The Scapegoat

Tensions always seek resolution. From music to marriage, from personal life to politics, we know that we can’t continue to live in discord, so we seek harmonious resolution. Being sinful, we often seek this resolution in the wrong ways. The problem in me or the problem between us is outside of us. Someone else is to blame. If we unite and eliminate this person, we have solved the problem and can live at peace. This is the scapegoat mentality. It works … temporarily. When the divorce is final, when the co-worker is fired, when the enemy is killed, we experience a sense of calm relief and peace. But then the cycle begins again, and it will continue because the real issues are never dealt with. You are always and only looking for the scapegoat.

Jesus was causing problems for the Jewish authorities. He was revealing not only that the world they were living in was coming to its prophesied end, but he was also revealing their rebellion against the God they said they worshiped. He was performing signs like a greater Moses, announcing a greater Passover and Exodus. No matter how much the aristocratic Sadducees and the Pharisees hated one another, they liked their present power, even under their Roman overlords. The tensions they had with one another and with Rome would be solved if they killed Jesus. This was Caiaphas’ solution after Jesus gained even more followers subsequent to raising Lazarus from the dead. “One man must die for the people” (Jn 11:50). Kill Jesus, and we will resolve the tension.

Caiaphas’ mentality is classic scapegoatism that continues to be reflected in our human relationships. Our marriage is a wreck, and it’s because the counselor is not giving us the answers. My personal life is all out of order, and it’s because President Trump went to war with Iran. My friendship is a disaster because of this third party. So, we fight the scapegoat. He is the distraction that draws the focus of all our anger, so we don’t need to home in on the genuine issues. If the scapegoat is undefeatable, all the better, in some cases. I am then interminably in a fight with something other than my sins. If he can be defeated by cutting him off, we are then left again dealing with the real issues, so we begin the cycle again.

While Caiaphas meant to engage in the cyclical scapegoatism, his words were sovereignly chosen and had a deeper significance than he knew. As high priest, he was prophesying (Jn 11:51-52). God has always intended to provide a true “scapegoat,” a Passover Lamb who would die for the people and create genuine peace. God accomplishes this by defeating the sin that caused the tensions. Because I have a place where I can deal with my sins, I am able to live in true peace with others, not merely as a temporary arrangement of co-belligerents. Because I am at peace with God, I can be at peace with others instead of always seeing them as my rivals or the cause of all my problems. I can take full responsibility for my sin because I am forgiven, and that forgiveness gives me freedom, allowing me not to see everyone as a threat.

God has provided the true scapegoat. If you trust him, you will need no other

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