They Killed The Son of God to Bury The Truth

"Jesus gave them the truth and what did they do? They killed Him. The Son of God."

When Jesus was arrested on charges of blasphemy and ushered in before the powerful Sanhedrin, He was asked this question by the high priest, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” (Mark 14:61) Was the priest really interested in the truth or just trying to cover it up? Here is Jesus’ answer, “I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.” This infuriate the high priest, “. . . he tore his garments and said, ‘What further witnesses do we need? You have heard his blasphemy. What is your decision?’ And they all condemned him as deserving death. And some began to spit on him and to cover his face and to strike him, saying to him ‘Prophesy!’ And the guards received him with blows.” (Mk. 14:63-65) Jesus gave them the truth and what did they do? They killed Him. The Son of God.

For three years Jesus’ spoke openly and boldly to both those in power and the common person. To some, His words of truth were received by teachable hearts that led to changed lives. But to most, they caused offense, irritation and anger.

Jesus publicly exposed the lies of the religious leaders, and confronted them with their corrupt behavior. They did not like having the light of truth being shone upon them, so they sought to eliminate the truth. They thought if they killed Him, the uncomfortableness He brought would be gone. Not so. For the three days Jesus lay buried in a borrowed tomb, His opponents were not rejoicing. They pondered the supernatural signs at the moment of Jesus’ death and were troubled when they remembered how He said He would rise again. It was three days of misery for them. Then on the third day, when Jesus rose from the dead, they discovered with great alarm how the truth cannot be buried.

Do not look down on these religious leaders and imagine we are better. By nature, all of us try to suppress the God-revealed truth about our lives. Our circumstances may not be recorded on the pages of history as theirs, but we are still no less guilty.

When God shows us the truth of ourselves, He often does it through our conscience, that inner voice which speaks when we have violated His moral law. When we pursue evil desires, the voice warns us, but in turn, we suppress it. We turn up the volume of entertainment. We give ourselves to pleasure. We go to great lengths to rationalize what we have done. We give ourselves to religion and good deeds believing that will ease our unrest. Whatever method we choose to silence our conscience, the truth of our lives cannot be buried.

And how does God respond to our efforts to suppress the truth? He says we are all without excuse. Through our conscience, He has written on our hearts what is right and wrong. As a result, this justifies God’s anger toward us. When He has made it plain to us what we ought to do, then do not do it, we invite His judgment.

What is our saving hope in light of this? Only one person can save us from the danger we are to ourselves, which comes from the just consequences of our own actions. When Jesus died upon the cross, He took the wrath of God for our sins, so we would not have to. He paid our penalty of death for us. And when He rose again from the dead and ascended into heaven, He sent His Spirit to wash clean our conscience and give us a new heart and mind. Jesus is our only hope.

A prayer for you - “Lord God, I pray you will help us to face the truth. The truth of who we are and what we have done. We are sinners and have sinned against you and others. We cannot cover it up anymore. Save us from your anger. Show us mercy through Christ. Grant us the forgiveness You have promised to those who call upon Your name. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”