By the Way: Pilate’s question

By Rev. Pastor Shane Hein on November 2, 2019.

And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. – John 8:32 [ESV].

An oddity about reading Holy Scriptures, as opposed to reading a novel, is that its authors are not always very concerned with providing the mood, or the tone of a particular verbal exchange between two characters. That is to say, the author will provide the content of the conversation, but not the feeling in which a particular statement was delivered, or received. Most of the time we can just infer from the context what the mood of the moment is most likely to be, but sometimes it is not quite so clear.

Take the exchange between Pilate and Jesus just prior to his crucifixion, for instance. Pilate is pressing Jesus for information, trying to establish whether or not Jesus truly is a king. And, while Jesus refuses to directly address the question of his alleged royalty, he does give an answer to Pilate, and his answer will change the course of human history forever. Jesus reveals to Pilate that day, and later to the entire world, that not only has he come to bring the truth, but he is the very embodiment of capital “T” truth itself. Pilate’s only reply to this monumental revelation is to pose the question: “What is truth?”

Unfortunately, we are not told by John if this question was delivered in the spirit of genuine wonder, or if Pilate asked it in a cynically rhetorical fashion; not expecting, or even particularly desiring an answer from Jesus. After all, for Pilate truth has never been anything more than what Rome says it is. And, given Pilate’s somewhat complex and shaky relationship with both the Jews in his territory, and with Rome, we are granted some freedom here to speculate on the tone of this particular exchange.

The fact that Jesus doesn’t actually answer Pilate’s question is a point in favour of the cynical-rhetorical option. Furthermore, the cynical-rhetorical option better suits the spirit of the age that we are currently living in. So, for the purposes of this column, we will just go with that.

Truth has always been a rather slippery thing. All through history mankind has been determined to seek it out and share it with the world. Once the truth is discovered, though, it is difficult to hang onto because there will always be certain powerful elements of society that hate the truth as much as the seeker of truth loves it. Almost all human conflict begins with a truth claim that someone really doesn’t want to hear. Martin Luther learned that lesson the hard way as his rediscovery of the truth of the Gospel message put him directly in the crosshairs of the powers that be. It cost the lives of many, very nearly including his own.

Some things really don’t change all that much. Truth has always been a threat to those who have a stake in maintaining untruth. It is a threat to power, and it is a threat to our own base desires. It is no wonder, then, that the truth which Jesus both reveals and personifies is so vehemently, and sometimes even violently rejected by those who love power for power’s sake, as well as by those who wish to be their own gods.

The irony of all this is that the rejection of truth – the rejection of Christ – does not make anyone in the least bit free. Just the opposite. It makes us slaves to worldly power and to our own sinful nature, both of which offer to us short-term pleasure in exchange for long-term misery.

The Good News, however, is that the truth that is manifest in Jesus Christ is not reserved just for a select few. Jesus came to bear witness to the truth so that all may have a part in it. He stands before us and he invites us to know him, because to know him is to know the truth…and, as Jesus promised, the truth will set us free.

God’s richest blessings,

Rev. Pastor Shane Hein

Rev. Pastor Shane Hein is from St. Peter Lutheran Church.

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