Read: Mark 14:53-65
After Jesus arrest, His first stop was before the chief priests, elders and scribes. This group represented the Jewish religious leaders. They wanted to convict Jesus of a crime and turn Him over for death. Their problem was, they could not make any charges stick against Him. Even those they had enticed to give false witness against Him could not tell a convincing story. Eventually, it was Jesus Himself who told them that He was the Son of God and that He would come again in glory. It was on Jesus’ testimony, not the testimony of others, that the chief priest condemns Jesus a criminal worthy of death (the claims Jesus made of Himself would have been blasphemous if they were not true). in this way, it is made clear that no one took Jesus life from Him, but He willingly gave up His life Himself as a sacrifice for our sins.
Question of the Day: Jesus was not killed because He did anything wrong. He was killed because the religious leaders failed to recognize who He really was. Who do you say that Jesus really is? (Who we think Jesus is constitutes the most important thing about us – eternally speaking.)