Beyond the Cross 2

John 19:39-42

In speaking with other pastors about our churches I have occasionally been asked if our church conducts a Wednesday night service. Many churches do, but we don’t. I have often felt uncomfortable having to say that we didn’t have Wednesday services. And then I decided that when asked I would explain that our Sunday services are so good they carry us all the way through the week. We don’t need a Wednesday service.

In John’s account of the death of Jesus we have Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus joining together to prepare the body for burial. What did Nicodemus bring? What did the two men do? Where did they take Jesus? What stopped them from completing their work?

Nicodemus was among the religious leaders of the time and knew full well what was required to prepare a body for burial. He knew how to go about the rituals that were prescribed by the faith. He brought the proper spices and then joined with Joseph in wrapping the body according to custom.

For these two men it was obvious that this great teacher was dead. His body needed to be prepared and placed in a tomb. There it belonged and there it would stay.

But we know that the grave could not contain the Savior. We know that Jesus was indeed the very Son of God and that on the third day the tomb was no longer necessary. Jesus rose from the grave and changed everything.

Unfortunately we can have the same attitude of Nicodemus and Joseph. Our faith requires that we attend church on Sunday and offer the occasional prayer when needed. To us God is dead, or at least He is only alive and well one day a week.

We can overlook the fact that Jesus lives again, is living now, and should be alive in our hearts. We overlook that fact that God is the Lord not just on Sunday, but on every day of the week and in every moment.

If we are prepared to accept Jesus as our risen Savior then we must be prepared to live out the grace and love of God in every moment of every day. Jesus is not dead. Our faith is not dead. Jesus is alive and our faith should reflect that.

DAILY CHALLENGE: How can you keep Jesus alive in your heart every day?