Monday, September 11: “Love + Purpose = Good, Pt. I”
Mark 15: 43: “Joseph of Arimathea came, a prominent member of the council, who himself was waiting for the Kingdom of God; and he gathered up courage and went in before Pilate, and asked for the body of Jesus.”
Like Simon of Cyrene, like Ananias of Damascus, like Claudius Lysias the Chiliarch, Joseph is one of those people in the Gospel narrative who appear out of nowhere, make a tremendous impact, then disappear as quickly as they arrived. But all four Evangelists agree on this detail (that in itself is a rarity): The logistics of dealing with Jesus’ body were handled by this unsung hero; this rich man who was with Christ in His death (Isaiah 53: 9). And, unknown to everyone except God, everything concerning Jesus’ body had to be handled exactly the way it was for there to be an indisputable witness of His resurrection and a fulfillment of Scripture. You see, God knows how to handle the details, even the seemingly ugly ones, and work them all out for good, for His glory.
