Matthew 27:19 While Pilate was sitting on the judge’s seat, his wife sent him this message: “Don’t have anything to do with that innocent man, for I have suffered a great deal today in a dream because of him.”
20 But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and to have Jesus executed.
21 “Which of the two do you want me to release to you?” asked the governor.
“Barabbas,” they answered.
22 “What shall I do, then, with Jesus who is called the Messiah?” Pilate asked.
They all answered, “Crucify him!”
23 “Why? What crime has he committed?” asked Pilate.
But they shouted all the louder, “Crucify him!”
24 When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that instead an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. “I am innocent of this man’s blood,” he said. “It is your responsibility!”
Pilate was in a dilemma: whether to listen to his wife and his conscience (funny how they sometimes say the same thing...) or listen to the press of public opinion and the gripes of complainers. At first glance it may appear that by "washing his hands" he was "having nothing to do with Him", but the fact is that by giving the crowd free reign to do with Jesus as they wanted, he was making a decision, giving his approval. Sometimes we cannot just "wash our hands" and walk away from responsibility, though we often do. "It's not my problem," we say, or at least think. Not all wives are wise in scripture: Job's wife told him to give up on God; Jezebel convinced Ahab to do all kinds of evil; and even some of the "good wives" of the Bible gave occasional bad advice. But not here. Men: learn to listen to your wives and know when they are right. More importantly: learn to listen to the Holy Spirit: He is always right.
No comments:
Post a Comment