Behold the Man! (John 18:1-27)

[Sung Psalm: 22]

A week earlier, Jesus had ascended up from Jericho to Jerusalem. Praised by the crowds as the son of David - the promised Messiah who would rule over the nations with a rod of iron - he had come to his own. But his own did not receive him.

Now he has been betrayed by one of his own disciples, condemned by his own high priest, and stands before the Roman governor as an outlaw – cast outside the law of both God and man.

And yet as he reaches the depths of his humiliation, he is also lifted up to reach the pinnacle of his exaltation. As he had said, "If I am lifted up, I will draw all people to myself." It is only through the joint action of Jew and Gentile alike that he can be offered as the final sacrifice that will atone for the sin of the world...