NOTES for Luk 23:1-25
In Luke's account of Jesus' interrogations and trial, Jesus Himself takes almost no part. The Jewish elders, Pilate, and Herod search in vain for formal grounds for a charge. Does Jesus claim the Jewish throne? Apparently not... Herod's throne? Not that either... What, then, is He guilty of, and for what can He be killed? It seems that this question, in one form or another, always arises when a person tries to settle his relationship with God, with Christ. We do not want simply to reject faith for no reason at all. We have to find a pretext: believing in God is outdated, boring, troublesome, useless, foolish, or something we never get around to... These are, of course, the most primitive arguments; there are more serious ones as well. But the fact remains: if we need to remove Christ from our lives, it is always possible. For now the judge's seat is beneath us, we are free to decide, and He remains silent...