So Pilate then took Jesus and had Him flogged. And the soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and placed it on His head, and put a purple cloak on Him; and they repeatedly came up to Him and said, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and slapped Him in the face again and again. And then Pilate came out again and said to them, “See, I am bringing Him out to you so that you will know that I find no grounds at all for charges in His case.” Jesus then came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate said to them, “Behold, the Man!” So when the chief priests and the officers saw Him, they shouted, saying, “Crucify, crucify!” Pilate said to them, “Take Him yourselves and crucify Him; for I find no grounds for charges in His case!” The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and by that law He ought to die, because He made Himself out to be the Son of God!”

Therefore when Pilate heard this statement, he was even more afraid; and he entered the Praetorium again and said to Jesus, “Where are You from?” But Jesus gave him no answer. So Pilate said to Him, “Are you not speaking to me? Do You not know that I have authority to release You, and I have authority to crucify You?” Jesus answered him, “You would have no authority over Me at all, if it had not been given to you from above; for this reason the one who handed Me over to you has the greater sin.”

-- John 19:1-11

Questions
What does Good Friday mean to you?
What moves you about this scene between Jesus, Pilate and the crowd?
They put the crown of thorns on the head of the Lord. What does royalty mean?

Prayer
Lord, on this Good Friday, we repent of all the ways we participate in sin. We turn our heads , unable to look as suffering , when instead we are called to see fully what our sin has brought. We are humbled at your grace in the face of the depth of our sin. Amen.