John 18 Betrayed

Secular:

Sir Walter Scott often quoted …
“Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive”
Bad choices… tend to multiply

Ever watched someone spiral

Bad choices in Lying
Bad choices in Relationships
Bad Choices w/ drugs or alcohol

Starting from a bad premise…
Manipulating truth…
Progressively bad choices…

Biblical:

NAU John 18:33 Therefore Pilate entered again into the Praetorium, and summoned Jesus and said to Him, "Are You the King of the Jews?" 34 Jesus answered, "Are you saying this on your own initiative, or did others tell you about Me?" 35 Pilate answered, "I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests delivered You to me; what have You done?" 36 Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm." 37 Therefore Pilate said to Him, "So You are a king?" Jesus answered, "You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice." 38 Pilate said to Him, "What is truth?" And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews and said to them, "I find no guilt in Him. 39 "But you have a custom that I release someone for you at the Passover; do you wish then that I release for you the King of the Jews?" 40 So they cried out again, saying, "Not this Man, but Barabbas." Now Barabbas was a robber.

Personal:

Ever made a decision based on wrong information…

Every person who bought a Skoda…
Every person who bought a Hyundai in the first years
Every person who believed 8-track tapes and BETA where the future…
Every person who held onto to their ENRON stock thinking it would recover…
Every person who thought Bre-X was their gold mine…

The right questions don’t always get the right answer… what we need to seek truth… and act based on truth…

Bridge:

Pilate asked the right question…
But did not respond to truth…
He made a BAD personal choice…
We want to ask the right questions… seek truth and make Good Choices!!
It is all about Knowing Jesus… and making him Known

Body:

Question:

33 Therefore Pilate entered again into the Praetorium, and summoned Jesus and said to Him, "Are You the King of the Jews?" 34 Jesus answered, "Are you saying this on your own initiative, or did others tell you about Me?" 35 Pilate answered, "I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests delivered You to me; what have You done?" 36 Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm."

At some point (if not raised in a Christian Home) we asked the question…
I mean the first time someone presented Christ to us…
That is the question…

Who is this Jesus…
King of the Jews
Nut case
Good man / prophet?

Someone brought the message to you
Why me… introduced to him (King comes to visit)
How is it that I didn’t know…
Skeptical

What is the answer…
Jesus questioned the assumption Pilate made in his question… Are You the King of the Jews?" 34 Jesus answered, "Are you saying this on your own initiative, or did others tell you about Me?"

Do you know it…

Head – don’t check your brains at the door
And Heart – takes residence in your heart… (even Satan has head knowledge)

Makes a difference in who you are… how you live… the peace you have… the hope you have…

That’s the question… Jesus Who are you?

Spend some time…

Josephus, history
Scripture
Prayer
Fellowship
HEAD and HEART

That is the world’s question… who is this Jesus?
What answer can we give…
What answer can we live…
Jesus who are you?
Mark’s account… in 14:62 He answered… Jesus said, "I am; and you shall see THE SON OF MAN SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF POWER, and COMING WITH THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN."
Jesus is God… King of the Jews… the Messiah
Do you know who Jesus is…

Can you give an answer?
Can you live an answer?

Toothpaste

Truth?

37 Therefore Pilate said to Him, "So You are a king?" Jesus answered, "You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice." 38 Pilate said to Him, "What is truth?" And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews and said to them, "I find no guilt in Him.

Jesus said He came to testify to the truth…
"What is truth?"

How we perceive? – that’s truth to me…
What we think? – Everyone has their own truth… Well that’s what I think…
“No wrong answers” – there are wrong answers
Is truth about Science? – human reasoning
Something that a majority of rational and competent individuals would agree on…?

Jesus said… Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice – truth is knowing God.
Pilate responded… "What is truth?"
Jesus was giving an answer to that very question…
John 14… Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.
Truth is that which is anchored in God…

An essential component of the Reformation / Enlightenment mentality was that truth points toward God…
Genetic discoveries… point to God
Discoveries in the Universe… point to God
Discoveries in the diversity of humanity… point to God
Truth in creation… points to the creator…
And Jesus is the way, the truth and the life…
Reconciling a lost world to truth… the one True God…

"What is truth?" …. Jesus… to Know Him and to make Him known!!
Scripture - "HOLY, HOLY, HOLY is THE LORD GOD, THE ALMIGHTY, WHO WAS AND WHO IS AND WHO IS TO COME."

Which leaves you with a simple choice…

Choices?

39 "But you have a custom that I release someone for you at the Passover; do you wish then that I release for you the King of the Jews?" 40 So they cried out again, saying, "Not this Man, but Barabbas." Now Barabbas was a robber.

Faced with truth we have two choices…
Ignore it….

Barabbas
It was a bad choice… murder / robber

This guy was the complete contrast of the perfect lamb of God.

How often do we make bad choices?

What bad choices…
When faced with obeying God or following Satan…
How often even those living in the Light of the Truth of Christ choose Satan?

Depend on the world
Thinking of self first

Believe…

Jesus Christ as Lord…
King of the Jews
Messiah
Saviour

See the truth in Scripture and make the right choices!
“ …every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different from what it was before. And taking your life as a whole, with all your innumerable choices, all your life long you are slowly turning this central thing either into a heavenly creature or into a hellish creature: either into a creature that is in harmony with God, and with other creatures, and with itself, or else into one that is in a state of war and hatred with God, and with its fellow creatures, and with itself. To be one kind of creature is heaven: that is, joy and peace and knowledge and power. To be the other means madness, horror, idiocy, rage, impotence, and eternal loneliness. Each of us at each moment is progressing to the one state or the other.” [Mere Christianity
Failure to see clearly means bad choices…

failure to recognize Jesus… meant they choose Barabbas…
Failure to recognize God… means we could choose Satan
Failure to recognize good… means we could be choosing evil…
How many times have you picked Barabbas!

Improve your vision… see clearly and choose Jesus Christ!

Conclusion:

Questions

Who is Jesus?
Do you know… deep down in your heart… do you know…
Can you Give and Live
Give an Answer (head knowledge)
Live an Answer (Core of your being heart)
Jesus is the Answer!!

Truth?

What is truth?

God is truth…
All things point toward God
Wisdom is living the truth of God
Truth is His Word applied in our Life
Truth is hearing Jesus Christ!

Choices?

Our choices…

If we know Jesus
If we know truth
We will be able to make right choices…

To Know Jesus and to make Him known!!
What will you choose?