Monday, April 12
Read John 19
Think About It:
- Pilate thought he had power, but what he had was the power to do wrong, to do harm. He didn’t have the power to do what was right. The right thing to do was to release an obviously innocent man instead of sending Him to death, but Pilate was weak before the strength of the religious leaders and the crowd they commanded. To say, “I have power to do what the crowd wants me to do” is to say you have no power at all. Have you ever excused your own guilt over your actions by saying, “It’s not my fault, I really didn’t want to do it? The Holy Spirit will empower us to do the right thing when we ask for help and act in faith.
- Pilate delivered Jesus to be crucified: It appeared that Jesus was on trial before Pilate, but in an even greater sense Pilate was on trial before Jesus. Pilate failed his test. In fear of the crowd, he sent a man he knew to be innocent to a tortured death. Charles R. Erdman once wrote: “You may do today exactly what Pilate did. He is simply an example of a man who lacks decision of character, who does not possess the courage of his convictions, who tries to compromise with wrong, who disobeys conscience through fear of personal loss.” What was Pilate afraid of losing? Has your fear of losing something (friendship, power, position, etc.) ever caused you to act in a way that hurt someone else?
Family Time:
- What did Jesus mean when He said, “It is finished!”?
- What did tombs look like in Jesus’ day? If you don’t know, look it up!
