Jesus On Trial

This past Easter our topic was The Great Exchange as we heard a first-person sermon from Barabbas. We pondered how a righteous man ended up trading places with a rotten man. In the greatest exchange in history, Jesus was crucified on Barabbas’ cross and we concluded that I am Barabbas…and so are you. The main point is that Jesus exchanged His life for ours so our lives can be changed.

The theme for our five services this year (March 31 and April 1) is the Case for Easter. Sometimes people say that faith is blind but are you aware there is actually credible evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ? Join us as we examine the case for Easter. The evidence is in. The verdict is up to you.

3. He ignored good advice. In the midst of this maneuvering, Matthew 27:19 reveals that Pilate’s wife sent him a message: “Have nothing to do with that righteous man, for I have suffered much because of him today in a dream.” His wife is alarmed by a nightmare she had and tries to warn her husband to be careful. Notice that she refers to Jesus as righteous. Tragically, he chooses to ignore his wife. I tried hard to find a principle in this, but I couldn’t! Just kidding. Guys, we’re always better when we listen to our wives.

4. He appealed to reason. When he was not able to fully shut the door on the mob action, Pilate asked in Mark 15:12: “Then what shall I do with the man you call the King of the Jews?” Notice he says, “…The man you call the King of the Jews.” He’s rubbing it in at this point, maybe even needling them.

The answer is deafening and unified in verse 13, “Crucify Him!” Pilate then tried to reason with them in verse 14 by asking, “Why? What evil has He done?” I’m reminded of Isaiah 53:9: “…although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth.” They weren’t at all interested in rational discourse at this point because their minds were made up as they shouted all the more: “Crucify Him!”

5. He tried to please the people. When the crowds cried out to have Christ crucified, we read in Mark 15:15: “So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released for them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified. Mark passes over the scourging quickly, with just three words in English: “having scourged Jesus.”

“The usual instrument was a leather whip in which small iron balls or sharp pieces of bone or metal were tied at intervals…The condemned person was stripped and fastened to a low post, thus bending the back so as to stretch the skin. Blood spurted at the first blow…as the soldier repeatedly struck the victim’s back with full force, the iron balls would cause deep contusions, and the leather straps and bone would cut into the skin and subcutaneous tissues. As the flogging continued, the lacerations would tear into the underlying skeletal muscles and produce quivering ribbons of bleeding flesh. It was not uncommon for the inner organs to be exposed” (http://jama.ama-assn.org).

All of this fulfills Isaiah 50:6: “I gave my back to those who strike.” Jesus is then presented to the people. Pilate was hoping they would relent but he misjudged their venom. The smell of blood was blowing in the air and they were not to be dissuaded.