LENT 2016 – GOING TO JERUSALEM

Holy Week, Saturday, March 26

The Burial of Jesus: Matthew 27: 57 - 66

            Pilate ordered the soldiers to make the tomb “as secure as you can,” (v.65).

            It seems everybody was on edge about a dead man.

A dead man doesn’t get up and walk away, but just in case, make the tomb as secure as you can.

A dead man doesn’t disappear without good reason, so just in case, make the tomb as secure as you can.

A dead man doesn’t slip by guards, so just in case, make the tomb as secure as you can.

            Security is defined by a tomb “hewn from the rock”, a great stone blocking the door of the tomb, and a guard posted at the tomb; a guard who, in fact, sealed the tomb. How much more secure can you get?

            Security is defined as everything in its proper place, and a proper place for everything. Security is seen as nothing being allowed to upset the status quo. Security is the feeling that nothing out of the ordinary needs to happen. Security is the sense that the existing conditions need to be maintained and protected.  Security is the belief that there are certain things one can depend upon to be always true. Security can be about having concrete absolutes, hard-fast rules and unbending points of view.

            By those standards, on a Sabbath Saturday in Jerusalem, a tomb is a very, very secure place. Nothing in; nothing out. Nice and calm – just the way Pilate wanted it. Keep everybody away. Keep a watch out for anyone acting suspiciously.  Don’t let your guard down for a moment.

            Make the tomb as secure as you can!

            See you in the morning, Pilate.

Let me know if you are still feeling confident that you have done everything possible to secure the tomb.