Barabbas

Matthew 27:21 Again the governor said to them, “Which of the two do you wish me to release for you? And they said, Barabbas!”

Have you ever asked for something, received it, and realized it was much more than you ever thought it could be? That’s what happened in Jerusalem the day Jesus was crucified.

Imagine being in the crowd that day and shouting, “Release Barabbas!” This man was a known criminal. All four of the Gospel accounts state this fact. He was a murderer, robber, and an insurrectionist; he wasn’t a good person. But the crowd would rather have this man released than Jesus. Jesus, mind you, who had healed their sick, raised their dead, and fed their hungry.

Why in the world would this happen? Can you imagine it happening in today’s world, in our courts? I can’t begin to fathom the riots that would follow the release of a guilty criminal and the substitutionary execution of an innocent man instead. We would call it an injustice. Isn’t it funny how what we call injustice, God calls perfect justice?

There was a purpose for everything that happened leading up to the crucifixion of Jesus. The release of Barabbas is not an insignificant event. It was very important for a couple of reasons. 

One, the obvious, is this: the saving grace of Jesus Christ frees even the worst of society. This is something that we should remember in our daily walk with Christ. His sacrifice wasn’t only for the “casual” sinner, but for the worst society has to offer. Even though we like to pay lip service to the adage “sin is sin”, we still give certain sins more weight in our minds. God, however, does not. The release of Barabbas shows that God considers all sins equal and that His grace covers them all.

The second, not so obvious, reason for Barabbas’ release is found in his name. Barabbas means “son of the father”. It’s a pretty simple name. Imagine if your dad named you “son of me”. It’s almost like Barabbas’ father wanted people saying to him, “Duh! We know he’s your son.” But that’s not the point.

The angry mob was shouting to Pilate, “Release Barabbas!” but to God they were shouting, “Release the son of the father!” They got what they asked for both physically and spiritually that day. Pilate gave them Barabbas; God gave them Jesus.

It was their cries for the crucifixion of Christ and the release of Barabbas that put Jesus on the cross. It was their request, “Release the son of the father!” that God heeded. He, Father God, released His Son to them for crucifixion.

It was God’s releasing of His own Son to bear the full burden of sin in His own body that gave Barabbas his freedom that day. It is that same release of Jesus that gives us our freedom today. Barabbas was a man, guilty and sentenced to death, under the law. We, too, are men (and women) guilty and sentenced to death under the law. But God has released to us His Son, the Son whom He loves, so that we can have freedom (John 3:16).

The crowd shouted for the release of a man; God heard their petition and released The Man: Jesus. God is awesome in this: He answers the prayers of His people and always super exceeds their expectations in His provision. .