Which Jesus do you choose? Matthew 27:17

 

After his arrest, and towards the end of his mock trial, Pilate offered a choice to the Jews as to who he should release to them according to his custom. In Matthew’s Gospel, we read, “Now at the Passover Feast the governor was accustomed to release for the people any one prisoner whom they wanted. And at that time they were holding a notorious prisoner called Barabbas. So when the people gathered together, Pilate said to them, ‘Whom do you want me to release for you: Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ’” (Matthew 27:15-17 NASB 2020)? In the Greek text, Barabbas is taken directly from the Aramaic and simply means “bar abba” or “son of a father.” We might think of this as being akin to our last name. Interestingly, some of the manuscripts include the real name of Barabbas, or in our terms, his first name, and that name was Jesus. In some Greek manuscripts, this verse reads, “who do you want me to release to you? Jesus, the son of abba, or Jesus who is called Christ?” Pilate was forcing them to choose between two Jesuses, one being the true Christ of God, and the other Jesus being one who was both a murderer and an insurrectionist (Mark 15:7).

This Easter season, we, too, ought to stop and ask ourselves, “Which Jesus do we choose?” We live in a time when many prefer a Jesus of their own choosing, of their own making, rather than the true Christ of God. People want a Jesus who thinks like they think, acts as they act, and who is accepting of all their decisions, opinions, and beliefs. Instead of conforming their lives to the life and teaching of Jesus, they want to conform Jesus to their way of life and their way of thinking. Instead of accepting and following the historical Jesus, the Jesus of the scriptures, they would rather follow a Jesus conformant to our modern mindset and sensibilities. For many, they prefer a counterfeit Jesus rather than Jesus, who was the true son of God. So, the question we must ask ourselves is, “Which Jesus do we choose?” My prayer for all of us as we enter into this Easter season is that we would all choose the true Jesus, the one who lived and died for us, and the only one who rose from the dead so that we might have new life in him. This Easter season, may you blest in the true Jesus, the one who is called Christ.

David Robison