WHAT'S THE REAL DEAL ABOUT BARABBAS?

It seems like every year the media comes out with some sort of crazy “story with a religious theme” every year at the Easter/Passover season.  This year it’s the the bizarre “Gospel of Judas” story.  I thought about addressing that and giving my thoughts about why the “Gospel of Judas” is just a lot of garbage, but I’d rather share MY OWN Easter season thought provoking story with you!

Have you ever become troubled or confused in your reading of the Bible because certain passages seemed contradictory?  I think most of us have had this experience.  Critics of the Bible have singled out many so-called contradictions in their attempts to disprove its accuracy.  The accounts in the four Gospels of the Passion of Our Lord have especially been attacked by unbelievers.  As Christians, we know that it is the critics of the Bible who are seriously in error!  Many times, however, we still do not know how to answer them.  I’d like to share a personal experience I had many years ago about a portion from the Passion story that confused me, and the answer and insight that were given to me by the Holy Spirit.

One of the most familiar stories in the Passion accounts is that of the notorious prisoner Barabbas who was released to the crowd instead of Jesus. As I read the narrative in Luke’s Gospel, I noted that this man Barabbas was in prison for murder.  Luke 23:19 says of Barabbas, “Who for a certain sedition made in the city, and for murder was cast into prison.”  Mark 15:7 agrees with this, stating that Barabbas was involved in insurrection, and had committed murder as part of his involvement in the insurrection.  But then I remembered a passage from John’s Gospel that puzzled me.  John 18:40 clearly says, “Now Barabbas was a robber.”  The two accounts did not seem to agree at all.  Although this problem puzzled me, I knew God’s Word couldn’t be wrong.  Jesus said in John 16:13 that the Holy Spirit would guide His disciples into all truth.  I asked the Holy SPirit to help me to understand the apparent contradiction, and almost instantly I as led back to John 18:40.

I saw that the words, “Now Barabbas was a robber.” nowhere stated that he was imprisoned fir robbery.  They merely told something about the man.  The thought was a relief to me, but I still had questions.  Why was the Holy Spirit revealing that Barabbas just happened to be a thief?  Was itjust a triviality like, "Now Barabbas was tall”, or “Now Barabbas liked to go fishing”?  The Holy Spirit still had more instruction to give me.

My thoughts went to John 10:10, where Jesus says,  “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy...”  I know that passage specifically says, “the thief” but in context the force behind that “thief” is THE DEVIL, SATAN!  The devil comes to steal, kill, and destroy, but as John 10:10 also tells us, Jesus has come to give us abundant life.  Now, THINK ABOUT THIS MAN BARABBAS.  Like Satan, Barabbas was a ROBBER, he STOLE.  He was a MURDERER, so like Satan, he KILLED.  As an INSURRECTIONIST, he would have been trying to overthrow the established government, or DESTROY it.  In Scripture, the Holy Spirit had mead it very clear that Barabbas has three of Satan’s main characteristics.  What was the significance of this in understanding the account of Barabbas?  The answer is - everything!

In Aramaic, the language Jesus spoke, BARABBAS literally meant, “son of the father”.  BAR meant “son of”, as Peter was called Simon BARJONA or “Son of John” in Matthew 16:17.  ABBA meant “father”, as Paul wrote in Romans 8:15, “...but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, ABBA , father.”  In the Bible, names are very significant.  A person’s name revealed his characteristics and attributes.  Why was Barabbas called “son of the father”?  He was called this because he was indeed a son of his spiritual father, the devil.  In John chapter 8, Jesus told the unbelieving religious leaders, “Ye are of your father the devil” (John 8:44).

At that first Easter season almost two-thousand years ago, two prisoners stood before the mob;  Jesus, the unblemished Son of God, and Barabbas, a follower or son of his spiritual father, the devil.   The mob, in their spiritual blindness, cried for Barabbas’ release and delivered their Messiah up to be crucified.

The Holy Spirit solved the seeming contradiction for me.  But as this Easter season, perhaps your very life is a contradiction.  Will you attend church and give lip service to God, while your heart is far from Him?  Is God your spiritual Father?  Jesus Christ loves you!  He shed His precious blood on Calvary for you, and He wants you to come to Him and receive forgiveness of sin and eternal life.  Again, Jesus said in John 10:10, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”  This Easter season it’s YOUR choice: Jesus or Barabbas?