Pilate’s Failure to Protect Jesus from False Accusations

The chief priests accused him of many things. Mark 15:3

Roman law is one of the great legacies of the Roman Empire. And the governor, Pontius Pilate, was responsible for upholding justice by protecting the innocent and confronting the guilty.

But when Jesus came before Pilate, there was no protection. The crowd was calling for Jesus to be crucified. And Pilate asked, “Why? What evil has he done?” (15:14). There was no answer, just a growing chorus calling for His death.

The law was supposed to protect people from this kind of mob rule. But Pilate handed Jesus over to the soldiers, who gathered around Him in a charade of brutality (15:15-20). This is the kind of thing a proper legal process should prevent.

Even the best systems of law and order are operating in a fallen world. Sometimes the guilty are charged, sometimes they’re set free. Notice, Jesus made no reply to the accusations made against Him. Why? Because this was not a court seeking after truth. You can expect to face some situations in your life where you are falsely accused. You may be able to answer. You may be able to clear your name. And if you can, you should do so.

But there may come a time when you cannot undo the damage of a false accusation, or where the sheer number of falsehoods spoken against you makes an answer impossible. You find yourself crying out to God, “How is this possible?” The risen Lord Jesus Christ would say to you, “I have been there, and I will be to you comfort, direction, and strength.”

How can you draw comfort, direction, or strength from Jesus’ experience of being falsely accused?