Holy Saturday

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Opening Prayer

Lord Jesus, I bow before You, awed by the majesty and mystery of Your suffering love. I am silent before You.

Read LUKE 23:47-56

^[47] The centurion, seeing what had happened, praised God and said, “Surely this was a righteous man.” ^[48] When all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what took place, they beat their breasts and went away. ^[49] But all those who knew him, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things. ^[50] Now there was a man named Joseph, a member of the Council, a good and upright man, ^[51] who had not consented to their decision and action. He came from the Judean town of Arimathea and he was waiting for the kingdom of God. ^[52] Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body. ^[53] Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen cloth and placed it in a tomb cut in the rock, one in which no one had yet been laid. ^[54] It was Preparation Day, and the Sabbath was about to begin. ^[55] The women who had come with Jesus from Galilee followed Joseph and saw the tomb and how his body was laid in it. ^[56] Then they went home and prepared spices and perfumes. But they rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. All rights reserved throughout the world. Used by permission of International Bible Society.

Meditate

“Bearing shame and scoffing rude, in my place condemned he stood: Sealed my pardon with his blood, Hallelujah, what a Savior” (P. P. Bliss, 1838-1876).

Think Further

Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, two members of the Jewish Sanhedrin, do not consent to the guilty verdict passed on Jesus. Nicodemus accompanies Joseph in taking the body of Jesus from Calvary to a place of burial (John 19:38-42). The cave tomb was Joseph’s. In all likelihood, it was a family grave with several ledges carved out of the rock walls. On these the bodies of family members would eventually be laid. Luke stresses that the grave is new and Jesus’ body the only one there. Mistaken identity was impossible.

For the disciples, this Saturday was a time of utter misery and forlorn memories. The crucifixion had devastated their dreams and hopes. To ensure we don’t forget this, some sections of the church observe today as “Holy Saturday”: a day to allow the horror of the cross to sink in, a day to reflect on what life would be like had Good Friday been the end of the story. Burial is bound up with the judgment of God on human sin. “What is the meaning of man’s life?” Answer: “Hurrying to the grave.” Had Jesus not been buried, remaining under the power of death for a time, he could not have fully embraced our fallen humanity.

Jesus’ burial further indicates that his death was not only for sin, but also to sin. According to Paul, this critical point holds awesome implications for us (Rom. 6:1-4). When Jesus was buried, so also were we in him. This spiritual union is symbolized in Christian baptism. Baptism signifies a commitment on our part to leave behind a lifestyle where sin is sovereign, just as Jesus’ burial marked the critical point where he moved into a new and more glorious form of existence.

Apply

Does your life reflect an ongoing crucifixion of your sinful ego? Thank God for the freedom from sin that Jesus won.

Closing prayer

Forgive me, Lord, that my natural preference runs to Bethlehem and Joseph’s garden. Golgotha, with its rusted nails and twisted limbs is sometimes too much.

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