Israel's Most Wanted
Preaching
What Jesus Did:
The Answer To WWJD
(Author's note: The format of this sermon is a role play, imitating America's Most Wanted.)
Good morning, this is Dr. Rob and you are watching, Israel's Most Wanted. Tonight, an IMW exclusive as we go behind the scenes and show you the Jerusalem authorities arresting that notorious Nazarene, that pathetic prophet, that unholy healer, Jesus of Nazareth. We warn you that tonight's footage does contain some violent scenes. Parents may want to take precautions with their children.
In our story last week, we told you about Jesus of Nazareth and the havoc he has been wreaking in Jerusalem. There was concern in the councils of the Sanhedrin days before the arrest. There was concern among the leaders about the man, Jesus. Jesus has been disrupting the temple rituals and income with his prophetic preaching. He has been teaching in the Temple and drawing large crowds. He marched into Jerusalem on the previous Sunday like some kind of king. The Sanhedrin has also decided that Jesus is a false prophet because he has claimed to be the Son of God. On authority from the religious leaders, IMW offered a reward of thirty pieces of silver to anyone with information that would lead to the arrest and capture of this Jesus.
• If you could be Jesus' attorney, how would you defend him?
Jesus has been known to associate with a group of Galilean peasants now known as The Twelve. Informed sources, who wish to remain anonymous, have told IMW that one of the Twelve turned against Jesus and gave the authorities the information they needed as to Jesus' hideout. Even though it is Passover night, the authorities wanted to protect the good citizens of Jerusalem and Israel. So, they called the temple police along with a SWAT team and sent them to the hideout, known as Gethsemane. The betrayer, who we later learned was a man named Judas Iscariot, gave the signal by kissing the ringleader, Jesus.
We now show you exclusive video footage from a hidden camera that IMW had with one of the arresting party. As you can see, there was a bit of a scuffle. We had reports that one of the disciples cut off an ear of a man named Malchus. When we went to interview Mr. Malchus, his ears were intact so we did not give credence to this report. Jesus protested his arrest at night by an armed band. He noted that they didn't arrest him by day. Informed sources within the government told IMW that this was done because Jesus has many followers and they wanted to avoid an uprising. Here you can see Jesus being bound and led away. Yes, you do see some of the guards beating Jesus. We apologize for the graphic violence of these scenes.
• If you were Malchus, how would you feel about Jesus?
You really have to admire the efficiency of the Jerusalem SWAT team in this case. However, there is controversy surrounding this arrest. In an IMW exclusive, we want you to meet some of the people who were there that night.
Our first person to give an account of that night is the disciple who allegedly cut off the ear of Malchus. He asked that we not show his face on camera.
"I am one of the disciples of Jesus and I was there that night. I never thought that they could really arrest Jesus. He is the Son of God. We tried to defend him, but Jesus is the one who would not let us. I remember his words, 'Put away your sword; everyone who takes up the sword will perish by the sword.' We live in a violent society where this is certainly lived out. Jesus showed us that violence only begets more violence. He said that we must lay down our weapons and become people of peace, even if it costs our lives. I guess that is why we abandoned Jesus. We were not ready to give our lives. We were afraid to die. I certainly was afraid. I denied Jesus three times in order to escape the authorities. The truth is that Jesus did no wrong. He does not deserve to be arrested."
• How does Jesus' stand on violence here speak to the American fascination with guns, bombs, and other weapons? How does it address the violence of the media?
That was an IMW exclusive with one of the disciples there that night. Our next witness is one of the arresting party, Moriah, Sergeant of the Guard.
"I was there when we arrested that false Messiah from Galilee. Good thing, too. He and his band were becoming dangerous. I've been hearing rumors that maybe we were a little too rough in our treatment of this Jesus. I'm tired of these bleeding-heart liberals who want to be soft on crime and coddle criminals. We needed to show this Jesus and his band of thugs just who was boss. Yeah, we beat him. So what? He didn't cause us any trouble after that. After all, one of his muscle men attacked our group with a knife. You can't back down from violent people. You have to stand up to them and show them who's in charge."
That was Sergeant Moriah of the Temple Guard. And now an IMW editorial.
• How does Jesus' experience impact on police tactics?
"We live in violent times. We have the Roman soldiers exercising violence and cruelty every day. The Zealot party often sponsors terroristic uprisings and violence. It is getting so you can't go to market without fearing for your life. We applaud the tactics of the Temple Guard SWAT team. We believe they acted in complete conformity to normal police practice in arresting a dangerous criminal. We believe the streets are safer because violent people know there is a police team ready to meet them on their own terms. As for this Jesus, we see no evidence that violence begets violence, as we were told by his disciples. If people would live in peace in the first place, there would be no violence. But many people do not live in peace. We need to meet force with force. By the same token, even though we do air scenes with violent arrests, we in no way condone violence as an appropriate means of conflict resolution. We are in favor of people living in peace and not doing harm to one another."
To close our story tonight, we have late word that Jesus of Nazareth has been found guilty of blasphemy and will be sent to Pilate, the Roman Procurator, for sentencing. This is Dr. Rob and that concludes today's episode of Israel's Most Wanted. Thank you for tuning in, and now, a final word from our sponsor.
WWJD -- Reflect on violence in your life and society. How do Jesus' words impact your attitude towards violence? What can you do to lessen the violence around you?
Good morning, this is Dr. Rob and you are watching, Israel's Most Wanted. Tonight, an IMW exclusive as we go behind the scenes and show you the Jerusalem authorities arresting that notorious Nazarene, that pathetic prophet, that unholy healer, Jesus of Nazareth. We warn you that tonight's footage does contain some violent scenes. Parents may want to take precautions with their children.
In our story last week, we told you about Jesus of Nazareth and the havoc he has been wreaking in Jerusalem. There was concern in the councils of the Sanhedrin days before the arrest. There was concern among the leaders about the man, Jesus. Jesus has been disrupting the temple rituals and income with his prophetic preaching. He has been teaching in the Temple and drawing large crowds. He marched into Jerusalem on the previous Sunday like some kind of king. The Sanhedrin has also decided that Jesus is a false prophet because he has claimed to be the Son of God. On authority from the religious leaders, IMW offered a reward of thirty pieces of silver to anyone with information that would lead to the arrest and capture of this Jesus.
• If you could be Jesus' attorney, how would you defend him?
Jesus has been known to associate with a group of Galilean peasants now known as The Twelve. Informed sources, who wish to remain anonymous, have told IMW that one of the Twelve turned against Jesus and gave the authorities the information they needed as to Jesus' hideout. Even though it is Passover night, the authorities wanted to protect the good citizens of Jerusalem and Israel. So, they called the temple police along with a SWAT team and sent them to the hideout, known as Gethsemane. The betrayer, who we later learned was a man named Judas Iscariot, gave the signal by kissing the ringleader, Jesus.
We now show you exclusive video footage from a hidden camera that IMW had with one of the arresting party. As you can see, there was a bit of a scuffle. We had reports that one of the disciples cut off an ear of a man named Malchus. When we went to interview Mr. Malchus, his ears were intact so we did not give credence to this report. Jesus protested his arrest at night by an armed band. He noted that they didn't arrest him by day. Informed sources within the government told IMW that this was done because Jesus has many followers and they wanted to avoid an uprising. Here you can see Jesus being bound and led away. Yes, you do see some of the guards beating Jesus. We apologize for the graphic violence of these scenes.
• If you were Malchus, how would you feel about Jesus?
You really have to admire the efficiency of the Jerusalem SWAT team in this case. However, there is controversy surrounding this arrest. In an IMW exclusive, we want you to meet some of the people who were there that night.
Our first person to give an account of that night is the disciple who allegedly cut off the ear of Malchus. He asked that we not show his face on camera.
"I am one of the disciples of Jesus and I was there that night. I never thought that they could really arrest Jesus. He is the Son of God. We tried to defend him, but Jesus is the one who would not let us. I remember his words, 'Put away your sword; everyone who takes up the sword will perish by the sword.' We live in a violent society where this is certainly lived out. Jesus showed us that violence only begets more violence. He said that we must lay down our weapons and become people of peace, even if it costs our lives. I guess that is why we abandoned Jesus. We were not ready to give our lives. We were afraid to die. I certainly was afraid. I denied Jesus three times in order to escape the authorities. The truth is that Jesus did no wrong. He does not deserve to be arrested."
• How does Jesus' stand on violence here speak to the American fascination with guns, bombs, and other weapons? How does it address the violence of the media?
That was an IMW exclusive with one of the disciples there that night. Our next witness is one of the arresting party, Moriah, Sergeant of the Guard.
"I was there when we arrested that false Messiah from Galilee. Good thing, too. He and his band were becoming dangerous. I've been hearing rumors that maybe we were a little too rough in our treatment of this Jesus. I'm tired of these bleeding-heart liberals who want to be soft on crime and coddle criminals. We needed to show this Jesus and his band of thugs just who was boss. Yeah, we beat him. So what? He didn't cause us any trouble after that. After all, one of his muscle men attacked our group with a knife. You can't back down from violent people. You have to stand up to them and show them who's in charge."
That was Sergeant Moriah of the Temple Guard. And now an IMW editorial.
• How does Jesus' experience impact on police tactics?
"We live in violent times. We have the Roman soldiers exercising violence and cruelty every day. The Zealot party often sponsors terroristic uprisings and violence. It is getting so you can't go to market without fearing for your life. We applaud the tactics of the Temple Guard SWAT team. We believe they acted in complete conformity to normal police practice in arresting a dangerous criminal. We believe the streets are safer because violent people know there is a police team ready to meet them on their own terms. As for this Jesus, we see no evidence that violence begets violence, as we were told by his disciples. If people would live in peace in the first place, there would be no violence. But many people do not live in peace. We need to meet force with force. By the same token, even though we do air scenes with violent arrests, we in no way condone violence as an appropriate means of conflict resolution. We are in favor of people living in peace and not doing harm to one another."
To close our story tonight, we have late word that Jesus of Nazareth has been found guilty of blasphemy and will be sent to Pilate, the Roman Procurator, for sentencing. This is Dr. Rob and that concludes today's episode of Israel's Most Wanted. Thank you for tuning in, and now, a final word from our sponsor.
WWJD -- Reflect on violence in your life and society. How do Jesus' words impact your attitude towards violence? What can you do to lessen the violence around you?
