Therefore when Pilate heard this statement, he became more afraid; and he entered into the Praetorium again and said to Jesus, “Where are You from?” But Jesus gave him no answer. So Pilate said to Him, “You do not speak to me? Do You not know that I have authority to release You, and I have authority to crucify You?” Jesus answered, “You would have no authority over Me, unless it had been given you from above; for this reason he who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.” As a result of this Pilate kept seeking to release Him, but the Jews cried out saying, “If you release this man, you are no friend of Caesar; everyone who makes himself to be a king opposes Caesar.”
John 19:8-15
Therefore when Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out, and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The Stone Pavement, but in Hebrew, Gabbatha. Now it was the day of Preparation for the Passover; it was about the sixth hour. And he said to the Jews, “Behold, your King!” So 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.”
Introduction
Almost immediately after his postmodern sounding response of, “what is truth,” Pilate finds the veneer over his agnosticism begin to crack. When the people cried out that Jesus has claimed to be God, suddenly the calculus changes. If Jesus’ word is true, then Pilate has made himself an opponent of God. And for that, he becomes afraid.
His fear is doubled now that he will either spare the Lord and face the crowd or he will put the King of Kings to death and face God. Which will he fear more? Which would you fear more? Would you test the situation like Pilate chooses to do, or would you live by faith?
The Source of all Authority
Hearing this accusation, Pilate begins to question Jesus, demanding to know if the allegation is true: does Jesus claim to be the Son of God? Refusing to answer him in fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy in his 53rd chapter, Jesus draws the ire of the self-important governor.
Holding his position over Jesus, Pilate indignantly reminds Him of the authority that has been granted him by Caesar. This authority is one Pilate assumed he had in spite of Jesus when in fact it was an authority he had because of Jesus. Because the course of history is not an accident, and God did not allow mankind to fall by mistake, neither too was it a mistake that Pilate would be the presiding governor during this trial. The words of Mordecai to Esther might even sound appropriate to Pilate here, “And who knows whether you have not reached royalty for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14)
Jesus, in no uncertain terms, speaks this to Pilate. He tells the man that his authority is derived from God who placed him there for this moment. And it is, to Pilate’s relief, Judas and the Pharisees whose sin exceeded his own.
In the eyes of Rome, Caesar is divinely appointed. But each descending magistrate from there is only given from Caesar under delegation. In a radical change of perspective, Jesus presents a God whose interest in the lives of His creation is so great that He is not content to hand delegation of anything fully to another. Rather than a great clockmaker setting the universe in motion and letting it run on its own, God involves Himself in everything from kings (Proverbs 21:1) to dice (Proverbs 16:33). That includes Pilate in all his glory, and it includes leaders and followers down to the smallest of families.
Who is King?
Left uncertain whether Jesus was really the Son of God or not, Pilate is finally convinced by the threat levied by the crowd, “If you release this man, you are no friend of Caesar; everyone who makes himself to be a king opposes Caesar.” The name “Caesar” was only truly the family name of Gaius Julius Caesar. After his rise to power, Caesar made himself dictator of Rome until his death by betrayal from those who saw and recognized his insatiable thirst for power. Succeeding him was his nephew, Gaius Octavius, to be known officially as Augustus Caesar (Imperator Caesar Augustus). It was Augustus who created the Roman Empire, naming himself the first Emperor of Rome, memorializing his uncle and mentor by making his name the official title of every future Emperor. This association between Caesar and supreme ruler is so strong that it influenced the titles of many nations to come, including Kaiser (Germany) and Tsar (Russia).
To oppose Caesar is tantamount to opposing God Himself in the eyes of a Roman. Finally convinced, Pilate takes Jesus out to be judged before the people. He takes his seat on his throne of judgment and presents Jesus as “Your King” in his ongoing effort to play both sides of the matter. Sealing all of their fates, however, the crowd cries out, “We have no king but Caesar.” In saying this, they themselves commit blasphemy. They disown their God and their savior in a single moment, placing their hope in a man under whose thumb they are actively oppressed.
What the city will find a short 37 years later is that Rome and her Emperor have no interest in serving Jerusalem, but will instead carry the judgment of God against that great city. In rejecting their Messiah, they bring the promised judgment on themselves as the city is sacked and the Temple is destroyed under the command of the Roman general Titus, a future would-be Caesar. In this, the Lord makes it clear there is no King but Jesus, and even Caesar himself serves Him (Isaiah 10:5).
May the Lord bless you and conform you into the image of His Son.
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