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JOHN CHAPTER 18 KJV WEB / Parallel Gospel See previous page Jn 18,1-3 (172aa) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Tares among the wheat >> Devils among the saints >> False brethren among the people of God >> Judas Iscariot among the disciples Jn 18-1,2 (174b) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Man’s religion >> Good traditions (Exception to bad religion) >> Good habits – To avoid the Roman cohort all Jesus had to do was change His routine and go someplace else where Judas would not have predicted. Everything had culminated to this night in Jerusalem when they came looking for Him. Jesus was obedient in what He came to do; instead of running from His destiny, He embraced it. He went to the beautiful garden in Gethsemane, being one of His favorite places to pray, and now it was the place that commenced the single-most sinful event in the history of mankind, the crucifixion of God's Son. Jn 18,2-8 (145i) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Jesus’ works bear witness of Himself >> Demon possession >> Human state >> Filthiness >> Rejecting the opportunity to be holy – When it says “they” it included Judas Iscariot, meaning he was with them, indicating that he was no longer a disciple of Jesus, but the men who tortured and killed Christ were probably in the crowd that arrested Him, and so Judas was party to them. The Bible says that Satan entered Judas while eating the morsel of bread and wine at the Last Supper in the upper room, so prior to the Last Supper Judas was not technically demon possessed, and it was doubtful that he was possessed for long, and then Judas as it were came to his senses from his delirium. He realized what he had done, similar to the prodigal son, except that when Judas tried to repent, he didn’t know how, so he hung himself. Prior to the Last Supper Judas made all the wrong decisions and never took Jesus to heart; Satan was grooming him in order to betray the Lord at the right time. This is typical of the world today, people act relatively normal, but Satan is grooming them to receive the Mark of the Beast at the proper time. When civilization as we know it suffers total collapse, people will panic and those who do not turn to the Lord will turn to the spirit of the world that has been preparing them for that day and hour, and demon possession will become endemic in society overnight. (155d) Witness >> Validity of the believer >> Witness of the believer >> Conscience >> An evil conscience keeps us from believing God >> Knowledge of evil testifies against our deeds – Note that they didn’t fall in astonishment, but were pushed to the ground by divine providence. This happened to verify once more the identity of Christ, and acted as one more opportunity to repent of their intensions, but they refused to stop and think about what they were doing. They just picked up themselves and proceeded with their plan. It was not that they were unaware of what happened, but that they refused to acknowledge it, or that Jesus was the Christ and they were about to execute Him. Somewhere in their darkened hearts they knew Jesus was Israel’s Messiah, that He was king of the Jews, that He was God in human flesh, and they knew they should not lay hands on Him. So, this divine push was not to inform them, but to remind them that they were about to crucify the Lord of glory. It also demonstrated that they were working against their conscience, which is the root of sin, knowing what they were doing was wrong, and that they were committed to their plan, ready to push through any problem that got in their way. The fact that God gave them one more warning just seconds before initiating their plan, proved their determination to accomplish their goal, though ignorantly. When Jesus was hanging on the cross, he uttered the immortal words, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” This suggests that many who were in the gang didn't know He was the Son of God. Outside of knowledge sin does not exist. Sin is not defined as doing something wrong, but “doing something we know is wrong!” It is the knowledge of evil (the law) that make sin utterly sinful (Rom 7,7-14). KJV WEB / Parallel Gospel / Navigation Bar Jn 18,4-9 (39ia) Judgment >> Jesus defeated death >> Jesus defeated Satan’s authority >> The demons are subject to Christ – The spiritual world was just as involved in crucifying the Son of God as man, and thus the cross equally judged the satanic darkness as man’s sin through the body of Jesus Christ. Through the cross God forged a way to forgive man and condemn Satan at the same time, taking from him the keys of death and hell, so he no longer had a say in the eternal destiny of those who believe in Jesus. Jn 18,4-8 (61k) Paradox >> Two implied meanings >> Out of his mouth comes a sharp two-edged sword: That cut them to the quick / That cut them to the grave (150e) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Works of the Church bear witness of Jesus >> Confessing Jesus >> Making the good confession (Son of God) -- These verses go with verses 33-37. Jesus made the good confession at His mock trial, confessing to be the Son of God, but before that in this passage He made the good confession as the one they sought, and at the end of the age He will make the good confession in the form of a sharp sword that proceeds from His mouth (Rev 19-15,21), and that time when they all fall to the ground, they won't return to their feet. Jn 18,4-7 (76d) Thy kingdom come >> Wicked motives >> Motives based on envy (148c) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Works of the Church bear witness to Jesus >> Evangelism >> Jesus solemnly testified (167k) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Do not conform to the world >> The world’s unbelief (168c) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Do not conform to the world >> Do not conform to the world’s rejection of God -- These verses go with verses 28-40 (169f) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> The world is blind to God >> Willful blindness – To be literally pushed to the ground by God Himself, and still immediately stand seeking His Son to kill Him depicts the height of arrogance and spiritual blindness in these people. What is scarier, this level of wickedness is not confined to the Roman soldiers in Jesus day, but is iconic to humanity in every generation that ever lived. This was an arrogance originating from Satan. There were demonic forces at work, prompting Jesus to say, “This hour and the power of darkness are yours” (Lk 22-53). They actually had pride in wielding the power of Satan. They may not have known exactly what they were doing, but they were doing it just the same. Subtract Satan’s delusion from the Roman soldiers and they would have realized that this was truly the Son of God, which is what one of them said after they crucified Him (Mat 27-54). He finally opened His eyes after it was too late, perhaps after the satanic forces surrounding the cross dispersed. (185k) Works of the devil >> The result of lawlessness >> Blasphemy >> Responding with contempt to the Holy Spirit >> Indifferent to the Holy Spirit (233g) Kingdom of God >> Pursuing the kingdom >> Seeking the kingdom >> Do not seek the kingdom by the flesh (253c) Trinity >> Relationship between Father and Son >> Jesus is equal with the Father >> Jesus has all the external qualities of the Father >> Son is inherently equal with the Father – They all fell to the ground after He spoke these three words: “I AM He.” This is the name that God gave to Moses in Exodus 3-14, “God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM," and He said, "Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'” I AM is the name of God! Note that God speaks of Himself in the present tense; He knows the end from the beginning and the beginning from the end, but He chooses to live in the present, and he taught us to live in the present too, not live in the past or sacrifice the future for the present or be anxious for anything, but to let tomorrow take care of itself. KJV WEB / Parallel Gospel / Navigation Bar Jn 18,7-9 (28c) Gift of God >> God is our advocate >> God protects the Church from the world – A few verses earlier it says that Judas kissed the Lord as confirmation to the Roman soldiers that He was whom they sought. They asked Him, “Are you Jesus of Nazareth,” and He said, “I am He,” and when He said this, the entire Roman cohort fell to the ground, pushed by an overwhelming force, angels invisible to the naked eye or perhaps the power of Jesus’ anointing in the Holy Spirit. This happened primarily as an effort to protect the disciples. This spiritual experience humbled the Roman soldiers enough to grant Jesus’ request to let His disciples go. Protecting his disciples fulfilled the word that He spoke in His high priestly prayer (Jn 17-12) and fulfilled the Old Testament prophecy of Psalm 41-9. Not even Judas was harmed; instead, he hung himself later. Jn 18-9,10 (228h) Kingdom of God >> God’s kingdom is a living organism >> God working in you >> God works in you to keep you in His will – The Scripture just finished saying, “Of those whom You have given Me I lost not one,” then Peter drew his sword and cut off the ear of his fellow man. It is not that we are so faithful that we follow Jesus; it’s that Jesus is faithful in keeping us. Had the disciples been easy to shepherd, it would have made us concerned about ourselves, but difficult as the disciples were to shepherd is a testimony of Jesus’ ability to keep us in His will too. The minute He turns his back, we are drawing our sword, solving problems our own way and getting ourselves in trouble, thinking we are doing the Lord a favor as though we understood Him when we don’t. This Old Testament prophecy that is quoted testified to Jesus’ ability to shepherd His disciples, having nothing to do with our ability to follow Him. The fact that we are following Jesus is a miracle in itself, since our flesh only wants to go astray. Following Jesus is an indication that the Holy Spirit is working in our lives; otherwise, we would be opposed to the will of God. Jesus often rebuked them for being spiritually brain-dead, arguing with each other about who was greatest, expecting God to give them whatever they wanted, while their fleshly mind continually contradicted the word of God. Jn 18-10,11 (160l) Works of the devil >> Temptation >> Tempted to act like an animal Jn 18-11 (37a) Judgment >> The cross >> God judged the sin of the world through Christ (45f) Judgment >> Believer’s sin >> Through His Son >> Jesus absorbed sin of the Church – Jesus trusted His Father and lived for Him, and in the process of doing His will, He fulfilled Old Testament prophecies regarding the Messiah throughout His ministry, but at the end of His life, He told Peter to take a sword, and, after using it, rebuked Peter and healed the man’s ear that Peter severed. Had Jesus not told His disciples to arm themselves, they would not have been carrying knives. Throughout His ministry Jesus taught that violence had no place in the purpose of God; He never had anything to do with swords and clubs or with physical violence of any kind. Therefore, there is a flagrant contradiction in all this, and the only thing Jesus hoped to gain from it was to fulfill Old Testament prophecy regarding Himself, which would have eventually been fulfilled by the two robbers that were crucified beside Him, being numbered with transgressors (Mk 15-28). (209jb) Salvation >> The salvation of God >> Jesus is our sacrifice >> Jesus paid the price for us >> Jesus is the lamb of God >> We remember His sacrifice at communion – This event happened shortly after Passover that they celebrated in the Upper Room. Jesus didn’t need to tell His disciples to arm themselves, this being the only recorded mistake that Jesus made, and it happened just hours before He was to be arrested and ultimately crucified to pay for the sins of the world. The best explanation that satisfies all aspects of the Scriptures points to the very real possibility that Jesus was losing His nerve, becoming extremely anxious for what He was about to suffer, not from the prospect of physical pain but spiritual anguish, for He was about to take on the sins of all mankind and judged by His Father as the ultimate sinner who committed every sin since the beginning of time. This brought on tremendous anxiety, and His anxiety was separating Him from His Father, who was already withdrawing from Him, suggesting that the process of paying for the sins of the world had already begun. Jesus experienced fear in the Garden of Gethsemane; He had already started to become sin. Jn 18,12-14 (55j) Paradox >> Opposites >> Fulfilling your own prophecy – Caiaphas, the high priest, earlier prophesied by the Spirit of God that one man should die on behalf of the people, but then later in this passage we see him acting as ringleader of His mock trial, advocating that He be crucified. It is one thing to prophesy that a man should die for the sins of the people, but quite another thing to condemn the same man to death, fulfilling his own prophecy. This is another example of forcing prophecy by his own will and showing that God's predestination requires someone to perform what has been planned to occur before the beginning of time. Jn 18,15-18 (174i) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Form of godliness >> Form of a servant but denying God your loyalty -- These verses go with verses 25-27. Peter had a problem with being double-minded, but we all have that problem. In other passages we hear Peter-the-impetuous stating he was willing to die for the Lord, which bordered on an oath, and Jesus taught not to make oaths or promises anymore than was absolutely necessary. According to Peter, if Jesus would be crucified, then he would die with Him, but the fact that Peter was standing by the fire warming himself showed just how far behind his heart lagged from his confession to suffer for his Master. He wasn’t even willing to shiver for the Lord, let alone be killed, but that wasn’t what Jesus wanted from Peter. He wanted Peter alive to be His spokesman for the fledgling early church. Jn 18-15,16 (78a) Thy kingdom come >> God ministers to people through the humble >> The humble are invisible to men, but God sees them – The high priest knew John but not Peter, and in this way John asked the high priest to give Peter access to the courtyard. That was the end of John’s visibility, who receded into the background, but Peter made himself bigger when he went to warm himself by the fire, putting himself in a position where he denied the Lord and risked being nailed to a cross next to Jesus, the twelve disciples nearly losing their fearless leader before the Church began. The humble know when to be visible and when to disappear into the shadows. It is important to be visible only when God can use us in that manner; otherwise it is better to remain invisible for the sake of staying out of trouble. A lot of people try to make themselves visible for their own purposes, attempting to establish a ministry, though many of them never hear from God, so it is not God calling them, but they seek their own glory and become like Peter, getting themselves into all kinds of trouble without producing any fruit. If we remain humble before the Lord, we maintain potential to bear fruit for God, but if we become arrogant and presume the importance of becoming visible, we will bring shame on ourselves and hurt people in the process, and it could even lead to denying the Lord. KJV WEB / Navigation Bar / Parallel Gospel Jn 18,18-24 (42d) Judgment >> Satan destroyed >> Be like Jesus >> Innocent >> No evidence against you Jn 18-18 (181i) Works of the devil >> The origin of lawlessness >> Deception >> Self deception >> Imaginary perception of self >> Pretending to be someone you’re not (182a) Works of the devil >> The origin of lawlessness >> Deception >> Self deception >> Believing the darkness within you is light -- This verse goes with verse 28 Jn 18,19-24 (73d) Authority >> Respect positions of authority >> In the Church – Jesus gave a different reaction to the high priest compared to Paul’s slap in the face; Paul rebuked the high priest saying, “God is going to strike you, you whitewashed wall!” (Act 23-3), but when he learned he was high priest, Paul quickly back-peddled saying, “I was not aware, brethren, that he was high priest; for it is written, 'You shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people” (v5). These two responded differently after being slapped, Paul not knowing that the man was high priest, and Jesus giving him a reasonable answer. (143e) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Witnesses of Jesus >> The public >> Jesus ministered publicly – Jesus regularly spoke in the temple and in the synagogues on the Sabbath, but during the week especially when persecuted He would go between cities and conduct services in open fields, and people would come and listen to Him. He couldn’t have done this in the beginning of His ministry, because no one knew about Him yet, but once He gained popularity, He had the option of going into wilderness areas and ministering to people there. This proved to be an effective method of ministry, and while He was out there ministering, He would use the wilderness as a teaching tool for the Kingdom of God, and He integrated many aspects of nature into His messages, but while He was in town speaking in synagogues, He would preach the gospel in terms of their old covenant law and the prophets. This proved to be a very effective combination of settings, where He could both address the issues of their present religion and introduce the principles of the covenant that was to come. Jn 18,19-23 (122i) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Boldness in adverse circumstances >> Speak the truth in the face of adversity (179a) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Hypocrisy >> Jesus rebukes the Pharisees >> Rebuked for questioning His authority – Jesus essentially told them that they could have ascertained everything they wanted to know from those He taught, for He spoke openly to them in public settings, and in fact the chief priests and Pharisees did confer with them, so that asking Jesus to reiterate what they already knew was a way of dangling Jesus on a string like a puppet, but He would have none of it. Since it was a mock trial, these were mock questions and Jesus was pointing out that fact to them by refusing to answer them, further enraging His enemies. Giving the wicked what they deserve often provokes and emboldens them to be more evil, which is what Jesus was trying to do, further guaranteeing His death. For this reason, the Old Testament's remedy was to completely eliminate the wicked from the earth, but the new covenant remedy is to lead them to Christ. It is when people are unwilling to believe in Jesus that the new covenant runs into a wall, and when the whole world is no longer willing to believe in Jesus, it is time to drop the curtain ending the age of grace. When the whole world is populated with the kind of people that gathered around Jesus wanting to kill Him, who are convinced in their own mind that they are right about everything, having become unreasonable and irreconcilable, they do more to beckon the return of Christ than His own people. KJV WEB / Parallel Gospel / Navigation Bar Jn 18,20-23 (18a) Sin >> Unrighteous judgment >> Condemning Jesus (79c) Thy kingdom come >> Renewing your mind >> Compromising your convictions -- These verses go with verses 29&30 Jn 18-20,21 (143b) The Public (Key verse) (149g) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Works of the Church bear witness to Jesus >> Evangelism >> Preaching the word to the world >> Sowing the seed Jn 18-22,23 (60a) Paradox >> Two implied meanings >> Being sarcastic as seen through the eyes of the world / Rebuking the Church for being carnally minded – Jesus didn’t use fighting words on the high priest but answered him in logical fashion, which further irritated him, which is different from a deliberate insult. Nothing angers people more than logic, who have strayed from the mark and are acting illogical, making logic sound sarcastic. Jesus in His own way insulted the high priest in a respectful way by attempting to reason with him, knowing their reason had left them. This was Jesus’ manner of insulting people; speaking parables was another way is speaking to those He knew would never receive Him, because they didn’t deserve to know the truth. According to Old Testament prophecy He was required to preach the gospel of the kingdom, and it was also prophesied that He would speak in parables, so that while hearing they may not understand, and while seeing they may not perceive. From unbelief they would not ask Him to clarify but dismissed the words of the miracle Worker. Jn 18,25-27 (76f) Thy kingdom come >> Wicked motives >> Motives based on self-righteousness -- These verses go with verses 31,32. Peter fulfilled Old Testament prophecy that was written hundreds of years before he was born when he abandoned the Lord. In the process of trying to be a pseudo-hero, he diverted from God's expectation of him. If he had to make a choice and one of them was to become a constituent of God’s predetermined plan, he would have accomplished something. Most anybody would love to fulfill prophecy, but Peter was more interested in personal glory. Peter no doubt loved the Lord; he couldn’t stand the thought of abandoning Him, but he had no choice and it was what he eventually did, but he didn’t like the best answer. He tried to show some kind of allegiance to the Lord, which was thoughtful but misguided, and he ended up wounding his conscience more than his fellow disciples by denying he even knew the Lord, literally putting it into words. (174i) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Form of godliness >> Form of a servant but denying God your loyalty -- These verses go with verses 15-18. Peter put himself in a dreadful situation when he followed Jesus into the courtyard and warmed himself by the light of the fire, so that everybody could see him and recognized his face, which was not very clever on his part. Standing next to the fire coddling his flesh in the cold night, he contradicted the circumstances surrounding his being there, which was to follow his Lord into suffering, contrasting Jesus’ imminent torture against his fleshly indulgence. His reasoning lodged between a half idea and a half conviction, not having either, He wrestled with a cauldron of disconnected motives, none of which promised to accomplish a thing. He wasn’t there from curiosity or to deliver his Lord but was there only because He didn’t know what else to do. He must have felt that if He were anywhere else, He would have abandoned the Lord like the other disciples (except John), who was there also, and He didn’t want to be like them. In other words he felt superior to his friends while he stood in the enemy’s camp, on a quest for pride. John was further from the fire in the shadows on his own prideful quest. KJV WEB / Navigation Bar / Parallel Gospel Jn 18,28-40 (168c) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Do not conform to the world >> Do not conform to the world’s rejection of God -- These verses go with verses 4-7. The Pharisees earnestly desired to participate in the celebration of Passover and figured that venturing onto a Roman judicial courtyard would have defiled them in the sight of God, as though their conscience were actually intact. Their forefathers didn’t celebrate Passover for centuries at a time because of their waywardness. Instead, they wanted nothing more than to fit into the world around them, to fit into the very people that God had commanded them to destroy. Apparently God made them feel like freaks and they sought a sense of normalcy, erecting the nations' idols and foolishly bowing to them. People have always felt it necessary to fit into the world, yet everyone also wants to feel special at the same time. This creates a conflict of interests that we spend our whole lives trying to resolve, generating confusion, bitter feelings, skirmishes and wars. We cannot be normal and special at the same time, alluding to one of many paradoxes of the flesh, sown into the human genome and remaining an issue from generation to generation throughout the millennia. Jn 18,28-32 (21a) Sin >> Disobedience >> Demonstrating unbelief in the character of God (75i) Thy kingdom come >> Motives >> Being manipulative >> Controlling people in the dark >> By hiding the facts (180e) Works of the devil >> Practicing witchcraft >> Wolves >> Be shrewd as wolves and more innocent than they appear >> Wolves are clever Jn 18,28-31 (155e) Witness >> Validity of the believer >> Witness of the believer >> An evil conscience keeps us from believing God >> Knowledge of evil testifies against our motives – Some say that a person’s conscience can be destroyed, but in a way that is not really true; rather, a person can manipulate his conscience to permit himself to do whatever he wants, but there is a high cost to manhandling our conscience. It is a sacred mechanism instilled in every person. God uses it to simulate sinning in His presence, but once we start messing with our conscience, we lose our ability to know God, in that if we can't be honest with ourselves, how can we be honest with Him? The Jews had incentive to kill Jesus, being a thorn in their side, and in their conscience they had already disposed of Him, making Him appear as a sinner, and now they only needed to find a way to make the Romans see that. It is one thing to manipulate our conscience, but it is another to manipulate someone else. Ultimately, what put Jesus on the cross for the Romans was His confession that He was a king. Jesus would not deny that He was the Son of God; if He had to die for that statement, then so be it. Jesus was the king of the Jews, the king of all mankind, and He wasn’t about to deny it to Pilate or anybody, for it would make Him appear ashamed of His Father, though throughout his ministry He avoided the discussion, since it would have ensued His premature death. Jn 18,28-30 (19j) Sin >> Self righteousness will twist your mind – It was very important to the Pharisees that they made Passover, for they equated it with being right with God, using it as an emblem to prove their uprightness of heart, but it proved nothing of the sort. The mind is able to rationalize anything it wants. Jn 18-28 (176d) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Zeal without knowledge (Spirit w/o the word) >> Conviction without commandment – The Pharisees assumed that if they stepped on a pagan platform of justice, it would disqualify them from celebrating Passover, thinking they were better than their ancestors. In 2Chronicles chapter 34 it says that during King Josiah’s reign the priest discovered in the temple a lost book of the Law of Moses and from it resumed many of the practices and festivals that Israel stopped celebrating since the death of Joshua, which were things that helped to literally define Israel as God’s chosen nation. This interval of time represented the entire period of their habitation in the promise land. King Josiah was the first to re-institute Passover, and for this reason God forestalled judgment on Israel throughout Josiah’s life, but the king after him did evil in the sight of the Lord, and by that time God had grown weary of Israel’s waywardness and sent the Assyrians after them, who deported them to Babylon. 70 years later, when the Assyrians gave them back their nation and allowed them to rebuild their temple, they resumed the annual Passover feast and continued to celebrate it until the days of Christ. However, before the time of Josiah not even king David celebrated Passover, possibly because he was so busy destroying his enemies, but nor did his son Solomon, who had even less excuse, since he lived in a time of peace. Rather, Solomon was too busy building his empire to obey God; Solomon had a lot of faults. Centuries transpired when Israel did not celebrate Passover, and God warned them that if they failed to obey Him in these matters, judgment would befall them, and what were their consequences? They forgot their history with God, who delivered them from the Egyptians with a mighty hand, and once they allowed their heritage to slip, they sought a new identity, which they hurriedly borrowed from the surrounding gentile nations (the world). See also: History of Israel (Land of Canaan); Heb 11,29-31; 217l (182a) Works of the devil >> The origin of lawlessness >> Deception >> Self deception >> Believing the darkness within you is light -- This verse goes with verse 18. The enemies of Jesus were the ultimate hypocrites. They were in the process of crucifying the Lord of glory, trying to pin something on Him who was without sin, because He was an offense to their religiosity. Every time Jesus opened His mouth He battered their sinful lifestyles with a clarity of truth that no one had spoken before Him or since, and the worse thing He told them was that they had everything all wrong about God. This is what sin does to the mind; it distorts people’s understanding of God to the point of making Him unrecognizable. He told them they were sinners, but they already knew that, and they tried to hide it from society, but when He slammed their religion, they wanted to kill Him. KJV WEB / Navigation Bar / Parallel Gospel Jn 18,29-32 (185b) Works of the devil >> The origin of lawlessness >> Mystery of lawlessness >> Having no grounds for your hate >> Hating Christ without a cause – It was hard enough for the Jews to find an excuse to crucify Jesus; He continually battered their conscience, but they couldn’t use that as an excuse to execute Him before Pilate. The Jews were not allowed to put anyone to death because they were under Roman authority. The Romans allowed them to practice their religion, but not to enforce the Law of Moses, which was often easier said than done, since their religion was integrated into their law. They needed the Romans to give them permission not only to crucify Jesus, but even to do it for them, so now they needed to give the Romans reason to kill Jesus, which was also easier said than done. Jn 18-29,30 (18b) Unrighteous Judgment Lacks Evidence (Key verse) (18d) Sin >> False Judgment lacks evidence >> Undefined charges – The Pharisees did not answer Pilate’s question, yet he did not shoo them from his presence. If he wanted to discourage the execution of an innocent man, he should have discouraged the Pharisees from talking to him with a disrespectful tone and a note of sarcasm. Pilate merely said what any involved judge would have asked a prosecutor, ‘What are the charges against the defendant?’ In their arrogance and lack of charges they responded, “If this Man were not an evildoer, we would not have delivered Him to you.” Pilate should have pursued it further and said, ‘That is not an answer, what did He do wrong?’ If they could not sufficiently answer that question, he had every right to drive them from his court. Had they used the statement He made of destroying the temple that He could rebuild it in three days, it would have made him sound crazy and they didn’t want Him locked up; they wanted Him dead. They could not use His confession as the Son of God either, because Pilate was concerned only about Roman law, not about Jewish religion. Pilate was determined to do whatever it took to keep the peace even if it meant crucifying an innocent man. They had nothing against Jesus and Pilate knew it, having done nothing to threaten the peace. Instead, it was the people who threatened a riot, attributing the disturbance to Jesus. (79c) Thy kingdom come >> Renewing your mind >> Compromising your convictions -- These verses go with verse 35 (166a) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Wisdom of the world >> Man’s wisdom excuses his sinful nature >> Man’s wisdom rationalizes his sin – People believe what they want, like a black bird capriciously picking shiny objects to line its nest, not to be confused with pursuing the truth. Ask people what they believe and you will a get an assemblage of ideas, theories and doctrines haphazardly taped together in a way that makes them happy. The Pharisees were guilty of this and so was Pilate, this being an exceptionally lucid example of pursuing convenient facts designed to make life easier, but rejecting the truth, because there was no place in his life or in his heart for Him. Pilate only wanted peace and the Pharisees only wanted murder, and the two were at odds with each other, except that they had one idea in common: if they got rid of this guy, maybe life would return to normal, but nothing returned to normal after Jesus visited His people. (174e) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Form of godliness >> Self righteousness >> Justifying yourself (175h) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Ignorance >> Dodging the issue (willful ignorance) >> Dodging the issue to get what you want – The answer the Jews gave Pilate was the essence of circular reasoning; they gave him a non-answer. Pilate should have dismissed them on the spot, since he didn’t have a personal interest in seeing Jesus crucified, yet spiritually the forces of darkness were preying upon the minds of all who wielded power to make decisions that day. (182h) Works of the devil >> The origin of lawlessness >> Deception >> Being deceptive with people >> Lying to others KJV WEB / Navigation Bar / Parallel Gospel Jn 18-31,32 (76f) Thy kingdom come >> Wicked motives >> Motives based on self-righteousness -- These verses go with verses 25-27 Jn 18,33-37 (150e) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Works of the Church bear witness of Jesus >> Confessing Jesus >> Making the good confession (Son of God) -- These verses go with verses 4-8. Jesus lived thirty-three years, yet He never developed a reputation as the Son of God. Much of the gospel of John was written about His last few weeks prior to His crucifixion, and so all His comments to the Jews about being the Son of God were taken weeks if not days before his crucifixion. For thirty-three years Jesus lived without anyone suspecting anything unusual about Him, not even during His 3 1/2 year ministry when He performed His miracles, but now suddenly it became the main subject of discussion, and they used it against Him at His mock trial to have Him murdered. It doesn’t matter how many ways or how many times Jesus proved His identity as the Son of God, it only mattered that he made the good confession, to the Jews, to the Sanhedrin to the chief priests and to Pilate, for in telling them He told us. Jn 18-33,34 (17i) Sin >> Unrighteous judgment >> Ignorance >> Speaking truth without knowing it -- These verses go with verses 37&38. Pilate said to Jesus, "Are you the king of the Jews?" There are two words here that are out of order, "Are you." Had he switched them, it would have converted his statement from a question to a declaration of faith, 'You are the king of the Jews!' In verse 38 Pilate denied the very existence of truth; then his very next words were perhaps the most profound truth of the Bible that Jesus is without sin, "I find no guilt in Him." Pilate was a mixed bag of contradictions. People search blindly for the right combination of words to produce the truth, and they will never know how close they got, and yet how far they were in heart. See also: 2 letters shy of the kingdom; 58k (54f) Paradox >> Opposites >> A few words shy of the kingdom (58k) Paradox >> Two implied meanings >> Are you the king of the Jews? / You are the king of the Jews! – When Pilate asked Jesus, “Are you the king of the Jews,” Jesus heard ‘You are the king of the Jews,’ the letters R and U need to be transposed, converting it from a question to a statement of faith 'UR the king of the Jews.' Pilate was just two letters shy of heaven. See also: 2 letters shy of the kingdom; 17i (62d) Paradox >> Anomalies >> Being clever >> Answer with wisdom – Having the wisdom of God should be one of the characteristic traits of all Christians, but those with an anointing from God, dedicated to the faith and serving the Lord with a whole heart as the word of God commands are an anomaly in the Church these days. Jesus asked Pilate if he believed what he just said or if he merely parroted what others said about Him. Jesus was concerned about Pilate; it wouldn’t have done him any good to tell Pilate that He was the king of the Jews; He wanted Pilate to tell Him. Jesus lived in the weakness of human flesh and looked like any man; this is what threw people off His scent. Someone could have been looking for the Messiah and walked right passed Him; even when He performed miracles people doubted. When Peter said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Mat 16-16,17), he didn’t say it in terms of the miracles he performed, though that was part of it; what convinced him was the word of God that He spoke. Nobody could perform the miracles that Jesus did, but somebody could have possibly faked some of them, but nobody could fake the truth, otherwise it wouldn’t be true. Peter knew the truth when he heard it, and this is why Jesus chose Peter as one of His closest disciples. Contrast that with Pilate; Jesus could have talked to him for hours about God and he would have been unconvinced, because he didn’t know the truth when he heard it. If the people doubted His miracles and couldn’t discern the truth when they heard it, how could they believe? It wouldn’t have done Pilate any good for Jesus to confess that He was the king of the Jews. People needed to discern His true identity by the Spirit, as Jesus said to Peter, “Flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.” (63k) Paradox >> Anomalies >> Sarcasm >> Answering a fool according to his folly (75f) Thy kingdom come >> Motives >> Being manipulative >> Questioning God’s authority -- These verses go with verse 38 (85a) Thy kingdom come >> Your words can lead to your own demise >> They will keep you out of heaven (159h) Works of the devil >> Essential characteristics >> Counterfeit >> Counterfeit godliness >> Counterfeit confession (173j) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Catholicism >> Unholy sacrifice >> Penance of lip service -- These verses go with verses 37&38 (244j) Kingdom of God >> Spirit realm imposed on the natural realm >> Literal manifestations >> Literal manifestation of God’s word >> His cross is the manifestation of truth -- These verses go with verse 38 KJV WEB / Navigation Bar / Parallel Gospel Jn 18,35-38 (166f) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Wisdom of the world >> Nature Of Man’s Wisdom >> Man’s wisdom does not know God – Pilate didn’t know God, but he found no guilt in Jesus, which means he potentially could know God, and the facts point toward Pilate later getting saved. Had he found guilt in Him, he wouldn't have had any more hope of salvation than the Pharisees, whom Jesus asked, “How will you escape the sentence of hell?” (Mat 23-33). Jn 18,35-37 (66d) Authority >> Lordship of Christ >> Jesus is Lord of heaven – In those days, to announce oneself a king was a direct threat against the throne of Caesar, much more if he made this confession to the governor. This is what Jesus did, yet Pilate tried to free Him, because he saw him as non-threatening. In contrast, the Church is worldly today because people got the idea that since the Church is in the world, God’s kingdom must be of the world. However, the true gospel of Christ is more elusive than that. We need a simple faith in a simple gospel that a small child can believe, but for those who want to make their life in the flesh compatible with the kingdom of heaven, the true gospel of Christ doesn’t fit in their hearts. They can only profane the gospel and rub their grubby fingerprints over it. If the true gospel were of the world, faith would be needless, and perhaps this explains why there are so many faithless Christians in the Church today. Millennium is coming when Christ will set up His kingdom on the earth, and then the kingdom will be manifested in the natural realm, but until then we believe in a spiritual kingdom that is yet to materialize. Anyone who thinks they can live in the flesh to glorify God is to say that the reign of man and the reign of Christ are the same. These are two separate ages, and we cannot mix them. The Millennium will be an age when the Kingdom of God is manifested in the natural realm, and then we will enjoy His kingdom in the flesh, but in this age, the only way to enjoy His kingdom is in the Spirit by faith in the truth. See also: The elusive kingdom of God; Jn 18,36-38; 223f Jn 18-35,36 (170c) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Pursuing the glory of man turns us in the wrong direction >> Fighting God to keep the glory of man – Did Jesus just say there was fighting in the realm from which He came? We know that Jesus will rule the earth with a rod of iron during the Millennium, which will be established on this fallen planet earth. Fighting is all we see, except that no one is fighting for Jesus; men fight for their own causes. Living in a body of fallen flesh in this natural realm was not home to Jesus. He had a place in mind where His body compliments the eternal realm of peace and love, where nothing passes away and there is no cause for war, but here we see people fighting for the right to glory in their shame. Jn 18-35 (79c) Thy kingdom come >> Renewing your mind >> Compromising your convictions -- This verse goes with verses 39&40 Jn 18,36-38 (223f) Kingdom of God >> The elusive Kingdom of Heaven >> Miss God >> Missing the point >> Miss the meaning of the truth – This is a conundrum to some people: isn’t the Church the Kingdom of God in the world? On the one hand yes it is, but on the other hand no it isn't. Jesus was talking on a spiritual level to Pilate when He said that His kingdom does not belong to this world. He meant that His kingdom is a spiritual kingdom; the Kingdom of God dwells within us. It is not the Church per se as much as it is the indwelling Holy Spirit joined with the souls of His people that is the Kingdom of God. Jesus said in Lk 17-20,21, “Now having been questioned by the Pharisees as to when the Kingdom of God was coming, He answered them and said, ‘The Kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say, “Look, here it is!” or, “There it is!” For behold, the Kingdom of God is in your midst.” When Jesus said, “The Kingdom of God is in your midst,” He meant both: “the Kingdom of God dwells within you,” and ‘I am the embodiment of that kingdom.’ We have no business assigning more meaning to this life than the life that is to come. The Kingdom of God may be in His people and his people may be in the world, yet the Kingdom of God is not of this realm, and to circumvent the purpose of God dwelling in us is to emphasize something that is destined to perish. The Kingdom of God is eternal; for us to place our emphasis on that which is temporal is a travesty of epic proportions. See also: The elusive kingdom of God; Jn 18-36,37; 221i Jn 18-36,37 (221i) Kingdom of God >> The elusive Kingdom of Heaven >> Kingdom hidden behind the veil from the world >> God hides his divinity from man’s corruption >> The Kingdom of God is from another realm – Jesus testified, “My kingdom is not of this world.” This statement cannot be overstated, for it was the reason Jesus was crucified. It was His answer to Pilate's question, "What have You done?" This was Jesus' crime: He was not of this world! It was Jesus' explanation to His disciples as to why they can expect the world to hate them too (Jn 15,18-25). The fact that the Church doesn't understand this is the cause of apostasy that started in the third century and has continued to this day; that is, the Church is not sanctified; it is not set apart from the world. Instead, it has integrated and become an entity of the state. If the Church were occupying the position that God intended, it would be persecuted; and if it were persecuted, it would be underground. Therefore, the only Church that God recognizes is the Church underground. See also: The elusive kingdom of God; Jn 18-36; 46a Jn 18-36 (46a) Judgment >> Spiritual warfare >> Subjecting your flesh >> Violent take it by force >> Taking the kingdom by force – The disciples did not form a band of renegades and come take Jesus from Pilate by force or from Herod, the Romans or the Jews. His own disciples did nothing; they were not instructed to do anything. They were in such shock and horror, they were paralyzed and couldn’t imagine how this could fit into God’s predetermined plan. Literally everyone was expecting Jesus to one day overcome the Romans and set up His kingdom, making Jerusalem the center of the world as it was in King David’s day. Perhaps even the chief priests and Pharisees were thinking the same thing, and this became their motive for bringing Him to Pilate, knowing that if He established His kingdom, they would never be His leaders. In other words, it was obvious to them and to all that whatever He was planning, they would not be part of it. Even the disciples were waiting for a day when Jesus would suddenly take over the world; He raised Lazarus from the dead, but they would have easily exchanged that event for seeing Him subvert the Roman empire. This was their expectation based on the Old Testament as they were taught; meanwhile an entire 2000-year age of grace was being completely overlooked. Since the kingdom of Christ is not of this world, then why are Christians today so fixated on this life and not on the kingdom that is to come? See also: Expecting the Kingdom of God to appear immediately; Act 1-6,7; 215i KJV WEB / Navigation Bar / Parallel Gospel Jn 18-37,38 (17i) Sin >> Unrighteous judgment >> Ignorance >> Speaking truth without knowing it -- This verse goes with verses 33&34. (23a) Sin >> Pride closes the windows of heaven (63i) Paradox >> Anomalies >> Sarcastic from being emotional >> Frustrated – When we compare Pilate with the religious establishment, there were few differences, but there were also few similarities. One difference was his lack of knowledge, Pilate knew very little about Jesus, nor did he have motive to hate Him, let alone motive to crucify Him, but he was similar to the religious establishment in his lack of conviction. When Pilate said, “So You are a king?”, he said it sarcastically, not believing it. There is a strikingly large number of people in the Church today who claim to be saved but don't act like Jesus is their King. Some have ulterior motives for going to Church, to appease their conscience. They have a religion to answer the question of God, but they don't want Him to control their lives or have sovereignty over their will or telling them what to do. (173j) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Catholicism >> Unholy sacrifice >> Penance of lip service -- These verses go with verses 33&34. Many people seek God’s calling and purpose for their lives and never find it. If they discovered it, many would fulfill it, but others would not, being completely indifferent to God. We could probably say this was true about Pilate. By the time he delivered Jesus to His enemies, he was well on his way to believing He was King of the Jews, but he didn’t believe it enough to change his life. This is the way it is with many people: they believe He is a king, but they don't believe He is their King. This is Catholicism in a nutshell. There are plenty of Catholics who love God with all their hearts, but Catholicism as a religious belief system does not honor Jesus Christ as king of the Jews. This too was Pilate, though he was not a religious person, he held Rome’s pagan gods in contempt along with those who worshipped them, but he became religious one day, the day he met Jesus and decided to give Him to their enemies. A lot of people make the same decision, sacrificing Jesus for their careers from a willful blindness and lack of knowledge, having a hardness of heart and and too poor vision to know the Truth when they see Him. (198a) Denying Christ >> Man exercises his will against God >> Man withers when he is in control >> Unteachable >> Resisting the knowledge of God (200i) Denying Christ >> Excuses for rejecting Christ >> Using irresponsibility as an excuse to reject God >> Trying to talk your way out of accountability – The Romans were committed to stomping out all dissidence before it had a chance to fester, and the Jews were saying that Jesus considered Himself a king, being how they brought Him to Pilate, for it was a crime to compete against Caesar's throne. Pilate desperately wanted to escape the situation that the Jews forced upon him, being a no-win situation. Even his own wife told him to have nothing to do with this man, and he should have listened to her, but he had no choice. Had he refused the case, the Jews would have started a riot and taken matters into their own hands and no doubt stoned Him to death against Roman authority, and it would have reflected poorly on Pilate in his ability to maintain Roman law and keep the peace. He was much like so many people in the world today who deal with the issue of God; instead of submitting to His authority, they dance around the subject trying to appease their conscience while trying to preserve sovereignty over their own lives. Man in rebellion against God refuses to submit to Him. We try to make deals with Him, while maintaining our lifestyle, which invariably conflicts with His will. We all need to live with a clear conscience, and the only way to do that is to have a connection to God, not on our terms but on His. Jn 18-37 (66j) Authority >> Jesus’ authority >> His words are the authority of God (106g) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Hearing from God >> Attaining the hearing ear >> Hearing His voice – Everyone who is of the truth hears the voice of Jesus. This is reminiscent of the Christmas book that was made into a movie, Polar Express. The bell at the end of the movie is my favorite part. The boy couldn’t hear the bells ringing on Santa’s sleigh. One became detached and landed at his feet; he picked it up and rattled it by his ear but could hear nothing. Then he forced himself to believe, and suddenly the bell rang loudly in his ear. He lost the bell on the floor of Santa’s sleigh, so it became his present under the tree on Christmas morning. He shook the bell and it rang true for him, though his parents couldn’t hear it. His little sister heard it, but eventually it fell silent for her too, but the bell always rang for him even in his old age. That movie got lousy reviews because it expressed a very profound truth in the Bible, based on this passage and others: there are those who can hear the voice of Jesus and there are those who can’t, distinguished by a childlike faith in Jesus. (107j) Thy kingdom come >> The Church is of the truth >> God’s people can discern the truth (110g) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Spirit and the word >> Born of the Spirit by the truth >> Conceived by the Spirit of truth (144d) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Witnesses of Jesus >> The Church bears witness of Jesus >> It bears witness of His word (153a) Witness >> Validity of the Father >> Witnesses of the father >> Church bears witness of the Father through Christ (154d) Witness >> Validity of the Father >> God bears witness against the world >> Witness that the world is godless >> Witness that the world does not know God – Pilate confessed that Jesus was a king, but he didn’t believe it, yet neither did he think He was a criminal. Had he believed in Jesus, everything would have changed; He may still have been crucified, but Pilate’s life would have radically changed, and he would have made a totally different decision. Pilate was caught between a rock and a hard place, for there was no right decision he could make with his limited knowledge. He didn’t know the Scriptures; he may have heard a few things about Jesus, but not from any authoritative sources. In hindsight, the right decision was to acknowledge Him as not only a king but also Israel’s Messiah, but treating Him as such would have destroyed his career as a Roman governor. A little later Pilate discovered that the Jews condemned Him because He claimed to be the Son of God, and it frightened him to learn this, and the fact that it frightened him suggests that he saw it within the realm of possibility, based on Jesus’ actions and responses, along with His demeanor. The peace that He carried with Him in relation to his circumstances was enough to convince anyone He was God incarnate. (206a) Salvation >> God makes promises on His terms >> Conditions to promises >> Conditions to living in the spirit >> Conditions to partaking in the spirit (254h) Trinity >> Holy Spirit’s relationship between Father and Son >> Jesus is equal with the Holy Spirit >> Holy Spirit is life >> Spirit of God is the life of Christ – When Jesus said, "Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice," He was referring to the Holy Spirit whom he would send in His place. When Jesus talked about people able to hear His voice, He equated Himself with the Holy Spirit, essentially saying that He and the Holy Spirit are the same, depicting His role in the trinity. KJV WEB / Navigation Bar / Parallel Gospel Jn 18,38-40 (169j) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Seeking the glory of man >> Loving the approval of men rather than the approval of God >> Fearing their religion (242h) Kingdom of God >> Opposition toward the Kingdom of God >> Persecuting the kingdom >> Worldly pressure >> World pressures you to forsake your convictions – It wasn’t Pilate’s fault that Jesus was crucified; rather, it was the Jews who demanded His death. Pilate was ready to release Him, saying I find no guilt in this man. Pilate was familiar with a Jewish law that he should release a prisoner at Passover (amnesty), though setting a criminal free was never a law of Moses, and he was hoping the Jews would call for Jesus to be released, but they chose Barabbas over their King. At Passover the priests would present two goats, one would be for the sacrifice and the other would be the scapegoat. God used the scapegoat at Passover to represent the freedman that Jesus would pardon through His own death. The scapegoat represented not just one man but every sinner, even the Jews who delivered Jesus to be crucified. Jn 18-38 (17h) Sin >> Judging in the flesh >> Passing judgment without seeking truth – The Old Testament is filled with statements that the king’s job (governor in Pilate’s case) was to discern justice for the afflicted and oppressed, and to make wise judgments based on his comprehension of the facts and circumstances presented to him, but Pilate didn’t know the Truth, which is on a much higher plane than mere facts and information. Truth comes from God. Truth is defined as facts as God sees them, whereas facts are defined as information as man sees it, which he calls "reality". God can reveal Himself to us by His Spirit, and the things we understand about Him is our truth, but when we relate this truth to others, they hear it as facts and information. God gives truth to His believers, and if we haven’t received anything from God, then we don’t know the truth. Therefore, to deny the reality of Truth, as Pilate did, is to inadvertently admit that he doesn't know God. See also: Truth (Relativism); Mat 10-39; 95a (55n) Paradox >> Lose by gaining >> Lose the truth to gain religion – Pilate represents mankind. He was a man of many ironies that day, for instance saying, "What is truth?" and then proclaiming that he found no sin in Jesus, which is perhaps the greatest truth in the Bible. Man through Pilate admitted that he doesn’t believe in the existence of Truth, and to disbelieve in Truth is to admit that he doesn't know God. Representing us, he stands as judge of our creator. Pilate was mostly ignorant of the details of the case and so is man; he was essentially pressed into service by his seat in the chair of justice; also God gave man the position of arbitrator, so we are required by our position to try the Lord. Pilate’s decision was forced by threat of a riot to give Jesus to His enemies; each one of us plays the role of Pilate, having his own excuse why he must reject the Truth that is in Jesus Christ or else make a much tougher choice and defend the Truth. Will we like Pilate sacrifice Him to keep our place in life, or will we sacrifice our place for what we know is the Truth, and receive a new life that is full of promises, like a dark trail that is lighted by faith as we go, filled with mysteries, which is sure to bring change to every aspect of our lives. Pilate had a secular worldview, but when he rejected Christ, he suddenly became religious, having formed his view of God, devoid of Truth, yet learning more about God that day than all the days of his life combined. (59g) Paradox >> Two implied meanings >> What is truth? / There is no truth! – Pilate spoke sarcastically as though to confess that the truth is unknowable or that it possibly didn’t even exist. People who condemn Christianity often attack the notion of Truth, and Pilate would agree with them, while the very embodiment of Truth stood in front of Him, denoting man’s utter spiritual blindness. This is exactly what is happening in the world today by atheists and others, though the truth is always located in the same place from generation to generation, right under our noses in the Bible. It is also over our heads in the cosmos. If people want to reject the Bible, the truth is still written in the stars, for the theme of creation is that God exists. Witnesses of the Truth such as Helen Keller, who was both blind and deaf, understood her existence mostly by a sense of consciousness. Through a childhood disease she lost her sight and hearing; she could never look to the heavens after the age of accountability and saw God’s handiwork, yet she believed in Him; a professing Christian, she condemned the notion of an unknowable truth. Meanwhile, Pilate had his hearing and sight, yet it didn’t help him see the light or hear the Truth. Therefore according to Helen Keller's testimony, consciousness itself is enough proof to believe in the existence of Truth. All these things Helen Keller instinctively knew, and this instinct is in each of us, but some people invent their own version of truth and follow it instead of God. (75f) Thy kingdom come >> Motives >> Being manipulative >> Questioning God’s authority -- This verse goes with verses 33&34 (79e) Thy kingdom come >> Renewing your mind >> If you don’t, you won’t know truth – Pilate's mind was garbled with worldly beliefs, so when he met God in human flesh, he battled two counteractive kingdoms. He tried to put them together, but they were polar opposites. The Church is doing the same thing in these last days, trying to mix kingdoms, and it results in a mishmash of religious ideas fit only for old women, incompatible with the world or with the Scriptures. Christians are acting like Pilate, confused and conflicted, and when Jesus comes they will be totally unprepared. Their minds are trained by the elementary principles of the world as they try to understand the second coming of Christ, like pounding a square peg into a round hole, and as a result faith and love are beyond their grasp. Every thought comes out backwards and every action drives them further from God. What did Jesus say about His second coming? “Stay on the alert” (Mat 24,42-51), be dressed in readiness (Lk 12-35), and how do we do that? Should we amass gold and silver or dig a hole and crawl into it like doomsday preppers? The Bible teaches us to renew our minds in the word of God and prayer as a means of preparing for His second coming, but it is unlikely that the Church is doing this, since most Christians today are in a state of apostasy. (90a) Thy kingdom come >> God convicts us >> Conviction leads us in the way of righteousness – Meeting Jesus could have been the worst experience of Pilate's life; really, how sad is that, except that he may have repented later? This experience divided Pilate's life into BC and AD, and the rest of the world followed suit with him. Some people would say he committed the unpardonable sin by delivering Jesus to be crucified, but that is not the case; for Jesus said to him, “He who delivered Me to you has the greater sin” (Jn 19-11), referring to the religious establishment. Pilate sacrificed Jesus in ignorance, whereas the Pharisees and their cronies sacrificed Him in full knowledge of His identity to keep their place in society and to protect their religious pride, which was far more insidious than anything Pilate did. When he said to Jesus, “What is truth,” he then confessed to the world that he saw no guilt in Him, being his confession of faith, speaking the truth in the same breath that he claimed he didn’t know it. This is what may have given him hope later in his life when he had more time to contemplate what had happened to him on that fateful day. (159m) Works of the devil >> Essential characteristics >> Counterfeit >> Counterfeit God >> Counterfeit truth – Pilate represents us all, who haggled with the question of God. We strive with logic to explain Him away, and when that fails, we explain why God doesn’t work for us, and when those excuses fall apart, we must keep the conversation from ending with the same question, “What is Truth?” Instead of asking Jesus the question, Pilate spoke sarcastically as to say he personally didn’t believe in the existence of Truth. He also sarcastically questioned that Jesus was a king, though had he said these things and actually believed them, he could have been saved. Although he said the right words, he used the wrong inflexion in his voice, and it kept him from heaven, obviously not his tone but his doubts. He may have repented later, but Scripture gives no reason to assume this. The decision Pilate made that day wouldn’t get anybody saved. Jesus was a very difficult case for Pilate, but He is not easy when placed in anybody’s court. (174j) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Form of godliness >> Form of godliness but denying the truth (175j) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Ignorance >> Ignorant of what God means >> Ignorant of the meaning of God’s word (178d) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Presumption (Hinduism) >> Presuming the facts about the circumstances >> Philosophy (185f) Works of the devil >> The origin of lawlessness >> Mystery of lawlessness >> Having knowledge but not knowing God – Most people will never be ready to accept Jesus into their hearts, because they have no place reserved for Him. The same was true at His birth; there was no place for Him in the inn (Lk 2-7). There has never been a place for Jesus in this world; He has always been an outsider. For Pilate to defend Jesus to the point of it affecting his own life was a proposition similar to adoption. When parents adopt a child, it adds joy, but it also adds complications that they must be prepared to accept. Pilate essentially told Jesus that he could not adopt Him, because Jesus was not important enough, Pilate was too popular and brutish and his life wasn’t headed in that direction. People often make excuses for rejecting the Lord, and invariably ask the same question, “What is Truth?” In their conversation with God the truth always surfaces, and they deny it due to a facsimile of truth they already entertain that to them is reality but to God is just another excuse. People confuse facts with Truth, thinking they are interchangeable, but man has his facts and God has His Truth, and without God man has no Truth, and for this reason they reject the very notion of Truth. In that way they admit that they are alien to the Truth. (244j) Kingdom of God >> Spirit realm imposed on the natural realm >> Literal manifestations >> Literal manifestation of God’s word >> His cross is the manifestation of truth -- This verse goes with verses 33&34 KJV WEB / Navigation Bar / Parallel Gospel Jn 18-39,40 (79c) Thy kingdom come >> Renewing your mind >> Compromising your convictions -- These verses go with verses 20-23 See next page