But he made another: Later on, you remember that Pilate called for water and publicly washed his hands, indicating symbolically that He would not accept personal responsibility for crucifying Jesus. "I am innocent of the blood of this just person; see ye it." That was his second attempt!
evasion.
Now let us ask whether that also] is not a common attitude. Are there! not many people who would not deny the importance of the question, but who regard the responsibility of facing it as belonging to someone lelse? Take an average non-churchgojing man in Shanghai. He is not at all displeased that his wife keeps up her Church connexion, or that His children attend a school where there is Christian atmosphere. He prefers that this stbuld be so. If we may tuse the expression, he is a Qhristian by proxy. He leaves the matter to trended to by others. Christianity is very good for women and child-'n. Or think of some of thie splen-id young men to be found in many of our commercial houses or in the various branches of the Council ser-ice. Some of them are sons of the manse. They revere the old people and would not.ike to think of tHeir giving uy their comfort or long these young men decline to become personally In a worl attitude is thi Christianity is good for the old people. And we might go on to show how rich people regard the Gospel fas specially suitable for the poor, while poor people think of it as designed for the ricky or how the learned refer the matter to the nor ant, and the ignorant to tht ned. And these are not imaginary, for all of you can think of instances; and they are.all attempts to pass the question on to someone else.
But are these attempts ever successful? They were not with Pilate. He sent Jesus to Herod, but Herod sent Him back again; for Hered did not possess sufficient authority to answer Pilate's question for him. Pilate washed his hands before the multitude, claiming that the responsibility was theirs; and indeed they had their own very real share of responsibility; but they could not assume Pilate's, share. "He had. an authority, which' no one else possessed and one, that carried -with it obligations that were non-transferable.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.