The Gospel of Mark – Part 53

Alive – Mark 15:40-16:8

Mosaic Rockford – Dave Spooner – Sept 27th, 2020

Intro:

Over the past several weeks, we have seen what Jesus endured and what He accomplished from the night of His betrayal to the moment of His death. This morning, I want you to witness through the eyes of those who were there, His death, burial, and resurrection. This will help you to know the facts about what happened, and build your faith upon the truth and understanding of how this impacts your life and eternity.  

Witness His death

Mark 15:40-41 ESV 

There were also women looking on from a distance, among whom were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome. 41 When he was in Galilee, they followed him and ministered to him, and there were also many other women who came up with him to Jerusalem.

These are women who knew Jesus personally, were dedicated to Him, and followed Him all the way from Galilee. They were a witness to His life, and they were a witness to His death. They knew Jesus and would not mistake someone else for Him.    

Mark 15:42-45 ESV

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. 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 corpse to Joseph.

The day of Preparation was the day the Jews were to get all their work done before the Sabbath started on Friday night at 6pm (the Sabbath runs from 6pm Friday to 6pm Saturday). Jesus died around 3 pm, and since there were only a few short hours left to prepare for the Sabbath, Joseph immediately acted.Joseph was from the town of Arimathea, which was about 20 miles north of Jerusalem. He was a righteous man, wealthy, well-known, and a well-respected member of the Sanhedrin (Jewish leadership council). He was not in agreement with his fellow leader’s choice to condemn and crucify Jesus. He was “looking for the kingdom of God” and was a secret disciple of Jesus (see Matt. 27:57, Luke 23:50-51, John 19:38). Joseph “took courage,” overcoming his fear of the other Jewish leaders discovering his true allegiance, and asked Pilate (the Roman Governor) for the body of Jesus. Pilate was surprised that Jesus was already dead (in some cases, those being crucified lingered for days), and he verified Jesus was dead from the centurion who was in charge of the crucifixion. The captain of the Roman guard who was in charge of crucifixions made sure the people were dead before they were taken off the crosses because if the person crucified did not die, the centurion would lose his life. Because this crucifixion was on a Sabbath, the Jews asked that the bodies would be taken down by 6pm. The request was granted, and they broke the legs of the two criminals that were being crucified next to Jesus.When they came to Jesus, they “saw that He was already dead.” Just to make sure, they pierced His side with a spear and out came both blood and water. Ordinarily, after someone dies, blood does not flow since there is no blood pressure because the heart has stopped pumping.  However, Jesus was erect when he died, the flow was due to the effects of gravity. He was pierced between the ribs through the top of a lung and into his heart. Therefore, the water came from His filled lungs and the blood from His stilled heart. They did not need to break His legs, because there was no doubt that Jesus was indeed dead (see John 19:31-37). This event also fulfilled Old Testament prophecy. The Passover lamb was not to have its bones broken (Ex. 12:46), the Messiah would not have His bones broken (Psalm 34:20), and He also would have his side “pi