Pilate. A lesson in pleasing men rather than God. When Jesus was brought before him, he looked right at Jesus and asked, “What is truth?” Pilate didn’t recognize that he was talking to the Truth and the Light! Indeed Truth has a name. His name is Jesus!
The Pharisees wanted Jesus crucified. Pilot found no fault in Him, but the crowd became unruly, demanding that Jesus be crucified. Meanwhile, Pilot’s wife warned him to have nothing to do with “this man, for I have suffered greatly in a dream.” God gave Pilot a choice. Are you going to be a man pleaser or a God pleaser!
Even though Pilot “washed his hands” of his decision to crucify Jesus, did he really? He could have released Jesus who, in his own determination, was not guilty of any crime. Instead he was afraid of the crowd and a riot and ordered our Lord to be crucified. The crowd accepted responsibility and indeed they were just as guilty, but the final decision was Pilot’s to make He failed the test.
We know that all of these things had to happen. Jesus suffered and was crucified willingly for our sins. Pilot’s worldview and evil choice helped facilitate prophesy and the Lord’s plan. Yet Pilot’s decision was on him.
How about us? As Christians we have (or should have) a proper worldview. We know that Jesus is the Truth! The Word made flesh! But when we go along with the world we suffer the consequences. Don’t ask me how I know that! While we don’t lose our salvation, our bad choices affect us and those around us. While we are still in this fallen world living in these unredeemed bodies we will not always make the right choices. God will even use our mistakes to teach us lessons that we need to learn. I will say that my biggest lessons and growth in the Lord have come from the discipline that comes as a result of my selfish choices to follow after the world rather than God. God disciplines those that He loves! I am thankful that He is patient with me and will turn my bad choices into learning experiences even as painful as those lessons might be.
What about when we make right choices and follow Christ? We are blessed to be a blessing! This is how we make our light (His light in us) shine before men so they will give glory to our Father in Heaven!
Pilot was not a Christian and the Bible doesn’t record whether he repented of his sins or not. We do know that God took the evil choice Pilot made to save the world! God is sovereign and there is no power in Heaven or Earth that can thwart His plans! He has also given us the freedom to choose blessings or cursing. In Hebrews we are encouraged to give up the sin that so easily entangles us and to run our race. We can’t do that on our own. We must ask God to help us to be God pleasers and not pleasers of man. Then we will be blessed to be a blessing!