Jesu Juva

“Clash of Kingdoms”

In the Name of Jesus. Amen.

Thy kingdom come, Jesus taught us to pray.

But how often it is MY kingdom that I want to come, that I work and strive for. My desires, my plans, my dreams. And I would like God to help me; make that happen. But if MY kingdom comes, that makes ME the king, not God. And that is not good. That is one of the things I suspect we all need to repent of this Lenten season.

And so it was with the Jewish leaders, and Pilate, and Herod. They all had their own kingdoms, their own plans, their own desires, their own dreams. The Jewish leaders wanted their nation back, with them at the top, of course. Pilate wanted a better governorship and to be in the “Friends of Caesar” club. Herod was a tetrarch, but a bigger kingdom and more power is always welcome.

And then there’s Jesus and His kingdom - the round peg of God’s kingdom in the square hole of this world’s kingdoms! He didn’t fit. His kingdom was unlike any of theirs. His a kingdom of truth, not power. Of coming down to serve, not rising up to be served. A kingdom not of this world. But this they cannot understand. All they know is that in this “clash of kingdoms,” Jesus and His kingdom cannot exist with theirs. It is a threat. It - and He - will have to go.

So the Jewish leaders bring Jesus to Pilate because under Roman rule they cannot put Jesus to death. The Romans gave them a good amount of self-rule, but capital punishment remained in Rome’s purview. At first, they don’t bring any specific charges; they don’t really have any to bring. Just a trust us! He’s a criminal. He needs to be put to death. But Pilate needs more than that. He may not be the best governor in the Empire, but he knows that much.

So after the Jewish leaders accuse Him and level some charges, Pilate questions Him, but Jesus does not defend Himself. Three times, in fact, will Pilate publicly declare Jesus innocent. But in this “clash of kingdoms,” neither truth or guilt or innocence is the point - the preservation of kingdom and power is. And until Pilate’s is threatened, he doesn’t budge. No need to. Nothing on the line for him.

But he does try to pass the buck by sending Jesus to Herod. He didn’t like Herod, but he may be useful. But Herod’s in the same situation as Pilate - he’s not threatened by Jesus, so reason to do anything. Jesus isn’t a challenge to him, just an amusement. So when he’s tired of Jesus, he sends him back to Pilate.

Pilate then tries to be a savvy politician and divide the leaders and the led, the chief priests and the people, by offering up Barabbas - but the chief priests won that battle, persuading the people to ask for Barabbas. It’s only when Pilate and his kingdom and his power, his hopes and dreams and ambitions, are threatened, that he relents. For, after all, in this “clash of kingdoms,” his kingdom must come first. He was afraid, he was confused, he was conflicted, he tried to maintain his innocence, to wash his hands of the matter, both literally and figuratively. Fine. Do what you want with your king. He’s your king, after all. Not mine.

But Pilate, you are wrong. He is your king. He is Caesar’s king. He’s the king of kings. You will one day know that. You will one day confess that. Because one day, every knee [will] bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:10b-11). The only question, Pilate, is this: Will your knee bow and your tongue confess in this life, leading to glory? Or in the next, with you in eternal torment?

You see, this “clash of kingdoms” isn’t really a clash at all. There is really only one king, and He is in control. The kingdom of God comes by itself without our prayer, but we pray that it may come to us also (Small Catechism, Second Petition). The Jewish leaders and Pilate and Herod think they are in control, but it is really Jesus running the show here. All the kings and kingdoms of the world get their authority from Him (Romans 13). Jesus, in fact, confessed that fact to Pilate in words we heard tonight. But those words bounced off Pilate’s blind eyes, deaf ears, and hard heart. But as Jesus taught His disciples earlier: No one takes His life from Him - no one could. He demonstrated that in Gethsemane when they came to arrest Him and at His word they all fell to the ground. No, no one takes His life from Him, He lays it down of His own accord (John 10:18). He lays it down precisely because He is the king. And this is what good kings, powerful kings, godly kings do - not gather power to themselves, but love and serve their people.

And so Jesus, the true King in this story, does. Lays down His life for the life of the world. For the Jewish leaders’ life. For Pilate’s life. For Herod’s life. For Barabbas’ life. For the life of all in the crowd shouting crucify him! And for your life and mine. No life, no sin, left unatoned for by Jesus. His life for all, that all may be His.

But not all want to be his. The chief priests said: We have no king but Caesar, following in the footsteps of Old Testament Israel who had also rejected God as their king. The people said: His blood be on us and on our children, following the footsteps of Old Testament Israel who rejected God in favor of the false gods of the nations around them, even to the point of sacrificing and shedding the blood of their own children. And how about us and what we do for our own kingdoms? Following in the footsteps of our first parents in the Garden, who listened to the lie of satan and instead of gaining a kingdom, crashed and burned the one they already had.

But that’s what makes Jesus and his kingship so remarkable. What we crashed and burned, He rebuilds. He brings life for our death, forgiveness for our sin, and the promise of a glorious future, so that I may be His own and live under Him in His kingdom and serve Him in everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness (Small Catechism, Second Article). That just as He is risen from the dead, so will I be. And not just in the future, but already here and now. Raised from the death of my sins to a new life in Him. Raised from my own kingdom into His.

So we pray Thy kingdom come, and we heard how that kingdom comes tonight, in Jesus.And as the King comes to us today, His kingdom comes for us. And it’ll look the same - not powerful, but weak; not wise, but foolish; not honored, but mocked and reviled; not glorious, but crucified. But exactly in those things will it be triumphant. For Christ crucified is the power of God and the wisdom of God. And the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men (1 Corinthians 1:14b-25).

Pilate couldn’t figure out why Jesus remained silent and wouldn’t defend Himself. We know. To die. And win.

In the Name of the Father, and of the (+) Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.