Humanity

God’s people would go back once
again to John chapter 19. John chapter 19, it seems that
I’ll take a brief tour of the Gospels even before we get to
our primary passage, but if you turn to John 19, I promise I
will join you there momentarily. One of the most stark Sometimes even shocking passages
in all of the New Testament is Matthew chapter 7 Where Jesus
himself is warning others beware of false prophets who come to
you in sheep’s clothing But inwardly are ravenous wolves You will
know them by their fruits That is a clear reminder to us that
God is the one that changes hearts. God is the one that even in our
own lives does the work of sanctification just as he does the work of salvation. It’s not a matter of us making
ourselves better. It’s a matter of the Lord gently and consistently and completely
changing us to be like Christ. Not a matter of us. We’re involved. We notice our sin. We confess
our sin. We cry out for grace. And over
and over again, we seek to be reformed, seek to be changed
and sanctified by the Lord. But it’s not a matter of us making
ourselves good. But the contrast is there in
Scripture. The contrast is there, and really
there is a dichotomy that cuts right down the middle of humanity.
You’ve heard many jokes, perhaps, that start with there are two
kinds of people in the world, but there really is truth to
that statement. There are really only two kinds
of people in the world. true believers in Jesus Christ
whose lives are slowly but surely being transformed into the likeness
of Christ and there are those that are not now and likely never
will be outside of God’s grace be changed. Two kinds of people. We’ll see both kinds of people
as we get into this passage this morning. We left off in John’s
gospel in verse 30, where John recorded, therefore, when Jesus
had received the sour wine, he said, it is finished. Redemption
was now complete as he yielded up his spirit. And it says that
he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. The timing was Christ’s. The act was Christ’s. It wasn’t
a soldier that took his life. It wasn’t even crucifixion that
took his life. Ultimately, Jesus Christ yielded
up his spirit. It was absolutely in God’s sovereign
timetable. But the synoptic writers record
a brief that is Matthew, Mark, and Luke, they record this brief
series of fantastic details at Jesus’ passing. And I think that
serves as a nice introduction into the passage that we’ll consider
this morning. Listen, if you would, I’m reading
from Matthew’s version, but all three of the synoptic writers
recorded that the moment that Jesus died, some amazing things
occurred. Behold the veil of the temple
was torn in two from top to bottom and the earth shook and the rocks
were split the tombs were open and many bodies of the saints
who had fallen asleep were raised and Coming out of the tombs after
his resurrection. They entered the holy city and
appeared to many I mean, this is an amazing scene Now the centurion And all those
who were with Him keeping guard over Jesus when they saw the
earthquake and the things that were happening became very frightened
and said, truly this was the Son of God. Many women were there
looking on from a distance who had followed Jesus from Galilee
while ministering to Him. Among them was Mary Magdalene
and Mary the mother of James and Joseph and the mother of
the sons of Zebedee. And now if you would, go back to John’s Gospel and
we pick it up in verse 31. And I want you to see different
kinds of humanity. I would suggest to you that there
are only two. Many will manifest their wickedness
or their righteousness in different ways. But there are really only
two kinds of people in this world. Then the Jews, because it was
the day of preparation so that the bodies would not remain on
the cross on the Sabbath, for that Sabbath was a high day,
asked Pilate that their legs might be broken and that they
might be taken away. So the soldiers came. and broke
the legs of the first man, and of the other who was crucified
with him. But coming to Jesus, when they
saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs.
But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and immediately
blood and water came out. And he who has seen has testified
and his testimony is true and he knows that he is telling the
truth so that you may believe for these things came to pass
to fulfill the scripture not a bone of him shall be broken
and again another scripture says they shall look on him whom they
pierced after these things Joseph of
Arimathea Being a disciple of Jesus, but a secret one for fear
of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of
Jesus. And Pilate granted permission.
So he came and took away his body. Nicodemus, who had first
come to him by night, also came bringing a mixture of myrrh and
aloes, about a hundred pounds weight. So they took the body
of Jesus and bound it in linen wrappings with the spices, as
is the burial custom of the Jews. Now, in the place where he was
crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden, a new tomb
in which no one had been laid. Therefore, because of the Jewish
day of preparation, since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus
there. Did you see them? Did you see the pool of humanity? Did you see the two different
kinds of people in the world? There were, on one side of the
equation, the Jews and Pilate, who we know all too well through
our consideration of John’s gospel. We see the soldiers, we see even
one soldier in particular, and then we meet with the other portion
of humanity. We meet a man named Joseph of
Arimathea, of whom we know almost nothing at all except what is
in this particular passage. We meet up again with a man named
Nicodemus. whom we’ve met before twice in
this gospel and nowhere else in any of the gospels, both with their own acts of kindness. And then we meet another group
of people that just seem to do what is right, like Christ. We’ll
come back to them in a moment. But as we begin to look and assess
the heart of humanity, as we begin to look at the two different
kinds of people in the world, we cannot help but see the coarse indifference of Christ’s
enemies. The coarse indifference, just
an utter disregard for who Christ was, who Christ is, and a treatment
that was completely in line with that. Of course indifference
of Christ’s enemies as seen first of all in their predictable hypocrisy. Well now hypocrisy shouldn’t
be predictable and yet these particular people are so steeped
in their traditions and so blinded to the truth that now their hypocrisy
has become almost commonplace in this gospel. Look at verse
31, their predictable hypocrisy. Then the Jews, because it was
the day of preparation, so that the bodies would not remain on
the cross on the Sabbath, for that Sabbath was a high day,
asked Pilate that their legs might be broken. Do you sense
any hypocrisy in that statement? When they talk about the day
of preparation, essentially what was in their heart is a lot of
times what happens in our homes on Christmas Eve, or perhaps
even on Christmas Eve Eve, where we’re busy getting ready. Certainly
Wednesday night, the night before Thanksgiving, is another one
of those occasions where much effort and preparation the time
where even husbands will run the vacuum. Much preparation
goes in to the preparation for a high day and the Jews here
in this particular situation are very focused on this high
day. But Jesus had pointed out on
a number of occasions that these were largely hypocritical men
whom he said strain out a gnat and swallow a camel. They would
be so fastidious about some ridiculous thing, some extra-biblical prohibition,
they would be so fastidious about that thing in complete disregard
of another. Here they are, scrupulous, fastidious,
careful, Exacting about their preparation for the Sabbath and
especially this particular Sabbath All the while they have just
participated in a murder the murder of an innocent man the
murder of the Lord Jesus Christ and all they’re concerned about
is these dreadful dead bodies hanging during the course of
the preparation for the Sabbath. It’s almost, almost expected. Certainly not
surprising that this is the last request of the Jews recorded.
The last action of the Jews recorded in John’s particular gospel. They want this dealt with. They
want this inconvenience out of the way. They want this horrific sight brushed aside
so that they can begin what was called the preparation. The preparation
was just a technical term. And the preparation, every family,
I remember hearing many years ago that one pastor said that
the preparation for Sunday begins on Saturday, right? And what they suggested is perhaps
even knowing what you were going to serve for breakfast and having
the children’s clothes laid out, anything that would facilitate
getting to church on time, getting to church in the right frame
of mind, getting to church in peace with other family members,
anything that would facilitate that really begins on a Saturday.
And essentially that’s what you have here. It’s the preparation.
where all the cooking would be done, where all the cleaning
would be done, where all the heart preparation, hopefully,
would be done. It was the preparation. And preparation was always done
for any Sabbath, but this was no ordinary Sabbath. This was
a high day. This was a doubly high day. and
it would be devoted to doubly high preparations. This was the
Passover feast Sabbath. Probably the only thing that
I can liken it to in our own Christian culture is the idea
of when Christmas Day falls on a Sunday. This was an extremely
high day. Unfortunately, They’re up against
the Romans. Here all they want to do is begin
preparation for the Sabbath, the Passover day Sabbath, but
the Roman custom was to leave the bodies on the cross. They
did so for a number of reasons. They would leave the bodies on
a cross in order to send a message to any else who might be inclined
to their particular crimes. Any insurrectionist would look
at those bodies hanging on the cross and might be led to change
his ways. Any criminal, any murderer would
see that as a constant reminder of the price to be paid if they
were caught. And so for a criminal crucified
on a Sunday, they might not only linger through the Jewish Sabbath,
The Romans sometimes would leave them there for days, even weeks,
until they expired. Days until they expired, and
then even weeks after they expired. That’s a problem. It’s a problem
to the Jews. And it’s a biblical problem.
It’s a problem with their law. Exodus 12 says on the first day
you shall have a holy assemble and another holy assembly on
the seventh day No work shall be done on them The Jews could
not participate in a burial on the Sabbath But even without
a Sabbath to make matters more urgent They they had a law that bodies
must be removed before sundown, Deuteronomy 21, if a man has
committed a sin worthy of death and he is put to death and you
hang him on a tree, his corpse shall not hang all night on a
tree, but you shall surely bury him on the same day for he is
hanged, he is accursed of God so that you do not defile your
land which the Lord your God gives you as an inheritance. Now the Jews are fastidious. We already know that. They are
scrupulous. They are wanting to be very particular about honoring
the Sabbath and honoring this high feast day, but they have
a problem. And the problem is that the Romans
are in charge. And the Romans were particularly
inclined to leave the bodies, especially those committed of
Jewish crimes or Jews rather committed of crimes, because
that would be an indication to them, a reminder of who was in
charge. And so with the sundown looming
and the Sabbath beginning at sundown, the Jews are urgent. It’s probably now about three
o’clock. And they are absolutely up against
a number of factors that are making this much more of an issue. The bodies need to be down before
night. They have probably three hours. They absolutely have to
be down and buried before a Sabbath, especially before a high day.
And this, the highest of all high days, Passover. The problem is, if they didn’t
do something, Pilate was likely to leave the bodies there. They
must do something, but Pilate would have to approve of whatever
action was taking place. Nobody could just walk up to
a cross, peel down a body, bury him in a tomb, and be done with
it. This was the Romans’ jurisdiction. So they had just seen God’s Passover
lamb crucified. They killed the Lord of the Sabbath
at their own doing and they are more concerned about the symbol. The symbolic Passover meal, the
symbolic Sabbath day, both which ultimately pointed to Christ
for their fulfillment. Absolutely predictable hypocrisy. And so it says, the Jews, here’s
their motivation, because it was the day of preparation. They
asked Pilate that their legs might be broken. This is so barbaric,
it’s hard to even read it. Here you have these men that
were beaten senseless, crucified, and we talked about the great
trial of suffering that that was for anyone who was crucified. unspeakable pain, unmatched cruelty,
and now along comes a soldier with a club to break these men’s
legs. Pilate asked that their legs
might be broken, that they might be taken away so that they could
preserve their Sabbath, so that they could honor a properly given
law of God, They asked Pilate to do this terrible thing, finish
the job, let these men expire so we can get them buried. And the amazing thing J.C. Ryle
points out is that this had to be. In God’s providence, this
had to be. That if the Jews had not asked
the Romans, Jesus would not have been buried on a Friday, He wouldn’t
have been three days in the tomb, Friday, Saturday, part of Sunday,
resurrected on the third day just according to the scriptures.
This is God’s sovereign providence being worked out, and it is astounding. And so we see in the Jews, and
in Pilate himself, this predictable hypocrisy. Pilate doesn’t care
about the law, He cares only about the political winds that
are blowing, as we’ve already seen. That’s why Jesus was crucified
on his watch. He’s only worried about his own
neck, only worried about his own reputation. And so as we
continue assessing the heart of humanity, and we see the coarse
indifference of his enemies, we see not only their predictable
hypocrisy, but their heartless brutality. Even the request is
hard to even hear that they would come and break the legs, likely
the shin bone or the ankle bone that would allow the body to
collapse on the cross, unable to support itself, unable any
longer to raise oneself up on their feet and grab a breath
of oxygen. Look at verse 32. So the soldiers
came. That means that Pilate had to
have given the okay, yes, go ahead, this was a common practice,
go ahead and go with your mallet, go with your club, break the
legs of these crucified men. So the soldiers came and they
broke the legs of the first man and of the other who was crucified
with them. This meant often almost immediate
expiration. Immediate death. The body would
relax. They wouldn’t be able to get
any further breath. They wouldn’t be able to lift
themselves up on their legs. The agony alone from the pain. They broke the legs of the first
man. And the other who was crucified
with him, but coming to Jesus. They saw that he was already
dead. They did not break his legs. This particular punishment, this
breaking of the legs, they would not do this to a Roman. It was reserved only for the
worst kinds of criminals, for slaves, not for Roman citizens. And it was done not only as an
act of cruelty, disregard for humanity, but it was done to
hasten, as I said, death. It was performed to the heavy
club, and yet as painful and barbaric as this was, in a sense
it was a mercy in that it dispatched the suffering criminal with great
speed. We’re assessing humanity here
and we see the worst, don’t we? Hypocrisy and brutality, and
we see brutality in our own day. Sometimes we see brutality in
our own circles, in our own homes, in various circles in which we travel.
The human heart is exceedingly wicked. But there’s a third mark of this
coarse indifference. of Jesus’ enemies, it’s seen
as their predictable hypocrisy, their heartless brutality, and
their callous efficiency. Look at verse 34. One of the
soldiers pierced his side with a spear and immediately blood
and water came out. Neither one of these are preferable
acts of brutality. To walk up to another human and
to thrust a spear into his side, likely it was done to ensure
or make sure that he was dead, either for one who was very near
death or to ensure that the suffering individual perished. Sometimes it was given to hasten
the death of those who have been crucified, much like the breaking
of the legs. The use of the bayonet on the
battlefield is very similar, not so much as a mercy as soldiers
would go body to body, piercing those, not so much to prevent
their suffering, but to prevent and safeguard an enemy lying
there feigning death. That’s what the Roman soldier
did as he walked up to Christ and thrust a spear into his side.
He wanted to make sure or to ensure to discover whether or
not he was really and truly dead. This is a heartless act. We have those same sentiments,
those same acts in our own day and age, in our low view of humanity, low view
of life. to see the way humans treat one
another in our day and age were no better, and in many cases
worse. Nevertheless, this thrust of
the spear made it absolutely certain. The body that was hanging on
that cross in between those two other criminals wasn’t just fainting. He hadn’t just passed out. Because
otherwise, with a thrust of a spear, there would have been some sign
of life, some anguish, some final pain, some gasp. And John records
just simply that blood and water came out. This has led many,
some in the medical community to delve into this and come up
with all kinds of real detailed and fanciful explanations of
what blood and water meant. Some say that the blood and water
was symbolic, the blood representing the work of redemption, the water
representing the birth from above. I think that you would have to
have either an apostle or the Lord Jesus himself lay this out
as an explanation. I don’t think there’s any warrant. John is just standing there at
the cross and he’s reporting what he actually saw. It was
horrific to him. that his savior is there hanging
on the cross, a dead body, a soldier comes by, thrusts a spear into
his side, and this is what he records. I think that’s exactly what John
is alluding to in verse 35. When he said, he who has seen
is testified and his testimony is true. He knows that he’s telling
the truth so that you may believe. He’s saying, I gave you an eyewitness
account of what happened at the cross. There I was standing at
the foot of the cross. I watched them put him up. I
watched him expire. I heard his words. I saw him
die. I saw the soldiers come and I
saw them thrust this spear into his side. It’s true. John is very concerned throughout
this, John the Apostle is very concerned throughout this entire
gospel on witnesses. Remember, we’ve touched on this
before. John 119, John 132, talking about John the Baptist as a witness. But John himself was also a witness. And he wants us to know. And
he wants us to know that in this particular case, in this particular
incident, he was there. He saw it with his own eyes. John says, not only is his evidence
adequate, but it’s true. I love the way one particular
individual laid this out, this argument. Not only adequate,
but true. He said testimony may be sufficient
from a competent eyewitness, but false. There are many occasions
where eyewitnesses really believe what they testify to, but the
facts don’t add up when the video is played. They really believed
it, they really saw it, but in the end their testimony is not
true. or the testimony may be insufficient,
like from a little child. They don’t let little kids testify
in a trial, but it’s true. John says that his testimony
is absolutely both. It was not only sufficient, adequate,
it was an eyewitness account, and it was absolutely true. This
is exactly what John saw. John has faithfully testified
here in this passage, in these chapters, to Jesus’ life. He really lived and he really
died. He died a sacrificial death.
He yielded up his spirit, including the absolute fulfillment of biblical
prophecy. John testifies of these brutal
soldiers. He testifies of Pilate. He testifies
of the Jews’ behavior. He testifies of the dead Savior. He testifies of the living criminals. He testifies of the broken legs,
the pierced, the body pierced by the spear, and the blood and
water. There’s no need to go beyond
that. John says, I saw what I saw. Then John takes us back to the
scriptures. This was a fulfillment of scripture.
This was the promise of God now being played out. Look at verse
36. For these things came to pass
to fulfill the scripture. At the beginning of John’s gospel,
remember, he used John the Baptist to introduce to us the Lamb of
God. What an incredible concept. that
just as God had provided for Abraham a sacrifice, John the Baptist points to Christ
and says, behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of
the world. And now what John does at the
other end of his gospel, at the very end he says, these things
came to pass to fulfill the scripture. This is proof. This is proof
that when John the Baptist pointed to him and said, there is the
lamb of God, he’s not just any lamb, he is the Passover lamb. He’s the perfect, unblemished,
unbroken lamb of God. The true Passover lamb was to
be dedicated to God himself. And it was protected by God’s
law from mistreatment. Exodus 12 46 it is to be eaten
in a single house. You are not to bring forth any
of the flesh outside the house nor are you to break a bone of
it. Numbers 9 12 they shall leave
none of it till morning no break a bone of it. According to all
the statute of the Passover they shall observe it. And John looks
at this ancient ritual this practice It wasn’t just a commemorative
meal to be shared among family and friends, much like our Thanksgiving. This Passover lamb was an offering
to God Himself. It had to be perfect. Had to
be perfect. Had those soldiers come to Christ
and said, I think He’s faking it. Let’s break His legs anyway. Christ could not have been the
true Passover lamb. This was in God’s sovereign providence
to fulfill the scriptures. Christ was our Passover lamb. Scriptures are absolutely clear.
They absolutely prove it. And they prove it again in verse
37, John says. And again, another scripture
says, they shall look on him whom they pierced. That would have gotten the Jews
attention. In addition to the prophecy of Isaiah, Zechariah
was one of their most precious books. They would have known
the Messiah was one who was going to be pierced. They didn’t know
exactly what that looked like, what it meant. Zechariah 12.10
said, I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants
of Jerusalem the spirit of grace and supplication so that they
will look on me whom they have pierced. They will mourn for
him as one mourns for an only son and they will weep bitterly
over him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn. everything
was summed up under Christ. That as John stands there and
records these things, he says, this is absolutely true. And the piercing of Jesus’ side,
the blood in the water, was an absolute fulfillment of biblical
prophecy. Absolutely true. And so we see the first kind
of humanity the coarse indifference of his enemies as we see their
predictable hypocrisy, their heartless brutality, and their
callous efficiently. What about the others? We’ve seen what his enemies are
like. What about his friends? Of his friends we see Three clear
examples as well. We see, first of all, the tender
care of his friends in a, what I would call a surging boldness. A surging boldness. Look at verse
38, after these things. Joseph of Arimathea, being a
disciple of Jesus, but a secret one for fear of the Jews, asked
Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus. And Pilate
granted permission. Joseph had been this kind of covert believer. I don’t know
what that is in our day and age. Joseph was in process. Joseph
was maybe hedging his bets, waiting to see whether Jesus actually
issued forth a new kingdom, whether he was indeed the Messiah. We
don’t know. We’re not told. There’s almost
nothing about Joseph of Arimathea. The Synoptists go on to tell
us that he was rich. Interesting little tidbit, but
it doesn’t save him. That he was a member of the Sanhedrin,
neither would that save him. That he was a good and just man,
neither will that save a man. We do see some nobility in what
Luke records that he had not consented to what the Sanhedrin
did with Christ. He wasn’t part of that. Not that
somebody couldn’t be saved, that someone couldn’t repent of that,
but already Joseph is holding back. Already Joseph is doubting
the direction that they’re heading. And he does not consent. But we’re told that he was told
by the synoptics, one who was waiting for the kingdom of God.
That describes many Jews of that day. Looking for the Messiah,
waiting for true righteousness to play out on the land, looking
for salvation, looking for personal forgiveness. This is that man. And John just says he had become
a disciple, a secret disciple. After all, he was in this club,
this group called the Sanhedrin. These were the ones that were
so vociferous and so contrary to Christ. He had to be a little
careful. Or he too might be called and
labeled an insurrectionist. He too might be killed. And here
is Joseph. And save for one apostle that
we know of that was at the cross, John, there may have been others,
but they’re never named. But while all the other apostles
not only remove themselves, but flee, in steps Joseph of Arimathea
with great boldness. A surging boldness, a boldness
that wasn’t there in the past, but now is ready to be counted,
ready to stand up and name the name of Christ. It reminds you,
doesn’t it, of the parable of the two sons. You remember that
parable? What do you think? Jesus said, a man had two sons.
He came to the first and said, son, go work in the vineyard
today. And he answered, I will not. And afterwards, he regretted
it and went. The man came up to the second
and said the same thing, and he answered, I will. But he did
not go. That describes the apostles,
doesn’t it? The second son, where they said
that they would, remember they, you remember this, we’ll die
with you. We will never leave you. Where
are they? And here’s one, Joseph of Arimathea,
who never promised anything, and yet now shows up. Jesus’ death had to have happened
fairly quickly. After all, the Jews, likely only
minutes before Joseph of Arimathea came, he asked the crucified
ones, when they came to ask for the crucified ones’ legs to be
broken. Mark relates that Pilate seems
dubious of the fact that Jesus is actually dead and he has to
send a soldier to verify that, Mark 15, 44. So Joseph gets permission whatever
way he ends up taking down the body. It almost reads like Joseph
did it all. Like Joseph dealt with Christ
at the cross. We know that he would have had
help. We know that very likely a man named Nicodemus was there
to help. But so were some of the other women. But I want you
to get the the grand nature of this act. For a Jew to walk up to a cross
and to touch and deal with a dead body, he would have been absolutely
ceremonial, unclean. He would not have been able to
even participate and enjoy the Passover meal, let alone the
Sabbath. You know what Joseph did right
then? He traded in this religious system for a true and living relationship
with Jesus Christ. It reminds us, doesn’t it, of
Philippians 3. If anyone has a confidence to
put, or a mind to put confidence in the flesh, I far more, says
Paul, I was very proud of my Judaism. Circumcised the eighth
day, the nation of Israel, tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews.
As to the law, a Pharisee. As to zeal, a persecutor of the
church. As to righteousness, which is
in the law, found blameless. I was a perfect Jew. But whatever
things were gained to me, those things I have counted but lost
for the sake of Christ. That’s exactly what Joseph of
Arimathea did. What have you done? Is Christ everything to you?
Have you forsaken all or are you still hanging on to some
good deed that you can do or did do or might do that might
gain you some kind of confidence in salvation? We must do what Joseph of Arimathea
did while we have opportunity, if we are in Christ, then we
do. We do to honor the Lord, not
to earn our salvation. And when we do, whatever it is
we do, we do it with excellence to the glory of God. Secondly, not only do we see in this second
portion of humanity, the tender care of his friends in this surging
boldness, we see the tender care of Jesus’ friends in this practical
generosity. And we meet up with Nicodemus
again in verse 39. Nicodemus, who had first come
to Him by night. John wants us to know that it’s
the same Nicodemus. The same Nicodemus that came
sneaking up to Christ at night is the same one that now standing
at the foot of the cross sees a very practical need, a dead
body. A dead body that would need to
be cared for and seasoned and placed into a tomb. Nicodemus,
who had first come to him by night, also came bringing a mixture
of myrrh and aloes. Same John that we saw in John
chapter three. The same John that we saw again
and met up with in John chapter seven. Standing up, as it were,
for propriety. He too was a member of the Sanhedrin.
And that explains the obvious relationship that he had with
Joseph of Arimathea. They were both Jews, both members
of the Sanhedrin, both somewhat secret believers. And now both
of these men take opportunity to stand on their faith in Christ.
Was it mere sentimentality? Doubtful. because they both show
this uncommon boldness. When everyone else faded away,
ran away, Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus stand up, and it
seems to be the case that in Nicodemus’ case, when he saw
Joseph’s courage, his heart swelled. How we can be used in the lives
of others? in doing the right thing, in
being bold, in stepping up, in serving. Others see that and
they are emboldened and led to serve Christ. And he comes bringing this mixture
of myrrh and aloes, 100 pounds weight. This was a king’s burial. This body would have been lavished
in these spices. myrrh and aloes, strongly aromatic. It had an antiseptic property
to it. The same gift that was brought
to Christ at the crib is now brought to Christ at the cross. We sometimes want to give up
on people, don’t we? Did you give up on Nicodemus in chapter
3? I told you to hold off on it. We sometimes look at people,
slow growers, you seem to give the same lesson over and over
again. I love Paul’s habit. Paul looked hard at other believers,
and he looked hard for the sake of seeing God’s handiwork in
their lives. And when he looked and he noticed
and he saw God’s grace at work in their lives, Paul so frequently
commented on it. Read chapter 16 of Romans sometime. Paul looks and he gives this
grocery list of people, mere names to us, people that we don’t
see anywhere else in all of Scripture. And yet Paul goes person by person
noting how God was using them in some community, in some way
or another. Here’s Nicodemus of all people,
bringing this very practical gift, but one of overwhelming
generosity. Our giving, our service is not
to be stingy. It’s not to be a tithe. There’s no tithe in the New Testament. It’s not to be a percentage.
But as Paul describes it, it’s supposed to be a joyful, literally
hilarious giving. It’s supposed to be done with
generosity of heart. A willing, eager gift. Not a stingy and heartless gift. We see two kinds of people. Not only the coarse indifference
of his enemies, but the tender care of his friends as seen in
not only their surging boldness, their practical generosity, but
their tender propriety. They did what was right. They
treated this dead body respectfully, carefully, as it ought to have
been treated. Look at verse 40. So they took
the body of Jesus, bound it with linen wrappings with the spices,
as is the burial custom of the Jews. Matthew and Mark both point
out that Mary, Magdalene, Mary the wife of Clopas, they were
both present at the funeral, at the burial rather. They had
been at the cross. They probably waited until the
very end. Salome also was at the cross. Perhaps even Mary,
Christ’s mother, was there. But all of these people, what
Luke just points to is all his acquaintances and the women who
accompanied him. That sounds like more than just
two. And I would suggest to you that
all of God’s people will manifest a similar kind of grace, won’t
they? All of God’s people will have
a surging boldness and a practical generosity and a tender propriety,
just as all of those at the cross, even unnamed, did. Look at verse
41. Now in the place where he was
crucified, there was a garden. In the garden, there was a new
tomb in which no one had ever been laid. Historians believe
that this was likely Joseph’s own tomb. It was brand new. No one had ever been placed in
there. Joseph knew all about it, and he readily gave it to
Christ. We close with this. Therefore,
because of the Jewish day of preparation, since the tomb was
nearby, they laid Jesus there with all tenderness. They did
the right thing. A Jewish funeral insisted that
it had to be done before sundown, absolutely before the Sabbath.
They met that deadline. In order to get this done before
sundown, these men, whatever help they may have had from these
women, had to work quickly, they had to work efficiently, no doubt
with excellence in mind, in order to get this task done before
sundown. This was a true labor of love. It was done with tenderness and
propriety. And that stands as a clarion
call to us too, doesn’t it? That whatever we do, we need
to do what’s right. We need to be about doing what
is right. We need to watch for opportunities
and seize hold of opportunities and honor Christ in what we do. You know the passage. Jesus said to them that we’re standing about. You saw
me hungry. and you fed me. You saw me naked
and you clothed me. You saw me in prison and you
came and visited me. And they were astounded and said,
what are you talking about? When did we ever see you hungry
or thirsty or naked or in prison? And Jesus said, to the degree that you did it to
the least of these, you did it to me. Whatever we do, we need to do
what’s right. And when we do what’s right, we need to do it
with excellence. There is far too much half-heartedness in
our so-called Christian effort. These people took it upon themselves
to bury the Savior of the world, the King of kings, the Lord of
lords, the creator of heaven and earth. Can you imagine doing
that haphazardly? then why would we do anything
else allegedly in the service of Christ half-heartedly? When God’s word says, do all
that you do to the glory of God, would you bow as we examine our
hearts? Our merciful King, we humble
ourselves before you as we see these Very clear examples. Examples of grace at work in
the lives of sinners. And very clear examples of a
complete lack of grace in sinners’ lives. Merciful God, we pray
that you would show us who we are. Show us where we are. Show us whether we are half-hearted,
callous individuals, efficiently going through our day, never
knowing you. Show us, Lord, whether the tender
mercies of God have visited us and we are changed people, changed
by God himself. And do what we do. to the glory
of God. Show us who we are, Lord God. And we pray that if there are
any who do not know the Lord Jesus Christ and who read these
and do not see themselves in this latter category of humanity,
if there is no grace at work in a person’s life, they’re not
saved. There is no fruit. Merciful God,
grant grace and clarity everywhere it’s needed. We pray these things
in Jesus’ name. Amen.