10 The chief priests and the teachers of the law were standing there, vehemently accusing him. 11 Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him. Dressing him in an elegant robe, they sent him back to Pilate. 12 That day Herod and Pilate became friends--before this they had been enemies.
Impudent and bold were the accusations of the chief priests and teachers – one can almost hear the chattering nonsense as the scene is envisioned. They did not let up with Pilate and they were certainly not about to let up with Herod either. They wanted Jesus rid of. Herod and his cohorts were very abusive to Him as well – mocking and ridiculing our Savior as He silently suffered the slander. Is it not amazing to see the sheer audacity of mere dust fleshed out? Is it also not just as amazing to see Jesus restrain His all powerful hand? I am reminded of Solomon’s words in Proverbs exhorting us all to embrace wisdom rather than be a participant in the foolishness of this world:
22 "How long will you simple ones love your simple ways? How long will mockers delight in mockery and fools hate knowledge? 23 If you had responded to my rebuke, I would have poured out my heart to you and made my thoughts known to you. Prov 1:22-23 (NIV)
Isn’t it easy to go along with the crowd, to get caught up in the worldly ignorance of man – smooth talking orators, sounding good but lacking any substance? Blending with the world, fearful of standing alone – even to the point, as our verses for today state, that enemies become friends, we often get caught up in the power of “they”. “What will they think? What will they say? Who is “they” anyway? Scripture tells us to choose wisely the path God holds out for us – we are to keep from going our own wicked ways. We are to refrain from blending with the world:
16 This is what the LORD says: "Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths,
ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But you said, 'We will not walk in it.' Jer 6:16 (NIV)
If we would only learn that God calls for our repentance and trust so that we may experience His rest, strength and power. Sadly, we often will turn our backs on His offer. God tells us through the prophet Isaiah:
15 This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: "In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it. Isaiah 30:15 (NIV)
..."The fact of the matter is that we cannot cast off restraint, run riot, please ourselves and be completely hedonistic without a price having to be paid. The human price is the destruction of relationships; the spiritual price is a breach with God." John Blanchard
“Want of trust is at the root of almost all our sins and all our weaknesses, and how shall we escape it but by looking to Him and observing His faithfulness. The man who holds God’s faithfulness will not be foolhardy or reckless, but will be ready for every emergency.” Hudson Taylor
“We shall never find happiness by looking at our prayers, our doings, or our feelings; it is what Jesus is, not what we are, that gives rest to the soul. If we would at once overcome Satan and have peace with God, it must be by ‘looking unto Jesus’. Keep thine eye simply on Him; let His death, His sufferings, His merits, His glories, His intercession, be fresh upon thy mind; when thou wakest in the morning look to Him; when thou liest down at night look to Him. Oh! Let not thy hopes or fears come between thee and Jesus; follow hard after Him, and He will never fail thee.” C. H. Spurgeon
“My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus’ name. When darkness seems to hide His face, I rest on His unchanging grace. In every high and stormy gale, my anchor holds within the veil. His oath, His covenant, His blood, support me in the whelming flood. When all around my soul gives way, He then is all my Hope and Stay. When He shall come with trumpet sound, O may I then in Him be found! Dressed in His righteousness alone, faultless to stand before the throne! I trust His righteous character, His council, promise, and His power; His honor and His name’s at stake to save me from the burning lake. On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand, all other ground is sinking sand. All other ground is sinking sand.” Edward Mote