Sermon Notes for 9/30/12 (Mark 15:1-15)

The Contrast Between Faith and Reason

A. Jesus' unwavering faith

1) His answer to a question that missed the point 
Very early in the morning, the chief priests, with the elders, the teachers of the law and the whole Sanhedrin, reached a decision. They bound Jesus, led him away and handed him over to Pilate. "Are you the king of the Jews?" asked Pilate. "Yes, it is as you say," Jesus replied. The chief priests accused him of many things. (1-3)

2) The silence that puzzled Pilate
So again Pilate asked him, "Aren't you going to answer? See how many things they are accusing you of." But Jesus still made no reply, and Pilate was amazed. (4,5)


B. Our ability to reason is limited
1) Pilate is unable to identify Jesus' crime
Now it was the custom at the Feast 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 envy that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him. (6-10)


2) Pilate is unable to oppose the crowd

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!"
15 Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. He had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified. (11-15)


Summary

Even if someone is able to look at a given situation objectively, human reasoning is limited. Pilate knew that Jesus did not deserve to die, but he chose to satisfy the crowds. Jesus knew what was required of him, so he did not avoid death. This was difficult to understand for Pilate, who was a man of reason. Jesus chose to act in faith in his heavenly Father, rather than relying on reason. Faith does not require that we discount reason and live in "blind faith." God gave us the ability to reason and it is an important part being human. We need to recognize, however, that our reasoning is limited and that there are challenges that cannot be overcome by reason alone. Ultimately, we need to rely on faith--this is what Jesus demonstrated for us.

For Discussion
1) Why did Pilate try to release Jesus?
2) Why did the crowds want Barabbas to be released?

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