Luke 23:1-12
Everyone in the council got up and led Jesus off to Pilate. They started accusing him and said, “We caught this man trying to get our people to riot and to stop paying taxes to the Emperor. He also claims that he is the Messiah, our king.”
Pilate asked Jesus, “Are you the king of the Jews?”
“Those are your words,” Jesus answered.
Pilate told the chief priests and the crowd, “I don’t find him guilty of anything.”
But they all kept on saying, “He has been teaching and causing trouble all over Judea. He started in Galilee and has now come all the way here.”
When Pilate heard this, he asked, “Is this man from Galilee?” After Pilate learned that Jesus came from the region ruled by Herod, he sent him to Herod, who was in Jerusalem at that time.
For a long time Herod had wanted to see Jesus and was very happy because he finally had this chance. He had heard many things about Jesus and hoped to see him work a miracle. Herod asked him a lot of questions, but Jesus did not answer. Then the chief priests and the teachers of the Law of Moses stood up and accused him of all kinds of bad things.
Herod and his soldiers made fun of Jesus and insulted him. They put a fine robe on him and sent him back to Pilate. That same day Herod and Pilate became friends, even though they had been enemies before this.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
I noted yesterday that our governor lifted a state-wide mask mandate. What I failed to mention is that this was a “suggestion”, not a directive. So local municipalities and school boards are taxed with deciding individually what is right for their city/county/school district. The Bishop of the Arkansas Conference of the United Methodist Church posted a video on social media stating that all people who attend any gathering in our Methodist churches are expected to continue wearing masks. Several school districts have opted to continue the mask mandate until the end of this school year – then re-evaluate for the fall semester during the summer break.
Our local school board met and decided to lift the mask mandate for our public schools, with the understanding that masks can still be worn by students and teachers – and no bullying will be tolerated against those who do this. One board member suggested that each teacher be allowed to decide about masks in his/her classroom, but this was quickly squelched. I share this to illustrate that there is a lot of “passing the buck” going on here…and no one is surprised.
I mentioned the other day that there is often more to a story than you and I know. And the accounts of Jesus’ arrest and appearances before Pilate and Herod are no exception. Talk about “passing the buck”! Pilate was curious about Jesus. In fact, if you dig into the scripture, you will learn that he really liked the LORD, and his wife encouraged him to dismiss all charges against Jesus. Instead, Pilate found a loophole and “passed the buck”. He put this matter before Herod, who in turn put the matter to the people, who clamored for the release of Barabbas and the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
I get that a lot of decisions are difficult. If you don’t believe me, try telling a child you love dearly “No” when he/she is insisting on something! Sometimes, the choices are easy, as in, “No, you may not drive this car – you are only NINE!” Others are more difficult. When my grandmother could no longer use her stove safely and refused to stop trying to cook meals, my mother pulled out the electric burners, stuck them in her purse, and took them home with her! My grandmother yelled at her daughter and said, “I don’t want you to be my mother!” My mother assured her that she did not want this, either. Sometimes, someone has to stand up and say, “This is how things are going to go.” And honestly, it’s time for you and me to do this in a lot of instances.
It’s time for us to stop “passing the buck” – or burying our heads in the sand – when we see injustice, discrimination, racism, bigotry, hatred, disparagement and abuse – or even unsafe practices in the midst of this pandemic (and yes, we are still very much “in it”!). It is time for us to seek God’s will and directives – and put them into action with our words and demonstrations. It’s time for us to say something when we see something…and to take responsibility as Christ’s disciples.
I know that Pilate wasn’t supposed to make the decision about Jesus. I also know that Jesus could have stopped this whole process at any time. He could have “outed” Judas and stopped the betrayal. He could have done any number of things to change the outcome with Pilate and Herod. He could have stopped the crucifixion – or stepped down from the cross and instantly been healed of every scratch and bruise. But Jesus had a job to do. He was certain of what God was asking of Him…and He was committed to carrying out His mission.
What are we willing to do? Are we ready and willing to serve Christ in whatever manner He directs? Or will we listen to the devil, take the easy road, and “pass the buck”? The time has come for us to decide.
©2021 Debbie Robus
Daily Devo Time 