Rescuing Barabbas
Public Meeting, Week 5, Semester 1, 2022
There is a theme running throughout the whole of Mark chapter 15. In each section there’s the question or statement about Jesus as the king of the Jews (v. 2, 9, 12, 18). That title keeps coming up, even the soldiers end up giving Jesus a crown of thorns and pretended to call him king. Instead of his own people, it was foreign soldiers. Instead of a royal crown, it was a crown of thorns. We have to ask then what kind of king is this?
The innocent King is condemned
Mark 15:1 And as soon as it was morning, the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council. And they bound Jesus and led him away and delivered him over to Pilate. 2 And Pilate asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” And he answered him, “You have said so.” 3 And the chief priests accused him of many things. 4 And Pilate again asked him, “Have you no answer to make? See how many charges they bring against you.” 5 But Jesus made no further answer, so that Pilate was amazed.
Our passage starts on the morning after. Remember last week we looked at what happened the night before. The priests wanted to kill Jesus so they arrested him in secret and held a sham trial to condemn Jesus. But they can’t kill him there and then because they lived under Roman law and only the Roman government can execute people. And that’s where we pick it up – as soon as it was morning, they brought Jesus to Pilate, the Roman governor at that time, presumably to accuse Jesus of treason, since the Romans would not have cared about blasphemy. We see that in v.2 when Pilate asked Jesus, are you the King of the Jews. And Jesus response, again like last week, is difficult to understand at first.
2 And Pilate asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” And he answered him, “You have said so.”
Why can’t Jesus give a straight answer? The best I can come up with is because there isn’t a straight answer. Jesus is and isn’t the King of the Jews. And notice verse 5, Jesus made no further answer. He answered just enough to move the process along and ignores all the other accusations. The reason is because Jesus is not just the king of the Jews. He is the king of Pilate and the Romans too. He is so much more than what they accuse him of.
It’s crazy because it’s like someone being charged with murdering one person and the judge asks him did you do it and he says just this one. What would you be thinking? There’s more? All the while everyone is focused on the one thing when actually there’s so much more. Jesus is more than what they accuse him of – if only they knew.
Jesus’ silence guarantees His sentence
I wouldn’t be surprised if Pilate got a sense that there’s more to Jesus. He was amazed by Jesus, how unafraid and unaffected he is by all the accusations. Because think about this, when you’re charged with a crime you have 1 of 2 options right: plead guilty or not guilty. If you claim your innocence and the judge sides with you, you go free. If you claim guilty but the judge doesn’t side with you, you might still go free. He won’t let you take the rap for someone else if he knows you’re innocent. Pilate knew Jesus was innocent. Whether Jesus says yes or no to Pilate, there’s a chance Pilate will let him go. We can’t know whether Pilate will do the right thing, because Jesus did just about the only thing that will guarantee his sentence. He stays silent. This is super important. He stayed silent.
The more I think about this, the more I’m inclined to see Jesus’ silence not as a passive thing. Like he’s choosing not to speak up. He’s not a passenger. The silence is an intentional and purposeful choice. It’s what guarantees he will die. It’s how he accomplishes his goal.
The way Jesus confronts the evil that’s in front of him is not by fighting back fire with fire. Even though he is innocent, he gives up his rights. He doesn’t insist on it. God overcomes evil, not by force, but by a self-sacrificing, other person focussed love.
This is completely opposite to how all of us naturally operate. Especially in 2022 where rights are sacred. Don’t you dare infringe on my rights. I know what my rights are. I’ll give you an easy example. How do you do your tax? I think most of you guys would be old enough to need to do a tax return every year. Do you make sure to claim every single cent you’re entitled to? I’m not saying it’s wrong. But think about how Jesus so easily and readily gives up his rights. In fact, he gave up his life. We should think about that the next time we find ourselves wanting to insist on our rights. Jesus was remained silent throughout.
Rescuing the guilty
6 Now at the feast he used to release for them one prisoner for whom they asked. 7 And among the rebels in prison, who had committed murder in the insurrection, there was a man called Barabbas. 8 And the crowd came up and began to ask Pilate to do as he usually did for them. 9 And he answered them, saying, “Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?” 10 For he perceived that it was out of envy that the chief priests had delivered him up. 11 But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have him release for them Barabbas instead. 12 And Pilate again said to them, “Then what shall I do with the man you call the King of the Jews?” 13 And they cried out again, “Crucify him.” 14 And Pilate said to them, “Why? What evil has he done?” But they shouted all the more, “Crucify him.” 15 So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released for them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.
There’s an interesting comparison here between Barabbas and Jesus. Verse 7 tells us Barabbas is someone who committed murder in the insurrection. He was a rebel fighter. In verse 14, Pilate says of Jesus that he has done nothing wrong. Of the two, the crowds chose Barabbas. Why? Because the priests stirred them up yes, how? By getting them to choose the one who has a track record of fighting the romans. Barabbas is not just some random guy – he was a rebel fighter and the people wanted someone to fight against the Romans for them. It’s not surprising that they chose Barabbas because all throughout the gospels, people have been asking Jesus when he’s going to start the revolution against the Romans. So if the choice is between Barabbas who is a known rebel fighter, and Jesus who was neither here nor there. It’s obvious right.
Even though Jesus didn’t commit a single crime, hundreds of people demanded that he be crucified. Why? It’s nothing that he did. It’s what he didn’t do. It’s because Jesus doesn’t do what we want him to do. Read the gospels, even though there are sick people around, Jesus would rather preach. The scribes often tried to engage Jesus but Jesus often attacked them instead. The crowds wanted saving from Rome but Jesus didn’t say anything to Pilate except you have said so. Everyone of us want something from God. Otherwise, why are you a Christian?
I’ve known people who have been Christians a long time, went to church regularly, married a Christian, stayed sexually pure before marriage, suffered miscarriages and turned away from God. It’s the experience that I did everything right, how can God allow this to happen to me. It’s only then where we find why we turn to God in the first place, so that God will give me a good life. And he obviously hasn’t kept up his end of the bargain.
We build up an idea of who God is in our minds and when reality doesn’t match up, we reject him. It’s not that God is evil or bad. He’s just not what I expected. Disappointing really. Pilate asked Why? What evil has Jesus done? If we can be brutally honest with ourselves, the evil is that he doesn’t give me what I want. And so we crucify him.
The innocent king is condemned. What does this mean for us?
Look at the passage again. Think about the characters in the story. Who would you rather be? The priests with their wicked schemes? Or Pilate? Maybe you feel bad for him, he sounds like a good guy caught in a bad place. No. Pilate was a worse sinner. He knew Jesus was innocent and he condemned him. At least the priests thought to themselves that Jesus was guilty. Or the crowds? Surely not. Who would you rather be? There’s only one. Barabbas. Here’s someone who has sinned. He is guilty – no question about that. But because of Jesus, because Jesus was condemned to be crucified, Barabbas was saved. Obviously we don’t know if he went on to kill more people after this, but right here in this passage, he is a picture of what Jesus offers us.
Here is why Jesus stayed silent. This is what the cross is all about. Barabbas, guilty as charged, rightly imprisoned. Where he should be. Jesus was condemned to take his place and Barabbas walks free.
If you’re a Christian, tell me you don’t see yourself in Barabbas.