The Enemy of My Enemy

Luke 23:11  And Herod with his men of war set him at nought, and mocked him, and arrayed him in a gorgeous robe, and sent him again to Pilate. 12  And the same day Pilate and Herod were made friends together: for before they were at enmity between themselves.

The governor and the tetrarch despised each other!

One was a Roman, one was a Jew, of sorts.

One earned his position by showing fidelity to Caesar, the other bought his position.

The first man was a hardened, seasoned veteran of war, a leader of men. The second was a self-obsessed, power-hungry, mad man who enjoyed the fineries of life, but suffered horribly due to the sins of his family. He was in a constant state of misery because of his health, and was therefore angry and cruel to others.

The Roman worshiped Caesar by decree. The Hellenist worshiped himself.

The relationship between the two was like that between a regimented, disciplined military officer and a corrupt politician. There is no love loss present.

However, as the old adage says, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. And that is what happened here.

Pilate would not side with Jesus, even though he personally found no fault with this rabbi, because he considered Him a rabble-rouser Who was not amenable to keeping peace in his realm. Caesar would not put up with a governor/procurator who could not control the people.

Herod had no respect for Jesus. He thought of Him as a side show, a snake oil salesman. He had hoped Jesus would do a personal performance for him. Jesus refused to even acknowledge him and he was furious.

So, the two authorities developed a bond on crucifixion day because they were in league to dispose of a "problem" in this outpost of Roman rule.

And, here is my private opinion, publicly expressed.

I think of the eclectic group which opposes the cause of Jesus today. Greenies, the Occupy movement, abortionists, radical gay rights advocates, feminist Nazis, Socialists, Communists, radical Islamists, the mainstream media, the ACLU, radical college professors, atheists, Hollywood types, etc.

They have a common goal, suppress or eliminate the Judeo-Christian value system. Hence, the enemies of Christ become friends, strange bed fellows, a league of satanically influenced parties bent on godlessness.

And yet, Jesus died for them too! As He expressed 1980 years ago tomorrow, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do!"