Crucify Him!

“Then he released Barabbas for them. He ordered Jesus to be first scourged and then handed over to be crucified.” (Matthew 27: 26)

The chief priests, leaders of the people and the crowd chose Barabbas to be freed and Christ to be crucified. What was Christ’s offence? To the chief priest and the leaders of the people, he represented too much of the truth. He spoke too much of the truth. He made no distinction between man and man. They could not reconcile themselves to his message or his person. They demanded a capital punishment. They wanted a final solution to the Jesus problem. Only his death could restore the peace he had disturbed.

Now why did the crowd want Jesus to die? The crowd benefited immensely from Christ’s ministry. He fed them, healed them and taught them. At the moment they should stand up and be counted, they abdicated their conscience and judgment to the leaders. They sold their voting rights for a few pennies. In the reign of darkness, anything is possible. The bible warns us not to put our trust in man nor in princes. Only in God lies our peace and security.