Inspired Dedication
Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if Jesus had already died. When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he gave the body to Joseph. So Joseph bought some linen cloth, took down the body, wrapped it in linen, and placed it in a tomb cut out of rock. Then he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joseph saw where it was laid. Mark 15:44-47, NIV.
Whatever was to be done with the body of Jesus had to take place quickly. He had died at three on Friday afternoon and the Sabbath was rapidly approaching.
It frequently happened that criminals hung for days on their crosses before dying. Thus it surprised Pilate that Jesus had gone so quickly. And now there was the body. In most cases that would not have been an issue. Many of the crucified were never buried. Their bodies merely got taken down from their cross and left on the ground where wild dogs and vultures dealt with them. Others found burial in one of the cemeteries reserved for criminals and other undesirable individuals.
In that context, Pilate must have been shocked when approached by the wealthy and quite orthodox Joseph of Arimathea. To the Roman official it seemed merely one more perplexing situation in what undoubtedly was the most unusual crucifixion of his governorship. We don't know what was going on in his mind, but we do know that he gave Joseph the body after he had ascertained that Jesus was truly dead.
According to John's Gospel, Joseph owned an unusual tomb. Only a wealthy person could have owned such a burial chamber. Hewn out of solid rock, they often had several ledged on which to place the bodies. The tombs themselves were generally tall enough to stand in, but the doorway was probably not more than four feet high. A track was cut in stone on the outside, and when the body had been placed, a large circular stone was rolled along the track to close the entrance.
Jesus not only had a rich man's tomb, but also a preparation fit for a king. John tells us that Nicodemus brought about 100 pounds of spices, a gift that overshadowed the earlier anointing of Mary by 100 times. And the spices in that precrucifixion had been worth 100 day's wages (John 12:3-5). Truly it can be said that Jesus fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah 53:9 that "they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth" (RSV).
Help me, Father, to be as inspired to dedication by the death of Jesus as were Joseph and Nicodemus. May it continue to transform my life as it did theirs.
Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if Jesus had already died. When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he gave the body to Joseph. So Joseph bought some linen cloth, took down the body, wrapped it in linen, and placed it in a tomb cut out of rock. Then he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joseph saw where it was laid. Mark 15:44-47, NIV.
Whatever was to be done with the body of Jesus had to take place quickly. He had died at three on Friday afternoon and the Sabbath was rapidly approaching.
It frequently happened that criminals hung for days on their crosses before dying. Thus it surprised Pilate that Jesus had gone so quickly. And now there was the body. In most cases that would not have been an issue. Many of the crucified were never buried. Their bodies merely got taken down from their cross and left on the ground where wild dogs and vultures dealt with them. Others found burial in one of the cemeteries reserved for criminals and other undesirable individuals.
In that context, Pilate must have been shocked when approached by the wealthy and quite orthodox Joseph of Arimathea. To the Roman official it seemed merely one more perplexing situation in what undoubtedly was the most unusual crucifixion of his governorship. We don't know what was going on in his mind, but we do know that he gave Joseph the body after he had ascertained that Jesus was truly dead.
According to John's Gospel, Joseph owned an unusual tomb. Only a wealthy person could have owned such a burial chamber. Hewn out of solid rock, they often had several ledged on which to place the bodies. The tombs themselves were generally tall enough to stand in, but the doorway was probably not more than four feet high. A track was cut in stone on the outside, and when the body had been placed, a large circular stone was rolled along the track to close the entrance.
Jesus not only had a rich man's tomb, but also a preparation fit for a king. John tells us that Nicodemus brought about 100 pounds of spices, a gift that overshadowed the earlier anointing of Mary by 100 times. And the spices in that precrucifixion had been worth 100 day's wages (John 12:3-5). Truly it can be said that Jesus fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah 53:9 that "they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth" (RSV).
Help me, Father, to be as inspired to dedication by the death of Jesus as were Joseph and Nicodemus. May it continue to transform my life as it did theirs.
RSS Feed
