The Burial of Christ

Let's pray together. Father, we are grateful, Lord, for the Word of God, that when we behold as in a mirror the beauty of the Lord, we truly are changed from one level of glory to the next level of glory, even as by the Spirit of God. Your Word speaks to us. We are grateful, Lord, that as we are able to study it, we are able to behold the beauty of the Lord. Today, may we see your beauty in the burial that you ordained. May we see the glory of the Lord in your death, and may we see the majesty of all that you want for us from you this day.

In Jesus' name, amen. Turn with me in your Bible, if you would, to Luke chapter 23. Luke chapter 23. And we're going to finish the 23rd chapter of Luke today. And then next week, Lord willing, we will be in Luke chapter 24, which, if you've been with us for the last nine years, that's the last chapter in the book of Luke. And so we will spend up till Thanksgiving covering chapter 24, and then we'll be done with Luke's gospel. But today we're going to look at the burial of Jesus Christ.

We're going to look at something that's recorded in all four gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. And upon studying the burial of Christ, if all you had to read and to study as an individual on an island someplace in the middle of wherever, and you had just the burial of Jesus Christ, our Lord, you would begin to understand the majesty and glory of the sovereignty of Almighty God over all of life's events. This is a marvelous passage. Our Lord planned his death. He planned his funeral, and then he ran his funeral.

Wouldn't you like to run your funeral? You can't. Once you die, you're gone, okay? So you can't run your funeral. But Jesus ran his. He ran every aspect of it. He was dead in the flesh, but alive in the spirit. Upon his death on Calvary's mountain, he ascended to glory in the paradise, and he ran the whole event of his burial. And in his burial, you see once again the beauty of the Christ. Now, you need to know that God works in two magnificent ways. He works through divine interruption, and he works through divine intervention.

And you need to understand those things. We talk about divine interruption. We're talking about God interrupting the laws of nature to perform supernatural acts that cannot be explained by anything that's natural. And during the history of the world, there have been three occasions in which the supernatural power of God has been put on display through signs and wonders and miracles. The time of Moses, that's number one.

The time of Elijah and Elisha, that's number two. And the time of Christ and the apostles, that's number three.

Three times in the history of the world where God has done an outpouring of miracles, where he transcends the laws of nature, interrupts them, and does supernatural acts. And we've had the privilege of studying the gospel of Luke and to see and witness some of those supernatural acts. For instance, Jesus walking on the water or feeding 5,000 or 20,000 plus with a few fishes and loaves of bread, where the Lord would interrupt the natural means and do something supernatural that defies all laws that he has put into place.

And what he does is supernatural. And we've seen it in the ministry of Christ. He caused the blind to see. That's a divine interruption. He was able to cause the lame to walk, the paralyzed over years to get up automatically and defy all natural laws because of a supernatural act of God. That's divine interruption. But that happens on certain occasions at certain times. But everything else on top of that is divine intervention. In other words, you are here today because of divine intervention. Oh, you chose to come to church today.

You got up and put on your Sunday best. Well, some of you did, others of you didn't. But you put on your Sunday best. You take a shower. You come to church. And you're here because this is where you wanted to be today. But you are here because of divine intervention. Some of you have gone through horrific divorces. It's been terrible. And you've reaped the unfortunate consequences of those things. It did not mean that God was not involved. You must understand God's divine intervention through everything in life.

This speaks to us about the providence of God. It speaks to us about the sovereignty of God. We just think that we go through life and God winds us up as robots. And we just kind of walk off and do our own thing. God's involved in everything that happens in your life. Don't ever forget that. He has your days all numbered. He's got the hair on your heads numbered. Even though you might not have very many. He's got them all numbered. He knows how many are there. Not because he counted them. Doesn't have to count to know.

He just knows. See? Let me show you how this happens. In the book of 1 Samuel chapter 2, Hannah becomes pregnant with Samuel. Okay? Listen to what she says. Her song of thanksgiving. Verse two, there is no one holy like the Lord. Indeed, there is no one besides thee, nor is there any rock like our God. Verse six, the Lord kills and makes alive. You think somebody dies without the one who holds the keys to death and Hades not intervening in their death? He is the one who kills and makes alive. He brings down to Sheol and raises up.

The Lord makes poor and rich. He brings low. He also exalts. Are you poor today? God made you poor. You rich today? God made you rich. You exalted today? God exalted you. It's not because of your education, not because of your talent, not because of your beautiful attitude. It's because God exalted you. God did that. God intervenes every day, every moment of every day in the lives of everybody who lives. He is the supreme God. He is the king of the universe. She goes on to say these words. He raises the poor from the dust.

He lifts the needy from the ash heap to make them sit with nobles and inherit a seat of honor for the pillars of the earth are the Lord's and he sets the world on them. He keeps the feet of his godly ones, but the wicked ones are silence in darkness for not by might shall a man prevail. Man never prevails because he's stronger than somebody else. He prevails because God intervenes. See, we so easily forget that. Psalm 33, verse number 10, the Lord notifies the council of the nations. He frustrates the plans of the peoples.

Why? Book of Proverbs, Proverbs 16, verse number nine says, the mind of a man plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps. The man, the mind of a man plans while you plan your vacation, you plan your work schedule, you plan your week, you plan your marriage, you plan everything you got, you got a day planner, you plan it all out, you put it in your iPad, your iPhone, you got it all marked out, but the Lord directs your steps because the Lord is in charge. Says the verse 33 of Proverbs 16, the lot is cast into the lap, but it's every decision is from the Lord.

God does everything. In fact, it says over in Proverbs chapter 19, verse number 21, many are the plans in a man's heart, but the counsel of the Lord, it will stand. In fact, over in chapter 21 of Proverbs, it says, the king's heart is like channels of water. In the name of the Lord, he turns it wherever he wishes. That includes Obama. It includes the Pope. It includes everybody who lives. God is in charge. And we know that book of Acts, because it says in verse number 27 of chapter four, or yeah, chapter four of Acts, it says, for truly in this city, there were gathered together against thy holy servant, Jesus, whom thou didst anoint, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel to do whatever thy hand and thy purpose predestined to occur.

Pilate didn't do anything unless it was predestined by God. Neither did Herod, neither did the Gentiles, and neither did the Jews. God is in charge. You need to get ahold of that, folks, because so many times we think we're in charge, but God's completely in charge of everything. And so when you go back and you read about the burial of Jesus, and you had the soldiers, God's in charge of them. Divine intervention. When you have those who are affectionate, like Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, God's in charge of them.

Did they have an affection for Jesus? Yes. But why did Joseph of Arimathea be involved in the burial of Jesus? Simply because he had affection for him? Nope. It was divine intervention. Jesus moved him. The soldiers, the sinners, those who hated Christ, those Sanhedrin, they wanted to place guards over the tomb. They wanted to seal the tomb. And they did that because of divine intervention. Yes, it was their idea. Yes, it was their volition to make sure that no one can prove that Jesus was stolen.

And they proved it by divine intervention. And that's the story of the burial of Christ. Jesus ran his funeral. He ran his burial. He did it all without a sermon, a song, and a prayer. He ran it all, and it glorified his name. Let me show you how that happens.

We're going to go back to John 19 first, because we're going to take it in chronological sequence. We'll go to John 19, and then we're going to go back to Luke 23, our text for the day. And then we're going to move to Matthew chapter 27, because that will help us understand three groups of people. The soldiers, the saints, and the sinners. We're going to look at the affirmation of the soldiers.

We're going to look at the affection of the saints. And then we're going to look at the attestation of the sinners.

Okay? First of all, John chapter 19. John 19. And after these things, Joseph... I'm sorry, verse 31. The Jews, therefore, because it was the day of preparation so that the body should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath, for that Sabbath was a high day, asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away. Now, this is so ironic, because earlier in the day, on Friday, the religious establishment would not go into Pilate. Remember? They called Pilate out to them, because they could not defile themselves in a Gentile facility.

But notice, they're not too concerned about their defilement at this point. So they go into Pilate, see? And they have this problem, all legalists do, on trying to rationalize and legitimize everything or all their actions. And so they go into Pilate, and they want the bodies down. Because in Deuteronomy 21, you can't have a dead body hanging on a cross, because it defiles the land. And tomorrow's the Sabbath. It's a high day. It's a high Sabbath, because it's Passover, and we can't have our land defiled.

Oh, we're willing to defile ourselves by coming into your location, Pilate. But we don't want to defile the land, you see. Those bodies have to come down. They want the bodies down. But note, God wanted the bodies down. The bodies had to be down before that day was over, because Jesus had to be in the grave before that day was over. But this is divine intervention, you see, where God is working in and through everything that happens. Even the evil acts of men, God works through those things. And so they come in, and they go to Pilate, and they say, we want the legs of these men broken.

Why? Now, how do they do that? Take a huge iron mallet, they come up, and they smash their legs. Why do they do that? Because it expedites death. The normal length a person would hang on a cross was between two and three days. And the Romans would leave them on the cross, and let the vultures come and pick out their eyes, and pick out different aspects of their flesh, and let them rot on the cross. That's how the Romans did it. But the Jews couldn't let that happen, because the next day was the Passover.

And so they had to make sure the bodies came down off the cross. That means they had to be dead. Well, in order to die, the legs are broken. And what happens is that you die of asphyxiation, you can't breathe anymore. And so they didn't know that Jesus was already dead yet. Because Jesus was in charge of when he died. The two thieves, they were in charge of when they died. So their legs would be broken. And so the Bible says these words, it says, the soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man, and of the other man who was crucified with him.

But coming to Jesus, when they saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. How do they know he was dead? The soldiers, Roman soldiers, are experts at execution. They're experts at determining a man's death, because that's what they did. They were executioners. They were soldiers. They know who was dead, who was alive. So they came to Jesus, and he was already dead. Why? Because Jesus says, no one takes my life from me, I lay it down on my own initiative.

And we know from last week's lesson, that he breathed his last, he bowed his head, he gave up the spirit, he dismissed his spirit, he gave permission to his spirit to now leave, because he was in complete control of everything. So they come to him, he's already dead. But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and immediately there came out blood and water. And he who has seen has borne witness, and his witness is true, and he knows that he is telling the truth so that you may believe.

Now this is important. Why? Because in sticking the spear in the side of Jesus out came blood and water, signifying that truly, in fact, he was dead. And it indicates the fact that his heart had already ruptured by virtue of the fact that blood and water came out together, which would fulfill a prophecy of Psalm 69, which says, reproach has broken my heart, ruptured my heart. Truly, it was something that happened to Christ. Christ literally died because of a broken, ruptured heart overbearing the sins of the world.

And he died on his own initiative. And out came blood and water. And listen to what John says, for these things came to pass, that the scripture might be fulfilled. Even in his death, Jesus is fulfilling scripture. Not a bone of him shall be broken. And again, another scripture says they shall look on him whom they pierced.

The soldiers doing what was prescribed to them by Pilate, which was initiated by the religious leaders of Israel, was all taken care of by divine intervention to the plan of God to accomplish his purpose, said God will be put on display because there should not be a bone of his broken. Why? Psalm 34 verse number 20 is the fulfillment of that prophecy. But the book of Exodus, the Passover lamb could not have a broken bone. So it was fulfilled to the nth degree. There was no broken bone. And Zechariah chapter 12, Revelation chapter one, speak of the fact that they will look on him and whom they have pierced.

Even in his death, Jesus is running everything. Put the death in the flesh, alive in the spirit. He is the complete control of all that's taken place. And the soldiers are affirming the fact that Jesus was indeed already dead when they got there. In fact, if you read Mark's account, it says a pilot marveled because he couldn't believe that Jesus was already dead because he knows that people stay on the cross for two or three days before they die and that you're going to break their legs. They die today.

But Jesus's legs weren't broken because he was already dead. So pilot marveled at that because Jesus was in complete control of everything. This is just a fabulous portion of scripture. And when you look at this and you begin to read it, you begin to understand all that's taken place.

There is a fulfillment of prophecy in the past and what's going to happen in the future by what took place on Calvary's mountain. Now, this is important. Why? Because there's a theory that goes around that Jesus really didn't die. He kind of went into a semi-coma and they took him down. And when they wrapped him in the spices and put him in a cool tomb, those spices caused him to awaken. And he got up. He unwrapped himself. He moved the stone in spite of nails prints in his hands and in his feet.

And besides being beaten beyond recognition, he was able to get up and walk out of the grave. And it's called the swoon theory. You got to be an absolute moron to believe that. But this debunks that because Jesus was dead by the affirmation of the soldiers who are expert executioners. Also by the witness of John because John says he was there. He saw it. He was dead. They did not break his bones so that scripture might be fulfilled. They didn't break his bones because he was already dead necessarily.

They didn't break his bones because scripture had to be fulfilled. God was in complete control in charge of everything. If you leave today with one thing from this message, know this, that you go home, the route you go home today, because of divine intervention. Oh, you choose to get on the road. You choose to take the 210, the 10, the 5, the 55, the 57, whatever it is you take to go home. Okay. But it's all by divine intervention. God is actively involved in every one of your lives. Don't ever forget it.

And then you move on to the affection. Go back to Luke 23, the affection of the saints. Look at this.

This is marvelous. Verse 50 and behold, a man named Joseph, who was a member of the council, a good and righteous man. He had not consented to their plan and action. A man from Arimathea, a city of the Jews who was waiting for the kingdom of God. Wow. Where did he come from? Where was he all this time? Joseph is mentioned in all four gospels. Okay. He's defined as Joseph of Arimathea because you want to distinguish him from all the other Joseph's in the Bible. And although we don't know exactly where Arimathea is, there'll be some writers would tell you it's here or it's there.

We don't know exactly where it is and where it is is not important. The description of the man is important because he comes on the scene out of nowhere, but he's a member of the council. That means he's a member of the Sanhedrin. He's one of the 70. Well, where was he on Thursday night or Friday morning? Well, the Bible says that he was afraid.

He lived in fear. Over in John 19, it says 38. And after these things, Joseph of Arimathea being the disciple of Jesus, but a secret one for fear of the Jews. Wow. A secret disciple. Do those really exist? Can you really be a secret disciple? Jesus said, if you confess me before men, I will confess you before my father who is in heaven. But if you deny me before men, I will deny you before my father in heaven. So how can there be a secret disciple of Jesus? And why is it he lived in fear of the Jews?

The Jews, meaning the religious establishment, because whenever John talks about the Jews, it always refers to the religious leaders in every occasion in John's gospel. So he was afraid of his peers. Says over in John chapter 12, these words, John chapter 12, verse 42. Nevertheless, many, even the rulers believed in him, but because of the Pharisees, they were not confessing him lest they should be put out of the synagogue for they love the approval of men rather than the approval of God. The reason they like Jesus and believe in Jesus was because of his miracles, but they could not stand for him and stand with him because they love the approval of men.

Is this Joseph of Arimathea? How do we reconcile this? How do we come to understand this? Because the Bible never promotes a secret, nondescript incognito disciple. Well, the Bible never tells us when Joseph of Arimathea was born again, does it? Never tells us. Was it early on in Jesus's ministry? Three years ago? Was it in the middle of his ministry some 18 months ago? Was it in the last week of his ministry? We don't know. No one knows. What do we know about Joseph of Arimathea? Number one, he was good and no man's good, right?

So he was spiritually good. He also was righteous. The word righteous, the chaos, same word used of Jesus on the cross when the Roman soldier, the centurion said, surely this was a righteous man. Jesus was righteous because he was by nature righteous. Joseph was righteous because righteousness was imputed to him. See? Not a righteousness of his own. It was imputed to him. Paul would speak of that in Philippians chapter three. Philippians chapter three, verse number nine, when he said these words, he said, that I might be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith.

So Joseph had faith in God. He believed in God. He was a righteous man. Plus he was anticipating the kingdom of God. He lived in anticipation of the rule of the king, just like Zacharias and Elizabeth in chapter one. For if you go back to Luke chapter one, it says that both Elizabeth and Zacharias, the father and mother of John the Baptist, verse six, were both righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and requirements of the Lord. Zacharias and Elizabeth were righteous, not because of their own righteousness, but because it was imputed to them through God himself.

And so therefore they had a righteous standing with the living God. The same was true for Simeon in Luke chapter two. In Luke chapter two, it says, and behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. And this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel. In other words, same description of Simeon is the same description of Joseph of Arimathea. Joseph of Arimathea was a good man. He was a righteous man, and he was anticipating the coming kingdom of God. The same is true of Anna.

Later on in Luke's gospel, Luke chapter two at the end, when it says that she was looking for the redemption of Israel, that she too was a righteous and a holy person. You see, God always has his people, always does. And Joseph of Arimathea was one of those people. See, but wait a minute. He was a secret disciple? How long was he a secret disciple? Nobody knows. Nobody knows. But what do we know outside the fact that he was good, righteous, and anticipating the kingdom of God? We know this. When it was necessary for him to be courageous, he was.

Where was Andrew? Where was Peter? Where was Nathaniel? Where were the other 10? They were now secret. They were now cowards. Listen, let me tell you something about Calvary's cross.

Calvary's cross makes you courageous. And Joseph now was courageous while the disciples were cowards. Oh, he was a coward while they were at times courageous, but now the table is turned. And when it counts, when it truly counts, Joseph of Arimathea is super courageous. In fact, he's so courageous, he's willing to defile himself by going into Pilate. And maybe when he went into Pilate, he was there with the whole council and maybe they all left and he stood there. Maybe they knew there was something different about Joseph of Arimathea, but he didn't leave the council of Pilate.

He went maybe in after they left. Maybe they passed in the hallway on the way in. We don't know. But the Bible does tell us that these words, verse 52 of Luke 23, this man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Why did he ask? Divine intervention. Yes, there was the affection of Joseph of Arimathea. He adored the Christ. He loved the Christ. It was divine intervention. Why? Why? Because there had to be a fulfillment of scripture, both Old Testament and New Testament. Let me read the rest of the story.

I'll tell you about it. It says, and he took it down, the body that is, and wrapped it in linen cloth and laid him in a tomb and cut into the rock where no one had ever lain. This is so important. So important. He asked for the body of Jesus. You read Mark's account. He has to wait to hear whether or not Jesus is dead or not. Once Pilate receives the news that Jesus is dead, remember he died at three o'clock in the afternoon. Jesus must be off the cross in the tomb before 6 p.m. so that a fulfillment of Matthew 12, verse number 40 will be accomplished where Jesus said, as Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights, so shall the son of man be in the earth three days and three nights.

And people get all worried over that, thinking that you've got to be in for three full days and three full nights. But those are the people who don't understand the Jewish terminology when it comes to day and night, because any portion of the day or any portion of a night in Jewish terminology is a day. In their mind. So it's written from a Jewish perspective. So if he's in the grave before 6 p.m., he's in for the day of Friday. If he's there all day Saturday, that's day number two.

And if he's there on Sunday morning to rise again, that's day number three. So Jesus was exactly correct when he said a day. And how do we know that? All you do is go back to the Old Testament, book of Esther, book of Kings, understand day and night, you come to that conclusion, it's a Jewish terminology. No big deal. And so in order for scripture to be fulfilled, the body must come off the tree. It must be wrapped, laid in the tomb before 6 p.m. said day one can happen. Why does Joseph come at the time he comes?

Divine intervention. He takes the body off the cross. How does that happen? The cross is laying down. Each hand is taken up off of the nails, lift it up. The feet are lifted up. The body is removed from the cross. He's doing this all by himself. He's taking his master, his king, his Lord, and then he would prepare the body. He'd wash the body. He's washing off all the dirt, all the flies that have accumulated on the dryness of the wounds. He's wiping it all down. And then he's going to wrap the body with linen, with strips of cloth.

And here he is doing something out of supreme affection and adoration for his king, all under divine intervention. Because Jesus is in charge. And, and the Bible tells us in Matthew's gospel, Matthew chapter 27, And when it was evening, 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 ordered it to be given over to him. And Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock.

And he rolled the large stone against the edge of the tomb and went away. In other words, he was the fulfillment of Isaiah 53, verse number nine, where he would be buried in a new tomb, a rich man's new tomb. This is divine intervention. It wasn't that Joseph of Arimathea was going back and reading Isaiah 53 and said, Hey, wait a minute. I'm a rich man. I got a new tomb. I'll go and ask for the body of Jesus so I can fulfill Isaiah 53, verse number nine. No, not at all. Out of affection and adoration for the king, he just went and did the right thing under the direction and intervention of the king himself so that he would have them all taken care of and put in the tomb before six.

The Bible says in Mark's gospel, Mark chapter 15, it says, and when evening had already come because it was the preparation day, that is the day before the Sabbath, still Friday, Joseph of Arimathea came, a prominent member of the council who himself was waiting for the kingdom of God.

And he gathered up courage and went in before Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. And Pilate wondered, marveled if he was dead at that time. And summoning the centurion, he questioned him as to whether he was already dead. And ascertaining this from the centurion, he granted the body to Joseph. And Joseph bought a linen cloth, took him down, wrapped him in the linen cloth and laid him in a tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock. And he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb. And John's gospel says this, it says in verse 39, and Nicodemus came also, and at first come to him by night.

When was that? John chapter three, remember Nicodemus? Wanted to know what it meant to be born again. Evidently Nicodemus somewhere between John three and John 19 was born again. How did Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea know each other? We don't know if they knew each other. We know that Nicodemus was a prominent rabbi. Was he a member of the Sanhedrin? We don't know that. So here was Nicodemus coming to do what Joseph was already going to do. And they just happened to meet at Calvary. Did they know one another?

Maybe we don't know that the Bible never says that Joseph never had any spices, but Nicodemus did. Did they talk before all this happened? We don't know, but he comes with in our modern day terms, 70 pounds of spices and they come and they wrap the body in those spices. Remember the Jewish people don't embalm the bodies. The Egyptians did, but the Jews didn't. They wrapped them in spices. So Nicodemus would be there also. So he was another one of the saints. He was another one who had affection for the Lord God of Israel.

It says, and Nicodemus came also, and at first come to him by night, bringing a mixture of a myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds weight.

And so they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen wrappings with the spices as is the burial custom of the Jews. Now in the place where he was crucified, there was a garden and in the garden, a new tomb. Now you understand Mount Calvary. We know where Mount Calvary is. It's unmistakable. And by Mount Calvary, there was a garden, unmistakable. And in that garden was a new tomb. Again, unmistakable. For those of you who've been to Israel with me, you know this, for those of you who are going to go in a few months, you'll see this.

It was there. It says, there was a garden and in the garden, a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. Therefore, on account of the Jewish day of preparation, because the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there. They laid him in the tomb on the day of preparation, which would be Friday to constitute day number one.

See, Jesus would die. Jesus would be taken off the cross, wrapped in linen and spices in the span of that three hours, carried to that tomb in a garden nearby Mount Calvary, be placed in the tomb before the day of preparation was over because he had to be in there on that Friday before 6 PM to accomplish day number one.

He'd be there day number two on Saturday, day number three, he would rise from the dead, exactly as he said.

He was in charge, beautifully in charge of all things. Now, if you go back to Luke's gospel, it says, and it was the preparation day and the Sabbath was about to begin, which tells you that he was buried before the Sabbath began at sundown. Now the women who had come with him out of Galilee followed after and saw the tomb and how his body was laid. And they returned and prepared spices and perfumes. And on the Sabbath, they rested according to the commandments. And then he would be the first ones at the tomb the next day.

You see, they didn't want the strangers preparing the body of Jesus. They wanted to be involved in that, see, but they observed. Why is this important? Because there's an argument that says, well, on the day of the resurrection, quote, the supposed resurrection that the women went to the wrong tomb. Well, how do you know they went to the right tomb? Because they followed Joseph and Nicodemus to his tomb. They knew exactly where it was. See that? They knew exactly where to go. So on Sunday morning, that's where they would go.

But Jesus had already risen from the dead. So you have the affirmation of the soldiers all under the divine intervention of the king. You have the affection of the saints all under the divine intervention of the king. And then you have the attestation of the sinners. Matthew 27. You got your Bible turn to Matthew 27 real quick. Matthew chapter 27, verse 62. Now on the next day, which day is that? Sabbath day, which is the one after the preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered together with Pilate.

Again, what are they doing? Defiling themselves on the Sabbath, on the high Sabbath with a Gentile ruler. What are they doing? But they have a plan. Again, under divine intervention. Here it is. And they said, Sir, we remember that when he was still alive, that deceiver, they called Jesus the deceiver, said, after three days, I am to rise. Therefore, give orders for the grave to be made secure until the third day, lest the disciples come and steal him away and say to the people, he has risen from the dead, and the last deception will be worse than the first.

Listen, Pilate, you got to set a guard there. We're not talking one guard. It's many guards. How do we know that? The Bible says, now while they were on their way, behold, some of the guard came into the city and reported to the chief priests, all that happened.

That's 28 verse number 11. So some of the guard, some say it's four, some say it's 16, some say it's 32. We need a guard at the tomb because this man is the deceiver and the disciples are going to conjure up a story that he has risen from the dead. They're going to steal his body. So we need to make sure that can never happen. So we need you to point a guard and secure seal the tomb. And that's exactly what they did. Says, therefore, they said, give orders. He said, Pilate said to them, verse 65, you have a guard, go make it as secure as you know how.

And boy, did they make it secure. Absolutely secure. No way disciples could ever come and steal the body and deceive the whole world. No way. But that's the argument today. That's the argument today. The testimony, the attestation of the sinners proves the body was a stolen, but there was a resurrection. And even in the mind of a sinful religious leaders, God had orchestrated everything to accomplish his purpose. Listen to Romans 11, mark it down, understand it. Whenever you go to work, whenever you go to bed, whenever you get up, whenever you go to dinner, whenever you go out for recreation or go to work, mark it down.

Romans 11, verse number 36. Start with verse 33. Oh, the depths of the riches, both of the wisdom and knowledge of God, how unsearchable are his judgments and unfathomable his ways. For who has known the mind of the Lord or who became his counselor or who has first given to him that it might be paid back to him again for from him and through him and to him are what?

All things. That's everything. That's not some things. That's everything. All things on this plan are from him, through him, to him. It says, and to him be glory forever and ever and ever. Amen. In other words, Jesus is the origin of all things. Jesus is the operator of all things. Jesus is the object of all things. And Jesus is the ultimate objective of all things. You got to get that in the burial of Jesus. Once again, proves divine intervention in everything. Let me pray with you.

Father, we thank you for today. All that you do, we thank you that you are sovereign and the providence of God is working every moment of every day without exception. It's working in every person who was here today. It's working in their workplace, their church, their home, their children, everything. And Lord, things happen the way they do because all things are from you. All things go through you and all things come back to you because you will receive the glory. We pray this in Jesus name. Amen.