Verse of the week

'Again the High Priest asked him, "Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One?" "I am," said Jesus. "And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of glory." Mark 14:61-62

This exchange marks the climax of Jesus' trial, and his answer, still affirming that he is God's Son even when faced with death, is what puts him on Death Row. Within 24 hours he would be dead.
But while our focus could be on the trial of Jesus in AD33, Jesus' words point us towards another trial on another day. He tells his accuser and his judge, the high priest, that one day he will see Jesus again; only this time not as a bound, beaten man but as the eternal, powerful ruler, the Son of Man, sitting at God's right hand - in other words, as the judge of all. With these words Jesus faces the most powerful religious leader in Israel and tells him that one day the tables will be turned; though at that moment Jesus was the defendant and the high priest the judge, there would come a day when Jesus was the judge and the high priest, and all humanity the defendants. And while stating the truth about Jesus' identity was what incriminated people in the High Priest's court, in Jesus' court knowing the truth about him will be the only defence.

That day is still to come; and just as on that night in AD33, it's Jesus that remains on trial today in every heart, and in the court of public opinion. And as we look around, we see a country, a government and a society which seems determined to kill Jesus off; a society which is happy for Jesus to be anyone (a teacher, a philosopher, a moralist) other than who he is; the eternal, all-poweful Son of God.
Which trial's verdict do you care about? Do you care most about public opinion, about what friends and teachers and family say about your faith in Jesus? Do you seek to avoid a guilty verdict by keeping quiet about Jesus, by living like everyone else rather than as Jesus asks? Or do you care most about the day when you will stand before Jesus the Judge, on trial for your life? If you want to avoid a guilty verdict on that day, you need to just one thing; trust in the Judge as your Saviour.
The ultimate irony of the high priest's court was that they found worthy of death the one man who could give them life; the great tragedy of our country is that it continues to find offensive the only man who could give them acceptance with God. Let us not do that; let us confidently stand up in our trial wherever we find ourselves today and declare that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, the eternal ruling Judge; and let us make sure we always care more about the trial of the world before Jesus when he returns than we do about the trial Jesus and his followers face each day at the hands of this world.