They were two men with everything to lose and nothing to gain. What good could come out of burying the corpse of Jesus Christ? And think of everything they could lose. Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus were considered important by the way folks judge other folks. They had money. They were well known and respected. They had influence. So why would they risk it all by requesting permission from Pontius Pilate to give Jesus an honorable burial? Burying Jesus would be saying to Caiaphas and all the other religious leaders, “You were wrong in condemning Christ!” After seeing what Caiaphas did with Jesus, was it really worth taking on that man over a burial? Apparently it was.
Prior to Jesus’ crucifixion, Joseph and Nicodemus had been secret admirers. They knew Jesus was special, that he had something to offer which they desperately needed, but they weren’t yet ready to publicly commit to him. Good Friday changed all that. In an act of bold courage, they not only removed the body of Christ from the cross, but gave it the burial of a king. In no uncertain terms, Joseph and Nicodemus declared their allegiance to Jesus Christ to the world.
There are moments in the lives of every Christian during which we are called to step up, to publicly demonstrate that Jesus Christ is the Lord of our lives. Often it comes after experiences of great testing, when we are confronted with having to choose between living for ourselves or for Christ. How we have chosen in the past is in the past. What we need now is to prepare ourselves for the next opportunity. Join us for one of our services this weekend and begin to get ready to step up!
Hawaii Lutheran Church (WELS)
- Community Lutheran Church
- Honolulu, HI
- Community Lutheran Church holds protestant chapel services in Honolulu, Hawaii near Pearl Harbor, HI. We are next to the USS Arizona Memorial, Pearl Harbor Naval Base, Hickam Air Force Base, and Fort Shafter Hawaii. Look for us directly behind the Salt Lake, Hawaii, Target.