“On the
sabbath they rested according to the commandment.”
~Luke 23:56a (NRSV)
In the day’s gap between the
crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus we can but wonder the mood in Jerusalem. The scattered
disciples and other followers of Jesus, including the women who prepared the
tomb, had time for passive reflection and to try to make some sense of what had
occurred; the things Jesus said at the Last Supper (if they were present), his
arrest and the subsequent kangaroo court conviction, and the incredibly
barbaric treatment their Lord was subjected to. What, exactly, had come of
justice? And, what was to become of them now without their Rabbi and Lord?
This Sabbath was marked by a great
deal of shock, as they sought to reconcile what they’d seen with their
perceptions of justice, not to mention their grief. Then there’s the issue of
their respective culpability. Certainly Peter would have been thinking that
way. But each of the disciples, in their own way, failed Jesus in the lead up
to, and during, the crucifixion.
A Sabbath with much to ponder!
A Lack Of Anticipation – Then And Now
With the benefit of hindsight,
knowing Jesus was to be raised again, we could assume the disciples would have
had some inkling of what would occur early that next day, the most famous
Sunday in history. But, even though he’d said as much, and many times, even the
night he was betrayed, Jesus’ mention of his resurrection would have been lost
on the disciples. They didn’t understand. They couldn’t.
There could not have been any
thought for anticipation. Their Sabbath rest would have been solemn indeed.
This mirrors the level of
anticipation we have before we’re saved. We have no idea what God has stored up
for us. We may have previously thought people who believed in God were mad.
Now, having been saved, even a moment, it makes all the sense in the world, and
more.
Our lack of anticipation for the
work of salvation in our hearts and minds is the most comprehensive surprise.
It’s as if the day before we were saved was the quietly tumultuous Sabbath the
disciples had before Resurrection Sunday; that, for us, as for them, it arrived
to announce the day of the Lord’s Jubilee—ourselves, risen.
***
The day we received the salvation
of God is reminiscent of Resurrection Sunday. The day before we had no idea we
might be transformed.
The day between the crucifixion
and the resurrection of Jesus was a quiet and unassuming affair. Perhaps we had
recently put to death some important sin. Maybe we were about to come alive.
Salvation is the most surprising
of all experiences. The indwelling Holy Spirit brings us alive to truth and the
scales are removed from our eyes; we hear truth; our hearts and minds are
opened. Just like Jesus, we are risen.
© 2012 S. J. Wickham.
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