A little boy was sick on Palm Sunday and stayed home from church with his mother. When his dad returned from the service he was holding a palm branch. The little boy was curious and asked his father, “Why do you have that palm branch, dad?” He explained that when Jesus came into town, everyone was waving palm branches to honor Him. The boy thought for a minute and said, “Wouldn’t you know it? I miss church one week and Jesus shows up!”
Today is Palm Sunday, the day we remember Jesus making His triumphal entry into Jerusalem. By the way, none of the gospels say that the people “waved” branches before Jesus. Rather, they spread garments and branches in His path, a practice that was done in Bible times at the coronation of a king (see 2 Kings 9:13). When Jesus rode a donkey, He fulfilled the prophecy found in Zechariah 9:9 that the Messiah would arrive “gentle and riding on a donkey.” Interestingly, it wasn’t called Palm Sunday then, but each Israelite family chose the lamb they would sacrifice for Passover on the tenth day of the month, which would have been this day. As the people shouted “Hosanna,” they didn’t know that the Lamb of God was about to be offered as their final sacrifice.
We’re coming to the conclusion of our series called, “Experience the Passion” as we’ve honed in on what happened to Jesus during the final twelve hours of His life. The parade of praises from Palm Sunday has been replaced by the cries coming from Calvary, as Jesus dies on the cross and despair begins to set in among the disciples.
False Claims
Over the years there have been at least three false claims about the death of Christ.
Jesus wasn’t supposed to die. Some groups, particularly the Moonies (the Unification Church), claim that the plan was for Jesus to get married and establish a righteous family on earth. According to Rev. Moon, “Jesus did not come to die on the cross” (“Divine Principle,” p. 178). This is easy to refute because Jesus himself said in Matthew 20:28: “Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Someone was substituted for Jesus. Another false theory is that it wasn’t actually Jesus who was crucified. Some orthodox Muslims have proposed that “God made someone else look like Jesus and that this person was crucified instead” (Josh McDowell, “Islam,” p. 107). This view also flatly contradicts the Bible. The religious leaders and Roman officials would not have allowed a mistake at this crucial point. Even Pilate declared that it was Christ on the cross when he nailed the title, “JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS” (John 19:19). Actually, no one took Jesus’ place because He in fact, took our place by dying as our substitute.
Jesus “swooned” on the cross. This view was popularized about thirty years ago in a widely-read book called “The Passover Plot.” This myth, known as the “swoon theory,” suggests that Jesus was crucified and came very close to death, but really just fainted on the cross. He then revived in the tomb and appeared to the disciples. This supposition has been soundly refuted by many people and few hold to it today. As we’ll see in our Scripture text this takes more faith to believe than what actually happened. For those of us who’ve seen the Passion movie, one wonders how Jesus even survived long enough to be crucified.
One church member was troubled that her pastor believed this theory, so she wrote this letter to a radio Bible teacher: “Dear Sirs, our preacher said on Easter that Jesus just swooned on the cross and that the disciples nursed Him back to health. What do you think? Sincerely, Bewildered.” She received this reply a few days later: “Dear Bewildered, Beat your preacher with a cat-of-nine-tails with 39 heavy strokes, nail him to a cross; hang him in the sun for 6 hours; run a spear through his side and then put him in an airless tomb and see what happens.”
Friends, no one doubted that Jesus died on the cross because His death was a public execution! The religious leaders knew He was dead, the professional executioners knew He was dead, the Roman officials knew He was dead, the crowd knew He was dead, and His friends and followers knew that He was dead.
A Righteous Rich Man
This morning our focus is on the burial of Christ. We’ll look at this in two sections of five verses each. If you have your Bibles, please turn to Matthew 27:57-61: “As evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus. Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him. Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb.”
This text is often skipped over in our eagerness to get to Easter. We tend to move quickly from the crucifixion to the resurrection, forgetting that the burial of Jesus is a key doctrine, spelled out for us in all four gospel accounts. This truth is stated strongly by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:3-5: “For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve.” He died, He was buried, He was raised, and He appeared. We could say it this way: the burial is proof that Jesus was crucified; and His appearances validate that He came back to life. We’re going to begin a new series in two weeks called, “Beyond the Tomb,” in order to look at these appearances.
The Apostle’s Creed goes out of the way to establish that in fact, Jesus was killed on the cross. Using three somewhat redundant words, we read that He was “crucified, died, and buried.” Because there have always been those who have doubted the details of His death and resurrection, the early church summarized the Scriptures in no uncertain terms: Jesus was crucified, He died, and He was buried. Someone has said that these three words, when said together rapidly, sound like a hammer nailing shut the lid of a coffin. That’s precisely the point. Dr. Wilbur Smith has said, “We know more about the burial of Jesus than we do of any other person in ancient history.”
In order to get the full flavor of what happened, I’m going to draw from the different gospel accounts to paint a picture of Joseph of Arimathea, the man who made sure the body of Jesus was properly cared for. We know at least ten things about him.
Rich (Matthew 27:57a). The first thing we learn is that Joseph was wealthy. While wealth can certainly be a stumbling block to spiritual growth, the Bible is clear that money itself is not evil. In fact, those with resources have always been used greatly by God in His kingdom. 1 Timothy 6:17-18: “Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share.”
Secret disciple (Matthew 27:57b; John 19:38). John tells us that Joseph was a “secret” follower of Christ. The Greek uses a verb which means that he was “discipled by Jesus.” He had put his faith in Jesus but was quiet about it. That was all about to change.
Important member of Sanhedrin (Mark 15:43). He was part of the ruling council of Israel, and had a prominent position. Luke 23:51 makes it clear that he did not consent to their decision to put Jesus to death.
Good and upright (Luke 23:50). The Message translation says that he had a “good heart and good character.” People would have referred to him as a “good Joe.”
Waiting for the kingdom of God (Luke 23:51). He knew his Old Testament and the prophecies about Messiah, and was waiting in expectation for their fulfillment.
Courageous (Matthew 27:58; Mark 15:43). Knowing that Jesus was now dead, Joseph wanted to honor His Savior by giving Him a proper burial. Those who were crucified were often thrown into a common criminal’s grave and Joseph did not want this to happen to Jesus. In addition, according to Matthew 27:57, evening was approaching, which meant that he had to act fast because the Sabbath officially started at 6:00 p.m. and it is now late in the afternoon on Friday. If he didn’t act now, he would not be allowed to touch the body on Sabbath. In addition, in order for Jesus to fulfill his own prophecy of being buried over the course of three days, He needed to be entombed before Friday officially ended (see Matthew 12:40).
Recognizing the urgency of his task, Joseph boldly went before Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus so that he could bury him. Mark says that Joseph gathered his courage, and paying a huge price, he came out into the open as a follower of Christ, and approached Pilate. Remember, he had no idea what Pilate would do. He was probably fed up with the religious leaders and could very easily have told him to get lost. After all, the members of the Sanhedrin had forced him to violate his conscience when he killed an innocent man. On top of this, only family members had a right to take the body of a crucified person. By making this request, Joseph also made known the true nature of his loyalty to the Lord, something the other members of the Sanhedrin would no doubt make him pay for later.
Walter Wangerin captures what it must have been like for Joseph in his book called, “Reliving the Passion.” Here’s an excerpt: “He enters the palace in spite of the risk. All by himself. He asks for the very body which the council despised and rejected not half a day ago…Pilate responds: ‘Shut up! I’m tired of this business! Get out.’ ‘No. I can’t leave. Not without his body. No. I’m sorry sir, but it really doesn’t matter if you [kill me]. Apart from him I am nothing anyway. I want to bury my Lord with dignity, with honor. Except for that, you can take whatever you want from me’” (pages 141-146).
Partnered with Nicodemus (John 19:39). Nicodemus is the man who approached Jesus at night in John 3 with a question about how to gain eternal life. He was dumbfounded when Jesus replied in verse 3: “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.” Evidently Nicodemus was born again because now he wanted to serve the Savior in his death. We’re told in John 19:3 that Nicodemus brought about seventy-five pounds of myrrh and aloes, which were used to prepare the body for burial. Myrrh was a liquid that was mixed with the aloe powder. By the way, the only time anybody received this kind of extensive anointing was if they were royalty.
Followed burial customs (Matthew 27:59; John 19:40). We’re not sure how Jesus was actually taken down from the cross, but this difficult and messy task was probably done by Joseph and Nicodemus, with the help of some of the women who were still there (see Matthew 27:61). The soldiers may have also helped. The aromatic spices were then used to keep the smell of death from polluting the area and acted as a preservative. The body was wrapped in the fine linen, as each limb and then the torso was wound, with the spices sprinkled between the folds, making a gummy, glue-like substance which held everything together into a nearly impenetrable shell. A separate piece was then used for the head.
Gave up his own new tomb (Matthew 27:60a; John 19:41). Joseph was wealthy enough to own his own tomb, which is something Jesus’ family would never have been able to afford. This fulfilled an amazingly precise prophecy found in Isaiah 53:9: “He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death.” His assignment was to be buried with common criminals, but because of Joseph he was put in a rich man’s tomb. This tomb was cut out of the rock, meaning that there was no back entrance where someone could come in and steal the body. This tomb was brand new, meaning that there was no chance of a mix up with another body or mistaken identity. And in yet another example of God’s providence, this grave was located close to Golgotha which is a good thing, because they would have struggled to carry the lifeless body wrapped in 75 pounds of spices a very long distance.
Rolled a big stone in front (Matthew 27:60b; Mark 15:46). Once Jesus was in the tomb, Joe and Nick rolled a huge stone in front of the door, to keep grave robbers away. Mark 16:4 refers to this as a “very great” stone.
Nervous Enemies
While a couple faithful friends of Jesus lovingly honor Him in His death, some of the religious leaders are very nervous about what may happen next.
1. The leaders reorganize. All of this took place on Friday afternoon before 6:00 p.m. On Saturday the religious leaders reorganize, and in Matthew 27:62 we read: “The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate.” This is very interesting because the chief priests were Sadducees, who were rationalists and materialists, denying that any sort of future resurrection could take place. The Pharisees, who were literalists and more in tune with the spiritual world, allowed for resurrection in their theology. These two groups despised each other but came together in their mutual hatred of Jesus. Isn’t it fascinating that the enemies of Jesus were just as afraid of Him after His death as when He was alive? As foolish and feeble as it sounds, they got together in order to stop a resurrection.
What’s also interesting is that these religious leaders went to Pilate, even though the act of going into a Gentile dwelling would render them unclean for the Sabbath. Keep in mind that this was not any ordinary Sabbath; it was the Passover Sabbath, one of the holiest days on the Jewish calendar. John MacArthur points out that when they were with a large crowd on Friday they wouldn’t go into a Gentile courtroom but now, since no one else is around, they have no scruples about marching right into Pilate’s presence: “They hated Jesus more than they loved their own law” (www.gty.org). Pilate is now approached again, and I imagine him not being in a very good mood. He probably feels like he can’t get rid of these guys!
2. The leaders make their request. In verses 63-64 they make their request: “‘Sir,’ they said, ‘we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first.’” In another show of disrespect to Jesus, they refer to Pilate as “sir” but hold Jesus at arm’s length by calling Him, “that deceiver.” Their contempt for Christ extends way beyond the cross.
Notice that they remember that Jesus predicted He would rise on the third day, while his own disciples seem to have forgotten this promise (Mark 8:31; 9:31). Frank Morison writes, “It was not only that they had feared an uprising by the people…but they feared Jesus’ own powers” (“Who Moved the Stone?”). Because they didn’t want to lose any more followers, they want to make sure no one steals the body, and they secretly are afraid that Jesus may in fact do what He said He would do. In their minds, this would deceive the people more than anything else. It would be worse than the “first” deception, which I think is a reference to the people shouting hosanna as Jesus rode into Jerusalem six days earlier.
3. The result of their request. This is seen in verses 65-66: “‘Take a guard,’ Pilate answered. ‘Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.’ So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.” Pilate gives them a guard and permission to make the tomb as impenetrable as they knew how to do. This involved three extreme measures.
Stone. This stone could have weighed up to two tons. The implication here is that the religious leaders follow the soldiers to the tomb and they roll the stone back to make sure the body is still there and then they position it in front of the entrance again. Josh McDowell indicates that this boulder was so big that it had to be rolled downhill into place using levers, and it would take twenty men to roll it away (McDowell, “Evidence,” p. 216).
Seal. This seal was probably some wax that was put between the tomb and the stone with a cord that ran across the round rock, and authenticated that the grave was occupied. If anybody moved the stone, the string would break and the seal would crack, making it clear that someone was trying to tamper with it. In addition, the wax was stamped with the official seal of Pilate, indicating that whoever broke the seal was violating Roman law and committing a high crime, leading to automatic execution by being crucified upside down (McDowell, “Evidence”).
Soldiers. After this boulder was in place, a contingent of up to 16 Roman soldiers was assigned to secure the tomb. Some pictures you may have seen show one or two men standing around in mini-skirts, holding a spear in their hands. That’s simply not the case. These men were human fighting machines. These gladiators were trained to protect the area around the tomb against an entire battalion, each assigned to six square feet of space. They could not sit down or lean against anything while they were on duty. If one fell asleep, historians tell us that he would be stripped of his clothes, and then burned alive in a fire started with his own garments. Often he was not the only one executed; the entire unit would be assassinated if only one fell asleep while on duty. Dr. George Curie, who is an expert on the Roman military, wrote that fear of punishment “produced flawless attention to duty, especially in the night watches.”
The enemies of Jesus took every preventative measure to keep Jesus in the tomb, and in so doing, their efforts lend credence to the fact that Jesus really did rise from the dead. In spite of all these precautions – the stone, the soldiers, and the seal – the tomb was empty the next morning! But I’m getting ahead of myself. More about that next week.
Life Lessons
I see three lessons that come from our study this morning.
1. It’s time to bring your Christianity out of the closet. Are you a secret believer? Ask God for the courage to step it up in front of your friends, your coworkers, your neighbors, and your family members. Take a deep breath, say a quick prayer, and courageously communicate that you are a Christ-follower. One way to do that this week is to bring up the Passion movie and talk about what Jesus means to you. You could also invite someone to come to church with you on Easter.
2. Use your resources for God’s purposes. Joseph and Nicodemus gave what they had in service to Jesus. How might God want to use you, and your resources, for His purposes? I still marvel at the generosity of a friend of mine from Rockford who called me when we returned from Mexico. He wanted to know if we needed a car to borrow for a couple weeks. I told him we did. He called back a couple days later and said, “I have some good news and some bad news. The bad news is I can’t let you borrow my car anymore. The good news is that you can have it.” I’m still driving that car today, with only the driver’s door worse for the wear.
3. Nothing is too big for God to handle. Do you see the humor in what the religious leaders were trying to do? I envision the hosts of heaven looking down on them, listening to the orders issued to Pilate, guffawing when the guards grunt and groan to move the stone in place, snickering as the seal is attached and giggling as the guard stands watch. Can the God who took the planets and flung them into place be thwarted by a mere stone in front of a tomb? Someone put it this way, “Can you imagine the God who created the power of the atom being stopped by a few Roman soldiers armed with swords and spears?” It reminds me of Psalm 2 in the New Living Translation: “Why do the nations rage? Why do the people waste their time with futile plans? The kings of the earth prepare for battle; the rulers plot together against the LORD and against his anointed one…But the one who rules in heaven laughs. The Lord scoffs at them” (verses 1-2, 4). What seems too big for God to handle in your life? Trust Him right now.
As we prepare for communion, we affirm that Jesus lived and then he was crucified, died, and was buried. On the third day He rose again, He appeared to people over the course of 40 days, and gave us the promise that He will come again. And, it’s at the Lord’s Table that Jesus can show up, as we recall all that He did on our behalf.
