Sermon: Pax Romana (Mark 15:1-15)

Pax Romana
Sunday, August 18^th, 2024
Christ Covenant Church – Centralia, WA

Mark 15:1–15

¹And straightway in the morning the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council, and bound Jesus, and carried him away, and delivered him to Pilate.

²And Pilate asked him, Art thou the King of the Jews? And he answering said unto him, Thou sayest it.

³And the chief priests accused him of many things: but he answered nothing.

⁴And Pilate asked him again, saying, Answerest thou nothing? behold how many things they witness against thee.

⁵But Jesus yet answered nothing; so that Pilate marvelled.

⁶Now at that feast he released unto them one prisoner, whomsoever they desired.

⁷And there was one named Barabbas, which lay bound with them that had made insurrection with him, who had committed murder in the insurrection.

⁸And the multitude crying aloud began to desire him to do as he had ever done unto them.

⁹But Pilate answered them, saying, Will ye that I release unto you the King of the Jews?

¹⁰For he knew that the chief priests had delivered him for envy.

¹¹But the chief priests moved the people, that he should rather release Barabbas unto them.

¹²And Pilate answered and said again unto them, What will ye then that I shall do unto him whom ye call the King of the Jews?

¹³And they cried out again, Crucify him.

¹⁴Then Pilate said unto them, Why, what evil hath he done? And they cried out the more exceedingly, Crucify him.

¹⁵And so Pilate, willing to content the people, released Barabbas unto them, and delivered Jesus, when he had scourged him, to be crucified.

Prayer

O Father we desire to know more than anything Christ and him crucified. For here in this text, as we behold his passion, and his silence, and his scourging, we uncover a fountain of salvation that wells up in us to eternal life. Grant us your spirit in full, for we ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Introduction

In John 14:27, just a few hours before Jesus was arrested, he told to his disciples the following: “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

• According to Jesus there are two kinds of peace. There is 1) the peace that comes from God which gives quiet to the heart, and then there is 2) the peace that the world gives which leaves the heart restless and afraid.
• Here in our text we see these two kinds of peace on display.
  • In Jesus we behold the very peace of God which surpasses understanding. It makes Pilate to marvel.
  • And then in everyone else we see angst and fear and a striving for peace, but one that is willing to literally sacrifice God in order to get it.
• Now at present, our world, and our nation, is hardly at peace. And most people are willing to admit that. The American Empire is as divided now as it has ever been. And this is because you cannot simultaneously worship different gods and be a unified people. What is true of individuals is true of nations, no man can serve to masters.
• And so as we study this passage, and consider the different groups involved (the Jews, Pilate, Barabbas, etc.) I want you to think about how the same motivations that put Christ on the Cross, are at work in various groups today. Motivations that are at work even in your own heart if you live according to the flesh: envy, greed, fear, vainglory, anger, murder, etc.
  • All these spirits and more can be found in this scene. And then, in the middle of that storm of sin, in the eye of the hurricane as it were, is Jesus. Perfect. Tranquil. Serene. Peaceful.
  • And therefore, when Jesus says, “My peace I give to you; not as the world gives,” this is what he is referring to. You can have peace with God, and peace within your own soul, even when there is open hostility everywhere else. That is the peace that Jesus possesses and offers to all who will follow him.

Context

Remember the context of our passage.

• Last week we saw that Jesus was first arrested and tried in the middle of the night by the highest Jewish authorities (the Sanhedrin). And while the verdict was pre-determined (Jesus must die), the Jews needed to find a charge that would stand up before Pontius Pilate.
  • This was because Rome alone possessed the death penalty (John 18:31), and so although the Jews considered Jesus’ crime to be blasphemy, they must translate this religious charge into one that Rome will accept as being worthy of death: treason or sedition.
  • And so we see here at the beginning of Mark 15, that thecouncil delivers Jesus to Pilate with the charge that he is “King of the Jews.”
    • The great irony here of course is that unlike all their false witnesses against him, this charge is true. But it is a true charge that they personally reject.
  • Jesus confessed this truth and more when the high priest asked him, “Are You the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” and Jesus said, “I am. And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.”
  • So starting in verses 1-2, let us begin our exposition.

Verses 1-2

¹And straightway in the morning the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council, and bound Jesus, and carried him away, and delivered him to Pilate.

²And Pilate asked him, Art thou the King of the Jews? And he answering said unto him, Thou sayest it.

• We have here fulfilled the words of Micah 2:1-2 which says, “Woe to those who devise iniquity, And work out evil on their beds! At morning light they practice it, Because it is in the power of their hand. They covet fields and take them by violence, Also houses, and seize them. So they oppress a man and his house, A man and his inheritance.”
  • The Jewish authorities are greedy to plunder the man Jesus and his rightful inheritance (the world), and so they devise iniquity, they plot evil on their beds, and then straightway in the morning they consult to put Christ to death.
• It was customary for Pilate to hear and try cases as soon as the morning light had dawned, and Mark will tell us a few verses later that Christ was crucified at the “the third hour,” which is what we would call (roughly) 9am in the morning.
  • So everything that happens between now and the crucifixion takes place between about 6am and 9am, sunrise and the third hour.
• We see in verse 2 that Mark jumps straight into Pilate’s interrogation, “Art thou the King of the Jews?”
  • But we read in Luke’s account that just before this, “they began to accuse him, saying, We found this fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar, saying that he himself is Christ a King.”
  • So mingled with the true charge that Jesus is “King of the Jews” are still other false charges such as “forbidding to give tribute to Caesar.” Even here the Jews continue to twist the words of God and misrepresent his teaching.
• Jesus’ response to Pilate is curious in that he says, “You have said so.”
  • Meaning, “I am the King of the Jews but not in the way that you or the Jews think.”
  • John’s account gives us the fuller conversation where Jesus says, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here.”
  • So yes, Jesus is King, and He is king of the Jews and the Romans and everyone else. But the source of his kingdom’s power is from above.
    • And so even Pilate’s lawful authority is only his insofar as God has ordained and permitted him to have it. And therefore, Pilate has it backwards. It is not Pilate who has authority over Jesus, but Jesus who has authority over Pilate.
    • As Jesus tells him in John 19:11, “You could have no power at all against Me unless it had been given you from above.”
• Continuing in verses 3-5, we see Jesus again silent before his accusers.

Verses 3-5

³And the chief priests accused him of many things: but he answered nothing.

⁴And Pilate asked him again, saying, Answerest thou nothing? behold how many things they witness against thee.

⁵But Jesus yet answered nothing; so that Pilate marvelled.

• The principle of wisdom that Jesus is employing here is that we speak truth to the ignorant but are silent to the obstinate.
  • If someone is genuine in their desire to know and they ask, we answer.
  • But if someone is asking and seeking only to refute us or argue with us, we can simply refuse to answer (we walk away).
  • For three years Jesus had taught openly so that the Jews might have their ignorance cured, and indeed many of them had their eyes opened and followed Jesus.
    • But this group of chief priests, scribes, and elders, rejected the light. In the words of Romans 1:21-22, “although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools…”
    • So this is the Sanhedrin, obstinate in their accusations, whereas Pilate is ignorant and willing to hear Jesus out.
• In verses 6-11, Mark then describes a custom that Pilate attempts to use to pacify the crowd, but instead it backfires.

Verses 6-11

⁶Now at that feast he released unto them one prisoner, whomsoever they desired.

⁷And there was one named Barabbas, which lay bound with them that had made insurrection with him, who had committed murder in the insurrection.

⁸And the multitude crying aloud began to desire him to do as he had ever done unto them.

⁹But Pilate answered them, saying, Will ye that I release unto you the King of the Jews?

¹⁰For he knew that the chief priests had delivered him for envy.

¹¹But the chief priests moved the people, that he should rather release Barabbas unto them.

• So recall that it is now the first day of the Passover feast, the feast of Unleavened Bread. And at Passover the Jews remembered how God had miraculously delivered them from oppression and tyranny in Egypt.
  • Now in the Jewish mind of the 1^st century, who is Egypt? Rome. Who is Pharoah? Caesar.
  • And what we find in the history books (both biblical and secular) is that the Passover festival was an ideal occasion for Jewish revolts.
    • This was the time when Jerusalem was flooded with pilgrims, religious fervor was at its peak, and the whole nation was remembering how God had killed the firstborn sons of Egypt and delivered Israel as His firstborn son.
    • And in that atmosphere, it would be very easy to stir up insurrection against Rome and try to reclaim Jewish independence.
    • Much of their expectation for the Messiah was that He would be this kind of revolutionary figure who would restore their former glory.
  • And so by the time of Jesus it had become customary not only for Pilate to be physically present in Jerusalem for the feast, with a great military presence to keep an eye on things. But to also “throw them a bone” by releasing one prisoner to them.
  • You can imagine how this custom signifies different elements of both the Passover and the Day of Atonement rituals.
    • As Passover, a firstborn dies, and a firstborn goes free.
    • On the day of Atonement, one goat dies, and the other is released.
    • The high priest knew it was expedient that one man die for the nation. And Pilate knows he can release one prisoner and that scapegoat will buy him some peace until the next festival.
  • And so this debate between the Jews and Pilate is ultimately over which goat dies and which goat gets released.
    • There are already three men in custody awaiting crucifixion: Barabbas and what are probably his two associates, that we call “thieves.”
      • In Greek the word is λῃστής and in John 18:40 this same word λῃστής is used of Barabbas, “Now Barabbas was a robber (λῃστής).”
    • So Pilate already has some actual rebels to crucify, and because Barabbas is manifestly a murderous rebel, and Jesus is manifestly innocent, he forces the Jews to own the decision of who dies and who goes free. Pilate tries to abdicate, and the Jews are happy to take responsibility for Jesus’ death.
      • In Matthew’s account, Pilate washes his hands and says, “I am innocent of the blood of this just person. You see to it.” And then it says, “And all the people answered and said, ‘His blood be on us and on our children.’”
      • In John’s account, the chief priests shout, “We have no king but Caesar.”
      • Those are shouts of actual blasphemy and actual idolatry, andthey are coming from the mouths of the Jews, who are supposed to be a light to the gentiles but have become even darker than they.
  • So despite Pilate’s knowledge that Jesus is innocent and the Jews are acting from envy, He does not have the backbone to do what is just and right in the eyes of God. Pilate opts for the false and surface peace of the world, instead of suffering the consequences of a Jewish riot on his watch.
    • So while the Jews are motivated by envy, Pilate is motivated by fear, by the optics, and the pressure of Pax Romana. Peace by force or whatever is politically expedient.
      • What was the result of this policy? The greatest injustice in human history. The only perfectly innocent man to ever walk the earth was crucified at his command. As we say in the Nicene Creed every Lord’s Day, “he suffered under Pontius Pilate.”
      • One bad decision can have many unintended consequences.
• So the Jews, having chosen Barabbas instead of Christ, Pilate then asks what the sentence ought to be for Jesus. What will make them content?

Verses 12-15

¹²And Pilate answered and said again unto them, What will ye then that I shall do unto him whom ye call the King of the Jews?

¹³And they cried out again, Crucify him.

¹⁴Then Pilate said unto them, Why, what evil hath he done? And they cried out the more exceedingly, Crucify him.

¹⁵And so Pilate, willing to content the people, released Barabbas unto them, and delivered Jesus, when he had scourged him, to be crucified.

• Notice that Pilate is now learning firsthand why Jesus was silent. Because there is no dialog, there is no negotiating with those intent on murder.
  • Pilate tries to reason with them. He appeals to Jesus’ innocence.
    • In Luke’s account we learn that Pilate even sent Jesus to Herod for examination, and Herod sent Jesus back finding nothing of guilt in him.
  • But for all this evidence in favor of acquitting and releasing Jesus, the mob prevails.
  • And why? Because as it says in verse 15, “And so Pilate willing to content the people,” had Jesus scourged and crucified.
    • If the governing principle for your decision making is how can I pacify the mob (this very loud person or vocal minority), you got another thing coming, and you certainly don’t belong in leadership. And yet this is how much of American politics operates.
      • Emotional bribes, actual bribes, and organized temper tantrums (a.k.a. “mostly peaceful protests”) until people get what they want.
      • This can happen on the macro level with nations and governments and groups of people. But it also happens every day at the personal level. Between husbands and wives, parents and children, bosses and employees, etc.
    • And this is why the first quality that God desires for a judge or ruler is that he “fears God,” and then also that he be “a man of truth, and [one who] hates covetousness” (Ex. 18:21).
    • David says likewise in 2 Samuel 23:3, “He that ruleth over men must be just, Ruling in the fear of God.”
    • Pilate lacked the fear of God. Pilate lacked the knowledge of the truth. And although he could see the envy of the Jews, he has not the backbone to uphold justice. And therefore Jesus is handed over to be scourged.
• A Roman scourging, unlike a Jewish disciplinary whipping, did not have a 40-lash limit. And while Mosaic law does not permit torture or crucifixion, the Romans had no problem with such cruel and unusual punishments, especially for rebels of the state. This was how Pax Romana was enforced.
  • Scourging was usually done with a leather cord that had pieces of bone or lead or glass on the ends and that cut into and tore off the flesh. And so it was not uncommon to die from the scourging.
  • The Jewish historian Josephus records one such scourging where a man was whipped until you could see his bones. He was essentially flayed alive.
  • And so however severe this scourging of Jesus may have been, he survived, but Isaiah 52:14 says he was marred beyond recognition, more than any man.
    • This is likely why Simon of Cyrene was forced to carry the cross for Jesus. Because the scourging made carrying that crossbar physically impossible.
• Now as much as that description of Christ being scourged can turn our stomach and make us want to turn away our face from his pain, it is in the very looking upon Jesus in agony here and upon the cross, that we find an infinite source of strength.

Conclusion

• How do you endure your trials? You look at the trials of Christ.
• How do you endure slander and misrepresentation, and the twisting of your words? You look at the holy silence of Jesus.
• How do you not cave and compromise like Pilate did? You look at the steadfastness of Jesus the immovable rock.
• How do you endure pain unto death (your own future passion narrative)? You think upon the scourging of Jesus’ flesh as it was torn off his back, and you believe Him when he says, “I did that for you. I did that because I love you and I want to give you my peace.”
  • The only way peace can be had between God and sinners, is for you to become a sinner no longer. You must become a saint. And that is what the death of Jesus Christ offers you. It gives you way to die to sin and rise again to newness of life.
  • It says in Romans 4:25, “[Jesus] was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification. Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
    • Faith is that looking upon Jesus and locking eyes with him. And when you are moved by His love to love Him in return, you receive what Philippians 4:7 calls, “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, [which] will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
    • And so while the Jews were moved by envy, and Pilate by fear and ambition, Jesus is only and ever moved by love. Because love is God’s very nature. Love is God’s very essence. And therefore, whosoever is united to Love through love in the savior, has the promise of peace in this life, and perfect and everlasting peace in the next.
• May God give you this peace that comes from His love. In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen.