In the sermon titled 'From the Womb to the Tomb,' Michael Davenport explores the significance of Jesus Christ's burial, as recounted in Matthew 27:57-66. He discusses the two estates of Jesus: humiliation and exaltation, highlighting that His journey from birth to burial signifies His temporary state of humiliation. This state involved suffering and obedience, culminating in His death and burial. The speaker draws parallels between Jesus' burial and the analogy of a grain of wheat, emphasizing that His death was necessary to produce much fruit. Joseph of Arimathea's role in Jesus' burial is examined, showcasing his courage and the importance of fulfilling prophecy and the law. The burial signifies Jesus' actual death, countering arguments that He merely fainted. The sermon also addresses the Pharisees' actions in securing the tomb, ironically providing witnesses to Jesus' resurrection. The speaker calls believers to zealously glorify Christ, warning against the fear of man and encouraging obedience to God's commandments. He concludes by urging believers to seek a deeper understanding of Christ's love, reminding them of the victory over sin and death through Jesus' resurrection.

Our sermon text is Matthew 27 starting at verse 57 going to the end of the chapter. Now when evening had come there came a rich man from Arimathea named Joseph who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be given to him. When Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth and laid it in his new tomb, which he had hewn out of the rock, and he rolled a large stone against the door of the tomb and departed.

And Mary Magdalene was there, and the other Mary, sitting opposite the tomb. On the next day, which followed the day of preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees gathered together to Pilate, saying, sir, we remember, while he was still alive, how that deceiver said, after three days I will rise. Therefore, command the tomb, be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night and steal him away and say to the people, he has risen from the dead. So the last deception will be worse than the first. Pilate said to them, you have a guard.

Go your way. Make it as secure as you know how. So they went and made the tomb secure, sealing that stone and setting the guard." It's always a delight when someone is coming to preach and they hear both in the corporate prayers of the people before the message and in the texts that are read, something of the same kind of flowing faults that God has laid on his heart. And I come with joy and excitement, even having heard the prayer and the reading of the Word of God. My sermon text this morning is called From the Womb to the Tomb.

From the Womb to the Tomb. Having spent the last couple of weeks studying the dying of our Lord Jesus Christ, we come in our narrative today to the study of the burial of our Savior. And as we consider this passage, I want the following words from the lips of our blessed Savior to be inflating the lungs of your faith. And that's what he spoke in John 12, 24, where he said, Most assuredly I say to you, Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone. But if it dies, it produces much grain.

Dear brothers and sisters, Jesus did not purpose to remain alone. This picture of this grain of wheat falling into the ground and dying is fulfilled in His crucifixion and burial. And here is the precious promise that should fill the lungs of our faith. This grain, having died, will produce much grain. The first atom was placed in a garden.

In that garden, all in Adam passed from life to death. And disobedience resulted in the fencing of the tree of life. Now, the second Adam, Jesus Christ, comes here in a garden near Golgotha. All who are in this second Adam pass from death until life. And obedience results in the opening again of the tree of life.

In the first garden the serpent achieves momentary victory. Now in this garden near Golgotha the head of the serpent is crushed. So by means of introduction I want to first draw our attention to the implications of the burial of Christ. The implications of the burial. What does this imply?

The burial of Jesus Christ. Well, two implications. The first is the humiliation of Jesus Christ. The humiliation of Jesus Christ. The shorter catechism, I believe, rightly describes for us the two estates of Jesus Christ.

The estate of humiliation and the estate of exaltation. By use of this word estate, the writers of the Catechism were pointing to the condition or circumstance of the existence of Jesus Christ. So everything that we have studied in the book of Matthew, we have been in the book of Matthew for over two years now, everything that we have studied from Matthew 1.1 to the end of our passage today point to and deal specifically with the humiliation of Jesus Christ. That is state of humiliation. It was a temporary state.

One that began in the womb and ends in the tomb. It was in a state that required a great deal of suffering as well as the learning of obedience. Allow me to read the question and answer of number 28 in the shorter catechism of Baptist version. Wherein did Christ's humiliation consist? Christ's humiliation consisted in His being born and that in a low condition made under the law, undergoing the miseries of this life, the wrath of God, and the cursed death of the cross, in being buried, in being buried, and continuing under the power of death for a time.

It was a necessary thing in the redemptive plan of the Father that Christ should first come to the earth in this estate of humiliation before he entered into the estate of exaltation and we can be sure that all of the blessed designs and Ends for which Christ humbled himself to the point of death on the cross and burial shall certainly be attained to his full content and satisfaction. As Gary read from Isaiah 53, he shall see the labor of his soul and be satisfied. He shall see the labor of his soul and be satisfied. He shall see the labor of his soul and be satisfied. The prophet also speaks for Christ, the suffering servant, back in chapter 29.

Says this, listen, O coastlands, to me and take heed, you people, from afar. The Lord has called me from the womb from the matrix of my mother he has made mention of my name And he has made my mouth like a sharp sword in the shadow of his hand. He has hidden me and made me a polished shaft. In his quiver he has hidden me. And he said to me, You are my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.

Then I said, I have labored in vain. I have spent my strength for nothing and in vain. Yet, surely my just reward is with the Lord and my work with my God. That's the way Christ was. He was looking to his father even dying on the cross and he goes on to say and now the Lord says who formed me from the womb to be his servant to bring Jacob back to him so that Israel was gathered to him.

For I shall be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, and my God shall be my strength." He's looking forward to that state of exaltation. Indeed, he says, it is too small a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the preserved ones of Israel, I will also give you as a light to the Gentiles that you should be my salvation to the ends of the earth. Thus says the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel their holy one to him who man despises To him whom the nation abhors to the servant of rulers Kings shall See and arise princes also shall worship because of the Lord who is faithful the holy one of Israel And he has chosen you So here in this chapter of Isaiah 29 Christ is looking and saying hey, I came as a servant I came as being oppressed by men and being fought low, being abhorred. But my hope is in God. And God shall rise, raise me up, and I shall be a king to all the nations.

Not just the Jews, but the Gentiles who will be gathered in as well. So the death of Christ implies the state of humiliation. But not only that, quite obvious, It implies the death of Jesus Christ. The burial of Jesus lends much proof to the fact that he actually died. And that's important to have to say that because there are those who have argued through the centuries That Christ went into a coma or he simply fainted But Joseph and Nicodemus both handle the body of Christ with no doubts as to his true state Pilate calls for a confirmation from the centurion who was there at his death.

And having questioned him, he who was a soldier, who had no doubt done many crucifixions, and when he wasn't there, he was out in war. This man knew what death was. And Pilate felt confident that this man in his report had reported Jesus Christ was dead the two Marys mentioned in our passage They too do not resist the attempt of the men to bury Jesus' body. And lastly, even in the Pharisees, these bloodthirsty men who demanded His death, we see acknowledgement concerning their satisfaction that their desires have been carried out. They consider him dead.

What did they say? Sir, we remember while he was still alive, they had no doubts. So the burial of Jesus Christ implies his death. But secondly, we come not only to the implications, but the importance of the burial of Jesus. The importance of the burial of Jesus.

Why is this so important? Well, first of all, in terms of the keeping of the law, the keeping of the law, Deuteronomy 21, 22 to 23 says, if a man has committed a sin deserving of death, and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, his body shall not remain overnight on the tree, but you shall surely bury him that day, so that you do not defile the land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance for he who is hanged is accursed of God. So simply because of the keeping of the law it was necessary for Christ to be buried. Second the fulfillment of prophecy, the fulfillment of prophecy. Both old prophecy, prophecy from hundreds of years ago.

As was pointed out again in Isaiah 53, 8 and 9, he was taken from prison and from judgment. And who will declare his generation? For he was cut off from the land of the living. For the transgressions of my people he was stricken. And they made his grave with the wicked, but with the rich at his death because he had done no violence nor was any deceit in his mouth.

But not just from prophecy of old, but even the words of Jesus Christ in his ministry, Matthew 12, 38 through 40. Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered saying, Teacher, we want to see a sign from you. But he answered and said to them, an evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish so will the son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." And again in John 12, 7, Jesus said, let her alone. Remember Mary had brought in This ointment and broken it out on the feet of Jesus Christ anointing him and the disciples Led by Judas were like this is a waste what did Jesus say let her alone Why she has kept this for the day of my burial, for the poor you have with you always, but me you do not have always." So for the fulfillment of prophecy, Jesus Had to be buried. Third reason why?

Because it's part in the curse. It's part in the curse. Burial completes the picture of the finality of death. The word, the variations of the word bury, buried, burying, burial occur almost 165 times in the Bible. In his burial, Christ as a man bears in his body the final consequence of Adam's sin, returning to the dust.

His burial points to his oneness with his people. And as their penal substitute, he continued under the power of death for a time. But not only is part in the curse, But it's part in the gospel. It's part in the gospel. 1 Corinthians 15, 1 through 5, Paul reminds the Corinthians of the gospel that he spoke to them.

And he tells them in Verse 3, for I deliver to you first of all that which I also received, again declaring the gospel, verse 1, that Christ died for our sins according to the scripture and that he was buried And that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures and that he was seen by Cephas Then by the 12 It's part in the gospel It's another reason for the importance of this burial of Jesus Christ So with the implications in the importance of the burial now before us, let's look at our passage. And let's look first at verses 57 through 60. And let's look at Joseph coming and taking courage, coming and taking courage. Our narrative in recent weeks has taken us from the house of Caiaphas to the praetorium of Pilate, from the trial of the Jews to the trial of the Gentiles. Then from the praetorium to the cross, from judgment to sentence to condemnation, Jesus Christ has been crucified.

It is now sometime after three o'clock in the afternoon. The body of Jesus now hangs lifelessly upon the cross. The crowds have gone their way to their homes in preparation for the Sabbath, which is now less than three hours away. Golgotha, which had been the recent scene of so many dramatic things, now rests in a measure of quietness the only sounds possibly coming from the soldiers who no doubt were still nearby and from the shadows emerges a man and the only thing we know about this man the only things we know are derived from the narrative of Christ burial he has not been mentioned at least by name in the scriptures before this time and neither is he mentioned afterward his name is Joseph He is a member of the Council of the Sanhedrin. And the text begs three questions that we should ask.

Who is this Joseph first? Who is this Joseph? The four gospel narratives, and I'm going to pull from all four narratives, the four gospel narratives paint the following picture of this man. He was from Arimathea. He was from Arimathea.

This was, they think, the birthplace of the prophet Samuel. Joseph from Arimathea. Second, He was a prominent member of the council, whether by time of service, whether by economic status, wisdom, or a combination of these things. He had risen to a place of prominence within the council. 3.

He was wealthy. Aside from the fact that Matthew explicitly tells us that he was rich, we see evidences of his wealth and the fact that he had purchased a new tomb in the side of the hill, hewn out of the rock and most likely for himself and his family, as well as in the fact that he purchased fine linen with which to wrap the body of Jesus. Next we see he was a disciple of Christ. And these words should be somewhat shocking to us he was a disciple of Christ this terminology Joseph had been a disciple of Moses a disciple of the law as were all the Pharisees as all the Sanhedrin the scribes We're told he was a disciple Christ he was a disciple of Messiah He was a good and just man, a good and just man. And if mere common grace had made him to be good and just before he came to Christ, how much more would these traits be true of him now as a man who had become a true disciple of Jesus.

He was also anticipating the kingdom, the coming of the kingdom. He was anticipating this. He seemed to understand more of the kingdom at this time than the disciples of Jesus who had sat under his ministry for three years. Here is a living picture of the parables of Christ concerning the hidden treasure in the field. Here's a man who had found that treasure.

He had found the kingdom. Kingdom's coming. He's gone and he's sold everything that he might have this treasure, this pearl of great price that he had found. Sell all that he might have this kingdom. We read that he had not consented to the death of Jesus Christ, the decision and deeds of the council.

Now whether he was present when the council had gathered and determined to take Jesus to Pilate or whether he had absented himself from meeting knowing the purpose of the meeting we don't know. But we are told that he had not given consent to take him to Pilate in order that he might be tried and crucified. We learned that he had, until this time, lived in fear. He had lived in fear. John 922 informs us that the council had agreed that anyone who confessed that Jesus was Christ would be put out of the synagogue.

And in John 14, 42 to 43 it states, nevertheless, among the chief rulers also many believed on him. But because of the Pharisees, they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue, for they loved the praises of men more than the praise of God. Fear of man had ruled Joseph's life. But this day would be different. This day would be different.

And lastly, we learn about this man, that he took courage. He was emboldened. The death of Christ wrought a change in this man. He went from a man living in the fear of man to a man ready to sacrifice name, position, and even his own life. Second question, how did this fresh courage manifest itself?

How did this fresh courage manifest itself? Here was a man living in fear. But we're told, coming, he took courage, came to pilot. Well, first, it manifested itself in the fact that he ran the risk of infuriating the council. He ran the risk of infuriating the council.

He already had refused to give his consent to their plan and deed. Now he sought to give his time, his attention, and resources to tend to the body of him whom the council deemed a blasphemer and a deceiver. A blasphemer and a deceiver. And Joseph comes to bring his time, to bring his attention, to bring his resources. His courage also manifested itself in that he ran the risk of crossing pilot.

Those sentenced to death by Rome were given over to the state. The bodies of those who were crucified fell under the jurisdiction of those attending to the crucifixion. Many times the bodies were left to decay and disintegrate there on the cross. The Romans would do that sometime in order to make a lesson. And we have already seen the unstable nature of Pilate because he was a man who lived by fear of man as well.

He had questioned the ability to answer or ascertain truth. He had ignored his wife's admonition. He had washed his hands and declared himself innocent of Christ's blood. He had told the Pharisees who asked him, please change the charge that you have put on the sign above him, what I've written, I've written. Now this man Joseph comes and asks of Pilate for the body of Christ.

One from the same group who had annoyed Pilate enough to make the decision to crucify him, now one from this group comes and asks for the body of Christ. And in so doing Aligns himself With him whom Rome has just condemned and crucified as a criminal In doing so he risks his own life But his courage also manifests itself in that he rendered himself ceremonially unclean for Passover Sabbath by handling a dead body. He makes himself ceremonially unclean, not morally unclean, because in the fact he is handling the father of the new covenant. Isaiah says, you shall call him everlasting father. This is his father of the new covenant.

He is not morally unclean, but ceremonial unclean. Because Numbers 19 11 says he who touches the dead body of anyone shall be unclean seven days. Christ had made it clear to the Pharisees that he desired mercy and not sacrifice. Joseph was here choosing to bestow mercy on the body of his Lord at the risk of being declared ceremonially unclean by virtue of the law. And as we think of Joseph, the third question we must ask, where are the disciples?

Where are the disciples? It has been less than 24 hours since we heard all of the disciples say that they would die with Christ before ever denying Him. The shepherd has been smitten. The sheep have been scattered. They are in hiding, downcast and dejected, crippled with fear and doubts, forgetting all that Christ had told them.

But God is not without a man. He who had lived in fear now steps out. Just like the words spoken to Esther of old, it appears that Joseph too has come into the kingdom of our Lord for such a time as this. God had raised a Joseph to prepare the way in Egypt for to keep the Jewish nation alive and famine and just as he had raised up a Joseph to be the foster father of his only begotten son so once again God raises up another Joseph to honor and to care for the crucified body of the Lord of glory. When the many and the mighty fall to the wayside, when the love of many grows cold, when the godly man ceases and the faithful seem to disappear from among the sons of men, even in such times God will raise up His men to accomplish His will.

Men, where are you today? Where are you? Are you hiding with the eleven? Or are you stepping out like Joseph of Arimathea? You young men, you young men with your strength of youth, How about you?

Where are you this morning? Will you give the devil the strength of your youth while promising God your latter days when strength fails and you can give him but the mere meager leftovers of life. Where are you? Are you hiding? Are you hiding as with the eleven?

Are you taking courage and stepping out? Rise up, O men of God. Have done with lester things. Give heart and mind and soul and strength to serve the King of Kings. Rise up, O men of God, the kingdom tarries long.

Bring in the day of brotherhood and end the night of wrong. Rise up, O men of God. The church for you doth wait. Her strength unequal to her task, rise up and make her great. Lift high the cross of Christ.

Tread where His feet have trod, as brothers of the Son of Man rise up, O men of God." Now, before we move on to verse 61, I do want to draw your attention to a couple of things regarding the provisions Joseph made. First we are told in Mark's account that the linen which Joseph purchased was fine linen. It was fine linen. It was probably the first time that the body of Christ came into contact with such earthly finery. He had no place to lay his head.

And now he lies in a rich man's grave, wrapped in fine linen and anointed with a hundred pounds of costly spices. Secondly, both Luke and John point out that this is a tomb in which no one had ever laid before. What should we make of this declaration? It was a tomb in which no one had ever laid before. Well I believe these gospel writers are drawing attention to the fact that this is King David's greater son.

David's son, yet David's Lord. See if you read through the book of Kings and Chronicles you'll read over and over that Kings died and were buried with their fathers most often in the city of David. It refers to the king, the tombs of the kings. Now there were some evil men who were kept from the tombs of the kings because they had done so wickedly. But most of them were buried with their fathers in the tombs of the kings in the city of David.

This king, who is king of all kings, rests not with his fathers, for God himself is his father. He rests not with the former kings, for he is greater than all these. As he told the Jews, indeed, a greater than Solomon is here. He rests not in the city of David remember he is outside the city He rests not in the city of David for his kingdom is not of this world. As his priesthood is not fashioned according to the Levitical priesthood, so his kingship is not fashioned after the Davidic kingdom.

He is after the order of Melchisedec who was both priest and king of Salem. Thus God the Father saw fit that the tomb for his son was a tomb in which no one had laid. Secondly in our passage we move to verse 61 regarding the women, the women following and taking notice, following and taking notice. It reads, and Mary Magdalene was there, and the other Mary sitting opposite the tomb. This small funeral procession of two is joined by a few other unexpected persons.

Matthew tells us that Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, whom Mark describes as Mary the mother of Joseph, follow Joseph and Nicodemus from Golgotha to the nearby garden. Now Luke's narrative seems to indicate the possibility that there were other women disciples who might have accompanied these two women because it uses the same terminology describing those by the cross who were there at a distance and it uses that same terminology as those who followed them to the tomb. But Matthew doesn't mention those. He mentions Mary Magdalene and the other Mary. And they watch from a distance as the men prepare the body of Jesus, most likely in the foyer of the mouth of the tomb.

See, the tombs in those days would often have carved out a front room and a rear room. In the rear room would often be, of course it would be contingent upon the amount of money that the person had who was buying and having the graves made. There would often be eight, as it were, places hewn out into the rock, almost like shelves. There would be three on each side in that second room and two in the back. And in the front was the small area where the body could be prepared.

There was more room to be able to prepare it before the body was taken back and laid to rest. So since they are sitting opposite the tomb and they are watching, it would seem to indicate that they are in this foyer area preparing the body. And from this vantage point, they see what supplies the men have brought and are able to determine what will remain to be done since the time is cut so short because the looming approach of the Sabbath. And we are told by Luke that they take note of which tomb, because remember, they're planning on coming back alone. So they note which tomb, and they note what remains to be done.

And then they go and begin to prepare spices and fragrant oils and to plan a follow-up visit to the tomb in order to complete what was lacking in the quick preparations by these two men. And they must hurry because Sabbath is coming. And I want to take this opportunity to encourage you dear sisters in Christ. Matthew tells us very little, but these are the words, Mary Magdalene was there. She was there.

As we saw, the disciples are hiding. And what does Matthew say? Mary Magdalene was there. She was there in the other Mary. These dear women were obviously not among the twelve disciples of Jesus Christ.

Even though they followed our Lord throughout his ministry, they were not sent out to preach. They were not sent out to perform miracles or to do mighty deeds in his name. They were not the ones who removed Jesus from the cross, nor were they the ones who at first prepared the body of our Lord for burial. They displayed their love for their Savior by their mere presence at the cross and here in the garden they knew their opportunity would come. They took note of the ways that they might be able to serve Him.

They took note. And they knew their opportunity would come. In fact, the services that they had prepared, they were not able to perform as we see in the next chapter. They were never able to do what they had planned to do. But they were faithful, faithful in the role to which they were called and in which they were placed.

And look at the blessings they received. The gospel writers, all four, give honor to these women who were present, drawing attention to their close proximity to the cross and the fact that they were present there and that they followed him from Galilee and that they ministered to him during his ministry. All the gospel writers speak of this. It was their privilege to see him first after his resurrection. He appeared to them first.

It was their privilege to worship him first. To be the messengers, the bearers of good news to 11 pitiful men, men in hiding, men who by the power of the Spirit who was to be poured out were to become the foundation upon which the church of Jesus Christ was to be built. So my dear sisters, continue in the high calling which your Savior has called you to, honoring Him in all that you do. Your deeds are not forgotten. They are not forgotten.

Your love for him is not going unnoticed and Even your plans for service that never seemed to come to fruition Are not overlooked by Jesus Christ Christ will reveal himself to you and make his presence known to you. Rest confidently in him. Rest confidently in him. Third, we come in in our passage to the Pharisees in verses 62 to 66. The Pharisees remembering and taking precautions.

Remembering and taking precautions. The Pharisees here seem to remember the teaching of Christ much better than the disciples did. Of course, the remembrance of this seems to elude them until the Sabbath day, but they do not hesitate for one moment to place their foot upon the neck of the Sabbath, and they convened together before Pilate to do their own pleasure. Having been given a guard, they go straight to the tomb, securing the stone and setting a seal upon it. All of this done upon the Sabbath, once again showing their hypocritical nature.

Having accused Christ, the Lord of the Sabbath, of breaking the Sabbath, they themselves truly break the commandment. Now they demand of Pilate a guard insinuating that Christ was a deceiver and that it was in Rome's best interest that this hope of Jesus as the Messiah would stay buried in the tomb with his body. Pilate's answer is not clear as to whether he sent fresh troops with them or whether he referred to the troops that were usually stationed there as the temple guard. Some who had probably no doubt were the ones that came with Judas into the garden. So we're not sure which one.

But what is clear is that Roman guards were set in place. These Roman guards were under the authority of the governor and thereby held accountable. And we know that they were witnesses to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Now note the callous nature of the Pharisees. Here are the Pharisees.

These soldiers come and tell them the things that had happened. They come and tell them the things that had happened. We read about what happened in the following chapter in Matthew 28. And who knows if maybe some of this testimony was something that they had given, that the disciples heard from these men. Could have been that God, the Holy Spirit, had given them these words, knowing all things that had happened.

But this had happened to the soldiers. The soldiers witnessed firsthand. They told the Pharisees what happened. The Pharisees are not even moved to consider the testimony of the guard. They did not even question the validity of the story.

They simply began to weave some type of cover-up story in order to protect their own interests. A miracle has happened. These soldiers are testifying to the Pharisees what they saw with their own eyes. They seem unmoved. What can we do to protect our investment?

Now what was it that the Pharisees feared? Well, it says that they feared that the disciples would take the body of Jesus at night and then spread rumors that he had risen from the dead. So moved with wrath. They did everything humanly possible to make sure that this would not happen. Pilate even bid them, make it as secure as you know how.

In doing so, These enemies of Christ were providing human history, witnesses of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. They're providing the witnesses for Christ's resurrection. And what are these men left with? Well they instruct the soldiers to say that the disciples came and stole them away in the night while they slept. The very thing that they wanted to keep from happening became the very core of their cover-up story.

The only problem was is their hatred had provided eyewitnesses to the contrary. Psalm 76 10 says Surely the wrath of man shall praise you, O God. With the remainder of wrath, you shall gorge yourself." And we see fulfillment of that truth from this Psalms in our passage. As John Calvin said, the resurrection of Christ would undoubtedly have been less manifest, or at least they would have had more plausible grounds for denying it if they had not taken pains to station witnesses at the sepulcher. God, as if He had hired them for the purpose, employed their services for rendering the glory of Christ more illustrious.

The glory of God and the testimony of the resurrection, fully funded by the scribes and Pharisees. Psalms 2, 1-6 says, Why do the nations rage, and the people plot a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His anointed saying, Let us break their bonds in pieces and cast away their courts from us. He who sits in the heavens shall laugh. The Lord shall hold them in derision.

Then he shall speak to them in his wrath and distress and distress them in his deep displeasure. Yet I have set my king on my holy hill of Zion. And that's what we see in this passage. So, I have a few applications I'd like to cover this time. First of all, the burial of Jesus Christ brings us face to face with the reality of our sins.

The burial of Jesus Christ brings us face to face with the reality of our sins. It is a picture for all who profess His name, as the Apostle Paul reminds us in Romans 6, that our old selves have been crucified and buried with Him so that, So that having been made free from sin, we should walk in newness of life. As J.C. Ryle wrote, To be born again is to enter into a new existence, to have a new mind, a new heart, new views, new principles, new tastes, new affections, new likings, new dislikings, new fears, new joys, new sorrows, new love to things once hated, new hatred to things once loved, new thoughts of God, ourselves, the world, the life to come, and salvation. John Bunyan portrays this in his book Pilgrim's Progress by writing the following.

Christian ran till he came to a hill. Upon it stood a cross, and a little below was a tomb. So I saw in my dream that just as Christian came up to the cross, his burden loosed from off his shoulders and fell from off his back and began to tumble and so continued to do till it came to the mouth of the tomb where it fell in and I saw it no more. Then said Christian with a happy heart, he have given me rest by his sorrow and life by his death. Then he stood still awhile to look and wonder, for it was very surprising to him that the sight of the cross should thus ease him of his burden.

He looked therefore and looked again, even till the springs that were in his head sent the water down his cheeks. Now as he stood looking and weeping, behold Three shining ones came to him and saluted him with, Peace be to thee. So the first said to him, Thy sins be forgiven thee. The second stripped him of his rags and clothed him with a change of garment. The third also set a mark on his forehead and gave him a roll with the seal upon it which he bade him look on as he ran and that he should give it in at the heavenly gate.

So they went their way. Then Christian gave three leaps for joy and went on singing. Thus far did I come laden with my sin, nor could alt ease the grief that I was in, till I came hither. What a place is this? Must here be the beginning of my bliss?

Must here the burden fall from off my back? Must here the strings that bound it to me crack? Blessed cross, blessed sepulcher, blessed rather be that man that was there, put to shame for me. The burial of Jesus Christ brings us face to face with our sins that we have died to self that we should walk in newness of life. Secondly My second application is actually a quote by John Calvin.

If, through a holy desire to honor Christ, Joseph assumed such courage while Christ was hanging on the cross. Woe to our slothfulness, if now that he is risen from the dead, an equal zeal, at least to glorify him, does not burn in our hearts. That now that he is risen from the dead, that an equal zeal, at least to glorify him, does not burn in our hearts. That now that he is risen from the dead, that an equal zeal at least to glorify him does not burn in our hearts. That quote pierced my heart as I prepared this message.

With my mouth I teach my children that man's chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. But what do they see? Do they really see a man with a heart burning, burning to glorify Jesus Christ? Can they describe me as a man whose chief enjoyment in life is to be with God in the means of grace? Jeremiah 2.13 God says, for my people have committed two evils they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters and hewn themselves cisterns, broken cisterns that can hold no water.

They've forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and they've gone. And they've dug out cisterns, broken cisterns that can hold no water. What are you holding in your hand this morning? Are you holding a shovel? Are you holding a shovel?

Are you holding a bucket? Are you digging? Or are you drinking? You young people, you sit here week after week, you hear the Word of God preach. What are you doing in your life?

Are you holding a shovel this morning to dig out a cistern, a broken cistern? It's not going to hold water. It's not going to hold water. Go to Christ, the fountain of living waters. Drink, don't dig.

Drink, drink. The burial of Jesus Christ calls forth for our zeal. He's not hanging upon a cross. He's risen from the dead. Let us do greater than Joseph.

We serve a risen Savior. We've been given victory. Let's act like it. Let's act like it. Thirdly, be careful how you determine true love for Jesus Christ.

Note what Luke tells us in 2356, speaking of the women, speaking also of Joseph and Nicodemus. And they rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment. They rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment. Joseph, Nicodemus, and the two Marys did not consider it a righteous thing to attend to the burial of the Lord of Glory at the expense of obedience to the law of God. They did not consider it a righteous thing to attend to the burial of the Lord of Glory at the expense of obedience to the law of God.

They did not consider it a righteous thing to attend to the body of the Lord Jesus Christ at the expense of obedience to the revealed will of God. Christ said, if you love me, keep my commandments. If you love me, keep my commandments. God desires obedience more than sacrifice. Were they doing a good deed?

Yes. Were they honoring Christ? Absolutely. But they also knew what he had commanded. The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God.

In it you shall do no work. Luke does not say that they rested on the Sabbath according to their consciences. He says according to the commandment. Dear brethren, we live in a society where so-called evangelicals are rounding the corners of God's law on every side so that they might serve God. And the reason and excuses don't even come close to the excuse that these four could have given.

We're burying the Lord of glory. If we don't do it, who will? Let's be careful how we determine what love for God is. God determines that. Let's obey him.

Let's obey him. Fourthly, the fear of man is crippling. Fear of man is crippling. Jesus had made it clear to his disciples when he sent them out in Matthew 10 28. Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul, but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.

One hymn writer wrote, fear Him, ye saints, and you will then have nothing else to fear. Make you His service, your delight he'll make your wants his care fear him you saints And then you will have nothing else to fear nothing else to fear The death of Christ brought courage to Joseph So that he feared nothing else he feared not the Sanhedrin Who had just crucified his Lord he feared not Pilate? Who had just seen to the crucifixion of his Lord? He feared not man any longer today is a different day Fear of man is crippling It had held him back for a long time. Don't be ruled by the fear of man.

Fear God. And then you will have nothing else to fear. Fifthly, I want you to please note the bookends of this chapter, the bookends of chapter 27. Judas and Jesus, They both die. They both die.

They both go to their appointed places. Judas' appointed place was in hell. Christ's appointed place was the right hand of his father. They both are sin carriers as they die. They are both sin carriers.

Why do I bring this up? Because whoever you are sitting here this morning Whatever the reason be that you are here Listen you are represented by one of these two men You are represented by Judas at the beginning of this chapter or you're represented by Jesus Christ. Either you have found rest and peace in Jesus Christ as your sin bearer as your Redeemer as your substitute or like Judas you have turned away from Christ the guilt of your sin weighs down upon you and you are choosing to bear your own sin alone Have you cast your sins Upon Christ or are you still bearing your own sins? Young people, have you cast your sins upon Christ? Christ was bearing sins on the cross so that you could be free from your sins.

Judas bore his own sins and in bearing his sins, just like Christ, the wrath of God fell. Except Christ was able to say it is finished Judas two thousand years later cannot say it is finished It's just begun It's just begun. We have these two stark contrasts, Judas and Jesus in our chapter. I ask you, Who represents you? Does Christ bear your sin or do you bear your own?

Today is the day of salvation. Today the Spirit draws near Once again in the gospel of Christ, flee to Christ. Flee to Christ. Find rest in Him. Find rest in Him.

Sixthly, Christians pray and seek to know the love of Christ. Pray and seek to know the love of Christ. This is what Paul prays for in Ephesians 3. For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named. What does he pray?

That he, God the Father, would grant you according to the riches of his glory to be strengthened with might through his spirit in the inner man that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith that you being rooted and grounded in love may be able to comprehend with all the saints. What is the width and length and depth and height to know the love of Christ, which passes knowledge that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Pray and seek to know the love of Christ. And here's where I see that in the passage The grace and knowledge that you experience today It's not sufficient to make you strong enough for the trials you might face tomorrow Okay, the grace that you're experiencing today is not sufficient for tomorrow. Where do I see that?

The disciples. The disciples. There they are in the garden. Peter pulls the sword out. Peter pulls the sword.

Eleven disciples with Jesus against the mass army coming from the temple guard and they're armed and They go from fight to flight to hiding The grace of God that was sustaining them was not sufficient for the trials that were coming. But neither should The lack of grace today remove all hope and cause us to draw back from that which God calls us to do. We see this pattern broken in the life of Joseph. Here is a man who had lived in fear, but this fear did not cause him to lose hope that he might this day when all others have fled go and serve Jesus Christ. Let us seek to understand and to be constrained by the love of Jesus Christ.

Let us seek to know nothing but Christ and Him crucified. Let us seek first the kingdom of God. Let us be moved by Paul's prayer to seek the blessed Trinity that God the Father, According to the riches of his glory would grant us to be strengthened that God the Son would dwell in our hearts Ruling as a mighty king and that God the Holy Spirit would strengthen our inner man then and Only then will we be filled with all the fullness of God. What does that mean? That means that we will be furnished and supplied liberally so that Nothing of the abundance of God shall be lacking to full measure Let me say that again furnished or supplied Liberally so that nothing of the abundance of God shall be lacking to full measure That's what Paul's praying for That's what God's willing to grant What did Jesus Christ say I have come to give them life And that they might have life more abundantly.

More abundantly. Let us seek to know. Let us seek to understand the love of Jesus Christ. And lastly, lastly, Christian, fear neither death nor the grave. Christ has removed the sting of death and has robbed the grave of any victory over his people.

Paul tells us the following in 1 Corinthians 10 or 15, 50 to 58. Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So, when this corruptible has put on incorruption and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. Oh Death, where is your sting? Oh Hades, where is your victory? The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law.

But thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord Listen to the words of a hymn written by Isaac Watts Why do we mourn departing friends or shake at death's alarms Tis but the voice that Jesus sends to call them to his arms. Why should we tremble to convey their bodies to the tomb? There the dear flesh of Jesus lay and left a long perfume. The graves of all his saints he blessed and softened every bed.

Where should the dying members rest but with the dying head? Thence he arose ascending high and showed our feet the way up to the Lord our flesh shall fly at the great rising day. Then let the last loud trumpet sound and bid our kindred rise, awake ye nations underground, ye saints ascend the skies. May God give us grace as we leave this place this afternoon to live as those who are dying daily, to live as those who are walking in newness of life, to cast our eyes upon a returning Savior and to proclaim to the world around us that Christ has died in the place of sinners and the grave is empty. Let's pray.

Oh gracious God we we thank you for your word. Lord we thank you for the gospel that brings hope to sinners like us. Lord, we thank you that the last picture of a garden that we have is not the picture of the Garden of Eden, whereby all passed from life to death and the tree of life was closed. But we thank you for this wonderful picture of this garden there near the feet of Golgotha where Jesus Christ removed the curse, where He calls all men to repent and to believe in Him and whereby death becomes life and the tree of life is opened once again. Oh God, give us grace to go to Christ and to drink deeply of Him today, whether it be our first time To ever drink from this fountain Or whether this be our 40th year 50th year of doing so oh Lord we need Christ we need Christ Thank you for all that our suffering Savior did for sinners.

In His name we pray, Amen.