(Inspired by John 19: 1-16) Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea, stood before the chanting crowd and literally felt sick to his stomach. He knew that the chief priests had arrested Jesus the Nazarene out of pure jealousy. Their hatred of the teacher was so great that they were doing everything they could to force Pilate to kill him, but…
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41 – Truth’s Witness
(Inspired by John 18: 28-40) Things were going Caiaphas’s way, and he was quite pleased about it. He and his cronies had arrested Jesus, the controversial teacher from Nazareth, and had managed to finagle a death sentence for Him. Now only one step remained to complete their plan to kill Jesus, and that was to convince Pilate, the Roman governor,…
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40 – Discovering You’re Not Who You Think You Are
(Inspired by John 18: 12-27) As Jesus’s disciples fled through the dark, forested hillside, the Roman soldiers roughly arrested Jesus and tied His hands like a criminal. Satisfied that the first part of their orders were completed, the Roman cohort and the temple guards marched the Nazarene down the hill, across the Kidron Valley, and into the sleeping city. After…
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39 – God’s costly Cup
(Inspired by John 18:1-11) When Jesus completed His special prayer for his followers, He turned and led them to the little garden that was His favorite spot on the Mount of Olives. The burden that He was carrying was almost more than He could bear, and He needed to spend what time He had left talking with His Father about…
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38 – Jesus’s Last Gift to Us Before the Cross
(Inspired by John 17:1-26) Jesus stood on the Mount of Olives, looking across to the city of Jerusalem glowing in the moonlight. The Teacher had just finished encouraging His disciples on this sad night, and now He was contemplating His ministry. He had spent almost three years revealing to the Jews what their heavenly Father was really like. In the…
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37 – In Christ Even Our Failures Bring Peace
(Inspired by John 16:16-33) There was a lot on Jesus’s mind. He knew that His friend Judas was betraying Him right at that moment and that his treachery would lead Jesus to the cross. The Teacher needed some alone time with His Father in heaven before it all started, so He led the eleven remaining disciples to His favorite spot,…
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