Straight up, he lied. Satan did not want the religious rulers in Jesus' day to know that if they accepted Christ, that they could have experienced a far higher and better authority than they had been trying to hold on to in this world. Christ was offering all--including the religious leaders--the authority that comes from union and communion with God for the accomplishment of His purposes that span eternity. Whatever contradicts the Ten Commandments, we can surely know proceeds from Satan. The idea of putting Jesus to death was surely from the father of lies (as it was a violation of the sixth commandment!), and we need to learn to disregard all lying ideas and temptations, replacing those thoughts and temptations with the word of God in our hearts and minds by daily beholding Jesus! When we do fully surrender to Christ and abide in His word, all of the fruits of the Spirit will be seen in our lives without one missing, and we will be enabled to keep all of God's commandments out of love for Him!
Satan told them that in order to maintain their authority, they must put Jesus to death. This counsel they followed. The fact that they might lose the power they then exercised, was, they thought, sufficient reason for coming to some decision. With the exception of a few who dared not speak their minds, the Sanhedrin received the words of Caiaphas as the words of God. Relief came to the council; the discord ceased. They resolved to put Christ to death at the first favorable opportunity. In rejecting the proof of the divinity of Jesus, these priests and rulers had locked themselves in impenetrable darkness. They had come wholly under the sway of Satan, to be hurried by him over the brink of eternal ruin. Yet such was their deception that they were well pleased with themselves. They regarded themselves as patriots, who were seeking the nation's salvation.
We need to reject Satan's deceptive lies, and cultivate an entire-heart surrender to Jesus based on the plain, clear reading of His word. By God's grace, each of us can overcome Satan's delusions and abide in the purity and power of the Holy Spirit who is preparing us for heaven! It is important to understand what happened in the plots against Jesus, as they parallel a future crisis that will come against God's people who choose to keep the seventh day Sabbath.
As the Sabbath has become the special point of controversy throughout Christendom, and religious and secular authorities have combined to enforce the observance of the Sunday, the persistent refusal of a small minority to yield to the popular demand will make them objects of universal execration. It will be urged that the few who stand in opposition to an institution of the church and a law of the state ought not to be tolerated; that it is better for them to suffer than for whole nations to be thrown into confusion and lawlessness. The same argument many centuries ago was brought against Christ by the "rulers of the people." "It is expedient for us," said the wily Caiaphas, "that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not." John 11:50. This argument will appear conclusive; and a decree will finally be issued against those who hallow the Sabbath of the fourth commandment, denouncing them as deserving of the severest punishment and giving the people liberty, after a certain time, to put them to death. Romanism in the Old World and apostate Protestantism in the New will pursue a similar course toward those who honor all the divine precepts.
Knowing this is true, let us be braced to persevere in faithfulness because Jesus will not forsake His people that trust and obey Him!
