Scripture
21Why are you asking me this question? Ask those who heard me. They know what I said.” 22Then one of the Temple guards standing nearby slapped Jesus across the face. “Is that the way to answer the high priest?” he demanded. 23Jesus replied, “If I said anything wrong, you must prove it. But if I’m speaking the truth, why are you beating me?” John 18:21-22
Observation
Jesus wasn’t being mouthy or uncooperative with the High Priest, He was simply reminding him of His legal rights. It was the High Priest’s duty to call witnesses beginning with the defense, but all of these Jewish laws were skipped when it came to accusing Jesus. The High Priest was trying to get more information about the disciples and Jesus kept the attention on Himself to protect them. The Temple guard slapped Jesus on behalf of the High Priest as they were, once again, confronted with the inconvenient truth that Jesus was innocent. Their legal case didn’t have a leg to stand on, but they were determined to kill Jesus using the facade of a legal preceding. They were doing this at night which was also not allowed under Jewish law. All of this was the fulfill scripture and Jesus taking our place on the Cross for all mankind, for all our sin, for all time. This unjustified slap was just the beginning of the cruelty Jesus was about to endure on our behalf.
Application
We all witnessed the slap heard around the world when Will Smith walked up to slap Chris Rock at the Academy Awards. The world was shocked that Will would do such a thing, on live television no less. Yet, as I read this passage this morning I immediately realized that sometimes I’m the guard slapping the Savior’s face. This horrified me. Every time I skip over what He says in Scripture, every time I ignore His still small voice convicting me on a point of sin, every time I try to find a loophole around obedience I am no better than that Temple guard. It’s a place in a my life where I’ve chosen an idea that’s turned into an ideology that has now become an idol I must defend over and against what Jesus is trying to reveal. In his book “Live No Lies”, John Mark Comer writes, “The best definition I know of ideology is when you take part of the truth and make it the whole. In doing so, you imprison your own mind and heart in lies that drive you to anger and anxiety. It promises freedom but produces the opposite. It does not expand and liberate the soul but shrinks and enslaves it.” How else could the religious leaders be so angry to the point of murder and contradicting their own laws when they saw Jesus performing miracles of healing? He was a threat to their ideology. They had a part of the truth and made it the whole. They had created their own cancel culture and, very much like today, were doing everything they could to cancel Christ. I either surrender my partial truths to The Way, The Truth, and The Life or I will be trying to cancel Christ’s voice in my life every time he contradicts, convicts, and calls me to something other than what I had planned.
Prayer
I repent for the times I have tried to slap You, to silence Your words that were messing up my plans. You only speak the truth. You are The Truth. Your truth confronts the lies I have believed about myself and those around me. The Jewish leaders were speeding up the legal process to get You on that cross. I’m slowing down to take up my cross and follow You. It’s never going to be what my flesh wants to do. It’s never going to be what’s comfortable or convenient. Forgive for the times when I’ve sang of my love for You on Sunday and then tried to cancel You on Monday by skipping devos, prayer, and time alone with You. I don’t want to give You the facade of following You, I want You to have all of me all of the time.
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