The other day, I was reading through Luke, specifically the passion narrative near the end. Something caught my eye from this story. Pilate, trying to get the Jews to state exactly why they wanted to have Jesus killed, said “I’ll punish and release him.” But those in the city of Jerusalem argued to release Barabbas – “But they all cried out together, “Away with this man, and release to us Barabbas”— a man who had been thrown into prison for an insurrection started in the city and for murder” (Luke 23:19-19 ESV)
See, the Jews thought that when the Messiah foretold throughout all their Bible came, that person would be a warrior king, someone who’d come and kick the oppressive Roman regime to the curb and then Israel would return to their glory days from when David ruled. Barabbas fit that bill (mostly). He loathed the Roman occupation so he took part in an insurrection (maybe he even led it!) and he killed people. We honestly don’t have much information about him, but this little tidbit is included in Luke’s gospel for a reason. I cannot say the exact reason, but here’s my theory: Luke included it as a way to contrast the Suffering Servant (the Savior Israel needs) to the Warrior King (the savior Israel wants).
Barabbas legally should have died on that cross. He’d essentially committed treason against the powers that be. He “deserved” that death sentence. His shame (the societal currency that kept people in check) was great.
Jesus, however, led a sinless and honorable life. He didn’t “deserve” the death He suffered and that we remember today on Good Friday. Yet He still chose to be the Passover Lamb for all people. In doing this, He defeated the two enemies older than Rome that everyone deals with – Sin and Death
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23
In Greek, “free gift” also means “grace (gift)” and dates back to the Roman system of client and patrons. This verse fits perfectly into that societal construct. A person with wealth would essentially buy out a debt of someone else and become their patron, essentially saying “Hey! Since I paid this debt, you now work for me, but I’ll also defend you when you need it. Come to me! I gotchu, fam!” And to make it even better, these relationships would essentially evolve into a familial relationship. I am by no means an expert in this relationship. I first really learned about it in Misreading Scripture Through Western Eyes (an excellent and challenging read that every Western Christian should read). I’ll get to my point here. When we see this language, Paul is telling the Roman church, those intimate with client/patron relationships, that God, as the Ultimate Patron paid off our debt to Sin (that is death). We are now bonded to Him as His clientele. He further gifts us with our spiritual gifts to invite others to enter this relationship as God’s clients/family. Paul uses first-century understanding to better relay the good news of God’s victory through the Cross over sin (remembered today on the Cross) and death (remembered on Sunday with the Resurrection!)
Back to the whole Barabbas vs Jesus Christ thing. Barabbas came as a person who could maybe free Israel from the bondage of their current “enemy,” but Jesus, through the cross and resurrection, did indeed free Israel (and through Israel, the world) from their enemies, just not the enemies Israel thought they needed to be delivered from. Barabbas, the savior they wanted. Jesus, the one they (and we) needed.
We do this too, you know, choose other saviors over the biblical Jesus. We like to tame down the work of the Cross and Resurrection as a way to make the gospel palatable to more. We all need a Savior, we all need the Savior that died and rose again 2000 years ago. He bore the brunt of the shame of all humanity on the cross. He knew what needed to happen and He chose to do that. He’s not just a personal Savior, but a redeemer over all creation, all humanity. His place on the cross was to redeem all humanity to himself, not as a personal savior but the Savior of All. In His death and resurrection, the Good News isn’t just that our sins are forgiven and our shame is gone, but that He is King and will return to this Kingdom to make it new. However, many times (I am talking to myself here too) we water it down to make His shame more palatable. We wear crosses, see crucifixes, place a loin cloth on our images of Jesus on the Cross, but he was naked, shamed, humiliated, bleeding, in pain, tortured, died slowly. This isn’t a palatable death. This is a gruesome death for the absolute worst of criminals (like insurrectionists and murderers… like Barabbas). We like to put Jesus in this box that is sweet like Easter candy and filled with palatable sensations. The goodness of the Gospel is that, even when we are at our most shameful, Jesus still chose the cross. Even when we put Him in our nice, tidy, candy-sweet box, Christ breaks free, breaks us free, like he broke free from the bonds of Death. We make Him palatable when he’s offensive because his purity offends our shame, our sin. Where do you see yourself making Jesus more palatable?
Here’s the deal… While we still dealt with the dealings of sin, while sin was still our master, while sin still held us in a shameful place, Jesus actively entered that place to bear the price of OUR SIN upon Himself… Jesus bought our lives with His death. He paid that debt. It’s all on Him, not us. Our faith (another client patron term) is due him… our allegiance, our willingness to do whatever it takes for Him to be glorified, it is all to Him we owe. He gives us the means to live away from the captivity that sin held on us… that debt was great, but Jesus bought it out… for every single human. What a great price to pay! He has redeemed humanity. Where do you find yourself looking for an excuse to hold humanity accountable still? Where do you find yourself still hunting for a picture perfect savior like Barabbas instead of a desperately needed savior we have in Jesus?
Jesus is not the savior we deserve. We deserve shame and death. Jesus is the Savior we need and the Savior we have. Amen
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