In this season, we must remind everyone that the Jesus we worship today is God the creator of the universe, who became incarnate (God became man/creator became creature) and lived among us (Genesis 1:1; John 1:1-3; Colossians 1:15-17; Titus 2:13). (John 1:14). This God is the one we refer to as Jesus of Nazareth, an actual historical figure who was witnessed by the people of the time. His followers in the four Gospels (the Bible), as well as non-believers like the Jewish historian Flavius Josephus (in the Testimonium Flavianum and the Antiquities of the Jews) and other pagan historians like Tacitus (Annals), etc., have all given us historical evidence of his actual existence.
When God, due to the love he had for us (John 3:16), got into flesh, the immutable (can’t die) God made himself vulnerable to death (John 10:18). The fact is that God did not die but was killed (Isaiah 53:5; John 19:18; Luke 22:33). Jesus did not die before he was systematically killed in a crucifixion arrangement. According to his killers, his death was a sentence passed after his Judgment by the legal entities concerned. We turn to that legal process that led to the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ to investigate how legal and fair it was.
Legal Process Questions
In his book, The Trial of Jesus Christ, Frank J. Powell asks a series of questions that I would like to share here for our contemplation.
Was the arrest legal? Did the Romans (political rulers) take part in the arrest? Was Jesus arrested on a warrant? Was there a formal Jewish trial? Before what Jewish Tribunals did Jesus appear? Who was the presiding Judge? What was the true nature of the proceedings before the Hebrew Tribunals? What was the system of law in force? Was the proper legal procedure observed? Was the charge properly laid? Of what offence was Jesus “convicted” by the Hebrew Tribunal? Why was the charge changed before Pilate? Why did the Jews not execute Jesus after they had judged him? What defence if any did Jesus make before the Hebrew Tribunals? And before Pilate? What were Pilate’s functions? Did he (Pilate) know that the Jews had previously “tried” Jesus?
These and more are important questions to ask in the investigation of the trial of Jesus Christ. We cannot address each question here but for this article let us briefly dwell on the questions: Of what offence was Jesus “convicted” by the Hebrew Tribunal? Why was the charge changed before Pilate? A focus on these two questions demonstrates how all other questions are developed. These are the questions that operate as the framework of other questions that develop around the case.
What Offense?
According to the Hebrew prosecutors and accusers of Jesus Christ, the offence was BLASPHEMY. Let us unpack what the Hebrews meant by this charge of Blasphemy.
- He falsely claimed to be the Long=promised God-like messiah.
- He falsely claimed to be the son of God and therefore God.
These two claims, therefore, made him:
- a false Prophet
- a Sorcerer and
- one who was teaching a new religion which was inciting people to worship the same God but contrary to the law of Moses
The Hebrew Tribunal in which Jesus was prosecuted was known as the Sanhedrin (a council of seventy men) in charge of the Hebrew courts. The composition of this council was of Sadducees and Pharisees. The Pharisees were the minority on the council and the Sadducees were the majority; however, the Pharisees had public popularity over the Sadducees. At the time of the prosecution, however, the president of the Sanhedrin was a Sadducee.
The difference and legal contention between Sadducees and Pharisees were that the Sadducees believed in only the written law (Torah) as the basis of Judgment while the Pharisees believed in both the written law and the Oral Law (Torah and the Mishnah-Jewish Tradition) as both equal in coming to a resolution.
This contention between Sadducees and Pharisees on which law to use led to the change of the charge against Jesus by Hebrews when they presented him to Pilate. The charge changed from “Blasphemy” to “High Treason” claiming that he had addressed himself as King. In his (Jesus) defence, Jesus said His Kingdom was not of this world and Pilate found no crime in him but the Pharisees incited the crowd to shout “Crucify him!”. Because Pilate wanted popularity with the people, to avoid impeachment he too illegally condemned Jesus to death.
Legal Defence
If Jesus had been Judged by the Hebrew written law as the Sadducees held, his two core claims of being the messiah and Son of God (God himself) wouldn’t have been Blasphemy (Luke 24:27, 44). Because that is what the prophetic scrolls by interpretation stated. If Pilate and Herod did not play politics but exercised Justice (Mathew 27:17-26), Jesus wouldn’t have been judged and sentenced in the manner he was. For that is what the Roman legal Justice dictated besides politics.
God bless you,
I invoke TRUTH, WISDOM and FAITH (2Tim 2:7)
Priest M.I.T White (+256-775 822833)
iTiS Well of Worship Fellowship (John 4:24)
iTiS Well of Worship Fellowship (John 4:24) 