Because 50 Day 9
Scripture Reading: John 18:33-38
33Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?”
34 “Is that your own idea,” Jesus asked, “or did others talk to you about me?”
35“Am I a Jew?” Pilate replied. “Your own people and chief priests handed you over to me. What is it you have done?”
36Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.”
37“You are a king, then!” said Pilate.
Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”
38“What is truth?” retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him.
Today’s Prayer:
Lord, help me to have confidence and understand the role you played in history.
Going Deeper:
The discussion between Pilate and Jesus is one of the most intriguing dialogues recorded in the New Testament. The Jewish leaders have brought Jesus before Pilate in the hopes that they can have him found guilty of stirring up a rebellion. How does Jesus quiet this charge in verse 36? What is the kingdom that Jesus was establishing? How does the kingdom that Jesus was creating differ from Pilate’s experience of kingdom and authority?
In verse 37, Jesus says “Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.” The word listen could be translated “obey” as well. How does it help you have greater clarity around what Jesus is saying if you were to change that one word in the NIV translation? How does Pilate respond to Jesus’ claim to being truth?
Ravi Zacharias has said, “Freedom comes from not just knowing the truth, but knowing what the source of that truth is.” As we learned during the message yesterday, everything in this world finds its origin and meaning in the person and work of Jesus. Truth as an idea is important, but when we understand that God is the source of that truth it has greater meaning. Over the course of this week, we’re going to dive into the person and work of Jesus. We’re going to explore how we can have confidence in Jesus both through faith and history.