It's March 15th and it's just a mere coincidence that we're in Mark 15.
We're starting Mark 15 on March 15th.
And that coincidence means nothing for us this morning except that it was a good reminder of which passage I'd be teaching
when Nathan told me several weeks ago that I'd be doing this on March 15th.
So if you have a copy of God's Word, turn with me there to Mark chapter 15.
It's in this particular portion of Scripture that we meet a fascinating man by the name of Pontius Pilate.
He's probably known by most, even if you haven't been or grown up in church.
His name is usually at least recognizable, usually for his infamy rather than his fame.
Many equate him with names like Judas, like Herod, like Annas and Caiaphas.
All the other evil characters in Scripture involved in the unparalleled drama that unfolds around the cross,
around what leads up to Jesus' crucifixion.
And if we look from a simple human standpoint, these men are all co-conspirators in what ultimately leads Jesus to his death.
But from a divine perspective, however, God is the true power and the true influence who leads his Son to the cross.
And so it's important for us, before we read this, that we come to an understanding
that there's not a moment in this passage that we're about to read that God is not in control.
And for that matter, there's not a moment in the rest of this chapter as we're going to see Jesus being nailed to a cross
that God is not in control.
And if your life seems like it's out of control this morning, then please know this.
God is in control.
He always has been and He always will be.
This was His plan all along, what we're about to read.
And it's very important for us to understand this if we are to rightly understand our salvation
and the love that God has for us.
Beginning in verse 1, chapter 15.
As soon as it was morning, the chief priest held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council.
They bound Jesus and led Him away and delivered Him over to Pilate.
And Pilate asked Him,
Are you the King of the Jews?
And He answered him,
You have said so.
And the chief priest accused Him of many things.
And Pilate again asked Him,
Have you no answer to make?
See how many charges they bring against you.
In verse 5,
But Jesus made no further answer,
so that Pilate was amazed.
Now at the feast, He used to release for them one prisoner for whom they asked.
And among the rebels in prison who had committed murder in the insurrection,
there was a man called Barabbas.
And the crowd came up and began to ask Pilate to do as he usually did for them.
And he answered them saying,
Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?
For he perceived that it was out of envy that the chief priest had delivered him up.
Verse 11,
But the chief priest stirred up the crowd to have him release for them Barabbas instead.
And Pilate again said to them,
Then what shall I do with the man you call the King of the Jews?
And they cried out again,
Crucify Him!
And Pilate said to them,
Why? What evil has he done?
But they shouted all the more,
Crucify Him!
And so Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd,
Release for them Barabbas.
And having scourged Jesus,
He delivered Him to be crucified.
Let's pray together.
Heavenly Father,
We are so grateful
For this moment in history.
Though tragic to read,
Though difficult to read,
We thank you, Father,
For this moment in history,
Because we know it ultimately led you
To the sacrifice
That leads us to salvation.
And that's something we'll be forever grateful for.
We know that you demonstrated your love
In the biggest kind of way
That you possibly could in this moment.
So Father, I pray that
Your Word this morning
Would reach deeply into our hearts.
That your Spirit would meet with us
And change our hearts this morning
As we take a look
More in detail at Mark chapter 15.
We pray this in the name of Your Son, Jesus.
Amen.
Before we dive into this passage,
Let's start with a quick review
So that we can kind of refresh our memories
On where we are.
It's the Passover week in Jerusalem.
We've kind of been talking about this week
For several weeks now.
It seems like a couple months now even.
Because Mark decides to zoom in
To kind of really focus a large part of his writing
On this one week, the Passover week
That leads up to Jesus' death.
The Jewish leaders who made up the Sanhedrin,
They want Jesus dead.
The Sanhedrin is essentially
The Jewish Supreme Court in that day
For lack of better terms.
That's the best way that we can really think about it.
They dealt in legal matters
Oftentimes for the Jewish population.
Ultimately, Rome has authority
In this situation
And in their cultural context.
Rome is occupying them.
And so therefore they have authority
There in Judea.
But the Sanhedrin
Dealt in legal matters
For the Jews and things of the temple.
There are 71 total of them
Including the high priests.
So they decided the first step
To having Jesus crucified
Or somehow terminated
Was that they needed to arrest Jesus.
But they don't want to do this in daylight
Because they're afraid of the followers of Jesus
Rising up against them
And it would make them even less popular
Than they already were becoming
Under Jesus' time, his ministry
Here on earth.
So Jesus at this point
Has amassed many, many followers
Sometimes thousands of people at a time
Walking around with him
Following him
And he's teaching them
As he goes everywhere.
And so they're afraid to arrest him
In the full view
Of the swelling populace
That is coming into Jerusalem
For the Passover.
What made things more complicated for them
Is that they didn't know
How to capture him at night
Because they didn't know
Where he would be
Or if he had followers
That would be there with them
To protect him.
Judas Iscariot, however
Is the answer to their dilemma.
He negotiated a price
Of 30 pieces of silver
And it's on Thursday night
As Jesus is meeting
In the upper room
With the 12 disciples
That Jesus calls Judas out on
And he says
Go do what you're going to do
And do it quickly.
And so it happened
In the Garden of Gethsemane
While Jesus is praying
And pleading with the remaining 11
To stay awake
Because something's coming
That Judas leads
A Roman cohort
Along with temple officials
To come and to arrest Jesus.
They take him straight
Into the high priest quarters
First to Annas
And then to Caiaphas.
There's a mock trial
Before Annas
They're looking for some crime
Against Rome
That they can charge him with
That they can bring him
Before the Roman authorities
They couldn't find one
So Annas gives up
On that endeavor
And passes Jesus off
To his son-in-law Caiaphas
Before Caiaphas
False witnesses are bribed
And their testimony
Is simply incoherent.
They can't piece together
A good testimony
To try to frame Jesus
For anything.
They couldn't come up
With anything that made sense
So they finally left
To accuse
They were left to accuse
Jesus of blasphemy
Because he said
That he was the son of God
Thereby claiming
To be a deity.
And all this happens
All these trials
Happen on the same night
That Jesus was arrested.
Happens very quickly.
Then comes sunrise
And the Sanhedrin know
That under Jewish law
They have to hold
A trial in daylight
So trying to maintain
Some sort of legality
In the situation
They know that they have to hold
Some sort of trial
In daylight
Still not a fair
So it's not a real fair trial
But they hold it
Yet another mock trial
For him in the morning.
And then the Jewish part
Is done.
But they must bring him
To trial before the Romans.
Why would they do this?
They've already declared
That he's guilty.
They already have enough
To possibly have him arrested
On the spot right there.
Why do they go
To the Romans
To hold another trial?
John records
The specific answer
In John chapter 18
Verse 31
They said
We are not permitted
To put anyone to death.
The Jews
It seems for good reason
Weren't permitted
To invoke the death penalty.
Rome had to invoke
The death penalty
And Rome had to perform
The execution.
So we learn quickly here
That it wasn't enough
For them to just arrest
And imprison Jesus.
They want him dead.
And this is where we pick up
In chapter 15
Verse 1
As soon as it was born
The chief priest
Held a consultation
With the elders
And scribes
And the whole council.
It would appear
By the way
That the whole council
Is unanimous in this.
They're all committed
To Jesus' death.
So they bind Jesus
And take him off the pilot.
On the secondary note here
It's that this time
If we're kind of
Following the timeline
I'm going to try to
Piece together
As much of the timeline
As we can
According to the other
Gospel accounts as well.
It's around this time
That Judas begins
To feel remorse.
He goes and takes
The silver that he
Bargained to turn Jesus in
And he goes into
The presence of the Sanhedrin
Drops the silver
Down on the floor
And says
I betrayed
Innocent blood
And then he runs off
To hang himself.
So they bound Jesus
And led him away
And delivered him
Over to Pilate.
And they can't just let him
Just give him over to Pilate.
They have to have
Some sort of reason
For him to be arrested
And executed
Under Roman law.
And so they make
Three accusations.
We don't get this
In our particular text
This morning.
We get this from
Luke chapter 23
Verse 2.
The three accusations
Are really interesting.
First accusation
They present
Before Pilate
Is that he's
Perverting our nation.
Number two
He's forbidding
To pay taxes.
And number three
He's claiming
To be a king.
All faults
All lies
He didn't pervert
The nation
They did.
He did not
Forbid to pay taxes
He said
Give to Caesar
What is Caesar's.
And while
Yes he claimed
To be a king
His domain
Was not of this earth.
They lied
But that was
Nothing new
To these people.
They were known
To lie.
And when we come back
To Mark chapter 15
And Pilate asked him
Are you the king
Of the Jews?
He ignored
The first accusation
That they brought
Before him
That
That he perverted
The nation.
He ignored the second.
You would think
That he would at least
Care about the second one
Right?
That he was telling people
Not to pay their taxes.
And he went straight
To the third accusation
Because that's probably
What fascinated him
The most.
Are you
The king of the Jews?
You can almost
Picture him saying
This sarcastically
Because there's
Nothing here
That makes Jesus
Look royal
Or kingly.
He's just been
Beaten and spat upon
By the Sanhedrin.
He's being rejected
And turned into
Pilate
By the very same people
Who are supposed to be
Under his kingly rule.
He doesn't look
Much like a king.
And he
Jesus
Answered him
Sood let go.
The ESV gets it close
You have said so.
And the reality is
That he is a king.
But not in the way
That he
The way that they
Had thought.
The way that they
Were thinking he was.
His kingdom
Was one that they
Could not understand
For lack of understanding
Of who Jesus was
And what he was
About to do.
But Paul in Colossians 1
It's amazing
That Nathan
Opened up with this.
We're going to
Read it again
Just because I had it in here.
Nathan and I
Did not plan this
By the way.
This is
Completely God's sovereignty.
He has delivered us
From the domain
Of darkness
And transferred us
Into the kingdom
Of his beloved son
In whom we have
Redemption
The forgiveness
Of sins
For by him
All things were
Created in heaven
And on earth
Visible and invisible
Whether thrones
Or dominions
Or rulers
Or authorities
All things were
Created through him
And for him.
His kingly rule
Supersedes all
Other kingdoms.
His kingship
Is above
All other kings.
And so I assure you
Brothers and sisters
In case there was
Ever any question
In your heart
Jesus
Is a king
And he now
Reigns in the hearts
Of his people.
He now reigns
In his church
That was established
Upon his life
His death
And his resurrection.
He is the only one
Who can take
A sinful vessel
Like the one
Who stands before you
Right now
And make it pure
And holy.
And that's why
What we're
About to read
Had to happen.
This
Had to happen
For Jesus
To make his
Final work
Upon the cross
This had to happen.
And the chief
Priest
Accused him
Of many things.
And Paul
Again asked him
Have you
No answer
To make?
See how many
Charges they bring
Against you.
He was accused
Of all kinds
Of things.
And he makes
No defense.
There's a part
Of me
That every time
I read this passage
I just want to
Just like
Grab Jesus
By the shoulder
And say
Say something.
Please
Just defend
Yourself now.
Every time
I read this passage
You see it
Pictured in movies.
Every time I see
A picture in a movie
I think the same thing.
Why are you
Not defending yourself?
Every other time
In scripture
When somebody
Comes up to him
And asks him
Leading questions
Or misleading questions
And trying to
Stump him
He has this
Brilliant answer
This wisdom
Full answer
To give them
Whether it's
Asking them
A question
That makes them
Walk away
Thinking about
The way that
They had
Questioned Jesus
At some level
He always
Made them
Walk away
Stumped
Unable to
Answer his
Question
Unable to
Figure out
A way
To stump
Him
Back
He always
Sent them
Walking away
You never
Saw anybody
In scripture
As they
Approached Jesus
And tried to
Trip him up
Walk away
Saying man
I showed him
He always
Had a response
For them
And so
Why does he
Not respond
In this
One moment
Where it
Truly matters
Why does he
Not try to
Redeem himself
And the
Answer is
Ultimately
It's because
Jesus was
Not the one
Who needed
Redemption
It was us
That needed
Redemption
And so
Jesus
Remains
Silent
So that
In condemning
himself to
Death
We would
Be able to
Be redeemed
His church
Would be
Redeemed
And so
He also
Does this
In fulfillment
Of prophecy
Foretold
Hundreds of
Years
Before Jesus
Would ever
Be born
Nathan's
Already
Mentioned
It a couple
Weeks
Ago
But it's
Worth
Seeing here
Again in
Isaiah 53
He was
Oppressed
And he was
Afflicted
Yet he
Did not
Open his
Mouth
Like a
Lamb
Who
Was
Led
To
Slaughter
Like a
Sheep
Who
Is
Silent
Before
Its
Shears
So he
Did not
Open his
Mouth
Isaiah
42
1 and 2
Says something
Similar
So Jesus
Made no
Further
Answer
So that
Pilate
Was
Amazed
The verb
There for
Amazed
Is
Thaumato
To marvel
To be in
Wonder
Or to have
Admiration
For
So I want you
To think about
That for a
Moment
A Roman
Authority
Rome
Already
Didn't
Have
Much
Regard
For
These
People
Because
They
Took
Their
Land
To begin
With
They're
Occupying
A land
That's
Not
Their
To begin
With
But a
Roman
Authority
Of the
Day
Admiring
A
Jewish
Carpenter
This
Is
Something
Different
To happen
Apparently
It didn't
Happen
Much
Where
People
Would
Remain
Silent
When
They
Are
Facing
A
Potential
Death
Penalty
Now
Today
It's
Pretty
Normal
For
Us
To
Invoke
A
Fifth
Amendment
A
Right
To
Not
Have
To
Convict
Yourself
In
Court
So
We
Have
The
Right
To
Remain
Silent
In
Our
Culture
Back
Then
He
Had
Only
Himself
To
Defend
Himself
Jesus
May
Have
Been
The
Only
Person
In
That
Day
Facing
The
Death
Penalty
Certainly
The
Only
Person
Who
Was
Innocent
To
Be
Facing
The
Death
Penalty
And
Not
Try
To
Defend
Himself
Although
This
Might
Not
Be
A
Primary
Lesson
In
The
Text
I
Think
There
Is
Something
For
Us
To
Understand
Here
Maybe
A
Lesson
For
Us
To
Grasp
I
Know
It's
One
I
Need
To
Exercise
More
Regularly
In
My
Own
Life
That
Silence
Sometimes
Speaks
Louder
Than
Words
Sometimes
It's
Better
To
Remain
Silent
In
The
Situation
Dr.
Daniel
Akin
The
President
Of
Southeastern
Seminary
Always
Address
The
Orientation
Before
You
Start
In
The
Seminary
There's
A
Separate
Orientation
For
Single
People
And
There's
One
For
Married
People
And
He
Used
To
Always
Say
To
The
Married
People
In
The
Context
Of
Marriage
Who
Was
Addressing
Men
In
This
Situation
He
Says
!
How
Much
More
Do
Your
Words
Mean
When
You
Speak
Up
Only
When
It's
Things
That
Matter
Only
When
The
Things
Are
Important
Enough
To
Speak
Out
On
Like
The
Gospel
Like
Sharing
Salvation
With
Your
Friends
Let me
Get
Back
To
The
Actual
Text
Before
I
Veer
Too
Far
Off
Of
The
Central
Theme
Here
Pilate
Marveled
At
Jesus
Because
Of
The
Silence
And
This
Put
Pilate
In
A
Tough
!
He's
Not
A
Biblical
Thinker
He's
Certainly
Not
A
Follower
Or
A
Disciple
Of
Jesus
But
He's
Conflicted
Here
Because
As
We're
Going
To
See
In
A
Few
Moments
Pilate
Is
A
Coward
I
Don't
Know
Any
Other
Way
To
Put
That
But
He
Is
Simply
A
Coward
And
He
Does
Something
Between
Verses
5
And
6
What
Does
He
Do
!
He
Sends
Jesus
To
Herod
We
Don't
Get
This
In
Our
In
Our
Portion
Again
But
Again
It's
In
Luke
Chapter
23
Luke
Gives
Us
This
Account
That
Galilee
Is
Herod's
Jurisdiction
And
It
Just
So
Happens
That
Herod
Is
In
Town
That
Day
And
So
Pilate
Decides
That
He
Might
Have
A
Way
Out
Of
This
He
Might
Be
A
To
Send
Jesus
To
Herod
And
Let
Herod
Deal
With
Him
By
The
Way
This
Is
The
Same
Herod
Antipas
Who
Tragically
Had
John
The
Baptizer
Beheaded
Because
John
The
Baptizer
Spoke
Out
About
Herod's
Adulterous
Relationship
Herod
Had
An
Adulterous
Relationship
With
A
Woman
He
Eventually
Married
But
He
Married
His
Brother
In
Laws
Or
Sorry
His
Brother
In
Laws
Wife
Something
Like
That
So
John
The
Baptist
Was
Beheaded
And
His
Head
Was
Served
On
The
Platter
All
Under
Herod
Antipas
I had
The
Distinct
Pleasure
Of
Preaching
That
Passage
Here
A
Few
Months
Ago
Herod
Antipas
Was
A
Wicked
Immoral
Adulterous
And
Murderous
Man
He
Was
Not
A
Good
Man
Now
Did
Herod
Know
About
Jesus
He
Absolutely
Did
We
Find
That
Out
In
Luke
23
And
He
Feared
That
Jesus
Wasn't
Get
This
He
Feared
Jesus
Was
John
The
Baptist
Back
From
The
Dead
And
Coming
To
Punish
Herod
Antipas
If
That's
Not
A
Guilty
Conscience
I
Don't
Know
What
Is
So
Jesus
Now
Stands
For
Yet
Another
Trial
Harry
Questions
Him
He
Mocks
Him
He
Asks
To
See
Signs
And
Miracles
Come
From
Him
And
Jesus
Stands
Completely
Silent
He
Has
Nothing
To
Say
To
Herod
Antipas
Not
A
Good
Place
To
Be
In
If
You're
Herod
By
The
Way
When
You
Have
The
Son
Of
God
Standing
Before
You
And
He
Has
Nothing
To
Say
To
You
At
All
It's
Not
A
Good
Place
To
Be
In
When
Herod
Had
His
Fun
Herod
Thought
This
Was
A
Joke
He
Kind
Of
Treated
It
Like
A
Joke
He
Had
His
Fun
With
Jesus
And
He
Sends
Him
Back
To
Pilate
So
We
Pick
Back
Up
In
Mark
Chapter
15
Verse
6
Now
The
Feast
To
Be
A
Placate
The
People
That
They
Are
Occupying
Rome
At
This
Point
In
History
Has
Lots
Of
Experience
In
Occupying
Foreign
Lands
And
So
They
Would
Come
In
And
They
Would
Use
Certain
Techniques
To
Be
Able
To
Placate
The
People
That
They're
Occupying
Ancient
Sources
Tell
Us
That
This
Was
A
Provision
Of
Goodwill
That
Roman
Governors
Did
A
Lot
In
Places
That
They're
Trying
To
Maintain
Some
Sense
Of
Mercy
They're
Trying
To
Show
That
They're
Being
Merciful
And
Pilate
Is
Sure
In
This
Moment
That
The
Crowd
Is
Going
To
Pick
Jesus
Over
Barabbas
Because
He's
No
Longer
Speaking
To
Just
The
Sanhedrin
He's
Speaking
To
The
Jewish
People
As
A
Whole
In
This
Moment
And
It
Says
!
So
This
Is
The
Son
Of
The
Father
Being
Offered
In
Place
Of
The
Divine
Son
Of
The
Divine
Father
There's
Some
Symbolism
Going
On
There
And
The
Crowd
Came
Up
And
Began
To
Ask
Pilate
To
Do
As
He
Usually
Did
For
Them
And
He
Answered
Him
Saying
Do
You
Want
Me
To
Release
For
You
The
King
Of
The
Jews
There's
So
Much
Scorn
In
That
Statement
Pilate
Is
A
Man
Full
Of
Bitterness
And
Guilt
And
Hate
Let
History
Record
That
This
Man
Knew
That
Jesus
Was
Innocent
Of
All
Charges
He
Is
Standing
Before
Him
Before
A
Crowd
And
Acting
As
If
Jesus
Had
Some
Sort
Of
Guilt
In
Him
Knowing
That
He
Had
No
Guilt
And
He
Gives
The
People
Of
Israel
The
Chance
To
Stop
This
Corrupt
Efforts
Of
The
Sanhedrin
From
Convicting
Jesus
And
He
Fully
Expects
Them
To
Want
To
Release
Jesus
And
The
Reason
That
He
Thought
That
He
Was
On
Safe
Ground
Here
Is
In
Verse
10
For
He
Perceived
That
It
Was
Out
Of
Envy
That
The
Chief
Priest
Had
Delivered
Him
Up
So
Pilate
Is
Finished
Talking
With
The
Sanhedrin
He
Is
Speaking
With
The
People
Of
Israel
Hoping
That
They
Would
Let
A
Man
That
He
Knows
Is
Innocent
Go
Free
And
The
Chief
!
Priests
Are
So
Envious
He
Been
On
The
Outside
Of
The
Situation
Until
Right
Now
He
Has
Been
On
The
Periphery
Of
The
Whole
Situation
The
Whole
Conflict
Between
The
Sanhedrin
Between
Jesus
Even
He
Understands
Even
He
Can
See
From
The
Outside
Their
Envy
The
Envy
Of
These
People
They
Didn't
Like
It
That
Jesus
Was
A
Greater
Teacher
Than
They
Were
Following
Him
And
Hanging
On
Every
Single
Word
That
He
Would
Say
And
They
Didn't
Like
It
That
He
Had
Far
More
Influence
Among
The
People
Than
They
Did
Even
Pilate
Sees
This
In
Verse
11
But
The
Chief
Priest
Stared
At
The
Crowd
To
Have
Him
Release
For
Them
Barabbas
Instead
This
Is
Scandalous
It's
Unthinkable
What
Did
Barabbas
Do
For
Anybody
What
Good
Was
There
Found
In
This
Man
Named
Barabbas
In
Effect
They
Are
Saying
Let
The
Guilty
Live
And
Kill
The
Sinless
One
Treat
The
Innocent
As
Guilty
And
The
Guilty
As
In
Verse
12
Pilate
Again
Said
To
Them
Then
What
Shall
I
Do
With
The
Man
You
Call
The
King
Of
The
Jews
I
Want to
Pause
Here
For
A
Moment
Because
Isn't
That
The
Ultimate
Question
Isn't
That
The
Question
That
Every
Man
And
Woman
Who
Walks
On
This
Earth
Has
To
Ultimately
Answer
At
Some
Point
In
Their
Lifetime
What
Are
You
Going
To
Do
With
The
King
Of
The
Jews
What
Are
You
Going
To
Do
With
The
Son
Of
God
How
You
Answer
That
Question
Will
Change
The
Course
Of
Your
Life
It
Has
Mine
What
Are
You
Going
To
Do
With
The
King
Of
The
Jews
It's
A
Question
That
If
You
Haven't
Already
Answered
I
Plead
With
You
To
Answer
Today
You
Either
Accept
Him
Or
You
Reject
Him
Verse
13
They
Cry out
Again
Crucify
Him
That's
The
Crowd
They've
Been
Led
Into
This
Hysteria
About
A
Sanhedrin
It's
Hard
To
Understand
Isn't
It
On
Monday
As
Jesus
Is
Walking
In
To
Jerusalem
He's
Riding
In
Actually
To
Jerusalem
They
Are
Bowing
Down
Before
Him
And
They
Are
Crying
Out
Hosanna
Blessed
Is
He
Who
Comes
In
The
Name
Of
The
Lord
Hosanna
In
The
Highest
And
They
Are
Worshipping
Him
As
He
Rides
Into
Jerusalem
Now
Friday
Of
The
Same
Week
They
Join
The
Rest
Of
The
Corrupt
Blasphemers
How
Does
This
Happen
They
Take
Their
Place
With
Judas
And
Annas
And
Caiaphas
And
Herod
And
A
Sanhedrin
And
Pilate
Still
Incredulous
In
Verse
14
Pilate
Said
To
Them
Why
What
Evil
Has
He
Done
And
Preach
It
Pilate
Amen
He
Was
Innocent
Pilate
Yet
Again
Declares
The
Innocence
Of
Jesus
Here
You
See
It
Over
And
Over
And
Over
Again
Pilate
Declaring
His
Innocence
But
The
Crowd
Is
Relentless
And
They
Shout
All
The
More
Crucify
Him!
What an
Amazing
Passover
Day
By
The
Way
This
Amazing
That
All
These
People
Were
There
That
Day
To
Honor
God
With
The
Passover
Meal
This
Is
The
Height
Of
Worship
For
Them
This
Is
The
Paramount
Ceremony
That
They
Do
Each
And
Every
Year
And
They
Do
It
To
Thank
God
And
To
Honor
Him
For
Leading
Them
Out
Of
Egypt
Out
Of
Slavery
To
The
Egyptians
And
Letting
Them
Be
Free
God
Freed
Them
In
The
Passover
So
They
Celebrating
This
They
Are
There
To
Remember
The
Goodness
God
And
The
Mercy
Of
God
That
Brought
Him
Out
Slavery
In
Egypt
And
At
The
Same
Time
They're
Screaming
For
The
Death
Of
His
Son
The
Irony
Here
Is
Astounding
So
Pilate's
Finished
He caves
Into
The
Pressure
Of
The
Crowd
So
Pilate
Wishing
To
Satisfy
The
Crowd
I
Love
That
Statement
How
Does
That
Sound
To
Be
Written
Over
The
History
Of
Your
Life
They
Could
Have
Engraved
His
Gravestone
With
Pontius
Pilate
Crowd
Pleaser
This
Was
A
Man
Who
Declared
Over
And
Over
And
Over
Again
Jesus'
Innocence
And
Ultimately
Ended
Up
Caving
In
To
The
Crowd
They
Might
As
That
Sentence
Might
As
Well
Just
Read
So
Pilate
Being
A
Spineless
Coward
Release
For
Them
Barabbas
And
Having
Scourged
Jesus
He
Delivered
Him
To
Be
Crucified
Some
Legends
Grew up
About
The
End
Of
Pilate's
Life
Really
Interesting
Ones
Actually
We
Know
For
Sure
From
Eusebius
And
Other
Reliable
Historians
In
The
First
And
Second
Century
That
He
Was
Eventually
Exiled
From
Rome
And
He
Killed
Himself
Circa
80
38
But
The
Legends
Go
Out
From
There
And
Some
Of
Them
Are
Bizarre
And
Interesting
There's
One
Legend
That
Says
After
He
Committed
Suicide
His
Body
Was
Taken
And
Thrown
Into
Tiber
River
Which
Is
The
Main
River
That
Runs
Through
Rome
At
Which
Moment
When
The
Body
Hit
The
Water
The
Water
Became
So
Disturbed
With
Evil
Spirits
That
It
Rejected
His
Body
And
So
His
Body
Was
Removed
There
From
There
And
Taken
To
Vienna
And
Thrown
Into
!
It's a
Legend
But
It's
Not
The
End
Of
All
The
Legends
That
Are
Out
There
The
Rhone
River
According
To
Another
Legend
Rejected
Pilate's
Corpse
So
It
Was
Again
Removed
And
Taken
To
Luzon
Switzerland
It
Was
Taken
Out
Of
That
Place
Because
They
Didn't
Want
It
There
And
It
Was
Moved
To
A
Mountain
In
Switzerland
Now
Known
As
Mount
Pilatus
They
Obviously
Someone
Thinks
That
Was
Where
His
Final
Resting
Place
Was
By
The
Name
But
There's
Yet
Another
Lake
Called
Lago
Di
Pilato
In
The
Sibylline
Mountains
In
Italy
You
Can
Guess
By
The
Name
That
Somebody
Also
Believe
That
His
Body
May
Have
Been
Placed
There
Where
Legends
Say
That
Every
Good
Friday
The
Body
Of
Pilate
Walks
Out
Of
The
Water
And
Washes
His
Hands
These
Are
The
Legends
The
Truth
Is
That
Pilate
Killed
Himself
His
Body
Dissolved
In
His
Souls
And
Forever
In
Hell
That
Is
The
Unfortunate
Reality
For
Him
So
Pilate
Makes
His
Final
Decision
In
Jesus
Trial
And
Having
Scourged
Jesus
He
Delivered
Him
To
Be
Crucified
Scourged
The
Word
There
Is
Fragilao
I
Hope
I
Pronounced
That
Right
It
Literally
Means
Flogged
The
Flog
Was
A
Whip
That
Had
Several
Strands
Of
Leather
Coming
Off
Of
It
Each
Strand
Had
Sharp
Objects
On
The
End
It
Was
Usually
Bone
Stone
Or
Iron
Sharp
Points
And
As
They
Would
Whip
The
Person
Being
Punished
It
Would
Grab
Ahold
Of
The
Flesh
And
Rip
It
Apart
It
Very
Painful
Process
A
So
Pure
So
Perfect
Be
Treated
With
Such
Scorn
And
Wrath
And
Harshness
The
Answer
I
Believe
Takes
Us
Back
To
Isaiah
53
Where
Isaiah
Says
He
Was
Despised
And
Rejected
By
Man
We
Are
Certainly
Seeing
This
Being
Fulfilled
In
Mark
Chapter
15
A
Man
Of
Sorrows
And
Acquainted
With
Grief
And
As
From
One
Whom
Men
Hide
Their
Faces
He
Was
Despised
And
We
Esteemed
Him
Not
Surely
He
Has
Born
Our
Griefs
And
Carried
Our
Sorrows
Yet
We
Esteemed
Him
Stricken
Smitten
By
God
And
Afflicted
He
Was
Pierced
For
Our
Transgressions
He
Was
Crushed
For
Our
Iniquities
And
Upon
Him
The
Chastisement
That
Brought
Us
With
His
Wounds
We
Are
Healed
Yet
It
Was
The
Will
Of
The
Lord
To
Crush
Him
Let
That
Soak
In
For
A
Moment
It
Was
The
Will
Of
God
To
Crush
His
Own
Son
He
Has
Put
Him
To
Grief
When
His
Soul
Makes
An
Offering
For
Guilt
Therefore
I
Will
Divide
Him
A
Portion
With
The
Many
This
Is
The
Promise
For
Us
And
He
!
So how
Can
Such
An
Injustice
Take
Place
In
Mark
Chapter
15
One
Answer
Is
Because
Man
Is
Totally
Wretched
Completely
And
Utterly
Depraved
That's
Us
But
The
Other
Answer
Is
That
God
Is
So
Totally
Merciful
You
Can't
Miss
That
In
This
Was
God's
Plan
All
Along
And
In
The
Same
Passage
You
See
The
Best
Of
God
And
The
Worst
Of
Man
All
Together
This
Is
God's
Plan
All
Long
And
While
Words
Cannot
Explain
The
Travesty
That
Occurred
On
That
Day
!
There's
Freedom
Found
In
Those
Scars
With
Every
Lash
He
Took
He
Demonstrated
His
Love
For
Us
And
We
Have
So
Much
To
Rejoice
In
For
That
Brothers
And
Sisters
For
If
While
We
Were
Enemies
We
Are
Reconciled
To
God
By
The
Death
Of
His
Son
Much
More
Now
That
We
Are
Reconciled
Shall
We
Be
Saved
By
His
Life
Let's
Pray
Together
To