Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent council member, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, coming and taking courage, went in to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus

 

 There were also women looking on from afar, among whom were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the Less and of Joses, and Salome, who also followed Him and ministered to Him when He was in Galilee, and many other women who came up with Him to Jerusalem.  

Now when evening had come, because it was the Preparation Day, that is, the day before the Sabbath, Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent council member, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, coming and taking courage, went in to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.  Pilate marveled that He was already dead; and summoning the centurion, he asked him if He had been dead for some time.  So when he found out from the centurion, he granted the body to Joseph.  Then he bought fine linen, took Him down, and wrapped Him in the linen.  And he laid Him in a tomb which had been hewn out of the rock, and rolled a stone against the door of the tomb.  And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses observed where He was laid.

 

- Mark 15:40–47 

 

On Saturday we read that when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.  And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?" which is translated, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?"  Some of those who stood by, when they heard that, said, "Look, He is calling for Elijah!"  Then someone ran and filled a sponge full of sour wine, put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink, saying, "Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to take Him down."  And Jesus cried out with a loud voice, and breathed His last.  Then the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.  So when the centurion, who stood opposite Him, saw that He cried out like this and breathed His last, he said, "Truly this Man was the Son of God!"

 

  There were also women looking on from afar, among whom were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the Less and of Joses, and Salome, who also followed Him and ministered to Him when He was in Galilee, and many other women who came up with Him to Jerusalem.  My study Bible comments here that the faithfulness of the women shows that in Christ, divine order is being restored to the fallen world.  As Eve was created to complete Adam (Genesis 2:18) but instead led him to sin (Genesis 3:6), now these women disciples are the ones who remain faithful while the men have fled and are in hiding.  It is the women who bring the message of the Resurrection to the men (Mark 16:9-11; Luke 24:9-11), thereby restoring that which had been broken through sin.

Now when evening had come, because it was the Preparation Day, that is, the day before the Sabbath, Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent council member, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, coming and taking courage, went in to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.  Pilate marveled that He was already dead; and summoning the centurion, he asked him if He had been dead for some time.  So when he found out from the centurion, he granted the body to Joseph.  Then he bought fine linen, took Him down, and wrapped Him in the linen.  And he laid Him in a tomb which had been hewn out of the rock, and rolled a stone against the door of the tomb.  And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses observed where He was laid.  My study Bible teaches that if the apostles had buried Christ, then doubters could have claimed His body was simply hidden away.  As Joseph of Arimathea was a prominent council member, and also a good and just man (Luke 23:50) who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, refutes any possibility that the Lord's body was deceptively hidden by the apostles.  The spiritual significance of this tomb, which Luke tells us was one in which no one had ever lain before, is that Christ died a death unlike any person who had ever died, a death without corruption and which led to victory over the grave itself. 

 

 What is the important factor in common with each of these people who act significantly just after Christ has died?  It is, plainly and simply, courage.  The women take courage in remaining faithful to Christ, and Joseph of Arimathea takes great courage to go to Pilate and to ask for the body of Jesus, and laying Him in this expensive tomb hewn out of the rock.  Besides courage, we note faithfulness.  The women remain looking from afar, as they have followed Him since His time in Galilee, even ministering to Christ the One who ministers to all, and they have followed Him faithfully to Jerusalem and remain with Him even through His Crucifixion, and to His tomb which they observe.  Joseph of Arimathea, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, also acts faithfully by taking courage and going to Pilate and claiming Christ's body, preparing it for burial, and placing it in this new tomb.  All of these women and this man take courage and act faithfully.  They don't do so with great fanfare nor to call attention to themselves, but they are courageous, faithful, and also dutiful.  They see to it that what is known and understood as duties which are honorable and faithful are carried out, fulfilled, even when others do not.  As my study Bible points out, the other men -- the disciples -- even the great Peter, John, and James, are scattered and in hiding as their Teacher is crucified and killed.  But if we should remember these three elements about these people who retain their sense of themselves and their faith, we also shall stand in good stead in times of great terror and stress.  They take courage, they are faithful, and they are dutiful.  They remember and know who they are and what they must be about.  Joseph is a faithful member of the Council who also awaits the kingdom of God, and these women were ministers to Christ all the time He was in Galilee, have followed Him to Jerusalem, and remain now ministering to Him even in His death, as they will help to complete the burial rites for Christ.  These individuals give us the examples we need in a time of crisis, when it looks like our world is falling apart, and we must remember what they show us:  courage, faithfulness, duty.  They are the ones who follow what Christ taught the disciples when He warned of the tribulations of the end time, and what is truly necessary for us to remain His disciples, even in these times as we await His return.  We are to be watchful always, and prayerful -- and in this way we observe as did the women and Joseph of Arimathea, we are alert to opportunities to live our faith, and to act as good and proper duties call us to act, as at the best of circumstances and the best we can under the worst.  Let us remember what it is we are to be about, even if at times others seem to scatter and succumb to fear.

 

 

Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent council member, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, coming and taking courage, went in to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus

 There were also women looking on from afar, among whom were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the Less and of Joses, and Salome, who also followed Him and ministered to Him when He was in Galilee, and many other women who came up with Him to Jerusalem.

Now when evening had come, because it was the Preparation Day, that is, the day before the Sabbath, Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent council member, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, coming and taking courage, went in to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.  Pilate marveled that He was already dead; and summoning the centurion, he asked him if He had been dead for some time.  So when he found out from the centurion, he granted the body to Joseph.  Then he bought fine linen, took Him down, and wrapped Him in the linen.  And he laid Him in a tomb which had been hewn out of the rock, and rolled a stone against the door of the tomb.  And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses observed where He was laid.

- Mark 15:40-47

On Saturday, we read that when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.  And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?" which is translated, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?"  Some of those who stood by, when they heard that, said, "Look, He is calling for Elijah!"  Then someone ran and filled a sponge full of sour wine, put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink, saying, "Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to take Him down."  And Jesus cried out with a loud voice, and breathed His last.  Then the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.  So when the centurion, who stood opposite Him, saw that He cried out like this and breathed His last, he said, "Truly this Man was the Son of God!"  

 There were also women looking on from afar, among whom were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the Less and of Joses, and Salome, who also followed Him and ministered to Him when He was in Galilee, and many other women who came up with Him to Jerusalem.   My study bible tells us that the faithfulness of these women shows that in Christ, divine order is being restored to the fallen world.  In a Scriptural context, Eve was created to complete Adam (Genesis 2:18), but instead led him to sin (Genesis 3:6).  At this point of the evolution of the story of God's work in the world, these women disciples remain faithful while it is the men who flee and hide.  It is the women who will bring the message of the Resurrection to the men (16:9-11; Luke 24:9-11), thus restoring that which had been broken through sin.

Now when evening had come, because it was the Preparation Day, that is, the day before the Sabbath, Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent council member, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, coming and taking courage, went in to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.  Pilate marveled that He was already dead; and summoning the centurion, he asked him if He had been dead for some time.  So when he found out from the centurion, he granted the body to Joseph.  Then he bought fine linen, took Him down, and wrapped Him in the linen.  And he laid Him in a tomb which had been hewn out of the rock, and rolled a stone against the door of the tomb.  And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses observed where He was laid.  My study bible says that if the apostles had buried Christ, the doubters could claim that His body was simply hidden away.  Because Joseph of Arimathea is a prominent council member (and, Luke's Gospel tells us, a good and just man) who is himself waiting for the kingdom of God, this refutes the possibility that Christ's body was deceptively hidden by the apostles.  Pilate's response also gives us another clue as to the unusual nature of this death; he marveled that Jesus was already dead.  Joseph's courage also testifies to the integrity of his character:  as a prominent council member, he could lose all by claiming the body of One crucified by the Roman state on charges of making himself king. 

It's important that Joseph of Arimathea is a part of this story.  What his role tells us (along with that of Nicodemus in the Gospels) is that the Council was made up of individuals who did not all agree automatically on the sentence passed upon Jesus, nor were the opinions about Jesus universal among those who ruled in the Council.  John's Gospel tells us that Nicodemus was a Pharisee (see John 3:1-21 for the story of his learning from Jesus about the Holy Spirit by night), but it's not clear to which party Joseph of Arimathea belongs.  At any rate, both of these men are shown in the Gospels to be faithful and just and righteous.  Joseph, in today's reading, risks all to claim the body of Jesus, even providing His tomb and the linen in which to prepare His body for burial.  This is an extraordinary public act that required great courage, not only to claim the body from Pilate but also to do so publicly and therefore before the rest of the Council.  It's important that the Gospels teach us that there were those followers of Christ, faithful and just and righteous men, who were also on the Council.  The Acts of the Apostles also tells us that one of the greatest and most famous of the Pharisees, a teacher named Gamaliel (the grandson of Hillel) also wisely counsels leniency toward the apostles, as it is possible that their work is of God (see Acts 5:34-39).   For the earliest followers of Christ, it was perhaps not necessary to be reminded that there were those faithful and just and righteous among the leadership, but for us, who read the Gospels today, it is a necessary and good thing that we know these things, lest we fall into the trap of thinking that this story is simply about political parties and generalizations.  The story of Christ gives us the story of faith, and faith is the story of the choices in people's hearts.  It is also the faithful understanding that Christ is the one and only Judge.  If there is one way in which the Gospels teach us to know Christ, it is as the "heart-knower" (the literal meaning of a Greek word, καρδιογνώστης/kardiognostes, found in Acts 1:24, 15:8).  Today's reading has two examples of great faith and courage:  the first is this group of women followers of Christ, who have followed Him and ministered to Him since Galilee, right from the beginning of His ministry, all the way through to this time.  The second is Joseph of Arimathea.  Let us take our strengths where we find them, our examples where the Gospels give them to us.  Let us consider the "unlikely" places we find great faith, and elevate them, and give them their proper due and the lessons they teach us.  Therein we find the real story of Christ and His true friends, those who have given us our faith.