Scripture: When morning came, all the chief priests and the elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death. And they bound him and led him away and delivered him over to Pilate the governor. Matthew 27:1-2 ESV
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Observation: Recapping Friday’s Daily Focus, Matthew chronicles Peter’s denial of his Lord amid the darkest hours before dawn. A servant girl first questions Peter about his relationship with the Galilean undergoing cross-examination. Anxious, he denies her allegation and relocates to the entrance, where another servant girl calls him out in front of bystanders. Frightened, he defends his stance by taking an oath to give credence to his lie. Not long after, more bystanders insist Peter is part of Jesus’ zealots based on his Galilean accent. Terrified of where this could lead, Peter emphasizes he does not know Jesus the Nazarene by calling down a curse on himself. But before he could finish his words, the rooster crows—jarring Peter’s memory of Jesus’ prophecy—at which point he rushes from the courtyard and weeps bitterly.
Today’s reading continues the narrative of Jesus’ last hours before his crucifixion with a segue from the interrogation of the religious leaders to Pilate’s inquisition. In this brief paragraph that begins a new chapter, Matthew tells us that when the sun rose (and darkness no longer cloaked their sinister machinations), the chief priests and elders moved quickly to obtain a death sentence from Pilate (the Roman governor of Jerusalem) because Jews were not permitted under Roman law to perform capital punishment.
Takeaway: The Mishnaic required a quorum of twenty-three sages to obtain a guilty verdict of a capital crime. This law, along with the prohibition of conducting a hearing at nighttime, likely explains why they waited until morning to render their official sentence. But now they must hurry to set in motion Roman protocol for Jesus’ crucifixion before the Sabbath begins. And they will succeed for now as they think they are well in control of the outcome.
Our takeaway? In many subtle ways, we, like the chief priests and elders, act as if we are in control and can determine the outcome of events. To a certain extent, with God’s gift of our free will, we can take charge and manipulate circumstances to our advantage. But as believers, we must never forget that our Sovereign Lord permits us to make plans and act on them for good or evil, but he always orchestrates the outcomes to serve his excellent and glorious purposes. As Solomon writes, “The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps” (Proverbs 16:9 ESV). And while the religious leaders will succeed in working with Pilate to obtain Jesus’ crucifixion, they will merely play into salvation history’s grand purpose: to bring eternal life from mortal death.
So what does this mean in practical terms? Let Go to God. Follow Solomon’s advice to his son and flex on our plans as we see God direct traffic. When we worry and try to control ourselves and those around us (guilty as charged—lol!), we self-worship by thinking and acting as if it all depends on us. But when we submit to God, we will see his glory shine the most as we patiently wait for him to “establish our steps.” Indeed, the disciples, particularly Peter, felt the world was spinning out of control for the next two days. Still, as they waited and prayed in an upper room, the news arrived on Sunday morning that revealed a different story—not their version but the most extraordinary event in world history.
Prayer: Father God, we thank you for orchestrating the events of your Son’s incarnate life to ensure that we, your children who profess faith in him, may grow in our knowledge and love of the two of you. We confess, though, that we struggle to let go and give you control of our small spheres of influence. So would you please help us to mature in our trust and obedience to your will so that we might more consistently surrender our feeble attempts to control and instead wait and pray for you to establish our steps? Amen.
Rev. Gordon Green, M.Div., M.A. Counseling