City Life Starter

Written by Blesson Selvanesan

The Word

³³ So Pilate entered his headquarters again and called Jesus and said to him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” ³⁴ Jesus answered, “Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it to you about me?” ³⁵ Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered you over to me. What have you done?” ³⁶ Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.” (ESV)

Interpretation

Pilate, though a reluctant participant in this trial had his work cut out. He sat there drunk in his power, questioning Jesus. He asked Jesus, who are you? Are you the king of Jews? Jesus is brilliant in answering a question with a question to corner the questioner, does this once again.

Pilate’s question was a tricky one. If Jesus said ‘yes’ he will be automatically convicted of treason against Roman emperor and executed. If he said ‘no’, then his claim to be a messiah will be questioned and he will be labelled a coward, and everyone can use this to mock Jesus and His followers.

Jesus answered Pilate by asking for his own opinion. He forced Pilate to say what he thought. Pilate, a shrewd politician with questionable reputation washed his hands and shifted the blame on to the Jews. Then Jesus said that his kingdom is not of this world and he is talking and proclaiming the kingdom of God which is not from this world.

Application

There are many lessons that can be learnt from this short encounter. Jesus is God incarnate in flesh and people have questioned him on His personhood ever since he appeared on earth. Pilate questioned the identity of Jesus. Even today, people question his authority. Pilate was a governor of a Roman province and had authority over a tiny few square miles of land. Jesus had authority over the universe and His kingdom is far beyond the political realm. Jesus is Almighty and transcends time and space. Pilate tried to use this opportunity to further his agenda by scoring some brownie points from all the parties. Jesus did not get sidetracked and stayed his course and used this event to further God’s kingdom.

Worldly people are shrewd and will use any opportunity to advance their agenda. It is essential we stay focused just like Jesus was on His mission. People may mock or discredit, do not panic or lose sight, stay focused on the mission. Do not worry about defending your reputation or identity but be true to God’s calling, everything else will fall in place. God is our defender. They thought that they can kill Jesus and finish His story, they did not know that it was just the beginning and they facilitated this beginning!

Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank you for the life of Jesus and all the valuable lessons that we can learn from His life. We learn from his wisdom, humility and focus. Help us to emulate Jesus and to be faithful to our calling and accomplish our missions in life despite of all the distractions. In Jesus Name, Amen.