References:

• Still being in the season of Easter I wanted to share with you some powerful insights the Lord laid on my heart that I shared with people at our late Good Friday Service.
  • Reading the Passion According to St John 18:1-19:42
  • Three images of power
    • John 18:3-9
    • John 19:5-11
    • John 19:25-27
• The display of worldly power met by True Power
  • As the contingent arrived with torches, clubs and weapons, Jesus “stepped forward.”
  • Jesus interrogated this group, “who are you looking for?”
  • When they said Jesus the Nazarene, Jesus said 
    • “I Am.” - Ἐγώ εἰμι - ego eimi
    • Moses asking God at the burning bush “Who should I say sent me?” God responded with “I Am that I Am. Tell them ‘I Am’ sent you.”
    • At Jesus’ declaration of the divine name, the one’s who thought they had all the power were defeated, knocked over.
• The person who had the worldly power in that entire region is corrected by the I Am with all the real power.
  • Pilate brings the scourged, abused, bloodied, thorn crowned Jesus out to the people following the strong-arming of the soldiers.
  • The religious leaders say Jesus deserves to die because He claimed to be “son of god.”
    • I put son and god in lower case to suggest how Pilate may have heard these words.
    • That would have reminded him of how the Roman Emperor would take the name “divi filius,” Latin for son of god.
    • Pilate plays his last power card.
      • Don’t you realize I have the authority to set you free or crucify you?
      • Jesus corrects Pilate. You have no authority except what has been given to you from My Father.
• In Jesus’ final sayings from the cross He demonstrates the power to still obey His Father by keeping the 5th of the 10 commandments.
  • Honor your father and mother.
  • Jesus saw to the completion of His obedience by entrusting John with it’s fulfillment.
  • He calls us to fulfill His love for others by the new commandment to love others as we’ve been loved by Jesus.