The Crucifixion Conspiracy, Part 2

We spent the new listeners and welcome to the sound of faith.

I'm sure not thanking you for tuning in today because we know Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. Today's message the crucifixion conspiracy examines the plot to kill Jesus with the behind the scenes intrigue.

We generally don't focus on prepared to be engaged in the theater of your mind in the crucifixion conspiracy. Turn with me to John I chapter will read a few verses there. John one and verse six. There was a man sent from God whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the light, that all men through him might believe that he was not that light, but was sent to bear witness of that light. That was the true light which light is every man that comes into the world.

Dropping down to verse 15 John bare witness of him and cried, saying, this was the other whom I spake either comes after me is preferred before me, for he was before me.

So we see here legal terms in reference to John.

John came to bear witness of the Christ.

Amen. He came to give legal witness. He came to certify became a sacrifice. Someone and if we know the way down the verse 29, we see that one when John Pentecostal baptizer was baptizing people in the Jordan River. He saw someone coming toward him and letting me know the way the world all in the land that God has selected. Now this was before Jesus even got started on his ministry. This was before he was baptized of John and then went out officially and perform his ministry and how long was he in history 3 1/2 years. As far as we can ascertain, according to the Scriptures. Amen. Being there on his ministry. The land that was certified by John was then offered up as a sacrifice. Amen.

So he was certified according to the Scriptures, behold the Lamb. John identified Jesus Christ. And remember, he had to be perfect without blemish. And Scripture says in the Old Testament. Isaiah 53, 950 had done no violence, and neither was there any deceit in his mouth, and Peter confirmed in first Peter 222 who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth and then when Jesus was baptized of John we know the heavens opened up and the Holy Spirit come down in the form of a dove and landed on his shoulder and then God himself spoke out in heaven instead.

This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased.

Amen. And John said in John 134 and I all and that this is the son of God. So John was a priest.

According to the lineage of Aaron certified the Lamb now four years later it's time for the Lamb to be sacrificed. Amen. And he was the Passover lamb now when ever the Lamb that was going to be sacrificed for the sins of the nation was to be offered that land had to be offered by the high priest so both on Passover and also on Yom Kippur war, which you know is the feast in the fall. Amen the day of atonement, whenever that land was to be offered for the sins of the nation, the high priest had to offer it. They alone were ordained to offer the sacrifices in the day of Jesus the priesthood was corrupt, totally corrupt.

Amen. They were in coyotes with the Romans and were liars, drivers, slanderers, murderers.

Amen they were corrupt. In fact, cried at this, who was the high priest in Jesus day was really not supposed to be the high priest at that time. If you read the Scriptures you might get a little confused because Josie works as an amen NAS was the high priest in your thinking why having the high priest-is the high priest, what's going on here will. Here's what you want and this was the high priest, but the Romans deposed him and stop Caiaphas in the archive.

This was an son-in-law and put him in as high priest in the place of Venice and Caiaphas was corrupt. Amen. In fact, I was surprised to find out that the high priest needed very lavish lifestyles, lavish lifestyle.

They lived in what would be considered to the people around them to be mansions and the thing that help to support their lavish lifestyles was the temple tax that everybody had to pay the people of the Jewish people were so oppressed they had to pay temple taxes to the priesthood. They had to pay taxes to Herod their puppet king had to pay tribute to Caesar in Rome. The people were oppressed and they were being fleeced the shape of God were being fleeced. Amen.

While the high priest wore linen hi lifestyles on some of the Romans in their home and they were mansions, where they lived where they took Jesus says the house of the high priest Caiaphas when they told him there. That was a former home mansion of Herod. It used to be Harry's and we all know what Herod was like amen. And so the people were terribly oppressed because the priesthood was corrupt and they were crooked and they were in cahoots with Rome. Rome allowed the priesthood to continue.

They allow the religion of the Jews to continue to keep them quiet because you were not going to totally absolutely stop Judaism wasn't going to happen.

Amen. So in order to keep some semblance of peace and order in today. They allow them to have their temple. They allow them to have their sacrifices and they allow them to have the priesthood, but they were controlling it. Behind the scenes and I read that Josephus, who was probably the foremost historian of that time that he wrote the priest had actually started doing a daily sacrifice in the temple to Caesar in order to keep Rome and the priesthood and everybody happy and you know to placate every body that they were actually doing this to show you how Sal the priesthood had become. Amen. And so they were allowing them to have the religious laws and they were doing all this to try to keep rebellion at bay. But still, the priest did not have the authority to actually put someone to death. They could pass the sentence of death, but they couldn't do the execution they had to go to the Romans for that. Amen.

But only the priesthood condemns someone to death. Only the priesthood condemns Jesus to die.

Amen.

Now they were. I will rate the were furious over this triumphal entry that Jesus titled Nissan 10 with all the people say and how is that not just thinking about father David. So angry. Even Pilate knew that it was for the for me that they brought Jesus. They were jealous and they were envious because the people were crying out hosanna amen and so adding insult to injury. Once Jesus had entered into the temple or Nissan 10. Guess what he did.

He went on a housecleaning.

He went in and overturned the tables of the money changers that he got the Whitman he was whipping his disciples were standing there going what amen mean he was opening up the cages in the rain and the sheep run in all directions, and money was falling on the stone floor all dictate until they remembered the Scripture said the zeal of thine house has eaten me up all my God that today the zeal for God's house would sop that the zeal for the holy things of God that the zeal for true righteousness and holiness and purity corruption was seen. Money changers because there's no way that anybody any Jew would bring in a roaming pulling into the house of God, because it had Caesar's picture on it and it said that he was the great Caesar, the high priest and also that he was the key idea resource father plotting give me if I'm wrong, but one that declared that Caesar's were divine. They said they were deity. Amen.

And so they have it on the coin is no way that you would brought the coin into the temple, so they had to exchange it for a Hebrew shackles in order to take their money in and pay that temple tax, and Jesus was angry and he said you had made my father's house that is supposed to be a house of prayer you made it a den of thieves is called angry at me, Herod, the people, not donkey. Of course they knew Zechariah 99 and he goes in the temple, and he starts cleaning house.

Amen.

And do you know if you go warning. Read more in Matthew going read 22 and 23. Boy he had some sermons that week.

You have some hot parables that week.

Especially when you get the chapter 23 and he really hones in on the Pharisees and he said you're a bunch of snakes.

You're a bunch of hypocrites.

You look so holy only.

You look like a white applicant or would that mean they used to take the two and used to paint them with limestone today would be really pretty want on the outside make you look nice, but nice painting one amen and so he said how can you escape the damnation of hell. Boy were they hot let's go back to Matthew and flip over to chapter 26 they had to do something about this.

They were angry they were jealous they were envious and they had to do something about this.

Matthew 26 in verse one and came to pass, when Jesus had finished all the saints, he said unto his disciples, you know that after two days is the feast of the Passover and the Son of Man is betrayed to be crucified, then assembled together the chief priests and the scribes and the elders of the people onto the powerless palace of the high priest who is called Caiaphas and consulted that they might take Jesus by fertility and kill him, but they said not on the feast day Lester be an uproar among the people, so they were getting together they form their conspiracy. The chief priests.

Let me tell you something about the chief priest in Jesus time in Jesus time. The majority of them including Caiaphas, were Sadducees and Sadducees with another sect that the Pharisees, but you got the Sadducees and the Sadducees only believed in the first five books of Moses, they can believe the prophets, or anything else they did not believe in miracles and they did not believe in the resurrection of the dead. That's remarkable when you keep that in the back of your mind, realizing that Caiaphas is the high priest.

Amen. So now they come together to decide what they're going to do there going to take you with versatility the first time you see the word subtle in Scripture is in Genesis. Amen. Genesis 3. When this happened. That was more subtle than all the other based beguiled Eve and deceived her saddle is one of the additives that belongs to Satan that belongs to the serpent and we see right now who their daddy is. Jesus said in John eight €44 of your father the devil and his luster will do when he was alive from the beginning. So now we see that same content being attached to them. They wanted was some fertility they wanted to check in with deceit in craftiness like Satan had done with Keith and they wanted to do it in such a way as not to row the people they don't want to upset the people. Amen.

And so they were trying to figure out how to do this is quietly and underhandedly as possible, and meanwhile meanwhile something's going on with Judas and Judas. Now the devil now attempting here in because we know that Judas had a covetous spirit. The Bible said he was a thief and he was the treasurer for the disciples is about amazing that the Lord would let Judas be the treasurer when he's the one that stuck the money problem. The covetous problem but you see, it's like the Lord is saying Judas I'm going to give you a chance on the trust you on the believe in you, but because Judas did not get the victory over his covetousness and and always grows.

It is not stagnant.

It's going to grow if you don't give way to cynically go from sickness and iniquity to iniquity, and because he didn't get business. He decided to betray Jesus for money 30 pieces of silver. I would imagine the back of his mind he thought I've seen Jesus disappear before they tried to stoning, he disappeared.

They tried to throw them off the hill he disappeared. I'm sure you will get out of this and now have money nobody will ever be the wiser. I believe that because otherwise Whitey don't kill himself what he should have done is repented, repented the Lord would've forgiven him just like he for gave Peter who denied him three times. It wasn't long when forgetting the need for forgiveness because remorse is not the same as repentance.

You can wallow in remorse.

Your whole life and never repent and just be filled with bitterness.

Amen and die like that, or you can repent and put it behind you like it never happened and so they conspired and they got Judas in on it. But the plot was not actually initiated, I will tell the high priest gave the commandment to the temple guards to go to Gethsemane where Jesus and the disciples were praying because Judas knew it they go there all the time. That's where is going to be and he said I will identify him, and he identified him with the signal kiss of the trail and so the plot to kill Jesus was put in motion when he released those temple guards to go and arrest him. It was not the Roman guards that came and arrested Jesus in Gethsemane and they understand that well is not even on the plot. At this point is strictly the Jews. This is strictly the high priest sees the elders on hiring and Judas on their side and they temple guards because there were guards that guarded the pool. There were 24 guards at all times that guarded the temple and the things of God. Amen. And so he dispatched the temple guards and they came to Gethsemane and they took Jesus, and they brought him to the palace Caiaphas the high priest house. Amen that's dropped on verse 57 Matthew 26 and they had laid hold when Jesus led him away to Caiaphas in the high priest where the scribes and the elders were assembled, but Peter followed him a far off when the high priest palace and went in and sat with the servants.

Now the chief priests and elders and all counsel that within the Sanhedrin sought false witness against Jesus deporting the death, but none they could find anybody that could give witness to put in the death yeah I know many false witnesses came, yet they found none. And if you read when the other Gospels. The problem not of their stories agreed that was the problem will testify with one another to work too good if you go before the judge and you start one another. He starts throwing all the witnesses that is not you witnesses are reliable or believable.

And that's what was happening with them. Amen.

And so were 60 they found none but the last came two false witnesses and said, this fellow said, I am able to destroy the temple of God and to build it in three days notice upset them because it took 46 years for Herod to build that temple but we all know Jesus was not talking about the stones and the more he was talking about the temple of his body. Amen. Is it a body that has prepared me know.

I come to do thy will, and so the high priest said on the him answers. Now, nothing. What is it which these witnesses a say against the but Jesus held his peace, and the high priest answered and said unto him, I sure the icon Mandy by the living God, that thou tell us whether thou be the Christ, the Messiah, the son of God and Jesus set on him, thou has set and waited. Thou hast said actually in Hebrew. That means yes what you said is true. Okay he was agreeing with him. Yes that's right what you said is true. Nevertheless, nothing on the you hereafter shall you see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven. And then the high priest rent his clothes stated he has spoken blasphemy further need have we of witnesses behold this blasphemy.

What think ye and they answered and said he is guilty of death, then did they spit in his face and buffeted him and others smoking with the palm of their hands. This is very powerful because we see here. As I mentioned a moment ago.

Only the high priest could offer up the Passover lamb. Amen.

Only the high priest to be the one to offer up the Passover lamb that would be for the sins of the people. Amen. And so we find that the next morning they take Jesus to Pilate. First of all, they held this what you call a trial which was really a sham and they did overnight in amen which was illegal to start with and then had all these witnesses he can even agree and finally they got to the were liars, their stories agreed.

They had the same lie there lies matched up so they said okay we got you now you are a blasphemy. Or here's what I want you to understand these are the ministers of God. This is the priesthood. These are God's stars were liars and slanderers and drivers.

Amen. Able as the gate was necessary because only praise pre-infecting one actually prophesied what he's doing instead is it better than one may indoctrination in the whole nation. He prophesied in what he was saying. Amen. Because the Overland had to be offered up by the high priest. Now they take him to pilot the next day and really if you read all for the Gospels and you really have to read them all to get the whole picture, but basically in the beginning when Pilate was examining Jesus Saying I find nothing in this man that's worthy of death, I mean maybe he's a false prophet maybe goes around saying stupid things polish things according to your religion and it irritates you and upsets you and you like it, but I see where it's winding up capital Summit just killed somebody because you like because one of the gospel said he knew it was for me that they brought him a night and so in the beginning he was looking for a way out.

At one point he even said to them what you know it's Passover. That's right. I remember the Passover and we have a cost every Passover release one of your letters out of jail. Just as a kind thing on Rome's part because we are such wonderful masters over you. So because Passover is one of your festive times we always release a prisoner.

How about we release this Jesus. Okay, that's a good idea how I'll do it. I think release Jesus for Passover, they were having none of that, they begin to cry out release to us Barabbas and Barabbas was a notice addition is and murder were he was a bad man amen and they knew it was a prize upon what you want to know if it was the suggestion that many stop anarchy in the always trying to keep the pace because it was going to call you back, he loses his job and his position. Amen. So we tried, offered and Barabbas, but they would have none of it and then Molly's trying to figure out what he's going to do. He gets a message. The message from your wife. She said it's very very important.

Had to give it to you right and he opens it up and he reads it and it says with this.

Just man, because I have suffered many things in a dream this day because of him.

This was a divine intervention but Pilate ignored it. Amen. All I know sometimes it's hard to reconcile it in your mind that your thinking.

But Jesus had to die, but he had to be crucified. Oh yes yes he did he was going to have to go to the cross, he already one that that victory in Gethsemane, but I want you to see how that God wanted it to be known and seeing how that all of these people came together but it was God's will for Jesus to go to that cross. Amen. They used Jesus no and they said given rabbit they chose the same land that is worthy of death. Amen, amen. I hope you are blessed by this intriguing examination of each of the players who had a major role in the plot to kill Jesus every detail of Old Testament protocol was fulfilled in the sacrifice of God's final Passover lamb with astonishing accuracy and New Testament revelation. Every player from John the Baptist to first declare Jesus, the Lamb of God, and then later Judas the betrayer to the corrupt high priest to certified him to be put to death for the nation to Pilate and Herod and the soldiers. Each one stepped onto the stage of the son of God's final hours and cast their votes to crucify Christ all played their crucial roles that change the course of human history, but ultimately Jesus laid down his life. He laid it down so he could take it up again, the crucifixion conspiracy can be ordered on CD for love gift of $10 or more to help pay for the cost of air time on this station request SK 193 mailed to sound the faith PO Box 1744, Baltimore, MD 21203 or go online to sound the faith.org where you will find a plethora of resources on many biblical topics, but to order by mail send a minimum love gift of $10 and request SK 1932 PO Box 1744, Baltimore, MD 21203.

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