VI "CHRIST REJECTED" Preached in Christ Church, Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn. "Pilate gave sentence that it should be as they required." St. Luke 23: 24 The services for the fourth Sunday in Lent bring before the Church the inevitable controversy. In the prophet Micah, it is the contention in the sight of the universe between a mortal and his God. In St. John, it is the dispute of Christ with his enemies. Let us anticipate the next few weeks and view this war between good and evil, between God and the wicked heart as impersonated in Pontius Pilate, the man who decided for the wrong and who sacrificed whatever he counted valuable. "Pilate gave sentence that it should be as they required." A strange statement! Put the emphasis on the pronoun and we get the full force of the absurdity. "Pilate gave sentence that it should be as they required." For a moment consider who Pilate was: Procurator of Judaea, possibly of noble birth, appointed by the senate and Emperor of Rome as the supreme authority in Caesarea; housed in a palace, with legions behind him to hold in check all insurrection, and to maintain that code of laws which even to-day underlies the legislation of the most civilized lands. He had power legal, political, social, military -a very fortress of a man. And who were "they?" A Jewish horde led by fanatical officeholders: a mob with no respect for law, inflamed with religious bigotry, scorning justice, furious against Jesus of Nazareth, hating Rome and whatever belonged to her-mere shadows, nobodies, ciphers in comparison with the Governor. "And Pilate gave sentence that it should be as they required." Let us look into this. Let us try to understand why the capitol surrendered to the rabble, why the cedar of Italy bowed down to the bullrush of Jordan. The event has universal interest. This procurator, with his credentials from the Senate, with his palace and legions stands for each of us; for before us too Jesus the Son of God and Saviour of the worlds comes to be judged. Observe how Pilate, from the beginning, occupies a false position. The first encounter is on the title of "King." His accusers had said that Jesus claimed to be a king, and so affronted Caesar. Pilate now asks "Art thou the king of the Jews?" If the governor could only have met the encounter with faith, Jesus would have vindicated His royalty in Pilate's establishing and ennoblement. Our Lord fastens him to that thought of Kingship: "My Kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence." Something of majesty must have gleamed before the Roman, for his response, though a question in form, really declares assent, "Thou art a King, then?" Christ repeats the words, "Thou sayest that I am a King. I came into the world to testify of the Truth. Every one that is of the Truth heareth my words." When before or since heard any court more regal speech? Pilate surely voices some degree of earnestness in the famous exclamation "What is Truth?" One more soul affirms that somewhere the solid, |