I would like to see a show of hands, who makes their bed every day? I figured there would be someone who does it. You are the kind of person who should really appreciate what Jesus did in the tomb after His resurrection.
I know this isn’t Easter Sunday, but I wanted to share with you something I discovered a few years ago about the grave clothes of Jesus. Please turn to John 20:1-10 ESV
The part of this text that captured my attention was the phrase in verse 7 in the ESV “The burial cloth that had been around Jesus’ head; was folded up by itself, separate from the linen”. For those of you who make your bed every-day, because the face cloth was folded neatly Jesus made up part of His bed. Before I delve into the meaning and significance of the face cloth neatly folded, let’s back up and understand what is happening:
Verses 1 & 2 –
1Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb.
It is Sunday morning and Mary Magdalene went to the tomb to finish anointing Jesus’ body for burial. Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus had only wrapped the body for burial late on Friday before sundown and Jewish custom called for spices to be added to properly embalm the body.
Luke 24:10 tells us in addition to Mary Magdalene there was Joanna, Mary the mother of James and other women who went to the tomb that morning. Jesus was crucified on Friday and the reason the woman stayed away from the tomb until Sunday morning was became of their observance of the Sabbath on Saturday.
For three days the disciples of Jesus grieved. When we say three days, these were not three 24-hour days. Jewish customs allowed for the principle “if any portion of a day was affected, then it counted as a day”. Jesus was laid in the borrowed tomb before 6pm on Friday – day one. Day two is Saturday and after 6am on Sunday makes the third day.
For those same three days the Chief Priests congratulated themselves their brilliant scheme worked in getting rid of Jesus. For those same three days the demons in Hell celebrated their victory the Messiah was dead!
In verse 2
2So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.”
These women reported to the eleven apostles that the tomb of Jesus was empty and they didn’t know where His body was.
Verse 3 - 4
3So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb. 4Both of them were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first.
Peter and John ran to the tomb because they couldn’t believe what they had heard – it was too amazing! They had to see for themselves.
Verses 5 - 8
5And stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in. 6Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen cloths lying there, 7and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself. 8Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed;
Dr. Warren Wiersbe shares this insight: John uses three different Greek words to convey the different kinds of “seeing” in these verses.
1. In verse 5 “he bent over and looked in at the linen clothes lying there”. This seeing/look is a glance, a quick look. John wasn’t sure he wanted to enter the tomb.
2. In verse 6 Peter went into the tomb and ““saw” the linen cloth lying there”. This seeing is to look carefully as to observe. It means he looked steadily to behold the details of the room. He gazed at what he saw with purpose, analyzing it. If you watch any of the crime dramas on TV or movies, you often see someone kneeling down and staring at the crime scene observing the blood splatter direction; the weapon used – all the little details to draw conclusions.
3. Finally, the 3rd uses of the word “to see” is in verse 8 “John saw and believed”. He perceived with intelligent comprehension. He discerned the facts – faith was dawning in his mind and heart that Jesus’ body was not lost or stolen – Jesus was resurrected!
Let’s go back to verses 6 and 7. Let’s focus on the grave clothes and the significance of the face cloth being folded:
1. What was Jesus wearing? Verse 6 Peter saw the grave clothes wrapped around Jesus were left in the tomb – this raises a very practical question “what was Jesus wearing when he spoke with Mary Magdalene when she thought He was the gardener?” I found no explanation in scripture, but apparently, He was clothed and decent to be seen.
2. There were grave clothes, but no body.
In Matthew 28 we are told the chief Priests spread the rumor that Jesus’ disciples stole His body. If they had done this, they most likely would have taken the body wrapped in grave clothes rather than leaving them behind. The disciples of Jesus had no reason to steal the body; they didn’t even believe He would be resurrected.
If grave robbers had stolen the body, then they would most likely have taken the grave clothes as well.
3. Grave clothes left in the tomb are symbols of victory of Jesus over death.
Jesus’ resurrected body didn’t need the remnants of the past such as the grave clothes, He was no longer dead! He had defeated death proving His power over Satan’s greatest weapon. The burial clothes were a symbol of His death and yet became a symbol of His resurrection.
It is not recorded in scripture, but I firmly believe Jesus didn’t smell of death and the grave either when He talked with people after the resurrection.
There is a beautiful teaching here for you and me here too. When you and I are saved, God removes the sin stains of our past from us and we are clothed in righteousness. Satan wants to hold us back and beat us down with the faults of our past mistakes, but Jesus wants us to live in the presence of His grace and mercy.
Illustration - A little boy had been very naughty and he knew his mother was upset with him. The family had a chalkboard in the kitchen for messages. The little boy wrote on the board “Mother, when you forgive me, erase this message”. He went to his room and thought long and hard about what he had done. About an hour later he went to the kitchen and to his delight his mother had erased his message and had even taken a cloth and washed the board completely clean. Jesus, like this mother, doesn’t want to rub your sins in; He wants to rub them out of your life.
4. The fact the grave clothes were folded and neat is a reminder our God does not do things in a random and inconsistent manner. God had a plan to resurrect Jesus and executed it flawlessly. God pays attention to every detail even folding the burial face cloth. God is also concerned with the details of your and my life as well. Now you and I need to accept that God does things in His own time – He does not rush, fret or hurry. Pray and then look for His detailed answers. They may be small answers, but will show He is listening and cares.
The grave clothes were not thrown on the floor as if in a haste or hurry. They were KJV wrapped or NIV folded. Some scholars believe the grave clothes were still in the shape of Jesus body such as a cocoon, but more likely Jesus was awakened from the dead and unwrapped Himself – He could have simply passed through the burial cloth.
The neat folding of the face cloth gives further evidence to me that Jesus calmly and deliberately unwrapped Himself of His grave clothes and walked out of the tomb.
Illustration - thinking about the neatness of Jesus folding the burial face cloth - when our daughter, Julie, was filling out her application for the college dorm her freshman year, she had three choices for describing how she kept her room – “neat, in between and messy”. She marked in between and I challenged her on that. She was really messy then. She said she didn’t want a roommate just like herself. Unfortunately, they assigned her a roommate that was very neat and they only survived one semester together. God is neat, but He takes the messy experiences from our lives and makes something beautiful out of them.
Let me show you something when Lazarus was resurrected by Jesus from the tomb, John 11:43, 44 READ
43When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” 44The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.
Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.”
Three things from this text I want to point out:
1. Hands and feet were bound
2. His face was covered with a cloth
3. The people are instructed to “loose him and let him go”. This means to me get him out of the grave clothes. The common way to prepare someone for burial was to wrap them like a mummy with myrrh and spices. To be perfectly clear - no one had to unwrap Jesus!
Conclusion:
What kind of faith did Peter and John have at this stage of their spiritual development? It was faith based on physical evidence – empty tomb and empty grave clothes. This kind of evidence can change a mind, but not a life. Praise the Lord Jesus soon revealed Himself to the Apostles so they could have a personal encounter with the resurrected Savior.
You and I have the testimony of the Apostles in the written word of God to confirm and convince us that Jesus is alive and real. We also have the workings of the Holy Spirit in our hearts to reveal to us the truth of God’s Word. Jesus is alive let Him change your life for now and forevermore!
Appeal
If you have never trusted Jesus to save your soul, then come forward during the invitation and share with me your desire to be saved.
Maybe God is working in your heart to reveal Him to you in another way, open your mind and heart to His will. Maybe you want to come pray at the altar.
Prayer
