You know, when it comes to who Jesus Christ is, the world has never suffered from a lack of suggestions. According to modern Jewish leaders, Jesus was a man, a great man, maybe even a prophet. According to the Muslims, Jesus was one of Allah's many prophets, of whom Muhammad was the greatest. According to the Mormons, Jesus was a man who worked his way up to being a God, just like you and I can do. According to the Jehovah's Witnesses, Jesus was the first created being in the universe.
According to the Unitarians, Jesus was a nice man who tried to help people get along in a tough world. According to Eastern mystics, Jesus was an enlightened soul, a guru, a person who attained nirvana. According to secular humanists, Jesus was a great moral and ethical philosopher. And according to many atheists, Jesus Christ as a historical person, the way the Bible presents him, probably never existed at all.
Now, the one thing we notice from this list is that all false religions have one thing in common, and that is they all deny the Bible's claim that Jesus is more than a man, that he is the supernatural divine Messiah of Israel, and therefore they also deny the unique implications that this fact has for our lives.
Well, this is what we want to talk about today. Remember, we're in a series entitled People Jesus Met. And today, Jesus meets a gentleman named Caiaphas. We want to go back 2,000 years and see what happened at that meeting. And then we want to bring all of that forward and talk about.
About, well, how should that matter for my life today?
So, our passage is Matthew chapter 26. And remember that Judas has just betrayed Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane as we pick up the story.
So, here we go, beginning at verse 57. The Bible says, then those who had arrested Jesus took him to Caiaphas, the high priest, where also the scribes and the elders of Israel had assembled.
Now we learn from Josephus, the Jewish historian, that this man's full name was Joseph, who was called Caiaphas. And we also learn from Josephus that he was the high priest from 18 AD through 36 AD. But here's something that I think is really cool: in November of 1990, the Israelis were constructing a water park in southern Jerusalem when they accidentally discovered an ancient burial cave in which they found six ossuaries.
Now you say, Lon, we love you, but what is an ossuary?
Well, an ossuary is a limestone box, and it's called a bone box. And here's how it worked: at the time of Christ, Christ, when a person died, their body would be placed in a cave until all of the flesh rotted off the bones. And then they would go into the cave, collect up the bones, and they would put them in one of these bone boxes, one of these ossuaries.
Now, archaeologists date all six of these ossuaries that they found to the time of Christ. And on one of them, the most ornate one, is inscribed on the side the following words: Joseph, whose name was Caiaphas. And experts all agree that this ossuary is the one for the actual high priest Caiaphas, before whom Jesus stood right here in Matthew chapter 26. Hey, does God have a sense of humor or what? Jesus rose from the grave, and now we found the bones of the man.
Man who put him in the grave. How funny is that?
Alright, I think it's funny. Do you know what's funny? That's Your problem. I think it's hysterical that we've got this guy's bones. Anyway, biblical archaeology reader, the magazine, said, and I quote: Very few of the hundreds of people who walk through the pages of the Bible have their names attested in archaeological finds.
Now, to that small list, we may add the name of the high priest who presided at Jesus' trial, end of quote, or our mantra, as I love to say it, say it with me: the more, come on, they dig out of the ground, the more the Bible proves to be right.
Well, let's get back to our passage, verse 59.
Now, the chief priest and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false evidence against Jesus so they could put him to death. And what do we know about this Sanhedrin mentioned here?
Well, we know that it was Israel's supreme ruling body. That it consisted of 71 members and that the high priest was the chairman. We know that it had its own police force that was allowed to arrest people, but we also know that the Romans forbid the Sanhedrin to execute anybody. They could send a criminal to the Roman governor and ask that he be executed, but only the Roman governor could sentence someone to death. Verse 60, but they, the Sanhedrin, did not find any evidence, even though many false witnesses came forward.
Finally, two men came forward and said about Jesus, this man stated, I am able to destroy the temple of God and rebuild it in three days.
Well, actually, what Jesus said, John chapter 2, was destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. But he was speaking. Of the temple of his body. He was talking about the resurrection. Then the high priest stood up and said to Jesus, Do you make no answer?
What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you? But Jesus remained silent.
So the high priest said to him, I charge you under oath by the living God, tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.
Now, in our American system of jurisprudence, a person cannot be forced to self-incriminate himself. We call it, of course, taking the Fifth Amendment. But in ancient Israel, there were times when the law required a person to give a straight answer, even to a self-incriminating question. And one of those times was right here. When the high priest placed a person under oath by the living God, this meant that that person was bound by law to answer the high priest's question and to answer it truthfully.
For Jesus to lie here or refuse to answer would have been sin. Verse 64: So Jesus replied to Caiaphas, Yes, it is as you say.
Now, you know all those friends you have who tell you that Jesus himself never Claim to actually be the Messiah or to be the Son of God?
Well, obviously, they missed this verse because right here he claims it is clear as day. And Jesus went on to say, but I say to all of you, in the future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the mighty one and coming on the clouds of heaven. Then the high priest tore his robes and said, He has spoken blasphemy. Why do we need any more witnesses? Behold, you have heard the blasphemy.
What do you think? And they all answered and said, He is worthy of death. Then they spit in his face and beat him with their fists. And others slapped him and said, Prophesy to us, O Messiah, who hit you? And early in the morning, all the chief priests and elders came to the decision to Put Jesus to death.
So they bound him, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate, the governor. And friends, why did they decide to put Jesus to death?
Well, because the penalty in the Old Testament for blasphemy was death, and for a man to claim that he was God in the flesh, as Jesus had just done, was an act of utter blasphemy in the eyes of these rabbis.
However, this claim that Jesus is Jehovah God in human flesh, friends, this claim is the most important single claim in the entire Bible. Think about it now. If Jesus is not God, then he's a liar and an imposter. If Jesus is not God, then the Bible is a fraudulent book. If Jesus is not God, then his shed blood on On the cross is worthless to pay for your sin and my sin.
And if Jesus is not God, then we as His followers have no more real assurance about going to heaven when we die than the Stone Age people in Indonesia have. The point is that the entire Christian faith rises or falls on Jesus' claim that He is the divine Messiah of Israel, that He is God wrapped in human flesh. You say, okay. Law and I understand that. But for Jesus to claim this is one thing.
For him to actually prove it is another thing. Can he prove it? Did he prove it?
Well, friends, yes. When he was on earth, Jesus did prove it by demonstrating all the powers that go along with being God. For example, number one, Jesus demonstrated a power over disease and sickness that only God could have. Jesus healed paralytic people. He healed epileptic people.
He healed mute people. He healed deaf people. In John chapter 9, he healed a man who had been blind from birth. And the man even said, since the world began, it has never been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. How could Jesus have done this if he wasn't God?
Number two, Jesus demonstrated a power over the forces of nature that only God could have. In Matthew chapter 8, Jesus hushed a gale-force storm on the Sea of Galilee with just a word. He simply said, hush up. And it stopped. And the disciples in the boat said, Matthew 8, 27, what kind of man is this?
That even the winds and the waves obey him? In Matthew chapter 14, Jesus walked on water. In Matthew chapter 21, Jesus cursed a fig tree and it died. You know, in the house I used to live in, on the side of the house, well, we had all this English ivy that kept climbing up the walls of these bricks on the house. And I knew that ivy, you know, damaged bricks.
And so I would go out all the time and I would cut it and I would rip it off the wall and I would spray it. And not only did it keep going up the wall, but it started growing out into the grass and invading the lawn. And I sprayed it and did everything I could think of. Finally, one day I walked out and I pointed out it and I said, I curse you. Die, die, die.
But guess what? It didn't die. And you know why? Because I'm not God, that's why. But when Jesus cursed a fig tree and said, die, it did die.
You know why? Because he was God. Number three, Jesus demonstrated a power over demons that only God could have. He cast demons out of people. He cast demons into pigs.
They cowered in fear before him. And when the rabbis came in Luke chapter 11 and asked him, How do you do this? Jesus's answer was very simple. He said, I'm stronger than they are.
Now, who in the world could say that they're stronger than the demons of hell and prove it than someone who's not God? Hey, and in John chapter 4, how could Jesus tell the woman at the well everything she'd ever done if he wasn't God? And in John chapter 11, how could Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead if he wasn't God? And after Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin succeeded in having him crucified and killed, how could Jesus personally rise from the dead if he wasn't God? In fact, this is the crowning proof of all.
No other religion claims an empty tomb for its leader because no other religion claims that its leader was Jehovah God Himself, wrapped in human flesh. You say, All right, Lon, I hear what you're saying. But you know, the one problem here is that every piece of evidence that you've presented comes right out of the Bible itself.
So, is there any evidence outside of the Bible that Jesus actually did anything? Of these things? Oh, you betcha there is. Josephus, who was a secular Jewish historian who wrote a book entitled The Antiquities of the Jews. It was published in 93 AD.
Here's what he said, and I quote: He said, Now, there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man. For he was a doer of wonderful works. He was the Messiah. And when Pilate, at the suggestion of the chief men among us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at first did not forsake him. For he appeared to them alive again on the third day, as the divine prophets had foretold.
And the tribe of Christians so named for him are not extinct at this day, 93 AD. End of quote. Here we have Josephus, a completely independent, contemporary witness, a secular, Jewish, non-believing writer, confirming the Bible's claims not just about the miracles of the Lord Jesus, but also about his rising from the dead on the third day. Pretty amazing.
So, let's summarize. Standing before Caiaphas in the Sanhedrin, Jesus claimed to be the divine Messiah of Israel. He claimed to be God in the flesh. The miracles he performed in the Bible attest to it. His resurrection proves it beyond all doubt.
And we even have independent testimony from this unbelieving Jewish historian Josephus that confirms in all of this that the Bible is giving us accurate historical information.
Now That's as far as we want to go in our passage for today, because we want to stop at this point and ask our most important question. Are you ready? Are all of you loud and ready? And Prince William, and on the internet, here we go. Take a deep breath.
One, two, three.
Okay. Yeah, you say, Lon, so what? Say, this is great. Man, you're preaching your heart out there, brother. God love you up there.
But I mean, what difference does any of this make to me tomorrow morning when I walk out of my house?
Well, let's talk about that. You know, understanding the true identity of Jesus Christ, that he is number one, the divine Messiah of Israel, that he is number two, God in human flesh, and that he is number three, the risen Christ of glory. Folks, this has some enormous implications for our lives. It means that, number one, Jesus Christ is the owner and the Lord of the entire cosmos. It means, number two, that he deserves every bit of worship and devotion and loyalty and allegiance that our lives can possibly produce.
It means, number three, that he is the center of the universe, not you, not me, and not any other human being. Being. It means, number four, that his death on the cross is different from any death that has ever happened in the history of the world. And finally, number five, it means that the plan of salvation he offers us by his death on the cross is the one true, exclusive, authentic way to get to heaven. But you know, there's also a very personal side to this that I want to make sure that we don't miss.
You see, because of who the Lord Jesus Christ is, it also means that we have the most powerful being in the universe as our advocate, as our ally, as our defender, and as our friend to help us with our struggles and our problems in life as followers of Christ. Hebrews chapter 4, verse 14 says, For we have a Great high priest, Jesus, the Son of God, who is able to sympathize with our weaknesses, for he was tempted in every way as we are, yet without sin.
Now, in light of this, look at Jesus' invitation to us. Therefore, Well, therefore, what?
Well, therefore, since Jesus is the Son of God, therefore, because he's able to sympathize with our weaknesses, therefore, because he was tempted in every way like we are without sin, therefore, let us come boldly to the throne of grace that we may receive mercy from Jesus and may find grace to help us in our time of need. And this explains what Peter says, 1 Peter 5, verse 7, where he says, Cast all, not some, all your cares upon him. Why? Because he cares for you. You know, in my 62 years of living, The Lord has let me experience some things that I will never get over.
For example, I will never get over being in the room and watching all four of my children actually be born. I will never get over the privilege God has given me to go to the Holy Land 35 times. I will never get over the privilege God has given me of leading this church for the last 30 years. I can't tell you what a privilege that's been in my life. I'll never get over that.
But without a doubt, the single most amazing thing that I will never get over in my life is the fact that the Almighty, resurrected, eternal, all-powerful, divine Messiah of Israel cares about my problems. And friends, in the same way, he cares about your problems. And the best part of all is this: when we take Our problems, when we take our struggles to the risen Christ, not only does He really care about them, but because of who He is, He is also powerful enough to intervene and to do something about them. You know, I loved coaching my boys in baseball. I coached all three of my sons in baseball.
And uh my son John. Actually, I coached my son John beginning when he was very young. I coached him in single-A, and I coached him in AA Little League, and I coached him in AAA Little League and Fairfax Little League.
Well, our AAA team was quite a team. We went undefeated. We went 15-0, and we had a fabulous team. But you know, little league politics is meaner than national politics. I don't know if you've ever picked that up.
But as a result of us having this season, there were some people who thought that on the field I had demonstrated an overly aggressive personality.
Now, I can't figure out why anybody might have thought that, but they did. And so I made some enemies in high places, and one of the enemies I made was the president of the league. And so that fall, after our undefeated season, when it was time for my son John to move up to majors, the highest level of little league, I threw my name in the hat and asked them to let me manage a majors team with my son on it.
Well, the president of the league called me and told me that she had already assigned all the majors teams and that I was out of the running. And she told it to me in such a way that it became obvious to me that she was determined I was never getting another team in Fairfax Little League. To coach, Mo, Larry, or Curly might get a team, but not me.
Well, I began praying. And I said, Lord, you know that Jill's health has been so bad. You know that it's been so time-consuming. And you know that this coaching little league is the one special thing that John and I get to do together. And so, Lord Jesus, I'm asking you to please intervene in some special way.
I said, Lord, with all the teams assigned and with this woman disliking me so much, I said, I don't even have a suggestion to tell you how in the world you can fix this. But, Lord, you said, Come boldly to the throne of grace, and so here I am, Lord. Amen.
Well The fall went by. The winter went by, the spring came, I kept praying, and finally, the next spring, one week before the player draft for the majors, I got a phone call one evening at home from the president of the league. And she said to me, she said, Hello, Lon. She said, I'd like to ask you for a favor. I said, well, it all depends what it is.
She said, well, you know, my husband was all set to manage one of the majors' teams this spring. She said, and of course, my son was on that team. She said, but my son just informed us that he doesn't want to play baseball this spring. He wants to play lacrosse, so he's quit the baseball team. And my husband doesn't want to manage a team without my son on it.
And so she said, Lon, I'm desperate for a manager. I'm desperate. And I'm calling to ask you if you would please. She said, I know it's late notice, but if you would please take this team. And I said, Well, you know, it really is late notice here.
I did say that to her. I said, you know, this really is a big favor you're asking for. I said, can I have an evening to think about it? I did. She said, Yeah, call me tomorrow.
I said, Okay, I will. I got off the phone and I went to Brenda. I said, Brenda, just call me coach. Brenda, just call me coach. Hey, listen, I want to tell you something.
You might think that a little league team is trivial in light of all the problems in the universe, but I learned two very important lessons from this experience. Number one, I learned that God cares about even the smallest problems in our lives, no matter how trivial they may look to other people, and He wants us to bring them to Him. And the second lesson I learned is that there is no problem we will ever bring to God, no matter how hopeless it may look, no matter how impossible it may look, that is too tough for God to handle. Amen.
Amen.
Now All right, thank you. Let's summarize. As followers of Christ, I think one of the biggest mistakes that we make is that so often we fail to bring our problems and our struggles to God's throne of grace. And usually, we do this for one of three reasons.
Sometimes it's because we think our problems are too small to bother God with.
Sometimes it's because we're not really sure God would even care about them if we did bring them to Him. And sometimes, in unbelief, it's because we doubt God's ability to redeem and reverse and flip-flop impossible-looking situations for us. Friends, as followers of Christ, I urge you not to think like this because God says none of these three things are true. I urge you, my friend, let God show you how deeply He cares for you. I urge you, my friend, let God, in His time and in His way, intervene in the affairs of this world for you.
And finally, I urge you, never doubt God's power to reverse even the most impossible-looking situations. Listen carefully, bringing our problems to God's throne of grace and expecting, expecting that God will act mightily on our behalf. This is our birthright. This is our birthright as adopted children of the divine resurrected Almighty Messiah. And I urge you, don't rob yourself of your birthright.
And here's a question we can talk about as we leave. Very simply, What things in my life or in your life? Am I trying to handle on my own instead of bringing them to God's throne of grace? And if you identify any, my advice is. Junk your self-sufficiency.
and bring them to the throne of grace. Let's pray together. Heavenly Father, thank you for reminding us today of your wonderful promise. That we are to come boldly to the throne of grace, and that we will receive mercy and we will receive help. From the living Christ.
Lord, Encourage us today to do this. Lord, forgive us for our self-sufficiency. And Lord. Cause that we will be serious about taking advantage of the birthright you've given us to bring things to you and expect you. to act in mighty ways for us.
Lord, encourage our hearts today. Change the way we live because we were here and we sat under the teaching of the Word of God. And make us people who are in front of the throne of grace. Constantly. And we pray these things in Jesus' name.
And what did God's people say? Amen.
