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Social Pressure - Luke 22
Social Pressure - Luke 22
Luke 22:2 The chief priests and the scribes were seeking how they might put Him to death; for they were afraid of the people.
Throughout our reading Luke we see the ‘common people recognizing Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God, the promise son of David, the seed of Abraham. Not so with the religious leaders – the chief priests, the Sanhedrin, the Sadducees, the scribes, and the Pharisees. There were exceptions to these so-called leaders, but in the large they rejected Jesus, even as they rejected John the Baptist:
But the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected God's purpose for themselves, not having been baptized by John. (Luke 7:30)
How far would they go to get rid of Jesus? That depends upon the mood of the crowd! What they had to do was to be done secretly. The arrest of Jesus in the middle of the night. The ‘trial’ of Jesus in the very early morning, the crucifixion … ALL done before the ‘crowd’ was up and able to react.
Even as they had said: ‘His blood upon our heads’, so it WAS!
Matthew 27:25 And all the people said, "His blood shall be on us and on our children!"
Acts 5:28 saying, "We gave you strict orders not to continue teaching in this name, and yet, you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and intend to bring this man's blood upon us."
Acts 18:6 But when they resisted and blasphemed, he shook out his garments and said to them, "Your blood be on your own heads! I am clean. From now on I will go to the Gentiles."
YET, on the cross Jesus prayed for them! His death and its benefits of forgiveness was preached to them. SOME of them later repented.
Are you part of the crowd that influences for good and for God? OR part of the cowardly that reject Jesus and inhibit His message?
Hugh DeLong
