{"id":98192,"date":"2026-09-24T11:47:14","date_gmt":"2026-09-24T16:47:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/?p=98192"},"modified":"2026-09-24T11:47:14","modified_gmt":"2026-09-24T16:47:14","slug":"behold-our-king","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/behold-our-king\/","title":{"rendered":"Behold Our King"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\t

by Clay Gentry<\/p>\n

“Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole battalion before him. And they stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on his head and put a reed in his right hand. And kneeling before him, they mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” And they spit on him and took the reed and struck him on the head. And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes on him and led him away to crucify him<\/em>” (Matthew 27:27-31).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Imagine standing in the stone courtyard inside the governor’s headquarters. Around you are six hundred Roman soldiers – seasoned, hardened, and bored. In the center stands Jesus, just brutalized by the whip. His skin is torn, His breathing is ragged, and blood pools at His feet. Then the game begins. They don’t just want to execute Him; they want to erase His dignity. They draped His bleeding shoulders in a discarded scarlet cloak, crowned Him with platted thorns, handed Him a stick for a scepter, and bowed in theatrical mockery: “Hail, King of the Jews!<\/em>” It was meant to be funny. They thought they were performing a parody of His kingship, but they were unwittingly crowning the Sovereign of the Universe. Today, we continue our study of clothing in the Bible; let’s look past Rome’s sarcasm and behold the glory of our King in His humiliation.<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Our King’s Attire:\n
      \n
    1. The Scarlet Robe: A garment of mockery stained with royal blood. | Matthew 27:28; Isaiah 53:5\n
        \n
      1. The soldiers dressed Him in a scarlet robe; His blood deepened its hue to royal purple. | cf. Mark 15:17; John 19:2<\/li>\n
      2. He wore the garment of human contempt so He could clothe us in salvation. | Isaiah 61:10\n
          \n
        1. This is echoed in such hymns as “My Hope Is Built on Nothing Less” (v. 4, “When He shall come with trumpet sound, O may I then in Him be found, Dressed in His righteousness alone, Faultless to stand before the throne”) and “Rock of Ages” (v. 3, “Naked, come to Thee for dress; Helpless, look to Thee for grace”).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n
        2. The Crown of Thorns: A cruel crown that carries a profound curse. | Matthew 27:29; Genesis 3:17-18\n
            \n
          1. Thorns were the literal, earth-wide symbol of the Fall and human rebellion.<\/li>\n
          2. Jesus wears the physical emblem of the Curse on His brow and didn’t take it off.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n
          3. The Reed Scepter: A stick or cane mocking His sovereignty. | Matthew 27:29; Isaiah 42:3; I Corinthians 1:25\n
              \n
            1. Placed in His hand to mock a ruler who seemed to have no real, enforceable power.<\/li>\n
            2. His Kingdom isn’t established by force, but wielded through sacrificial love.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n
            3. The Mocking of Our King:\n
                \n
              1. Mock Worship: The scene’s chiastic center. | Matthew 27:29\n
                  \n
                1. Kneeling in fake homage, the soldiers sarcastically hailed Him as “King of the Jews.”\n
                    \n
                  1. Matthew 27:27-Soldiers took Jesus.<\/li>\n
                  2. Matthew 27:28-They stripped Him.<\/li>\n
                  3. Matthew 27:29-Crown on head and reed in hand.<\/li>\n
                  4. Matthew 27:29-Kneeling before Him.<\/li>\n
                  5. Matthew 27:30-Spit on face… hit head with reed.<\/li>\n
                  6. Matthew 27:31-They stripped Him.<\/li>\n
                  7. Matthew 27:31-Soldiers led Him away to the cross.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n
                  8. The Roman centurion who watched Him die would soon declare in truth: “Truly this was the Son of God!” | Matthew 27:36, 54; cf. Mark 15:39; Luke 23:47-48<\/li>\n
                  9. One day, every knee will bow, and every tongue confess His lordship in true worship. | Philippians 2:9-11<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n
                  10. Spitting and Striking: The Creator endured human contempt. | Matthew 27:30-31\n
                      \n
                    1. Spitting was the ANEs’ ultimate gesture of contempt. | Isaiah 50:6; Matthew 26:67-68; cf. Job 17:6; 30:10<\/li>\n
                    2. Repeated blows to the head drove the thorns’ curse deeper into the King’s brow.<\/li>\n
                    3. He bore these insults without retaliation. | I Peter 2:22-23; cf. Matthew 5:39<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n
                    4. Our King’s Exaltation:\n
                        \n
                      1. Salvation through humiliation is God’s timeless pattern of redemption.<\/li>\n
                      2. God allowed His own name to be profaned among the nations during the Exile to discipline and restore His people. | Leviticus 26:14-45; Ezekiel 36:16-36<\/li>\n
                      3. Through His crucifixion, Jesus absorbed the ultimate mockery to enact the long-promised new covenant cleansing. | I Corinthians 1:18-25<\/li>\n
                      4. He wore a robe stained in blood so our filthy garments could be washed white in the blood of the Lamb. | Isaiah 1:18-20; Revelation 7:13-14; 19:11-21<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                        When you look at Jesus in Matthew 27:27-31, you aren’t looking at a helpless victim of tragic circumstances; you’re looking at divine strength under absolute control. Because He chose to suffer for us, He gives us the strength to endure for Him. So, when life brings suffering, when obedience costs you your status, and when the world treats your faith with contempt… look back to the stone courtyard and behold our King. Look at Him who wore the bloody robe of mockery so we could be clothed in royal righteousness. Who bore the crown of the Curse, so we could inherit eternal life. Who took the merciless blows of the mock scepter so we could be ruled by His grace. And who was vilely spit upon. Look at the Savior who endured it all for us, and let us follow in His steps. On that day, the world bowed its knee in mockery, but one day, every knee will bow in truth. Don’t wait for the Judgment Day to bow your heart – today, give Him the honor He bought with His blood.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                        by Clay Gentry “Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole battalion before him. And they stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on his head and put a reed in his right hand.…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[32],"tags":[228],"class_list":["post-98192","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sermon","tag-crucifixion"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":9632,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/did-jesus-carry-his-cross\/","url_meta":{"origin":98192,"position":0},"title":"Did Jesus carry his cross?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 1, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Jesus never carried the material cross, and he never fell either! 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