Date : Fourth Lenten Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Text : The Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ Drawn from the Four Gospels

Title : The Palace of the High Priest

"The High Priest put a question to [Jesus] and said, ‘Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?’ Jesus said, ‘I am.’"

Now that Jesus has been arrested, the action is really going to heat up. He is hauled off for His trial. But, how many trials does He actually go through? Well, let’s see:

• In today’s lesson, Jesus is arraigned in front of the High Priest, who finds Him guilty.

• Next week, we will hear how the High Priest sends Jesus to Pontius Pilate, who will find Him innocent.

• Pilate, upon hearing that Herod of Galilee is in town, sends Jesus to Herod for trial, because Jesus was from Nazareth, which is in Galilee. Herod doesn’t know what to make of Jesus, so he sends Jesus back to Pilate.

• Finally, Pilate, in order to appease the Jews, finds Jesus guilty.

Did you count them? How many trials did the Lord undergo, before finally being found deserving of crucifixion? The High Priest, Pilate, Herod, Pilate. That’s four. For you, who understand the Bible’s use of numbers, the number four represents all of creation. In other words, going through four trials, Jesus is representing all of creation in being tried and convicted and found deserving of death.

His death for all of creation’s death. His death for your death.

In this first trial, Jesus is taken before the Jew’s High Priest, because Jesus is being tried for crimes against God. It is only when the High Priest finds Him guilty that Jesus is sent to Pilate, as Pilate is the Roman government’s official. For us, this would be as if you found your pastor guilty of a crime against God’s Word to be so heinous that, upon your finding him guilty, you sent him to the criminal court in Bad Axe for civil punishment.

Now, let’s consider the three main actions of today’s section. We have the Lord standing trial before the Jewish High Priest. We have Peter confronted as he gets close enough to hear what’s going on with Jesus. And, we have Judas returning the money that he got for betraying Jesus. We will take them in reverse order.

Judas was sorry that he had betrayed Jesus. He realized what it would mean for Jesus to be condemned by the High Priest, that Pilate would sentence Him to death by crucifixion.

God’s gift of conscience struck Judas. He was sorry for what he had done. He returned the betrayal payment. He confessed to the chief priests and elders, "I have sinned. I have betrayed innocent blood." He went out and hanged himself.

We are told that it would have been better if Judas had never been born. The meaning, of course, is that he went to hell. But, why did he go to hell, if he confessed his sin? Was it because he committed suicide?

Yes and no. Nowhere in God’s Word is suicide called the unforgivable sin. In Judas’ case, though, his hanging himself reveals something about his confession of his sin against Jesus.

He admitted that He had betrayed innocent blood. But, he didn’t admit that he betrayed the Son of God. Indeed, that Judas even sought money in favor of allegiance to Jesus indicates that he didn’t have faith in Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the living God, and the Lamb of God who came to take away the sin of the world.

Judas didn’t accept it. Just as God’s Word says that many are called but few are chosen, Judas was hand-picked by Jesus but, even in that lofty status, God doesn’t force faith and salvation upon anyone. All are free to turn away from Jesus.

If Judas had saving faith, after he was struck with guilt, instead of performing the ultimate act of selfishness—killing himself—he would have returned the money and headed right to the palace of the High Priest and stood up, stood up for Jesus.

Just like Peter. Or, excuse me, just as Peter swore, up and down, that he would do. But, now, as we turn our attention to good ol’ Pete, we see that he was not walking the talk of just a few hours earlier.

It wasn’t as if Peter were asked a question that was debatable. It required a simple yes or no. "Were you with Jesus?"

"I don’t know what you mean."

Then come the words that make me sick to my stomach, every year, when I read them to you, "And immediately while he was still speaking, the cock crowed a second time, and the Lord turned and looked on Peter. ... Peter broke down, and went out, and wept bitterly."

Peter and Judas. Together, they make the perfect picture of every one of us.

This is why you are here, dear Christians—you, who belong to Christ—because, when the going gets too hot, you find the first place to cool off.

Peter is asked the simplest question. A one word answer, "Yes," completely evades his lips. And, so, we turn to Jesus, who is also asked a simple question, and neither will Jesus answer it. But, Jesus doesn’t answer the High Priest for a good reason: Jesus won’t have anything to do with lies and false accusations.

As the Jews sought crimes with which they could accuse Jesus, they started pulling rabbits out of their hats, bearing false witness against Him. When they hurled lies, and when they contradicted each other, Jesus just stood there. When the High Priest pressed Him for an answer, Jesus just stood there.

But, when the High Priest fell upon a question that was true, Jesus spoke.

The High Priest: "Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?"

The Lord Jesus: "I am. You will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of God’s power and coming with the clouds of heaven."

When Peter was pressed with the truth, he lied about it. When Jesus was pressed with the truth, He confessed it.

Indeed, in His testimony in the trial before the Jew’s High Priest, Jesus used language that the Jews would understand, and He testified that He is both God and man.

When Jesus said that they would see the Son of Man seated at God’s right hand, He was using an Old Testament designation for the Messiah, from the book of Daniel: "The Son of Man." This is the One, whose origins are from eternity, yet He takes on human flesh. This prophecy was fulfilled in Jesus.

And, when Jesus first answered the High Priest, He called Himself God. Jesus answered the High Priest exactly as He, the Son of God, answered Moses, when, speaking to Moses from the burning bush, He told Moses that His name is "I AM."

When pressed with the truth, Jesus had to confirm it, even when He knew it meant that He would be handed over to Pontius Pilate, to be crucified.

To be crucified so that Peter could be saved—so that you could be saved—so that everyone who believes in God’s only Son might not perish but have eternal life.

Jesus went from the trial, to the tree, and to the tomb . . .

so that you would not go to death, to the devil, and to damnation.

He opened the way for you to hear His Gospel, wash in His font, and eat at His altar . . .

so that you could go to church, and go to heaven, and go to Him—to Jesus, whom you will see at the right hand of God’s power and coming with the clouds of heaven.

You will see Him, and you will confess: "Yes, I know the man. He’s my friend, Jesus. He’s the One who saved me." Amen.