As the Jewish leaders are fretting over what to do about Jesus Caiaphas stands and tells them that Jesus must die. He tells them that Jesus must die for the nation and that His death will unite the people of God who are scattered all over the earth.
Beware of the man who knows everything
Caiaphas begins his speech by deriding the other Jews as knowing nothing; he is now going to enlighten them with his wisdom. We must beware of the person who knows everything; many times that man is the most blind of all. Unfortunately, the most blind person we know is usually ourselves. We must be very careful of our own certainty and wisdom. Many times we are completely blinded by our pride. We think that we know so much, when in reality we are blind.
Caiaphas was wrong
Caiaphas thought that if Jesus died that the people of God would be saved and that the people of God around the world would be unified. Caiaphas was wrong. Killing Jesus would not save the Jewish state; it would only ensure its demise. Killing Jesus would not unify those who were born Jewish. In fact, it further divided the Jews so that a Jew like Saul would travel the world seeking to imprison and kill other Jews who believed in Jesus.
Caiaphas was right
Jesus’ death would save the people of God; however, the people of God would be comprised of all those who were born again through faith in Christ. Jesus died for His people, not the Jews only but all who would believe in Him. Jesus did gather together and unite the people of God, a people composed of both Jew and Gentile from all over the earth. They are united by His death on the cross for their sins.
Beware of Spiritual Blindness
Perhaps the most scary thing of all is that Caiaphas was so blind that even when he was totally right he could not even see it. He essentially preached the Gospel to the Jews while hating the Gospel and Jesus. We must acknowledge how blind we are and how little we know. We must humble ourselves and cry out to God to open our eyes.
Application
Will you acknowledge your blindness and cry out to Jesus for sight?
0 Comments