It was a customary pardon.
A gift, if you will, before the feast of Passover.
Standing before a crowd of angry, screaming faces were two men.
The first, a notorious prisoner. A bandit. A murderer.
The second, a savior. A servant. A king. God in flesh.
To even try to compare the two would seem foolish. Yet, they did have one thing in common…
A name.
You see, the first man was known as Jesus Barabbas.
Break that down into Aramaic and you have Bar, meaning “son” and Abba, meaning “the father.”
When it came time to pardon the prisoner, the crowd was given the final say. They had to choose…
Jesus son of the father or Jesus Son of the Father.
“Give us Barabbas!” they shouted.
You’d think their decision ridiculous—and you’d be right. Even the Roman governor could see the injustice being called for.
But everything hinged on that one ridiculous choice.
Because a criminal was pardoned while an innocent man was slain. . .
We are now free.
On Friday darkness fell across the earth.
The ground trembled. The veil split in two.
Tomorrow he will rest.
Sunday he will rise.
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