BACK IOBJECT 5'4m?f Jesus on trial for claiming to be God JUDGE - (pounds gavel) Court is again in session. Mr Prosecutor, call your next witness. PROC -- Prosecution calls Rabbi Nathan Smith to the stand. JUDGE - Do you solemnly swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God? SMITH - I do. PROC -- Rabbi Smith, do you know what the defendant, Jesus of Nazareth, is charged with? SMITH - Yes, blasphemy. He's claiming to be God. PROC -- Alright, Mr Smith, tell the jury what you heard the defendant, Jesus of Nazareth, say on the date in question. SMITH - He said, "Before Abraham was born, I am." PROC -- And what did you take that to mean? DEF -- Objection, calls for a conclusion. JUDGE - Counsel? PROC -- Your Honor, the witness is a rabbi, an expert in Hebrew scripture and history. As such, he is qualified to draw some conclusions about what Jesus meant. JUDGE - Objection overruled. The witness may answer. SMITH - Well, everyone there knew that he was claiming to be God. PROC -- And how did you arrive at that conclusion? DEF -- Objection. JUDGE - Overruled. SMITH - Well, he used the term "I AM", which is the name God called himself when he talked to Moses. PROC - And what made you conclude that the defendant was not merely using bad grammar? DEF -- Objection. JUDGE - Overruled. SMITH - Well, Jesus taught in the temples and synagogues all over Judea. He was renowned for his learned teaching. He would never make a mistake like that. He would never say I AM when he was talking about a past event. Abraham lived thousands of years ago. PROC - And how do you know that Jesus was not merely claiming to be thousands of years old? DEF -- Objection. JUDGE - Overruled. SMITH - Because Jesus slipped away into the crowd as soon as he said it. PROC - And why do you think he slipped away? DEF -- Objection. JUDGE - Overruled. SMITH - Because he knew that saying it made the Jews angry. PROC - And how did you know that he was making the Jews angry? DEF -- Objection. JUDGE - Overruled. SMITH - They were picking up stones to stone him to death. PROC - And why do you think they were going to stone him to death? DEF -- Objection. JUDGE - Overruled. SMITH - Our law requires us to stone people to death for blasphemy. PROC - And how do you know that they were interpreting his words as blasphemy? DEF -- Objection. JUDGE - Overruled. SMITH - The Jews don't stone people to death for bad grammar or for claiming to be old. PROC - So, there's no doubt in your mind that Jesus was claiming to be God? DEF -- Objection. JUDGE - Overruled. SMITH - Besides claiming to be the I AM, Jesus claimed, on several occasions, to be the fulfillment of several prophetic terms used by God to talk about himself in the scriptures. Oh, he was claiming to be God, alright. PROC - The prosecution rests. JUDGE - Your witness. DEF -- Rabbi Smith, did you ever see Jesus do a miracle? PROC - Objection. irrelevant. JUDGE - Overruled. SMITH - Well, yes, of course. That -- and teaching -- were just about all he did for the last three years. I once saw him raise a man from the dead. DEF -- Your honor. The defense moves for a summary judgement. PROC - Summary judgement? JUDGE - Motion granted. The charges of blasphemy against the defendant Jesus of Nazareth are hereby dropped. PROC - I object. JUDGE - On what grounds? PROC - The evidence in this case is compelling. This man was obviously claiming to be God. JUDGE - Objection overruled. The defendant committed blasphemy if he claimed to be God, UNLESS the defendant IS GOD. In this case the defendant's miracles and the fulfillment of several prophecies proves he IS who he claimed to be. DEF -- Then my client is free to go? JUDGE - Not so fast. The defendant must still die on the cross. DEF -- Your honor, I object! PROC - I object too. I think. JUDGE - Objections overruled. DEF -- But this is highly irregular. PROC - Yes, you can't condemn an innocent man? Can you? JUDGE - Well, let me put it this way. If Jesus DOESN'T die and raise from the dead, we will all spend an eternity in hell. NOW are there any objections? PROC - Not from me. DEF -- Well, when you put it like that.... JUDGE - Then, it's done. This court stands adjourned. (gavel, gavel) ©2013 Bob Snook. Conditions for use: Do not sell any part of this script, even if you rewrite it. Pay no royalties, even if you make money from performances. You may reproduce and distribute this script freely, but all copies must contain this copyright statement. http://www.bobsnook.org email: [email protected] BACK |