On the Burial of Christ
Read Matthew 27:57-66 and Luke 23:50-56
As He yielded up His spirit, Jesus died on the cross. His body became lifeless as His eternal spirit went back up home, to be with His Father in heaven, awaiting the resurrection.
Joseph of Arimathea, a rich follower of Christ, asked for His body. He wanted to honor His Lord with a proper burial. Pilate grants His request. What does he care about the body of this so-called Messiah? Joseph then proceeded to wrap Jesus’ body in linen burial cloths and place it in his own family tomb. It was newly hewn with no other bodies in it. The final act of burial was setting the stone in place over the entrance. The two women have followed Joseph to the tomb. They look on.
Contrasting that devotion was the fear of the Jewish religious leaders. They anxiously wanted to ensure that the disciples couldn’t break into the tomb, steal Jesus’ body, and claim that He rose from the grave. How ironic that even these hardened unbelievers assumed that His disciples would do that! What they did not know was that the disciples did not believe in Jesus’ own words about His resurrection, let alone His death.
So, Pilate appoints soldiers to guard the tomb. They set an imperial seal on the stone. If anyone tampered with it, they would be put to death. It’s probably nearing Friday evening by then. The soldiers settle in for a night of guarding the tomb from the disciples.
Little did they know that though they were guarding anyone from breaking in, they could not guard anyone from breaking out. They couldn’t conceive of such a thing . . . and, again, neither could Jesus’ own disciples.
Paul says in 1 Cor 15:4 that the burial of Christ is an essential component of the gospel. Why? Because it means that He truly died. It wasn’t a hoax. He wasn’t in a coma. His body wasn’t misplaced. It was stolen by the disciples. He was really buried.
And since He truly died, then everything He said, including the prediction of His own crucifixion, was true. And that means what remains to be fulfilled will come true. We can bank on every word of Christ. None of it will fail, including His word about being raised from the dead.
This is Saturday. Jesus said in three days the resurrection would happen. So, one more day. The divine timer for this momentous week was ticking, counting down to the greatest miracle of all.
Now, on Saturday, we wait with bated breath. Of course, on this side, we know what happened. But back then, no one did. Yet, if they had believed in the resurrection, how full of eager anticipation they would be. How at peace they would have been.
But they were afraid, confused, and most of all, saddened because of their lack of faith. The One they thought was the Messiah had died. There was nothing left to do but go home.
So, what do we do with this story? Here are few thoughts of application to help us bring this story home.
The burial accounts are history, eyewitnesses reports. Everything happened the way we read it. And what do you do with historical facts? You accept them. So, the first application of any truth is faith.
Second, there seem to be so few devoted followers of Christ. Where are the other disciples (even beyond the eleven)? They are nowhere to be found! So, on this side, how close are we to Christ. Is He just a fact, or is He the Lord whom we let into our lives and change us? Do we love Him? Do we want to be with Him, or are we caught up with life and by life?
And lastly, the burial account is an on-ramp to the second half of the story of the cross. We don’t end with a sealed tomb. We end with an open one. We end with a risen Savior who conquered sin and death. That’s Part 2, and that’s the part we’re living in right now. It’s gloriously good, isn’t it? So, be moved to praise and adore Jesus Christ as you look ahead to Sunday. Worship is fitting for who He is and what He’s done for us. And it’s fitting for our souls because it’s what we were made to do.