Are you a religious professional who no longer believes in any God or gods? 

Have you remained in vocational ministry, secretly hiding away your non-belief?

Are you struggling over where to go from here with your life and career?

If this is you, we invite you to join The Clergy Project!

I wish I could say I was making it up.

The Clergy Project aims to provide a safe and secure online community for religious leaders who no longer believe. According to them, “The largest and fastest growing religion in the US isn’t a religion, it’s the absence of one.”

Shocking, but predictable. The Bible, in passages like Second Timothy 3:1-5, predict the End Times falling away from the faith.

The Jewish authorities who pressured Pontius Pilate to crucify Jesus made a shocking statement:

“We have no king but Caesar!”

Shocking, but predictable:

John made it clear from the start, “[Jesus] came to His own, and His own did not receive Him” (John 1:11).

The rejection of Jesus was anticipated in the Old Testament. One reference will do. Psalm 118:22 says of the coming King, “The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone.”

We follow Jesus from Annas to Caiaphas, then to Pontius Pilate.^[1] The Jewish authorities blaspheme, rejecting King & kingdom.

I’ll organize my comments around two points: #1 You Expect People To Reject King Jesus, and #2 You Endure Patiently For The Return Of King Jesus.

#1 – You Expect People To Reject King Jesus (18:28-40)

The Kingdom of God means different things to different groups. We characterize it three ways:

1. God is King from everlasting to everlasting, and from Genesis through the Revelation. David sang, “Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and Your dominion endures throughout all generations” (Psalm145:13).

2. God promised the nation of Israel that the ancestor and descendant of King David would rule over a Kingdom on Earth. In the many passages promising it, there is no disputing it is a material kingdom, a flesh-and-blood, stick-and-stucco kingdom.

3. There is, right now, an invisible, spiritual aspect to the kingdom, in the sense that Jesus rules as King over the lives of believers.

Philip Graham Ryken writes, “Theologians sometimes describe this… as the already and the not yet. God’s kingdom has already come, but it is not yet here in all its glory. Christ has already come, but He has not yet come again.”

We speak of furthering the Kingdom of God, or bringing souls into the Kingdom of God. It isn’t wrong to speak of the Kingdom of God as if it’s already here, as long as you realize it’s not, but it is coming in the future.

BTW: The terms, Kingdom of God and Kingdom of Heaven are interchangeable.

Dr. Charles Ryrie wrote, “What would [the Jews of Jesus’s day] have understood the kingdom to be? The Messianic, Davidic kingdom on this Earth in which the Jewish people would have a prominent place.”

Jesus came to Earth as the ancestor and descendant of King David Who would rule over the Kingdom of God on Earth.

He was decisively rejected by the Jewish authorities, reaching its pinnacle when they claimed that their only king was Caesar.

Their rejection of King Jesus cannot overthrow God’s unconditional promises for a Kingdom of God on Earth.

Their rejection postponed the Kingdom of God until Jesus’ Second Coming to Earth.

Jesus lamented over Jerusalem, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! See! Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, ‘BLESSED is HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD!’ ” (Matthew 23:37-39).

In His first coming, Jesus would have “gathered” Israel into the kingdom, as promised. Instead, His own rejected Him, resulting in the destruction of Jerusalem. BUT they will receive Him next time He comes.

Joh 18:28  Then they led Jesus from Caiaphas to the Praetorium, and it was early morning. But they themselves did not go into the Praetorium, lest they should be defiled, but that they might eat the Passover.

The Praetorium was the place where the Roman governor heard and decided cases. The Jewish authorities were faced with the task of convincing Pontius Pilate to execute Jesus for them.

Any number of things could “defile” a Jew, excluding from full participation in Passover festivities. For example, removing all leaven from your house was necessary at Passover. Gentile dwellings were off limits since they would not be cleansed of leaven.

They thought that killing Jesus was necessary since He was, to them, a blasphemer. Granting them that, they went about it illegally.

The Law is an all-or-nothing taskmaster. You can’t pick and choose.

Joh 18:29  Pilate then went out to them and said, “What accusation do you bring against this Man?”
Joh 18:30  They answered and said to him, “If He were not an evildoer, we would not have delivered Him up to you.”

“Evildoer” is bad doer. My paraphrase: “Pilate, Jesus is a bad dude, guilty of bad-dudery.”

Joh 18:31  Then Pilate said to them, “You take Him and judge Him according to your law.” Therefore the Jews said to him, “It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death,”
Joh 18:32  that the saying of Jesus might be fulfilled which He spoke, signifying by what death He would die.

The Romans thoroughly delighted in executing people. Methods included beheading, being lashed to death, being burned alive, strangulation, being cast from a great height, being buried alive, drowning, death by beast, and crucifixion.
If you killed a parent there was a special type of capital punishment, the Punishment of the Sack. The offender was placed in a leather sack with a rooster, a dog, a snake, and a monkey, then thrown into the sea, lake, or river.

Jesus not only predicted His death, but the method of it. Throughout this account, we are reminded that He was in charge despite being in custody.

Joh 18:33  Then Pilate entered the Praetorium again, called Jesus, and said to Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?”

John omitted the Jewish authorities accusing Jesus of three things: (1) subverting the nation, (2) opposing payment of taxes to Caesar, and (3) claiming to be “Christ, a King.” These protests peaked Pilate’s professional prosecutorial priorities.

Joh 18:34  Jesus answered him, “Are you speaking for yourself about this, or did others tell you this concerning Me?”

Answering questions with a question was the Jesus-style.
The steward of the Gospel ought to be the one guiding the conversation. We are the ones who know the way, the truth, and the life.

When you go to the doctor, is it to diagnose yourself? No, you listen to him or her.

Pilate was relying on the testimony of unreliable men. Unbelievers today do the same. For example, many reject God out of hand because unreliable scientists tell them Darwinian Evolution is fact, when the facts fit better in a special creation theory.

Joh 18:35  Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered You to me. What have You done?”

As the narrator of the series, Cops says, We are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nevertheless, we tend to decide on guilt or innocence based on reporting prior to any trial. Pilate assumed Jesus was guilty.

Joh 18:36  Jesus answered, “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.”

In the ISV, it’s a lot clearer: “But for now, My kingdom is not from here.” The Jewish authorities rejected the King. The material kingdom is on hold, “for now,” until the Second Coming.

Jesus wasn’t overruling the unconditional promises to Israel that they would have the Promised Land and a kingdom. They will – but not now.

Joh 18:37  Pilate therefore said to Him, “Are You a king then?” Jesus answered, “You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.”

The Lord was evangelizing:

Jesus said, For this cause I have come into the world.” He came from outside the world, from Heaven to Earth.
Jesus said, “for this cause I was born.” He was sent from Heaven to Earth via the virgin birth.
Jesus bore witness to the truth about God, Himself, the Holy Spirit, man, sin, and salvation.
“Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice” as the Gospel is spread and men are saved.

Joh 18:38  Pilate said to Him, “What is truth?” And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews, and said to them, “I find no fault in Him at all.”

There was no fault to find in the sinless Son of God. Pilate would, however, punish Jesus, then sentence Him to death.

“What is truth?” It is what God has revealed in the inspired Word of God. Mankind would rather ignore God and conduct their own search for truth. King Solomon conducted a search for truth on a plane far beyond that which anyone else has. In the end he discovered God’s truth is truth. With the benefit of the New Testament, we can say that Jesus is the truth. He is the truth every man and woman needs to be saved and safe eternally.

Joh 18:39  “But you have a custom that I should release someone to you at the Passover. Do you therefore want me to release to you the King of the Jews?”
Joh 18:40  Then they all cried again, saying, “Not this Man, but Barabbas!” Now Barabbas was a robber.

Barabbas had quite the rap sheet. The other Gospels describe Barabbas a robber, murderer, and insurrectionist. He was a badder-duderer.

There is quite a lot of symbolism in the comparison of Jesus with Barabbas. For example, he represented the kind of Messiah they were hoping for. One who would overthrow the government of Rome.

Allow a quick devotional application. It’s an election year. What kind of people are we looking for to lead us? A Barabbas can certainly effect change. But it is righteousness, not expediency, that exalts a nation.

A few months ago, I mentioned several ‘prominent’ Christian leaders who have outright rejected the Lord. When I say it should not shock us, I don’t mean it won’t hurt.
We need to toughen up. Apostasy will get worse. We do not resign ourselves to despair… we prepare.

#2 – You Endure Patiently Waiting For The Return Of King Jesus (19:1-15)

Most of you know the story of Senator John McCain’s ordeal as a prisoner of war in Vietnam. Despite the lack of food, recurring dysentery, his various injuries, and the uncertainty of when his next beating might occur, McCain managed to stay alive. “Three things kept me going,” he said. “Faith in God, faith in my fellow prisoners and faith in my country.”

What kept Jesus going?

Jesus saw you, perishing, consigned to Hell, and refused to break.

Joh 19:1  So then Pilate took Jesus and scourged Him.
Joh 19:2  And the soldiers twisted a crown of thorns and put it on His head, and they put on Him a purple robe.
Joh 19:3  Then they said, “Hail, King of the Jews!” And they struck Him with their hands.

I wonder if some of this torture was intended by Satan to ‘break’ Jesus. If the Lord were to suddenly say, “That’s enough, Father. I can’t drink this cup of suffering. I’m done,” mankind would perish eternally.

This strategy continued on the Cross. The crowd tormented the Lord, challenging Him to save Himself.

Joh 19:4  Pilate then went out again, and said to them, “Behold, I am bringing Him out to you, that you may know that I find no fault in Him.”
Joh 19:5  Then Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate said to them, “Behold the Man!”

William MacDonald writes, “It is difficult to know whether he said this in mockery, in sympathy, or without any particular emotion.”

It is a beautiful sight. That’s right – Beautiful. There is some indication in the original language that Pilate sat Jesus on his throne. He is on the throne, with all the trappings of a King. But He is simultaneously a mere man, bleeding and suffering in the stead of others. “Behold the God-man,” the true King having come as a man for this purpose.

Joh 19:6  Therefore, when the chief priests and officers saw Him, they cried out, saying, “Crucify Him, crucify Him!” Pilate said to them, “You take Him and crucify Him, for I find no fault in Him.”

He gave them license to crucify Jesus. He wanted to shirk any responsibility or accountability. We can’t. My sin, and your sin, put Jesus on the Cross.

Joh 19:7  The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and according to our law He ought to die, because He made Himself the Son of God.”
Joh 19:8  Therefore, when Pilate heard that saying, he was the more afraid,

What was Pilate afraid of? Albert Barnes suggests, “It was probably the alarm of his conscience.” Never forget that God is always at work, not willing any should perish, but that all would come to faith in Jesus.

One of the whosoevers Jesus died for was Pilate.

Joh 19:9  and went again into the Praetorium, and said to Jesus, “Where are You from?” But Jesus gave him no answer.

“Where” can mean, origin or source. Maybe the Holy Spirit was opening Pilate’s spiritual eyes to see that the Lord was not from the Earth.

Why didn’t Jesus answer Pilate? A person needs to respond to the light he receives before more is given. You don’t interrogate God, satisfying all your curiosities before exercising faith.

Job tried to interrogate God:

Job 38:1  Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said:
Job 38:2  “Who is this who darkens counsel By words without knowledge?
Job 38:3  Now prepare yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer Me.
Job 38:4  “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding.
Job 38:5  Who determined its measurements? Surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it?
Job 38:6  To what were its foundations fastened? Or who laid its cornerstone, [etc., etc.].

Joh 19:10  Then Pilate said to Him, “Are You not speaking to me? Do You not know that I have power to crucify You, and power to release You?”
Joh 19:11  Jesus answered, “You could have no power at all against Me unless it had been given you from above. Therefore the one who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.”

Those who delivered Jesus to be crucified were responsible for their decisions even while God was providentially moving behind the scenes. We see no incompatibility between God’s sovereignty and man’s free will. In fact, allowing mankind free will exhibits a greater sovereignty than making man a puppet.

Joh 19:12  From then on Pilate sought to release Him, but the Jews cried out, saying, “If you let this Man go, you are not Caesar’s friend. Whoever makes himself a king speaks against Caesar.”
Joh 19:13  When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus out and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that is called The Pavement, but in Hebrew, Gabbatha.

D.A. Carson writes, “In order to execute Jesus, the Jewish authorities make themselves out to be more loyal subjects of Caesar than the hated Roman official Pilate is.” The Jews have lowered themselves about as far as they can go.

Joh 19:14  Now it was the Preparation Day of the Passover, and about the sixth hour. And he said to the Jews, “Behold your King!”
Joh 19:15  But they cried out, “Away with Him, away with Him! Crucify Him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar!”

Again quoting Carson: “By vehemently insisting they have no king but Caesar, they are not only rejecting Jesus’ messianic claims, they are abandoning Israel’s messianic hope as a matter of principle, rejecting any claimant, and finally disowning the kingship of the LORD himself.”

We could sing, Ain’t No Kingdom While He’s Gone. God is building His church. We are His spiritual Temple on Earth – both individually, and corporately.

I’ll close with this quote from Derick Bingham:

“I gave Him a crown of thorns, He gave me a crown of righteousness. I gave Him a cross to carry, He gave me His yoke which is easy, His burden which is light. I gave Him nails through His hands, He gave me safely into His Father’s hands from which no power can pluck me. I gave Him no covering, stripping His clothes from Him. He gave me a garment of salvation. I gave Him vinegar to drink, He gave me Living Water. I crucified and slew Him on a tree, He gave me eternal life. It was my sinfulness that put Him there. It is His sinlessness that puts me here.”