Let's open our Bibles now to Matthew chapter 27. Matthew chapter 27. And I've chosen this morning to continue in our study of Matthew's gospel. We trust that even in these present times, we'll just receive a blessing from the word of the Lord that will suit each of our needs in these times when there are so very many distractions. And we're looking at the death and the burial of the Lord Jesus Christ this morning. So we will read from verse 50, and our focus will be verses 57 to 61. this morning. So let us read Matthew chapter 27 beginning at verse 50. And behold, the veil of the temple was rent entwined from the top to the bottom, and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent. And the graves were opened, and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, and came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many. Now when the centurion and they that were with him watching Jesus saw the earthquake, they feared greatly, saying, Truly, this was the Son of God. And many women were there beholding afar off, which followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering unto him, among which was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee's children. When the even was come, there came a rich man of Arimathea named Joseph, who also himself was Jesus's 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. There was Mary Magdalene and the other Mary sitting over against the sepulcher. Now, the next day that followed the day of the preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees came together unto Pilate saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver said while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again. Command therefore that the sepulcher be made sure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night and steal him away and say unto the people, he is risen from the dead. So the last error shall be worse than the first. Pilate said unto him, ye have a watch, go your way, make it as sure as ye can. So they went and made the sepulcher sure, sealing the stone and setting a watch. Let us pray. Our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee for Thy word of truth. We thank Thee that it is indeed truth, and a truth whereby Thou has promised to sanctify Thy people. Lord, will Thou open the words of thy scripture to us this day, wilt thou bless the preaching of thy word to the building up of thy church. Lord, we pray that we may be encouraged in Christ our Savior this day, we ask in Jesus' name, amen. 11 congregation, there is a precious thing in the Christian life called friendship. And it is a good thing to have friends. Some people are more outgoing than others. Some people crave friendship and companion. Others are a little more reclusive. For some people, this quarantine time is a great time of blessing. We don't mind being withdrawn at all. And other people, it's a great calamity. It's something that they're having a great deal of difficulty with. God made all of us a little bit differently. But we do want to be found faithful. Solomon says most men will proclaim everyone his own goodness, but a faithful man who can find. So people are quick to promote themselves and say this is what I have done, this is what I can do, this is what I can accomplish, but Isn't it good just to find a man who's faithful? Doesn't need to talk about it, he just persists in his Christian life particularly, in his labors, and provides for his household as the Lord enables him. And the psalmist in Psalm 12 verse 1 says, help Lord, for the godly man ceaseth, for the faithful fail from among the children of men. And so even in that psalm we see People are apt to let us down. The only faithful one really is the Lord Jesus Christ, isn't he? God the Father, great is thy faithfulness is the hymn that we're going to conclude with this morning. The faithfulness of the Lord is above all. But we do have friends and we ought to have friends and friendships in this life. And I want to look this morning at two men and two Marys. The two men are Joseph that we've read of, Joseph of Arimathea, and Nicodemus, not in our text, but he was present at the burial of the Lord Jesus Christ. So we have these four people, perhaps there were a few more, four people at the funeral service for the Lord Jesus, not a very large group at all. When we look, first of all, at Joseph, and he will be the main person we're going to look at, this is all we know about this Joseph. We haven't read about him anywhere in any of the Gospels before the death of Christ, and we don't hear anything about him afterwards. Some religions have sanctified him. What's, there's another word for him anyway. They've made, turned him into a saint. He has an appointed day in the church calendar. And we don't have any warrant for that specifically. And of course, all kinds of myths and stories arise about Joseph of Arimathea. But as far as the biblical account, which is of most concern to us, we don't have very much information. When we turn to Luke chapter 23 verses 50 and 51, we find that he was a counselor, Luke says, which means he was a member of the Sanhedrin. He was a member of the governing body. He was a man with a reputation. He was a man who would have been well known in the community. He was a man who had influence in that community. He was a good man and a just, and the word for just there is righteous, a good man and a righteous man. So he had a good reputation also in the community. Luke says that he had not consented to the counsel and deed of them. So whether he actively voted against them, He did not vote in favor of Christ being crucified. He had a sense of something not being right. And we don't know where he came to that understanding. We know that in the very end, it was confirmed by his actions. But he had not consented to the counsel and deed of them. He was of Arimathea, a city of the Jews. And Luke says he also himself waited for the kingdom of God. He waited for the kingdom of God. So he did have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. He was what we would consider to be a Christian man. He waited for the kingdom of God. He had that hope within him. According to our text in Matthew 27, verse 57, he was rich. So sometimes we think that he was rich. Christianity is something that is hidden from the rich people, that he only saves poor people, but the rich have their particular temptations and trials as they serve the Lord, but he was, Isaiah 53 verse nine says, his grave was with the rich in his death. So here's a fulfillment of that prophecy as well. So here was a man who was well-to-do, And Matthew says in verse 57, he was Jesus' disciple, which links into himself waiting for the kingdom of God. So here was a man, generally we think of those Pharisees or the Sanhedrin, all the leadership as being of one mind against the Lord Jesus. They're always opposing him. But they were not all like that. They were not all vocal in their opposition, and they were not even, in this case, they didn't even have opposition in his heart, at least, at this stage of his life. So he may have been stepping back, he may have been one of those people that isn't so quick to speak, he's slow to hear, slow to speak, quick to hear, and listening. Evaluating, who is Jesus? What did he actually say? How does it fit in with the scriptures? Is he fulfilling prophecy? He was a disciple of the Lord Jesus. John 19 verse 38 tells us that he was a disciple of Jesus, but he feared the Jews. And the word for fear here is the word that we get phobia from. He was terrified of the Jews, that's what it denotes. So he was concerned about the repercussions, the kickback. from any association that he had with the Lord Jesus. So we have some lessons that we can learn from Joseph of Arimathea. One of them is that, whatever we may think about this, that there are in the world what are sometimes called secret Christians. Remember, especially when I was growing up, people said, there's no such thing as a secret Christian. But there are some who are maybe reticent to speak for the Lord Jesus, or still have questions that they're working through and thinking about and meditating on and trying to make them all connect. And what we would call a secret Christian is not something that we would commend or something that we would seek after. We ought not to be that way, but the fact is that Joseph of Arimathea was just that type of man. Maybe, again, by his personality or his demeanor, he was a little more withdrawn than some others, more given to study than activism, we might say. So there's a lesson for us to learn that we ought to be charitable to those who are like that. We ought to always be very glad for those who have a particular boldness and a public boldness for the gospel, just a willingness and ability to share the gospel with others. Others, we ought to be charitable and encourage those who do lack that courage. We see in the end that even Christians like that do confess Christ when they're pressed. What do we say when push comes to shove, right? When it comes right down to it, Joseph of Arimathea said, this is my Redeemer. This is my savior. Whatever I didn't say or whatever I should have said, I'm going to say and do something now. This warrants my public response. And so he is pressed by what? is it that motivates Joseph of Arimathea in this instant? Isn't it a love for the Lord Jesus? We don't have that specifically recorded here, but in terms of the general Christian life, it's not a social pressure. It's not even so much a matter of conscience as it is a matter of love that can no longer be suppressed. This is my Savior. I believe what was said of Him. I believe what was said by Him. I will make this identification with Him. And it reminds us, beloved, that we do need scriptural exhortations to be courageous. And there are many of them. Why does the Lord tell you to be of good courage? because we tend to not be courageous. We have need of courage from the Lord. And I think we ought to consider with great, especially if we're maybe a little more timid, we appreciate men who can speak openly and forcefully for their courage. And we realize that it's not always easy. Paul, when he's writing to the Philippians, says, brethren, pray for me. Pray for me. And of the many things that he asked prayer for, he asked for boldness. Pray for boldness. We think, Paul, you always seem to be so bold. Often the people that appear bold are people who are very much depending on the power of the Holy Spirit. They know that they can speak so easily something foolish. Maybe even by virtue of their personality, they need God to bless their tongue and to give them words of edification and wisdom. 63 times in the scriptures, we find the phrase fear not. 63 times, that's many times. Be not afraid, 26 times. And then there would be all the other various ways of expressing that we should not be afraid or fearful. I read somewhere once that somebody had counted up 365 admonitions to not be afraid, which is one for every day of the year. So it'd be interesting just to do that in your Bible reading, make a note of them, and have one for every day of the year. We have the exhortation in Joshua 1, as Joshua is set to enter into the promised land and to take the people of the children of Israel in. The Lord Jesus says to him as he goes into the promised land, verse six, be strong and of a good courage for unto this people shall thou divide for an inheritance the land which I swear unto their fathers to give them. Only be thou strong and very courageous that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law which Moses my servant commanded thee. Turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest. This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth, but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein. For then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. So there are three exhortations, or four, for God to tell his general, his captain, Be not afraid, be courageous. And be courageous what? Be courageous to obey all my law. Doesn't it take courage to be obedient to God's word? To be obedient to God's law? It's not a simple thing to obey God's word. We do need courage from on high. Isaiah 35 verse four, say to them that are of a fearful heart, be strong, fear not, behold your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompense, he will come and save you. So beloved, as we consider this then, think of how courage was given to Joseph of Arimathea as he saw the suffering of the Savior, as he saw the dying of the Savior, and eventually then he sees the death of his Savior. He sees that he expires on the cross, that there isn't a glorious deliverance all of a sudden, he actually is put to death. And here is his faithfulness then, isn't it? That Jesus has died, but I need to do something with his body now. Who's going to take care of his body? It seems as though everyone here has dispersed now. No one cares. He's a criminal, right? He's hung on the cross. This is just where we wanted him. He's died. He's out of our hair. We don't have to worry about his preaching, about his exhortations, about his admonitions, about his rebukes. All of that is behind us, and we don't have to worry about it. Let's all go home. And that's what they do. But Joseph, we read in verse 58, begged the body of Jesus. In John 19, it says, he besought Pilate that he might take away the body. And he said, something has to be done. We can't let the body, even of a criminal, stay upon the cross or upon a tree. Deuteronomy chapter 21 as we look at the law of Moses. Deuteronomy chapter 21 verse 22. Deuteronomy 21 verse 22. And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death and he be to be put to death and thou hang him on a tree His body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but thou shalt in any wise bury him that day, for he that is hanged is accursed of God, that thy land be not defiled, which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance. So here's a criminal, a known criminal. He's hanging upon the tree, God says he's cursed. He's died the death of a criminal, but that doesn't mean that you leave his body hanging through the night. You put him to death, you take him down. Now when we look at the scriptures where this is brought to bear, we find that, or I could at least find only three places where this was used in the scripture or referred to, we have in Joshua chapter eight, Joshua and the king of Ai. We have Joshua hanging him upon a tree or upon a wall and then removing him at nighttime. He is the enemy of Israel. He's the enemy that had to be slain and vanquished, but even that man, we take him down for the night. It's the same in Joshua 10 with Joshua and the five kings that he defeated. He hung them up on trees, then when night comes, takes the body down. That's what the Lord commands in Deuteronomy 21. In 1 Samuel 31, we have Saul being captured and being put upon a wall, and the men of Jabesh-Gilead have mercy upon him. They know the law. They come and make sure that the bodies of Jonathan and Saul are taken down so that they will even in a foreign land. This is not to be done, these are still God's people. And whatever we think of there, especially of Saul, of his life, he didn't die a noble death, and still his body is to be taken down. So here's Joseph of Arimathea then, and here's the Lord Jesus Christ, who is in the company with these men then, really. As far as what scripture records, we have the king of Ai, the five kings that Joshua defeats, and Saul, Jesus is identified once again with this curse, a curse of death from Deuteronomy 21 verse 22. And again, Isaiah chapter 53 verse nine, he made his grave with the wicked. He's identified very much with wickedness even in his death. So there's the petition of the disciple named Joseph of Arimathea. And we can imagine that he comes and begs the body of Jesus. He climbs up on the cross. It says that he, one of the gospel writers says that he took the body down, takes the nails out of his hands and his feet, and brings down the body of the Lord Jesus. tenderly, lovingly, caring for even his body. And then we see also his piety. He wrapped the body in a clean linen cloth, taking great care. Verse 60, he laid it in his own new tomb which he had hewn out in the rock wherein never man before was laid. If we just take a moment here to consider that we do treat, and we have until recent years in our own society, in our own nation, treated death as a very serious matter. And we have conducted funerals. Funerals are a good thing. We often hear about a celebration of life. And in a funeral, we always think of the good things that people have done. But in a Christian funeral, we want to think of the seriousness of death, that death will befall every man. and that we ought to prepare ourselves for death because everyone in that room in the funeral is going to be faced with that one day. So our focus in a Christian funeral, our focus is not in the body that's lying there dead. Our focus is in a Christian funeral, the hope that that person had. Isn't it wonderful to attend a Christian funeral where we are reminded that we have every reason to believe that this loved one in the coffin." is now with the Lord. It's just a body laying. He's with the Lord. And we have that hope. And we're deeply going to miss that soul, deeply going to. We're grieving as that friendship has been taken away, as the Christian graces that they ministered in the body of Christ have been removed from us. There it's grieving. And we ought to grieve. It's a good thing. Even Jesus wept at the funeral of Lazarus. So J.C. Ryle says the burial of the dead is an act which God sanctions and approves, and we learn that from this passage. I want to briefly consider with you Nicodemus as well. And Nicodemus was there also. Again, John chapter 19 records that. So we'll go a little bit out of our text this morning and consider this man who came to Jesus by night. And what was Nicodemus? He was also a member of the council, wasn't he? He was a Pharisee. And we often assume, at least, that he came to Jesus by night because he was Not sure he wanted to make that public identification with the Lord Jesus yet. Perhaps he was a little timid, or perhaps he was just not prepared to make that commitment at that point. But here, John 19, again, he comes with 100 weight of perfume. He comes to anoint the body of Jesus. He is prepared for this event, and he wants to be there. Perhaps he may have help Nicodemus take the body down and wrap him in a linen cloth, but he anoints his body with these precious ointments. So there is the two men. There are the two men, Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus. And then we have these two Marys. Verse 61, and there was Mary Magdalene and the other Mary sitting over against the sepulcher. And the other Mary is Mary, the mother of Joseph, or of John and James, and she is caring for the Lord Jesus in these things. Mary Magdalene and Mary, the other Mary. And so Mary, the mother of Jesus, has likely gone home by now. Remember that Jesus committed her care to John the disciple, and likely he has done that in obedience to the Lord, taken her home. So we have at least these two Marys. John talks about the other women. So there may have been more women, but here we have these. two Marys that are attendant as well. And you think of their integrity, you think of this is the one that we love, this is the one that we desired and had affection for, and now he's dead, but we're not going to just be dismissive, we're not going to over-spiritualize this and say it doesn't really matter. They are mourning, they are grieving, they are wondering what all of this means and how all of these things could be timed in just such a way. And verse 61 says that they sat over against the sepulcher and they watched. They watched as the Lord Jesus was laid in these grave clothes. They watched as Nicodemus and and Joseph prepared his body for burial. So they were a witness to the death and burial of Jesus, which becomes a factor here in the end of this chapter, but they also then knew exactly where to go on Sunday morning when they wanted to honor him with the burial spices as well. So here's the friends that Stay close to the Lord Jesus and abide with him in his final hours and into his death as well. They are significant because they have been identified to us. So beloved, can you identify with any of these people? Joseph, is that you? You can say, maybe I'm not. So very bold as I ought to be, but I want to be. And I think that's the question. Do you want to be? Do you want to have a greater courage? Do you want to have a greater boldness for the Lord? There is the prayer that ought to go up. Lord, make me bold. Make me courageous for the sake of Christ. And all of this begins with Christ befriending you. Isn't that right? Our focus almost often is upon ourselves in these times when we don't exercise courage as we ought. We think about, well, what will people think of me, or what, I should have done more, I should have done less sometimes. I just blew it. But the solution to this is examining, it's examining yourself to a degree, but isn't it examining the Lord Jesus. Can you think and say, the Lord Jesus has died for me. The Lord Jesus has cast his love, his everlasting love, his covenantal love, his eternal love upon me, a worthless sinner. Christ has loved me. Don't you think that possibly, quite possibly, this was just what happened in the case of Joseph of Arimathea? All of these things could even have come about as he was at the cross. Everything begins to come together. And beloved, how do things come together in your mind and in your heart? It's by the Holy Spirit, isn't it? The Holy Spirit puts things together in your mind, makes them to make sense. The things that were perhaps scattered and kind of all over the place, chaotic, you have a bunch of facts that you know about, and the Holy Spirit can just bring them all together. And in Christ, they all make sense. And that's the love and compassion also of the Holy Spirit, of Christ using the Spirit to bring these things, to make you sensible to them, knowing that He first loved us, as John says in his epistle, that it's not that I love Christ, but that He first loved me, that He came to me in my sinfulness and He redeemed me and gave me the spirit. So beloved, let us pray for courage and even ask others to pray for courage for us the way Paul did. Paul was not shy. Pray for me that I may have boldness in presenting the gospel. Even he was in jail at the time. So has Christ befriended you and are you a friend of Jesus? Do you love the Lord Jesus Christ? And do you study, sometimes if you think, well, I'm not sure that I love him as much as I ought to, think about what it is that he has done that should make you love him. We, used to say, we don't sing that song here, but when I was growing up we sang a song, count your many blessings, name them one by one. Now I don't know all the words, but see what God has done. is how it ends, so counting your blessings is one thing, and a lot of those blessings are found not just in looking at your household or your church or the things around you, but they're found in the scriptures, what God has done for you. If you can say God, not just God has done this, he has done this for me. There's the application, he has done this for me. And this evening, Lord willing, we're going to look at at the whole idea of walking in the spirit and not feeding the flesh, make no occasion for the lust of the flesh. That's a blessing to have that struggle within you as well. So there is a reason for you to study the scriptures and to read through the scriptures. Is there evidence that God loves me? My response, your response ought to be and evidence that God has shed His love abroad upon your hearts by His Holy Spirit. So as we consider then these actions, we don't know anything about the life of Joseph of Arimathea. We know what he did when it counted. We know that he rose to the occasion by the power of the Holy Spirit. We know that Nicodemus, whatever we might think about him coming to Jesus at night, in the end identified very strongly with the Lord Jesus. And of course the sweet ladies, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, how they came lovingly to the funeral service of the Lord Jesus Christ. Let us love him with all our hearts, beloved, and flee from loving ourselves. Let us pray. Oh God and our Father, we come unto thee this day and we pray that we may not be content with the love that we have for the Lord Jesus, but that we may desire to have a greater love, focused and purposeful love. We pray that Thou would bless us as we meditate upon the many ways in which Thou has shown Thy love towards us, particularly in Christ Jesus, in His finished work, in His dying for our sins. Lord, we pray that these may be meaningful thoughts unto us. We pray that we may be blessed in the meditation of them. Make us to know that we are loved of Thee, as we do peruse Thy holy Word, we pray in Jesus' name. Amen.