Have You Weighed The Cost?

Introduction

  • Tensions could not have been higher between Romans and Jews 
  • Pilate was a dysfunctional governor
  • High counsel was corrupted by worldly power

Mark 15: 1 – 15 NLT

Jesus’ Trial before Pilate
1Very early in the morning the leading priests, the elders, and the teachers of religious law—the entire high council—met to discuss their next step. They bound Jesus, led him away, and took him to Pilate, the Roman governor.
2Pilate asked Jesus, “Are you the king of the Jews?”
Jesus replied, “You have said it.”
3Then the leading priests kept accusing him of many crimes, 4and Pilate asked him, “Aren’t you going to answer them? What about all these charges they are bringing against you?” 5But Jesus said nothing, much to Pilate’s surprise.
6Now it was the governor’s custom each year during the Passover celebration to release one prisoner—anyone the people requested. 7One of the prisoners at that time was Barabbas, a revolutionary who had committed murder in an uprising. 8The crowd went to Pilate and asked him to release a prisoner as usual.
9“Would you like me to release to you this ‘King of the Jews’?” Pilate asked. 10(For he realized by now that the leading priests had arrested Jesus out of envy.) 11But at this point the leading priests stirred up the crowd to demand the release of Barabbas instead of Jesus. 12Pilate asked them, “Then what should I do with this man you call the king of the Jews?”
13They shouted back, “Crucify him!”
14“Why?” Pilate demanded. “What crime has he committed?”
But the mob roared even louder, “Crucify him!”
15So to pacify the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. He ordered Jesus flogged with a lead-tipped whip, then turned him over to the Roman soldiers to be crucified.
  • Governor’s custom each year to release prisoner
    • Barabbas was a political revolutionary guilty of murdering Roman officials
      • Barabbas and Jesus accused of the same crime; Jesus is innocent, and Barabbas is guilty
  • Cross symbol of Roman power
    • Irony of the Jews calling for crucifixion, embracing a Roman custom amid rebellion 

Mark 15: 16 – 32

The Soldiers Mock Jesus
16The soldiers took Jesus into the courtyard of the governor’s headquarters (called the Praetorium) and called out the entire regiment. 17They dressed him in a purple robe, and they wove thorn branches into a crown and put it on his head. 18Then they saluted him and taunted, “Hail! King of the Jews!” 19And they struck him on the head with a reed stick, spit on him, and dropped to their knees in mock worship. 20When they were finally tired of mocking him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him again. Then they led him away to be crucified.
The Crucifixion
21A passerby named Simon, who was from Cyrene, was coming in from the countryside just then, and the soldiers forced him to carry Jesus’ cross. (Simon was the father of Alexander and Rufus.) 22And they brought Jesus to a place called Golgotha (which means “Place of the Skull”). 23They offered him wine drugged with myrrh, but he refused it.
24Then the soldiers nailed him to the cross. They divided his clothes and threw dice to decide who would get each piece. 25It was nine o’clock in the morning when they crucified him. 26A sign announced the charge against him. It read, “The King of the Jews.” 27Two revolutionaries were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left.
29The people passing by shouted abuse, shaking their heads in mockery. “Ha! Look at you now!” they yelled at him. “You said you were going to destroy the Temple and rebuild it in three days. 30Well then, save yourself and come down from the cross!”
31The leading priests and teachers of religious law also mocked Jesus. “He saved others,” they scoffed, “but he can’t save himself! 32Let this Messiah, this King of Israel, come down from the cross so we can see it and believe him!” Even the men who were crucified with Jesus ridiculed him.

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Analysis: Paying the Cost

 

  • Physical Cost – External
      • We often find pride in physical suffering
  • Emotional Cost – Internal
    • It is easier to endure physical pain in our temporary bodies, but it is much more challenging to endure emotional pain that strikes at our very soul.
    • It’s inconvenient to follow Jesus and value our convenience (that is only granted to us through Christ, by the way, more than serving the one who awarded it to us)

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Application

 

  • Tough Love
    • You are either being conformed or transformed. 
  • Hope
    • Religion & Legalism vs. Liberalism & Antinomianism 
      • Following the letter of the law vs. the heart of the law
        • What is the difference between bondage and commitment: perspective
    • I fear that we don’t see prayer, the bible, and tithing as a gift but as an obligation, and instead of thanking God for them, we say, “Geez, that’s a little too inconvenient for me.”
      • If there is anything in your life you believe is not worth giving up for the sake of Jesus, you have fully embraced a lie.
      • The good news is that nothing is more valuable than becoming an apprentice and disciple of Christ.

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Sermon Questions

  1. Living in Tension: Reflecting on Mark 15:1-15, how do we see the contrast between the innocent Jesus and the guilty Barabbas, and what does this tell us about the cost of following Jesus in a world that often embraces the wrong values?
  2. Inside Out: Considering the physical and emotional costs mentioned in Mark 15:16-32, how can we reconcile the pride we sometimes take in our physical sufferings with the deeper, more challenging internal struggles we face as followers of Christ?
  3. The Renewing of Your Mind: In the application section, Mitchell mentions the difference between bondage and commitment and our attitude toward spiritual practices like prayer, the Bible, and tithing. How can we shift our perspective to see these practices as gifts rather than obligations, and what practical steps can we take to fully embrace the value of being an apprentice and disciple of Christ?

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