The Silence Of The Lamb

“1 Very early in the morning, the chief priests, with the elders, the teachers of the law and the whole Sanhedrin, made their plans. So they bound Jesus, led him away and handed him over to Pilate.
2 “Are you the king of the Jews?” asked Pilate.
“You have said so,” Jesus replied.
3 The chief priests accused him of many things. 4 So again Pilate asked him, “Aren’t you going to answer? See how many things they are accusing you of.”
5 But Jesus still made no reply, and Pilate was amazed.
6 Now it was the custom at the festival to release a prisoner whom the people requested. 7 A man called Barabbas was in prison with the insurrectionists who had committed murder in the uprising. 8 The crowd came up and asked Pilate to do for them what he usually did.
9 “Do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?” asked Pilate, 10 knowing it was out of self-interest that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him. 11 But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have Pilate release Barabbas instead.
12 “What shall I do, then, with the one you call the king of the Jews?” Pilate asked them.
13 “Crucify him!” they shouted.
14 “Why? What crime has he committed?” asked Pilate.
But they shouted all the louder, “Crucify him!”
15 Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. He had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.”

Are there times that it is better to say nothing at all when confronted by those with wrong motives? As Jesus demonstrates in this passage, as well as other similar occasions in the Bible, the answer is yes. 

Most of us can say that we’ve been in situations when we are dealing with people who have already made up their minds about something, despite their attempts at trying to make us believe that they are still willing to listen to our differing opinion. It’s really an exercise in futility to try to reason with such people. Matthew 7:6 tells us, “Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.” In other words, not only is it not worth the effort in trying to persuade these types of people of the truth, particularly about God’s truth, but it can actually do more harm than good. For some of us, it’s hard not to “take the bait” of trying to engage such people. Sometimes it may be because we lack the insight that they do not have a teachable spirit. Other times it may be because we can’t resist the thrill of the debate, including proving ourselves right at any cost. Still, Jesus shows us that there is a power in silence, though subtle and easily misunderstood by some, which can ultimately prove to be the best solution.
 
While the example in this passage was about Jesus not wanting to feed into the evil intentions of others, which is a good thing, other occasions when silence is beneficial to us can also include when we know that we are not prepared to give a response that is Spirit led, rather than flesh led. Let’s face it, when we are falsely accused, it’s our nature to want to lash out, at least verbally, in our own defense. Once we do, we have made ourselves vulnerable to making the situation even worse by our own doing. As James would remind us, “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.” (James 1:19-20)  “All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.” (James 3:7-8)

While remaining silent under accusing circumstances may feel uncomfortable, even painful, we must remember who our real advocate really is. We must remember that it is our God that has promised to render justice in His time, in His way, and that we can trust that He will surely do what He has said. We must also remember that even with His own Son, God the Father has yet to follow through with the ultimate judgment, that will inevitably occur as a result of those who have wrongfully put Him to death on a cross, as well as all who have sinned. Remember the prophetic words of Isaiah 53:7 - “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.” But it will not end there as God’s Word also assures us in countless passages, including Proverbs 11:21, “Assuredly, the evil man will not go unpunished, but the descendants of the righteous will be delivered.”

Prayer:
Father, please grant us wisdom in knowing when to speak, and when not to. Grant us divine discernment when we are among those with evil motives and intentions to falsely accuse and manipulate us, so that we would not give in to our flesh, but instead be led by Your Holy Spirit. Help us to respond only by His leading, including remaining silent when necessary, even though our flesh may complain and insist on its own way. Even though the enemy might try to persuade us that we are somehow entitled to defend ourselves and confront our accusers, may Your will always prevail in us as Your living sacrifices. No matter how the world may misperceive our response, it is Your precious will that we desire to follow and cling to. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.