John 19:1-42
19:1 Pilate begins to scourge, physically punish Jesus. Pilate's plan is to rough Jesus up a little bit in effort to convince Jesus accusers that He has received enough punishment. Pilate does not believe Jesus is guilty and therefore does not want to see Him killed.
19:2-3 Jesus is severely mocked by His enemies. However -- the joke is actually on them. They dress Jesus up in the color of royalty (purple) and place a fake crown on His head. They believe that they are stronger because they have captured Him. They do not realize that Jesus is there because He volunteered to be.
19:4-5 This is Pilate's last attempt to save Jesus from their demands. Pilate hopes that the evil crowd will be satisfied with the punishment and will stop demanding Jesus' death. Pilate believes Jesus is innocent.
19:6 They continue to demand Jesus' crucifixion. Remember that these are not good people; they call for Jesus' death because they do not value justice, truth or compassion. Pilate refuses to kill Jesus -- he does not want innocent blood on his hands.
19:7-8 They still want Jesus to die. They accuse Him of appointing Himself a son of God -- but God has appointed Jesus a prophetic son of God. Also: always find the logic in an argument. These enemies had the right and opportunity to disbelieve Jesus and leave it at that. They accuse Him in attempt to get rid of Him, because His positive message threatened their corrupt authority.
Always determine the true issue behind an argument you make or become engaged in. Miscommunication and lack of communication result in chaos and are nonproductive. Be perceptive!
Side note: "Jews" is representative of a group of people from Judea. It is not representative of all Jewish people (religion or heritage). Just like a group of Americans does not represent all Americans.
19:9 Jesus is not going to defend Himself or plead for His life -- Jesus is already being defended by God and He already has eternal life. He has made His case of innocence; He has lived an innocent life. He is ready and willing to fulfill His purpose until the very end.
19:10 Pilate does not understand Jesus' solemnity -- He isn't nervous, panicked or pleading. Pilate wants Jesus to defend Himself so that He can let Him go... but Jesus knows that will not happen and is not the plan of God. Pilate even becomes a little desperate: he reminds Jesus that he has the power to release or sentence him to death.
19:11 Jesus reminds us of the power of God. Nobody has authority over Him. God has allowed these events in order to exhibit to the world the existence, infinity and eternity of God. A world-changing lesson would come from Jesus' crucifixion and Jesus reminds them (and us!) that nothing, no event, no thought, no power exists without God. God has orchestrated Jesus' life on earth as well as Jesus' death on earth.
God knows who is going to perform the major roles in bringing His will to the world. Therefore, Pilate was chosen to perform that particular role and because someone must perform this role of bringing about Jesus' death, his sin is lighter than the minor players -- who are plainly evil and conspiring against Jesus. (If not for the commonly evil, none of these events would even be necessary). Pilate is not evil, he does not want to convict or kill an innocent man.
19:12-16 Pilate is in trouble -- he cannot openly defy orders. He attempts to save Jesus' life several times but without effect. Therefore, Jesus is handed over to His enemies.
19:17-18 Jesus is put on the cross and on either side of him are two other prisoners.
19:19-20 Pilate writes Jesus' supposed crime on the cross: JESUS OF NAZARETH, KING OF THE JEWS. Funnily, Jesus is the king of the Jews because He's the king of all humanity. God sent Him to lead us.
19:21 This is a lie, Jesus never called Himself a king. He came as a servant of God and He indeed served.
19:22 Pilate does not change the writing on the cross -- he suspects the truth of Jesus' words and he surely does not agree with the lies of His enemies.
19:23-24 Scripture is fulfilled: this is an extremely evil bunch. They torture, mock and kill Jesus. They divide His clothes and toss them before Jesus' followers. They wish to strip Him of His glory but they never could. This scripture is from Psalm 22, a psalm written by David concerning his spiritual journey toward God. Jesus recited this entire psalm as it comprehensively explains the life and journey of faithful souls toward God, the love and the protection that come from Him:
The psalm begins as many of us do: it begins with a human who has no foundation or relationship with God. Because this human has no relationship with God, he/she is frustrated and does not understand the reason for life. He/she feels like a lost victim. Yet -- this human begins a journey to find God and this his/her spirituality begins to evolve and grow. They begin to understand because God gifts them with the blessings of understanding, perception and courage. As it continues, he/she grows humble in their faith through their gratitude to our compassionate, selfless God. He/she realizes that God has always been with them... but they have not always been with God.
19:25 Some of Jesus' most faithful followers stand with Him, Mary who was the blessed vessel through which He came, another Mary, and Mary Magdalene the mother of James and John.
19:26-27 Jesus sees them and instructs them to take good care of one another. Jesus asks us to take good care of one another. He has so much love for us; He wishes we would realize it, absorb it and share it.
19:28-29 Again, scripture is fulfilled: Psalm 69:21. The thirst Jesus likely speaks of is the thirst for compassion among humanity.
19:30 It is finished. This is our fourth time covering Jesus' crucifixion and return to God, each from particular angles, giving us layers of more information. Jesus fulfilled His purpose, expertly through to the very end. He dedicated His entire life to humanity, even at the price of undeserved mocking, torture and death.
19:31-32 What totally hypocrisy! They kill an innocent and yet are strict in adhering to their religious law. Be able to identify hypocrisy, there is a lot of it in the world -- even, especially, the religious world.
19:33-37 Jesus' bones are not broken for added measure, they and we know that He no longer remained in His body on earth. Scripture is fulfilled: Psalm 34:20. It's also a metaphor: God never lets us perish; God never lets us break. The spirit of life inside of us, His children, is indestructible. We will be poked and prodded and faced with our enemies but we always live with God.
19:38-40 Joseph loves Jesus. He ensures that Jesus' memory is respected with love and care. Nicodemus, who had recently become a follower of Jesus joined Joseph in tending to His burial. Jesus' message reaches so many people -- and it's important for us to remember that Jesus came to give a home to the people were were lost and confused and making mistakes. With welcoming arms, He offered His love and guidance everybody who wanted it. Do we do the same? He certainly taught us to.
19:41-42 Jesus was buried where the rich and well respected were buried, even though he was falsely tried and killed as a criminal. It is fitting that He had a respectful burial -- He was rich, rich with compassionate and wisdom and faith. Rich with the only wealth that matters and lasts. And He was more than respected, He is loved and revered. Scripture is fulfilled: Isaiah 53:9.
