sermon: Remember: Truth and the Real Torch of Freedom
Mark Schindler
Given 12-Apr-25; Sermon #1812; 66 minutes
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We will begin this sermon today during the daylight hours of the 14th day of the first month of God’s calendar in the same place we began last night’s Passover service here in the Midwest, as we followed Christ’s command with all of God’s people around the world.
Please turn with me to I Corinthians 11.
I Corinthians 11:23-26 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, "Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me." In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me." For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes.
All of us who have been baptized into the Body of Christ, no matter where we were around the world deliberately followed Christ’s instructions to keep the Passover shortly after sunset that began the 14th day of the first month last evening.
In remembrance of Him, each one [of us] faithfully reaffirmed our individual commitment to Him and the New Covenant (He alone guaranteed through His singular sacrificial offering of everything He had) represented by the bread and wine we shared last night.
We also reaffirmed our own responsibility of humble service, as represented in the foot washing, even in service to our enemies, knowing that Jesus Christ even washed the feet of Judas, who had already betrayed Him.
We each have responded to the Father and been given the privilege to proclaim the Lord’s death until He returns; learning to live as He lives. He is the perfect Sacrifice that has done what none of us could ever do. Without Him we can do nothing.
Last night we each participated in the Passover service with fervent desire to fulfill all righteousness and in obedience to God. Last night’s commanded assembly was indeed a reaffirmation of our lifetime dedication to remembrance of Him and proclaiming His death until He comes, which is ultimately the hope of all those who will come after us.
But today on this Sabbath, which also happens to be part of the day of remembrance (for continuing to consider the most vitally significant preparation day in the history of mankind), we are going to consider the details of, as Paul Harvey used to say, “The rest of the story.”
We are going to spend a bit of time in this sermon trying to sharpen our focus of our own responsibilities (within the chaos of this world), as we continue through this day, which memorializes the most significant preparation day in the history of man.
But first, we are going to take a bit of a side trip that I hope may remind us of what we face in this chaotic world steeped in the traditions of men, driven by Satan—a world that fails to remember God’s Word, and the incredible sacrificial work of the Father and Son to accomplish Their purpose to create all men in Their image, according to Their likeness.
We are doing this because it is good to remind ourselves of the fact that we are living within Satan's propaganda machine, which he has been using from the beginning, to deceive the whole world (Revelation 12:9).
So please turn with me to Revelation 12. We need to glean a few important points from a few verses before and after verse 9, with the aid a commentary by John Ritenbaugh on chapter 12, as cited from his 2004 Forerunner article, “The Beast and Babylon (Part 4)” that I will read after we read Revelation 12, verses 9-12 and 17.
Revelation 12:9-12 So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, "Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time."
Revelation 12:17 And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
Regarding chapter 12 of Revelation, John wrote:
The nation of Israel is symbolically referred to throughout the chapter. In verse 1, (physical) Israel is described as a woman clothed with the sun and moon and wearing a crown of stars. Tying the symbols to Joseph's dream in Genesis 37 confirms the woman's identity. In the next verse, Israel is the woman about to give birth.
In verses 3-4, the Child she is about to bear is the focus of the great red Dragon's—Satan's—murderous intent. Verse 5 identifies her child as the Messiah, Jesus Christ, the One born to rule all nations. In verse 6, the woman who gave birth to Christ, Israel, flees to a place God prepared for her. That place is, I believe, where the Israelitish nations are located today.
Note that by verses 7-9, time has progressed to the end, when God throws Satan and his demons out of heaven for good. Verses 10-11 allude to the church by mentioning people overcoming the Dragon by the blood of the Lamb. At no time, however, is the woman of the early verses of this chapter, (physical) Israel, indicated to be converted.
But where is the church located? Verse 17 provides a hint, mentioning "the remnant of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ." Verse 13, which follows the interlude involving the Dragon being cast to earth, clarifies the object of the prophecy up until verse 17: "Now when the dragon saw that he had been cast to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child." The woman who gave birth to the Messiah is specifically named. She cannot represent the church because the church did not give birth to the Messiah, but the nation of Israel did. Thus, the people of Israel are the object of the Devil's persecutions.
In verse 14, no break in the narrative occurs to indicate the Devil's focus changes. It is Israel, persecuted by Satan, who is given two wings of a great eagle to fly to her place from the face of the serpent. In the past, we have always applied verse 14 to the church, but there is nothing to indicate any change in subject has taken place! Again, in verse 15, the serpent spews a flood from his mouth to destroy the nation of Israel. Likewise, the nation is helped by means of the earth swallowing the flood in verse 16.
It is not until verse 17 that the church comes directly into the picture, identified as "the rest of her [the woman's] offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ," the Messiah born to the woman in verse 5. Israel, the nation, does not keep the commandments of God, nor does it have the testimony of Jesus Christ. Even as the Messiah was born of the woman and definitely kept the commandments of God, so also does the remnant of her offspring, who are now clearly distinguished from her.
Putting verse 17 together with verses 7-12, the church, the woman's offspring, will undergo some measure of persecution within Israel before the woman—Israel—flees in verse 15. Otherwise, why would verse 11 say they "overcame . . . by the blood of the Lamb" and "did not love their lives to the death"?
Verse 17 clearly states that the Dragon leaves the woman who fled and heads toward some other geographical location to persecute those who keep the commandments. In other words, the woman who fled and her offspring that keep the commandments are, at the time verse 17 occurs, at different locations. This interpretation puts an entirely different cast upon this prophecy.
Brethren, we need to tie this back to I Corinthians 12:23-26 and the awesome responsibility we have been given, as noted specifically in verse 26, to faithfully live our entire lives in remembrance of Him, being living witnesses of His commandments, even unto death, if need be, which is a vital part of our personal declaration of His death until He returns.
With all of this in mind, we are going to take a bit of time to consider the machinations that ultimately are driven by Satan (who deceives the whole world) to not diligently remember the truth of God’s Word.
We are going to take a few minutes to look at one of Satan’s most subtle means of deception that will end up pulling us off track if we do not faithfully remember our primary responsibility in living apart from this world.
Although he is one of the most influential men of the 20th century, most of us are probably not familiar with Edward Bernays. Bernays life spanned most of the 20th century and was considered (according to his March, 1995 obituary), “The father of public relations.” He was also considered the most influential pioneer in the field of propaganda and manipulating public opinion.
He was born in November of 1891 to a Jewish family in Vienna that moved to the United States shortly after his birth. It is also interesting to note that Sigmund Freud, one of the most influential movers of the chaotic perversions of humanism, was his uncle, both on his mother’s side (Freud was his mother’s brother) and his father’s side (Freud was married to his father’s sister). His great-grandfather had also been the chief rabbi of Hamburg, Germany.
After graduating from Cornell University, he spent a lifetime subtly manipulating public opinion. His work extended from politics (starting in the Woodrow Wilson administration), through corporate America, and into manipulating international relationships.
Within his many books, including Crystallizing Public Opinion and another entitled Propaganda, he described the masses as irrational and subject to the herd instinct, while outlining how skilled practitioners could use crowd “psychology” and “psychoanalysis” to control them in desired ways!
Brethren, we are spending a bit of time on this because I want us to appreciate how important it is to stay as close to Jesus Christ and the truth He has given us within this chaotic world of Satan.
Those without God’s Holy Spirit are not committed to remembering the perfect work of God, and end up being deceived in so many different ways through Satan’s devices. He is subtly promoting the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life!
I want to take a minute to look at one of Edward Bernays’ most successful propaganda campaigns that are tied to this time of year, and those who look to the traditions of men, rather than remembering the truth of God’s Word. This will also have an interesting tie in to this day.
A time-honored Easter tradition that in some places has been traced all the way back to Constantine in the 4th century is the Easter Parade. It is another tradition that seems to have grown in various forms from supposedly honoring Jesus’ triumphal ride into Jerusalem shortly before His crucifixion and/or His torturous walk to the site of His crucifixion, neither of which is in line with looking to God’s Word. In the United States by 1947 the Easter Parade drew up to 1,000,000 people in New York alone. It was also popular in other cities around the world.
As one source noted,
From the 1880s through the 1950s New York’s Easter Parade was one of the main cultural expressions of Easter in the United States.
By the 1880s, the Easter parade had become a vast spectacle of fashion and religious observance. It was an after-church cultural event for the well-to-do—decked out in new and fashionable clothing, they would stroll from their own church to others to see the impressive flowers, and to be seen by their fellow strollers. People from the poorer and middle classes would observe the parade to learn the latest trend in fashion.
This was indeed another part of Satan’s focus away from God’s Word and onto the self. It was into this venue that Edward Bernay made one of his most notable forays into changing the culture, in 1929.
The following was cited from an article “Torches of Freedom”:
Before the twentieth century smoking was seen as a habit that was corrupt and inappropriate for women. . .
In 1928 George Washington Hill, the president of the American Tobacco Company, realized the potential market that could be found in women and said, "It will be like opening a gold mine right in our front yard."
To expand the number of women smokers Hill decided to hire Edward Bernays, who today is known as the father of public relations, to help him recruit women smokers. Bernays decided to attempt to eliminate the social taboo against women smoking in public. He gained advice from psychoanalyst A. A. Brill (himself a student of Sigmund Freud) who stated that it was normal for women to smoke because of oral fixation and said, "Today the emancipation of women has suppressed many of their feminine desires. More women now do the same work as men do. Many women bear no children; those who do bear have fewer children. Feminine traits are masked. Cigarettes, which are equated with men, become torches of freedom."[6]
In 1929 Bernays decided to pay women to smoke their "torches of freedom" as they walked in the Easter Sunday Parade in New York. This was a shock because until that time, women were only permitted to smoke in certain places such as in the privacy of their own homes. He was very careful when picking women to march because "while they should be good looking, they should not look too model-y" and he hired his own photographers to make sure that good pictures were taken and then published around the world.[6] Feminist Ruth Hale also called for women to join in the march saying, "Women! Light another torch of freedom! Fight another sex taboo!"[6] Once the footage was released, the women's walk was seen as a protest for equality and sparked discussion throughout the nation.
Brethren, we have spent time going into this example of the chaotic culture of satanic propaganda driven by the carnal mind that is enmity against God, because we have been given the unmerited privilege to uphold the truth through Jesus Christ.
Through Him the New Covenant and real freedom under our Great God is certain, if we continue remembering the truth of God’s Word, proclaiming Christ’s death until He comes.
I also found it interesting for us to consider that, what many have more correctly called coffin nails, are here called “torches of freedom” within Satan’s propaganda machine. This is especially interesting as they were tied into Satan’s counterfeit celebration at this time of year where Satan has subtly deceived men to put the commanded remembrance of Christ’s incredible sacrifice behind the traditions of men—Easter Sunday.
Hopefully we are going to see how this may all tie together and help us continue in our duty to remember and proclaim the Lord’s singular sacrificial work until He returns.
With all this in mind please turn with me to John 19, where John is inspired to record a clear remembrance of truth from God’s Word.
John 19:31-37 Therefore, because it was the Preparation Day, that the bodies should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away. Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who was crucified with Him. But when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out. And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you may believe. For these things were done that the Scripture should be fulfilled, "Not one of His bones shall be broken." And again another Scripture says, "They shall look on Him whom they pierced."
John is the one remembering and testifying from the truth of God’s Word, as he clearly saw the prophecy of the Messiah fulfilled. He clearly ties the Passover Lamb of Exodus to the one perfect sacrifice that was eventually for the benefit of all men.
We will now consider those things that John remembered.
First please turn with me to
Exodus 12:43-47 And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "This is the ordinance of the Passover: No foreigner shall eat it. But every man's servant who is bought for money, when you have circumcised him, then he may eat it. A sojourner and a hired servant shall not eat it. In one house it shall be eaten; you shall not carry any of the flesh outside the house, nor shall you break one of its bones. All the congregation of Israel shall keep it.
Exodus 12:50-51 Thus all the children of Israel did; as the LORD commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did. And it came to pass, on that very same day, that the LORD brought the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt according to their armies.
Physical Israel kept the Passover under the blood of the Lamb and not one bone was broken.
Now please turn with me to Zechariah 12 and the end time prophecy that the apostle John remembered tying Jesus Christ’s singular sacrifice to God’s plan for all men from creation. It is here in chapter 12 we see physical Israel who will have been assembled at the return of the Messiah as King of kings!
This prophesies the time when Judah, as a nation, is finally recognizing and mourning over what they had done.
We will begin in
Zechariah 12:1-3 The burden of the word of the LORD against Israel. Thus says the LORD, who stretches out the heavens, lays the foundation of the earth, and forms the spirit of man within him: "Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples, when they lay siege against Judah and Jerusalem. And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it.”
Zechariah 12:6 “In that day I will make the governors of Judah like a firepan in the woodpile, and like a fiery torch in the sheaves; they shall devour all the surrounding peoples on the right hand and on the left, but Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place—Jerusalem.”
Zechariah 12:10-11 "And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn. In that day there shall be a great mourning in Jerusalem, like the mourning at Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo.”
There are a couple of things we need to note here: When the Messiah returns, He once again begins to use reassembled physical Israel, under His power to show His dominion over all nations. He starts with the reassembled house of David, Judah and all Israel coming to terms with what they had done and serious in repentance.
What we have been given now through God’s Holy Spirit they will finally realize and repent with great mourning, just as we do today, proclaiming His death until He comes.
In commenting on this chapter within the whole of the book of Zechariah, Richard Ritenbaugh wrote the following as cited from his Forerunner series, “Meet The Minor Prophets (Part 4).”
The second discourse is a long prophecy that predicts that Jerusalem will one day be restored as a holy city, where God will return to dwell. It quickly becomes apparent that He is looking far into the future, the time of the end, when He will bring all of Israel back to the Promised Land, and they will once again be His people (Zechariah 8:7-8). The just-returned remnant of Judah is only a type of what will happen when God acts to restore Israel in the soon-coming Millennium.
The last six chapters form the second part of Zechariah's prophecy, which is itself divided into two "burdens." The first burden spans chapters 9-11. It begins with a warning to surrounding nations that God will defend His people, and not only that, a King is coming to save them.
Chapter 10 prophesies that Judah and Israel will be re-gathered and restored, and they will return to Him. This is followed by the enigmatic chapter 11, a prophecy or a parable that concentrates on the shepherds (leaders) of God's people, broadly indicating that God will hold abusive leaders accountable for their perfidy and their irresponsibility in doing their duties.
The remaining chapters (12-14) comprise the second burden. Chapter 12 foretells how end-time events will revolve around Jerusalem, but despite the madness surrounding them, God will save the people of Judah. He will show them grace, and they will respond by accepting the Messiah, the One "whom they pierced" (Zechariah 12:10), mourning what they have done. The next chapter continues their reform, as idolatry is eliminated throughout the land. It ends with a prophecy of the Shepherd who is struck down and His sheep scattered, yet in the end, after horrific testing, the people return to God.
Finally, chapter 14 famously recounts the events of the Day of the Lord, when Christ descends to defeat His enemies and set up His Kingdom on earth.
At this point brethren, I would like us to consider Zechariah 12:6 again as I hope we will see how clearly it ties into what Jesus Christ did for us all 1,994 years ago today.
Zechariah 12:6 “In that day I will make the governors of Judah like a firepan in the woodpile, and like a fiery torch in the sheaves; they shall devour all the surrounding peoples on the right hand and on the left, but Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place—Jerusalem.”
Verse 6 shows a simile: the firepan in the woodpile, and a fiery torch in the sheaves, declares the power of God against the madness around Jerusalem at the end time.
In that verse “fiery” is the word 'êsh (aysh)—a primitive word; fire (literally or figuratively): burning, fiery, fire, flaming, hot.
“Torch” is lapîd (lap-peed', lap-peed)'—from an unused root, probably meaning to shine; a flambeau, lamp or flame: (fire-) brand, (burning) lamp, lightning, torch.
There is also some evidence in the original Hebrew pictograph that the word “fiery,” on occasion is connected to the fire of a sacrifice.
With this in mind, both of these words appear in a place directly attached to the events of the daylight hours of the 14th day of the first month into the night to be much observed after sunset on the 15th.
Please turn with me to
Genesis 15:1 After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, "Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward."
Genesis 15:6-13 And he believed in the LORD, and He accounted it to him for righteousness. Then He said to him, "I am the LORD, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to inherit it." And he said, "Lord GOD, how shall I know that I will inherit it?" So He said to him, "Bring Me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon." Then he brought all these to Him and cut them in two, down the middle, and placed each piece opposite the other; but he did not cut the birds in two. And when the vultures came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away. Now when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and behold, horror and great darkness fell upon him. Then He said to Abram: "Know certainly that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them, and they will afflict them four hundred years.”
Genesis 15:17-18 And it came to pass, when the sun went down and it was dark, that behold, there appeared a smoking oven and a burning torch that passed between those pieces. On the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying: "To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the River Euphrates.”
When a covenant is made, and the sacrificial animal’s parts are separated, the two parties of the covenant each go through the midst of the parts as affirmation of binding of the covenant.
But here we see the burning torch representing God Himself, guaranteeing the binding covenant for both parties.
For lack of time because of what I intend to do with the rest of the sermon time, we are not going to go into this in detail. However, I want to cite a section from David Grabbe’s two-part Forerunner article, “Why Was Jesus Not Crucified as Passover Began?”
I hope you will take time to study the whole article, if you have not already done so, already. But I just wanted to cite the series of time markers David lays out tying God’s providential work with Abraham, as recorded mainly in Genesis 14 and 15 with the Passover lamb and its fulfillment in Jesus Christ.
David Grabbe wrote:
1. Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; He was the priest of God most high as it says in Genesis 14:18. This corresponds with Jesus’ Passover observance with bread and wine which took place on the beginning of the 14th.
2. Then (God brought Abraham) outside and said look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them. And He said to him so shall your descendants be. Abraham is outside viewing the stars. The time has progressed to the full dark on the 14th.
3. The sacrificial activities described in Genesis 15 verses 9 through 11 indicate the arrival of the daylight portion of the Abib 14; It was light enough to make sacrifices. This method of making a covenant symbolizes that, if the terms were not met, the transgressor must be cut in half just like the animals. (See Jeremiah 34:18-20).
4. Now when the sun was going down a deep sleep fell upon Abraham; And behold, horror and great darkness fell upon him. The sun begins to go down as soon as noon has passed, so this verse could indicate any time in the afternoon or early evening.
5. And it came to pass when the sun went down and it was dark, that behold there appeared a smoking oven and a burning torch that passed between those pieces. The sun has set and Abib 15 has begun. The symbol of a burning lamp or torch is linked with the salvation of God's people (Isaiah 62:1) and describes the eyes of God (Daniel 10:6). In addition, when God descended on Mount Sinai in fire its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace (Exodus 19:18). Through these symbols, God is seen confirming his covenant to Abraham by passing through the middle of the sacrificial animals, (Himself).
David continues:
What happened during the daylight portion of the 14th in Abraham’s day was a conversation about inheriting the land, then Abraham divided and arranged the animals at God's command in preparation for the covenant. Thus, the timing of Christ’s crucifixion on the afternoon of Abib 14 points to something centuries before the Passover in Egypt to the promises God made to the father of the faithful and to the preparations made for their covenant.
Finally, David’s concluding remarks as he ends his article:
Christ sacrifice confirming the new covenant occurred on the anniversary of God's covenantal promise to Abraham—the same day and hour! Its specific timing draws our attention to the eternal inheritance promised to Abraham and his spiritual seed. Jesus set the example of when and how he wants us to observe the Passover—at the beginning of the 14th—and then on that afternoon he shed his blood so that a new covenant could be made.
This covenant is an outgrowth of the covenant with Abraham making his great nation a reality. It provides for justification on the basis of faith—for Israelite and Gentile alike—and promises eternal life to those who continue to the end in faith. Christ is our Passover, not by lining up with the timing outlined in the instructions given to Israel, but by renewing and advancing the covenant God made with Abraham.
Brethren, this is the truth we remember today and tonight and the real torch of freedom, who is Jesus Christ.
Now with all of this in mind, as we draw toward the close of this Day of Remembrance and into the Night to Be Much Observed, remembering the cost of this New Covenant, I would like you to just listen as, I read part of the harmony of the Gospel accounts of what was taking place 1,994 years ago today.
I will not be giving scriptural references as this is the narrative that fills in the time from across the Gospels, as it is written in the New International Version.
We are going to pick up a couple of events showing the reactions of some during this incredible time starting as Christ our Creator spent this time being brutally questioned, humiliated, beaten, condemned, and crucified.
Let us start with Peter.
Then the men guarding Jesus began mocking Him, beating Him. Then some began to spit on His face. They blind folded Him, and struck Him with their fists. Others slapped Him, and said, “Prophesy to us, ‘Christ.’ Who hit you?” And they said many other insulting things to Him.
While Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the High Priest came by. When she saw Peter warming himself, she looked closely at him seated there, “You also were with the Nazarene, Jesus of Galilee,” she said. But he denied it before them all. “Woman! I do not know Him! I do not know nor understand what you are talking about,” he said. And he went out to the entryway.
A little later, the servant girl saw him there, she said again to the people there, “This fellow was with Jesus of Nazareth.” And as Simon Peter stood warming himself, he was asked, “Surely, you are one of His disciples!” He denied it again with an oath, “I do not know this man!” About an hour later, another standing there went up to Peter and said, “Surely, you are one of them! For you are a Galilean. Your accent gives you away!” “Man! I do not know what you are talking about!”
One of the High Priest’s servants, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, challenged him, “Did I not see you with Him in the olive garden?” Then he began to call down curses on himself, and swore to them, “I do not know this man you are talking about!”
Just as he was speaking, at that moment, the rooster began to crow. The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter, and Peter remembered the word of the Lord had spoken to him, “Before the rooster crows, you will disown Me three times,” and he broke down, went outside, and wept bitterly.
Brethren, there are some marginal notes that indicate that at the time Jesus Christ was being moved from Caiaphas’ house to the high priest’s, He was within feet of Peter, as Peter denied him the third time. And Peter went out and wept bitterly.
Very early in the morning, the council of elders of the people, both of the chief priests and the teachers of the law, met together. And the whole Sanhedrin reached the decision to put Jesus to death.
They bound Him, and led before them. “If you are the Christ,” they said, “Tell us!” “If I tell you, you will not believe me! And if I ask you, you would not answer. But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the Mighty God.” They all asked, “Are you the Son of God?” And He replied, “You are right in saying I am.” And then they said, “Why do we need any more testimony! We have heard it from His own lips!” Then the whole assembly arose and led Him from Caiaphas to the Palace of Pilate, the Roman governor.
Here is something else to think about:
When Judas who had betrayed Him saw that Jesus was condemned, and seized with remorse returned the 30 pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders. “I have sinned,” he said. “I have betrayed innocent blood.” “What is that to us,” they replied. “That is your responsibility.” So, Judas threw the money into the temple and left. He went away and hanged himself.
Notice that Peter’s response was weeping bitterly, while Judas’ response was going out to hang himself. And the chief priests’ response, “It is none of our business. Who cares?”
The chief priest picked up the coins, and said, “It is against the law to put this into the treasury since this is blood money.” So, they decided to use the money to buy the potter’s field to use as a burying place for foreigners. That is why it is called “the field of blood” to this day. Then, what was spoken by Jeremiah the Prophet was fulfilled: “They took the 30 pieces of silver, the price of Him by the people of Israel, and they used them to buy a potter’s field as the Lord has commanded them.”
These fellows were living in hypocrisy. It was more righteous for them to take the blood money to buy a field because they could not put it back into the treasury.
How many of us going through the Days of Unleavened Bread, cleaning our house, getting out the leaven, did it in a perfunctory way; doing it not considering the Lord’s blessing, memorializing His death until He comes? Could we be guilty, at times, of the same offense as the Pharisees? Living hypocritically? I am not saying that any of us have done that, but I think it is something we certainly need to consider, especially as we think about it on this day.
It was early in the morning, and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness—here again, hypocritical thinking—the Jews did not enter into the palace. They wanted to be able to eat the Passover. How ridiculous! They were going to kill the Messiah. And they wanted to stay ceremonially clean. These are things we need to very carefully think about in this world where Satan makes so many things a deception.
So, Pilate came out to them, and asked, “What charges are you bringing against this man?” “If He were not a criminal,” they replied, “we would not have handed Him over to you.” And they began to accuse Him, saying, “We have heard this man exclaim He is Christ the King.” So Pilate asked Him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” “Yes, it is as you have said,” Jesus replied.
When He was accused by the chief priests and the elders, He gave no answer. Then Pilate asked Him, “Are you not going to answer? Do you not hear how many things they are accusing you of?” But Jesus made no reply, not even to a single charge to the great amazement of the governor. Pilate said, “Take Him yourselves and judge Him by your own law.” And they reply, “But we have no right to execute Him.” This happened so that the words Jesus had spoken indicated the death He was going to die and be fulfilled.
Pilate went back inside, and summoned Jesus and asked Him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” “Is that your own idea,” Jesus asked him, “or did someone talk to you about me?” “Do you think I am a Jew?” Pilate replied. “It was your own people, your chief priest who handed you over to me. What is it you have done?” Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, My servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now, my kingdom is from another place.”
“You are a king, then?” said Pilate. Jesus answered, “You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason, I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to Me.” “What is truth?” Pilate asked.
With this, he went out again to the Jews, and announced to the chief priest and the crowd, “I find no charges against this man.” But they insisted, “He stirs up the people of all Judea by His teaching. He started in Galilee, and He has come all the way here.” On hearing this, Pilate found out He was a Galilean, he therefore sent Him to Herod. And then Herod was pleased to see Him, because he wanted to see Him do some magic tricks. But he sent him back down to Pilate.
Afterward, they became friends.
Pilate called together the chief priests, the rulers, and the people, and said to them, “You brought me this man as one who is inciting the people to rebellion. I have examined Him in your presence, and have found no basis for your charges against Him. Neither has Herod, for he sent him back to me. As you have seen, He has done nothing to deserve death. Therefore I will punish Him, and then release Him.”
While Pilate was sitting on his judge’s seat, his wife sent him a message, “Do not have anything to do with this innocent man, for I have suffered a great deal today because of Him.”
“It was the governor's custom. . .”
And he goes through the whole situation of asking for Jesus or Barabbas, a convicted murderer.
With one voice they cried out, “Away with Him. Release Barabbas to us.” “What shall I do with the one called Jesus?” Pilate said. “Crucify Him!” they shouted. “Why? What has He done?” But they shouted all the louder, “Crucify Him!”
Wanting to release Jesus, he appealed to them again, but they kept shouting him down, “Crucify Him!”
For the third time: “Why? What crime has He committed? I have found no grounds for the death penalty. Therefore I will have Him punished, and release Him.” But with loud shouts, they insisted, “Crucify Him,” and they prevailed.
When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, and an uproar was starting, he decided to grant their command. He took water, and washed his hands before the crowd, and declared, “I am innocent of this man’s blood.”
Brethren, none of us are innocent of this Man’s blood.
Pilate said, “It is your responsibility.”
It is our responsibility.
All the people answered, “Let His blood be on us, and our children!” Then to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas, the man thrown in prison for insurrection and murder; the one they asked for. Then Pilate took Jesus, had Him flogged, then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the palace, that is the praetorium, and gathered the whole company of soldiers around Him. They stripped Him, put a purple robe on Him, and jammed a crown of thorns on His head. They put a staff in His right hand, and knelt in front of Him, and mocked Him, and they went up to Him again and again saying, “Hail! King of the Jews!” again, and again, they struck Him on the head, with the staff, and spit on Him, and they struck Him in the face.
Once more, Pilate came out to the Jews, “Look! I am bringing Him out to you to let you know I find no basis to charge against Him.” When Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns, and wearing the purple robe, Pilate said to them, “Here is the Man.” As soon as the chief priests and their officials saw Him, they shouted, “Crucify, crucify!”
I am taking the time to read through this because this is exactly what was going on this day 1,994 years ago.
Pilate answered, “You take Him, and crucify Him. As for me, I find no basis for a charge against Him.” But the Jews insisted, “We have a law that He must die, because He claimed to the Son of God.” And when Pilate heard this, he was even more afraid. He went back inside the palace, and asked Him, “Where do you come from?” But Jesus gave him no answer. “Do you refuse to speak to me? Do not you realize I have the power to free you, or crucify you?” Jesus answered him, “You would have no power over Me if it were not given you from above. Therefore, the one who handed Me over to you is guilty of greater sin.”
From then on, Pilate tried to set Jesus free, but the Jews kept shouting, “If you let this man go, you no friend of Caesar. Anyone who claims to be king, opposes Caesar.”
Whose mind to you think that came from, brethren? Satan.
When Pilate heard this, he brought Jesus out, and sat down on the judge’s seat, on the pavement known as Gabbatha, it was a day of preparation of Passover week.
“Here is your King!” Pilate said to the Jews. But they shouted, “Take Him away! Take Him away! Crucify Him!” “You want me to crucify your king?” Pilate asked. “We have no king but Caesar!” the chief priest answered.
Finally, Pilate handed him over to be crucified. And when they had mocked Him, they removed the purple robe, put his own clothes on him, and led him away to crucify Him. So the soldiers took charge of Jesus. They brought him to the place called Golgotha, which means the place of the skull. There they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but after tasting it he refused to drink. Then they crucified Him along with criminals, one on his right, and another on this left. It was about the third hour when they crucified him.
Pilate prepared a notice of the charges against Him, and fastened it above Him. It read: “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.” Many of the Jews read this sign, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city. And the sign was written in Aramaic, Latin, and Greek. The chief priest protested to Pilate, “Do not write ‘the King of the Jews!’ But that this man said, ‘I am the king of the Jews.’”
Pilate answered, what I have written, I have written.”
Jesus said, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they are doing.”
So, this is what the soldiers did:
Sitting down, they kept watch over Him there. The people stood watching. The rulers who passed by hurled insults at Him, shaking their hands at Him, and saying, “So you who are going to destroy the Temple, and rebuild it in three days. Save yourself, and come down from the cross if you are the Son of God.”
In the same way, the chief priests, the teachers of the law, and the elders, mocked Him among themselves. “He saved others, but He cannot save Himself. Let Him save Himself if He is the Christ of God, the Chosen One, the King of Israel. Come down from the cross that we may see and believe! He trusts in God, let God rescue Him now, if He wants Him, for He said, ‘I am the son of God.’” The soldiers came up and continued to mock Him.
One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at Him, while the other said, “We were bad men and deserve this. He deserves nothing.”
It was now about the sixth hour (noon) and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour, for the sun stopped shining. And at the ninth hour, Jesus cried out, “My God! My God! Why have you forsaken Me?” When some of those standing near heard this, they listened, and said, “He is calling for Elijah.”
Knowing now that all was completed, and so that the scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” A jar of wine vinegar was there. Immediately, a man soaked a sponge in it, and put it on a staff of hyssop, and lifted it up to Jesus lips, and offered Jesus a drink. But the other said, “Leave him alone. Let us see if Elijah comes to save him.” When he had received the vinegar, he cried out with a loud voice, “It is finished. Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.” He bowed his head, and gave up the spirit.
At that moment, the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. And rocks split, and tombs were broken open, and the bodies of many of the holy people were raised to life, and came out of their tombs, and went into the holy city, and appeared to many people.
And the centurion and those with him, guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake, and heard his cry, and saw how he died, they were terrified, and praised God, and said, “Surely this was a righteous man.” Surely this man was the son of God.
When all the people who had gathered to witness the sight, what took place, they beat their breasts and went away. But all those who knew him, including the women, who had followed Him from Galilee, stood at a distance watching these things.
Brethren, we commemorate this afternoon an incredible thing. We were commanded last night to keep the Passover, as Jesus kept it with His disciples, and it was an honor and a privilege but it will continue throughout this day and was culminated on this night.
The following is cited from within the concluding paragraphs of John Ritenbaugh’s February 2022 Forerunner Personal, “Passover, Obligation, and Love.”
Concerning the bread and wine, Christ instructs, "Do this in remembrance of Me" (I Corinthians 11:24-25). This command could also be translated, "Do this for the remembering of Me," or "Do this in case you forget." God does not want us to let His Son's sacrifice slip very far from our minds. He does not want us to get maudlin over it but to remember that it represents the measure of His love and our worth to Him. Remembering helps us retain a right sense of obligation. He does not wish that our obligation to become a burden but to fill us with wonder or awe that He would pay so much for something so utterly defiled.
We are admonished to remember, not only Christ's personality and His sinlessness, but also His role as our Creator, His connection to the Old Testament Passover, His violent death for the remission of mankind's sins, and His sacrifice's connection to the New Covenant. His selfless act becomes the foundation of all loving relationships. It gives us reason to hope that our lives are not spent in vain, motivating us to do what we failed to do, which put us in debt: love.
Jesus Christ is the real torch of freedom from Satan and his deceits. He is the torch of freedom, who alone has guaranteed the New Covenant for all men.
Let us keep this in the forefronts of our minds as we remember His watchful care as we keep the Night to be Much Observed this evening.
MS/rwu/drm
Sermon Topics
The Gospel
