Midweek Lent 2016

+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.

Text: Luke 22:54-71
Theme: Truth On Trial

Dear friends in Christ Jesus,

Dear Followers to the Cross,

Tonight we continue our Lenten series called ‘Places of the Passion’. We are focusing on the events that happened in key places during the last week of Jesus’ life. Our venue tonight is the palace of the high priest. There Jesus was essentially on religious trial, so tonight we consider the nature and import of the accusations leveled against Him in His final hours. Though it was a miscarriage of justice driven by jealousy and fear, it was nevertheless part of the divine plan.

We live in an age when accusations alone can be as damaging as if they panned out to be true. Any person in the public eye is understandably fearful of accusations. Studies, show, not surprisingly, that a large percentage of lawsuits filed in Western nations are frivolous; that is, they are filed just to annoy or harass, they have no real merit. Here are a couple of stellar examples. A woman in Israel sued over a TV station’s weather forecast. They said it would be sunny, but it rained. The woman claimed she dressed lightly, only to get rained on and cause her to catch the flu, miss a week of work, and spend money on medications. The woman filed a lawsuit and won $1,000. A Romanian prisoner by the name of Pavel decided to sue the Romanian Orthodox Church. The reason? He’s been convicted of murder, serving his 20-year term and blames God for ‘failing to keep him away from the influence of the devil’.

The Lord Jesus Christ was no stranger to allegations. He was accused of everything from blasphemy to being in allegiance with Satan. These accusations eventually spelled Jesus’ final demise. The crux of the matter is relayed to us in this way by Matthew, “The high priest said to h im, ‘I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.’ ‘Yes, it is as you say,’ Jesus replied. ‘But I say to all of you: In the future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.’ Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, ‘He has spoken blasphemy! Why do we need any more witnesses?’”1 Credit must be given to the high priest for asking the right theological question. Though Jesus was ultimately sentenced under Roman law for not giving allegiance to Caesar; He was condemned by the Jews for blasphemy.

Blasphemy involves the claim of equality with God. Though their motives were more than suspect, they had hit on the watershed issue. The Jews had already decided to condemn Jesus, so it mattered little how He responded. Yet it had to be recorded for history, that here, just before His crucifixion, Jesus confesses to be the Son of God. He did not mean He was a son of God in the sense of being a believer, a child of God. He did not mean He was a son of God because He too was a descendent of Adam who was created by God. Jesus meant this in the absolute and divine sense: He is “God of God, Light of Light, true God of true God.”2

The whole scene as pictured was a contradiction. Caiaphas, the earthly high priest, stands accusing and condemning the heavenly High Priest. The earthly high priest is a disgrace to his office. The heavenly High Priest bears the disgrace of all humanity. The earthly high priest protects the interests of a chosen few; the heavenly High Priest protects the interests of countless souls. The earthly high priest intercedes to the detriment of his people; the heavenly High Priest makes intercession for the sins of all. The greatest paradox of all is seen in the fact that God the Father chooses to let His beloved Son be scorned and shamed. He does not intervene to prevent false accusations, all so that we could see the obedience and sacrifice of His Son rather than a manifestation of His glory.

Dear friends, Jesus was accused and condemned falsely because and ONLY BECAUSE we stand accused and condemned justly. The Scripture says, “Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God.”3 Though our conscience strive to excuse us, let there be no doubt we are rightly accused of failing to properly love God and our neighbor as our self. All acquittals in the human realm combined cannot change the divine verdict.

But the verdict is one thing and the sentence another. You and I are justly accused, but Jesus Christ has been punished. Only His death was worthy to atone for others. Only the payment of His life cancelled our debt for eternity. We are all convicted felons who have been set free and had the slate washed clean. We live in Christ and through Christ and to Christ because Christ died and now lives for us. We now live baptismally in the power of His resurrection.

During Lent we focus on repentance. Repentance means our actions show fidelity to our beliefs. Accusation can be seen in a different light. When it comes to witnessing to what we believe to be the truth, accusation is not always a bad thing. Christians must be willing to be accused of guilt by association; association with the name of Christ. If you were accused of being a follower of Jesus Christ, what evidence could be gathered to convict you? Would family, friends and neighbors testify to your participation in worship and church-related activities? Does your everyday speech reveal your knowledge of the faith and your devotion to it? Would you swear under oath that you are a worshipper of the triune God? Would you endure being ostracized, ridiculed and persecuted for your faith? These are difficult but serious questions. An answer is always given one way or another.

Jesus said to the Father, “Your word is truth.”4 Christ is the embodiment of that truth. All the opinions, proposals, ideas, and convictions of people across the generations are only as enduring as the foundations on which they stand. All lies and falsehoods- even those deeply entrenched in the psyche of humanity- will eventually be shown for what they are. All false accusations and frivolous lawsuits will be condemned. But the word of the Lord endures forever. A particular crucifixion and resurrection is proof of that truth.

Do not be afraid to stand accused on account of His name, for you have a Defender who has already stood trial for you. He is your Advocate, your Redeemer; your Good Shepherd. He has set you free from the power of sin, Satan, and death itself. He ran the gauntlet- all the places of the passion- so that you might have a place in heaven. Amen.


+ In nomine Jesu +

Midweek Lenten Sermon #3
17 February- 16 March, 2016
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt





1 Matthew 26:63-65
2 The Nicene Creed
3 Romans 3:19
4 John 17:17