teachers of the law and the whole Sanhedrin, made their plans. So
they bound Jesus, led Him away and handed Him over to Pilate. “Are
you the king of the Jews?” asked Pilate. “You have said so,” Jesus
replied. (Mark 15: 1-2)
It was early in the morning when the religious leaders plotted and
then handed Jesus over to Pilate. They wanted Jesus charged with
blasphemy because He called Himself the Son of God. Since they did
not have the power to put Him to death, they brought Him to the
Roman authorities to be tried and executed.
I believe that Pilate is thinking explicitly in political terms when he is
asking Jesus if He is the Messiah. Acknowledgment of the title of King
would be in violation of Roman law, as well as assuming leadership of
a possible Jewish insurrection. Jesus does not deny He is the
Messiah, nor does He acknowledge Pilate’s political interpretation.
Pilate then tries to get the Jewish religious leaders to take Jesus and
settle the matter themselves.
For my faith development journey, the significance of these two
verses from Mark is to never forget that Jesus IS the Son of God.
Jesus’ human role is not to be a great political leader, but to provide
a spiritual role model for God’s love of mankind; God’s continual
forgiveness of mankind; and God’s continual challenge for mankind to
love, serve, and forgive others.
Sylvia Wadsworth
Blessed be the God of our salvation:
Who bears our burdens and
Forgives our sins.
--Opening Acclamation during Lent,
Enriching Our Worship 1
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