[Matthew 27:57-66] When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who also was a disciple of Jesus. He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given to him. And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen shroud and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had cut in the rock. And he rolled a great stone to the entrance of the tomb and went away. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting opposite the tomb.

The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate and said, “Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise.’ Therefore order the tomb to be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples go and steal him away and tell the people, ‘He has risen from the dead,’ and the last fraud will be worse than the first.” Pilate said to them, “You have a guard of soldiers. Go, make it as secure as you can.” So they went and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and setting a guard.”

Good morning and a blessed Holy Saturday to each of you, Saints!

Greetings, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, as together we reflect on the conclusion of our Lenten journey today and eagerly await the celebration of the risen Savior, Son of God, on Easter Sunday, tomorrow morning.  

Before we get there - Easter Sunday - we are here, Holy Saturday. A day that is one of the most overlooked and least considered days in Holy Week. Maybe it's because we’ve just experienced the pain and suffering of Jesus Christ crucified on the cross during Good Friday, and now we can’t wait to skip ahead to the Good News of Easter Sunday? Perhaps because there is so much to celebrate and we have so much to do to prepare for Easter Sunday guests, we pass right over Holy Saturday? Or, maybe it is difficult to imagine Jesus facing the actual state of death after His painful crucifixion? 

The 40-hour vigil from the death of the crucified Jesus Christ on the cross to His resurrection is a long, dark, painful, hopeless, and anxious time for His disciples and should be observed by us as well. The song, Were You There, published in William Eleazar Barton's 1899 Old Plantation Hymns, is a good reminder of how it may have felt for Jesus’ disciples and creates an up close and deep perspective for us. You may have heard it,  “Were you there when they crucified my Lord? (Were You There?).”

One approach is to attempt to place ourselves there with them. What would the perspective of the disciples be? What did they see, what did they hear, and what were they feeling? Did they recall their Lord reminding them in Galilee that He would be killed but on the third day be raised from the dead? “‘After they gathered again in Galilee, Jesus told them, “The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of his enemies. He will be killed, but on the third day he will be raised from the dead.” And the disciples were filled with grief.” Matthew 17:22-23. Their faith has been deepened along with their trust in Jesus. He was crucified now, it’s true, but will He really be raised from the dead? Every fiber of their faith was tested during this dark vigil, where they could only rest, be still, pray, and hope. “Were you there when they crucified my Lord? (Were You There?).”

In the meantime, the chief priests and the Pharisees wasted no time with Jewish law in resting on the Sabbath. No, they gathered before Pilate because they remembered Jesus Christ’s words, saying to Pilate, “Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise.’ Therefore order the tomb to be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples go and steal him away and tell the people, ‘He has risen from the dead,’ and the last fraud will be worse than the first.” Imagine that! Trying to control the narrative, they didn’t want others to have access to Jesus’ body, so they lobbied for a guard to help seal the tomb and stand guard to prohibit Christ’s (the imposter’s) body from being removed from the tomb. “O, sometimes it causes me to tremble! Tremble! Tremble!”

A disciple of Jesus, Joseph of Arimathea, along with Nicodemus, the tax collector, requested and received the body of Jesus from Pilate. “And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen shroud and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had cut in the rock. And he rolled a great stone to the entrance of the tomb and went away. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting opposite the tomb.” Grief-stricken, in shock, frustrated, and trying to give the Lord a proper burial, they could only rest, be still, pray, and hope. “Were you there when they nail'd Him to the cross? (Were you there?).”

Jesus has died. He’s been crucified. Did He feel alone, hopeless? After all, He asked God why did He forsake Him, “Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Matthew 27:45-46. How much pain could He endure? Was it so great that all He could do was cry out to His Father? “After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, “I thirst!” Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth. So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.” John 19:28-30. “Were you there when they pierced Him in the side? (Were You There?).”

A man died. He was crucified along with two others. Not an ordinary man, a true man, but also a true God. Jesus was fully man and fully God. After Jesus’ death on the cross, His body was laid to rest in a new tomb. Jesus’ work was far from over and couldn’t be classified as a restful time. Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, descended into hell to announce His victory over death and the devil. He triumphantly conquered the grave and the devil, freeing those who had died in faith before Him. Jesus Christ used this time as the ultimate triumph as He conquered sin, death, and, yes, even the devil. “Were you there when the sun refused to shine? (Were You There?).”

The death and crucifixion of Jesus is a painful reality to remember. The vigil between Good Friday and Jesus’ resurrection on Easter Sunday is especially painful and long, with difficult questions arising, such as, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” It is a time of Sabbath rest, a time to be still, pray, repent, and be reminded of hope. Let us not forget our role during this time; we are in the role of sinners. It is because of our sin that Jesus was crucified on the cross on Good Friday and descended into hell to dominate the spiritual battle over our sin, death, and the power of the devil so that we may live in paradise with Him forever. May God bless your Easter celebration as together we celebrate the good news that HE IS RISEN! Have a blessed Easter, Saints! "Were you there when He rose up from the dead? (Were You There?)." Amen.

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all evermore. Amen. 

In Christ’s love and mine,

Dr. Jeffrey S. Beavers, CEO

Crean Lutheran High School 

dr.beavers@creanlutheran.org

Writing the Saturday devotion, along with our Campus Pastor, Timothy Unke, for the Crean Lutheran Saints family is an honor and a blessing, according to Dr. Beavers. Most of the time, Dr. Beavers and Pastor Unke alternate the writing of devotions on Saturdays for the community’s enjoyment. Dr. Beavers is a husband and father of three. He is a Minister of Religion, Commissioned in the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, and serves as the Executive Director |CEO of Crean Lutheran High School. He has served there since the school’s founding for the past eighteen years and is blessed to be a lifelong follower of Jesus Christ, a sinner and a saint, only by God’s grace. He and his family worship at St. John’s Lutheran Church, Orange, CA.