Easter - Where It HappenedSample

Before Jesus went to the cross, He was brought before Pilate, the Roman leader in charge of the area of Judea, where He was asked the question, “Are you a king?” This might seem like a strange question. Jesus didn’t live in a palace, He didn’t wear fancy clothes or jewels, and His parents weren’t royalty. So why did Pilate ask this question?

It has to do with the events that happened one week earlier, a week before Jesus went to the cross, on a day we now remember as “Palm Sunday.” A huge crowd gathered as Jesus entered Jerusalem on a donkey. They waved palm leaves and cheered for Him, praising Him, “Blessed is the king!” they yelled. The people were excited because they believed Jesus was the king they had been expecting, the one who had been prophesied about. The people thought He would be an earthly king, they expected Him to overthrow the rulers of the day, the Roman Empire, to make Israel its own kingdom once more. What they didn’t understand was that Jesus is the king for the whole world. The plan was so much bigger than they imagined.

Jesus answered Pilot’s question “Are you a king?” but He also established what His kingdom was. It wasn’t the earthly kingdom the people in Jerusalem had thought a week before. It is a kingdom from another place, a heavenly kingdom. Jesus declares that He is our King, that He was born to bring truth. Jesus explains that His kingdom will last forever, it will never fade away. We serve a King that has risen! Jesus is alive!