DAD'S RAMBLINGS -- OUR SUBSTITUTE

DAD'S RAMBLINGS – OUR SUBSTITUTE

"Now at the feast he was accustomed to releasing one prisoner to them, whomever they requested.  And there was one name Barabbas, who was chained with his fellow rebels; they had committed murder in the rebellion … But the chief priests stirred up the crowd, so that he should rather release Barabbas to them….So Pilate, wanting to gratify the crowd, released Barabbas to them; and he delivered Jesus, after he had scourged Him, to be crucified."  (Mark 15:6-7; 11; 15)

This part of the Passion Story never fails to grab my attention.  Pilate had a practice of releasing a prisoner each year at the Passover.  It was like what we have today in a presidential or governor pardon.  

Barnabas was not a good guy.  He was a rebel and had no qualms about killing people.  He was indeed a bad dude.  So it would make sense to Pilate that people would rather have a man like Jesus, in whom He could find no fault, rather than releasing on society a killer.  

But Pilate did not understand the depth of the wrath that the Jewish leaders had for Jesus.  They demanded that Barabas be released and that Jesus be crucified.  This caught Pilate by surprise.  "Why, what evil has He done?"

The fact is that Jesus took the place of Barabas, who was guilty and deserved death.  Jesus was innocent and deserved life.  But Jesus took the guilt of Barabas and was crucified in his place.

This is the story of salvation.  I was guilty and deserved death, for the wages of sin is death.  But Scripture is clear.  "For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly…But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:6, 8).    "...Christ died for our sins, according to the Scriptures" (I Corinthians 15:3b).  "For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (II Corinthians. 5:21).  The substitutionary atonement is a firm fact.

I am like Barnabas.  As the poet said, "I should have been crucified, and I should have suffered and died.  I should have hung on the cross in disgrace.  But Jesus, God's Son, took my place."  Oh, the grace of the Lord Jesus.

Love, Dad