Jesus: Falsely Accused and Condemned

Will anyone witness against me?

The enemies of the Master had decided the time was right to put an end to Him. For whatever reasons, they wanted the process to have an aura of legitimacy and justice, so they put out the word: We need witnesses who will testify against this Jesus. They found none. Oh, there were plenty of witnesses alright, but they were useless. No two witnesses could agree in their stories because they were false witnesses. Thus the witnesses who were supposed to be key in condemning Jesus actually established His innocence.

What about you and me? If anyone were to try to find those who would be credible witnesses against us, would they succeed in their search? We must always remember to live in such a way that no one will have just ammunition to use against us.

On the road. "Oh sure, I know how Bobby drives! Whoa! That boy needs to learn courtesy and self-control behind the wheel (to say nothing of obeying the speed limit). He cuts an impressive figure in his plain suit . . . until you observe him in his car."

At the check-out counter. "He tries to hide them, but I've seen Mark's sidelong glances at those magazines. But even if he were to hide those looks, he can't hide his facial demeanor: glum, grumpy, unfriendly. And if he discovers a mistake after he checks out, talk about facial and verbal expressions then!"

On the phone. "I have heard Sally be downright nasty and unkind to telemarketers -- it seems she doesn't grant them the status of humans with feelings and souls. I have even heard her distort the truth. And even her friends aren't immune from her tongue -- she seems to think you can say things on the phone that you wouldn't say to someone's face. And gossip? Well, let's just not go there!"

At home. "Suzanne is such a pleasant gal when she's out and about, but she's a terror when she's at home. She sasses her mom (not often, don't get me wrong). She finds 'little' ways of mocking the will and values of her father. And her siblings can't seem to suit her, at least going by the way she harps at them about all manner of things."

Ah me, we humans certainly have a way of giving the hangman the rope he needs to use on us. Oh, we don't think of it as a rope; absolutely not. Many things we tend to excuse or overlook in our lives we consider to be only short pieces of string. They're too small to matter, you know; too little to count. But the enemies of Jesus will take those little strings and braid them into a rope strong enough and long enough to hang us!

So, Christian, walk carefully. The world must see Jesus when they look at your life, so keep fighting the battle of living above reproach. When you fail, don't give up! By the grace of God, repent, make amends, and try again -- you can do it!

Peace