Mark 14:64 Ye have heard the blasphemy: what think ye? And they all condemned him to be guilty of death.
During the beginning of the recent COVID crisis, a Harvard professor worried that too many people were homeschooling their kids. She feared that such parents would be invested with too much authority. So, who did she think should have authority over the lives of these children? Authority abhors a vacuum, and the question for you and me today is, “Who will be king in your life?” This is a question that is posed over and again in the story of Jesus. Who had authority? Was it Rome, Pilate, the religious leaders, or was it Jesus?
Jesus was accused of committing blasphemy. When the high priests said, “Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” Jesus said, “I am.” The response from the high priests was, “Ye have heard the blasphemy.” The verse continues, “And they all condemned him to be guilty of death.” Why? They claimed that He was committing blasphemy. How could God the Son commit blasphemy? And what does that imply about the nature of the priests problem with Him?
The bottom line is that either Jesus is God the Son, the Son of God, the Christ, the Messiah, the King of the Jews, or He is not. If He is, He can’t commit blasphemy. He is the King. In Mark 15 Jesus is called King of the Jews on several occasions. Barabbas, who was guilty of an insurrection against the Roman government, was not a threat to the Roman government. In fact, Pilate let him go.
But Jesus was a different kind of threat to Rome. He was a different kind of threat to the establishment. How could Jesus be guilty of blasphemy? How could He be guilty of insurrection? He is not! The question today is, as it was then, “Who will be king in your life?” It is not primarily a political or economic question, because governments have come and gone. It is a question of who will rule in your life and heart.
During World War II Viktor Frankl had been a civilian prisoner in a concentration camp, and he learned that no matter what the Germans demanded they could not change his heart, will, or the way he responded to what they did. But the rule of Jesus is different. He rules in one’s heart. It doesn’t matter your politics, race, or position. In fact, a Roman centurion said when viewing Jesus on the cross, “Truly this was the Son of God,” yet the religious leaders condemned Him.
This is a question of your heart. Who will be king in your heart and life? God the Father judged Jesus for our sin. Jesus took our sin upon Himself and God judged Him. Today, God judges you for how you judge Jesus. Have you trusted Him as your Savior? Is He calling the shots in your life today?