Mark 15:1-15 / The Rejected Messiah
📖 Scripture
1 Very early in the morning, the chief priests, with the elders, the teachers of the law and the whole Sanhedrin, made their plans. So they bound Jesus, led him away and handed him over to Pilate.
2 “Are you the king of the Jews?” asked Pilate. “You have said so,” Jesus replied.
3 The chief priests accused him of many things.
4 So again Pilate asked him, “Aren’t you going to answer? See how many things they are accusing you of.”
5 But Jesus still made no reply, and Pilate was amazed.
6 Now it was the custom at the festival to release a prisoner whom the people requested.
7 A man called Barabbas was in prison with the insurrectionists who had committed murder in the uprising.
8 The crowd came up and asked Pilate to do for them what he usually did.
9 “Do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?” asked Pilate,
10 knowing it was out of self-interest that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him.
11 But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have Pilate release Barabbas instead.
12 “What shall I do, then, with the one you call the king of the Jews?” Pilate asked them.
13 “Crucify him!” they shouted.
14 “Why? What crime has he committed?” asked Pilate. But they shouted all the louder, “Crucify him!”
15 Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. He had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.
✅ Scripture Summary
✅ Memory verse
✅ Reflection
A Silence Louder than Words (15:1–5)
Jesus is silent before His accusers, and His silence speaks louder than words. The accusation that He is the king of the Jews is offensive to the Jewish leaders who do not realize that He really is the Messiah king that the Jews have been waiting for. It is politically scandalous to the Roman leaders who only recognize the Roman emperor. Pilate is amazed by Jesus’ silence because the natural response to accusation is to defend yourself. Jesus is not guilty of any crime, but He remains silent because He knows that He is on His way to the cross. His wrongful conviction is part of God’s plan to take the place of sinners who are truly guilty. May Jesus’ silence resonate loudly in our hearts, reminding us of His loving sacrifice.
Take a moment of silence to reflect on Jesus’ silence before His accusers. What does His silence reveal about His humble submission to the Father’s will?
The People’s Choice (15:6–15)
The people are given a choice: free Barabbas who was in prison for murder, or free Jesus who is accused of being the king of the Jews. Even the Roman governor Pilate knows that the chief priests have handed Jesus over out of their selfish interests. However, they are successful in convincing the crowds to release Barabbas. The people choose to kill Jesus, but Jesus also chooses to die for them. The one who was rightfully accused is mercifully released, and the one who was wrongfully accused surrenders Himself to death on the cross. People today also have a choice: to believe and follow Jesus Christ or to reject Him. May we choose wisely and encourage others to do the same.
Consider the mercy God has shown you in letting you go free on account of Christ paying for your sins. Thank Him for making forgiveness available to you.
“Thanks to the Spirit, those who confess Jesus Christ as Lord really do have a share in his life, and this includes his sense of sonship, desire to do God’s will, and compassion for others.”
– Kevin J. Vanhoozer
✅ Prayer
Heavenly Father, there are times when I do not obey You as I should. I speak when I should be silent, and I am silent when I should speak. As Jesus followed Your will in perfect obedience, help me to follow You. In His name I pray, amen.
✅ Essay
On Being Like Barabbas
The people had a choice: Barabbas the murderer or Jesus the Redeemer. They could choose a rightfully convicted criminal or a wrongfully accused Savior. One had taken lives; the other surrendered His life for others. By both Jewish and Roman law, Barabbas deserved to die, but he would live. Jesus deserved to live, but He would die. Yet, without realizing it, the people made the choice that they needed for their salvation. They could not receive eternal life if Jesus did not die on the cross. They thought they were putting to death a troublemaker when, in fact, they were giving life to a movement of “troublemakers;” Jesus’ followers spread throughout the Roman empire and would be accused of causing “trouble all over the world” (Acts 17:6). As sinners deserving death, we see ourselves in Barabbas. Just as Jesus exchanges places with Barabbas, allowing Himself to die while Barabbas lives, Jesus also exchanges His life for ours. He died so that we might live. “God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8). We are all rightfully convicted criminals, guilty of breaking the holy laws of God, but Jesus has taken our guilt upon Himself, granting us forgiveness through His righteousness. Thank God for this great exchange which allowed Jesus to take our place! By God’s grace, He gives us this gift “through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe” (Rom. 3:22).
Written by Kris Anderson