Who Was Responsible for the Death of Jesus?
You’ve seen it play out on tv or in the movies. It’s a courtroom drama. There’s a tainted jury and there’s a corrupt judge. And what follows is a terrible miscarriage of justice.
It’s the same scene that we read about in the New Testament of the Bible, in Luke's Gospel, Chapters 22 and 23. Only it wasn’t a fictional drama. It was a real life tragedy.
Jesus had two trials. Jesus stood silent before his accusers. He seldom spoke when he was spoken to. His answers were either very quick and quiet and soft or he was completely quiet.
The final 20 hours of Jesus’ life, beginning on Thursday evening - after dusk, the sun had set, they gathered in the upper room in Jerusalem and Jesus shared a Passover meal with the disciples. A couple of hours later, he took the disciples, and they left the city to go down the Kidron Valley, up just a little bit on the Mount of Olives, right into the garden of Gethsemane where Jesus prayed. By midnight, Judas brought the temple guards and he betrayed Jesus.
The guards arrested him. They held an unofficial hearing at the home of Caiaphas. Caiaphas was a Jewish high priest. This unofficial hearing lasted for several hours while Jesus endured abuse and mockery by the temple guards.
As soon as it was daylight, the trial before the Sanhedrin began. Pilot Caiaphas invited the other 70 members of the Supreme Court there. They came to his house for the trial. They took Jesus over to Pilate, the Roman governor, for another trial and a hopeful sentencing to death. During that time, there was abuse and mockery. This time not by the Jewish temple guards, but by the Roman guards who probably were a lot more skilled in inflicting pain.
By 9 a.m., they'd hung him on the cross to die between two thieves. It was a six hour experience. By 3 p.m. Jesus was dead and was taken off the cross. By 4 p.m. he was buried. Why? Because they didn't want to have to deal with this on a Sabbath. Sabbath was 6 p.m. that Friday evening, so before dusk they had everything done.
Jesus faced two trials. The first is the Jewish trial that focused on religious charges. Jesus was
arrested and guards took him to the home of Caiaphas, who was the high priest. This was not a formal trial. The trial did not follow requirements of Jewish standard rules of law but rather more like a grand jury looking to find out whether he might possibly be accused. So Caiaphas peppers Jesus all night with questions. The guards in charge of Jesus mock him and beat him.
Jesus endured it all silently, like a lamb led to slaughter. He was silent. Now after this unofficial grand jury at dawn, Caiaphas calls the entire ruling council, the other 70 members of the Sanhedrin to his home. Because the Sanhedrin had jurisdiction over all Jewish matters, and this was a religious matter. And so that they now are prepared to try Jesus. They said, Tell us, are you the Messiah? They are looking for Jesus to say yes because if he says yes, then that's blasphemy.
The Sanhedrin was guided by the Book of Leviticus and the Book of Deuteronomy in the Old Testament. The Jewish law and the Book of Leviticus says that if anybody says that they are God, that is considered blasphemy. That was a crime worthy of the penalty of death. The problem is the Sanhedrin could only recommend the death sentence but they couldn't carry out the death sentence, and for that they needed the Roman governor and that brings Jesus to the second trial.
The Roman trial focused on civil charges because the Jews could not themselves crucify Jesus. They had to have someone else do it for them. The governor of Judea, the Roman governor, brought Jesus out to them again. Then Pilate sat down on the judgment seat. Then the entire council took Jesus to Pilate, that's the Sanhedrin, took him over to the Roman governor and they began to state their case.
This man has been leading our people astray by telling them not to pay their taxes to the Roman government and by claiming he is the Messiah, a king. Now the Sanhedrin know that Paola could care less about blasphemy as a charge.
So Pilate asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” Jesus replied, “You have said it.”
Pilate turned to the leading priests and to the crowd and said, “I find nothing wrong with this man!” Then a mighty roar rose from the crowd, and with one voice they shouted, “Kill him, and release Barabbas to us!” (Barabbas was in prison for taking part in an insurrection in Jerusalem against the government, and for murder.) Pilate argued with them, because he wanted to release Jesus. But they kept shouting, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”
But the mob shouted louder and louder, demanding that Jesus be crucified, and their voices prevailed. So Pilate sentenced Jesus to die as they demanded. As they had requested, he released Barabbas, the man in prison for insurrection and murder. But he turned Jesus over to
them to do as they wished.
Notice the ironies: Pilate was supposed to represent Roman law and order,
but he succumbed to mob rule—this was cowardice.
The Sanhedrin arrested a man with no formal charges, convened in the dead of night, and allowed the judge to be prosecutor—this was injustice.
The mob asked for a man of violence to be freed and a man of peace to be killed—this was anarchy.
So who sent Jesus to the Cross? Who was responsible for His death?
On the human level, we might say: Judas was responsible, the Sanhedrin was responsible, the mob was responsible, Pilate was responsible, the soldiers were responsible because they nailed Jesus to the cross. Some would even say the Jews were responsible but throughout history are not responsible for Jesus’ death. The only Jews who sent Jesus to the Cross are those who called for his crucifixion in 30 AD.
Our attitude and actions to Jews today should be guided by love, respect, and kindness. Remember: Jesus was a Jew. The first disciples were Jews. The first Christians were Jews,
and God’s covenant with Israel has not been overturned.
On the divine level, God was responsible. Look at John 3:16: “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son …” Jesus was responsible. Look at what Jesus says in John 10:11 and 18: “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep. No one can take my life from me. I sacrifice it voluntarily.” The Good Shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep. Jesus willingly gave himself for us.
On a personal level, we are responsible. If Jesus died for our sins, then that means that we helped, spiritually speaking, crucify him. If Jesus died for our sins, then we've all got blood on our hands. So what do we do with the fact that we have blood on our hands? What can wash us clean of that? The good news of the Gospel.
We were redeemed with the precious blood of Christ. Jesus was chosen before the creation of the world to deal with our sin. God always had it in his heart to forgive us. That is His disposition. This kind of sacrifice should evoke gratitude and love in us.
It’s the same scene that we read about in the New Testament of the Bible, in Luke's Gospel, Chapters 22 and 23. Only it wasn’t a fictional drama. It was a real life tragedy.
Jesus had two trials. Jesus stood silent before his accusers. He seldom spoke when he was spoken to. His answers were either very quick and quiet and soft or he was completely quiet.
The final 20 hours of Jesus’ life, beginning on Thursday evening - after dusk, the sun had set, they gathered in the upper room in Jerusalem and Jesus shared a Passover meal with the disciples. A couple of hours later, he took the disciples, and they left the city to go down the Kidron Valley, up just a little bit on the Mount of Olives, right into the garden of Gethsemane where Jesus prayed. By midnight, Judas brought the temple guards and he betrayed Jesus.
The guards arrested him. They held an unofficial hearing at the home of Caiaphas. Caiaphas was a Jewish high priest. This unofficial hearing lasted for several hours while Jesus endured abuse and mockery by the temple guards.
As soon as it was daylight, the trial before the Sanhedrin began. Pilot Caiaphas invited the other 70 members of the Supreme Court there. They came to his house for the trial. They took Jesus over to Pilate, the Roman governor, for another trial and a hopeful sentencing to death. During that time, there was abuse and mockery. This time not by the Jewish temple guards, but by the Roman guards who probably were a lot more skilled in inflicting pain.
By 9 a.m., they'd hung him on the cross to die between two thieves. It was a six hour experience. By 3 p.m. Jesus was dead and was taken off the cross. By 4 p.m. he was buried. Why? Because they didn't want to have to deal with this on a Sabbath. Sabbath was 6 p.m. that Friday evening, so before dusk they had everything done.
Jesus faced two trials. The first is the Jewish trial that focused on religious charges. Jesus was
arrested and guards took him to the home of Caiaphas, who was the high priest. This was not a formal trial. The trial did not follow requirements of Jewish standard rules of law but rather more like a grand jury looking to find out whether he might possibly be accused. So Caiaphas peppers Jesus all night with questions. The guards in charge of Jesus mock him and beat him.
Jesus endured it all silently, like a lamb led to slaughter. He was silent. Now after this unofficial grand jury at dawn, Caiaphas calls the entire ruling council, the other 70 members of the Sanhedrin to his home. Because the Sanhedrin had jurisdiction over all Jewish matters, and this was a religious matter. And so that they now are prepared to try Jesus. They said, Tell us, are you the Messiah? They are looking for Jesus to say yes because if he says yes, then that's blasphemy.
The Sanhedrin was guided by the Book of Leviticus and the Book of Deuteronomy in the Old Testament. The Jewish law and the Book of Leviticus says that if anybody says that they are God, that is considered blasphemy. That was a crime worthy of the penalty of death. The problem is the Sanhedrin could only recommend the death sentence but they couldn't carry out the death sentence, and for that they needed the Roman governor and that brings Jesus to the second trial.
The Roman trial focused on civil charges because the Jews could not themselves crucify Jesus. They had to have someone else do it for them. The governor of Judea, the Roman governor, brought Jesus out to them again. Then Pilate sat down on the judgment seat. Then the entire council took Jesus to Pilate, that's the Sanhedrin, took him over to the Roman governor and they began to state their case.
This man has been leading our people astray by telling them not to pay their taxes to the Roman government and by claiming he is the Messiah, a king. Now the Sanhedrin know that Paola could care less about blasphemy as a charge.
So Pilate asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” Jesus replied, “You have said it.”
Pilate turned to the leading priests and to the crowd and said, “I find nothing wrong with this man!” Then a mighty roar rose from the crowd, and with one voice they shouted, “Kill him, and release Barabbas to us!” (Barabbas was in prison for taking part in an insurrection in Jerusalem against the government, and for murder.) Pilate argued with them, because he wanted to release Jesus. But they kept shouting, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”
But the mob shouted louder and louder, demanding that Jesus be crucified, and their voices prevailed. So Pilate sentenced Jesus to die as they demanded. As they had requested, he released Barabbas, the man in prison for insurrection and murder. But he turned Jesus over to
them to do as they wished.
Notice the ironies: Pilate was supposed to represent Roman law and order,
but he succumbed to mob rule—this was cowardice.
The Sanhedrin arrested a man with no formal charges, convened in the dead of night, and allowed the judge to be prosecutor—this was injustice.
The mob asked for a man of violence to be freed and a man of peace to be killed—this was anarchy.
So who sent Jesus to the Cross? Who was responsible for His death?
On the human level, we might say: Judas was responsible, the Sanhedrin was responsible, the mob was responsible, Pilate was responsible, the soldiers were responsible because they nailed Jesus to the cross. Some would even say the Jews were responsible but throughout history are not responsible for Jesus’ death. The only Jews who sent Jesus to the Cross are those who called for his crucifixion in 30 AD.
Our attitude and actions to Jews today should be guided by love, respect, and kindness. Remember: Jesus was a Jew. The first disciples were Jews. The first Christians were Jews,
and God’s covenant with Israel has not been overturned.
On the divine level, God was responsible. Look at John 3:16: “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son …” Jesus was responsible. Look at what Jesus says in John 10:11 and 18: “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep. No one can take my life from me. I sacrifice it voluntarily.” The Good Shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep. Jesus willingly gave himself for us.
On a personal level, we are responsible. If Jesus died for our sins, then that means that we helped, spiritually speaking, crucify him. If Jesus died for our sins, then we've all got blood on our hands. So what do we do with the fact that we have blood on our hands? What can wash us clean of that? The good news of the Gospel.
We were redeemed with the precious blood of Christ. Jesus was chosen before the creation of the world to deal with our sin. God always had it in his heart to forgive us. That is His disposition. This kind of sacrifice should evoke gratitude and love in us.