ON YOUR MARK: WEEK 13 DAY 6

Mark 15:42-47

Jesus Is Buried

42 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. 46 And Joseph bought a linen shroud, and taking him down, wrapped him in the linen shroud and laid him in a tomb that had been cut out of the rock. And he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb. 47 Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where he was laid.

Mark 16:1-8

The Resurrection

When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. 2 And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. 3 And they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” 4 And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back—it was very large. 5 And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed. 6 And he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; he is not here. See the place where they laid him. 7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.” 8 And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had seized them, and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.

The part that stands out in Mark that does not appear in the other accounts of Jesus' life are the angel's words found in Mark 16:7, “but go, tell his disciples and Peter.” How tender and beautiful of God to realize that Peter was going to need to be assured that he was still Jesus’ disciple. Peter must have seen Jesus' eyes as the rooster crowed the third time. The degree of shame and guilt that Peter felt must have been excruciating. The Lord already knew, however, that Peter would fail as we talked about earlier in the week, because Peter was acting in his own strength. Yet Jesus had already forgiven Peter; He had already restored him. 

Aren’t we all a bit like Peter, so quick to make a judgement about what we will do or not do? Carrying burdens we are not asked to carry and then missing the burdens that have been given to us?  The Lord knows when we sit and when we rise; He knows our thoughts. He knows our going out and lying down; He is familiar with all our ways. Before we utter a word He knows it completely (Psalm 139). 

Peter was already restored because Jesus knew his heart and Jesus knows our hearts as well. What a Savior!