Jesus was crucified for his claim to speak the
Truth which came from God. The Jewish
authorities not only opposed Jesus and the words
he spoke, they sought to eliminate him once and
for all. But since they did not have the legal
power to put him to death, they brought him to
the Roman authorities to have him tried and
executed. The charge they brought before Pilate,
however, was political rather than religious.
Luke in his Gospel account tells us that three
false accusations were leveled against Jesus
(Luke 23:1-2): First, that Jesus agitated
sedition. Second, they said that he encouraged
people to not pay taxes to Caesar. And third, he
assumed the title king. In so many words they
falsely accused him of rebellion and
insurrection. John goes further than the other
Gospel writers to affirm Jesus' claim to divine
kingship and the authority and power to rule
over all of God's creation - both the heavens
and the earth and all that is visible and
invisible.
Bearing witness to the truth
Jesus explained to Pilate that he came to "bear
witness to the truth" that his kingdom was from
above - from heaven and not from earth.
"My kingship is not of this world;
if my kingship were of this world, my
servants would fight, that I might not be
handed over to the Jews; but my kingship is
not from the world." Pilate said to him, "So
you are a king?" Jesus answered, "You say
that I am a king. For this I was born, and
for this I have come into the world, to bear
witness to the truth. Every one who is of
the truth hears my voice." Pilate said to
him, "What is truth?"
- John 18:36-38
Jesus did not deny that he is King. He knew he
would die precisely because he was God's
anointed King and Messiah. He explained to
Pilate, however, that his kingship was "not of
this world". He did not come to establish an
earthly kingdom, but a spiritual one that would
claim the submission of men's and women's hearts
and minds to his word. This kind of kingdom made
no sense to Pilate since he knew nothing of God
and his ways. Pilate even questioned what
was "truth". Jesus had promised his
disciples that his word would open their minds
to understand God's truth and set them free to
live in the conviction and power of his love,
justice, and goodness.
“If you continue in my word, you are
truly my disciples, and you will know the
truth, and the truth will make you free”
( John 8:31,32).
The Lord Jesus died not only to bear witness
to the truth - his victory on the cross won
freedom for us from bondage to sin, Satan,
fear and death. His rising from the dead on
the third day demonstrates the invincible
power of the truth that makes us free to live
as sons and daughters of our Father in heaven.
Unmasking Satan's lies and
deception
What can hold us back from hearing God's word
and understanding his truth? Pride and
indifference can block our ears from hearing
God's word. But Satan also uses his powers of
deception and empty promises to turn people
away from truth to falsehood. Jesus explained
to his disciples that he came to overthrow the
"Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole
world" (John 12:31; Revelation 12:9-10; 1 John
5:19; Luke 10:18) in order to set us free from
sin and falsehood.
This issue focuses on the truth which the
Lord Jesus came to give us - the truth who is
God himself - the author and creator of all
that he has made. The battle which the
followers of the Lord Jesus wage today is not
political but spiritual. It is a battle for
the truth and the freedom which God makes to
all who believe in his only begotten Son, the
Lord Jesus Christ.
The truth that makes us free
The kingdom which the Lord Jesus offers us is
an everlasting kingdom of righteousness,
peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans
14:17). His kingdom cannot fail or be
destroyed - it will remain forever. May we his
disciples take "the sword of the Spirit which
is the Word of God" (Ephesians 6:17) and wield
it to set captives free from the powers of
sin, Satan, and deception so they may find
true peace, joy, and the love of Christ that
surpasses all else.
