Who Was Joseph of Arimathea?
We have a lot of details about Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and of course Easter, but not as many as about Holy Saturday. This was the day Jesus was prepared for burial, according to Jewish custom, and then laid in a tomb that no one had been laid in. The one who bought the tomb was a rich man, named Joseph of Arimathea. We learn from Mark that he was a counselor in the Sanhedrin, part of the 70 elders that made up the Jewish ruling Council. While the disciples and even Jesus' mother and Mary Magdalene are not mentioned, Nicodemus and Joseph are.
Of course there was great risk going to Pilate to ask for Jesus' body, as there would be speculation that the disciples would steal the body and say Jesus had risen from the dead. But the disciples were too distraught at this point to devise such a scheme. They were still mourning for their leader and friend. Joseph, and Nicodmeus another Jewish leader, both came under the possibility of being put in prison or worse.
Other sources outside the bible say that Joseph obtained his wealth as a merchant in metals, and went to faraway places such as India, South America and even India. Some say he took the Holy Grail (the cup used at the Last Supper) and preached the Gospel with Mary and Lazarus to places like France, Belgium, Netherlands and then England. Whatever the case Joseph is a great example of someone who used his wealth and position of authority to give Jesus a proper burial and will always be known for it (his story is in all 4 gospels)!
As the circle of influence spread from the 12 apostles and his early followers, we see the Gospel we taken to the ends of the world as Jesus had wanted. Like Joseph and Nicodemus, we too are given influence and authority to respond to what Jesus has done for us. The question is will we use it for him? Or, will we shy away due to fear of what others will think? Given what Jesus did for us on the cross, like Nicodemus and Joseph, we can offer what we have to honor His name and his life, death and resurrection.
Tomorrow Jesus will rise from the handmade place of burial hewn in the rock Joseph had purchased and His white linen grave clothes will lay folded up in the town. And the disciples will rejoice that their Lord is alive and well and will one day return in great and promised glory. Happy Easter my friends. Christ is Risen, He is Risen indeed!
John 19:38-42
The Burial of Jesus
38 Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. 39 He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds.[a] 40 Taking Jesus’ body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs. 41 At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid. 42 Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.
Of course there was great risk going to Pilate to ask for Jesus' body, as there would be speculation that the disciples would steal the body and say Jesus had risen from the dead. But the disciples were too distraught at this point to devise such a scheme. They were still mourning for their leader and friend. Joseph, and Nicodmeus another Jewish leader, both came under the possibility of being put in prison or worse.
Other sources outside the bible say that Joseph obtained his wealth as a merchant in metals, and went to faraway places such as India, South America and even India. Some say he took the Holy Grail (the cup used at the Last Supper) and preached the Gospel with Mary and Lazarus to places like France, Belgium, Netherlands and then England. Whatever the case Joseph is a great example of someone who used his wealth and position of authority to give Jesus a proper burial and will always be known for it (his story is in all 4 gospels)!
As the circle of influence spread from the 12 apostles and his early followers, we see the Gospel we taken to the ends of the world as Jesus had wanted. Like Joseph and Nicodemus, we too are given influence and authority to respond to what Jesus has done for us. The question is will we use it for him? Or, will we shy away due to fear of what others will think? Given what Jesus did for us on the cross, like Nicodemus and Joseph, we can offer what we have to honor His name and his life, death and resurrection.
Tomorrow Jesus will rise from the handmade place of burial hewn in the rock Joseph had purchased and His white linen grave clothes will lay folded up in the town. And the disciples will rejoice that their Lord is alive and well and will one day return in great and promised glory. Happy Easter my friends. Christ is Risen, He is Risen indeed!
John 19:38-42
The Burial of Jesus
38 Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. 39 He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds.[a] 40 Taking Jesus’ body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs. 41 At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid. 42 Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.
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