The Crowd is Often Wrong

Pilate saw that he wasn’t getting anywhere and that a riot was developing. So he sent for a bowl of water and washed his hands before the crowd. —Matthew 27:24

We’re continuing in our Vintage Faith series in the book of Matthew, and in the hours before Jesus was crucified, a crowd had gathered around the governor’s home. They were there to insure that Jesus would be executed.

The governor listened to Jesus, and then told the crowd that he would be releasing him—because he found Jesus innocent of any crime.

But agitators in the crowd called for his execution. “Crucify him!” they chanted.

“But why,” said Pilate the governor, “what crime has he committed?”

Again, the crowd chanted “Crucify him, crucify him!”

The more the governor tried to reason with the crowd, the louder it became. Even to the point of threatening to report the governor to Caesar, claiming Jesus was an enemy of the emperor.

Ultimately, Pilate gave in to their demands and ordered Jesus’ execution.

The crowd is often wrong.

And in the fog of conflict, it is often hard to see what is true. Yet this is when we need the greatest clarity.

But even now, as we look back to the darkness of that day, we see clearly that the cross was God’s plan from the beginning. The cross was the most humiliating and excruciating form of execution ever devised.

But Jesus would use the cross as a bridge to restore us to God himself—and his sacrifice would transform the cross into the greatest symbol of love the world has ever seen.

But that is what love does. It transforms.

The message of the crowd is often wrong. But the message of the cross is always true.

We’re continuing in Matthew’s gospel this Sunday, and would love to have you join us onsite at CenterPoint, or online on our FB page. Either way, hope you can join us this Sunday at 10AM PDT. See you then.

Blessings,
Pastor Bill

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Bill Herried is a pastor at CenterPoint Church in Tacoma, Washington and is married to the most extraordinary woman on the planet. Together they have 3 adult children and 5 grandchildren. He has been the lead pastor at CenterPoint Christian Fellowship in Tacoma since 2006.

Image by Guillermo Riera from Pixabay