OUT OF THIS WORLD

John 18:33-36
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust.

Jesus’ Trial before Pilate

33 Then Pilate went back into his headquarters and called for Jesus to be brought to him. “Are you the king of the Jews?” he asked him.

34 Jesus replied, “Is this your own question, or did others tell you about me?”

35 “Am I a Jew?” Pilate retorted. “Your own people and their leading priests brought you to me for trial. Why? What have you done?”

36 Jesus answered, “My Kingdom is not an earthly kingdom. If it were, my followers would fight to keep me from being handed over to the Jewish leaders. But my Kingdom is not of this world.”


When we say that something is ‘out of this world’, we are admitting that we can’t find the words to describe something which is awesome.

Pilate was trying to understand Jesus. On one of his albums, Kirk Whalum says that’s an oxymoron … understand Jesus. The clay is not going to understand the potter. With all our Bible translations and transliterations, commentaries, dictionaries and studies, we still struggle to understand many things in the Scriptures.

Jesus told Pilate, “… my Kingdom is not of this world.” In my imagination, I can hear Jesus telling Pilate, “My Kingdom is out of this world. It is too awesome for you to understand. We don’t have enough time for me to explain it to you. Just go on and do what you have to do,”

Yes, we struggle just as Pilate did but we have the Holy Spirit to help us and the promise of God that we will see it all clearly one day (1st Corinthians 13:12).