'Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus' body. Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen cloth & placed it in a tomb cut in the rock, one in which no one had yet been laid.'
Luke 23:52-53
When Jesus was crucified on the cross, he died. This was not a metaphorical death. This was a physical death, an actual death. And his body was taken & buried in a physical tomb. Sealed up & locked away. That silent Saturday was a dark, confusing & difficult day. All of his friends & follower’s hopes & dreams died that day. Buried away in a borrowed tomb. But that day would not last forever.
The tomb where they buried Jesus was located in a garden. When something is buried in a garden, it doesn’t stay in the ground for long. And neither did Jesus. The seed of salvation buried that day was about to break forth & bear fruit that would change history & all of eternity.
Right now, as we face a season of darkness, difficulty & disorientation, may we find our hope in the reality of resurrection. May we bury our fears & failures with Jesus & live in the hope that a new day, a new life is both coming & already here.
Prayer
Jesus, help me today to endure the silence, the waiting, and the isolation. Help me through my dark nights of the soul. Help me through the valley of the shadow of death that seems to make up my daily commute. Help me not to run & hide from the challenges I face today. Help me to be still with you and to know that even in the face of death itself, you are still God. And that my hope comes in the morning. Amen.