I Am Barabbas

Barabbas was a “notorious” criminal (Matthew 27:16). He was a murderer and a robber, and all four of the Gospels mention him. Pilate gave the Pharisees a choice between Barabbas and Jesus, but they chose to free an infamous murderer and a robber over the sinless Christ. Jesus came to Earth to live a perfect life, free of sin, to take that punishment for us. “We remember Barabbas as the guilty man who received a life-giving pardon because the innocent Son of Man was condemned to death.” (desiringgod.org) Just like Barabbas, time and time again in scripture, we see God use wicked people to further his kingdom. We see that in the story of a church persecutor like Saul. (Acts 13:9 & Gal. 1:13) He also uses Matthew, a tax collector, as a disciple to spread the gospel truth to the nations. (Matthew 9:9-13) Even today, God uses ordinary sinners in ordinary places to live out his mission then, now, and forever.

Barabbas deserved to be hung up on that cross just like everyone does. (Romans 3:23) But God, being rich in mercy, sent his son to die on the cross for all our sins so we can spend eternal life with him in heaven. (John 3:16) Just like Jesus did for Barabbas, he died on the cross, freeing us from eternal damnation if we believe in him. Just like in the song where it says, “Thirty-nine of all them lashes should have been on my own skin,” that applies to us, too. We deserved to be beaten and hung on the cross in Jesus’ place because of our sinful hearts. Jesus was mocked and scorned to save a wretch like you and me. We can “never understand the repercussions of our every sin” due to Jesus’ remarkable sacrifice and obedience. 

Josiah Queen has beautifully captured the radical love of Christ in the story of Barabbas in a way that intersects our story. He “has faithfully been creating worship music since 2020. He is an independent artist from Tampa, Florida.” (Spotify, Josiah Queen) While creating music, he has released six singles, including God of Miracles, Grave Clothes, Use Me, Empty as the Grave, Fishes and Loaves, and obviously, I am Barabbas. He is a devoted Christian desiring to glorify God in everything he does. With his creation of music, he has been able to reach a different group of people than some other people can reach.

In conclusion, Barabbas was not a good man, but Christ took his place due to God’s divine love. Likewise, and unto it, we can also be saved. We see in the Bible that “the wages of sin are death,” so no matter what the sin may be, we are just as bad as Barabbas. (Romans 6:26) That is why I want to emphasize the part of the song that states, “I was that prisoner till you bought my bond with blood.” We were all sentenced to eternal death in hell, but God, being rich in mercy, sent his son to live a perfect life for me and you so that we can live eternally with our Father in heaven. That is why this song is so important and valuable to me and my family.