Jesus is mocked, beaten and crucified. The people hurl insults at Him about being “King of the Jews,” “Messiah,” and about His claim that He would “tear down the temple and rebuild it in three days.” The irony of their mockery is that by going through with the crucifixion, Jesus is actually fulfilling these things.
Thank You, Jesus, for going through all that, fulfilling Your role as Messiah and King. For all of us. For me.This passage shows us Jesus’ so-called trial before Pilate. Pilate appears weak, panders to the crowd, wants to keep them happy or at least shut them up. He is supposedly the authority but is easy swayed.
Jesus makes no attempt to defend Himself. For the most part, He says nothing. He doesn’t care what the religious leaders or the mob they’ve gathered think about Him. He willingly allows Himself to be condemned to death. For us. For me. Jesus, thank you for Your willingness to die for me. Thank You for Your sacrifice. Thank You that You were not swayed by the crowd, but did what was right, what needed to be done. Father, make me more like Jesus.Churches Helping Churches, one of many organizations partnering with CRASH Japan to bring relief to the people of Tohoku during this time of crisis.
Jon Petersen (North America director of 24-7 Prayer) talks about what role prayer plays in the current situation in Japan, and introduces the Prayer Room at CRASH.
“Peter followed him at a distance…” (vs. 54)
Peter followed the captive Jesus right into the high priest’s court yard? Why? He obviously didn’t come to Jesus’ defense, and in fact ended up denying he even knew Christ. The other disciples had run away, but Peter followed… at a distance. Sometimes we want to follow Christ at a distance, too. We want Him to be part of our lives, but not have all of our lives. We serve Him on Sunday, but deny Him with our lives the rest of the week. We don’t talk about Him outside of church, or we don’t let Him guide our decisions in everyday life. Why? Lord, sometimes I am like Peter. I want to follow You, but I want to keep a safe distance, too. And when cornered, I deny You. Jesus, I want You to have all of my life, not just be a part of it.