Chapter 19 of John tells of Jesus in the hands of Pilate. Pilate was an interesting individual. He was a weak leader. According to the piece of historical evidence we have for him we see that he was the “prefect” of this area. Basically, he was a military man. He had soldiers, was responsible for collecting taxes, and had limited judicial authority. He was, ultimately, responsible to Rome but he was in Judea. Any other matters of civil administration was up to the local government, aka the Sanhedrin, with the leader of the Sanhedrin being the High Priest. This was the way that Rome dealt with all of its conquered territories. It differed from many other conquerors because it did not try to completely subjugate the people in every way. Instead, they tried to allow the local people to govern themselves to a certain extent, as long as they ultimately submitted to Rome. This is why we see the back and forth between the Jews and Pilate. The Jews wanted Pilate to rule on Jesus as a person who was treasonous against the Roman Empire. The reason for that is that the punishment for this crime was death.
John 18:31
[31] Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.” The Jews said to him, “It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death.” (ESV)
The Jews wanted Jesus DEAD. But, they couldn’t do it themselves. Pilate didn’t want Jesus dead, but he was weak and didn’t want to go against the people he was in charge of. Pilate couldn’t give Jesus death for simply going against the rules of the Jews – that wouldn’t have been lawful. That is why we have the sign that reads, “King of the Jews” hangs above Jesus’ head. A man could be killed for treason. This was a good enough compromise for Pilate to keep both Rome and the Jews happy enough.
How could the Sanhedrin do this? How could the Jewish people do this? They knew that Jesus was not a traitor to Rome. They did hate him for what He said, but why? I think we see the reason in verses 5-7.
John 19:5–8 (Emphasis my own, not in the Scriptures.)
[5] So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, “Behold the man!” [6] When the chief priests and the officers saw him, they cried out, “Crucify him, crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and crucify him, for I find no guilt in him.” [7] The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die because he has made himself the Son of God.” [8] When Pilate heard this statement, he was even more afraid. (ESV)
The issue is not treason. The issue is that Jesus was not a “man”. He also did not “make(made) himself the Son of God”. He was the Son of God.
Pilate was a weak leader who tried to please everyone. We need to make sure we do not show that same weakness. Jesus was not just a good man, or a good teacher. He was not just a moral leader or a person of integrity. He was the Son of the living God. It is for this reason that we come together at this time and remember Him. Not because He was a man, but because He was God. We thank Him for coming to the Earth in the form of a man, but in the divinity of God made flesh. We thank our God for dying for us in this brutal fashion with trumped up and illegitimate charges but weak men who were unwilling to acknowledge the truth. **Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God.