Corona Chronicles - Crown of Thorns

Welcome back to Corona Chronicles. In our last session, we were just thinking about verses 40 and 41 and looking the importance and the significance of the women who did not abandon Jesus in his hour of need but stayed there even to his death and we work exploring the importance of the female testimony in in in Christianity both then and now. And now we're going to look at another another faithful another faithful witness who was who was around Jesus' death, Joseph. So we're starting at verse 42. It was preparation day, that is the day before the sabbath.

So as evening approached Joseph of Aram Affairs, a prominent member of the council, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God went boldly to pilate and asked for Jesus's body. Pilot was surprised to hear that he was already dead. Summining the centurion, he asked if Jesus had already died. When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he gave the body to Joseph. So Joseph bought some linen cloth took down the body, wrapped it in the linen and placed it in a tomb, cut out of rock.

Then he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb. Mary Magdalen and Mary the mother of Joseph saw where he was laid. Now, I mean, the gospel writers don't can't afford to to waste words. And and therefore, when there's sort of detail, it's a bit like the last 1 with the women. When there's detail in there, you sort of got to ask, you know, why have they put sort of this particular detail because they often miss out things that we would like to know.

Mhmm. But you've got so much detail in here -- Mhmm. -- that it it really does really does feel like a, you know, an eyewitness account that's being given here. So we had the women last time. Now we've got you know, we've got the day that this happened on.

We've got a name of a man and and he's he's not just Joseph. Mhmm. You know, he's he's honed in on where he come comes from. We've got pilot there. We've got linen cloth that's used.

We've got tomb that was particularly open. We got so and and then the women saw the 2. You know, there's detail after detail after detail here. That does feel like my goodness. This is this is an eyewitness account.

It does. Yeah. And it's not it's like an underground mine and each sentence here is like tunnel that's kind of rich with minerals. I mean, Joseph of Arimathea, let's start with him. He was a prominent member of the council.

That's just really interesting because throughout the gospels, you see Jesus is very critical of the religious elite. And in the main, they all turn away from and won him out of the picture. But this reminds us actually that there were some significant religious figures like him and nicodemus who were waiting for the kingdom of God. They knew their script were looking forward to the coming of Messiah, and they saw that in Christ, and they were willing to bow the knee and acknowledge him, and even though they were so significant. And we're told that he went boldly to pilot and asked for Jesus' body, which tells us that this was actually a risky thing that he did.

Because I guess in his position, it would be unwise be seen to be associating with body Jesus. With a criminal. Yeah? With a criminal. Yeah.

Yeah. And so that would have been putting perhaps his own career in jeopardy there. So he goes boldly and that just reveals that he really is committed to Christ and the kingdom of God. And so he's just a it's just a wonderful testimony, isn't it? Yeah.

Again? And then in that, in going, we we we see that Jesus really had died. So you've got testimony after testimony of this. So because pilot surprised he's already dead. Mhmm.

So it, you know, normally took a bit longer. And and then there's this investigation. So Pilots not just gonna take it from a follower of Jesus. Just in case he wasn't -- Yes. -- dead.

Yeah. And they take him down and revive him and all of that nonsense. Yeah. But you know, we've we've got testimony on testimony. So pilot I mean, the the the centurion's not going to lie -- No.

-- pilot. No. No. No. And the centurion knows everyone's depth.

Absolutely. And that's why pilot relied on the century. A dead man's a dead man. He knows what a dead man is. So you've got all of that going on as well, haven't you?

Yeah. And so, you know, the the the death of Jesus is confirmed and then Joseph is allowed to go and get go and get the body. And then we're told that he bought some linen cloth, took down the body, and wrapped it in linen and placed it in a tomb. And there's so much we could say about that. Well, I think we might come up to that later?

We might come up to that later. But, you know, to begin with, it it shows again his his kind of his affection for Jesus, doesn't it? That he takes him down and he he's careful about the body. He doesn't chuck it into a tube. He wraps it in linen, and he he looks after it.

He wants to give it a proper burial Because in this in this culture and in our culture, the berry a burial is a very important thing, a blue burial. And when you look at later on in the new testament, you see that the burial of Christ was actually really important. So in 1 Corinthians 15, when Paul is actually giving a a summary of the gospel. He says Christ died according to the scriptures. He was buried according to the scriptures.

And was raised on the third day according to the scriptures. So the burial is a way of saying that he really, really did die as he was promised. So that's why this isn't just glossed over. This process of wrapping and burying. And there's lots of other stuff in there that I think we might see another time, but the whole linen thing and you know, you can go back to the old testament.

There's a lot of stuff about linen and the linen man and linen being left at the at the at the by the priests and to show that atonement was done and all of that. So there's there's lots and lots of references here that are important fact that the tomb was cut out of a rock, it's never had a body in it before. Yeah. All of that sort of stuff is -- Yeah. -- is all part of the prophecy, isn't it?

But then we come and we come back to the women. Yeah. I know. And again, you know, this is there, isn't it? This is so real.

Mary Magdalen and Mary the mother of Joseph, saw where he was laid. Mhmm. They're they're they're they're not running away. No. You know, like the the disciples are all running away.

They're they're watching. They love this man. They don't obviously quite understand what's happened. But they still love him even though, you know, they see him as just a dead man. Mhmm.

And and they're just watching and Yeah. It's part of their honoring. And and again, that little sentence is is once again strengthening the the the case for Christianity because what 1 of the arguments that people might make, although, again, it's not so don't hear it very much these days. Is that the disciples went to the wrong tomb. Right.

And that they went there and they they couldn't remember where he was buried. They saw an he won and they thought, oh, he's risen from the dead. Yes. And they made a mistake. Yes.

But actually, we're told they saw where he was laid. Yes. You know, they knew we to me when it visits. So there could be no mistaking it on resurrection day. I mean, 1 of the worst things I know we're not dealing with the resurrection, but I've gotta throw it in now.

But 1 of the worst ones I ever heard. And it sort of became a little bit popular, but it's just unbelievable that anyone would believe it -- Mhmm. -- is that Jesus had a twin brother Yeah. And and the the the body was dead. The twin died and Jesus sort of was hiding away.

And it it it makes a nonsense of all of this. Yeah. Because Jesus is a fundamental liar -- Yes. -- for a start -- Yes. All of these people that were watching what was going on -- Yeah.

-- were totally confused. Yeah. Including his own mother. And his own mother of mine. No.

And didn't know that he had a twin brother. No 1 knew he had a twin -- Yeah. -- twin brother except Jesus. It it or just amazing what people do to twist and manipulate into unbelief. Yeah.

And and it shows what our hearts are like. We're you were ready to believe almost anything -- Yeah. -- to avoid bowing the need to this wonderful king. So, how does this how does this help us today how are people watching? Well, I I think it reminds us firstly that Jesus has come to call all sorts of people to and, you know, whether women, men -- Yeah.

Women, men. -- significant men in lieu of never grown up darkening the door of a or people who have been in church all their lives, you know? The centurion. Yeah. Yeah.

He calls all kinds of different people. You know, it's just another It's another reminder that what we're dealing with is real history of a real man who really died and was really buried and was really seen and loved by real people. And, you know, this is eye witness testimony that you can rest your life on. Yeah. Yeah.

Not not just a religious Now it isn't just a religious fantasy book, is it? I mean, you you you if you read the Berg of our guitar about the the the God, of Hindu. It's all just nonsense. You know, they're sort of hiding, looking at women washing in the stream, and and Krishna nicks their clothes, and all of that sort stuff. It's just all made up nonsense.

Yeah. And but this is just real historical stuff, isn't it? And even lam, you know, there's you don't get this -- Mhmm. -- do you in in in in the Quran. You don't get these details of of an event that's happening like this.

So we can trust it. Yep. Yep.