Stand Firm Before Jesus
But with loud shouts they insistently demanded that he be crucified, and their shouts prevailed. So Pilate decided to grant their demand. He released the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, the one they asked for, and surrendered Jesus to their will. -- Luke 23:23-25
A few years ago Toyota, a car company that had been respected by so many, took a public beating. It seemed that the company could do no right. There was recall after recall. And many, many complaints of cars getting away from their drivers.
The company was in a horrible possible. The only way to defend itself was to basically call its customers liars. And that’s certainly no way to do business.
Things finally came to a head when a man called the California Highway Patrol to report his leased Prius was speeding down the interstate and he couldn’t stop it. Well, it finally did get stopped. Panic and outrage against Toyota was the rage. The National Highway Transportation Board said it was sending representatives to check out the car. Toyota said it would do the same. And then they let slip a little known fact: the car had a black box similar to those on planes that would reveal exactly what had happened in that car.
Oops! Because the car was never out of control. The driver was facing financial ruin -- even about to lose the Prius -- and he saw a way out. He planned to play to the crowd mentality of the time, unaware that Toyota could disprove him with technology.
A hush prevailed. All those who had rushed to report problems quietly filed away. Oh, Toyota had done some things wrong and its public image was damaged. But so had the crowd that had joined a bandwagon headed in the wrong direction.
The Bible tells us that those who witnessed Jesus’ crucifixion beat their breasts and walked away. They knew they’d been wrong. They knew they’d urged Pilate to kill an innocent man. They understood, somewhat at least, what they’d done.
They were probably full of excuses, of course. We always have excuses when we do wrong. We always have a reason when we go along with the crowd, doing what it says is right, even when we know it’s wrong.
On this side of the cross we understand that it had to happen for we believers to live. It doesn’t lesson the horror of what Jesus endured. Perhaps that makes us more thankful. More aware of what He did. Less likely to follow a crowd that still condemns and criticizes Him and more determined to stand firm before Jesus in love and faith.
No comments:
Post a Comment