The Compassion that Transforms Us

After these things Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus, and Pilate gave him permission. So he came and took away his body. Nicodemus also, who earlier had come to Jesus by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds in weight. So they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen cloths 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 yet been laid. So because of the Jewish day of Preparation, since the tomb was close at hand, they laid Jesus there (John 19: 38-42).

The Teacher inspired John to give us this record of the burial of Jesus Christ. Of course this was an indispensable part of the whole gospel story. Jesus Christ had to be physically dead to fully pay for sin before He could physically rise to overcome death for us… “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). But hungry truth seekers will find so much more here if we let the Spirit of Truth be our guide. God provided indisputable proof of His Son’s death and fulfilled His prophetic word while He transformed two secret disciples because they were willing to serve Jesus even in His death. Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, two Jewish leaders that had become secret disciples asked Pilate for Christ’s body. They spared no cost as they prepared the body for a quick burial before the Sabbath began. They took care of the very private funeral arrangements all by themselves. They ensured that the poor carpenter would be a rich man in death. Though He died the death of a criminal, through divinely ordered circumstances and the caring and courageous actions of two secret disciples, Christ was buried in a rich man’s tomb. We note that it was not one of the twelve well-known disciples who stepped up. We even note that Joseph and Nicodemus were not fully convinced that Jesus would rise from death, since they intentionally prepared and bound His body in the typical “burial custom of the Jews”. But they loved Jesus and had compassion that moved them to care for His body even in death. God used the loving, serving hearts of these two secret disciples to accomplish His perfect will and the Holy Spirit recorded their benevolence toward Christ to reveal to truth seeking disciples the compassion that transforms us.

Christ’s burial confirmed His death. The consequence of sin is death. Christ’s willingness to die to provide atonement for our sin reveals God’s great compassionate love to us… “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Whenever we die to self and live for others we are showing Christ’s compassion.

Christ’s burial compelled His secret disciples to confess their faith. Compassion for the Savior should move true disciples from secretly knowing Christ to publicly sharing Christ whenever an opportunity to share His love presents itself. Showing compassion in word and deed to others is how we make Christ’s compassionate love known to others… “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us” (1 John 4:11-12). As we mature in the faith our compassion identifies us as Christ’s disciples.

Christ’s burial consummated God’s word. The Savior’s burial in a rich man’s tomb confirmed that He is the Messiah that would pay for sin as promised through the prophets… “He was… stricken for the transgression of my people… And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth” (Isaiah 53:8-9). When we sacrificially share Christ’s love with others we confirm Him as the One who died for them too.

As we grow up into Christ we are more clearly known as His disciples as we share His love, following the example of disciples like Joseph and Nicodemus who have shown us the power of …

The Compassion that Transforms Us.