Day 41 - We Wait

Good morning and happy Saturday.

Today is what we call Holy Saturday.

And we're looking at Matthew chapter 27, starting in verse 57.

Matthew 27 · chapter mention

It says this as evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus.

Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus' body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him.

Joseph took the body, wrapped it in clean linen cloth, and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of rock.

He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance of the tomb and went away.

Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb.

The next day, the one after the preparation day, the chief priest and the Pharisees went to Pilate.

Sir, they said, We remembered that while he was still alive, that deceiver said, After three days I will rise again.

So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day.

Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead.

This last deception will be worse than the first.

Take a guard, Pilate answered.

Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.

So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a still on the stone and posting the guard.

Today is Holy Saturday.

Yesterday we celebrated and remembered the truth of Good Friday, when Jesus willingly gave his life, dying a humiliating and excruciating death on the cross.

Yesterday, the city would have been buzzing, and the talk of Jesus' death would have been the topic of conversation on everyone's tongue.

The dream of Jesus being the long-awaited Messiah was suddenly becoming a nightmare, and all hope was gone.

The sun sets on Friday and awakes on Saturday morning.

However, the scene of the streets of Jerusalem looked much different than a few hours before.

On this Saturday morning, the streets are quiet and everything is moving at a slower pace.

Today is the Sabbath, and no work is to be done on this designated day of rest.

This meant everything suddenly ceases.

There is no anointing the body, no traveling to get out of the city, no planning meetings for the disciples to determine what would happen next.

Everything stops.

Everything is quiet.

Everyone is still.

Spend time quieting your soul to hear from the Lord and reflect on his sacrifice.

And so we pray this morning, Father, today I wait.

Help me to love you more as I sit in the stillness of this moment.

Thank you for what you have done for me and through your sacrifice and thank you for what we will celebrate tomorrow, your resurrection from the dead.

And so we wait this morning, Lord.

We wait on you to work and to move like only you can't.