Sermon by Rev. Andy Wilson
November 28, 2004

"Jesus Came to Bear Witness to the Truth"
John 18:33-40

Today is the first Sunday of Advent, the season when we celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is customary to begin the Advent season by reflecting on the birth narratives recorded at the beginning of the Gospels. Today, however, we’re doing something a bit different. We are going to begin at the end: studying a passage from the closing chapters of John’s Gospel – John 18:33-40. While this text is more directly related to Jesus’ death, it also relates to the theme of Advent. In this passage, Jesus explicitly states the reason why He was born, the reason why He came into the world.

Before we read this text, let’s briefly review the context. Jesus has been betrayed by His disciple Judas, who handed Him over to the Jewish authorities. Jesus was then brought before the high priest, who in turn sent Him to the Roman governor of Judea, Pontius Pilate. This is where our passage picks up.

Read John 18:33-40

Our passage depicts an interrogation scene, as Pilate asks this question of Jesus: "Are you the King of the Jews?" (vv. 33-36) This was the formal charge for which Jesus would eventually be executed – the charge that was posted at the top of His cross: "This is Jesus, the King of the Jews" (see Matthew 27:37). Before He answers Pilate’s question, Jesus wants to know where he got this idea. Pilate’s answer indicates that this was the charge the Jewish leaders brought against Jesus when they handed him over to Pilate. However, this was not the true reason why they were opposed to Jesus. They were upset with Jesus because they believed He was leading the people astray. In their minds, He was a false teacher – a false prophet. They knew what the Old Testament had to say about false prophets: they were to be put to death (see Deuteronomy 13). While false teaching was a capital offense in Israel, the Roman authorities would not have been concerned with internal disputes pertaining to the strange (from a Roman perspective) religion of the Jewish people.

They would, however, be very concerned about someone who claimed to be Israel’s king. Pilate would have understood this as a political claim, and not merely as a matter pertaining to Israel’s religious beliefs. When Pilate asks Jesus if He is the "king of the Jews," he is asking whether Jesus is a rival to Caesar. Is Jesus a zealot, attempting to overthrow Rome? This is what Pilate meant when he asked Jesus, "Are you the King of the Jews?"

Jesus answers Pilate’s question with these words: "My kingdom is not of this world." He is a king, but not the kind of king that Pilate has in mind. Do not misunderstand this statement. Jesus is not saying that His kingdom is a completely otherworldly kingdom. The coming of His kingdom is not about escaping from this world into some other realm of existence. Jesus did not come to offer "pie in the sky" religion. This is evident when we take a closer look at the statement, "My kingdom is not of this world." The word translated "of" is the Greek preposition ek. In this context, it is very clear how this preposition is being used: it is referring to the source or origin of Jesus’ kingdom. That is, it indicates where Jesus’ kingdom comes from (or, more precisely, where it does not come from). Verse 36 could literally be translated as, "My kingdom is not from this world." Jesus is saying that His kingdom does not originate in this world, and it is therefore not like the kingdoms of this world. However, this does not mean that His kingdom has nothing to do with this world. In fact, the opposite is true: Jesus’ kingdom is "invading" this world. As John 1 makes clear, Jesus is the Creator of this world, and He is therefore the only rightful Lord over it. He came in order to redeem the world. In the words of one commentator, "His kingdom doesn’t come from this world, but it is for this world."

Jesus’ kingdom is not from this world, but it is coming into this world. In verse 37, Jesus explains how His kingdom is coming into this world. Since His kingdom is not from this world, it does not advance in the same manner as earthly kingdoms are advanced. While earthly kingdoms advance by military and political power, Jesus’ kingdom advances by another means: the means of proclamation. As John writes in chapter 1 of his Gospel, Jesus is the Word made flesh. Jesus came in order to testify; He came to testify to the truth. In John’s Gospel, "truth" almost always has to do with the truth of God, which is revealed in Jesus Christ. Jesus is not from this world, but He reveals the truth about another world: the heavenly world. He comes into this world to testify about the kingdom of God, and it is by this very testimony that God’s kingdom is bursting forth upon the world.

But not everyone receives Jesus’ testimony. Many people hear the gospel proclaimed, but not everyone enters the kingdom in response to this proclamation. Why is this the case? Here is Jesus’ answer: only those who are "of the truth" will listen to His voice. This may be difficult to comprehend, but it shouldn’t be very surprising. If Jesus’ kingdom is not from this world, then it makes sense that it will not be perceived by people who are from this world. As Jesus said in John 3, a person must be "born from above" if he is to see the kingdom of God. In fact, this idea is present all throughout John’s Gospel. A sampling is provided for you on the outline in your order of worship: John 3:21 says, "But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his deeds have been carried out by God." (ESV) John 8:47 says, "Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God." (ESV) John 10:25b-27 says, "The works that I do in my Father's name bear witness about me, but you do not believe because you are not part of my flock. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me." (ESV) Notice the striking parallels between those last two passages and verse 37 of our passage. In all of these passages, Jesus does not say this: "You don’t believe in me, and therefore you are not of God." Instead, He says this: "You don’t believe in me because you are not of God." There is a huge difference between those two statements. Jesus is saying that faith is the result of belonging to God. But how can this be? Aren’t we used to hearing it the other way around? Many Christians might think that faith results in the fact that a person belongs to God. Why does Jesus state it the other way around?

Jesus is teaching the same thing that He said to Nicodemus in John 3: "unless one is born again (or born from above) he cannot see the kingdom of God." In other words, the only people who are "of the truth" are those whom God has already chosen to be His people. In these passages, Jesus is teaching that regeneration precedes faith. A person can only place his faith in Christ after he has been made alive in Christ. Otherwise, we remain dead in our sin and are utterly unable to respond to the Gospel, no matter how clearly or persuasively it is presented.

Some of you will recognize that this is all related to the biblical doctrines of election and predestination. I realize that some people find this teaching difficult to comprehend and/or accept. If this is the case for you, then please speak with me or one of the other pastors. We would be more than happy to take more time to explain it and address your questions. Also, this doctrine will be explored in greater detail in Rev. Ramsay’s upcoming Sunday School class, "What is Reformed theology?" For now, I would just like to point out that this teaching actually provides us with great comfort and assurance. It assures us that our salvation is not grounded in anything that we do or feel. Rather, it is grounded in the bedrock of the saving work of Christ on behalf of His people. The very fact that we believe in Jesus is itself a source of great assurance: such faith is evidence that we really are "of the truth."

This brings us to the final section of our passage. Jesus has answered Pilate’s questions, and now, after hearing Jesus’ testimony, Pilate and the crowd are put to the test. Are they "of the truth"? (vv. 38-40) Notice the irony here. The crowd has brought Jesus to Pilate and placed Him on trial. However, they are really the ones being tried. How do they stand up to this test – the "test of truth"?

Pilate responds to Jesus with yet another question: "What is truth?" It is a good question, except that Pilate doesn’t wait for an answer. He has more important matters to deal with. He has a crowd outside, calling for Jesus’ death, but he cannot find any reason to condemn Him. For Pilate, the truth was irrelevant to the matters at hand. Pilate is not of the truth, because he does not listen to Jesus.

What about the crowd? How do they respond to Jesus? Unfortunately, it is quite clear that they are not interested in the truth either. They have accused Jesus of insurrection, but Jesus cannot be guilty of this charge. His kingdom is not from this world. He is not leading a political revolt. There is a tragic irony here: if Jesus really were guilty of this charge, the crowd would not be calling for His death. That was exactly what they were looking for. This is evident by their willingness to have Barabbas set free instead of Jesus, because Barabbas had taken part in a rebellion. Jesus predicted the crowd’s rejection of him in John 8:42-47, where He said, "If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and now am here. I have not come on my own; but he sent me. Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. Yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe me! Can any of you prove me guilty of sin? If I am telling the truth, why don't you believe me? He who belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God.." The crowd’s rejection of Jesus demonstrated that they did not belong to God – they were not of the truth. They wanted a Messiah who would free them from Rome, not one who said, "My kingdom is not from this world." They were not interested in the truth, because they had their own agenda, and they were unable to see beyond it.

Both Pilate and the crowd failed the test of truth. This test continues throughout history and into our present age, because Jesus said that one of the identifying marks of Christians is that they listen to His voice; they listen to His testimony to the truth. Such listening is becoming increasingly difficult in our world. We are living in a world where the question "Is it true?" is being replaced by another question: "Is it meaningful?" There is an enormous difference between these two questions. The question "Is it true?" admits that there is some standard outside of ourselves by which ideas and practices can be evaluated. However, the question "Is it meaningful?" makes the self the only ultimate standard of evaluation. When the question "Is it meaningful?" supplants the question "Is it true?", we become mired in a sea of subjectivity and relativity. I am afraid that many Christians – even evangelicals – have allowed the second question to override the first. All too often, "Is it meaningful?" trumps "Is it true?" When this happens, we are in danger of becoming like Pilate: we are in danger of seeing the truth as irrelevant.

We might also note how truth is affected by the fact that we live in a highly managerial society. The managers of the world exist in order to help us become increasingly efficient. The managerial mindset is becoming increasingly pervasive, as it spills over from the business world into virtually all other areas of life as well. While this model may work well in the business world, it is certainly not for the church. It is not for the church because it is intolerant of the truth. Truth requires reflection, and reflection inevitably slows things down. In a sense, truth is inefficient. The managerial mindset puts us at risk of becoming like the crowd in our passage. The crowd assumed that they already knew the truth. They had their own agenda, and so they would not listen to Jesus’ testimony.

Of course, it is not enough to merely listen to Jesus’ words of truth. John makes this point very clear throughout his Gospel. John 3:21 says that Christians are those who "do" the truth. John 8:31-32 says that we are set free by the truth. John 14:6 says that Jesus is "the way and the truth and the life." John 17:15-19 says that we are sanctified (set apart from the world) by the truth. The truth to which Jesus testifies is a transformative truth. But it can only transform us if we listen to it. And as we listen, our imaginations – our way of seeing ourselves and our world – are transformed. We belong to Jesus and we are members of His heavenly kingdom, a kingdom that is not "from" this world. Therefore, we are not "from" this world either. We live as aliens in this world, and so our lives must be guided by an imagination that is continually shaped by the truth to which Jesus came to testify. And where do we find this testimony today? It is right here in our hands, in the Word of God. This – the Bible in its entirety, as the whole counsel of God – is the testimony about Jesus, the one who came to testify to the truth.