WHAT SHALL I DO WITH JESUS?

MATTHEW 27:2

A. THE BACKGROUND TO PILATE'S QUESTION
  1. Christ, the Son of man, is on trial for His life in Pilate's judgment hall:
    1. The Jews had in mind to kill the Son of God; but to do this legally, they had to do it through the Roman courts.
    2. But to sentence the accused to die required the establishment of criminal evidence against the state.
  2. There was, at the time of Christ's trial, a notable prisoner, a criminal by the name of Barabbas, also on trial for crimes committed against the state:
    1. The contrast between the two prisoners was so obvious that Pilate felt sure that the Jews would ask for Christ to be freed.
    2. By custom, he gave them one prisoner to be set free -- to pacify them.
    3. The Jews asked for Barabbas to be released and Christ to be crucified.
B. WHAT PROMPTED THEIR ACTION?
  1. Their hatred for Christ blinded them to reason and justice:
    1. They violated their own civil coat of law which provided that no one should be condemned to death without due process of law.
    2. They, hypocritically, appealed to Roman justice which they despised.
  2. But the deeper reason for their murder must be laid to their moral condition:
    1. They loved darkness more than light - John 3:19, 20
    2. They did not want the Son of God to rule over them - Luke 19:14
    3. Actually, the Jewish leaders saw that Christ was so infinitely superior mentally, morally, and factually, that they feared that they would be rejected by the people.
    4. Bitter envy and unrestrained hatred for the Son of God was at the bottom of the crime of the Jews - Matt. 27:18
  3. Implication of the action of the Jews:
    1. Blindly they committed the crime of the ages by crucifying the Son of God - Acts 3:15
    2. They thus rejected the choice gift of heaven - John 1:11; 3:16
    3. They destroyed their only hope as a nation - Matt. 23:38
    4. They did the most unreasonable thing by preferring a criminal to that of the Prince of Peace.
C. BUT THE QUESTION OF OUR TEXT IS AS APPLICABLE TO US NOW AS IT WAS WHEN PILATE PLACED IT BEFORE THE JEWS
  1. Christ has placed Himself in every life of every person born into this world:
    1. He died for all - 2 Cor. 5:14
    2. That makes every one of us morally obligatory to take a positive attitude toward Him.
  2. There are two basic factors that will enter our personal decision:
    1. Our appreciation of what He did for us - Gal. 2:20, 21
    2. Our attachment to sin - John 3:19
  3. Let us consider Pilate's question from another standpoint:
    1. The question, what to do with Jesus will help us to resist temptation; because if I yield to temptation, I crucify Him afresh - Heb. 6:6
    2. There can be no compromise between Christ and sin; accepting Christ means parting with sin - Matt. 6:24
    3. Rejection of the Word of God is the same as rejecting Christ - John 5:39
  4. But before you make your final decision, consider prayerfully:
    1. The sin problem - what will you do with your sins without Christ? John 9:41
    2. Think of what you lose by rejecting Christ - John 5:40
    3. Finally, let me warn you that not to choose is choosing just the same; postponing your decision will only endanger your hope.


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