Our scripture is verses 50 to
56, and our message title today is Mission Accomplished. Mission Accomplished. It is very
comforting to my heart to know for certain that every event
surrounding the passion and suffering death of our Lord was ordered
and accomplished just exactly as God purposed it from eternity. Nothing happened that wasn't
supposed to happen, and everything that was supposed to happen did
happen exactly as God purposed it. This is very comforting to
those of us who aren't perfect. Now, I know some folks who would
have us believe they're always right about everything. And don't you dare question them
about anything. But others of us are prone to
fret sometimes about the way things turn out. You know, it
should have been this way or it should have been that way.
And we're all the time wishing we could change this or that
and the outcome of it. But how blessed it is to know
that we have a God who not only cannot mess up on his own, but we have a God we cannot mess
up. I'm thankful for that. I am not
part of a popular religious persuasion that believes God Almighty would
like to be getting a lot more done than he's able to get done. I refuse to give you or I or
anyone else credit for being big enough to be the cause of
God having to abort any mission. He is doing all and everything
he purposed from eternity to be doing in this hour. You hadn't messed him up. You
messed yourself up a lot, but you hadn't messed him up. And I'm happy to say today that
God is not desperate because men leave him out. Men are desperate because God
leaves them out. That's the order. So with God
is always and in everything mission accomplished. And we're reading
today about a unique character in the new Testament. So follow
with me here in these verses, Luke 23 verses 50 through 56. And behold, there was a man named
Joseph, a counselor. And he was a good man and a just. The same had not consented to
the counsel and deed of them. He was of Arimathea, a city of
the Jews, who also himself waited for the kingdom of God. This
man went unto Pilate and begged the body of Jesus. And he took
it down and wrapped it in linen and laid it in a sepulchre that
was hewn in stone, wherein never man before was laid. And that day was the preparation
day and the Sabbath drew on. And the women also, which came
with him from Galilee, followed after and beheld the sepulchre
and how his body was laid. And they returned and prepared
spices and ointments and rested the Sabbath day according to
the commandment. It is notable that all four gospels,
all four gospel accounts tell us of this man, Joseph of Arimathea. And I'll read what the other
accounts have to say while you hold your place here in Luke.
Matthew says, when the even was come, there came a rich man of
Arimathea named Joseph, who also himself was Jesus' disciple.
He went to Pilate and begged the body of Jesus. Then Pilate
commanded the body to be delivered. So we learned there from Matthew
that this man is a rich man. We learned that he is a disciple
of Jesus. We learned that he begged of
Pilate the body of Jesus after he was crucified and that his
request was granted. Mark's gospel says, Joseph of
Arimathea, an honorable counselor, which also waited for the kingdom
of God, came and went in boldly unto Pilate and craved the body
of Jesus. Now from Mark, we learned that
this man, Joseph of Arimathea, was an honorable counselor. That is, he was an official.
He was a member of the Jewish Sanhedrin. But he's also a man
that waited for the kingdom of God. I like that statement in
there. Like Simeon and like Anna in
Luke chapter 2, waited for the kingdom of God. The Gospel of John tells us,
and after this Joseph of Arimathea being a disciple of Jesus, but
secretly for fear of the Jews, besought Pilate that he might
take away the body of Jesus. And Pilate gave him leave. He
came, therefore, and took the body of Jesus. We learn from
John's account again that Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but
with this added statement but secretly for fear of the Jews. And then here in our text passage,
Luke 23, we learn two or three more things. Verse 50, we read
that he was a good man and a just man. Verse 51 says that though
he was on the council, he voted no to what they did to Jesus. Verse 51, the same had not consented
to the counsel and deed of them, referring to the crucifixion.
In verses 52 and 53, we have recorded the one work we know
of that this man did. He went under Pilate and begged
the body of Jesus. And he took it down and wrapped
it in linen and laid it in a sepulchre that was hewn in stone, wherein
never man before was laid." I would consider first this morning the
mystery of this man's very existence. In all four Gospels, he steps
onto the stage of action here on the evening that our Lord
dies on the cross. He's never been introduced or
mentioned before this time anywhere in the Bible. And in a short
period of time, probably not more than two or two and a half
hours, he steps off the stage of action and is never mentioned
again. Isn't that strange? He is a man
appointed to a specific mission. No one else alive at that time
could or would do what he is appointed to do. In verse 50,
when he's called a good man, the word good there catches my
eye. It does not refer to some moral
quality in the man. It is not a contradiction of
Romans 3 that there is none that doeth good, no not one. But when
it says here that he's a good man, the word good here means
prepared, positioned, and ready. Ready to do what God had appointed
him to do in that hour. Now many have been quick to condemn
this man for being a secret disciple of Jesus, for fear of the Jews,
it said. But I need not either defend
or condemn the man in that. That's not my business. The truth is God is so big. that every experience in a person's
life, every feeling a person has, every fear a person has, plays a great part in God's moving
that individual toward the very purpose of their existence. So no need to fall out with this
man over that. And I dare not condemn him for
his continued affiliation with the Sanhedrin that condemned
and crucified Christ. He needed to be in that position.
But I can just hear today's so-called fundamental authorities. They had condemned this man in
one second and say, bless God. He'd get out of that mess if
he was God's child. Well, he was God's child. And they had labeled him and
crucified him with their tongues as a compromising hypocrite,
a stranger to grace, and not fit to be called a disciple of
Jesus, not fit for the kingdom of God. But Matthew, Mark, Luke,
and John, all four, says he was. You see, it's not our business.
It's all part of God's sovereign work and secret work to have
this man in position when it comes time for him to act. Well,
it was part of Jewish law that the crucified body be taken down
off the cross that day. That wouldn't have bothered the
Romans to leave him several days. But Jewish law in Deuteronomy
21 verse 22, we read these words. And if a man, he's talking to
Israel now, and if a man have committed a sin worthy of death
and he be to be put to death and they'll hang him on a tree,
his body shall not remain all night upon the tree. thou shalt
in any wise bury him that day. For he that is hanged is accursed
of God, that thy land be not defiled which the Lord thy God
giveth thee for an inheritance." Now just how obedient the Jews
were to that law all the time, I don't know. But this time it's
on the day of Pentecost, the day of Passover. And verse 54
says, it was the day of preparation and the Sabbath drew on. I must comment on that. The day
of preparation and the Sabbath drew on. The Sabbath referred
to here is not the weekly Sabbath, but rather the references to
the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which began
on the day following the Passover. And there's been much debate
over this, but we need to have it clear in our minds and hearts
from the scriptures. Leviticus 23.5 says that Passover
was on the 14th day of the month, Abib, later called Nisan. And on the 15th, the very next
day, was the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which
went for seven days. That's Leviticus 23, verses 5
and 6. Then verse 7 in Leviticus 23
says that that first day of the Unleavened Bread, the day after
Passover, was to be an holy convocation. You shall do no servile work
therein." In other words, a Sabbath, a special Sabbath. The day after
Passover, the first day of the Feast of the Unleavened Bread
was a Sabbath, a special Sabbath. John calls it, in John 19.31,
a High Sabbath. And men today mistake that High
Sabbath for the weekly Sabbath, Saturday. And therefore they
hold to the belief that the crucifixion was on Friday because the scripture
says they wanted to get his body off the cross before the Sabbath.
And they hold to that Friday crucifixion, but it's not so. Understanding this, the way the
scripture teaches it, is the only way to understand our Lord's
words that as Jonah was three days and three nights in the
whale's belly, Matthew 12 40, so shall the son of man be three
days and three nights in the heart of the earth. Now, if he
had just said three days, the Friday people might have a little
argument in that sometimes parts of days are taken for days. But our Lord said specifically
three days and three nights. So we believe Christ was crucified
on Wednesday. That's why we're having the Lord's
supper on Tuesday night. Now, you know, their day began
at 6 p.m. That's when their day began. And the Sabbath began, the weekly
Sabbath began on Friday night at six o'clock. And so this special
high Sabbath began on this Wednesday night at six o'clock. So Christ was crucified on Wednesday. We believe that he was buried
at, or just before 6 PM and was in the grave three full days
and three full nights. And so then when we come to that
resurrection passage, that Easter passage, Matthew 28 one, and
it says in the end of the Sabbath, not just the weekly Sabbath,
but in the final end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the
first day of the week, That word dome there does not mean it began
to get daylight on Sunday morning. Not talking about a sunrise service.
No, the word dome there means approaching the hour. In our passage here in verse
54, and the Sabbath drew all that is, it was approaching the
hour. So Matthew 28 1 was saying, as
it began to approach the hour of the first day of the week,
which was 6 p.m. Saturday night, making it three
full days and three full nights that Christ was in the grave. Then was the resurrection. But now back to our thought,
the Jews, the salt pilot, to how the legs broken of these
three men who were on the crosses. The purpose of breaking their
legs was so they could no longer push up and breathe and would
quickly suffocate and die. Then they could get them off
the crosses and buried before this high Sabbath beginning at
6 p.m. Well, Pilate gave the order and
the scripture records that they break the legs of the other two. And for no other reason, but
that the scripture should be fulfilled, which the scripture
said, a bone of him shall not be broken. When they came to
Christ, he was dead already. And so they break not his legs. He was dead already because he
wasn't trying to hold on and live as long as he could like
him other two. No, he laid down his life. He
gave up the ghost. He said to the Father, into thy
hands I commend my spirit. He was in control of his own
dying. So when the soldiers saw Jesus
already dead, they did not break his legs. And when Joseph went
to Pilate to request the body of Jesus, he couldn't believe
he was already dead. He even sent some men to check. They
came back and said, yes, he's dead. So then they would take
the bodies down, bury them together, in the same ditch such as it
was, slightly if at all covered, exposed to the buzzards and the
wild beast, such was the burial and grave of the wicked, crucified,
criminals, transgressors. According to Isaiah 53 9, the
Almighty God, though his son be given
to die with the wicked, another arrangement and another appointment
has been made through this Joseph of Arimathea for his burial. Joseph goes to Pilate. Two of
the Gospels say he begged, Mark says he craved, and John says
he besought Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now had Joseph not
been on the council, an important man, and one of the accounts said
an honorable counselor, had he not been in that position, his
begging would have probably been in vain. But God had him to be the man
he was, and where he was, and the position of leadership he
was in, and have the reputation he had. And Pilate grants the
request. God Almighty has taken all the
steps necessary toward accomplishing this mission. So Joseph of Arimathea
is, in David's words, one of God's hidden ones. The Romans don't care to give
Jesus a proper and honorable burial. The Jews, in their hatred
of him, they're not going to do it. His disciples are afraid to do
it. But in this crucial hour, just like God in Elijah's day
had 7,000 that had not bowed the knee to Baal, in this hour
he has one, one whom he has prepared and appointed, prepared in mind
and heart, and given boldness enough in this hour, one of the
gospels says, to approach Pilate and tell him what he wants and
permission is granted. I'll guarantee you, if you could
have asked this man before this time, do you think you would
ever be able to do such a thing as that? Approach Pontius Pilate
and make any such request? I'll guarantee you he'd have
said, no, I don't believe I could do anything like that. When the
time came, there was one bigger than Joseph operating in the
heart of Joseph. And he's given the desire, and
he's given the courage, and he's given the grace. And God moved
him to do exactly what he did. This is what this man was born
for. And God did everything necessary to make it happen. Mission accomplished. This causes us to wonder what
our little lives are all about, doesn't it? It's probably not
to be in the headlines for any reason ever, but it's probably
for something the world would call small. insignificant and
maybe even worthless. But God Almighty has put you
on this earth to be who you are, what you are, where you are,
the associations you have for reasons known only to Him. It
appears that this man accomplished God's purpose for his entire
life. in this one afternoon. You say, am I that little? Yes,
and God's that big. Absolutely. So this is what this man was
born for. Joseph does it. Joseph of Arimathea
steps off the stage of time. and is never heard of again.
What about a God that big? He takes the body of Jesus. He carries it, lays it in the
tomb. Now you know what it meant for
a man like this to touch a dead body. He's unclean. He cannot eat the
Passover. He cannot enter the temple. He
cannot mingle with the people. He's unclean. But Joseph takes the body of
Jesus, lays it in his own new tomb,
wherein never a man had been laid. So he's considered unclean by
other men. He can't eat the Passover, but
he don't need to eat it anymore. It's done. Joseph of Arimathea
is now living with Paul in 1 Corinthians 5. Christ, our Passover, is sacrificed
for us. Joseph is attending to his burial. The text says he wrapped The
body in linen. Joseph is expressing his faith. He's a rich man. He can afford
the linen. But we note the contrast. It's
not the cheap, rough swaddling cloth like he was wrapped in
at his birth. But it's fine linen. This is
a rich man's burial. white linen, and it speaks of
Christ's perfect righteousness and the glory of His person.
You remember when Peter, James, and John recorded in Matthew 17, Mark
9, and Luke 9, when they saw Him transfigured on the Mount, The Bible said his raiment was
white and glistening, exceeding white as snow, such as no fuller
on earth can white a garment. Well, his righteousness is our
righteousness. Revelation 19, 8, and to her,
the bride, was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen,
clear and white, For the fine linen is the righteousness of
saints. 1 Corinthians 1.30, Paul said,
but of him that is of God are ye in Christ Jesus, who is made
unto us four things, wisdom, righteousness, sanctification,
and redemption. Christ is made unto us righteousness. He is the righteousness God required. for our acceptance and I rejoice
in that day today and I want to say this boldly and often
it is blasphemous to try and add anything to what Christ has
done for us you'd better distrust him and
forget all your religious ideas How much more God must be pleased
with you than He is with so and so? Because you do all this good
stuff they don't do and you don't do all this bad stuff that they
do and oh, you have just added so much to make yourself far
more acceptable to God. No, no. God is pleased with no
one or ever can be except in His Son. That's what Paul said
clearly in Ephesians 1.6 that we are accepted in the Beloved. Don't try it any other way. So Joseph, this man, he has blown
his cover. He's thrown everything else away
and he's resting in Christ. He knows the council won't approve,
and he's a member of it. He knows the common Jews won't
approve, but his heart is fixed. He's giving up all he is or ever
will be so far as reputation in the Jewish nation, and he
casts his all. with Christ. Mission accomplished. Joseph of Arimathea has lost
everything so far as reputation. He is now nothing among his own
people from this day forward. but I promise you he has no regrets. No regrets. Verses 55 and 56,
and the women also which came with him from Galilee followed
after and beheld the sepulcher and how his body was laid. They
returned and prepared spices and ointments and rested the
Sabbath day according to the commandment. That's what God's
children do. That's what believers do when
we really know the truth. We rest in Him who fulfilled
the Sabbath. He is our rest. He is our Passover
sacrifice for us. He is our Sabbath. We rest in
Him. Mission accomplished. That's
all you can say. God has done it. It is finished. Mission accomplished. Stand with me. I have been blessed meditating
about this man and the mystery of him coming on the scene when
he did and then in just the space of a couple of hours off the
scene in all the history of the world. How this ought to to think on the fact that the
very purpose for which you were born may not have even surfaced
yet. And it may be past. Who knows? Only God knows. So you and I
should live every day, every waking moment with the understanding
that God is so big He may be doing with me today, right now, that for which He created me.
That would humble us to be mindful of that. So I love and thank
God for the great story of Joseph of Arimathea.