Weekend Talk: On the third day
They were not afraid to follow a betrayer to Gethsemane with a detachment of heavily-armed soldiers to arrest a harmless person.
But they feared what was going to happen on the third day.
They were not afraid to whip an innocent person to shreds, using spiked whips that tore his flesh and spilled his blood.
But they dreaded what might happen on the third day.
Pretences
They pretended to be so holy and law-abiding that they wouldn’t lay their hands on the Teacher themselves.
Instead, they solicited the help of the governor, who was as scared as they were, to do the killing.
They watched in jubilation as the governor, despite washing his guilty hands, got the soldiers to start the killing process in his courtyard.
It is amazing how the Teacher, after that horrible thrashing, was able to carry his cross through the principal streets of the city before help came from an African man returning from the field.
They followed him to Calvary, clad in flowing sacred gowns, VIPs who thought of themselves more highly than they ought, not afraid to witness the brutal finishing of their heartless deeds.
They feared him
Even after they killed him, they still feared him.
And when they remembered what might happen on the third day, their dread knew no bounds.
So they went to the feeble governor to express their fear.
The governor seemed to be frustrated with these Jewish leaders, so he asked virtually, “You’ve killed the man; so what else do you want to do? Kill him all over again?”
They knew he was dead, yet they feared him.
Why? Because they couldn’t wholeheartedly discount the Teacher’s claim that he would rise on the third day.
“Destroy this temple,” he told them emphatically, “and in three days I will raise it up.”
They were contemptuous of him for such a statement, but deep down, they couldn’t discount his miraculous deeds, even if they raised questions about his messiahship.
However, instead of deepening their investigations with an open heart, they got blinded by jealousy, hatred and sheer wickedness.
Predictions
So, of all the predictions the Teacher made prior to his crucifixion, the one the Jewish leaders feared most was that he would rise on the third day after his death.
That was the reason for the huge stone they rolled across the tomb, the Roman seal they fixed over the hefty stone, and the military guards they posted to watch the tomb.
Those military guards were genuine witnesses of the resurrection on that third day; and they went to report what they encountered.
No Jewish leader attempted to go to the tomb to verify their claims.
Instead, realising that what they feared had come upon them, they resorted to lying: “Go and tell the world that while you slept, the Teacher’s disciples stole the body.”
Only reckless disciples would have attempted to get close to the well-guarded tomb in an attempt to steal the body.
When people fear something, they hide behind lies, as if lying has ever helped anybody!
But the ancient Jewish leaders were not the only people who dreaded the phenomenon of the third day and resorted to lying to conceal their fear.
Other terrified persons today include those who care little about the things of God.
To nurse their fears, many have concocted fabrications that dishonour the resurrection of the Lord Jesus from the dead, but to no avail.
This is good!
If the day he died is described as “good”, it is because of the third-day spectacle.
For without the resurrection, there wouldn’t have been anything good about his death or about that Friday.
As the Scriptures say, “If Christ had not been raised, our faith would be futile and we would still be in our sins” (1 Corinthians 15:17).
We would then be objects of God’s wrath, ready to be condemned to eternal separation from our Creator.
That is why Paul concludes that, “If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.”
Thus, the resurrection of Christ is so central to Christianity that it upsets enemies of the faith.
Facing tomorrow
For those who value the salvation of the soul and look forward to eternity with the Lord, the bare cross and the empty tomb are proof that our Saviour lives.
That popular song is quite appropriate here: “Because he lives, I can face tomorrow, / Because he lives, all fear is gone; / Because I know he holds the future / And life is worth the living, / Just because he lives!”
This is the hope that no one can take away from us—not those who crucified him, not those who still perpetuate the bribery-laden lies of the Jewish leaders, and certainly not those who try to discredit the resurrection with contempt.
The writer is a publisher, author, writer-trainer and CEO of Step Publishers.
E-mail: lawrence.darmani@gmail.com
