Wednesday, April 13, 2011
John 19:15 Pilate said to them, "Shall I crucify your King?" The chief priests answered, "We have no king but Caesar!"
WHAT KING?
"Shall I crucify your King?" To correctly answer that question the chief priests first would have to be able to identify the One who was their King. In the last three years they recognized that Jesus taught with authority. They were shown in His miracles His authority to forgive sins but they rejected that authority and did not want the rule that He offered. They did not want Jesus on any throne, much less the throne of their hearts. They did not recognize the authority that Jesus would wield on the Last Day when everyone is to appear before His judgment throne.
Their answer to Pilate's question, "Shall I crucify your King?" was, "What King? We don't see any King standing here. We have no king but Caesar." They believed Caesar's authority to be over that of Jesus. They felt their own authority was above that of Jesus, and refused to recognize Jesus as any sort of king. They could not answer the question properly because of the hardness of their hearts.
It is a miracle that the Holy Spirit is able to cut through the darkness of sinful hearts with the light of truth that Jesus is King. Even before you see Jesus glorified on Judgment Day you are privileged to recognize Him as your King. He has defeated the competition and rules your heart with grace, mercy, and love.
