Matthew 27:11-26, "You Gotta Do What You Gotta Do"

Matthew 27:11-26 and the Meaning of “You Gotta Do What You Gotta Do”

Matthew chapter 27. Starting verse 11 to verse 26. Here the Word of the Lord. Now Jesus stood before the governor and the governor asked him. Are you the king of the Jews? Jesus said you have said so but when he was accused by the chief priests and the elders he gave no answer.

Then Pilate said to him Do you not hear how many things they testify against you? But he gave him no answer not even to a single charge so that the governor was greatly amazed. Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to release for the crowd any one prisoner whom they wanted and They had been a notorious prisoner called Barabbas.

So when they had gathered Pilate said to them Whom do you want me to release for you Barabbas or Jesus who was called Christ? Now he knew that it was out of envy that they had delivered him up. Besides while he was sitting on the judgment seat his wife sent word to him have nothing to do with that righteous man for I have Suffered much because of him today in the dream.

Now the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus. The governor again said to them which of the two do you want me to release for you? And they said Barabbas.

Pilate said to them Then what shall I do with Jesus who was called Christ? They all said let him be crucified and he said why what evil has he done? But they shouted all the more. Let him be crucified.

So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing but rather that a riot was beginning he took water and washed his hands before the crowd saying I am innocent of this man's blood see to it yourselves and.

All the people answered his blood be on us and on our children. Then he released for them Barabbas and having scourged Jesus delivered him up to be crucified. May the Lord add his blessings to the reading of his Holy Word.

The Duty to Do What Must Be Done

I'll do your duty. You have a job to do. Do it. We are all told now that we have a duty to practice social distancing right stay six feet apart. No groups larger than ten. It's your responsibility, but we still have some people who were asking, you know, why can't they just be responsible for themselves?

I'll stay home if I if I want to stay home or if I want to go about my normal routine. And then I'll do that. I I got to do what I got to do. But what happens when what you got to do? Usually often what you want to do affects other people.

What maybe affects? Whether they live. You've you've got to do what you've got to do. Even if it means that sometimes restricting yourself losing some of your luxuries for the necessities of others. You have a duty to others in law.

They talk about having a duty of care. If if you own a restaurant you have a duty of care that the food you serve is healthy. It's not poisonous. If you have a dog you have a duty of care that it not bite passersby.

If you run an airline you have a duty of care to get people to their destination. In 2009 Mary bought a ticket from Greensboro to Singapore and back but the airlines couldn't get her past Atlanta. The airline had a duty to do it, but no one Individual in the airlines would take responsibility to actually do.

They just had their all their whatever their little job. Take care of this ticket or whatever. No, nobody's job was actually To get her there. All of them had this lady in front of them paid them paid them to get her to Singapore.

But none of them would take responsibility and actually do it. They would all initially try to be nice to Mary. She tried to get the flight she paid for and Individually each of them probably hated having to turn her down to say no, I'm sorry I can't get you there.

Each one wish they could do something about it. But they all thought that there was nothing they could do. They hated to tell her that she couldn't go. But they had to do What they had to do. So they thought.

We say that about some chore, you know I got to do what I got to do some some chores some unpleasant task that we wish we didn't have to do. It's just necessary. Maybe it's firing someone at work. If an employee is not so good.

You got a got a fire. You hate to do it, but You got to do what you got to do. Maybe it's keeping the restaurant open during an epidemic. All right, you got bills to pay or failing a student or I've had to do that.

It's a teaching assistant. They just didn't do the work. You got a hand them a grade. This is F. You got to do what you got to do. Maybe it's just something is getting to work on time. Keep working instead of talking.

You got to do what you got to do it's one of the qualities we teach our children. We want to teach our children. You have to take responsibility. You've got to do your duty. It doesn't matter whether you want to do it or you like to do it.

Fulfill your obligations even when it is unpleasant even when you hate to do it. Somebody's got to do it, right? I'm a I once met a man in Singapore whose job it had been to take care of prisoners to handle their cases.

From the time that they had been convicted in court to the time that they were executed his job was to supervise Condemned criminals and we could say well somebody's got to do it. You know, we're making that someone's responsibility.

Now here it here. He is. Here's the criminal get her done. But what if that condemned criminal is? Innocent, is it still your duty? Well, what if he's not only innocent of the crime it was convicted of but of all crimes of all sins.

Here in this patches we see confused duty someone thinking, you know, I just got to do what I got to do and then doing the wrong thing and we see that unfold in three steps first the evil of envy and Second the mob mentality and finally the the requirement of responsibility.

Pilate’s Political Duty and Jesus’ Silence

The Roman governor Pontius Pilate knows all about his duty of care. Pilate is he's not a Jew. He doesn't care about the scruples of the law. He doesn't care about what they think. Blasphemy is he doesn't care about their inter-religious squabbles.

He doesn't care about theology only politics. His duty is to keep Israel under a Roman occupation to keep the taxes flowing to Rome to keep it under control. That's his duty. So before Pilate is brought a new prisoner and his question to him first is an entirely Political are you?

The king of the Jews. Pilot wants to know if he's a rebel an Insurrectionist the Lord Jesus answers simply as before you have said so or Something probably more like he means that's your way of putting it.

I wouldn't put it that way but yeah. That's your way of putting it and then silence. He would speak simply. Minimally to the governor pilot, but when the chief priests and the elders accused him of all kinds of things he said nothing.

And like any good judge pilot knows that there's always another side to the story. And if first he expected Jesus pilot expected Jesus to interrupt all these accusations and to defend himself. Like you know often people do when they're feeling threatened.

They're being falsely accused or maybe they're even being truly accused. They just don't be killed to interrupt. No, no, no, that's false. They're lying instead. Jesus does nothing like that the accusations keep flowing and the Lord Jesus keeps quiet after a while this kind of incessant Torrent this flood of accusations of charges coming from the priests and the elders the religious leaders.

We could call them and maybe the good old boys Call him that but that became like it became like so much background noise. Just kept coming and coming and you probably don't even pay any attention to specific Accusations anymore and the amazing thing like and what got more and more amazing as it went on amazing to pilot.

Was Jesus's silence. I don't think he'd ever seen anything like that before. It's all kind all kinds of men have been brought to him Accused and probably many of them desperate to defend themselves and done or maybe a few of them.

They're just hot-headed kind of rebels. You know, you are you have no right to rule over us you foreigner yelling back at him and cursing him. He probably seen all kinds of people like that, but never someone just a man standing there silent.

So finally pilot interrupts, do you not hear how many things they are testifying against you still silence like a lamb led to the slaughter and that Impresses pilot more than all the accusations that they hurled at Jesus.

Pilot knows a hot-headed rebel when he sees one. And so he knows that Jesus is no hot-headed rebel. He's not that kind of revolutionary. He might be a revolutionary of some kind but not that kind. Even with no answer even based on the accusations of the religious leaders and the good old boys.

He realizes This is all about envy. They're motivated by envy they envy him. He thinks he realizes that he's judging the priest the leaders. They're envious. They want something. Jesus has the silence that's convinced him that Jesus is no threat to him.

No threat to Rome and So he has no duty to punish him certainly not to kill him. Condemning men to death was already on unpleasant enough. It was just your you know, his attitude was probably I got to do what I got to do.

It's part of the job but This time he realizes Rome doesn't have a dog in this fight. He has no duty To execute Jesus and some Roman philosophers might even tell him that you have a duty Pilot to uphold justice you have a duty to let it go.

The Romans prided themselves on their administration of justice. They had a written code of laws that they weren't supposed to enforce fairly and Justice demanded that an innocent man go free if he hadn't done any crime and he shouldn't suffer any time.

So pilot wanting sort of to be just Starts looking for a way to let Jesus go free. And he is just the thing he has this custom of letting a Criminal go free every year at the Passover feast, which just happens to be right now.

He had to be thinking Wow how lucky for me what timing this is perfect this way I can let them think That I was gonna give them what they wanted. I was gonna execute Jesus like he wanted but then the people chose Jesus.

That's what he's gonna think. That's how he thinks it's gonna play out. He's gonna he's thinking I'm gonna give Jesus our record. I'm gonna convict him of a crime, but then I also get to let him go free.

I get to make everybody happy. An Idealistic person might say well that even you know, that's not even fair pilot. He should go free. Jesus is innocent. He should go free just based on the fact. He's innocent, but pilot doesn't have time for idealism.

Idealism is not his job keeping these cantankerous people under control. That's his job and if it takes some compromise. Okay, I'll do it. He thinks It's the evil of envy that has brought Jesus before a Roman judge and the judge can see that now clearly in verse 18.

He perceives that it's all about envy. I wonder if we realize. How bad how depraved? Envy is a lot of people in our culture just are trying to stoke our envy. These other people have something they took it from you.

You should want you should punish them for it. It's one of those hidden and possibly even respectable sins and here it is directly behind the murder of Jesus. Envy occurs when a person one person like me me lacks another.

What's another person has superior qualities superior achievements or possessions and either? Desires those things I want to take them from him or wishes that the other lacked him. If I can't have what he has at Least I want him to not have it.

If someone else has something whatever it is, you know money a good family good marriage. Maybe praise, you know acclimation. Popularity or even a good character righteousness they have a lot and I don't have it.

Then the envious either wants to have what they have. I want to get it for myself. Have their cash or their family or their esteem or their goodness even. Or wants for them not to have it if I can't get it then at least take it from him so that they'd be Bankrupt or fired or divorced or condemned caught in an affair.

That will make me feel good to know that that other person No longer has that thing that I wish I had. The religious leaders and the good old boys envy'd Jesus. They envied his popularity his his acclaim his his esteem that the people had held him in, you know.

Just a few days before this when Jesus came in to Jerusalem He was hailed like a movie star coming into town. The crowds were calling out to him. Putting palm leaves on the ground shouting Hosanna to the Son of David and the priest saw that they saw this, you know a claim that Jesus was getting from the from the people and they told the Told him to quiet down those crowds.

Oh, but they had to shout Jesus said it would be unnatural for them not to Nature itself the the rocks themselves would have to do it if the people would not. Because of who Jesus was and the priest hated him for that and he was deserving of such acclamation.

And one of the main reasons many people get involved in religion is that they want to be well thought of. By other people they want a claim and often the church is a forum. For them to get that acclaim for them to be somebody they could be the big man.

They want recognition the esteem. They want to be seen and so in Jesus's day, they'd say long prayers. Right out in the street. So everyone would see them. They make large donations when the people were gathered around the money box.

You know at the temple just looking on if they fasted they make sure everyone would know how hungry and and How hungry they were by just they're being unkempt. They wouldn't comb their hair. They just look like they're fasting.

They craved to be hailed. So people would look at a man. Look how holy he is. He's fasting. He's praying. He's giving a lot. So when the Lord Jesus was hailed Hosanna Hosanna. When he was hailed as the Son of David and then he was attacked and then he turned around he attacked them.

For being a brood of vipers seven times calling them Hypocrites in chapter 23 here in Matthew when he did that when that happened. They envied him. Verse 18 says that it was out of envy that they delivered him up.

They wanted what he had but they couldn't get it. And so they then wanted to take it from him. The evil of envy is deadly. It killed Jesus and it will kill churches today when people join and participate and do everything they do.

Because they want something other Than really serving the Lord. The evil of envy started as a seed in the hearts of the religious people here. It led to this but to get their goal to get to their end goal of killing Jesus.

They would have to turn the crowd Against him. All right. Just a few days before they were hailing Jesus as the new king and now they have to turn them away from him in verse 20. We're told that the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd.

Now we Americans might not be so impressed with with leaders chief priest and and elders. That's the kind of thing, you know, we kind of almost naturally suspect them, but we are impressed by crowds. The majority must be right.

We think in our democracy the majority gets the leaders it chooses because they're right. So we think that if a lot of people do it It must be the right thing to do if you want to sell things to Americans.

You you tell us everyone is trying it. Everyone is eating it. Everyone is drinking it. Everyone's watching it. So many customers can't be wrong if you want to discourage something you say well, no one does that anymore.

It's out of style people don't talk like that anymore. You're on the wrong side of history if you believe that. Even after the fact we like to believe that we acted with the majority I always like to think we're on the side that's in.

One of the closest elections in American history was the 1960 election between Richard Nixon and John F Kennedy. Kennedy won with just under 50 of the vote, but after his assassination. When he was very popular.

Polls taken showed that 80 of Americans claimed to have voted for him. And that means that the mob mentality is so strong. It caused over half of those who voted for Nixon. To forget who they voted for that.

They think they voted for Kennedy. They wanted to be on the the in side. Here the crowd probably many of them the same individuals who had greeted Jesus and think of that. Almost certainly many of these people calling crucify him crucify him.

We're just a few days before calling out Hosanna to the Son of David throwing palm branches in front of him. They've been turned they've been turned against him. It's the herd instinct just managed to get the herd moving in the right direction and then every individual will follow along a Few years ago.

Everyone was buying stocks. Now everyone is selling right? It's the herd. Why is the stock market go up and down and these right the herd gets involved, but if you think about what they're doing. They're just they're just doing what the herd is doing.

It's following along in a stampede either of cattle or people. The individuals don't know why they're running in a particular direction. They just want to stay with the herd. Even if it's going off a cliff.

Here the herd is steered to call for the crucifixion of Jesus. They didn't really know what all this was about. Probably most of the individuals. They're calling crucify have crucified. Hadn't thought clearly.

Why am I saying this? It was just what the herd was supposed to do all they knew with them. That's what the religious leaders. That's what the good old boys were calling for them to do the men standing around them.

That's what they wanted to do. So I'll go along. It must be the thing to do it must be right, you know after all if you're in the middle that crowd. Everyone else is calling crucify him crucifying you think well so many people they must be right.

The mob mentality has taken over now if you take any one individual from that mob. And yet give him time to sit down to think by himself. Think clearly over these accusations to look at Jesus what he's actually done decide rationally on their own whether this is the right thing to do.

Probably most of them would have decided no, it's Jesus is right. He's innocent. He should be let go after all look at their choice on the one hand. They have Jesus. There's done nothing wrong. Even his betrayer who's got him into this position.

Judas has repudiated this trial has exclaimed that Jesus is innocent and Stormed out and then hanged himself rather than living with the blood of Jesus on his hands. Jesus was a teacher and a miracle worker.

He had straightened people out. Enabled them to stop sinning given hope and joy and forgiveness to many people. So that's the first prisoner in your choice on the other hand. There's this other guy Barabbas who Matthew says in verse 16 is a notorious prisoner.

That's his term for him notorious. Prisoner notorious is not a good thing. You don't be thought of as notorious. Notorious here appears to mean that he was especially despised notorious. He means you're well-known or for a bad reason.

Especially despised for his crimes. He's famous for evil. He was infamous. Pilot probably chose him rather than any of the other probably a lot of many small-time Criminals that he had locked up, but he chose Barabbas because he thought that would make an easy choice.

Barabbas was notorious everyone knew about him and everyone hated him. So here's the choice. Jesus, yeah, okay. He's a little controversial, but he's certainly no criminal or the infamous villain. That's what pilot has set up.

He's tried to rig the choice in favor of Jesus. He wanted to let Jesus go. He had the power to let Jesus go. But he wants to avoid responsibility himself put it on the people. He did this little trick to make them choose between a controversial religious teacher and notorious criminal.

That way Lee lets him off the hook and Hopefully lets Jesus go but he underestimated the mob mentality. The mob mentality drives everyone in the same direction. Even irrationally to do crazy things it drives in here to ask for the infamous villain and kill Jesus.

The evil of envy is a spark in the hearts of the religious leaders and the good old boys is it started a blaze that sets the mob on fire. A Cascade starts chain of events like like falling dominoes one after another so that the end it says in verse 25 all the people all the people.

Were crying out for the crucifixion of Jesus. The evil of envy and the mob mentality. Cannot be stopped by a weak Unprincipled man who thinks you know, just I got to do what I got to do. Who thinks that he can avoid the requirement of responsibility?

Pilot knew that Jesus had violated no law. That stream of unsubstantiated accusations from the priests and then the elders proved it. They couldn't prove a thing against him and then his wife's dream Confirmed it as he was sitting there.

You can see him on some kind of like judges seat of like a throne. A Message comes from his wife mrs. Pilot and she had a dream and in it She suffered much because of seeing her husband condemn Jesus a righteous man.

She knew they would be punished if have his blood on their hands. And so she sends him a message have nothing to do with that righteous man. In other words, don't be responsible for his death. Now surely he has to tremble.

When he when he gets that already, he knows he's innocent already. He's trying to get out of this. He's trying to let him go free. Although he doesn't have the willpower to say no, he's innocent. I'm letting him free.

I don't care what you want. And then his wife comes or sends a message somehow. Don't have anything to do with condemning him you know, that's just got a Shaken and that's more than a coincidence. And she would get word to him about about this while the court was still in session while he's actually in the act of Judging him but for all that well, he thinks well, I got it.

I have a duty. I'm supposed to keep the peace. Pilots thinking, you know if I if I do what's right? Okay, if I let Jesus go these people they're so irrational it could be a riot, you know, and I'd have to call in the troops to put down the riot and Some of those people would be killed perhaps some of my own troops would be injured or maybe even killed.

Then I have to write a report to Rome. They'd ask questions back. I'd be you know, I have some kind of inspector come to figure out what's what happened. It might look bad. All that hassle. I have to go through all that hassle all that paperwork over over what over Justice over doing what's right over this Teacher from Galilee sure.

He's a righteous man, but come on. Is it is it worth it to let him go? Is it's not what I want to do. I don't want to condemn him but he thinks. It's my duty. When I get home, I'll just explain to the wife, you know, I got to do what I got to do.

And those are the things we tell ourselves when we choose what is expedient the easy way the road most traveled. On the one hand here pilot appears in some ways. He appears very sympathetic doesn't he we might understand his predicament.

We might even think well, he's he's the good guy here. I mean he wants to let Jesus go. He's not like the religious leaders and the good old boys, you know, they really they just really despise Jesus.

They've been plotting and scheming and waiting for this moment. They're working that crowd hard to steer the herd in the right way. Pilot though just marvels. At this man at Jesus, he's so composed. So so regal so majestic.

He's being accused but he never stoops to the level of his accusers. Pilot maneuvers to try to let Jesus go. He stalls he's looking for a way out. There's there's a hint even in that verse 23, you know, why?

What evil has he done it's just a hint in that if you if you can hear it that inwardly he's desperate he's begging. To not have to give the order to crucify Jesus. He has the power sure to just let him go.

But he's too weak to use it. Well with the viciousness of the religious leaders and the good old boys. And you know in the crowd that they ripped up into a frenzy this mob this herd. It's kind of easy to sympathize with pilot isn't it.

And he's trying to let him go so we understand right that sometimes. You know, you got to do what you got to do. You don't you don't want to do it, but it's your duty. It's this is the best option available.

If we're being swept along by forces outside of our control if it's just so much pressure if it's our duty. We think then we're not really responsible. Are we just it's the it's not good. But it's the it's the least evil.

That's what pilot thought. Are we really responsible? He didn't want he didn't want it to come to this. But he thinks you know, what can I do? So like almost like he's in a Kovat 19 epidemic. He'll wash his hands wash your hands.

We're tall all the time now. He washes his hands proclaiming with that. That he's not responsible. He's got to do. What he's got to do. The pilot is not a good innocent man. Just doing his duty not responsible for the order.

He finally gives he is responsible. He can wash his hands all he wants. But the blood of Jesus is still on them. He can't avoid the requirement of responsibility. He is the authority to let this innocent man go free.

He has a higher duty than just keeping these people quiet. A duty to do what is right to justice. That the vision of that higher duty should be what is bright before his eyes. The cry for justice. Should be what is ringing in his ears?

But all he can see instead of that and all he can hear is this tumultuous crowd. Shouting crucify him crucify him. He can see the paperwork that he might get bogged down in if he puts down a riot. He can see he could possibly even see himself maybe getting fired and brought back to Rome and having to answer charges.

Those are the hard facts of life. So well, he'll just have to he'll just have to tell his wife. You know, look I Have you and the family to take care of. I've got a job to do it just had to be done. So the Lord Jesus is condemned.

After all that just kind of that volcano of spewing of hatred from the religious leaders the other leaders. His condemnation comes his final condemnation comes. Coldly from an exasperated man with no animosity no theological opposition.

No, no heat of hatred. No, no trumped-up trial. The final order comes because a weak man was worn down and Took the easy way out. Jesus was condemned because of something that appears so common to us so natural.

That it's just a matter of a fact. Sometimes maybe we might even say it's it's noble. Jesus was condemned by a man who thought He was doing his duty. Doing what he had to do. He makes a show out of avoiding the requirement of responsibility.

He's washing his hands. The people though. They take responsibility his blood be on us and owned our children. Here again, is that that bad religion? We looked at two weeks ago. Remember that the worldly people like pilot.

Well, sometimes do something is wrong and they'll feel bad about it. Felt a little bad about what he had to do he got justified as the least. The least worst evil, but the fee felt kind of bad about it, but the religious people here they they own it.

But the secular people more like like like pilot they might wish they hadn't done whatever they did. They might even admit that it's wrong. They just think it's the the lesser of the evils. They'll think well they had to abort their baby because they couldn't afford it.

It was their duty to their other children to their duty to their future even in their twisted logic. It was their duty to the baby. They killed somehow but at least they still admit what they did was not not right.

Not the best. The religious though Will do something that's evil and will be completely unashamed of their sin. They might believe their sins are somehow in service of God. They justified themselves that they are something to be proud of.

They'll be proud of their responsibility. Because they see nothing wrong with what they did his blood be on us and our children. They think it's something to be proud of so here they'll take the blood of Jesus on them because they've convinced themselves that killing Jesus was the right thing to do.

And when 40 years later less than a generation Roman armies crucified thousands of Jewish men probably many of the same ones who standing right here or their sons. Then it was too late. When these men who said his blood be on us.

Faced the judgment seat of Christ with his blood on them. It will not be for their washing but for their condemnation. They didn't dodge the requirement responsibility. They they took responsibility. Because they were so deluded by their own self-righteousness but someday They will wish they were not being held responsible for that righteous man's blood.

Now we live in an age and so many people think that they will not be held responsible for their sins. They think well circumstances forced me into it. It was the best choice. I had available. They were lonely.

So they had to have an affair. They couldn't stand not to be in a relationship. So they'll enter into an immoral one the rich steal from us. So it's okay for me to steal a little back. You know in office supplies at work or in my taxes.

Anyway, sin isn't a big deal people think today God will excuse sins. We don't have a duty to God that we fail to keep. Do we? Sins don't have to be paid for. Do they? No, no one has to be punished for them.

Certainly not scourged or crucified for them. Do they? Sin isn't like a disease like kovat 19 that you need to be healed of. Is it not that serious? Is it? Besides. Even if it is Jesus is sweet and nice.

He won't require any responsibility from us Willie. That's the idol of Jesus that the the watered-down idea of sinned the scourgeless stripeless cheap salvation that many have created in their minds to avoid the requirement of responsibility the evil of envy.

Steered a mob mentality to cause a weak man. To try to avoid the requirement of responsibility. And the result. Was that Jesus was condemned? So finally Pilot gives the order and the Roman troops. Well, they got to do what they got to do, right?

They take the first steps toward killing him. He has to be scourged. Which that was not only vicious torture seeking to inflict as much pain as possible prior to an already Excruciating death. It was also to weaken the victim.

Some died just from the scourging. He would be tied to a post. His clothes just ripped off his back. The whip would be several cords each with sharp pieces of either bone or iron balls or sharp barbs.

Tied in the stripes of the leather strips at intervals that the scourging would sometimes tear. Strips of flesh off the back usually two soldiers standing on either side. Would alternate strokes one pulling one way one pulling the other way.

Then as the flogging continued the lacerations would tear into the underlying skeletal muscles and produce quivering ribbons of Bleeding flesh. The Jewish law said they must stop at 39 strokes. But the Romans were not bound by that.

They might keep going until they were worn out or until it just wasn't fun anymore. Ripping and slashing flaying the skin flinging blood everywhere tearing flesh leaving stripe after stripe and by those stripes.

We are healed. What you've got to do your responsibility now Is to stop following the mob. Stop in being the world or the rich. See those stripes and Sacrifice all the vain things that charm you most sacrifice them to his blood.

That's What you've got to do.