BiblicalMastery Buddy's bible blog

Lesson 62

On Trial

Luke 22:54-70

One of the challenges all of us face at times is trying to explain something to a person and you just get them to understand what you are trying to say. I guess even worse than that scenario is trying to share with others who reject everything you are trying to tell them. I have reached a point in my life where I have decided the best offense is sometimes total silence. I have found myself in situations in which to try to defend myself would only escalate the intensity of the problem. One such incident occurred when I was going through a very difficult time in my life. At the same time the people in the Finance Office where I worked were in the process of learning a new purchasing software. There was one part of the program which I was hoping was going to make our job easier. The more I worked with it the more I realized that it was not doing what the company who had developed the software claimed it would do. I expressed my sentiments to the vendor representative, in what I considered an honest evaluation of the product. He promptly went to my management and told them I had hurt his feelings. Of course I was called on the carpet. When I realized it was a stacked meeting I chose not to present my side of the argument but to agree with them to go sit in the corner of my office and be a good boy. Nothing was to be gained by further discussion.

One other instance stands out in my mind. Once when I was working with the youth, three or four of us went out to visit in the home of a teenager who had not attended Sunday School in a while. While we were talking with the young man his father came out on the porch. Somehow the discussion turned to his spiritual condition. In my stumbling way I tried to witness to him only to be embarrassed by his answers to the questions asked him. He basically claimed to have never sinned. According to him he had never told a lie or stolen anything and the conversation went down hill from there. Sadly, the young man did not come back to church. The influence and attitude of his misguided dad must have made a lasting impression on him. For me it was frustrating because I knew the man was taking advantage of my lack of knowledge and I had no answer for him.

The church is facing the same kind of challenges today. It is more difficult than ever to witness for Christ. Once upon a time the general population trusted the word of God and accepted it as reliable source of the truth even they may have not attended Church. Many today do not believe the Scriptures are accurate at best or totally disregard it as having any value for society. Society therefore is drifting further and further away from the truth and has now set the church aside as irrelevant. With no basis upon which to begin conversations Christians face an uphill, but not impossible task of bringing people to the realization of there need for Christ. It is more important than ever for us to be prepared to answer the questions presented by the skeptics and out enemies of the Christianity. Remember we are in the race for the long haul and have to accept temporary roadblocks along the way. Jesus was about to face the next step in His march to the cross. The decision made in the Garden of Gethsemane would give Him the courage to proceed.

Before beginning I want to clarify what will be in the lesson. All four gospels provide the same basic structure while presenting the material in a different way. Hours could be spent in cross referencing and comparing them. We will cover the account given by Luke with a minimal number of references to the other accounts.

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Luke 22:54

With the disciples gone Jesus was all alone when those sent to find Him arrested Him. Luke wrote that He was taken to the home of the high priest. John inserted the information that before being taken to Caiaphas, Jesus was carried to the home of Annas. (John 18:13) Annas was the father-in-law of Caiaphas and the true power behind the high priests. In collaboration with the Romans he determined who would step into the role of high priest. Once He had been interrogated by Annas He was then led to the home of Caiaphas. Luke mentioned that Peter had not completed left the scene but was close enough that once Jesus was arrested he was able to follow at a distance. From Luke’s account it appeared that only Peter followed Jesus. In John 18:14 John wrote that the disciple whom Jesus loved, usually understood as John, was with him. He, because the high priest knew him, was able to gain entry for Peter into the courtyard.

1. Why was Jesus led to the home of Annas? (In all likelihood he would be the one who would determine the final outcome of the trial. No one would have bucked him because he was the true power in the sect of the Sadducees from which the high priest came.)

2. What other important piece of information do we need to know about Annas? (He was the father-in-law of Caiaphas and would have great influence over his son-in-law.)

3. Who were the disciples who actually followed Jesus from a distance?

4. What does that say about them?

5. What bold step did the two take according to John?

Luke 22:55

This may seem like an insignificant verse but for Peter it would become a defining moment. The men who had arrested Jesus were all in the courtyard to make sure that He did not escape and to see how the trial would turn out. Although Peter was there to be close to Jesus, he also wanted to learn the fate of His beloved leader and Lord. For all of the criticism of Peter’s pending failure, he was there in the midst of the enemies of Jesus. The man who had walked on water had walked into the most dangerous place for a follower of Jesus at that time.

1. What does this verse say about Peter?

2. Why was he and John there?

3. What do you think of the choice of these two men to go into the courtyard?

4. Why were the other people there?

5. What has been a difficult situation in which you have chosen to involve yourself?

6. How have you handled those times?

Luke 22:56-60

The time of which Jesus spoke began to occur for Peter. There were three accusations and three denials. They are:

• Servant girl in the light of the fire identified him as having been with Jesus. Peter denied it.

• Another person saw him and accused him of being as one of the disciples. Once again he denied being a disciple.

• Finally another man made a stronger assertion of Peter’s identity. He stated that Peter had been with Jesus and was a Galilean. Peter final denial was more vehement than these previous two.

At the moment Peter spoke his last denial, the rooster crowed just as Jesus had prophesied. One other

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needs to be made. Although Luke gives the impression that the language was very strong, Matthew and Mark said that Peter actually cursed as he deny Jesus. For a short period of time he reverted to the old rough fisherman mentality.

1. What do the denials say about Peter?

2. In what ways were the description presented by Luke different than Matthew and Mark? (They wrote that Peter cursed as part of his defense.)

3. How do you react when put under a lot of pressure?

4. How easy do you find it to revert to your pre-believer life?

5. How could the whole scenario been avoided? (Not to have put himself in a volatile environment.

6. What lesson can we learn from this event? (Be careful about placing yourself in a tenuous situation.

Luke 22:61

One can only imagine the sadness and pathos to be found in the look that Jesus gave Peter. Even though Peter had done just as Jesus had prophesied it still must have hurt Jesus deeply that His friend had succumbed to the pressure of the moment. It only took the look for Peter to remember the words of Jesus only hours earlier. He also had to think about his own words in which he assured Jesus that nothing would keep him from dying with Him.

1. What kind of feelings had to be in the look that Jesus gave to Peter?

2. What did Peter see in that look? (Sadness and possibly disappointment?

3. What else did Peter experience when Jesus looked at him? (Remembrance)

4. What has been a time when you would have been ashamed to have Jesus look at your heart?

5. How often do we give in to the pressure of the moment and deny our relationship with Christ?

6. To what lengths had Peter promised to go for Jesus?

7. What have you promised that you have failed to practice?

Luke 22:62

Peter responded by leaving the courtyard and went from there and weeped bitterly. His heart was broken because he had failed and disappointed His master. He would not have another opportunity before the death of Jesus to make amends.

1. What did Peter realize at the moment Jesus looked at him?

2. How did he respond?

3. What did weeping bitterly show about Peter? (A broken and contrite heart who repented of his actions.)

4. What are some things that you have said or done that you wish you could take back?

5. What have you done about them?

6. What did repentance provide for Peter? (Started him on the road of recovery and new opportunities to serve His Lord.)

Luke 22:63-65

At that point the illegal trial of Jesus began. He first of all was turned over to those who had been part of the group that arrested Him. They began to abuse Him with beatings and mocking Him. All this was

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done after they had blindfolded Him. Luke then wrote that they began to blaspheme as they ridiculed Him. This type of interrogation would be called softening up a person for what was to come. By this time Jesus had been up for at least twenty-four hours and would have been physically worn out.

1. Why would the men enjoy the treatment they were giving to Jesus? (He had been a thorn in their flesh.)

2. How did they treat Him?

3. What did it mean to blaspheme Jesus?

4. In what way did the mob mentality play a part in Jesus’ trial?

5. Who gave the orders for Jesus to be mistreated as He was?

6. What happens we are in a weakened condition?

Luke 22:66-68

The Sanhedrin made up of the chief priests and scribes then continued the illegal trial. It was illegal because trials were not supposed to take place at night which it did. Secondly, a person could not be condemned to death until twenty-four hours had elapsed. Jesus never faced His most powerful adversary. It is obvious that they had no grounds for arresting Him or put Him on trial. They were still looking for evidence to prove Him guilty. He was asked to admit that He was the Christ. To answer the question would have played right into their hands. If He did answer He would actually have placed a dilemma before them. They would have to accept an acknowledgment and believe in Him or reject Him as they had up to that point.

1. Why was the trial illegal?

2. Who made up the judge and jury?

3. What were they trying to get Jesus to do? (Condemn Himself.)

4. Did they really want Him to admit He was the Christ? Why or why not?

5. What dilemma would His answer have caused for the members of the Sanhedrin? (They would then have to either accept Him or continue to reject Him to their own destruction.)

Luke 22:69-70

Unlike Peter, Jesus could not deny who He was. He used one of His favorite titles to describe Himself. Going back to Daniel 7:13 it says one like the Son of Man approached the Ancient of Days. The religious leaders would have recognized that by using the title Jesus was claiming to being the Messiah.

Jesus then added to it by saying that He “will be seated at the right hand of the power of God.” To clarify His answer, they to know if He considered Himself the Son of God. This time He was very direct and clear. He answer was, “Yes, I am” Even that would have been a claim to be the “I am.”

1. What could have been the response of Jesus? (Not to answer at all.)

2. What did He mean by using the title, “Son of Man?” (It was a title representing the Messiah found in Daniel 7:13. It was also used a number of times in Ezekiel to speak of one who represents God before the people.)

3. Why did He add the phrase, “Seated at the right hand of the power of God?” (It confirmed His claim to be Son of God.)

4. Again what dilemma did this present for the religious leaders? (How were they going to react to the claim?)

5. What does this mean to you for Jesus to make such a bold statement?

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6. How do you respond to it?

7. What kind of confidence does it give you when witnessing to others? (Jesus saw Himself as the fulfillment of prophecy.)

Luke 22:71

The question has been asked how would the men respond to the statement of Jesus. Luke very quickly gives the answer. They immediately declared Him guilty of blasphemy using Jesus’ own words to condemn Him. The question then became what were they going to be able to do with the man. Their problem was that even though they had the authority to execute a person for blasphemy to attempt to kill Jesus would have caused an uprising if not an outright revolt on the part of the people. Remember the entire arrest and trial had been carried out at night to keep the people from knowing what was going on.

1. The Sanhedrin had the verdict of guilt but what good did it do them? (Nothing at that point. It only convinced them even more that the troublemaker had to die.)

2. What was their problem? (To execute Jesus would have caused an outright revolt on the part of the people who loved and respected Jesus.)

3. What rights did they have? (To execute anyone accused of blasphemy but not Jesus.)

4. Why had the trial been held at night? (To do it out public view.)

• You must learn that not every place you go will be a Christian friendly environment so determine what your behavior will be.

• Learn that sometimes the best policy is to not share your opinions

• Understand that it is possible that your most trusted friend may fail you

• Be ready to forgive those who wrong you.

• Look at the two men who failed Jesus and realize that for every sin there is forgiveness if you are willing to confess and repent the sin.

• Be bold in your witness when asked about your relationship with christ.

• Be willing to accept the persecution or ridicule that comes with your commitment to Jesus.

The skeptics forget that the church is a place for sick people who are in different stages of healing. Jesus understood that that the spirit is willing but the body is weak. Thankfully for all of us patients He has the healing power to make us well. It begins with acceptance of each of us through grace as we admit our sinfulness and seek His forgiveness. Sadly there are those who are like the Sanhedrin who will never accept the fact that Jesus is the Messiah, the Savior of the world. They will do everything in their power to undermine everything the Church teaches.

We are to look to Jesus who was willing to face His adversaries with courage and humility. He let them have their day knowing the victory that was to come for the Peter’s of the world. He gave us the example of how to deal with the critics of Christianity. There was no arrogance or belligerence in facing his enemies only deep hurt for those who were so defiant. We are to be wise in our own encounters with the church’s critics. Let us to nothing to give any ammunition to accuse us.