JESUS: FALSELY ACCUSED

(Mark 14:53-65; 15:1-3) The rulers had no interest in justice. The chief priests and their cohorts had closed their hearts to truth. They hated Jesus and the threat He represented to them and their system. They concluded the only solution was to eliminate Him, so they decided to kill Him. Knowing they lacked just grounds for executing Him, they discarded justice. *We* must take heed in our attitudes and responses toward them our flesh is no better than theirs and therefore just as capable of terrible injustice. The rulers tried to cover their evil with an aura of godliness. The rulers compounded their sin by trying to use God. God had declared that the witness of one person was insufficient (Deuteronomy 19:15). The rulers looked for witnesses against Jesus, caring only that two witnesses would agree (truthful witnesses would be an unessential bonus). God had also stipulated death for anyone who blasphemed His name (Leviticus 24:16). What a relief for the rulers when Jesus openly declared Himself to be the Christ! Now they could use a specific portion of the Law to be rid of Jesus (not that they really cared about God being blasphemed). Again, *we* must beware of such calloused abuse and misuse of God's Word. The Lamb of God offered no defense, meekly bearing injustice. Jesus could have destroyed the false witnesses along with those who plotted against Him. He could have challenged every statement and exposed every heart. He easily could have escaped. Instead, He chose to bear the injustice and shame...meekly and without defense. He knew that was the Father's plan for that time. We also need to be well-attuned to God so that we too can respond to injustice as He would have us to at any given time. Have you ever pursued your interests at the expense of justice? How do you respond to false accusations?