“Later Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jews. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night…Taking Jesus’ body, the two of them wrapped it, with spices, in strips of linen…At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid. Because it was the Jewish day of preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.” (John 19:38-42)
“The women who had come with Jesus from Galilee followed Joseph and saw the tomb…then they went home…but they rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment.” (Luke 23:55, 56)
There is Maundy Thursday and Good Friday and Easter Sunday but what about Saturday. In the Scripture there is a pause in this weekend marking God’s wonderful work of redemption. It is the Sabbath day for the faithful in the Jewish community. It began at sunset on Friday night and continued to sunset on Saturday.
In the events recorded above we see a great deal of activity to make sure that Jesus is in the tomb by sunset (Sabbath). There are two groups that deserve some attention in this moment. First, it was an important Jewish custom that the dead be buried before the Sabbath so two Jewish officials, Joseph and Nicodemus, felt the need to honor Jesus by obeying this ritual. Both of them were part of the religious elite that were responsible for Jesus’ death but they were secretly disciples of Jesus. Of course, this would no longer be the case after this event. They would now become known as the “secret” disciples. We are never told but I am sure that this act of obedience and homage to Jesus put their positions as leaders in jeopardy. I would be willing to bet that they lost their jobs and their influence. But…they obeyed. They came out of hiding and finally proclaimed their faith without reserve. You know, it’s never to late to step out into the light and let people know that you are a follower of Jesus. This Easter is a great opportunity to do that!
The second group is the women who were at the foot of the cross the whole time. They follow Joseph and Nicodemus to the tomb but…they don’t stay…they don’t prepare the body. They go home. Why? In obedience to the commandment. It is the Sabbath. The day of rest. The death of Jesus did not suspend all the Scriptural directives! These women understood something that many still wrestle with…Jesus came to fulfill the law not abolish it. The design for life that God created with a regular Sabbath still is important even when our world is falling apart.
Isn’t it amazing that even in the midst of the salvation event God takes a Sabbath rest. Take some time today to just rest and meditate on what this weekend means to you.