1. He Chose to Die
sovereignty and free will meet

2. Introduction
• Sovereignty is the truth that God is in
charge of the universe and its inhabitants
• Part of God’s sovereign plan is to grant all
people both the ability and right to choose

4. Ecce Homo (Behold the Man), Antonio Ciseri

5. On Trial with Pilate
• Pilate chose to abuse and crucify Jesus
– The right to choose is a divine grant
– He ignored the warnings sent by God through
his wife and through Jesus
– He yielded to the persuasions of the crowd
– He was not able to escape his culpability by a
simple dramatic gesture

6. Before the Crowd
• The crowd chose Barabbas instead of Jesus
– Their wish was granted by a human sovereign
– They chose to violate good counsel (from
Pilate) and heed wrong counsel (from peers)
– They rashly accepted responsibility for their
own decision

7. Crucifixion, Harry Anderson

8. The First Thief
• Chose to sin
• Chose to side with the crowd
• Chose to continue the verbal abuse
• Chose to ignore the evidence of Jesus’
identity or innocence
• Chose to ignore his partner’s challenge
• Chose to die in his own sin, justly

9. The Second Thief
• Chose to sin
• Chose to stop railing
• Chose to recognize his own guilt, sin
• Chose to recognize Jesus as the Saving
Sovereign
• Chose to ask for mercy and forgiveness

10. The King of the Jews
• Jesus was the “Chosen One”, the Christ
• He chose NOT to sin
• He chose to finish His course
• He chose to surrender His innocence
• He chose to die to pay the penalty for us
• He chose to offer eternal life to us

11. “He Chose the Nails”
Max Lucado

13. Choices
• Chose to stop railing and start listening
• Admit your own sin and guilt
• Recognize Jesus as your only Saving
Sovereign
• Ask for mercy and forgiveness from Him
• Refuse to continue ignoring this offer