Tag Archives: murder

THE BOOK OF ACTS – HONED BY SUFFERING

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HONED BY SUFFERING

“From Claudius Lysias to the Most Honourable Governor Felix: Greetings!

“I rescued this man from a Jewish mob. They had seized him and were about to kill him when I learned that he was a Roman citizen. So I sent in my soldiers. Wanting to know what he had done wrong, I had him brought before their council. It turned out to be a squabble turned vicious over some of their religious differences, but nothing remotely criminal.

“The next thing I knew, they had cooked up a plot to murder him. I decided that for his own safety I’d better get him out of here in a hurry. So I’m sending him to you. I’m informing his accusers that he’s now under your jurisdiction.” Acts 23:25-30 (The Message).

In the mercy and plan of God, the plot of the Jews to ambush and kill Paul had moved him a little closer to his final destination, Rome. The Roman captain had acted quickly to get Paul out of Jerusalem and away from the angry mob. He was now handing him over to the man who had the authority to send him to Rome for trial by Caesar himself.

“The soldiers, following orders, took Paul that same night to safety in Antipatris. In the morning, the soldiers returned to their barracks in Jerusalem, sending Paul on to Caesarea under guard of the cavalry. The cavalry entered Caesarea and handed Paul and the letter over to the governor.

“After reading the letter, the governor asked Paul what province he came from and was told ‘Cilicia.’ Then he said, ‘I’ll take up your case when your accusers show up.’ He ordered him locked up for the meantime in Herod’s official quarters.” Acts 23:31-35 (The Message).

Paul must have breathed a sigh of relief to know that he was now in the hands of the governor himself and out of reach of his enemies. The next time he had to face them it would be in a Roman court where the Jews would not be able to lay a finger on him. He would be able to speak for himself without the mob shouting him down. The governor would be a disinterested party who was not personally involved in the religious quarrel that had sparked this mess.

For the moment Paul was imprisoned in the quarters of King Herod himself – a far cry from the deprivation he had suffered over the years of his missionary service. Wow! God knew how to care for His servant in his time of need. After his years of hardship and travel, he had respite and time to recover and prepare himself for the next phase of his journey with the Lord.

How did Paul view what was happening to him right then? He did not say, but in his letter to the Philippian church from his prison in Rome, he characteristically looked on the bright side, recognising his opportunity to be a witness for Jesus right among the royal palace guard where he was being held.

How should we view the adversities that come our way? We have one of two options — blame the devil and see ourselves as helpless victims waiting to be rescued, or embrace the truth that God has promised that He is always with us and He will work everything out for our good and for His glory.

Hardships are the times when we are being honed and polished to be true sons of God. Without the disciplines of life, we would be as flabby and spineless as jellyfish. God is passionate about training us to be sons, serenely confident in our Father’s love and His purpose to put His glory on display through us. The real test comes when we have no crutches to lean on.

Son Of The Father

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SON OF THE FATHER

Now it was the custom at the festival to release a prisoner whom the people requested. A man called Barabbas was in prison with the insurrectionists who had committed murder in the uprising. The crowd came up and asked Pilate to do for them what he usually did. ‘Do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?’ asked Pilate, knowing it was out of self-interest that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him. But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have Pilate release Barabbas instead.

‘What shall I do, then, with the one you call the king of the Jews?’ Pilate asked them. ‘Crucify Him!’ they shouted. Why? What crime has He committed?’ asked Pilate. But they shouted all the louder, ‘Crucify Him!’ Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. He had Jesus flogged, and handed Him over to be crucified. (Mark 15: 6-15)

King of the Jews? Pilate had obviously not bought that one. From his point of view, Jesus was no more a threat to Rome than his pet puppy.

But the chief priests and religious leaders were adamant. Jesus must die! If Pilate did not find Him guilty, there was another way to get Him sentenced to death. The exchange! This was their trump card. They were play Barabbas against Jesus and Pilate could not wriggle out of that one.

According to the custom that the Roman governor release a prisoner during the Passover Festival, they demanded the release of one, Barabbas, an insurrectionist and a murderer. Can you credit their hypocrisy? They accused Jesus of treason when He was clearly not guilty. On top of it, He was a man who healed the sick and gave life to the dead. Instead they demanded the release of a man who had taken life and who was among those who rebelled against Rome. How devious could they be?

But Pilate was not stupid. He knew the reason why they had condemned Jesus. He was too good for their liking. They preferred the company of those who were like them, wicked to the core but covered with a veneer of religious “righteousness” which Jesus had seen through and exposed, time and again to their discomfort. The quicker they got rid of Him, the better, and they would not hesitate to stoop to murder, just like the one they chose for release.

Who was this Barabbas anyway? This is the only time his name appears in history, and what a record! Bar-abbas. His parents gave him the name “son of the father”. Was that prophetic? Was he destined to become just like his father?  Was he the offspring of a criminal like he had turned out to be? He certainly was the offspring of Adam, father of the human race, flawed from birth. All he had to do was to live up to his nature and he would be a replica of his father.

Who was his father? Jesus put his finger on the core problem during a debate with the religious leaders. They were adamant that they were the children of Abraham. “How can that be?” Jesus demanded, “when you are plotting to murder me? Your real father is the devil because that’s who you resemble.”

You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. (John 8: 44)

Yes, according to the Scriptures, Barabbas was a true son of his father, the devil, and that’s the one they chose for release. How true is the proverb, “Birds of a feather flock together.” These men had shown themselves up for who they were.

But what about Jesus? This was their accusation – that He had claimed to be “the Son of the Father”. His nature and actions, like Barabbas, were evidence of the identity of His Father. Just as Barabbas mirrored his father, the devil, so Jesus was the image of His Father, God.

And they chose Barabbas because they were of the same family.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

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Crime Scene With A Difference

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CRIME SCENE WITH A DIFFERENCE

“After they had done everything the prophets said they would do, they took Him down from the cross and buried Him. And then God raised Him from death. There is no disputing that — He appeared over and over again many times and places to those who had known Him well in the Galilean years, and these same people continue to give witness that He is alive.

“And we’re here today bringing you good news: the Message that what God promised the fathers has come true for the children — for us! He raised Jesus exactly as He described in the second psalm.

“My Son! My very own Son!
Today I celebrate You!”

“When He raised Him from the dead, He did it for good — no going back on that rot and decay for Him. That’s why Isaiah said, ‘I’ll give to all of you David’s guaranteed blessings.’ So also the psalmist’s prayer: ‘You’ll never let your Holy One see death’s rot and decay.'” Acts 13:29-35 (The Message).

This was a crime scene in reverse. Forensic science is so advanced that it is possible to prove that a murder had taken place without the evidence of a body. Jesus, on the other hand, was put to death in a public place. There were many witnesses to His murder and His burial place was known and even guarded by a platoon of Roman soldiers.

There was no need to cover up the heinous deed and no scheme to hide His body. His murderers needed to make sure that the body stayed where it was and that everyone knew it was there to prove that He was well and truly dead. He said He would walk out of the tomb and they did everything they could to prevent that from happening.

But He did the unthinkable. He walked out of the tomb and turned up among His friends to show them that He was alive. Has any other murder victim ever done that? Has any other religious icon ever done that? God Himself put His stamp of approval on Jesus by raising Him from death into an incorruptible and indestructible new body and by owning His as His Son.

All the characters in this great drama had inadvertently played their part to perfection, guaranteeing that God’s plan would come together just as He said it would. No amount of effort to cover up Jesus’ resurrection could disprove the fact. Their own prophets had accurately predicted it would happen and not just one — the same event was predicted by many different people across the centuries.

No elaborate cover-up schemes worked because Jesus walked out of a sealed and guarded tomb. No one can outwit God! His new resurrection body was not subject to earthly barriers. He moved in and out of locked rooms like a spirit and yet His disciples could see and touch Him and He even ate in their presence. No ghost can make a fire and cook breakfast on the shore of the Galilean lake.

Paul himself had encountered this Jesus in a blinding flash of light on the road outside Damascus. He had heard His voice and been transformed in an instant from a vicious persecutor to a humble servant who was willing to lay down his life for Him.

All in all, the proof of His resurrection was overwhelming but what was the point of it all? For God to come to earth in human form, to live as a human being for thirty three years and then to die as a felon for crimes He did not commit, is incomprehensible except for a very good reason.. The death penalty He had spoken over the human race because of our forefather’s rebellion, was carried out on Him and yet He was innocent of the crime for which He was paying.

This was really good news! Now every criminal — that’s us — can go free because our debt has been paid. And God can receive us back into His family as His sons and daughters if we accept His free gift of forgiveness and become reconciled to the Father.