Witness to Christ: Pontius Pilate John 19:1–16

 

Grace, mercy and peace from God, our Father, and Lord, Jesus Christ.

 

We’re in a sermon series called Witnesses to Christ. Today, we’ll take a look at Pontius Pilate and his role in Jesus’ passion.

 

According to a Latin inscription found on the Mediterranean coast in 1961, Pontius Pilate was the Roman governor of Judea for ten years—from 26 to 36 AD. 

 

Surprisingly, Pilate wasn’t born into the elite Roman aristocracy, or upper nobility.

 

 So it was quite amazing that he rose to a position of such power and importance. 

 

First, he rose to power through the military. He was an officer in the Roman army, serving in Germania, modern day Germany. 

 

Pilate’s rise to power was also, and especially, through marriage.

 

While on leave from the army for a year, and spending it in Rome, Pilate met and married a Roman woman named Claudia Procula. 

 

Claudia’s mother was Julia Augustus, daughter of the great Caesar Augustus, who was the Roman emperor when Jesus was born. 

 

That made Claudia the granddaughter of Caesar Augustus, and the niece, or actually step-niece of the current Caesar, Tiberius, who ruled at the time of Jesus’ ministry. 

 

So Claudia was a Roman princess, the equivalent today of Princess Eugenie. Anyone know who she is?                                                                                                       She’s the granddaughter of Queen Elizabeth, and niece of Prince Charles, who is, of course, next in line to be king of England.

 

Marrying Claudia catapulted Pilate into the inner circle of the Roman elite, and he was able to gain membership in the elite political club called, “Friends of Caesar”. 

 

Pilate didn’t have an easy go of it in governing Judea. Many of the Jewish people resented Roman rule and taxation. So he had to squash a number of riots and rebellions.

 

A few months before the trial of Jesus, Pilate made a decision that would greatly impact his decision to hand Jesus over to be crucified.

 

He decided to hang his personal shields around his palace in Caesarea, near modern day Tel-Aviv, which he knew would offend the Jewish people who considered those shields to be graven images; so they rioted. 

 

The Jewish leaders sent word of the riot to Tiberius Caesar, telling him what happened, and that it was Pilate’s fault.

 

Tiberius informed Pilate that if he caused another riot, he would lose his governorship, and be expelled from the Friends of Caesar Club. 

 

Expulsion from Friends of Caesar meant either exile or voluntary suicide. 

 

The Jewish leaders knew that Pilate had received that letter, so when they brought Jesus to him to be crucified, they had Pilate over a barrel, so to speak. 

 

At stake was Pilate’s career, and possibly even his life.  

 

But there was a way for him to do the right thing and make the right decision, if he would just take it.

We read about this John 19:1-16. 

 

Then Pilate took Jesus and flogged him. 2 And the soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head and arrayed him in a purple robe. 3 They came up to him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and struck him with their hands. 

 

Pilate did this to try to convince the Jewish leaders to give up on their demands to have Jesus crucified because he knew he was innocent.

 

Also, as we mentioned last week, his wife, Claudia, sent word to him that he should release Jesus because she was having nightmares about Him, which is a very interesting part of the story. 

 

First, it’s interesting that she was even there. The prefects weren’t typically allowed to bring their wives along with them. That Pilate could was likely because of who his wife was, the Emperor’s niece.

 

Also interesting is where her dream came from. Was it sent by God? Or was it psychological; a product of all the excitement and turmoil that was happening? We don’t know. 

 

But we know it got Pilate’s attention, and caused him some apprehension.

 

As it turned out, though, any fear of God Pilate may have had gave way to his fear of the crowd. 

 

4 Pilate went out again and said to them, “See, I am bringing him out to you that you may know that I find no guilt in him.” 5 So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, “Behold the man!”

 

 6 When the chief priests and the officers saw him, they cried out, “Crucify him, crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and crucify him, for I find no guilt in him.”

7 The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die because he has made himself the Son of God.” 8 When Pilate heard this statement, he was even more afraid.                                                                              

 

As we said last week, while Pilate seems to have been an agnostic, he did have at least some respect for God, but not enough to make him do the right thing. He was more afraid of the crowd than of God.

 

In the same way, sometimes our fear of being rejected or harmed by people is greater than our courage to do the right thing. We need God’s forgiveness, and His help to do what’s right; and the help of God’s people, the fellowship.

 

9 He entered his headquarters again and said to Jesus, “Where are you from?” But Jesus gave him no answer. 10 So Pilate said to him, “You will not speak to me? Don’t you know that I have authority to release you and authority to crucify you?”

11 Jesus answered him, “You would have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above. Therefore he who delivered me over to you has the greater sin.”                                                                                                                              

12 From then on Pilate sought to release him, but the Jews cried out, “If you release this man, you are not Caesar's friend. Everyone who makes himself a king opposes Caesar.”                                                                                                                                        

 

There it was. They were the words that caused Pilate to cave: If you release him, you’re no friend of Caesar. 

 

If Pilate would release Jesus, they would notify Caesar that he had released a man who was trying to overthrow Rome, which, of course, Jesus wasn’t; and Pilate would be expelled from the Friends of Caesar Club, and face exile, or worse. 

 

And for good measure, they would riot, also getting Pilate into trouble.

 

They had come ready to riot. Like a couple summers ago, some gathered in various cities to protest, but others came to riot and loot. 

 

They didn’t come before Pilate to loot, but they came to riot if they didn’t get their way.                                                                                                                   

 

13 So when Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The Stone Pavement, and in Aramaic, Gabbatha. 

14 Now it was the day of Preparation of the Passover. It was about the sixth hour. He said to the Jews, “Behold your King!”

15 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.” 16 So he delivered him over to them to be crucified.

 

It was the wrong decision by Pilate, but ironically it ended up changing the world.                                         

 

Jesus was the One who changed the world by His decision to accept the unjust punishment, and die to redeem the world. 

 

After this the Jewish leaders learned they could control Pilate, and he ended up losing his governorship, and we think he was exiled to Gaul. 

And nothing more is heard of his wife, Claudia.

 

Pilate was in a tough spot; it called for the courage to do the right thing and endure whatever the consequences might be. 

 

Had he looked to God for help, he could have found the courage he needed.

 

But his fear was greater than his courage, and he did the wrong thing, and it ended up costing him. 

 

Even more, it ended up costing an innocent man his life.

 

The exact opposite was true of Jesus. 

 

His love and courage were far greater than His fear – He had the courage to die for our forgiveness, and the power to rise for our life and salvation.

 

When we look to ourselves or to the world for courage, that’s when we fail to do the right and godly thing.

 

When we look to God, and to His Word and Sacraments, and receive love from His Son, and power from His Spirit, that’s when we find the courage to do the right thing, even when it’s hard to do, even when its’ going to cost us dearly.

 

When we encourage each other, when we forgive each other when we fail, and lift each other up, we find the strength to do better, to be more courageous like Christ. 

 

We’re more courageous when we have the godly love and support of others.

 

May God always help us to do what is godly and right, just as Jesus did for us, and for the world. 

And as we do, may His peace, which passes understanding, guard our hearts and minds, in the One who had the courage to save us. Amen.