We often think of cowardice in physical terms, as in standing up to the bully on the playground, but moral cowardice is both more consequential and more common. Pontius Pilate is easy to portray as a villain, but the reason why he walked away from Jesus' innocence is important. Standing up for Jesus would have cost Pilate something, at least in theory, and since he was far from being a good man, it wasn't that hard for him to choose himself.
Question: If the Church in America today comprised the crowd that Pilate addressed, what would our collective response to the choice between Jesus and Barabbas be? Before answering consider, Jesus represented a spiritual kingdom won by self-sacrifice, and Barabbas represented an earthly (political/cultural) kingdom to be won by any means necessary. It pains me to say, I don't know what the answer would be.
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