The Prosecution Against Truth ...

In the work of condemnation, there is always certainty.  Isn’t it amazing how those two things always seem to go together, bound by the human glue of pride.  In our legal system, a jury is asked whether they believe the defendant is guilty beyond a “reasonable” doubt.  This means we look for convictions despite those nagging doubts that may linger, despite a casual doubt a jurist may have in the back of his mind.  The term “reasonable” must be interjected in our jury instructions, or nearly every defendant would be set free.  But the prosecution reflects NO doubts in the case they present.  The prosecution lays out a set of facts and puts together a narrative of what happened, who did it, and why they would do it.  If the only entirety of listening to the case was that of the prosecution, you would have no choice but to convict every time.  Because the prosecution does not present a case with any doubt in it.  They reflect only certainty, no matter what all the facts might reveal.  It is their job to convict no matter what, no matter what truth is.

When was the last time you heard a prosecutor (especially in a high profile case where America was watching), stop the trial and say … you know what, we got it wrong, this defendant is innocent and this case needs to be closed, we are dropping all charges.  Nearly never.  What happens instead is that trials continue despite truth, and the prosecution relies upon the defense to overwhelm them with truth, such that a jury must undo unjust prosecutions.  But then, this places the defense team in the position of striving for acquittal despite the truth as well.  Indeed, defense lawyers are not allowed to state that their clients are guilty and should be punished.  They must fight the prosecution every inch of the way, looking to let go murders, rapists, drug traffickers, simply because our prosecution must ignore truth and reflect certainty once a trial begins.  Our defense must then meet the prosecution’s certainty with certainty of its own.  Legal trickery then becomes the standard for talent once the fray begins.

And lost in our legal system becomes truth.  But it is worse, in the judicial proceedings of our religious bodies, of our churches.  Once a group of our religious leaders reaches unity in the ideas of casting someone out for their sins (perhaps now public), they are rarely if ever deterred.  And it may never get as far as a public ex-communication, it need only get as far as gossip in the mind of the religious leader.  The defendant in these cases can be subtly restricted from roles of leadership & service in the church, because the existing leadership simply thinks that they are “not right for that role”.  The existing leaders of the faith do not want upstarts, free thinkers, or revolutionary’s admitted into leadership roles alongside themselves.  People like “that” must be kept “in their place”.  In our modern age church leadership is not allowed to kill them for heresy (a procedure often used in our past for just such problems), instead we destroy reputations, and restrict service, until they “get the hint”, or have no choice but to move on.

But what happens when the prosecution is dead wrong?  What happens when the facts are contrived to look a certain way, because of the heart of the prosecutor?  What happens when those you personally state are condemned to the fires of hell for their grievous sins, are NOT actually so condemned?  What happens when your certainty is the problem all along?  Religious condemnation never occurs without certainty.  And in a belief system where God alone judges, and He judges based on the heart, and looks to redeem every soul no matter how “evil” they appear … how could any condemnation be so certain?  When mankind attempts to take the role of judge upon himself, when he attempts to dictate the religious standing of another human being, he looks to make himself equal to God.  This is what Satan did before us, and encourages us to do to this day.  It is what Satan inspired a former religious leadership to do.  After all, this Messiah named Jesus, did not conform.  He was not doing what scripture said He should do, according to the church.  He had to be stopped.  And since only death would stop him …

Peter recounts the prosecution of Truth, that is The Truth, from the first point of view that matters – from the religious leadership of the church, the true church.  Keep in mind, the right scriptures, that is the bible will be used in this prosecution.  This is not based on the Quran, or some ancient Hindu book of wisdom, it is based on the Biblical scriptures available in that day, held in Jerusalem where nearly all books would be present.  The prosecutors are not just lay people run amuck.  This is not some out-of-control deacon who thinks he knows best.  This is the pope.  This is the general conference leader.  These men are the esteemed leadership of the day, and they are united, acting in concert for the very first time, over one singular issue … to destroy this upstart Messiah wannabe named Jesus Christ.  A stark mantra emerges in the halls of the Pharisees … The Truth be damned; this prosecution must succeed.  That stark mantra echoes in the hearts of those who call themselves by His name today … The Truth be damned; we must condemn those still steeped in sin, instead of work for their redemption.

Peter begins his recollection to John Mark in his gospel in chapter fourteen picking up in verse 53 saying … “And they led Jesus away to the high priest: and with him were assembled all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes. [verse 54] And Peter followed him afar off, even into the palace of the high priest: and he sat with the servants, and warmed himself at the fire.”  This was a momentous trial.  This was not a matter that only 2 or 3 priests need deal with, everyone in power is here.  Chief Priests, Elders, Scribes, from every part of church leadership, all in power were there.  Peter too, has regained his courage enough to follow at a distance.  He has gone undercover, and now hangs out with the servants, warming themselves by the fire.

John Mark continues in verse 55 saying … “And the chief priests and all the council sought for witness against Jesus to put him to death; and found none. [verse 56] For many bare false witness against him, but their witness agreed not together.”  In Jewish law, there must be at least two witnesses whose testimony agrees before a man can be put to death.  So the hunt for such men begins, but with no luck.  It is very hard to coordinate lies when the witnesses are kept separate.  Guessing at what the other guy said, becomes very difficult, and everybody that night was getting it wrong.  The Truth was hard to testify against.  What could be said against it but lies.  Certainty does not equal correctness.  One can be extremely certain, and extremely wrong.

Mark continues in verse 57 saying … “And there arose certain, and bare false witness against him, saying, [verse 58] We heard him say, I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and within three days I will build another made without hands. [verse 59] But neither so did their witness agree together.”  The subject of the destruction of the Temple at Jerusalem came up.  But the liars could not get that story right either.  They had the jest of it, but again their testimonies stepped upon each other so badly, that facts were getting destroyed.  The prosecution was getting stumped, and this could not happen.  This Man must be found guilty no matter what, no matter how.  Finally, the high priest himself was getting angry.

Mark continues in verse 60 saying … “And the high priest stood up in the midst, and asked Jesus, saying, Answerest thou nothing? what is it which these witness against thee? [verse 61] But he held his peace, and answered nothing. Again the high priest asked him, and said unto him, Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?”  The prosecution had counted on something they were not getting.  They expected for Jesus to argue with each false witness that came up.  They expected to get Jesus tripped up in His own words, and somehow break His own defense through argument and exaggeration.  But the strangest of all things was happening, Jesus the Lamb of God was remaining perfectly silent.  What should have enraged each of us if we were an innocent party, did nothing to get Jesus talking.  He just sat there and took it all in silence.

Here is the first distinction between The Truth, and those of us who claim truth is on our side.  The need to defend it.  The Truth will stand against all the lies of the evil one.  The Truth needs no defense, for it is The Truth.  We who claim the truth is with us, and bolster our claims in certainty, are rigorous to defend our positions.  We are happy to argue how we are right, and all others are wrong.  We are happy to prove it based in the interpretations of the scriptures we are certain are correct.  Just as these prosecutors of old.  We will fight for our truth to the point of death.  Not our own deaths mind you, but those who claim we are wrong, we are happy to fight with, all the way to the point of killing them to insure our truth lives on.  But this is not needed.  The Truth will live on no matter what the opposing argument comes up with.  It needs no help or defense or violence from us.  Rather it needs our testimony in how we live The Truth in silence, not how we speak about it.

Finally though, the high priest challenges the Superhuman to identify itself.  Strangely this same challenge works on angels of light, and angels of darkness.  It is as if God has setup a rule which cannot be broken.  If asked who they are, a superhuman being must answer in truth, to the human who asks it, whether it is demon, or it is God.  This challenge is meant to protect us.  If or when we encounter the superhuman, the entity that exists beyond our realm, we need only ask it … in the name of Jesus Christ, who are you?  And it will be compelled to answer.  Most of those who encounter the supernatural are not inclined to use this challenge.  They are told by the entity that it would represent a lack of faith.  They are told the encounters between them might stop after that.  They are lied to, and eagerly accept the lie, because most demons tell us what we want to hear, not what we need to hear.  But God has no fear of this challenge.

Jesus answers in verse 62 saying … “And Jesus said, I am: and ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.”  Here is where OUR human nature takes over.  We read this text as a threat, as a condemnation to those conducting this trial.  We are absolutely certain of it.  But there is more to it than may first meet the eye.  The prophecy of Christ not long ago, predicted the denial of Peter of even knowing Jesus before the rooster crowed.  Yet that prophecy was not to condemn Peter forever for his sins.  The prophecy here lays out a coming of Christ to this world.  It could be His second coming to gather His redeemed, those who have repented of deeds even as terrible as the prosecution of The Truth unto death.  It could also represent His third coming when the Holy City descends to our earth and the wicked are raised for a final judgment one last time.  The words of Christ are true either way.  But which version of His return these men see, will be a function of their repentance, and acceptance of Jesus Christ as our only Messiah.  This was also true for Peter.  The sins were committed.  The question is only whether a repentance was sought.

The high priest was anxious to get this trial done with.  The story continues in verse 63 saying … “Then the high priest rent his clothes, and saith, What need we any further witnesses? [verse 64] Ye have heard the blasphemy: what think ye? And they all condemned him to be guilty of death.”  The religious leadership of the church prosecuted The Truth, and pronounced Him guilty because He spoke the Truth.  The mob joined in.  There was not one free thinker in that jury box, not one sympathetic ear who might have voiced an opposition to this farce of a trial.  Certainty overwhelmed the mob in that hall.  Certainty backed by Satan himself, that death was needed, blood was needed, an example must be made to keep the faith pure.  So Satan does with us nearly 2000 years later.  He tells us to expel those caught in sin in order to keep the faith pure, keep the leadership pure.  There is no forgiveness in the mind or heart of Satan, but there is overwhelming certainty, certainty steeped in pride.

Whose follower are we truly?  Then begins to happen what happens when Truth has been devalued and discarded; it is hated.  John Mark concludes this section in verse 65 saying … “And some began to spit on him, and to cover his face, and to buffet him, and to say unto him, Prophesy: and the servants did strike him with the palms of their hands.”  How we spit on The Truth.  When once we embark on the path of certainty, and when we add our voices to those of condemnation, we spit right on the face of Truth.  We ignore how often our own sins must have been cleansed by the sacrifice of Christ.  We ignore how much we too have earned the sentence of condemnation, and that but for the love and grace of Christ, we too were bound for the hell of separation from God.  So we spit in the face of God, in the face of Truth, with our hypocrisy, and our prosecution of others still steeped in sins (we too so often commit).

Then we torture Truth.  We contrive scriptures and interpretations to support our condemnations of others.  We mangle the Bible, and turn the image of God from one of Love to one of vengeance.  We put a bag over the head of Christ so that He can no longer see.  Then we bang upon His precious face, hitting Him with our palms, and our pretenses.  We take pride in our differences.  We consider only ourselves as right and all other Christian faiths as wrong.  We are absolutely certain of it.  And in our certainty we slap the face of Christ, telling Him He is unable to lead any other faith but ours to Truth, and to the Kingdom of God.  It is not those men, and those hands who remain stained, it is our own.  And still we continue, absolutely certain of our cause, certain of our faith, certain of our interpretation, certainty steeped in a pride of our forefathers and our faith.  We believe we must lead the fight against sin, certain this is our calling, ignoring the calls of Jesus to Love, instead leading a war against evil with the voice of our condemnation. 

This is not the trial against The Truth that happened in the days of Christ, it is the prosecution against The Truth that happens in the hearts of his modern day followers from every denomination.  But like the priests of old, there is still hope held out to us.  Hope that begins in repentance of our certainty.  Hope that grows in the transformation of our hearts by the power of Jesus alone, that leaves our hearts unable to condemn, but infinitely interested in redemption.  When love is our only motivation, we see our hearts brought into alignment with the God of Love, and vengeance has no part in it any longer.