Devotional by Janice Curry
Mark 15:1-20
Jesus on Trial
15 Very early in the morning, the chief priests, with the elders, the teachers of the law and the whole Sanhedrin, made their plans. So they bound Jesus, led him away and handed him over to Pilate.
2 “Are you the king of the Jews?” asked Pilate.
“You have said so,” Jesus replied.
3 The chief priests accused him of many things. 4 So again Pilate asked him, “Aren’t you going to answer? See how many things they are accusing you of.”
5 But Jesus still made no reply, and Pilate was amazed.
6 Now it was the custom at the festival to release a prisoner whom the people requested. 7 A man called Barabbas was in prison with the insurrectionists who had committed murder in the uprising. 8 The crowd came up and asked Pilate to do for them what he usually did.
9 “Do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?” asked Pilate, 10 knowing it was out of self-interest that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him. 11 But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have Pilate release Barabbas instead.
12 “What shall I do, then, with the one you call the king of the Jews?” Pilate asked them.
13 “Crucify him!” they shouted.
14 “Why? What crime has he committed?” asked Pilate.
But they shouted all the louder, “Crucify him!”
15 Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. He had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.
16 The soldiers led Jesus away into the palace (that is, the Praetorium) and called together the whole company of soldiers. 17 They put a purple robe on him, then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on him. 18 And they began to call out to him, “Hail, king of the Jews!” 19 Again and again they struck him on the head with a staff and spit on him. Falling on their knees, they paid homage to him. 20 And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him out to crucify him.
For the Parents:
Have you ever been teased as a child or even as an adult? Have you ever been treated unfairly? In your family? At work? In line at the grocery store!?
Oh, how I wish I could be like Jesus.
I don’t know about you but I struggle to keep my mouth shut. God will prompt me ‘Don’t say it…don’t say it!’ and I’ll hold off for the time being feeling smug and superior and then later on will end up saying the very thing I resisted before. Defeat.
It’s also difficult not to get defensive when you are treated unfairly. When people criticize without listening or allowing an explanation. When you should have gotten a raise but because the ‘squeaky wheel gets the oil’ or the ‘flashy braggart’ gets the attention you go unnoticed.
Pride can also get in the way when someone makes fun of you or teases you. Even when it’s in jest, sometimes it can hurt.
More than anyone, Jesus had the right to be listened to. He should have been heard and honored. But he stayed silent.
He was without any sin and yet on trial. But he didn’t defend himself. He stuck to the plan and purpose of God.
Mocked! This one brings tears to my eyes. Didn’t they know he was dying for them! He could have slain them with a word. But still nothing. All for us.
Oh how I wish I could be like Jesus.
For the Children: (Use this only as a guide. The important thing here is to read the Bible and spend time together. Whatever works for your family will be ok!)
Enter:
Find a place where your family can sit comfortably together. You can ask questions like these (don’t feel the need to ask all of them!):
• Did Jesus ever do anything bad or wrong?
· Did the crowd want Pilate to release Jesus or Barabbas?
· Did Barabbas ever do anything bad or wrong?
· Who did Pilate release?
· What does it mean to be flogged?
· Do you think it hurt?
· What did they put on Jesus to make fun of him?
· Could Jesus have made them stop?
· Why didn’t he?
Hear:
Read the Bible Passage. For younger children, a picture Bible may be used.
Pause:
This might be hard at first, but take a few seconds, or maybe a minute to sit with the scripture in silence. With little ones, it may be a ten count, but we can sit still and let God’s word work!
Wonder:
Has anyone every blamed you for doing something wrong that you didn’t do?
Was that fair?
What did Jesus do?
Has anyone ever treated you unfairly? What did you do?
What did Jesus do?
Has anyone ever teased you or made fun of you? What did you do?
What did Jesus do?
When would be a good time to remember this story?
Bless:
Affirm what was discussed about the story.
Reaffirm Jesus’ determination to obey God and die on the cross for the punishment of sins that he didn’t commit but that we did. No matter what they did to him, he would not make them stop. The only way we could be forgiven was for him to take the punishment for us so he stayed with the plan.
Pray together (you may ask kids what they are thankful for or things they want to pray for/confess before the prayer:
Praise God, Give thanks, Pray for others, confess sins, Praise God!
Example: Thank you, Jesus for going ahead and dying even when you could have made them stop. Help me be more like you when I am treated unfairly or unkind. Amen!