Kangaroo Court (Matthew 26:57-68)

Those who had arrested Jesus took him to Caiaphas the high priest, where the teachers of the law and the elders had assembled. But Peter followed him at a distance, right up to the courtyard of the high priest. He entered and sat down with the guards to see the outcome. (Matthew 26:57-58 NIV)

The high priest should be the most respected individual in all of Israel.  He is not only a Levite, but specifically from the line of Aaron.  This person is the only one allowed to enter the Most Holy Place in the Temple.  He is the representative closest to God.

The problem with Caiaphas is that he was not appointed in this way.  Instead, he was selected politically by the Roman Empire, assigned the title "High Priest," and put in charge of the Israelites.  He reports directly to Pilate, the governor of the area.  He is a political appointee, not a religious holy man.

The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death. But they did not find any, though many false witnesses came forward. Finally two came forward and declared, "This fellow said, 'I am able to destroy the temple of God and rebuild it in three days.'" (Matthew 26:59-61 NIV)

The Sanhedrin, then, was made up of two groups.  The Sadducees, of which Caiaphas was one, were the politically-connected aristocrats.  The Pharisees, the religious scholars of the day, had problems with the politics and wanted to be true to God's Word.  As such, Pharisees had additional teachings they created to help keep people in line with God.  The problem here is that none of them agreed...even when The Messiah was right in front of them.

Then the high priest stood up and said to Jesus, "Are you not going to answer? What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?" But Jesus remained silent. The high priest said to him, "I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God." "You have said so," Jesus replied. "But I say to all of you: From now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven." (Matthew 26:62-64 NIV)

Please don't mistake Jesus' statement here.  I've spoken with far too many people who have said, "Jesus never claimed to be God" or "He never said he was the Messiah."  On the contrary, he did.

When Jesus was debating with the Pharisees in John 8, he takes them down the path to understanding just who he is.  At the end of the debate, Jesus tells them outright. "'Very truly I tell you,' Jesus answered, 'before Abraham was born, I AM!'" (John 8:58 NIV)  This may not sound like, "I am God" to us, but "I am God" would have been too small a statement.  You see, even the Roman Emperor was claiming to be a god.  The Roman Empire was filled with gods to worship.  Claiming to be one of them was simply too small.  Claiming to be "I AM," however, was claiming to be The One who created the heavens and the earth, still holds all things together, and spoke to Moses in the burning bush.

In a similar way, Jesus answers the "Messiah" question in a way that doesn't make a lot of sense to us, but it does to the Sanhedrin.  When they ask them if he is the Messiah, he makes reference to a Scripture they all believe gives us a picture of the Messiah.  "In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed."  (Daniel 7:13-14 NIV)

When he said they will see one "coming on the clouds of heaven," he was telling them he was the Messiah.  They knew it.  Now, their response needs to be one of two things.  Worship Him or condemn him.  If his claim is true, the Messiah is worthy of worship.  If his claim is false, he should be put to death.

Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, "He has spoken blasphemy! Why do we need any more witnesses? Look, now you have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?" "He is worthy of death," they answered. Then they spit in his face and struck him with their fists. Others slapped him and said, "Prophesy to us, Messiah. Who hit you?" (Matthew 26:65-68 NIV)

The Messiah was standing right in front of them that night.  They missed it.  How about you?  If Jesus were standing right in front of you, would you miss it?  Do you miss the clues God has given you so that you might believe?  If so, you may identify with the Sanhedrin gathered that day.