Jesus’ followers do not fight with earthly weapons. We do not wage Jihad or Crusades. Our enemy is not people, it is the lies that they have believed. As such we fight with the Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. No earthly weapon can defeat lies; only the truth can win the day.
What is Truth?
Pilate echoes a common refrain even today. “What is truth?” We live in such a world of lies and deception that even what we call “telling it like it is” is merely “telling it like we want it to be.” We hide who we are, our sins, and our failures. We are so used to this deception that we begin to believe it ourselves. Our whole society has come to a place where we no longer even know the definition of truth. This is evident in every human being’s hypocrisy, lies, and deception.
The Kingdom of God is centered around Truth
To be a Christian is to be concerned with only one thing: the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Our entire faith is built upon the most radical concept the world has ever seen: acceptance before God by grace. As such we openly and freely confess the truth. We are sinners; Jesus is our Savior. We are now free from having to appear to be something that we are not. Christianity is centered around Truth. Who is Truth? Jesus Christ. Where is Truth found? In the Word of God.
Application
Will you freely confess the truth, that you are a sinner and Jesus Christ is your Savior? Will you quit pretending to be something that you are not?
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