1. Pilate has a final word (16b-22)

Jesus carried his own cross to the place of the Skull, Golgotha. There he was crucified between two criminals. Pilate had a notice fastened to the cross: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS. It was an expression of his contempt for the Jews (their king, a crucified criminal), but it was also a statement of his own conviction about Jesus. The Jews objected, but Pilate did not change what he had written. Jesus was King (18:36-38).

2. What the soldiers did (23-24)

The soldiers at the foot of the cross gambled for Jesus' clothes. They did not know that God was using them to fulfill scripture (Ps 22:18).

3. Jesus' unchanging love (25-27)

In the midst of his own suffering, Jesus was mindful of others. He gave his mother a son and his beloved disciple a mother. His mother became a part of his spiritual family. She, with his brothers, would participate in the continuing work of God (Ac 1:14).

Application: Lord, let your love flow into my heart. Rule my heart and life today.
One Word: Jesus, King and Shepherd