April 10
JOHN 19
38 After these things Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus, and Pilate gave him permission. So he came and took away his body. 39 Nicodemus also, who earlier had come to Jesus by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds in weight. 40 So they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen cloths with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews. 41 Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. 42 So because of the Jewish day of Preparation, since the tomb was close at hand, they laid Jesus there.
– John 19:38-42
JOHN 19 THE BURIAL OF JESUS
A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses
As your dead body was taken down from the cross
Your loved one’s hearts must have been torn in pieces
You deserved the burial of a king; the Jews made it hard to do so
Your disciples did their best to bury you in the custom of the Jews.
Jesus was born in a feeding trough instead of being in a palace with all the comforts. At the time of his birth, there was a threat to the lives of baby boys, so Mary and Joseph had to flee from where they lived. What kind of a king is born in a feeding trough? The world will never understand this concept because no one truly understands what the kingdom of God is until the promise of the new heaven and the new earth come to pass. After finishing the work of salvation on the cross, the world still didn’t know Jesus’ kingdom and how different it was from the world. Just like his birth’s circumstance was in the midst of an unsafe power-hungry insecure leader, his burial looks almost like it happened in the same circumstance. Jesus died and was convicted as a criminal though he didn’t do any crime at all. Because of the power and authority that the Jewish leaders had over the people, many were afraid to be associated with Jesus. Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus honored Jesus with a proper burial in the Jewish custom but in hiding.
REFLECTION
• What hinders us from boldly proclaiming our faith to the unbelieving world?
