Now it was the day of Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath. Because the Jewish leaders did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down (John 19:31, NIV).
My favorite definition of rationalize is to tell yourself rational lies. Here the Pharisees had just manipulated the Roman government into helping them condemn and execute an innocent man, but now they are concerned that they not offend God or break His Law by leaving dead and dying people hanging there on the Sabbath. Talk about telling yourself rational lies!
The supposed piety that religion produces always leads to this. It justifies sin in God’s name and then seeks to present itself as carful, clean, and conscientious. It was this kind of doublehanded behavior that led Jesus to say to the Pharisees in Matthew 23:23-24 (NIV),
Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.
Talk about straining out a gnat (taking the bodies down Before the Sabbath) but swallowing a camel (crucifying Jesus).
We need to be very careful when we start to feel morally or religiously better than others. The Pharisees in this passage show where that road ultimately ends. Let’s not go down that road at all.
Learning To Be Full Of Grace And Truth. 