Let's take our Bibles and turn
with me to John 19. John 19. The Lord is standing
by divine providence, by God's grace, by God's purpose. He's standing before Pilate. A lengthy discussion with the
Jews, between Pilate and the Jews, has taken place concerning
the innocence that Pilate is arguing about concerning the
Lord Jesus Christ. Pilate has spoken to the Lord
and he says to these Jews that are crying for his death. He says, I find no fault in him. I can't find anything that he's
done to validate your demands for his
death. Pilate's listening to his wife,
advising him, don't have anything to do. with this just man. Pilate, then in verse 12, and
this is where I'm going to pick up, John 19, verse 12 to 16,
but Pilate says, verse 12, And from thenceforth Pilate sought
to release him. But the Jews cried out, saying,
If thou let this man go, thou art not Caesar's friend. Whosoever maketh himself a king
speaketh against Caesar." How true are these words, Proverbs
29, 25. Truly, the fear of man bringeth
a snare. The fear of man brings a snare. We read this scripture just a
little while ago, Proverbs 29-25, but whoso putteth his trust in
the Lord shall be safe. Safe in this life and safe in
the life to come. Now, I know that. I know it. I know it for sure in my head.
Lord, give me a heart to know this. I want to know this. I want to believe this. His trust
in the Lord shall be safe. You know, these
disciples, they saw Him. They saw the Lord. John said,
we handled the Word of Life. Do you know, I've never seen
the Lord. I've never seen the Lord. John said, we heard Him. We heard
Him. We heard Him speak. I've never,
with these ears, I've never heard the Lord speak. I've had people
tell me that the Lord appeared to me in my bedroom, stood at
the foot of the bed, and I saw Him. I've never seen Him. I've
never seen Him. Well, you say, well Marvin, what
do you got then? I've got His Word. This is what I've got. I've got the Word of God. And
here's what the Word of God said. Whoso putteth his trust in the
Lord. You know what that means? That means not me, not you, putting
our trust in ourselves. Whosoever puts his trust in the
capital L, capital O, capital R, capital D, in Jehovah, Father,
Son, Spirit. I absolutely, I absolutely believe
that God has an elect. I believe God has an elect. I believe that. I believe that
Christ died for the sheep. You know why I believe that?
Because the Lord said He did. You know why I believe that God
has an elect? Because God's Word says He's got an elect. I believe
that God Almighty is going to have mercy and compassion on
whomsoever He will. I believe that. Why? Because God's Word says that. The Word of God is not going
to perish. Heaven and earth are going to
perish. But that Word is going to stand forever. Now, I know
that's a fact. Lord, give me faith to believe
that You chose me. Lord, would you give me faith
to believe Christ died for me? That's all I've got, Carl. That's
all I've got. I don't have anything else. The
only thing I've got is God's Word. He that putteth his trust
in the Lord shall be safe. But here's Pilate,
and he's got a problem. The Scripture says Pilate, from
that point, henceforth, Pilate sought to release him and had
the power to do it. Pilate was the governor. He was
the governor there. There in Jerusalem, as under
Roman dominion, Pilate was the governor. And he had the power
to release him. Back in verse 10, Pilate said
unto him, Speakest thou not unto me, knowest thou that I have
power to crucify thee? I have power to release you?
You realize who you're talking to? That's what he said. The
Lord said, you don't have any power except it were given unto
you from above, from my Father. You don't have any power. You
think you have power. Well, verse 12, from that point,
Pilate sought to release him, but the Jews, He cried out saying,
you let this man go and you're not Caesar's friend. Whosoever
maketh himself a king speaketh against Caesar. Well now, okay, Pilate's got
a problem here. He's got a good job, he's a governor. Got a good income, I'm sure.
Got a lot of clout. Got a lot of respect. And if he lets this man go, because
the Lord Jesus Christ, they said this man made himself a king.
That's what they're talking about the Lord. He said he's the Son
of God. He's the King of the Jews. You
let this man go that claimed to be a king, then you're not
a friend of Caesar. And now Pilate's thinking, I'm going to lose everything. I'm going to lose it all if I'm
not a friend of Caesar. But what is a man profited if
he shall gain the whole world and lose his soul? Or what shall
a man give in exchange for his soul? You know, a believer knows
that in Christ he has all things. He has all things of eternal
significance. He has life, he's got peace with
God, communion with God. He has all things. Let me ask
you this. I hath not seen, neither hath entered into the heart of
man that which God has prepared for those that love him, What
do we possess being an heir of God and a joint heir with Christ? What does that entail? I don't
know. But I can tell you this, whatever
it is, it's glorious. But eyes not seen, near, heard,
it's never entered into the heart of man. I can't even imagine
what it is. But whatever it is, it's going
to be good. It's going to be good. We'll
spend eternity with Christ. And here's a man now, and he's
between a rock and a hard place because he might lose his job.
might lose his position. And 13 and 14, when Pilate therefore
heard that saying, he said, you go against Caesar. You're no
friend of Caesar's if you let this man go. And when Pilate
therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus forth and sat
down in the judgment seat in a place that is called the pavement,
but in the Hebrew, Gabbatha. and it was the preparation of
the Passover, about the sixth hour, and he saith unto the Jews,
Behold, your king. The pressure is just too great.
He's convinced, at least in his mind, that the Lord is innocent. He's convinced of that. And he's
told them, I don't find any fault in him. I don't find any fault
in him. But here's the example of a stony ground hearer. For a while, they'll admit, you
know, they rejoice in the message. Pilate didn't find a problem
with Christ. But Buddy, when the heat got turned up, and all
of a sudden his job was at stake, and maybe even his head, You
know, you're going to go against Caesar? Well, your job may not
be the only thing you lose. And I've got to think this through. Being accused of treason before
Caesar? I don't know. I don't know. I
told you. I'd gone to preach at a little
church here a few years ago and immediately there was a problem
and there was a split and I didn't preach anything there. It was
that same little church that Tom Harding had lined up all
the preachers you remember. And I'd gone over there and preached
the gospel And they had a meeting. They had a meeting after that
and there was some contention over the message. And one man
stood up, they told me, and he said this. Now, he said, I don't,
you know, I don't find total fault in everything that was
said concerning this sovereignty and stuff, but he said it's not
worth splitting a church over. Well, this is what Pilate said. I don't see any problem with
the Lord. I don't find any fault with Him.
I don't see anything that He's done, but it's not worth losing
everything over. It's not worth losing my job.
And the Scripture says, He brought the Lord forth, verse 13, and
sat down in the judgment seat, in a place that's called the
pavement in the Hebrew, Gabathae. It means a raised place. It was just a podium where judgment,
the judge stood, like a bench, an elevated bench. And this is where he was going
to pass judgment. He had to make a decision. Now he's got to make a decision.
He's got to do one of two things. He's either going to let the
Lord go or he's not. That's what it's come down to.
It's either release the Lord Jesus Christ and go against the
Jews and Caesar, or turn him over to the Jews.
It just wasn't worth it. It wasn't worth it. Let me tell
you this. Write this down. A man or a woman,
that God gives a heart for the gospel of God's grace. To stand
true to this gospel, to stand and say, I believe God, I believe
God. I'm telling you the truth, it'll
split families, it'll split marriages, it'll split... I'm telling you.
But for the grace of God, but for the grace of God, It'll bust
it up. He could not take it. He could
not stand it. So he went to this place, and
he was going to stand in judgment. Now, over. He came to this elevated
place. And it was, it says in verse
14, it was the preparation of the Passover. It's the day before
the Passover. The next day. The Lord Jesus
Christ is going to die. So here we are, just about the
sixth hour, just about 24 hours before the Lord was going to
lay down His life. And here's this man, and he's
going to pass judgment on the Lord Jesus Christ, the very one
before whom he's going to stand in that day of judgment. Whatsoever a man sows, that's
what he's going to reap. The Lord said, a man not with
me, he's against me. I'm telling you, a man, a woman,
stand up in opposition to the Lord Jesus Christ and stand before
the judge in that day, having resisted the Lord of glory. Here's Pilate now. He's trying
to cover himself. I've got to get out of this thing
with some honor. Here's what was happening. I want you to hold your place
right there and turn with me to Acts 4.26. Listen, I was reading over my
notes this morning and I thought to myself, what a horrible thought. For all men without Christ, it's
horrible. They die in rebellion against
God. But I want you to find some men's names that are listed in
the Scripture. These men's names. These men
that stood against the Lord. And I thought to myself, here
is recorded in God's Word, this Word that's not going to ever
be void. It's going to stand. Listen to
this. 426. The kings of the earth stood
up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, against
His Christ, for of a truth against Thy holy child Jesus, whom Thou
hast anointed." Think of what was just said. The Lord who raised
up His Son, made flesh. When I say the only begotten,
this is the only one that ever has come from the Father. man. And He's anointed him the servant
of Jehovah. Here's God in human flesh, made
of a woman, made under the law, and for of a truth against thy
holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed. Who stood up in rebellion
against Him? Herod, Pontius Pilate, With the
Gentiles and the people of Israel, they were gathered together.
And I'm thinking to myself, that's recorded. Can you imagine? Pilate right now? Scripture doesn't
bear out that he was ever converted. The Lord knows. I don't know.
But for all I know, he's in hell right now. And knows that that
Scripture right there is written. And knows what awaits. And I
thought, oh, the horror of that. And so it was the preparation
of the Passover about the sixth hour, and listen to this, and
He saith unto the Jews, Behold, your King. You know, Pilate, when he spoke
those words, Scripture says he found no No problem with the
Lord. He found no fault with him. But
now, he may have said that out of contempt. He could have said
it out of disappointment toward the Jews. But in the case of
him speaking, I know this, the Spirit of God moved upon that
man to speak those words. He said, you look at your king. He's the Lord. He's the King. He's the King. God made Him so. He's the ruler. He's the boss. He rules and reigns. Pilate,
without a doubt, was moved by the Spirit of God to bear witness
to the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ, of His kingship. Behold! You look upon Him. Look on Him. He's the King who's
going to render to every man according to that man's work,
either in righteousness by the work of the Lord Jesus Christ
imputed to them, or by their self-righteousness. But the King's
going to deal with every man. And look at verse 15. But they
cried, Away with him! Away with him! Crucify him! Pilate
said unto them, Shall I crucify your king? And the chief priests
answered, We have no king but Caesar." Let me tell you something that
was just so amazing about this. I want you to look in verse 15.
Pilate saith unto them, Shall I crucify your king? Now I want
you to look at that word king right there. You notice that
it's capitalized? The chief priest answered, we
have no, you see that little K? But Caesar. Now I looked up those words.
Those words are the same words. They're same words. Same word. I looked it up in
strong concordance. I thought, well surely there's
a difference. One of them is capitalized and one of them is not. Same
word. Spirit of God moved upon that
man to set forth, and I don't doubt for one second he had no
idea the significance of what he was saying. But Spirit of
God made Pilate proclaim, this is your king. This is your king.
And what they said, same word. This was what they thought of
him. We don't have a little king,
except Caesar. That was their attitude toward
Him. That was their thoughts. Shall I crucify your King? Do you desire Him to die in the
most painful and frightful execution? Yes. Yes. And listen to this, it was all
according to God's purpose. That's what the Scripture says.
They said, we don't have a king. We don't have a lower case king.
The only king we've got is Caesar. That's our king. Isaiah 53, 2. He is despised and rejected of
men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, and we hid, as it
were, our faces from him. He was despised and we esteemed
him not as the capital K. King. I tell you, only a believer
looks upon Him as the capital K, the King. He's the King. He's the ruler. I'm the servant. He's the King.
I'm the subject. He's the King. Oh, I tell you,
here's the pilot. Pilate's under the pressure to
answer. He's going to have to answer
Caesar. And they're saying, we don't
have a king but Caesar. Caesar is our king. Oh, in the day of judgment. Let
me ask you this. Is Caesar going to answer for
you? Is a man's will, is that going
to answer for you? Is the water of baptism going
to answer for you? I'm telling you, I'm telling
you, we have one King and it's the Lord Jesus Christ. He is
the King. I understand the world's desire
to have Caesar, something they can see, something they can feel,
something they can touch, something that's real. Let me hold you
place here. Look at Luke 23. Here's Luke's
account of what happened here. Luke 23, verse 24-25. Luke 23.
Luke 23, 24-25. And Pilate gave sentence that it should be as they required,
and he released unto them him that for sedition and murder
was cast into prison. He let Barabbas go, whom they
had desired, but he delivered Jesus to their will. He left them, the Lord left them
to their own will. Lord, don't leave me to my will.
Not my will, but thine be done. Not my thoughts, but your thoughts.
Not my desires, Lord, but your Word. And the Scripture says
that Pilate delivered the Lord unto them to be crucified. But Pilate was the means. He
was the means of the will of the sovereign of the universe.
Romans 8.32 says, He that spared not his own son but delivered
Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give
us all things? Scripture says, verse 16, then
delivered Him therefore unto them to be crucified, and they
took Jesus and led Him away. Now in closing, I want you to
notice the beauty of those last few words. They let him away. They didn't
drive him. He went as a sheep to the slaughter. He went willingly. He went according
to his will. He said, my meat is to do the
will of Him that sent me. No man takes my life from me.
I lay it down myself. When the Lord Jesus Christ came
into this world, He came to seek and to save that which was lost.
He came to save His people from His sins. I call His name Jesus,
for He shall save His people. He shall save His people. For
He shall save His people from their sins. Not going to try
to do it. He shall save them from their
sins. He had to die. And He lay down
His life for His people. He let these men do just exactly
what they wanted to do. And they will stand before God
in judgment. for their rebellion against God. And all the while, according
to the eternal counsel of God Almighty, Peter told those on
the day of Pentecost, you with wicked hands, took and crucified. Oh, but by the grace of God,
God gave some of them a heart, a new heart on the day of Pentecost. Save 3,000 of them. Many of them,
I don't doubt for one second, that screamed, crucify Him. Crucify Him. Let me tell you
something. They weren't doing anything that
every one of us hadn't done in our own heart before God called
His people out of darkness. We did the same thing. Lord,
bless the Word to our heart. Cause us to see the glory of
the Lord Jesus Christ and His willingness Suffer. Putting away the debt owed to
God's law in his own body. Put it away. Atone. Covered it. Covered it over. When I see the
blood, I'll pass over you.