Witnesses Who Would Lie

Scripture: Matthew 26:57-68 (Click link for scripture in Bible Gateway)

57 Then the people who had arrested Jesus led him to the home of Caiaphas, the high priest, where the teachers of religious law and the elders had gathered. 58 Meanwhile, Peter followed him at a distance and came to the high priest’s courtyard. He went in and sat with the guards and waited to see how it would all end. 59 Inside, the leading priests and the entire high council were trying to find witnesses who would lie about Jesus, so they could put him to death. 60 But even though they found many who agreed to give false witness, they could not use anyone’s testimony. Finally, two men came forward…(Matthew 26:57–60 NLT)

One of the great qualities of the Jewish system of seeking truth and establishing doctrine and practice was to discuss things thoroughly. They listened to all the opinions, interpretations, and points of view, and finally through a process of give and take, reached a conclusion. This pattern carried over into the New Testament church with good effect. (Examples Acts 11:1-18; Acts 15:1-35)

That’s not what was going on here! The leading priests and the entire high council were trying to find witnesses who would lie about Jesus, so they could put him to death. This was not the finest hour for Jewish religious leadership. The highest authorities in Judaism had decided Jesus was a threat and were determined to find him guilty of a capital crime and kill him. There was no legitimate accusation of a capital crime, so they were looking for liars whose stories would match!

I’m a life-long learner. God made me that way. I love to present and consider my thoughts together with the ideas and perspectives of others and create opportunities for everyone to learn from each other. It makes me sad that in the USA we’re losing the appetite and the ability to listen, speak, listen more, see others’ viewpoints, and with adjustments, to agree. Or even to agree to disagree without despising and rejecting each other. In politics, that attitude will destroy the democratic process. In matters of faith, that attitude produces division and exclusivity and stifles the search for truth. How are you doing with that?

Prayer:

Father, Please help me and my friends to be seekers of truth. Help us to listen, to speak, to seek to understand and be understood. Help us to avoid the sin of excessive certainty, when our “certainty” causes us to despise those who disagree with us and to close our minds and hearts to learning and growing in grace and truth. Amen.