The Road To Easter
Pt. 6 - Silent Saturdays!
I. Introduction
“Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.” ? Søren Kierkegaard.
Isn't that true? It as we reflect that we understand. It is in the mad dash that keeps us from always understanding. We seldom reflect as we journey. It is only after we have arrived. That is true of most vacation trips. The anticipation of arrival is what consumes our thoughts. It isn't until we get back home and have time to reflect that we often find that the journey to the final destination was as much fun or more memorable than the actual destination we strived to reach.
Easter can be that way too. Jesus' journey to Easter is our focus. The destination holds so much meaning and hope for us that if we aren't careful our drive for that day causes us to miss important moments along the way. We are attempting to pause and reflect on the road Jesus took to get to the empty tomb. What happened on the Tuesday or Thursday before He is raised from the dead? Do you know? Does it matter? Let's walk this road together and see as we head to the Disneyland of our faith . . . Easter!
We have reviewed Palm Sunday and the Triumphal Entry. We talked about Jesus' Monday when He cleansed the temple. On Tuesday Jesus hands out hope. On Thursday Jesus communes with His closest friends. On Friday, He remembers!
So, on your Road to Easter Card we need to record that on Saturday, Jesus doesn't rest! He deserves a rest.
Crucifixion is complete. Friday comes to a close. Saturday or the Jewish Sabbath is about to begin. This would be a good time to take a break. Jesus has earned it.
Text: Matthew 27:57-66, 28:1-6 (MSG)
Late in the afternoon (Friday Evening) a wealthy man from Arimathea, a disciple of Jesus, arrived. His name was Joseph. He went to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. Pilate granted his request. Joseph took the body and wrapped it in clean linens, put it in his own tomb, a new tomb only recently cut into the rock, and rolled a large stone across the entrance. Then he went off. But Mary Magdalene and the other Mary stayed, sitting in plain view of the tomb. After sundown, the high priests and Pharisees arranged a meeting with Pilate. They said, “Sir, we just remembered that that liar announced while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will be raised.’ We’ve got to get that tomb sealed until the third day. There’s a good chance his disciples will come and steal the corpse and then go around saying, ‘He’s risen from the dead.’ Then we’ll be worse off than before, the final deceit surpassing the first.” Pilate told them, “You will have a guard. Go ahead and secure it the best you can.” So they went out and secured the tomb, sealing the stone and posting guards.
After the Sabbath (Sunday Morning), as the first light of the new week dawned, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to keep vigil at the tomb. Suddenly the earth reeled and rocked under their feet as God’s angel came down from heaven, came right up to where they were standing. He rolled back the stone and then sat on it. Shafts of lightning blazed from him. His garments shimmered snow-white. The guards at the tomb were scared to death. They were so frightened, they couldn’t move. The angel spoke to the women: “There is nothing to fear here. I know you’re looking for Jesus, the One they nailed to the cross. He is not here. He was raised, just as he said. Come and look at the place where he was placed.
Wait a minute. There is a noticeable gap in the text. The record is clear about what happens on Friday evening and then what takes place on Sunday morning. But what happened to Saturday?
On Friday, the body of Jesus is placed in the tomb. Spices are placed in the tomb. A stone is secured in front of the tomb. Guards are placed for fear of fraud. Sunday, Jesus rises from the dead and our faith is separated from every other religion! But what about Saturday. A day off? I mean Thursday was grueling. Friday was gruesome. Now nothing is said. Jesus surely needed to rest. To recover. He has earned it. He deserves it. And so Saturday is quiet. The only sound we can hear is the sound of family mourning the loss of a son. The only sounds are whispers of confused followers wondering if they should have remained fishermen. The only sound is religious leaders breathing a sigh of relief that this drama causing, system shaking, Messiah wanna be, crazy man has been silenced permanently. It is quiet. Or is it?
Very little detail is given about Saturday. Only glimpses in other passages. But for all of its silence don't mistake Saturday as unimportant or irrelevant. Easter discussions tend to skip this day. Friday and Sunday get the front page. The crucifixion and resurrection command our thoughts. But don’t ignore Saturday. It would be easy to do so because . . .
We know so little. Jesus states to the thief that He will be in paradise. Some say that Jesus went to Hades to rescue saints that died before Jesus' crucifixion. Some point to Revelation 1:18 and determine that Jesus travels to hell and strips the devil of the keys of death, hell and the grave. The truth is I don't know. What I know is that this quiet day turns out to be anything but a day of rest for Jesus. He goes to work. The difference between this day and all the other days is that on all of the other days His works are in plain sight. On all the other days we have a front row seat. On all the other days His handiwork is obvious. But now, hidden in a tomb, behind a stone, behind closed doors, out of sight we can't see Him work. And therein lies the truth of Saturday.
Jesus is working when you can't see Him.
Silent doesn't equal stopped. Silent doesn't mean quite. Out of sight doesn't mean out of action. Shut in doesn't mean shut out.
What is over to us is the arena in which Jesus works His best.
Ladies are mourning Jesus is moving/mounting an attack.
Disciples are discouraged Jesus is dismantling death and darkness.
His silence is not His absence, His presumed inactivity is never apathy. ?He was quiet but He didn't quit! Saturdays let us feel the full force of God’s strength.
How quiet is it in your life right now? What area of your life do you wish Jesus would show up with thunder and lightning? What need do you wish Jesus would speak to with universe shaping and shaking volume? What front page grabbing miracle do you wish He would produce in your family at the moment? And instead, what you seem to hear is supreme silence. So quiet that even crickets would be welcomed. All you seem to see is a stone in place. Prayers seem unheard. Pleas seem to be ignored. This surely means that my tears must be unnoticed.
But let me ask you another question . . . Could it be that it is simply Saturday?
You don't know it. You may be unaware. It may seem over. It may seem hopeless. It may seem dead. A funeral may seem in order. But hold on. He is silent, but He isn't sleeping. He isn't resting. In fact, we know that He neither sleeps nor slumbers. Jesus is working. He isn't taking time off. He is taking matters out of our hands into His hands. The quite is only to get you to quit trying to do it yourself. The quite is simply forcing you to give Jesus room to work in ways you that can't.
That is why we don't suffer in silence. We wait in silence. We anticipate in silence. We hope in silence. We believe in silence. We expect in silence. We surrender in silence. We watch for signs of life even when death is all we see.
Silent Saturdays are some of the hardest days. It is the day between the struggle and the solution; the question and the answer; the offered prayer and the answered prayer. Saturday’s silence can torment us if we forget the lesson of Saturday. We begin to ask questions like, "Is God angry at me? Did God forget where I am? Did I disappoint him? Does He even care?" God knows Jesus is in the tomb, why doesn’t He do something? Or, in your case God knows your career is in the tank, your finances are in the pit, your marriage is in a mess. Why doesn’t He act? What are you supposed to do until He does? Force your own way? Forge your own way? Fight your own way? Find your own way? Fret your way?
Saturday teaches us to do what Jesus did. Lie still. Stay silent. Trust Him when you can't trace Him! Wait on the Lord and renew your strength. We have lost the discipline of standing still and knowing what Jesus knew . . . “You will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay” (Acts 2:27 NIV).
In other words, if He is silent don't worry. He is a proven grave robber. If He is silent don’t go back to fishing - your old way of life. Because . . .
The quiet season is not a quit season.
You keep doing what He said last until He says something new! Keep working. Keep believing. Keep praying. Keep serving. Keep on keeping on! Don't let the silence silence your praise or shut down your faith. If it is quiet, then it just means He is working in ways you can't!
