The True Witness... and Blind Injustice - Mark 14:53-65

The True Witness… and Blind Injustice

 Mark 14:53-65

Introduction: In his commentary on Mark, R.C. Sproul said, “It is unthinkable that the Messiah, the Ruler and Sustainer of the universe, should be subjected to a trial by mere men…” (Mark, p. 382). Of course, Jesus spoke only truth, He never sinned, He was guilty of nothing. The injustice of this procedure is evident at every point, His accusers are guilty, Jesus is without sin, innocent, righteous, holy… The Law required honest testimony, and fair trials. We read in Leviticus 19:15-16,   

¹⁵ "You shall do no injustice in court. You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor.  ¹⁶ You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people, and you shall not stand up against the life of your neighbor: I am the LORD.

Do you remember how this chapter started? We read in 14:1,

It was now two days before the Passover... And the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how to arrest him by stealth and kill him…

Their minds were made up. There would be no fair investigation of the truth. They were determined not only to arrest Him, but they were determined to kill Him. Until now Jesus has kept full disclosure of His identity low key, revealed only to a few. Now it will come front and center. This is why He came…

The Maine* Idea: Jesus, Messiah, Son of Man, and Son of God, willingly endured injustice at the hands of men, so that we could be justified before God.

I. The Illegal convening of the Sanhedrin: At night, in darkness (53-54).

⁵³ And they led Jesus to the high priest. And all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes came together.  ⁵⁴ And Peter had followed him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest. And he was sitting with the guards and warming himself at the fire. 

      The moment the leaders of the Jews had long been planning and maneuvering to bring about was at hand.  The brought Jesus under the cover of darkness to the home of the High Priest, Caiaphas. We know from comparing the other Gospels that there was an initial stop at the home of the “High Priest Emeritus,” Annas, but Mark doesn’t give us that detail.  So, rather than taking Jesus to the Chamber of Hewn Stone where the Sanhedrin traditionally met, they brought Him to the home of the High Priest, Caiaphas, and “all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes came together.” This is described as “the whole council” in v.55, and so it seems to me that this is a meeting of the Sanhedrin. It doesn’t necessarily mean every last one was there, but at least enough of them to constitute a quorum.  The Sanhedrin was not supposed to meet during the feast, nor were they to come together at night. But here they were. The timing of their actions also seem symbolic, they are acting in the darkness, and spiritually speaking, they are in the darkness.

       Peter warms himself by the fire with the guards… (Mark will return to Peter after this scene). I mentioned in our Wednesday night study that for me this is a convicting scene. Think about it, this is Peter, the Rock, the one who said “though they all desert you, I will never leave you, I will die with you…” Now he is there, blending in with the guards and others present in the High Priest’s courtyard… sitting by the fire and warming himself. Peter had boasted that he would die rather than deny Him, and now Jesus is being spit on and beaten and mocked, and Peter is sitting quietly by, in between a guard and a servant girl!  Perhaps close enough to see and hear what is happening, but unwilling to stand up and be identified with Christ. Before we judge Peter, we should ask ourselves, are we content to “blend in” with the world? Are we comfortable going through life without making too many waves? Without drawing too much attention? Enjoying the warmth of the fire, rather than risking being “exposed” as a Christ-follower? R.C. Sproul similarly asked,

Are you following Jesus from a distance? Do the people with whom you interact each day know that you are a Christian? I am not asking whether you wear your Christianity on your sleeve and make a pest of yourself to your friends and coworkers. I am simply asking whether they know where your allegiance lies. If they do not, perhaps you are keeping a safe distance from your Savior” (Mark p. 382).

Remember His call in chapter 8, “If anyone would be my disciple, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me…” That leaves no room for “easy believism.” It is a radical call to discipleship, a call to count the cost of being a Christ-follower. It means loving Him more than the world, more than life! He showed us His love, He endured injustice at the hands of men so that we could be justified before God.

II. The Injustice of false-witnesses (55-61a). They had pre-determined the outcome they desired, and clearly felt the end justified the means. Their intentions expressed in 14:1 are now in the process of being carried out.

⁵⁵ Now the chief priests and the whole Council were seeking testimony against Jesus to put him to death, but they found none.  ⁵⁶ For many bore false witness against him, but their testimony did not agree.  ⁵⁷ And some stood up and bore false witness against him, saying,  ⁵⁸ "We heard him say, 'I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and in three days I will build another, not made with hands.'"  ⁵⁹ Yet even about this their testimony did not agree.  ⁶⁰ And the high priest stood up in the midst and asked Jesus, "Have you no answer to make? What is it that these men testify against you?"  ⁶¹ But he remained silent and made no answer.

       Mark tells us that the chief priests and the “whole Council” were seeking testimony to justify putting Jesus to death. This was no fair trial, no objective inquiry. They were not investigating the facts or seeking truth. They had made up their minds long ago that Jesus had to go. And they were not going to miss this opportunity. They were not seeking truthful witnesses, they were seeking testimony to put Him to death… Our minds are made up, let’s invent a narrative to get it done!

       False witnesses were bought forth, but they contradicted each other. They needed corroborating witnesses but they all apparently had differing stories! Some of them said that Jesus had spoken against the Temple. What had Jesus said about the Temple? In the previous chapter (13) He had predicted its destruction, and back in John 2, at the outset of His public ministry, He had used the figure of the Temple metaphorically, to speak of His coming death and resurrection. Let’s read a few of those verses…

Mark 13:1-2  And as he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, "Look, Teacher, what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!"  ² And Jesus said to him, "Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down."

He was clearly prophesying the future destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem, which would be razed by the Romans in AD 70. In this discourse on the Mount of Olives He didn’t say that HE would destroy the Temple, only that it would be leveled. And, by the way, that is exactly what happened. Now back in John 2 there was a different exchange. After cleansing the Temple for the first time, near the outset of His public ministry, the Jewish leaders challenged His authority for doing such a thing…

Jn 2:18-21  So the Jews said to him, "What sign do you show us for doing these things?"  ¹⁹ Jesus answered them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."  ²⁰ The Jews then said, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will you raise it up in three days?"  ²¹ But he was speaking about the temple of his body.

Here it seems Jesus is intentionally veiling a prophesy of His death and resurrection.  In the context John tells us that only after the resurrection would the disciples “remember” that He had said these things. In John 2:21, as the narrator of the Fourth Gospel, he lets the reader have a little more information, i.e., He was speaking not about the physical building, but about His body.

       It seems that these false witnesses are blending together and distorting these two different prophecies which had two different referents. And in neither case did Jesus say He would be the one to destroy the temple!  V.61 tells us that Jesus did not respond to these convoluted, false charges. He remained silent, which evokes the description of the Servant in Isaiah 53:7…

“He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.”  (Isa 53:7).

That beautiful chapter describes the righteous, suffering, servant. He was willing to be the lamb led to the slaughter. The testimony of these so-called witnesses collapsed on itself, one contradicted the other. Without corroboration in a capital case there could be no conviction. Jesus, like a lamb being led to slaughter, remained silent. He endured injustice at the hands of men so that we could be justified before God.

III. One Isolated Witness Spoke Truthfully: Jesus responds to the direct question of the High Priest (61b-62). Who do you claim to be?

Again, the high priest asked him, "Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?"  ⁶² And Jesus said, "I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven." 

        …I AM… Messiah and “Son of God” rightly defined… The High Priest was clearly frustrated by the inability of their false-witnesses to get their stories together. And so, he switches to another tactic, to seek to get Jesus to say something that they could use against Him, to catch Him in His own words. And he gets right to the point: “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” These titles are used side-by-side, in parallel, appositionally. “Christ,” as we have seen, is the Greek translation of the word “Messiah,” the “Anointed One.” The High Priest further asks, “Are you the Christ, the son of the Blessed?” What the High Priest meant by that second title was “Son of God.” This was an example to the Jewish practice of avoiding saying the name of God. They would use phrases like “Kingdom of Heaven” rather than saying “Kingdom of God,” or, as here, “Son of the Blessed,” in place of “Son of God.” The question was clear. Who do you claim to be? Are you, or are you not, the Messiah, the Promised One of Israel?”

       Until now, as Mark has been telling the story of Jesus, he is showing us that when people came to understand who Jesus was, almost always He told them to keep it to themselves. In the light of the full context of the Gospel we can see that He was saying, “Keep it to yourself for now.” That is, until the right time. This so-called “messianic secret” was part of Him controlling the unfolding of His story. His teaching and the miracles that He did bore witness to who He is. Yet He guarded the flow of information. Even back in chapter 8, when Peter, speaking for the twelve said “You are the Christ,” Jesus’ immediately warned them not to tell anyone about Him (Mk 8:29,30). Why? Revealing His identity too soon would precipitate more opposition and even violence at the hands of the leaders. It wasn’t time yet for them to be His witnesses. But the hour had now come, and He, the True Witness, speaks.

               Are You the Son of the Blessed? Who are you, Jesus? Mark here includes for us Jesus direct answer to that question in His response to the High Priest. The answer He gives was the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. His answer has at least three components indicating the full and correct understanding of the person of the Messiah. Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed? Jesus answer is affirmative, but I think He is saying more, essentially challenging the High Priest’s understanding of the person and nature of the Messiah…

       1)  “I AM…” Remember the historical context, Jesus had just revealed His authority as the great I AM when the contingent appeared to arrest Him (Jn 18:5,6). Against that background, He says the same thing here: “I AM.” The God who spoke to Moses from the burning bush stood before the ruler of the people, incarnate, the Promised One and the Hope of Israel, and was not recognized by him! It seems to me that Jesus is saying more than “yes” in answering the High Priest with these words.

       2) You will see… the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power… (He alludes there to Psalm 110:1; “The LORD said to my Lord, sit at my right hand until I make the nations a footstool for your feet…” ). The Son seated at the right hand of God, called “Lord” by David, and so clearly greater than him… Who’s Son is He? The Son of God!

       3) Jesus also makes reference to Dan 7:13,14 when he describes the Son of Man… coming on the clouds of heaven... We read in Daniel 7,

Daniel 7:13-14   ¹³ I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him.  ¹⁴ And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away...

Jesus refers to this vision of Daniel, and this messianic figure coming on the clouds of heaven and being given an eternal kingdom. He is speaking to the religious leader of the Jews, essentially saying yes, I am the Messiah, but do you understand what that really means? The great I AM, the Son of God, the Son of Man!  He knew how the religious leaders would respond to this straight forward declaration! He gave a true witness, even though He knew their minds were made up. It is why He came. To endure injustice at the hands of men so that we could be justified before God.

IV. The Illegitimate Judge: The High Priest Disqualified Himself in tearing his robe and unjustly condemning Jesus for blasphemy (63-65).

⁶³ And the high priest tore his garments and said, "What further witnesses do we need?  ⁶⁴ You have heard his blasphemy. What is your decision?" And they all condemned him as deserving death.  ⁶⁵ 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.

The irony here is overwhelming. A human “judge” charging the Creator of the Universe, God the Son, the One who knows the hearts of will judge the souls of every human, with blasphemy!? That is the highest form of blasphemy imaginable!

      “…tore his garments… (See Lev. 21:10). This action by the High Priest was intended to indicate His righteous indignation at what he considered the blasphemous answer of Jesus. The Law actually prohibited the tearing of the High Priest’s garments (Lev 21:10). [It occurs to me that the soldiers would later cast lots for Jesus’ garment, it would not be torn!]. The Mishnah, the written collection of the traditions of the Rabbis, permitted it only in the case of blasphemy.  That is the claim here, not that claiming to be the messiah would be blasphemous in itself. Seemingly the High Priest discerns that Jesus is claiming more than that… His claim to be the Son of God is to be understood as a claim to deity. Did he hear the expression “I AM” in its fullest sense? Did He understand what Jesus was implying by calling Himself God’s Son? If so, he was right about Jesus’ claim, but totally wrong in rejecting Him. Jesus was the one, truthful witness who testified that day! The only blasphemy that day was the leaders rejecting Him, beating and mocking Him, sentencing Him to death. By the way, the Law required that blasphemers by stoned (Lev 24:15,16). But the Romans did not authorize the Jews to carry out capital punishment. So, the High Priest had to manipulate the situation so that the Roman authorities would carry out his bidding. A thousand years earlier God had inspired David to write out a psalm, Psalm 22, that perfectly described a crucifixion!

      See Mark 8:31; 10:34, as he had prophesied… Jesus had predicted, specifically that the leaders would reject Him, mock Him, even spit on Him (cf. Isa 50:6). And yes, He would be tortured and put to death. But that wasn’t the end of the story. He would rise on the third day!

What is God saying to me in this passage? Jesus endured injustice at the hands of men so that we could be justified before God.

What would God have me to do in response to this passage? Let’s start with Peter warming himself by the fire, next to the guard. Do we sometimes stay silent, and fail to be a voice for righteousness, failing to hold forth the Gospel? Lord forgive us! Consider what He willingly endured for us. The Just suffering for the unjust, so that we could be forgiven, reconciled to God. He saved us on purpose, for a purpose. Will you embrace that truth, and follow Him? 

       Peter reflected on this scene when he wrote,  

²² He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth.  ²³ When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.  ²⁴ He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.  ²⁵ For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls… (I Pet 2:22-25).

Be encouraged that Jesus is in control. The leaders thought they had the upper hand, but they could only do what God allowed, for His purpose. Jesus willingly endured injustice before men, so that we could be justified, declared righteous, before God. Do you ever feel life isn’t fair? Have you ever asked, “What did I do to deserve this?” When people ask me that, my usual answer is, “You were born into a fallen world.” Remember what Jesus endured for us! There will not always be justice in this life – but know this: Jesus came to undo the Fall! And He has revealed to us the end of the story: Spoiler alert: Jesus wins! And so do we, if we are His. AMEN.