John 19:12-16– “From then on Pilate sought to release him, but the Jews cried out, ‘If you release this man, you are not Caesar’s friend. Everyone who makes himself a king opposes Caesar.’ So when Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The Stone Pavement, and in Aramaic Gabbatha. Now it was the day of Preparation of the Passover. It was about the sixth hour. He said to the Jews, ‘Behold your King!’ They cried out, ‘Away with him, away with him, crucify him!’ Pilate said to them, ‘Shall I crucify your King?’ The chief priests answered, ‘We have no king but Caesar’. So he delivered him over to them to be crucified.”
What are your favorite holiday memories? The holidays are a wonderful time. Adults take time off work, kids are excused from school, and people travel to be with friends and family to make memories.
One of the biggest holidays in the times of the New Testament was Passover. Crowds would pack into Jerusalem as families would sit down to eat a lamb meal together kind of like Thanksgiving where Americans gather around tables to eat turkey and thank God for His protection and provision.
Around noon, as the lambs were being slaughtered, Jesus Christ was also being prepared to die as “Christ, our Passover lamb” (1 Corinthians 5:7). Jesus’ opponents had formed into a frenzied mob as they wanted Him dead before the holiday started and so things had escalated to a fevered pitch as they pressed the government to execute Him for declaring Himself as God.
In utter apostasy, the religious leaders denied that God was their king and declared their allegiance to the godless Caesar who was worshipped as false god. In that moment, with Jesus standing before them, religious leaders chose their king and rejected the King of Kings. Pilate too chose Caesar over Jesus. It just goes to show, everyone has to make their choice and choose their king.
Who is king in your life? Who do you live for, have ultimate allegiance to, and submit yourself to practically and daily?