Walking With Christ

Mark 15:5 But Jesus made no further answer, so that Pilate was amazed.

Pilate asked Jesus to defend Himself, as was a normal thing in those days, but Jesus offered only silence. This fulfilled the prophecy in Isaiah, but points to a much deeper truth that is subtly repeated throughout the bible.

Isaiah 53:7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.

There are many places in the bible where what isn’t said is just as, if not more, important than what actually is said. The most impactful moments in music, TV, or cinema are those silent moments. Think of the movie Saving Private Ryan and the scene on the beach. The main character in that scene is almost completely deaf because of the explosions going on all around him. If the scene had played out at normal volume, the audience would have been unable to understand the trauma and intensity of the moment. Some of the most powerful moments of television are the ones where the music cuts out of the color fades to just greys. Think about the most powerful pieces of music, it’s not just the notes that tell the story, it’s the pauses and silences in between.

Jesus was quiet when given the opportunity to defend Himself. The bible speaks very little about His time in the wilderness, and nothing beyond the moments of His temptation. We know nothing about Paul’s “thorn in the flesh” (2 Corinthians 12:7-9). We don’t know the name of the Pharaoh during the Exodus, though every biblical historian probably has a theory. The bible doesn’t tell us what Paul did while he was in Arabia between the event on the road to Damascus and his eventual return to Damascus. Job’s questions to God are never directly answered. Jonah ends with him angry and sulking under a plant.

There is a lot to learn from what the bible doesn’t say. The important thing to keep in mind is that the things that the bible doesn’t say will never contradict the things that the bible does say. Sometimes the silence is just a moment to take a breath and at other times it’s a moment to learn a lesson. The bible is silent on the early life of Jesus outside of a couple of key events. This tells us that even through the silence, God is working behind the scenes preparing us for greater purposes. Jesus’ silence before Pilate shows that silence can be a form of strength and submission to God’s will. Jesus knew that God’s plan of redemption was only found through His suffering, so there was no need to defend Himself before human authorities. Sometimes, silence is the most powerful response we can give. The silence concerning Paul’s thorn tells us that the weakness or ailment doesn’t matter. This can be any struggle we face. The response to this and the lesson learned here can be universally applied. The silence about the Pharaoh during the Exodus tells us that his identity didn’t matter. Those who oppose God’s purposes will ultimately be forgotten, while God’s people and His promises endure. The silence concerning Job’s questions about his suffering tell us that there will be times in our lives that we simply won’t get the answers we seek. Having the answer to a question is never as important as trusting God’s purpose. Paul’s time in Arabia was a hidden season that shouldn’t be despised because God used that season to equip Paul for his future purpose. We will, at times, find ourselves in a season of isolation, and, like Paul, God will use this season to grow us into who we need to be for the next steps of the journey.

Finally, the bible is intentionally silent on a great many things. This is not a mistake and these aren’t gaps in the biblical narrative. These are opportunities for spiritual reflection and discovery. God often uses what isn’t said to emphasize reliance on Him rather than complete knowledge, invites us to explore deeper truths through study and prayer, or to allow the lessons learned to be applicable across generations. In order to fully understand the bible, we have to learn to read what the bible says without ignoring what the bible doesn’t say.