SEARCHLIGHT
Are you one of many who really wants to see change and empowerment in your life?
SCRIPTURE
"Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about 75 pounds. Taking Jesus’ body, the two of them wrapped it with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs. At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid. Because it was the Jewish Day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there." John 19:38–42 NIV
SPOTLIGHT
“Something needs to change. But I don’t have the power.” People say those words all the time. They realize their life is not going in the right direction and they do not know how to turn it around.
My friend, Jeff, was like that. He was a very successful businessman with a promising career. Add to that, he was happily married and had a beautiful family. You would think he was content. The life road of wealth, power, and prominence was before him but there was something that needed to change. He knew he had a void. What was it? He longed for something more.
Then there was David. He had a high paying job, but he used it for his drug addiction. He spent hundreds of dollars a day on his binding habit. David knew that something needed to change or he would prematurely die. The problem was he did not have the power. He was an addict.
So many people are looking for change and empowerment. Some people personally long for it in order to better themselves. They don’t see themselves progressing. They feel confined and boxed in. Other people join groups in order to revolutionize society. They are so disturbed because of inequality and prejudice. And rightly so.
The story of Joseph of Arimathea is told in all 4 Gospels. Each author adds important information about Joseph who was very religious but sincerely LOOKING FOR CHANGE AND EMPOWERMENT that would bring fulfillment to his life and his society. He was a Pharisee who believed in God but longed for something more in his relationship with God other than living by strict rules. Joseph also sat on the ruling council that decided Jesus Christ should be crucified. However, he did not vote that way for the Scripture says he had become a “secret” believer in and follower of Jesus. Probably he was absent for the vote.
People looking for change and empowerment often have a moment in time when they say, “This is it. The time has come.” Such a time came when Joseph decided he should become public about his faith. What caused Joseph to become a public believer? What caused him to go against his religious colleagues? What led him to embrace Jesus Christ as the one, true living God? What was the change and empowerment that caused him to say, “This is it. The time has come.”?
The greatest change and empowerment that any person can experience and witness in life is to be changed and empowered by the crucifixion and resurrection. Jesus Christ’s cross and empty tomb bring about a life-changing, empowering experience that cannot be compared to any other.
The crucifixion changed Joseph’s life. Christ’s sacrifice on the cross led Joseph to become a publicly known believer in Jesus being the Messiah. Something happened as Joseph stood at the foot of Christ’s cross. Up to this point in his life, Joseph was not known as a disciple, but he became a public believer when he asked Pilate for the privilege of burying Jesus. Crucified people were not treated with such dignity. Their bodies were left to rot and decay on the cross. Joseph and Nicodemus took Jesus off the cross and carefully buried Him in a tomb he had bought. When you look at Calvary’s cross, something changes within you.
The resurrection empowered Joseph’s life. Meet the man who got his burial tomb back. Three days after the burial, Jesus Christ arose from the dead. Although the Bible does not record this, I believe Joseph must have stood in the tomb where he had buried Jesus. Something happened. Joseph knew what he had done to Christ’s body. Now he gazed at the linens neatly folded which he had wrapped around Jesus body. God’s divine power filled him as he realized he personally knew the Messiah. Now he gained a complete understanding of the Kingdom of God. When you gaze at Christ’s empty tomb, divine empowerment fills you.
Joseph’s name is not mentioned again in the Bible. However, I cannot help but believe he was one of the 500 people who saw his risen Savior and Lord. 1 Corinthians 15:6 states, “After that, he [Jesus] appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time…” This was the change and empowerment he had longed for. Now he was experiencing it.
Mark this truth down. Never forget what I am about to say. When you choose to believe in Jesus and follow Jesus you will always:
- Get more than you expected
- Be blessed more than you can imagine
- Give up things but receive far more than you gave
This is what Joseph experienced. And this is what both Jeff and David experienced when they “stood at the foot of the cross and stood inside the empty tomb.” They never looked back because they experienced the change and empowerment they were looking for. Their lives truly made a difference in this world.
The death of Jesus Christ changed Joseph’s life. The resurrection of Jesus Christ empowered Joseph’s life. The cross and the empty tomb will do the same for you. Jesus Christ is alive. He has risen and conquered death. He is not dead and defeated. Jesus Christ is the risen Savior of the world for all man’s sin. He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords. No one is more powerful.
Today is the day you need to declare your faith in Jesus Christ. Some of you need to admit you are a sinner, believe Jesus died to pay the penalty for your sin, and confess to Him that you want Him to change you. Some of you need to stop being a secret disciple and publicly express your faith by being baptized in water, just like Jesus. Others need to rededicate your life to Jesus and follow Him wholeheartedly. All of us today need to say aloud, “Jesus Christ is the one true God and He is my Savior and Lord.”
SOMETHING TO DO
Meditate about standing at the foot of the cross and inside the empty tomb. Read the other accounts in Matthew 27:57-61, Mark 15:42-47 and Luke 23:50-56.
SOUL TIME PRAYER
Thank you, Lord Jesus Christ, for changing me and empowering me. I will live for You. AMEN!