The Gospel of Mark: The Burial of Jesus

When evening had come, and since it was the day of Preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath, Joseph of Arimathea, a respected member of the council, who was also himself waiting expectantly for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate wondered if he were already dead; and summoning the centurion, he asked him whether he had been dead for some time. When he learned from the centurion that he was dead, he granted the body to Joseph. Then Joseph bought a linen cloth, and taking down the body, wrapped it in the linen cloth, and laid it in a tomb that had been hewn out of the rock. He then rolled a stone against the door of the tomb. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where the body was laid. ~ Mark 15:42-47


Here's someone unexpected! A member of the council - the ones who sentenced Jesus to death - asking to bury Jesus.

Jesus' friends have all scattered. Remember when John the Baptist died, and his disciples took his body and buried him?

Well, not so Jesus' followers.

Instead someone from the group who condemned him...

Someone who likely was outvoted in that gathering...

Someone who may not even have known Jesus personally...

That someone is the someone who takes Jesus down from the cross and gives him a proper burial.

Which means giving up a tomb that was his for Jesus.

There are always people in Mark's gospel that surprise us. Sometimes, the ones from whom we expect the most, disappoint us, while those who we think wouldn't even bother, end up being the hero of the story.


Holy God, thank you for the gospel - the good news - of your Son. Open my mind and heart to this good news and enliven me with your Spirit of servanthood that I might share this good news with a world in need. Amen. 



Engagement Questions:


What do you make of Joseph of Arimathea?




 

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