Pilate knew the truth… he said it out loud — multiple times.
The evidence was clear… the verdict was obvious… Jesus was innocent.
Now before I go on, let me backtrack for a moment. This past week in my journey through the Bible in six-months with my son, I turned the corner into the New Testament… and the 1st book up, The Gospel of Luke. Love ALL the Gospel accounts, but Luke – so good!
Well, as I got to the end of Luke, one verse struck a chord. And when I say, ‘struck a chord’, this one verse caused me to pause and ask myself… DO I DO THE SAME THING?
Ok… back to Luke’s account of Jesus with Pilate.
The crowd was loud… like CRAZY LOUD.
And the pressure Pilate felt, well, it was relentless.
And sadly, somewhere between what Pilate knew and what Pilate did, THE VOICES WON.
Just four words, but wow, these four words have been super convicting to me this past week. See them with me in Luke 23:23 –
“And their voices prevailed.”
The uncomfortable question I’ve been sitting with… and now I’m inviting you to sit with the same uncomfortable question… you’re welcome :).
WHOSE VOICE IS PREVAILING IN YOUR LIFE?
As we all know, every single one of us is being shaped and formed by someone or something. And whether we give voice to this or not, whatever that something or someone might be, they have a voice… and that voice is shaping you and me.
There's the voice of culture — endlessly telling us who to be, what to want, what to fear, and what to celebrate.
There's the voice of the news cycle — a relentless drumbeat of outrage, anxiety, and urgency. If we spend enough time there, well, we’ll start to believe the world is only as big as the latest crisis.
There's social media — as we all know with this voice, it’s perfectly curated, filtered, and algorithmically designed to keep us engaged, envious, and coming back for more. The message is often the same… our life is less-than, our faith is outdated, and our convictions need updating to be consistent with the world in which we’re now living.
There's your boss, or professor — whose approval you may be working harder to earn than you'd like to admit.
There are your friends — whose opinions quietly shape more of your decisions than you realize.
And then there's the voice inside our own head — rehearsing old failures, magnifying new ones, and narrating our life in a way God never intended.
Maybe to state the obvious here, but ALL of these voices want to prevail.
I could be wrong… it happens a lot, but for me, I don’t think most people are losing their way in some sort of dramatic or obvious way. Rather, for many, if not most, I think we’re losing our way in much more subtle ways that ALL stems from listening to the wrong voice(s).
If God's voice, spoken to us in God's Word, is NOT the dominant voice in our lives, well to say this as nicely as I can…
WE WILL LIVE BENEATH GOD’S BEST FOR US!
And for sake of clarity, that’s NOT because God stopped speaking, rather, it’s because we've allowed other voices to become THE VOICE that we’re listening to.
Three times Pilate declared that Jesus was innocent… THREE TIMES!
But Pilate allowed the many voices around Him to shape what he did next… see that with me in Luke 23:24 -
“So Pilate sentenced Jesus to die as they demanded.”
The primary reason I spend time every morning in God’s Word is because I want His Voice as spoken in His Word shaping not only how I navigate my day, but who I’m becoming throughout my day.
God speaks… in MANY ways, but primarily for me and I believe for you as well, He speaks powerfully and profoundly to us through His Word.
And just so you know, God’s voice is NOT one voice amongst many that are competing to be heard… God’s Voice is waiting to PREVAIL.
So let me finish by returning to the question I’ve been sitting with
WHOSE VOICE IS PREVAILING IN YOUR LIFE?
If in your most honest moments, you’d admit it’s NOT HIS VOICE… then take a moment to pray a simple, yet powerful prayer that God LOVES to answer…
‘LORD, RENEW YOUR VOICE IN MY LIFE AND LET YOUR VOICE BE THE PREVAILING VOICE IN MY LIFE.’
