John 19:31-42

Since it was the day of Preparation, the Jews did not want the bodies left on the cross during the sabbath, especially because that sabbath was a day of great solemnity. So they asked Pilate to have the legs of the crucified men broken and the bodies removed. ³²Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who had been crucified with him. ³³But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. ³⁴Instead, one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once blood and water came out. ³⁵(He who saw this has testified so that you also may believe. His testimony is true, and he knows that he tells the truth.) ³⁶These things occurred so that the scripture might be fulfilled, “None of his bones shall be broken.” ³⁷And again another passage of scripture says, “They will look on the one whom they have pierced.”

³⁸After these things, Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, though a secret one because of his fear of the Jews, asked Pilate to let him take away the body of Jesus. Pilate gave him permission; so he came and removed his body. ³⁹Nicodemus, who had at first come to Jesus by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, weighing about a hundred pounds. ⁴⁰They took the body of Jesus and wrapped it with the spices in linen cloths, according to the burial custom of the Jews. ⁴¹Now there was a garden in the place where he was crucified, and in the garden there was a new tomb in which no one had ever been laid. ⁴²And so, because it was the Jewish day of Preparation, and the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.

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There would be no story if it ended here. There would have been wailing, and grieving, and it would have been the end of Jesus of Nazareth. Today we would not read a Christmas story to our children; we would not wonder how the wisemen took such a journey of faith; we would never imagine water would become wine; we would not have the words of Jesus to push us and challenge our comfort. As long as Jesus was in the tomb, humanity wept at its loss, just as His followers wept. It was the darkest day of their lives, as this man they had invested everything in had been killed.

What are the dark corners of your life? What are the things that cause you to weep, to mourn? Do not believe that you are weak because of them. Do not believe that you must ignore or defeat them. Christianity, a religion filled with hope and joy, acknowledges the pains and agonies of life. They are a part of our story, and while we know how the story ends, that does not mean that pain and grief will not be a part of our walk. It simply means that our God will be with us and understands our pain. Weep and mourn, but do not believe that God abandons you in those times, for God never abandons us.

Blessings