It's Easter weekend, and no matter how many times I celebrate the death, burial and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, I am amazed and in awe reading His story.

Today, as I read, I got stuck on a part of the story that I call “ Power & Betrayal”. One particular passage that really stood out to me was this:

   "I am bringing him out to you to let you know that I find no basis for a charge against him."
John 19: 4

These were words spoken by Pilot, the Roman Governor who had the final say as to whether or not Jesus would be crucified. You see, Jesus had been brought to Pilot by a group of Priests who were upset with His teachings and who wanted to kill Jesus. Similar to today, they had to seek sentencing in the courts by the right authority before this could happen, so they took Jesus to Pilot. Pilot, the man with the power, believed Jesus was innocent, but was so worried about pleasing the crowds and the priests that he didn't stick with his gut or follow his heart.

I mean, take a moment and really think about this….. Can you imagine someone knowing you were falsely accused of something but throwing you under the bus to make everybody else happy? How angry would you be if they did that to you?

Well believe it or not, it happens every single day. SMH! We live in a society where people are thirsty to belong and more worried about chasing a blue Instagram verification check than they are worried about living a life of integrity, value and trust. So if a situation arose and they needed to throw you under the bus to gain claps from the crowd they would do it in a heart beat.

The funny thing with Pilot however, is that he didn’t move so quickly, because in his heart He knew that Jesus was innocent. The scripture reads:

 From then on, Pilate tried to set Jesus free, but the Jewish leaders kept shouting, “If you let this man go, you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who claims to be a king opposes Caesar.”

John 19:12

Pilot actually tried to convince the crowds and priests to free Jesus, but they refused. And because he wanted to please them he gave in.

This stopped me in my tracks because I began to think about this happening to people now. Who isn’t getting the job offer because of the color of their skin and the hiring manager not wanting to ruffle the feathers of their colleagues? Who isn’t getting a invite to dinner because the others at the table don’t care for them even though the host throwing the party enjoys their company? Who’s sitting in a modern day courthouse facing a sentence for a crime that they didn’t commit by a prosecutor who believes they are innocent but is to afraid to against the grain of the system?

These instances are not life and death, but in every one of them there is some who is fighting the truth and chasing the approval of the crowd!

Maybe you’ve been the innocent one, and you’ve felt the wrath of the person with power who refused listen to their heart. If so, I want to tell you to keep your head up. To know that your story isn’t over and they will have to deal with the actions they’ve taken towards you. You see, Pilot had to live with the death of Jesus being on his hands, and I know he suffered with that decision for the rest of his life. The Pilots in your life know that they have wronged you and will have to deal with it. For you, find solace in knowing that you are not alone and that you will gain victory in the end.

Maybe you aren’t the innocent one, but you are the Pilot and you’ve been faced with the decision of pleasing the crowds or doing what is right. I pray that you take the time to consider the impact of your decision and know that you have a chance to chose with integrity and to follow your heart and not the crowds. You have the chance to re-write someones story, for the better!

I know that either way nothing compares to what took place the day that they decided to beat our savior and hang him on the cross. I know that it had to be done to fulfill the prophecy, and I know that the actions of Pilot choosing Power and Betrayal over Peace and Truth created a ripple effect that is still felt today. The beauty of it all is that Jesus got up, He was redeemed, and He left His story for us to learn from.

The lesson is to be mindful that Power means nothing when it isn’t used in Truth! Learn the lesson, and apply it.

I’ll be celebrating Easter again this year with a new perspective. I hope you will too!

Happy Easter!

Check out more from Lady V by listening to her Podcast here: https://anchor.fm/vanika-lewis