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Pilate

Lesson  Matt. 27:2-26, Mk. 15:15, Luke 23:1-25, John 18-19:16

Discussion points:
  • Jews bring Jesus to Pilate
    • he has authority to execute
    • having the Romans kill Jesus would keep the Jews that supported Jesus from being angry at the Jewish leaders
  • Pilate questions Jesus about the charges
    • stirs up unrest, resists taxation, claims to be a King
    • Pilate finds nothing to charge Jesus with
    • Pilate knows the leaders have brought Jesus to him out of envy
    • Sends Jesus to Herod Antipas
  • Life of Jesus Bingo
  • Herod Antipas is the Jewish ruler set up by Rome to rule Galilee, where Jesus is from
    • Herod hopes to see Jesus perform a miracle, but is disappointed
    • He allowed his soldiers to viciously mock Jesus, and sent him back to Pilate
  • Pilate tries to free Jesus by offering him or a murderer to go free
    • The Jewish leaders urge the mob to release Barabbas instead
    • Pilate's wife warns Pilate that her dreams warned her that Jesus was just
    • Pilate offers to scourge Jesus and free him
    • The crowd demands he be crucified, and threaten to tell Caesar he has released a traitor
    • Pilate refuses to be blamed and the crowd accept the blame for the charge
    • Pilate relents and they take Jesus to be crucified
Sing: Jesus loves me

Activity: Trace the route of Jesus' travels on a map of Jerusalem.

True or False
  1. Pilate was the Roman governor. T
  2. The Jewish rulers were honest men. F
  3. Pilate knew that Jesus was a just man. T
  4. Jesus washed his hands while the crowd watched. F
  5. Pilate's wife had a disturbing dream about Jesus. T
Review Questions for gameboard

 linguistic questions
  1. Spell crucify.
  2. Recite the books of the Bible that describe Jesus' trials. (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John)
  3. Why did Jesus remain silent in so much of the trial? (he knew when the questions were sincere and when they weren't)
  activity questions
  1. Act out the crowd calling for Barabbas.
  2. Act out Pilate washing his hands.
  3. Find Herod's palace on a map of Jerusalem.
  emotion questions
  1. How did Pilate's wife feel after her dream? (anxious, scared)
  2. How did Pilate probably feel about being pressured to execute Jesus? (frustrated, angry, reluctant)
  3. What are some things Jesus must have been feeling during this trial? (sorrow, pain, frustration, exhaustion, anger, hurt, disappointment)
application questions
  1. Should we allow threats or crowds to make us do what we know is wrong? (no)
  2. Is Pilate responsible for the choice he made? (yes)
  3. How should we handle stressful confrontations, or physical abuse? (as Jesus did: we should not get drawn into meaningless arguments; when unavoidable, we must endure persecution with patience)
fact questions
  1. Who was Herod Antipas? (roman appointed King of Jewry, in charge of Galilee)
  2. What did Herod expect from Jesus? (miracles, begging for mercy, defensiveness)
  3. What offer did Pilate make the Jews to free Jesus? (he offered a wicked murderer or Jesus, probably hoping they would not want Barabbas.)
  4. What did the soldiers do to Jesus in mockery? (made a crown of thorns, put a purple robe on him and a reed for a scepter, mocked him as king)
review questions
  1. Why did Pilate send Jesus to Herod? (to "pass the buck")
  2. Why did Pilate wash his hands before the crowd? (to show that he disapproved of the decision and to claim no responsibility)
  3. Why did Jesus not defend himself before Herod? (he knew that it would do no good.)