A Friend of Caesar
by the Rev. AJ Ochart
Sermon Notes
This week, we continue following Jesus as the religious authorities move up the escalation ladder. From almost the beginning of this gospel, when Jesus cleansed (exercised) the Temple, he has been on their naughty list, but until now they have been trying to disrupt his ministry. Now, they are seeking to destroy him completely.
We heard last week that the religious authorities turned him over to Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of the province of Judea. From the beginning he has been hesitant to condemn Jesus. According to the text, he has yet to receive a charge against Jesus, outside of some vague politicking.
The fourth gospel paints Pilate in a relatively favorable light (much more so than the historian Josephus). This may be that the fourth gospel was written well into a post-diaspora Roman empire. The Jewish people no longer had a homeland, and had been scattered across the empire. The fledgling Christian community may have been seeking to distance themselves from the broader Jewish people (especially their leaders), and present Jesus as someone that Pilate had sympathies for.
In the narrative, however, whatever power Pilate thinks that he has, the situation has gotten out of his control. We will see what he is able to do with the power that he has.
Questions to Ponder
– Why do you think that Pilate had Jesus flogged if he thought that Jesus was innocent?
– How do the Jewish religious leaders encourage Pilate to do what they want?
– When have you found yourself powerless to stop something, was there anything that you could do?
