How Satan Took on Christ Jesus
Killing a person was a grave matter even in Jerusalem 2000 years ago. But why was Christ Jesus killed?
It was Roman soldiers that were directly in charge of executing the death penalty on Christ Jesus. These soldiers belonged to a Roman governor of the region. Then, why did the Roman governor decide to kill Christ Jesus? Especially, He was executed on the Cross, which meant that the execution of the death penalty was official rather than a sideline job of the governor. How did he make a report on this official execution of Christ Jesus? Unfortunately, there are no relevant records.
In the Gospel of Luke, after the Sanhedrin trial of Jesus, the Jewish elders ask Pontius Pilate to judge and condemn Jesus in 23:2, accusing Jesus of making false claims of being a king. While questioning Jesus about the claim of being the King of the Jews, Pilate realizes that Jesus is a Galilean, and that Jesus is under Herod's jurisdiction. Given that Herod was in Jerusalem at that time, Pilate decides to send Jesus to Herod to be tried.
Herod Antipas (the same man who had previously ordered the death of John the Baptist) had wanted to see Jesus for a long time, because he had been hoping to observe one of the miracles of Jesus.[6] However, Jesus says nothing in response to Herod's questions, or the vehement accusations of the chief priests and the scribes.
Herod and his soldiers mock Jesus, put a gorgeous robe on him, as the King of the Jews, and sent him back to Pilate. And Herod and Pilate become friends with each other that day: for before they were at enmity. (Luke 23:12, KJV)
The Gospel of Luke does not state that Herod did not condemn Jesus, and instead attributes that conclusion to Pilate who then calls together the Jewish elders, and says to them:[6]So, Roman governor Pilate did not take initiatives to execute Christ Jesus because he thought that Christ Jesus who was accused of calling himself the king of Israel was really dangerous. If a Roman governor had found an enemy of the Roman Empire in any foreigner, he would have taken initiatives to execute him. For a Roman governor to find an enemy of the Roman Empire and execute him might be not a bad thing. It might even become merit for him. The governor who executed a foreign insurgent might proudly report it to Rome. Yet, a governor could not execute an innocent man. If he had put to death an innocent man on a false charge, it might have been also reported to Rome, and he could have been demoted. So, it was natural that governor Pilate consulted with Jewish leaders, so that they would not betray him.I having examined him before you, found no fault in this man touching those things whereof ye accuse him: no, nor yet Herod: for he sent him back unto us; and behold, nothing worthy of death hath been done by him.After further conversations between Pilate and the Jewish elders, Jesus is sent to be crucified on Calvary.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesus_at_Herod%27s_court
Put simply, priests in the Jerusalem temple and leaders of the Jewish people knew that it was not difficult to convince Pilate that he had to execute Christ Jesus. Calling oneself the king of the Jewish people did not constitute a grave crime. Roman soldiers would simply laugh at such a man if he had no military power. Even Pilate would laugh at someone that called himself the Son of God of Jewish people.
However, if many Jewish people had come to believe that Christ Jesus was the Son of God and He should ascend the throne as the king of Israel, there could have been a big trouble for Jewish priests in the Jerusalem Temple and Jewish leaders. They would lose their status that gave them big wealth and power over Jewish people, if Jewish people had supported and helped Christ Jesus become the lord of Jerusalem and the Jerusalem temple. So, they sent spies around and in the band of Christ Jesus to gather information about Him. And, based on the information, they decided to have Pilate execute Christ Jesus. Then, what was the most important finding for them? Did they find that Christ Jesus was going to touch off the revolt against the Jewish authority if not against the Roam authority?
Anyway, the conclusion of their conspiracy was to have Pilate execute Christ Jesus. Consequently, due to the execution of Christ Jesus, Jewish priests and leaders could enjoy status, honor, wealth, power, and privileges for next decades till the Jewish-Roman war. Indeed, Satan uses status, honor, wealth, power, and privileges to have people sell their souls to him, even today.
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Joh 3:8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.