All right, turn with me, if you would, back to John chapter 19. John chapter 19. Lord willing, we'll finish this glorious chapter tonight. Verse 38. We begin in verse 38. It says, and after this, after this, after all these things, after our Lord was tried. We've been going through this and see his trial and amazing grace to his heaven below to feel that blood apply just to get a glimpse of what he did right here. Tried, convicted, beaten, crucified. After our Lord said it is finished. After he gave up the ghost, it says he gave up the ghost, gave it up. You know, we try everything in our power to hold on to our ghost, don't we? It's all we want to do is hold on to our ghost. He willingly, freely gave up the ghost for us. After a soldier ran a spear up into his side, proven he is dead. after blood and water poured out from him. After the scripture was fulfilled, a bone of him shall not be broken. He was, but not his bones. After another scripture was fulfilled, they shall look on him whom they pierced. Verse 38 says, 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." Our God chose this man, right here. This man was selected to carry out the burial of the Lord. What a calling. What an honor, what an honor to actually handle Christ crucified. What a, what an honor. What a calling of God. This man was from a place called Arimathea. He was a Jew, but he was a believer. Verse 38 says, And after this, Joseph of Arimathea being a disciple of Jesus. He was a follower of Christ. He was a man who loved the Lord his God. He loved the one he carried. And the other gospels, they tell us a little bit more about him. I want us to turn over to Matthew 27. And in each of the gospels, we're going to say a little bit more about this man that our Lord chose. Matthew 27, look at verse 57. 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. And when Joseph had taken the body, he 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 a great stone to the door of the sepulcher and departed. Joseph was a rich man. That's what Matthew tells us. He was a rich man. He had to be. He had to be a rich man. Isaiah prophesied that our Lord would make his grave with the wicked. So he hung between two thieves. And Isaiah prophesied that our Lord would make his grave with the rich in his death. So in fulfillment of that, God made Joseph to be a rich man, very rich man. All right, now turn with me to Mark 15. Mark 15, look at verse 42. And now when the even was come, because it was the preparation, that is, the day before the Sabbath, 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. And Pilate marveled if he were already dead. And calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead. And when he knew it of the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph. And he bought fine linen, and took him down, and wrapped him in the linen, and laid him in a sepulcher, which was hewn out of a rock, and rolled a stone unto the door of the sepulcher." Mark tells us that Joseph was an honorable man. He was a counselor, it says, and what that means is he was a member of the Sanhedrin. You've heard of the Sanhedrin. It was the Jews' religious leaders. He was a member of the Sanhedrin, a Jewish religious leader. But Luke tells us this. Luke tells us that this man, Joseph, was a repentant man. God made him to repent. Turn with me to Luke 23. I love this. Luke 23 verse 50 says, And behold, there was a man named Joseph, a counselor, and he was a good man and a just. Now watch this right here. The same had not consented to the counsel and deed of them. He was one of those Pharisees and he was right there in the council and they were talking about, we're going to kill him. 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. He took it down and wrapped it in linen and laid it in a sepulcher that was hewn in stone wherein never man before was laid. He was in false religion, this man Joseph. He was in false religion, but he would not stand with him. He just would not stand with him. God gave him a changed mind and a changed heart. But our text tells us this. Back in John 19, our text tells us that this man was a weak, frail sinner just like you and me. A very weak, frail sinner just like you and me. Back over in John 19, Verse 38 says, After this, Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews. He wouldn't stand with them. Honorable man. And he was a disciple of the Lord, but secretly for fear of the Jews. I'm so glad the Lord recorded that. He included that about this man Joseph. Here's the man God chose to handle Christ crucified. Go to Pilate and say, I want his body. You'd think everybody in town knew that he laid him in his grave. And it says that he was a secret disciple because he was afraid. He was afraid. He's just a sinner like you and me. He's afraid. That's what we are. We're afraid. We don't have any reason to be, but we are. I want to be bold and I want to be committed as a servant of the Lord Jesus Christ. I really do. But if I'm going to be, then my God is going to have to give me the grace and the ability to be. He's just going to have to do that. There are so many fears inside here. So many, so much weakness. John Newton wrote this poem right here. I love this. "'Tis a point I long to know. Oft it causes anxious thought. Do I love the Lord or no? Am I His or am I not? If I love, why am I thus? Why this dull and lifeless frame? Hardly sure can they be worse who've never heard His name. Could my heart, so hard remained, prayer a task and burden prove? Every trifle give me pain, if I knew a Savior's love. Could I still be like this, if He had set His love on me? When I turn my eyes within, all is dark and vain and wild, filled with unbelief and sin. Can I deem myself a child? If I pray or hear or read, sin is mixed with all I do. You who love the Lord indeed, tell me, is it thus with you? Do you struggle to hear the gospel preached? Do you struggle to read this word? Do you struggle to pray? Yet, I mourn my stubborn will, find my sin a grief and thrall. Should I grieve at what I feel if I did not love at all? Could I joy His saints to meet, choose the ways I once abhorred, find at times the promise sweet if I did not love the Lord? There's times that He opens His ear, times He opens His heart, and oh, my soul, greatest thing in life. Lord, decide this doubtful case. Thou who art the people's son, sense upon thy work of grace. If indeed it be begun, let me love thee more and more. If I love at all, I pray. If I have not loved before, help me to begin today. Help me to begin today. Here's the promise of our God to all of us weak and fearful sinners. He said, my grace is irresistible. It is irresistible. And in my time and in my power, I will quicken you. You can't do it to yourself, but I will in goodness, in mercy, in kindness, I will quicken you. I will cause you to come and seek the Lord. And you will be willing in the day of my power. You will be. Even though Joseph was a secret disciple for fear of the Jews, when the time came God still gave him the courage and the ability to go to Pilate and claim the one thing needful. The one thing needful. And every single child of God, when that line is drawn in the sand, every child of God, when that line is drawn in the sand, what think ye of Christ? When that line is put right in front of every child of God, what is eternal life? Where does it all hinge? What is your hope? When a choice has to be made, when a side has to be taken, every single child of God will claim the bloody, broken body of the Lord Jesus Christ every time. They'll do it when that line is finally drawn in the sand. Poor old Peter, he doubted for a minute, but when that time came, when that time truly came, he said, you know I love you. They're not going to do that because of their inner strength that they've conjured up. They're going to do that because of God's grace to them. It's God's grace to them. It's because he which hath begun a good work in us, he will finish it. He will perform it. He said, I am found of them that sought me not. Why did he say that? It's because I didn't seek him. He drew me. That's what happened. He drew me. He drew me by putting a heart in here to lay hold on Christ. Oh, I came. I wanted to come. I sought. I laid hold of. But it's only because he put a heart in here to do that. Put a heart in here to beg for the body and crave the broken body of the Lord Jesus Christ. He does that for every single child of God. Look at Nicodemus. John 19 verse 39, And there came also Nicodemus, which at the first came to Jesus by night. He did that because of fear of the Jews. Same thing. Turn with me over to John chapter 3. John chapter 3 verse 1 says, There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus. This man was also of the Pharisees. Named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. The same came to Jesus by night. and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God, for no man can do these miracles that thou doest except God be with him. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter the second time into his mother's womb and be born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, You must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whither it cometh and whither it goeth. So is every one that is born of the Spirit. Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be? Nicodemus was an ignorant, scared, false preacher. That's what he was. One who was more afraid of his false preacher brethren than God Almighty. Christ, though, preached the gospel to him. Christ began the work in him. Everything that our Lord said in the next 12 verses was to Nicodemus. We love John 3.16. The whole world thinks they love John 3.16. Our Lord said that to Nicodemus. Verse 14, the Lord told him, as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up. that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He that believeth on Him is not condemned. But he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is condemnation, that light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be manifest, that they are wrought in God. So our Lord preached the gospel to this man, right there, Nicodemus. He came by night for fear of the Jews. Alright, now turn with me to chapter 7 and look at verse 50. This is where the Pharisees are wanting to condemn our Lord. They're wanting to put Him to death, straight to death. Chapter 7, verse 50. Nicodemus saith unto them, he that came to Jesus by night being one of those Pharisees. Doth our law judge any man before it hear him, and know what he doeth? They're wanting to kill him. We're going to crucify this man. And he said, now wait a minute. Does our law judge any man before it hear him, and know what he doeth? They answered and said unto Nicodemus, Art thou also of Galilee? Whose side are you on? Whom seek ye? In the end, it was the broken body of the Lord Jesus Christ. That's who it was. Now, you know Nicodemus, if you go after him, you can't be with us anymore. You know that. You know you cannot be a member of the Sanhedrin anymore. If you claim him, you're denying us. You know that, right? Back over in John 19, Verse 39 says, And there came also Nicodemus, which at the first came to Jesus by night, and brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about an hundred pound weight. Then took they the body of Jesus, and wound it in linen clothes with the spices, as the manner of the Jews is to bury. To these two men To these two men, these two Pharisees, I think it's precious that God had mercy on these two Pharisees. Oh, they weren't worthy, but they were sinners. And God came to prove there's no sinner too sinful for me to lay hold of and make him bow. To these two men, this body was precious. I mean it was precious. They wrapped it in the finest linen. It says that Joseph bought, he went out and bought this linen. It wasn't used, he went and bought it. They covered this body in the sweetest spices. Not only was this body a sweet smelling savor to God, this body was a sweet smelling savor to them. There was no decay, no corruption, And they wrapped it in this linen and they had all the myrrh and the aloes in here. And this body was a sweet smelling savor to them. Here's why. Here is the glory of the cross. This is the gospel of salvation, the good news of salvation right here. Verse 41 says, Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden and in the garden a new sepulcher wherein was never man yet laid. There laid they Jesus therefore because of the Jews preparation day for the sepulcher was nigh at hand. As I was studying this, going through all of these, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, every individual account of this, I read something that I pray I never forget. I never, I hope I never ever forget this. I saw substitution like I have never seen it before. Never seen it before. And this right here is what we are confessing in this table. It's what we're worshiping and we're giving thanks for every time we partake of this table. It's in Matthew's account of what we just read. Go back one more time to Matthew 27. Matthew 27. Look at verse 57. 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 And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock. He took this body and he laid it in his own new tomb. The one he had hewn out in the rock. Joseph knew he was a sinner. He knew he had to die. He dug his own grave. That was for Him. He dug His own grave. But when Joseph saw Christ high and lifted up, when he saw Him hanging on that cross, wounded and bleeding, for sinners pleading, sinners who were blind and unheeding, when Joseph saw that, he said, He was dying for me. And that's what we say to Christ crucified. He was dying for me. Joseph said, I must have Him. I must have Him. I need for Him to lay in my tomb. That's what I need Him to do. I need Him to lay in my tomb. Not just a tomb. I need him to lay in my tomb. I've got one. I hewed that in the rock. I prepared that for my own sin. If he does not lay there for me, I'm going to have to lay there myself. When we partake of this table, that's what we're saying. That's what we're saying. This is the substitute who laid in my tomb. My tomb. Every one of us, we're all saying the exact same thing. He laid in my tomb. He laid there for me in my tomb. Who's that in that tomb? Gabe Stoniker is. Really? Substitution. Who gets welcomed in? Christ does. Really? Substitution. Substitution. Because of that, He is precious to us. That body is precious to us. Man, so precious. Because He was a sweet smelling savor to God, He is such a sweet smelling savor to us, isn't He? Let's give him thanks by partaking of his table in remembering everything he did for us in his death. All right, Brother Brandon, you come up and read for us.