NOTES for Joh 18:28-40

The Gospels tell us a great deal about the Kingdom of God, but only John sees the manifestation of this Kingdom in Jesus' suffering—it is no accident that in this Gospel Pilate questions Jesus about His kingship. For Pilate, "the King of the Jews" is merely the title of former Jewish kings, the last of whom was Herod. But Jesus speaks to him of another Kingdom, one given by God, one that is "not from here," "not of this world," and that does not operate where people do not know God and do not know "what truth is." The human person's choice is the condition for the Kingdom of God to be realized: Pilate has been "given from above" the power to kill or release the true King. Unlike citizenship in other kingdoms, allegiance to this King is voluntary, for even the priests are free to name the Roman emperor as their only king. Conversely, the One who does the will of Him who sent Him becomes the center in which His Kingdom is realized, even if outwardly it is expressed only in the inscription on the cross.