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At least one study says that men are just as fearful as women are. The difference is that men tend to hide their fears more than women do. When Jesus stood before Pilate, Pilate showed his fear more than once. Three times, Pilate declared that Jesus was not guilty of a crime. He appeared to be afraid that he was about to sentence an innocent man to die. When he said the third time, “I find him not guilty,” the Jewish leaders replied, “By our law he ought to die because he called himself the Son of God.” John tells us in ch. 19 that when Pilate heard that Jesus claimed to be the Son of God, he was more frightened than ever. He tried even harder to release him, but the Jewish leaders shouted, “If you release this man, you are no friend of Caesar. Any one who declares himself a king is a rebel against Caesar.” When they said this, Pilate took Jesus outside and spoke directly to the crowd “Look, here is your king!” The people yelled back, “Away with him. Crucify him!” Shall I crucify your king? Pilate asked. The chief priests shouted back, “We have no king but Caesar.” When the leaders declared that Jesus was not their Messiah, Pilate turned him over to the soldiers to crucify him. Fear of losing position, power, and money can lead to unwise decisions. It pays to have integrity that can resist the pressure of compromise.
