Finished - Not quite! Day 8

  

"You have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you, here after you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right and of power, and coming on the clouds of heaven"(Matt.26:65)

Hey Gang, We ended yesterday’s morning message with a description of Caiaphas, best Barnum and Bailey act of the day, "He tore his robes and said, "He has blasphemed".   (Matt. 21:65a). There was a law breaker there at that moment but it was not Jesus.  Leviticus 21:10 tell us that Caiaphas performed a sinful act against the Lord:  "The priest who is the highest among his brothers, on whose head the anointing oil has been poured and who had been consecrated to wear the garments, shall not uncover his head nor tear his clothes".  In other words the High Priest should never lose his cool.

Point:  Just a reminder as we look at the road to the cross, the Jews did not have the power to kill someone and had to go to the Romans for permission.  The Romans then would then carry out the execution.  The main  focus was now expediency.  Passover week was known to have as many as two million Jews that descended on Jerusalem for Passover. Caiaphas and his cohorts wanted the whole thing completed before the sun came up and people began to pour into the streets seeking the Nazarene who does great things and teaches with authority.

Notice the drastic change in the crimes they asserted against Jesus when in front of Pilate, the Roman Procurator!  It was no longer a religious issue but treason against the people and the State.   "We found this man misleading our nation and forbidding to pay taxes to Caesar, and saying that He Himself is Christ, A King"(Luke 23:2).  Short memories or outright deception?  Did Jesus not say, "Render to Caesar what is Caesars and to God what is God's"?  It really did not matter what they accused Him of, any charge would have been without foundation because He was "A Lamb without blemish and without spot" (I Peter 1:19).  They knew that treason was the only charge that would ring Pilate's bell and gain them the tragic end they sought.

Soooo, it is interesting to note that, as I reached this point in my preparations, the count down to the cross, I began to make a huge amount of mistakes in my typing.  I have sweaty palms and I notice the anxiety level has gone up.  When I think of what Jesus did for me on a hideous cross on Golgotha's Hill in Jerusalem,  I feel a great burden for the part I played it putting Him on that cross.   How wonderful to know that Father God loved me so much He sent His Son to die on that hideous cross for me and you.  Praise Him for that.

NOTE: Last day of trial tomorrow Sat Apr 19.

Blessings,

Gramps