The Triumph of the King? - Mark 15:42-47

 

The Triumph of the King?

Christ Died for our sins, and was buried

Mark 15:42-47

Introduction: In August of 2023 our series in Mark brought us to Chapter 11 and the account of the Triumphal entry. Five days after He entered Jerusalem to the cheers of the crowd, He lay dead in the Tomb. It has taken us a bit longer to work through these chapters in our study of Mark, but we have arrived at the last paragraph in Mark 15.

       Think about the unfolding of the story: On Palm Sunday, Jesus entered the city to the cheers of the crowd: the King is coming! He entered the Temple that day and remember that only Mark tells us that “He looked around at everything”  before returning to Bethany (Mk 11:11). Now, five days later, He has been crucified, the veil of that same Temple has been torn from top to bottom, and He lay dead in the tomb. From Triumph to the Tomb? The King is coming! The King is dead? What did this mean?

     This is not the unfolding story that anyone had expected earlier that week. Well the religious leaders did want to put Him to death, but not during the feast, they didn’t want risk a popular revolt. And yes, His admirers might have been a little surprised by His lowly entrance into the city, riding on a donkey’s colt. But they still hailed Him in messianic terms as their coming King and Savior. They may have expected a messianic entrance more like we see in Revelation 19:11-16,  

¹¹ Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war.  ¹² His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself.  ¹³ He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God.  ¹⁴ And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses.  ¹⁵ From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.  ¹⁶ On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.

That is more like it!  That is the kind of power and reign we can relate too! A white horse, a sharp sword, ruling the nations with a rod of iron! At least if this was my plan (or maybe yours) we would write like that. That day is coming, but that day is still future. He came the first time to make a way for humans to be included in His future kingdom. God had a plan. He was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself. He came first as the Passover-King, the King who is also the Lamb.

       His first coming was as a Suffering-Servant and God had already embedded the details of His plan in the Scriptures through the ages. On Palm Sunday they quoted Psalm 118:24-25, “Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name to the Lord!” Only later, when their minds were opened, when they were given the Spirit to illumine their understanding, only then would they see and put it all together, and look back a couple of verses to 118:22, “The Stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.” Ironically, the word “King” is applied to Jesus only here in chapter 15. Six times. In Pilate’s questioning, in the mocking of the soldiers, and it is the charge that is nailed to the cross, the charge for which He is executed: The King of the Jews (15:26). Even as He died, we’ve seen that He was in control, as He fulfilled the Scriptures and carried out the plan of God.

The BIG Idea: Jesus died for our sins according to the Scriptures and was buried… fulfilling the Divine plan and confirming His identity as Messiah. We’ll see…

1) The Courage of Joseph; 2) The Concession of Pilate; 3) Confirmation of the Witnesses

I. The Courage of Joseph: He took courage, and at great risk stood and asked for the body of Jesus, planning to give Him a respectful burial (42-43).

⁴² And when evening had come, since it was the day of Preparation, that is, the day before the Sabbath, ⁴³ Joseph of Arimathea, a respected member of the Council, who was also himself looking for the kingdom of God, took courage and went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. 

       The Day of Preparation before the Sabbath was a time of great care being taken to maintain kosher, and to prepare for worship. That would likely be even more diligent during a Feast. You would not want to do anything that would exclude yourself from worship. The Sabbath would begin at sunset and it was already afternoon. When Herod had killed John the Baptist, John’s disciples at least came to claim the body and give him a proper burial (Mk 6:29). The disciples of Jesus are not mentioned in this scene in Mark. From John’s account, we know that John had been there at least part of the time Jesus was on the Cross, but even there we read nothing about his disciples stepping up to claim and bury the body of the Lord. Strike the Shepherd and the sheep will be scattered. They had scattered, and it seems were still in self-preservation mode. But someone steps up, from an unexpected direction.

       Joseph of Arimathea, a respected member of the council, that is, the Sanhedrin, comes forward. The Sanhedrin was essentially the jury that insisted Jesus die. Mark doesn’t give us a lot of information about Joseph, it seems that in his usual fashion, he is allowing the man’s actions to speak for itself. Mark doesn’t tell us if Joseph had been present when the Sanhedrin condemned Jesus. It seems unlikely, since no voice of dissention is mentioned. We get a clue to his authentic faith in that Mark simply says He was “also himself looking for the kingdom of God.” Luke gives more information,

“Now there was a man named Joseph, from the Jewish town of Arimathea. He was a member of the council, a good and righteous man,  ⁵¹ who had not consented to their decision and action; and he was looking for the kingdom of God…” (Luke 23:50-51).

So, Joseph was the minority opinion, and did not see Jesus as a threat. But is that all? Matthew tells us even more, saying that Joseph had become a disciple of Jesus (Mt 27:57), and John adds that he “…was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews” (Jn 19:38). Now think about what Joseph does in asking for the body of Jesus. First of all, from a political perspective, he is aligning himself in some way with this man who had just ordered executed, coming before Pilate himself. Would it put him at risk with the civil authorities? Maybe. What He was doing, and would do, would also be done in broad daylight in a public place. There is no doubt that word would get back to the rest of the Council.  His standing in the council, maybe his position, maybe worse, would have been in jeopardy.

       It was also the eve of the Sabbath, during a religious feast. Going into the home of a gentile, not to mention handling and burying a body, would have rendered him ceremonially unclean, and so unfit to participate in the Temple worship.  Even so, despite the risk from the civil authorities, from His colleagues in the Sanhedrin, and even the risk to his personal readiness for worship, Joseph of Arimathea “took courage,” and he seems determined to give Jesus a respectful burial. It was the least he could do for this righteous man who had been treated with such injustice! John tells us another member of the council, Nicodemus, who had come to Jesus at night (Jn 3:1-9) and had spoken up before the council saying that He should be given a fair hearing (Jn 7:51), went with Joseph, bringing along spices to put on the body for burial (Jn 10:39). Mark is giving us the Reader’s Digest version, and doesn’t mention Nicodemus. Did servants go with them? It seems likely, but we are not told.

      There is a lesson here for us. Are we guilty of trying to be a secret disciple of Jesus? We know who He is, we’ve trusted Him, yet we don’t step out and say, “I am a follower of Jesus!” We are here for a purpose, to be a witness. He calls us to be ready, with gentleness and respect, to give a reason for the hope that is in us. Take courage! It probably won’t cost you your life. And because He arose, no matter what, if you know Him, you are going to be alright! He’s got you! After all, *He died for our sins according to the Scriptures and was buried… fulfilling the Divine plan, and confirming His identity.

II. The Concession of Pilate: Who was surprised, and after inquiring of the centurion released the body to Joseph (44-45).

⁴⁴ Pilate was surprised to hear that he should have already died. And summoning the centurion, he asked him whether he was already dead.  ⁴⁵ And when he learned from the centurion that he was dead, he granted the [body] to Joseph. 

       Pilate was seemingly a man doing his best to maintain peace, with little concern for justice or to doing what was right. He had clearly seen no threat in Jesus. Even when the crowd, manipulated by the leaders, called for his execution, Pilate asked “Why? What evil has He done?” (Mk 15:14). The clear indication is that Pilate’s examination of Jesus produced no charge worthy of execution. Though he acceded to their demands, he knew their charges were without merit (15:15). This context confirms that. If Pilate thought Jesus really was an insurrectionist and rebel, there is no way He would have granted the body to Joseph. Such criminals who challenged the rule of Rome were made an example of, and usually left for an extended period on display after death, to be picked at by animals, until the stench required that they be thrown into a common grave, in a place set apart for criminals. That doesn’t happen here. God had a plan.

      Pilate was surprised to hear that He was already dead since crucified men lingered much longer normally, typically at least a day or two. It had only been six hours! Remember, a brutal scourging preceded the crucifixion of Jesus, with the result that He was too weakened to carry His cross the full distance to Golgotha. Even so, He was in control of what was happening as He carried out the Father’s plan.

    The darkness and despair gave way to a cry of triumph, recorded by John: “Tetelestai!” That is, “It is finished… [the debt is paid…]” And then He committed his spirit to the Father, and breathed His last. No one took His life, He laid it down of His own accord (and He would take it up again, but that scene will have to wait for next week!)

      Remember that the soldier, who had seen many die before, was so taken by the way He “breathed His last” that He said “Surely this man was the Son of God.” And so, Pilate was surprised to hear that Jesus had already died, so much so that he summoned the Centurion and inquired if it were so. The Centurion knew death when he saw it. Carrying out these executions was a part of his responsibilities. Though he might still have been shaken by what He had just seen, the way Jesus died which led Him to confess Him as the Son of God, he told Pilate is was so, (time of death 3 PM, more or less) the “King of the Jews” hung dead on the Cross.

       Only with that confirmation does Pilate release the body to Joseph. He was a respected member of the Council after all, so it would not be a problem with the Sanhedrin. And even if it was, Pilate knew their motives, their jealousy, and perhaps He viewed this as a way of affirming that he was not guilty of this man’s blood. But Pilate was not guiltless. Knowing Jesus was innocent he ultimately gave in to the leaders who cried out for His blood. Ironically, Pilate would be forgotten to history except for being mentioned in the gospels, and a line preserved by the church in the Apostles’ Creed that says Jesus was “…was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried…” But nothing was going to interfere with God’s plan. And so, at this Passover of the Jews, *Jesus died for our sins according to the Scriptures and was buried… fulfilling the Divine plan, and confirming His identity. So, we’ve seen the Courage of Joseph and the Concession of Pilate,

III. Confirmation by the Witnesses: The witness of the Centurion, and the actions of Joseph in preparing the body and sealing the tomb, the witness of the women, all confirmed He was dead and also fulfilled Scripture (46-47; Isa 53:9).

       When Paul summarized the gospel message he had preached to the Corinthians, he said that “…Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and was buried, and was raised again the third day according to the Scriptures.” The fact that Jesus died and was buried—sealed in a tomb, was confirmation of His death, which would also testify to miracle of His resurrection.

⁴⁶ And Joseph bought a linen shroud, and taking him down, wrapped him in the linen shroud and laid him in a tomb that had been cut out of the rock. And he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb.  ⁴⁷ Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where he was laid.

Once again, without giving a specific citation, Mark invites us to think back to the OT, specifically Isaiah 53:9. The translation of the NASB is helpful, “His grave was assigned with wicked men, Yet He was with a rich man in His death…” The first phrase indicates the expected disposition of the body of someone condemned for insurrection… the body left on the cross to be scavenged by animals, until it was removed and cast into the smoldering fire at the garbage dump, or at best thrown into a common grave, usually not much more than a ditch, along with other executed criminals. Truly, “His grave was assigned with wicked men…” But that was not God’s plan.

      Joseph of Arimathea laid Jesus in his own tomb, a tomb that had never been used. How do we know that? Well, we have the other Gospels to fill in the gaps for us. We read for example in Matthew 27:59-60,  

⁵⁹ Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, ⁶⁰ and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a great stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away.

Think about this: this was Joseph’s tomb, intended one day for His own burial, and Christ took Joseph’s place in the tomb. And in a real sense, He took your place and my place and the place of every one through the ages who would one day put their trust in Him. Paul said in Romans 6:23 that “…the wages of sin is death…” He wrote in Romans 5:12 that, “…sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned…” All but one that is. The God-Man, Jesus Christ, was without sin. He was righteous and holy. Yet He died for us, and was buried. Did Joseph see Jesus as His substitute? Did Barabbas? Do you? He died, so that we could have new life. That’s the BIG idea in this passage…

What is God saying to me in this passage? Jesus died for our sins according to the Scriptures and was buried… fulfilling the Divine plan, and confirming His identity.

What would God have me to do in response to this passage?

1) Think about this… God created the universe, and it was very good. Human rebellion brought the curse, and death. Adam sinned, and brought death on the race. Jesus obeyed, even to the point of death as our substitute! He loves you that much.

2) Joseph of Arimathea had clearly been drawn to Jesus. Mark tells us he was looking for the kingdom of God. Matthew and John call him a disciple, albeit a secret disciple, of Jesus. Mark would have his readers, and us, take from this is that we too should stand up and speak up for the Truth. He has placed each of us where we are. He is the Lord of the Harvest. There are people that God has sovereignly placed in our lives, and He has strategically put us in theirs. They need to know the truth. We have been entrusted with the most important message they will ever hear. There is only one way to heaven. By grace, through faith in Jesus. The King is coming! Let’s be faithful!  AMEN.