With
this past week being both Passover/Unleavened Bread and Easter/Holy week; I
have been thinking a lot about both the death and resurrection of Christ, as
well as the Passover. I did a brief post last week about it but had to cut it
short due to a shortened nap little bit decided to take. But after I wrote it,
I kept thinking about it and then I began thinking about Barabbas.
“Now at the feast
the governor was accustomed to release for the people any one
prisoner whom they wanted. At
that time they were holding a notorious prisoner, called Barabbas. So when the people
gathered together, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for
you? Barabbas, or Jesus who
is called Christ?” For
he knew that because of envy they had handed Him over.
While he was
sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent him a message, saying, “Have nothing to do with that righteous Man; for last night I suffered greatly in a dream because
of Him.” But
the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas
and to put Jesus to death. But
the governor said
to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?” And they said,
“Barabbas.” Pilate said to them, “Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called
Christ?” They all said, “Crucify Him!” And he said, “Why,
what evil has He done?” But they kept shouting all the more, saying, “Crucify
Him!”
When Pilate saw
that he was accomplishing nothing, but rather that a riot was
starting, he took water and washed
his hands in front of the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this Man’s blood; see to that yourselves.” And all the people
said, “His blood shall be on us and on our children!” Then
he released Barabbas for
them; but after having Jesus scourged, he
handed Him over to be crucified.” Matt.
27:15-24 NASB
Barabbas was a murder but also
(probably) a thief. In all respects, a criminal. Murder would be a crime
punishable by death, both by Jewish and Roman law. However, the crowd was
persuaded to have this criminal released and an innocent man killed in his
place. But, the innocent man (our Messiah) willingly took his place. There is
so much to this picture!
During Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement)
animals were sacrificed for an atonement of sins. A couple of these animals
included goats, two of them to be exact. Both were brought before the priest,
and one was sacrificed and one bore the sins of the people but was set free. One
would think the goat bearing the sin would be the one sacrificed, but rather,
it is the goat that does not carry the blame that was sacrificed. Barabbas and
Yeshua? (This is just a thought, I honestly have no idea, it was just something
I thought of).
By both Roman and Jewish law, Christ
was blameless and should have been released and Barabbas should have been
punished. Instead Christ willingly took Barabbas’ place and become the perfect
and final sacrifice for sin. But let’s dive a little deeper still.
Barabbas was a murder because he was
part of a rebellion/uprising (Luke 23:19, John 18:40). He was unsuccessful and
was caught and then labeled as a criminal. However, Hanukkah is a celebration
of the Maccabees doing just that, but being successful. If Barabbas had been a
part of a successful uprising, would he still have been a criminal? I am not
trying to say Barabbas was actually a nice guy, I don’t know if he was or not;
but here is something to think about: by Jesus/Yeshua taking his place,
therefore granting him freedom, did he actually deliver Barabbas? When we are
in times of trial we ask for deliverance, Jews pray daily for it. Was this
perhaps an answer to a prayer of a “criminal” who, wasn’t actually one?
But, for now, let’s just assume
Barabbas is a legit criminal. And let’s take a metaphorical look at this
passage of scripture. How many times have we personally, and we as the church,
been guilty of being like Barabbas? And how many times has Christ intervened on
our behalf? No, I don’t think we are guilty of murder as a regular sin, but a
thief? Or other sins? Quite a bit! How many times have we been granted another
chance through forgiveness when in all honesty, we should not have been? How
many times has the Lamb of God shed his blood to cover us when we did not
deserve to be delivered?
Now, let’s look at the other side of
the coin. Let’s assume Barabbas was accused of being a criminal but actually,
wasn’t. How many times have we found ourselves in situations we don’t deserve
to be in? We are good people, trying to do the right thing, and BAM! We find
ourselves in a metaphorical prison. We cry out, and we are delivered. But at
what cost? Often times we have no idea, but other times, we can see that someone
else is affected.
Either way, Barabbas being a
criminal or not, is a powerful testimony. Walking free, forgiven of
sin/wrong-doing, or being freed through the love and compassion of our Messiah.
The power of Christ’s sacrifice for us never ceases to amaze me, especially
when I know I have been Barabbas a few times myself.
May you have a blessed week, may
Adonai bless you, your families and your homes.
