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The last two weeks, we have looked at Matthew 26, verses 30 through 56. In these verses, we have seen Jesus tell the disciples that as he is delivered into the hands of evil men, all of the disciples will fall away from him.
We also saw Jesus pray in the Garden of Gethsemane. It was in this garden that Jesus was faced with the reality that the Father was soon to pour out his holy wrath upon him as he went to the cross. What Jesus feared more than anything was being under the displeasure of his father, and this would come the next day as he hung on the cross.
We also saw Jesus finally arrested by soldiers sent from the chief priests and the elders. What we saw is that Jesus did not run. He did not hide. He knew what he needed to do. It was predicted long ago that he would suffer for sinners, and this was the time.
So he gave himself up, and he gave himself up out of a great love for you. Jesus going to the cross is the only way that you or any sinner down through history can have their sins paid for. So he submitted himself to the will of God and was ready to pay the ultimate price.
Now, this leads us to part three of this sermon. Last week, I told you that today would be the final part of this sermon, but as I looked closer to Matthew 27, what I discovered is that this sermon keeps going.
So as we march toward the cross, today is part three. Next Sunday is part four, and then two Sundays from now on the 26th will be part five. The text that this all covers is Matthew 26, verse 30 through 27, verse 26.
Once again, the big idea that covers all of these verses is this. Know that Jesus experienced enormous suffering even before the cross, and this morning we are going to see point four. Next week, we'll cover points five, and the following week we'll cover part point six, that is.
As we continue our sermon series through Matthew, I encourage you to turn there with me to Matthew 26. And if you don't have a Bible with you, we do have those red Bibles in the pews. This sermon is once again titled, Darkness Descends on the Light, and this is part three.
And here is the fourth way how you are to know that Jesus experienced enormous suffering even before the cross, and that is through subjecting himself to a kangaroo court. Subjecting himself to a kangaroo court, and we'll see this in verses 57 through 68.
Not only did Jesus subject himself to evil men who arrested him, he also would endure the shame that these evil men would put him through. I'm going to begin by looking at verse 57 of Matthew 26. Then those who had seized Jesus led him to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders had gathered.
So let's stop right there. What we see here is that this was all coordinated. The Jewish leadership did not arrest Jesus in person in the Garden of Gethsemane. It was offers and soldiers who were sent by them.
At the head of all of this is Caiaphas the high priest. What verse 57 also mentions is the presence of the scribes and the elders. They all gathered to put Jesus on trial. What we have seen throughout the whole Gospel of Matthew is that right from the day Jesus started his ministry, there has been this tension between him and the Jewish leadership.
There has been a collision course between the corrupt Jewish establishment and the true prophet of God, the Son of God, Jesus Christ. And now they are finally colliding. We have seen clearly what kind of people the Jewish leaders were.
The high priest was corrupt. The chief priests who served under him were corrupt. The elders of the people were corrupt, and so were the scribes who were considered the experts in the law. But the scribes taught the traditions of men, and so of course they opposed Jesus, who as the God-man spoke the true words of God.
At the head of all of this was a man named Caiaphas, who is mentioned in verse 57. He was the high priest, and he had quite a run as high priest. The way that it was set up is that when a high priest died, the next man in line would take over, and he would serve in this role until he died.
Caiaphas started this role in AD 18 until his death in 36 AD. As the most powerful Jew, he profited from the financial corruption that took place at the temple. Earlier in Matthew 21, we saw Jesus outraged that the Jewish leadership turned the temple into a marketplace.
So he drove them out with a whip of cords as John 2 .15 informs us. In the Gospels, the high priest Caiaphas is always seen as hostile toward Jesus. As I already alluded to, he saw Jesus as a threat to his power.
And not only Caiaphas, but also the other powerful Jewish authorities as well. But as Jesus is in the hands of these wicked Jewish leaders, we learn about the whereabouts of one of Jesus' disciples in verse 58.
And Peter was following him at a distance. As far as the courtyard of the high priest. And going inside, he sat with the guards to see the end. What we see here is that Peter followed Jesus, but he kept his distance.
He wanted to see what they were going to do to Jesus, so he got very close as he sat with the guards to see what they were going to do to him as Jesus stood trial. Now we're going to see what a joke of a trial this was.
When you put someone on trial, you need to have evidence showing that one committed a crime. As the heading of this point, I have already called this a kangaroo court. According to the dictionary, a kangaroo court is an unofficial court held by a group of people in order to try someone regarded, especially without good evidence, as guilty of a crime.
This describes well what is happening here. In the court of law, people are innocent until proven guilty. So there has to be proof, but of course, this presents a major problem for the Jewish leaders.
They have no proof concerning Jesus. He's committed no crime, and we obviously know this. So they are left with only one choice. They have to come up with their own proof. And notice the quotation marks as I say this.
Proof.
This is what verse 59 says. Now the chief priest and the whole council were seeking false testimony against Jesus that they might put him to death. So if evil people really want to make someone guilty who isn't guilty, the only option is to fabricate evidence against that person.
This is what evil governments do to their political enemies. Someone speaks out against their corruption, but they need to pin the one they are exposing to a crime, so they ransack one's home and find the most obscure evidence and charge the person on a technicality.
This is what evil governments do. Frankly, we have seen this happen in our own country and even more so in Canada to the north. Canadian pastor Derek Reimer from Calgary protested at children's drag queen hour at the public library.
This happened in the last month. And as he was protesting this story hour, he was thrown to the ground. He went home, and eventually the police showed up at his house. Video showed Reimer asking the police why they were there.
They told him he was under arrest for causing a disturbance, and he was charged with mischief. He was taken away with handcuffs. Reimer did nothing wrong. In fact, this is precisely what Christian leaders should be doing.
We should be standing up against the evil, and not just Christian leaders, but every Christian. We need to protect our children. Reimer did what any pastor or any Christian should be doing, but the wicked government arrested him, and they charged him with the false charge of causing a disturbance.
Everyone needs to understand this, because this is the world we live in. Evil people are going to want to charge Christians with crimes, and so they will either find the smallest thing you have ever done from your past and make a big deal out of it, or make up a crime altogether.
They want to destroy those who are against them.
This is what they did with Jesus.
They want to make up things so they can pronounce Him guilty. But with this false trial of Jesus, they ran into problems. Let's see this in the first half of verse 60. But they found none. So the Jewish leaders had people make baseless accusations against Jesus, but there was no credibility to them, so they didn't go anywhere.
In a parallel passage in Mark, Mark 14 .56 says, many bore false witness against Him, but their testimony did not agree. This is what happens when people are trying to raise a false charge against someone.
What happens is that different stories are presented. When a story intended to either exonerate someone or falsely convict another is full of contradictions, the law knows that the person is lying. If you have to make stories up on the fly, one is bound to trip up.
To the contrary, if someone is telling the truth, the story is consistent. But this was not the case with these witnesses. They were false witnesses making things up, and their stories did not agree. But once this failed, there was a second effort, as the end of verse 60 and verse 61 says.
Though many false witnesses came forward, at last two came forward and said, this man said, I am able to destroy the temple of God and to rebuild it in three days. What these two witnesses are saying is in reference to what Jesus said in John 2 .19.
There he said to the Jewish leaders, destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up. As we might expect, this was incredibly controversial. What the Jewish leaders said in response to this is that it has taken a long time to build this temple, and you are going to destroy it in three days?
These false witnesses hold on to what Jesus said in that episode, and their goal was not to understand what he really meant when he said this. Not only were they not interested in what Jesus said, but neither was anyone present at this kangaroo court.
Instead, they did their own thing. But John 2 .21 tells us what Jesus really meant when he said he was going to destroy the temple in three days. There the apostle John writes, he was speaking about the temple of his body.
This we must understand. The sacrifices from the temple laid out in the law of Moses pointed ahead to Christ. He is the once for all sacrifice who makes sinners right with God. This is what Jesus was communicating through this statement.
But this is not how the corrupt Jewish leaders took it. They took it as if he was going to send fire from heaven to consume the temple, so they treat Jesus as if he is this dangerous man when he is the furthest thing from it.
They saw his gentleness.
Everybody saw his gentleness. He did not fight when they arrested him. He gave himself over to them and even rebuked Peter who tried to protect him. We know what is happening here. They want Jesus dead, and so they try to peg him with a crime, and they need false witnesses to do this.
First, they had false witnesses make baseless accusations, and now they take what Jesus said and they completely misrepresent it. Now, as these two accusers tell everyone that Jesus is going to destroy the temple, this is how the high priest responds in verse 62.
And the high priest stood up and said, have you no answer to make? What is it that these men testify against you? The high priest Caiaphas says this as if there is some credibility to what these two eyewitnesses report.
Once again, the claim is preposterous. During Jesus' ministry, he showed himself to be gentle. He hung out with the lowliest. He healed the sick and the demon possessed who came to him. Christ's life was one of sacrifice and helping others, and yet they misrepresent what he says and spread the rumor that he is going to destroy the temple.
But it is remarkable how Jesus reacts to this situation in the beginning of verse 63. But Jesus remained silent. This is remarkable. Jesus does not defend himself. What we need to understand is that there is a time to answer evil people and there is a time not to.
We learn this from such an interesting passage in Proverbs. Proverbs 26 .4 says, answer not a fool according to his folly, lest you be like him yourself. There are times when a fool says something when it is not wise to answer the fool.
What Proverbs 26 .4 says is that if you engage in certain conversations with a fool, you become a fool yourself. In other words, do not join that person in the sewer. There are some things spoken that are so ridiculous that they do not deserve the time of day.
In our day, most of what we hear is foolish talk. People have an agenda and they don't care about the truth, so they push forth their falsehood. More times than not, it is not worth responding because the claims made are so out there.
And in this case, as the lies are ignored, the truth will win out. However, what is interesting about this passage in Proverbs 26 is that it is not always wise to stay silent. There is a time to speak.
As King Solomon writes in Proverbs 26 .5, answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes. So there are times to answer a fool. It might be a situation where a fool is starting to convince others about something, and you need to respond so that people are not led astray.
We do see this defense in Scripture. In 2 Corinthians, the Apostle Paul defended his ministry against those false teachers who tried to bring him down. Because the gospel and the fidelity of the church was at stake and his enemies were gaining momentum, he had to respond.
But in this case, Jesus is not responding. The Apostle Peter describes Jesus' experience here before these evil men in 1 Peter 2, verses 21 -23. Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example so that you might follow in his steps.
He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return. When he suffered, he did not threaten, but entrusting himself to him who judges justly. Jesus stood before some of the most evil men this world has ever seen.
And as he was in the hands of Caiaphas, the high priest, the chief priest, the elders, and the scribes, these men who made up the corrupt Jewish leadership wanted Jesus out of the picture, and they were willing to do anything to accomplish this.
They had no evidence against him. As we have seen, some men made up accusations entirely, while others completely misrepresented what Jesus said. He wasn't going to destroy the temple. Jesus could have argued back and they would not have been able to answer as he showed clearly that he was innocent.
What is interesting is that the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate, who did not have an agenda to kill Jesus, looked at the accusations made against him. In the Gospel of John at the end of chapter 18 and the beginning of chapter 19, Pilate said three times, I find no guilt in him.
So any objective observer could see that not only was Jesus innocent, but it goes further than that. There have been numerous times down through history and in the present day where an innocent man or woman has been charged with a crime and put on trial.
But even these innocent people in the whole scheme of things are not innocent. As Romans 3 .23 says, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Every person in the history of the world with the exception of one are sinners.
This is why Peter in 1 Peter said concerning Jesus that he committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. How bad it is when an innocent person is put on trial and how much worse when the man who never did one thing wrong is put on trial by sinful men.
Sometimes people ask the question, what is the greatest sin ever committed? You are looking at it right here. The greatest sin ever committed is that the perfect man, the Holy Son of God was tried by sinful men.
And over the coming weeks, we are going to see the worst thing of all, that he was nailed to a tree. But Jesus did not answer these greatest of all fools and he didn't do it because he knew the will of God.
What he is doing here is giving himself up. He does not need to offer a defense. Any person who has any integrity can see that Jesus does not deserve to die. He's not only innocent, he's the perfect Son of God.
What's interesting is that there was a film, it was called the Jesus film from decades ago. And there's a story about a missionary bringing this film that covers the life of Jesus and his crucifixion and his resurrection.
And as the missionary goes to this remote tribe, the tribe watches the film. And as they watch it, they fall in love with Jesus just like anybody does as they see his gentleness and how he helps everybody who comes to him.
And of course, as the story goes, Jesus is betrayed and he is put on trial. He is completely mistreated. And then he's hung on a cross. And as the story is shown, this tribe goes bananas as they see this perfect man being so mistreated.
And it's a reminder to us that as we see this, we should be outraged at what is happening here. Just like this tribe was who saw this for the very first time. He did nothing wrong. And yet he is being sent to the cross unjustly.
And he sits under this kangaroo court by these wicked Jewish leaders. What's interesting is that as Jesus hung on the cross, as we will see later on, and there was a Roman centurion who witnessed Jesus and witnessed how he carried himself.
And he saw the wonders that happened, the earthquake that happened when he died. In Luke 23, 47, Luke records what the centurion said. When the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God saying, certainly this man was innocent.
Now as Jesus remained silent, Caiaphas the high priest continued to press Jesus. In the remainder of verse 63, the author Matthew records what Caiaphas said to him. Caiaphas said, I adjure you by the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the son of God.
And this is how Jesus responds to him. In this time, Jesus does not remain silent. This is what he says in verse 64. Jesus said to him, you have said so, but I tell you from now on, you will see the son of man seated at the right hand of power and coming on the clouds of heaven.
What Jesus tells the high priest Caiaphas and everyone present is you are right. I am the Christ. What we have seen in our journey through Matthew is that Jesus has remained mostly silent concerning his messianic identity.
He told people in private, yes, like his disciples, that he was the Christ. He told the woman at the well, as we see in John four, but he did not proclaim it to the whole world. But now he makes it crystal clear.
Before he told his followers, but now he tells his greatest enemies. And what Jesus says in verse 64 is that from now on, you will see the son of man seated at the right hand of power and coming on the clouds of heaven.
This is not only a claim that he is the Christ, it is a claim also that he is God. What Jesus is doing here is pointing his corrupt Jewish leaders to the Old Testament. And they were supposed to be experts of the Old Testament.
But what we have seen is that they completely missed who the Messiah was supposed to be. During our Sunday school hour, Keith Johnson has been taking us through Daniel. And what Jesus does here is he takes him to Daniel seven, verses 13 through 14.
This passage predicted the Messiah taking his throne. There the prophet Daniel says, I saw in the night visions and behold, with the clouds of heaven, there came one like a son of man. And he came to the ancients of days and was presented before him.
And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom that all people, nations and languages should serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away in his kingdom, one that shall not be destroyed.
As Jesus said this, he also had Psalm 110, verse one in mind. This messianic Psalm said, the Lord says to my Lord, sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool. These prophecies predict the Messiah coming and reigning.
And by Jesus quoting these passages, he is telling them clearly, I am the Messiah predicted in these Old Testament prophecies. What Jesus is doing is not only claiming that he is Messiah, but that he is God.
Since he says in verse 64, that he's coming on the clouds of heaven. This is a picture of deity as the Old Testament pictures, the Lord riding on clouds. The psalmist wrote in Psalm 104, three, that the Lord makes the clouds his chariot.
And Isaiah 19, one says, the Lord is riding on a swift cloud. To ride on the clouds is something that the Lord does. And so Jesus is making the claim before these corrupt Jewish leaders, that he is not only the Messiah, but he is the Lord.
When he comes, there will be glorious clouds that accompany him, just as there were glorious clouds that took him up to heaven after his resurrection. As Jesus says these bold things concerning himself, here's the response of the high priest in verse 65.
Then the high priest tore his robes and said, he has uttered blasphemy. What further witnesses do we need? You have now heard this blasphemy. Now when someone tore one's robes in the Old Testament, it was an expression of deep grief.
And what is interesting is that the law of Moses prohibited the high priest from tearing his clothes. But Jewish tradition in a document known as the Talmud, they allowed high priests to do this when a person committed blasphemy.
Throughout Jesus' ministry, he made claims that he was not only man, but fully God. And as he stands before them once again, he makes this clear. The high priest Caiaphas considers this blasphemy. So following the Talmud, he tears his robes.
But even though he gives the impression that he is sorrowful, he is relieved. He and the others want Jesus dead. And after Jesus made this statement, the consensus is that since he supposedly committed blasphemy, as Jesus makes this claim of deity, there was no choice but to put him to death.
In the first half of verse 66, Caiaphas asked the others, what is your judgment? And they answered, in the second half of verse 66, he deserves death. The pronouncement is that he deserves death because of his so-called blasphemy.
What we see in verses 67 and 68 is not sorrow that Jesus supposedly committed blasphemy, but rather a celebration, as Matthew records. Then they spit in his face and struck him, and some slapped him, saying, prophesy to us, you Christ.
Who is the it that struck you? They hate Jesus, and they are doing with him whatever they please. As verse 67 says, they spit in his face, struck him, and some slapped him. This is the ugliest of pictures.
Then in verse 68, they mock him by saying, prophesy to us, you Christ. Who is that who struck you? They enjoy that they have power over him, and they are enjoying every minute of it. But what is truly, truly amazing is that Jesus subjected himself to this.
He gave himself up. He gave himself up for them to do these wicked things to him. He did all of this because he knew it was the only way. The road to Calvary was the only way, and one of the steps in accomplishing redemption was being tried by evil men.
By sitting under this kangaroo court, this illegitimate court, run by the wickedest of people. He was subjecting himself to this court. They had to go through the formality of putting Jesus on trial, but in their minds, he was already guilty.
These corrupt Jewish leaders are thrilled that they are all in agreement that he deserves death, and they charge Jesus with the death penalty on the false charge that Jesus committed blasphemy. But Jesus knew it would be this way.
He did this, please listen closely, he did this because he loves you. He put himself through all of this difficulty because he loves you. He knew it was the only way. He needed to go to the cross. He needed to submit himself to these evil men, to this ridiculous court.
He knew the only way you would avoid hell and enter the presence of God was through him dying in your place. He put himself before these evil men for your sake. So this morning, remember, know that Jesus suffered enormously even before the cross.
Know that Jesus suffered enormously even before the cross. And the fourth way how is through subjecting himself to a kangaroo court. What a Lord and Savior he is. At this time, let's pray. Before I pray, I want to say that next Sunday, we will be looking at the part four of this Five Sunday Sermon.
And then the following Sunday, once again, we'll be looking at part five. As we continue to see that Jesus suffered enormously even before the cross. But at this time, let's pray. Father in heaven, I do thank you for your word.
I thank you for the fact that as Hebrews 4 .12 says, it's living and active and it's sharper than any two-edged sword. And Lord, as we look at your word, your word is able to penetrate the heart wherever it needs to.
And so my prayer is that you would apply this text and meet everyone right where they are at. If there's any unbelievers here, that they would understand that Jesus went to the cross to pay for their sins, to deliver them from hell.
And my prayer is that this morning, that that person would believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. And for believers, Lord, that we'd be amazed at what Jesus went through for us and that we would give Him the praise that He is due, that we do it now and that we do it forever.
And it's in His name we pray.
Amen.