“I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth. And in Jesus Christ His only Son our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; He descended into hell; the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy catholic Church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen.” These words, familiar to many of you, make up what is in my opinion the most beautiful summation of what we as Christians believe. These words make up what is commonly known as the Creed of the Apostle’s, or Apostle’s Creed. This creed is something that nearly every Christian group, both Catholic and Protestant, have as part of their tradition in at least some form. However, it’s unknown exactly when this beautiful creed was written. The first mention of the title Apostle’s Creed came from a letter written by Ambrose from a Council in Milan to Pope Siricius in about 390 AD. It should be noted that several of the phrases that exist in our modern Apostle’s Creed were absent in the one cited at that time by Ambrose. However, the phrase “suffered under Pontius Pilate” has always existed within the Apostle’s Creed.
You know, I feel sorry sometimes for Pilate and the fact that his name has been and will be forever attached to the death of Christ. All of us make mistakes, but Pilate’s biggest mistake happens to involve the single most important event in human history. The sad truth of the matter is that not many people know much about Pilate outside of his brief interaction with Jesus prior to his crucifixion. Many people think him to be this ruthless tyrant who cared nothing for the lives of those who were under his authority. Well, in actuality, Pilate was kind of a bumbling figure and just wanted to keep the peace. He had been appointed the governor of Judea in AD 26 by the Emperor Tiberius, and served in this capacity for a little over ten years. Now, Judea wasn’t exactly a destination job. It was somewhat of an undesirable location for that particular job and location can play a major factor in the outcome of a person’s job and their happiness with it; being an ice cream vendor in Hawaii looks very different from being an ice cream vendor in Alaska. What made Judea a particularly difficult place to be governor was the number of Jewish people living there. Any time Pilate or any other governor would do something or bring anything into Jerusalem, the Jews would become outraged that their Holy City was being defiled. It was typical for all Roman cities to have some likenesses of emperor within their boundaries. However, the Jews would riot whenever this was attempted in Jerusalem. They would have city-wide strikes and camp outside of Pilate’s house until their demands were met. When Pilate and his men would threaten them with execution, then the Jews would call his bluff and stick out their necks as if to dare Pilate to execute them. Mass executions would result in less people which would in turn result in less tax money, which was something Pilate couldn’t have happen.
Seemingly every time that Pilate tried to bring any part of Rome into Jerusalem the Jews would revolt. There were even some occasions where the Jews skipped the protesting of Pilate and went straight to the emperor. The emperor didn’t really care what took place within Jerusalem, as long as he was getting his tax money from them and they weren’t being a problem to him and the running of his empire. This being the case, the emperor virtually took all power away from Pilate and gave it to the people of Jerusalem, who in turn allowed the religious officials to dictate daily life. It seemed like every decision that Pilate made was the wrong one in the eyes of the Jewish people. Pilate was simply a man who was completely frustrated at his job and was looking for just one time where he could make a decision that was well-received by those under his rule.
We’re told that after the “trial” that took place between Jesus and the Sanhedrin, that Jesus was led away to Pilate’s headquarters, the place where he stayed when he was in Jerusalem. Pilate was there because, if you recall, this is the time of the Passover festival and he has to be around to help keep the peace. Pilate comes out to this group of men and asks them why they were bringing Jesus to him. He wanted to know what charges had been made against Jesus. You couldn’t just bring someone to the governor, they had to be guilty of something and they had to be tried by lower courts. In our country today, cases don’t just begin at the Supreme Court, they go through the lower courts first. After being asked about the charges, the Jews tell Pilate that the charges are based of his theology. Pilate tells the Jews to try Jesus through their own courts. You have to think that at this point in the story that Pilate was on Jesus’ side since he probably didn’t think too highly of the Sanhedrin of Jerusalem due to the fact that they tormented him constantly. Add to that the fact that the Jews were bringing their problems to his doorstep and answering him very arrogantly with a response that basically says, “Don’t you think we’ve done that already. We’ve already found him guilty and we’re bringing him to you.” I want you to notice that at no point are we actually told of any real charges being brought against Jesus, but we’re only told that he’s been found guilty. Finally, the truth comes out; the only reason why they are even coming to Pilate is because they are not allowed to put Jesus to death under their laws. Pilate sees this and instead of dismissing it, he agrees to hear their case in order to keep the peace and not make things more difficult for himself.
Pilate then brings Jesus into his headquarters and questions him. Now, in the interest of time, we’re going to temporarily press pause and come back to the particulars of their conversation in a few weeks. I don’t feel as if we can adequately examine the words of Jesus to Pilate in the time remaining, but I do want us to look at how this ultimately ends in order to set the stage for our next time together in a few weeks. After Pilates questioning and examining of Jesus, he comes back outside and tells the crowd of Jews that he has found no fault with Jesus even though the Sanhedrin has found him guilty. He even gives them a chance to do the right thing in letting him go. He says to the crowd, “You have a custom that I should release one man for you at the Passover. So do you want me to release to you the King of the Jews?” Pilate gives them a choice between releasing Jesus and releasing a man named Barrabas. Now, Barrabas was a true criminal. We know from the other gospel accounts that Barrabas was a thief and a murder who committed numerous crimes as an act of rebellion against Rome. Basically, Barrabas was a terrorist. By any measure, the crimes of Barrabas were so heinous that you could have placed him next to anyone and he would have been seen as the more evil of the two parties. Pilate has placed Barrabas, who he views as the most violent criminal of the day, alongside Jesus, whom he has already said that he finds no fault with, in hopes that the crowd will allow Jesus to be set free.
Think about this for a second, the Jewish people are being given a chance to spare the life of their Messiah. They are given a chance to spare the life of the one that they have waited for, yet they call for the true criminal to be freed. It should be noted, that according to tradition, that Barrabas’ full name was Jesus Barrabas. Also, the name Barrabas can be translated to mean “son of the father.” How striking is it that these Jews were crying for the freedom of Jesus “son of the father” instead of the Jesus who is the Son of the Father, the promised Messiah.
Many times in our world we become so fixed upon what we want and what we think is best that we miss what is right in front of us. We do things that we know aren’t completely right or even legitimate and we rationalize it in our minds so that it’s ok and acceptable. I have to think that there were those in attendance that day, and even some member of the Sanhedrin themselves, who knew that what was taking place was not right. They were so clouded by sin and the thing that they wanted that they missed what was right and good. But God’s plan shines through. This persecution, arrest, trial, sentencing, and crucifixion was all part of God’s plan of salvation. It was all part of God’s saving a fallen humanity. Every little detail and every thought, word, and deed was according to a plan that had existed since before the foundation of the earth. Take that in. Marinate on that for just a second. Something so heinous and so brutal and so unethical was used to save us; you and me. These events that are so atrocious were part of God’s plan of salvation. As Paul said in his letter to the Christians in Rome, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” Glory be to God; in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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