Pilate asks Jesus;
“Are you the king of the Jews?”
Christ doesn’t answer.
Why?
Find out in this part of the Easter story what God has planned for Jesus – – and for us!
In this Bible study lesson from the Book of Mark, we’ll discover the character of Jesus. He even amazed the Roman governor of Judea — Pontius Pilate.
Truth is, Pilate knew Jesus was innocent. But, the pressure from the Jewish religious leaders lead the leader to go against his better judgment, as we’ll discover in later verses.
Note: We covered verse one of this Scripture reading in the last article. To refresh, you can read it here.
But, to lead up to today’s reading, I thought I’d repeat it.
So, let’s look at verses 1-5 and reveal the events leading up to the crucifixion of Christ..
Mark 15 – Jesus Stands Trial before Pontius Pilate
“Early in the morning the chief priests with the elders, scribes, and the entire Council immediately held a consultation; and they bound Jesus and led Him away, and turned Him over to Pilate.
Pilate questioned Him: “So You are the King of the Jews?”
And He answered him, “It is as you say.”
And the chief priests started accusing Him of many things.
But Pilate questioned Him again, saying, “Do You offer nothing in answer? See how many charges they are bringing against You!”
But Jesus said nothing further in answer, so Pilate was amazed.” – Mark 15:1-5 NASB
Christ is Questioned by Pilate
Jesus was accused of many crimes besides blasphemy (of which the Romans cared little about) including treason and encouraging the Jews not to pay taxes; not to mention claiming to be a king.
The Romans Could Only Have One King
He was brought before Pontius Pilate as “King of the Jews”, a crime which the Roman governor would be forced to deal with.
In fact, Pilate could care less about the blasphemy charges as this didn’t affect Rome.
But, rebelling against Rome or not paying taxes was at the very top of the list for punishable crimes against the state.
Just for curiosity’s sake, I researched and found a list of taxes levied by ancient Rome. These are…
- Land
- Trade
- Military
- Marriage
- Inheritance
- Sales
- Religious
- Poll tax
- Slave taxes
- State lands
- References
Wow! If you live in the United States, how many of these ring true? And remember, Rome fell in the end. Just something to ponder…
According to some scholars, a person could be executed for not paying his tax — or for leading a rebellion.
The religious leaders were well aware of Roman law. So, they charged Jesus with crimes they knew the Romans would act upon – with a death sentence!
Why Did Jesus Keep Silent During Questioning?
Jesus did not answer to any of these other charges.
He came here for one purpose; to die for our sins.
Postponing the trial or trying to justify His actions would not change God’s will for Him.
No one, not even Pilate could stop the events about to happen.
Jesus knew He had to die. He was destined to die on the cross so we could be forgiven.
Nothing Pilate declared could change His mission from God.
So, Jesus had no intention of prolonging His destiny — or ours!
Can We Elude God?
What about us? Yes, God has a will and a purpose for each of us too.
So, postponing or trying to deny our purpose in this life would be futile.
God is not a negotiator. He is not offering alternatives – only choices.
We are here for a reason. So, we should try to honor what God wants us to do.
Ask God about your purpose in life and His will for you…
Then, listen.
Love in Christ
– Bob
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