Trial & Crucifixion of the King

I. Introduction
A. We’ve been looking at the last week of Christ’s life. This morning, we come to His last few hours.
B. This is the last of six trials, three before the Jewish leaders (John 18:12-24. Matt.26:57-58, 59-68), and three before the Romans (Pilate-Herod-Pilate). Jesus, in the final stage of the process, stands again before Pilate, with representatives of the Jewish Sanhedrin bringing the accusation.
C. Matthew 27:11-44 Now Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus said, “You have said so.” 12 But when he was accused by the chief priests and elders, he gave no answer. 13 Then Pilate said to him, “Do you not hear how many things they testify against you?” 14 But he gave him no answer, not even to a single charge, so that the governor was greatly amazed. 15 Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to release for the crowd any one prisoner whom they wanted. 16 And they had then a notorious prisoner called Barabbas. 17 So when they had gathered, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you: Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?” 18 For he knew that it was out of envy that they had delivered him up. 19 Besides, while he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent word to him, “Have nothing to do with that righteous man, for I have suffered much because of him today in a dream.” 20 Now the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus. 21 The governor again said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?” And they said, “Barabbas.” 22 Pilate said to them, “Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?” They all said, “Let him be crucified!” 23 And he said, “Why? What evil has he done?” But they shouted all the more, “Let him be crucified!” 24 So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves.” 25 And all the people answered, “His blood be on us and on our children!” 26 Then he released for them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, delivered him to be crucified. 27 Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole battalion before him. 28 And they stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, 29 and twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on his head and put a reed in his right hand. And kneeling before him, they mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 30 And they spit on him and took the reed and struck him on the head. 31 And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes on him and led him away to crucify him. 32 As they went out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name. They compelled this man to carry his cross. 33 And when they came to a place called Golgotha (which means Place of a Skull), 34 they offered him wine to drink, mixed with gall, but when he tasted it, he would not drink it. 35 And when they had crucified him, they divided his garments among them by casting lots. 36 Then they sat down and kept watch over him there. 37 And over his head they put the charge against him, which read, “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.” 38 Then two robbers were crucified with him, one on the right and one on the left. 39 And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads 40 and saying, “You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” 41 So also the chief priests, with the scribes and elders, mocked him, saying, 42 “He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. 43 He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him. For he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ ” 44 And the robbers who were crucified with him also reviled him in the same way.
II. Explanation of Matthew 27:11-26
A. 11-14 Now Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus said, “You have said so.” 12 But when he was accused by the chief priests and elders, he gave no answer. 13 Then Pilate said to him, “Do you not hear how many things they testify against you?” 14 But he gave him no answer, not even to a single charge, so that the governor was greatly amazed.
1. “Are you the King of the Jews?” This is really the only charge Pilate cared about. This is the one charge he thought may have some kind of merit.
2. Why was Jesus silent?
a. This is the most skilled debater in the history of the world. Many had tried to trip Him up, but in each case He came out the winner. Even at twelve he had baffled the learned ones with his answers. He also had the world’s strongest case for innocence. If ever anyone was equipped to present an irrefutable case before a court, it was now.
b. Not only this, but His judge knew He was innocent and didn’t want to condemn Him. In a human sense, there’s a good chance that Pilate could have been convinced to refuse the demands of the Jews. So, why didn’t Jesus mount any defense? Because in this instance, He didn’t WANT to win. He WANTED to lose. Or to put it another way, He wanted to win by losing. He wanted to win the salvation of His people by losing His own life on the cross.
c. He was silent because He loved us and was determined to go to the cross for our salvation.
d. He could have called thousands of angels to intercede. But He didn’t because He loves us.
e. — One remarkable thing about this passage is that there is specific application drawn from it by the apostle Peter in 1Peter 2:18-23, “Servants, be subject to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and gentle but also to the unjust. 19 For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly. 20 For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. 21 For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. 22 He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. 23 When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.”
3. Pilate’s surprise
a. He had handled 100's of cases. Hardly if ever was someone silent before the court. And if anyone ever was silent, it was because they were guilty and couldn’t think of anything to say.
b. But in this case Jesus was so obviously innocent and articulate and unsurpassed in reasoning and refuting skills, that Pilate expected a powerful defense.
c. There’s something very different about this one!
B. 15-18 Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to release for the crowd any one prisoner whom they wanted. 16 And they had then a notorious prisoner called Barabbas. 17 So when they had gathered, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you: Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?” 18 For he knew that it was out of envy that they had delivered him up.
1. This was a ploy. Why turn it over to the people? Pilate was hoping and assuming the people would choose to release Jesus and then Pilate would have an answer to the Jewish leaders to get them off his back.
2. So he picked the worst scoundrel in his jail – because he thought they would definitely not want Barrabas to be released.
3. He thought the people liked Jesus. Why just a few days earlier the people were all praising Jesus and hailing Him as king!
4. Pilate really didn’t want to crucify Jesus. Read through the gospel accounts and it’s crystal clear. Just the fact that he was willing to risk having to release this criminal in order to avoid condemning Jesus shows that.
5. If he had found any credible evidence against Jesus he would have condemned Him right off. That would have been the easier route.
6. He could tell the Jewish leaders were not driven by a sense of justice but envy over Jesus’ popularity and power and ability to defeat them in every dispute.
7. Why is it so emphasized that Pilate did not want to condemn Jesus?
a. To highlight the innocence of Jesus and the injustice of the cross.
b. It makes it clear that the real instigators were the covenant people of God. The Lord came to His own and His own did not receive Him. It was not ignorance of who He was; it was not an unfortunate failure of the justice system. It was the suppression of the righteous One by those who knew.
C. 19 Besides, while he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent word to him, “Have nothing to do with that righteous man, for I have suffered much because of him today in a dream.”
1. Pilate’s wife had some kind of a dream about Jesus.
2. She knew He was righteous.
a. You didn’t need a grand jury investigation to determine whether Jesus was guilty. It was so obvious that He was righteous that Pilate knew, even though Jesus hadn’t answered the charges.
b. His wife knew just from the little she had seen and heard. Later one of the centurions could testify that Jesus was righteous just from watching Him die on the cross.
c. This doesn’t mean they were all saved. But like everyone else, they sure knew He was righteous.
d. This wasn’t just concern over a potential miscarriage of justice. As Pilate’s wife, the occasional condemnation of an innocent man wouldn’t have been a big deal to her. But this Man was different. There was something about Him, there was something about His righteousness. She was terrified about the possibility of her husband condemning Him. It scared her to her core.
3. The dream must have happened the night just before this because she sent a message to him.
a. Presumably he got up early in the morning and left, leaving his wife asleep. When she woke up, she was shaken by this dream she’d had about Jesus. It haunted her all morning.
b. She must have come to the courthouse in fear of what might be happening. She saw that her husband was being pulled in two directions.
c. Obviously it was very out of the ordinary for her to send a message to her husband while he was sitting on the judgment seat, much less a message about a case he was adjudicating. But in her mind this was an emergency. But it was to no avail.
4. It would be interesting to learn how this affected them both and their marriage later on. I have a feeling that this was not the last time Pilate heard about this dream and his disregard of his wife's council.
D. 20-21 Now the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus. 21 The governor again said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?” And they said, “Barabbas.”
1. Man chooses anything but God. Better a notorious criminal out on the street than Jesus.
2. But in a demonstration of the gospel, the Son of God takes the place of the sinner.
a. Friends, we are Barabbas who got released and Jesus is the one who got punished instead of us.
E. 22-23 Pilate said to them, “Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?” They all said, “Let him be crucified!” 23 And he said, “Why, what evil has he done?” But they shouted all the more, “Let him be crucified!”
1. “What evil has He done?” They never answered the question. Why? Because it didn’t matter.
2. There was no basis. There was no justice. Just hatred. Just a desperate longing to silence the Voice. They suppressed the truth in unrighteousness (Romans 1:18).
3. “The light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil.” (John 3:19)
F. 24-26 So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves.” 25 And all the people answered, “His blood be on us and on our children!” 26 Then he released for them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, delivered him to be crucified.
1. See man’s ability to completely free himself from the duty of justice when justice will stir up trouble. See man’s ability to act against his own conscience when under pressure.
2. Pilate tried numerous ways to avoid crucifying Jesus.
a. Declares Him innocent
b. Sends Him to Herod
c. Has Him scourged
d. Gives the people the choice
e. And now finally he washes his hands to try to avoid responsibility.
3. Why did Pilate so want to avoid crucifying Jesus?
a. A sense of justice?
b. Wanting to avoid the judgment for being unjust?
4. One thing is clear. All this is in here to highlight the injustice of Jesus’ conviction & execution.
5. What’s the significance of Pilate washing his hands?
a. It was a desperate attempt to try to avoid the responsibility of killing the most righteous man who ever lived by blaming it on those who pressured him to do so.
b. If Pilate had refused to condemn Jesus he was in danger of losing almost everything he had in the world: his fame, his position, maybe even his life, though he might have preserved his soul.
c. It reminds me of what Jean Valjean says in Les Mis: “If I speak, I am condemned, if I remain silent, I am damned.”
d. Apparently Pilate never got over this guilt. The ancient historian Eusebius says that he eventually took his own life.
6. Far from wanting to wash their hands of this deed, all the people answered, “His blood be on us and on our children!” (25)
a. One wonders if anyone thought of this quote when the Romans ruthlessly massacred the Jews and destroyed Jerusalem in 70AD. And listen to what Jesus said to the Jewish leaders in...
b. Matthew 23:35-36 “On you will come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of innocent Abel to the blood of Zechariah the son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. Truly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.”
G. 26 Then he released for them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, delivered him to be crucified.
1. Probably the motivation behind the scourging was to shorten the time on the cross. This was obviously a concern at this time. That’s why they were breaking the legs of the victims later on.
2. Friends, we mustn’t interpret this scourging clinically – but personally.
3. This scourging is our redemption! For “By His stripes we are healed.” (Is.53:5)
H. 27 Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole battalion before him. 28 And they stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, 29 and twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on his head and put a reed in his right hand. And kneeling before him, they mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 30 And they spit on him and took the reed and struck him on the head. 31 And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes on him and led him away to crucify him.
1. Probably as a result of the Triumphal Entry, these soldiers had heard the claim that He was the King of the Jews, and so they used this as a way to mock Him – cloaking Him with a scarlet robe, giving Him a scepter, placing on His head a crown of thorns. (It’s hard not to think of the curse here – thorns, forehead.) And mockingly they paid Him homage.
2. Again, these aren’t just sad or interesting events in history. Ultimately, this is us. This depicts mankind, including you & me, doing in a outward, public setting what person does in our hearts.
a. We mock Him. We strike Him. We reject Him. We spit upon Him.
b. Even as believers, our flesh is still opposed to Him. In our flesh we still prefer anything else over Him.
3. I See the Crowd in Pilate’s Hall by Horatius Bonar, 1856
a. I see the crowd in Pilate's hall,
b. Their furious cries I hear;
c. Their shouts of "Crucify!" appall,
d. Their curses fill mine ear.
e. And of that shouting multitude
f. I feel that I am one,
g. And in that din of voices rude
h. I recognize my own.
i. I see the scourgers rend the flesh
j. Of God's beloved Son;
k. And as they smite I feel afresh
l. That I of them am one.
m. Around the Cross the throng I see
n. That mock the Sufferer's groan,
o. Yet still my voice it seems to be,
p. As if I mocked alone.
q. 'Twas I that shed that sacred Blood,
r. I nailed him to the Tree,
s. I crucified the Christ of God,
t. I joined the mockery.
u. Yet not the less that Blood avails
v. To cleanse me from sin,
w. And not the less that Cross prevails
x. To give me peace within.
4. He looks for love and He finds only hate.
a. Jerusalem, Jerusalem how often I’ve longed to gather you to myself but you wouldn’t have it
b. I held out my hands to a stiff-necked and obstinate people. – Romans 10:21
c. So many times He has looked to us for love and trust and friendship and appreciation, but we have turned our back.
5. Why didn’t He just walk away as He had earlier? He did walk away – later. Right now He had a debt to pay first. He wasn’t going to walk away from our salvation. He loved us too dearly.
6. It was our rejection He was experiencing! By His rejection we are accepted.
7. By His shame we are honored. By His condemnation we are absolved. By His captivity we are set free. By His humiliation we are exalted. By His being cast out, we are welcomed in.

I. 32 As they went out (of the city), they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name. They compelled this man to carry his cross.
1. We’re not told why Jesus didn’t carry His own cross all the way to Golgotha, but probably He was too weak after carrying it from the Praetorium to the city gate because of all he’d gone through, such that the Roman guards in their impatience just called someone else out of the crowd to carry it for Him.
2. This man of Cyrene named Simon was not in Jerusalem to see Jesus. He just happened to be walking by. He was likely in Jerusalem for the Passover and knew little or nothing about Jesus.
3. But little did he know what the Lord had in store for brother Simon of Cyrene that day!
4. There was never a more blessed dirty job than the one Simon was required to do that day!
5. It was the most blessed of all interruptions! It brought Simon physically and spiritually close to the One whose closeness is better than life! Why do I imply that this man was the first black person to come to know Christ? It’s not explicit, but it’s implied in the text.
a. First, the fact that we know details about him: his name, his nation of origin. How else would the early Christians have known his name was Simon and that he was from Cyrene?
b. But there’s something else. Mark 15:21 says Simon was “the father of Alexander and Rufus.”
c. How else would the early Christians know the names of his sons? And even if Mark knew the names of Simon’s sons from another context, why would he include their names in his gospel if these folks were not known among the Christian community?
d. And to add one more intriguing detail, there are Christians of both names referred to in Acts and the epistles. Rom.16:13 “Greet Rufus, a choice man in the Lord, also his mother and mine.” If this is the same Rufus, it would suggest that Simon’s wife was also a believer.
e. That’s why like ten books written about Simon of Cyrene.
6. BTW, in 1941 archeologists found an ossuary from this period in the Kidron Valley just outside of Jerusalem in a burial place for Jews from Cyrene, marked twice with the inscription, “Alexander, son of Simon.”

J. 33-34 And when they came to a place called Golgotha (which means Place of the Skull), 34 they offered him wine to drink, mixed with gall, but when he tasted it, he would not drink it.
1. Playing a trick on Jesus? Pretending to offer Him refreshment but really it’s a cruel hoax.
2. “Reproaches have broken my heart, so that I am in despair. I looked for pity, but there was none, and for comforters, but I found none. They gave me poison for food, and for my thirst they gave me sour wine to drink.” (Psalm 69:20-21)
K. 35 And when they had crucified him, they divided his garments among them by casting lots. 36 Then they sat down and kept watch over him there.
1. “And they crucified Him.” We don’t realize what a loaded term this was. The scandal of the cross: we’ve lost it.
a. Early believers didn’t use the cross as a sign.
b. Everyone in the Roman world in the first century understood all too well what crucifixion meant. Details did not need to be included.
c. “In ancient sources crucifixion was universally viewed with horror. In Roman law it was reserved only for the worst criminals and lowest classes. No Roman citizen could be crucified without a direct edict from Caesar” no matter how serious their crime was. (D.A.Carson)
d. Crucifixion was society’s way of vomiting someone out.
2. Yet for a Jew it was even worse, on account of Deuteronomy 21:23, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree.” For the Jew, crucifixion not only hung up a judicially executed criminal for public exposure but also branded him as cursed by God. (D.A.Carson, Expositor’s Bible Commentary)
3. Some experts say that a victim of crucifixion was either tied or nailed to the cross, and that’s true. But we know they nailed Jesus because of the later reference to the nail prints in His hands and Colossians 2:14 which says that our sins were nailed to the cross.
4. “...they divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots.” (Psalm 22:18)
a. Crucifixion was naked. That was part of its shame.
b. They were elevating the value of His clothing above that of His life.
L. 37 And over his head they put the charge against him, which read, “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.”
1. This was “the charge against Him”: that He was king of the Jews.
2. Pilate (or whoever arranged for this sign) was purposely offending the Jewish leaders here.
a. If he had simply wanted to write the charge he would have written, “This man claims to be the King of the Jews.”
b. Pilate has the charge written in such a way that it also acts as a title. “King of the Jews” was a common Jewish way to refer to the Messiah. And so Pilate is saying, “Here’s your Messiah,” probably mockingly.
c. Of course, the irony of God can be seen in this as well. It was truly a prophetic sign.
3. But this wasn’t the REAL charge for which Jesus was being punished. He was actually being punished for anger and immorality and idolatry and unbelief — not His own, mind you, bout ours. He was being punished for the anger that husband displayed toward his wife last night, and the resentment which resides in her heart this morning. He was being punished for the many idolatries of my heart, and the unbelief in your heart.
4. This is how “the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands” was set aside, by being nailed to the cross. (Colossians 2:14)
a. The charge in that court was that He claimed to be the king of the Jews, but the many many charges for which He was punished in the heavenly court were the many many sins of His people.
b. The sign you could see said, King of the Jews, but there were billions of signs nailed to that cross which you couldn’t see, detailing every single one of our sins for which He was punished.
M. 38 Then two robbers were crucified with him, one on the right and one on the left...44 And the robbers who were crucified with him also reviled him in the same way.
1. What about the thief on the cross who believed, which we read about in Luke 23?
2. It seems that there is a stage of the story when the two men are both reviling Him. And then there is a second stage of the story when one of the men’s hearts has melted and turned to Him.
3. It is important that we remember both parts of the story. It is important that we who call out to Jesus for His mercy and ask Him to remember us when He comes into His kingdom also remember that not only are we cosmic criminals deserving punishment, but we are mockers of the holy One, the very same Savior who is our only hope.
4. Otherwise, we have forgotten the grace of Christ which is the foundation of our salvation.
5. There is nothing so unfitting for a believer that an attitude of superiority. It is deadly.
N. 39 And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads 40 and saying, “You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” 41 So also the chief priests, with the scribes and elders, mocked him, saying, 42 “He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. 43 He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him. For he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ ”
1. People were typically crucified on the side of a major road, for maximum exposure.
2. The main purpose of crucifixion is to degrade. It is the way that society held up those it was ashamed of and spat upon them as they died. It was the final and ultimate way of despising and rejecting someone. But this rejection was different; this mocking was different.
3. This mocking is representative of mankind before its greatest son and lawful King.
4. But ultimately this mocking says much more about the mocker than it does about Jesus.
5. There is nothing so ironic than dirty, corrupt, immoral, wicked, depraved, despicable, perverted human beings mocking and condemning the only righteous man who ever lived, who had come from God Himself to rescue them from their darkness and doom! (See Psalm 22:7, 109:25.)
6. What a stark and vivid picture of who we really are! This makes the evil before Noah’s flood look mild in comparison! How could there be any hope for us?
7. What a miracle that divine fire didn’t fall upon mankind at that very minute and destroy us all!
8. They said, “He saved others; he cannot save himself.” How ironic! The fact is, if he was to save others, He could not save Himself.
9. And then they said, “Let him come down from the cross, and we’ll believe in him.”
a. No! Let him remain upon the cross, and we will believe in Him. Let Him refuse all the pressures to cave in, let Him continue to fight and die for my salvation, and we will put our trust in Him. He will have proven that He will stop at nothing for our salvation and will have provided for our forgiveness through His sacrificial death.
b. This is why they couldn’t provoke Him with all their taunting. He was driven by a passion to make us His spotless bride.
10. “He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him. For he said, I am the Son of God.”
a. We know the end of the story. God does deliver Him – but not now.
b. At this point it looked like salvation was a lost cause. The Savior was dying and it looked like our hope of salvation was dying with Him. That’s why the friends of Jesus were so discouraged.
c. But God’s ways are so beyond our ways! What looked like the end of salvation was actually its beginning! As it turned out, beyond anyone’s wildest dreams, our salvation was actually being accomplished in His dying.
d. And so, Jesus refused to flinch in the face of this mocking, in love for the very ones who were taunting Him.