The Jackson standard. [volume] (Jackson C.H., Ohio) 1847-1888, 1886-07-08
8.
Our Evening Sermon
81 will therefore chastise him and let
him go."-Luke 24-22.


The custom among the Jews to release
a prisoner at the feast was clothed with
a good deal of Importance and signifi-
cance on the occasion when Jesus was
brought before PLATE. The multitude
were only too ready to prefer charges
against Him whom they regarded as an
impostor. Barabbas was a murderer,
confined at the same time and place with
the Savior, and PLATE, seeing that there
was no evidence of unusual Wickedness
on the part of Jesus, proposed to release
Him to the multitude. But they cried
with a loud voice that BarabbaS should
be released; that the great criminal, even
accused of SO terrible crime as murder,
should be turned loose, and Christ should
be crucified. So the will of of the multi
tude was obeyed, and Christ crucifed,
while Barabbas was released. The good
was cruciied, the bad permitted to es-
cape; righteousness was made martyr,
and sinfulness clothed with the joy of
freedom.
There is a modern tribunal situated in
a similar relation to the people that Pi-
late was in at the time of the demand of
the people for the cruciiXion of Jesus,
save that the modern Barabbas is not ac-
cused of murder, beyond the numbering
of the freedom and honor of the ballot
box. Henry Barabbas Payne is before
the law giving power of a great country.
The people have, as they think, made up
a strong case against him. His accusers
| ,1J Of foct
deeds. Great multitudes clamored for
his political cruciiXion. The political
character of this barabbas is filled with
reproach and shame-if the cry of the
people is an Indication of the facts. Bar
abbas, as we view him in this case is not
a murderer, but a money-changer. He
has proited by the weakness of his less
stable brethren. Barabbas found his
brethren congregated in the public tenn
pie for the purpose of worshiping at the
great shrine of party ambition. He
turned their devotions in the direction of
material wealth (such is the claim and
reduced their characters to the level of the
disreputable schemers and tradesmen.
He found them weak, and gained a victo-
ry over their weakness; he found them
foolish, and revelled in their folly; he
found them avaricious, and pandered to
the spirit of avarice; He found them
clothed with all the infrmities of moral
ity, and took undue advantage of the in
| frmities of the flesh.
Barabbas had no finely-drawn, senti-
mental theories regarding the nobility of
the human character (why should he
haveD and seemingly no conception of
the truth of the great fact that man was
created in the image of his Creator. He
had no time for theoriZing. There was
little matter of business to attend to, and
he proceeded to attend to it as business
man, in business-like manner. He SIM
ply took poor, weak, credulous, covetous
humanity as he found it. He said 'the
world is my farm" and proceeded to gar
ner harvest of weak grain which had
not properly "headed OUT He under
stood humanity thoroughly, and knew
where and how to lay out the great
sWath he was to cut in the field of public
affairs. Barabbas rose above his surround
ings; those who bowed into the dust and
permitted him to trample upon them,
could not complain if by so doing he was
kept clean; he clambered up the ladder of
fame upon a stairway of crumbling hu-
man hearts; he secured foothold upon
the great temple of Justice, and the stair
way by which he went up has crumbled
and fallen away; present successes are
possibly marred by the thoughts Of those
poor, weak fellow-creatures, upon whose
failings he has profited; but he has the
consolation Of knowing that he made his
venture in the most available market;
that if he had not taken this advantage of
weakness, some one else might have done
So and he has only been little more en-
terprising than his fellows. Now
that Barabbas has triumphed over his
weak fellows, and passed on, above and
beyond their circle of experience, he af
fects to laugh at the duplicity by which,
and over which, he triumphed.
But the multitude of the people who at
tended the temple which was defiled by
Barabbas has followed on to the greater
temple, and demanded that Barabbas be
crucfied. But there chanced to be sew
eral Pilates sitting in Judgment upon the
case, and when the clamor of the multi
tude became unbearable, these Pilates
asked: "What manner of evil hath he
done?" Then the multitude made up its
case, and submitted it's testimony. There
could be no mistaking the character of
the testimony. The case was presented |
in its gloomiest and most astounding |
character. The multitude firmly believed |
in the merits of the case, and expected a |
severe judgment thereof.
But the buoyancy of human hope is
sometimes ruthlessly cast down, and all
justice seemingly spurned. Such was the
case with the modern Pilates, in dealing
with the modern Barrabbas. The case
was carefully looked over, and all its
bearings carefully considered. The situ-
alton seemed to be one Of peculiar sur
roundings. Barabbas was man of great
wealth, power, and social distinction, Of
wide range Of influence, and to deliver
him from the glory of the temple into
the wrath of the multitude would be a
movement of wonderful import. There
fore the Pilates said: 1--WE have examined
this case; we considered the terrible
character of all the bearings and proofs
pointing to the guilt of Barabbas; we
are firmly convinced that there has been
the blackness of darkness connected with
his political record. Therefore, we will
chastise him and let him co.
The people desired that justice might
be released, and Barabbas crucified. But
the modern Pilates were immovable in
their determination, and Barabbas was
released. But one thing can remain for