Lessons from Barabbas

By David Norfleet

In the dramatic moments leading up to the crucifixion of Jesus, we witness a profound injustice unfold—a narrative that resonates through the ages. As Jesus stands trial before Pilate, the decision to release Barabbas, a notorious criminal, instead of the innocent Savior stands as one of history’s greatest travesties. This moment, captured in the Gospels and Acts (Matthew 27:15-26; Mark 15:6-15; Luke 23:13-25; John 18:39-40; Acts 3:14), invites us to explore crucial lessons that emerge from this painful story.

Life Isn’t Always Fair

The first lesson we encounter is the harsh reality that life is not always fair. In John 18:39-40, we see the stark contrast between justice and injustice, where the guilty are favored over the innocent. Ecclesiastes 9:11 reminds us that the race isn’t always won by the swift or the battle by the strong. Jesus faced this injustice with a heart full of humility, submitting to God’s will even when He could have called upon legions of angels for rescue (Matthew 26:53). This serves as a powerful reminder for us: in moments of hardship, we can choose to respond with grace, just as Jesus did.

Ignorance Can Lead to Wrong-Doing

Another lesson emerges when we consider the ignorance that fueled the crowd’s demands. Acts 3:13-18 reveals that many of the Jews acted out of a lack of understanding. Their religious fervor, devoid of knowledge, led them to reject the very Messiah they had long awaited. This illustrates a critical truth: when our faith lacks understanding, we risk making grave errors. They failed to recognize Jesus as the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies, by allowing their own preconceptions to incorrectly interpret scriptures such as Isaiah 42:1 and 52:13-15.

The Danger of Blindly Following

The crowd’s choice to demand Barabbas’s release underscores the danger of blindly following others. Stirred up by the chief priests, they lost sight of justice (Mark 15:6-15). This scenario serves as a cautionary tale against the mob mentality that can sway us. Matthew 15:14 warns us not to follow those who lead us astray. It’s essential to engage critically with our beliefs and choices, rather than simply go along with the crowd.

The Loudest Voices Often Get Their Way

In moments of public pressure, we see how the loudest voices can dominate the narrative. Luke 23:13-25 illustrates how Pilate, faced with a tumultuous crowd, ultimately chose to appease them rather than uphold justice. This phenomenon isn’t unique to biblical times; it happens in our world today. Leaders often prioritize the demands of the loudest factions, as noted in Mark 15:15. We must remain vigilant against the sway of public opinion and be wary of the influence of the masses, as warned in Exodus 23:2 and Proverbs 1:10-15.

Hypocrites Are Blind to Their Hypocrisy

The hypocrisy of the religious leaders stands out starkly in this narrative. They accused Jesus of rebellion while failing to recognize their own similar transgressions (Luke 23:1-5). Their cry, “His blood be on us” (Matthew 27:25), reveals a troubling blindness to their own hypocrisy (Matthew 23:6-7; 15; 23). This reminds us that self-awareness is crucial; we must be willing to examine our own hearts before pointing fingers at others.

Barabbas Represents Every Sinner

Finally, Barabbas’s story resonates deeply with each of us. Like Barabbas, we are all guilty of sin (Romans 3:23). Yet, in a profound act of grace, the innocent Jesus took the place of the guilty, offering us the chance for redemption (Isaiah 53:4-6; Romans 5:6-8; Galatians 3:13). Barabbas’s release symbolizes the hope that we, too, can be set free through the sacrifice of Christ.

Conclusion

As we reflect on the fate of Barabbas, we’re left with questions. What happened to him after his release? Did he remain unchanged, or did he experience a transformation? Perhaps he became a Christian, only to later stray. Or maybe he embraced the truth of Christ and lived faithfully until the end.

Ultimately, we are all faced with choices that shape our lives. Like Barabbas, we have the opportunity to respond to grace. The question remains: how will we choose to live in light of the profound gift we’ve received? Each path we take leads us toward our own story of redemption, and it’s a journey worth considering.

“Let This Cup Pass from Me”

By Steve Gwin

On the night before Jesus was crucified, He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane.  His prayers were “with loud cries and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death” (Hebrews 5:7).  Matthew 26:39 records some of the words Jesus prayed, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.”  What was this cup that Jesus wanted to pass from Him?

Jesus had mentioned a cup He was going to drink in a conversation that seems to have happened only a couple of weeks earlier when the mother of James and John asked Jesus if her sons could sit, one on Jesus’ right and the other on His left, in His kingdom.  Jesus responded in Matthew 20:22-23, “You do not know what you are asking.  Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.”  He said to them, “You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”  It seems clear that Jesus used the words, “drink the cup that I am to drink” to refer to His suffering.  James and John would indeed someday each suffer because of being His apostles.

When Jesus prayed “if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me”, He was using “cup” figuratively to represent all the suffering He would endure within the next several hours:

• falsely accused in repeated mock trials the rest of the night and into the next morning (Matthew 26:59-61; 27:1-2)
• repeatedly mocked, slapped, and spat upon (Matthew 26:67; 27:30-31)
• scourged, which was a brutal whipping that was so very painful as His flesh was ripped away (Matthew 27:26)
• a crown of thorns put on His head (Matthew 27:29)
• humiliated by stripping Him of His clothes (Matthew 27:28)
• the excruciating pain of crucifixion (Matthew 27:35)
• even more than all of the above, bearing all the sins of all humans, past, present and future (1 Peter 2:24).

It is likely that Jesus had an additional idea in mind when He prayed “if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me” because we read in Jeremiah 25:15-17, “Thus the LORD, the God of Israel, said to me: ‘Take from my hand this cup of the wine of wrath, and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it.  They shall drink and stagger and be crazed because of the sword that I am sending among them.’ So I took the cup from the LORD's hand, and made all the nations to whom the LORD sent me drink it:”  In verses 18 through 27, numerous nations are mentioned, and then in Jeremiah 25:28-29, “And if they refuse to accept the cup from your hand to drink, then you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts: You must drink!  For behold, I begin to work disaster at the city that is called by my name, and shall you go unpunished?  You shall not go unpunished, for I am summoning a sword against all the inhabitants of the earth, declares the LORD of hosts.’”  Drinking the cup of God’s wrath represented nations receiving God’s judgment for their sins.

A similar use of the “cup” figure of speech is in Revelation 14:9-10, “And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, ‘If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, he also will drink the wine of God's wrath, poured full strength into the cup of his anger, and he will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.’”  Again, drinking the cup of God’s wrath represented receiving God’s judgment for sins.

Let us every day give thanks for Jesus enduring the judgment we each deserve for our sins.  Jesus had no sin, but He drank the cup of God’s wrath for our sins, so we won’t have to drink it. 

The Son of Man

By Paul Earnhart

When Jesus was speaking to Nicodemus, He spoke of Himself as the “Son of Man.” (Jn. 3:13)  Jesus used this expression many times to identify Himself.

It was an accurate description for He was most certainly human.  He was born of a woman, a descendant of Adam and of David.  At the same time, it was a description which His enemies could not use against Him.  If He had called Himself the Son of God in the early part of His ministry, they would have killed Him instantly, and His work of teaching could not have been done.

But for those who believed in Jesus, the expression, Son of Man, had special significance.  For one thing, it tended to identify Him with the prophet Ezekiel who was also called the “Son of Man”.  But more than this, it identified Jesus with two Old Testament scriptures which were recognized as prophecies of the Messiah.  One is Psalm 8:4 where the Psalmist wrote: “What is man that You are mindful of Him or the Son of Man that you visit Him?”  The other is Daniel 7:13 where Daniel wrote: “I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven One like the Son of Man was coming.  And He came up to the Ancient of Days and was presented before Him.”  When Jesus called Himself the Son of Man, He was discreetly claiming to be that Son of Man mentioned in the Psalm and in Daniel.  He most certainly was not denying that He was also the Son of God.

We should be grateful that Jesus is both the Son of God and the Son of Man.  It is this that makes Him our perfect high priest, our mediator and God.  We were separated from God by our sins.  We needed a mediator to plead our case before God, but no man could qualify.  A mediator must be unrelated or equally related to both parties.  As the Son of God, Jesus could stand before God as His equal, and as the Son of Man He understands our weaknesses and can plead with God on our behalf.  He is our pathway to God. (Jn. 14:6)

Do Today’s Youth Accept Absolute Values? - Part 2

By Tom Rose

In part 1, the author presented evidence that many of today’s youth do not accept absolute truth.  Because of this, many youths are making wrong choices.  Part 2 presents a classroom illustration of this issue and provides some action steps parents and religious educators can take to address this problem and why it is extremely important.

Consider an activity in which a group of high school Christians were challenged to grasp the reality of Jesus’ resurrection as objective truth. A jar of marbles was placed in front of the class and students were asked, “How many marbles are in the jar?” They all respond and record their different guesses. The jar was then emptied, and the marbles counted. They quickly determined who had the closest guess and that the number of marbles was a matter of fact, not a personal preference. Next from a bag of Starburst candies, one was given to each student, and the question posed, “Which flavor is right?” The students saw this as an unfair question because each person had a preference that was right for him or her. The class all agreed that in this situation it was a matter of subjective opinion, not objective fact. The teacher then asked, “Is the resurrection of Jesus like the number of marbles in the jar, or is it a matter of personal opinion, like candy preferences?’ Most students concluded that the question of the resurrection belonged in the category of candy preference.

The instructor then concluded the activity by talking about the nature of Jesus’ physical death and resurrection. He proposed, “If we had been present at the cross, we could have felt the warm blood of Jesus trickling down the wooden timber or even watched Him take His last breath (Jn. 19:29-35). And if we had been at the tomb on Sunday morning, we would have seen the stone rolled away and the loincloth of Jesus laying inside (Jn. 20:1-7).” The teacher then reminded the class that while many people may reject the historical resurrection of Jesus, it is not the type of claim that can be “true for you, but not true for me.” The tomb was either empty on the third day, or it was occupied – there can be no middle ground.

What should be done to help our youth become healthy and mature relationally, morally, and spiritually? Josh McDowell in his research identified four components listed in order of importance. Parents (and religious educators) should see that:

1. Teenagers experience a transformed life in Christ.

2. They know why they believe what they believe.

3. They develop healthy relationships with faithful Christians of all ages.

4. They learn to resist ungodly influences and learn how to make right choices.

In closing, we must ask, “Why is this important? What difference does it really make?” Consider that most religions of the world are based on philosophical propositions or theological ideologies. Their observance usually centers around a creed book, catechism, or mantra. Remove its founding prophet or guru and that religion remains essentially intact. That is because these religions are largely based on the teachings, not upon the founding teacher. That is not true of Christianity; it is unique. Christianity isn’t a mere religion. It is not simply based upon various teachings. Christianity is based on the life, character, and identity of a person – Jesus Christ. Christ did not come to earth to teach Christianity, Christ is Christianity. (“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (Jn. 14:6). And to us and our loved ones as believers, that makes all the difference both in this life and the next…for “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (Jn. 8:31-32).

What It Means To Be Born Again

By Paul Earnhart

Nicodemus, the great Jewish rabbi, must have been shocked when Jesus said to him, “You must be born again.” (Jn. 3:7)  There was nothing Nicodemus was prouder of than his first birth.  He was born as a descendant of Abraham.  He might well have described himself as another Jewish rabbi did: “circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews.” (Phil. 3:5)  What better birth could a man have?

Jesus, of course, was not speaking of another physical birth.  He was speaking of a figurative new birth.  It was another way of saying that Nicodemus would have to make a completely new beginning.  The first birth of Nicodemus determined his family relations, his nationality, his cultural heritage, his language, and even to a great degree his goals and values.  All of these would have to become new for him.  Many people talk of being born again without realizing the significance of the expression.  The fact is no matter what a person may have experienced, if these changes have not taken place in their life, they have not been born again.

“How can a man be born when he is old,” Nicodemus asked? (Jn. 3:4)  Perhaps you wonder that, too.  Jesus answered the question, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” (Jn. 3:5)  The Holy Spirit changes the spirit of mankind.  Jesus said, “that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” (Jn. 3:6)  This is accomplished through the word of God which the Spirit has given.  Peter wrote in 1 Peter 1:23 that Christians have been born again through “the word of God which lives and abides forever.” 

But there is another part of the new birth.  Jesus said that one must be born of water and the Spirit.  The only act the New Testament describes involving water is water baptism.  When the Spirit has changed the inner man, the outer man must be washed in the water of baptism.  Have you been born of the water and the Spirit?