Anonymous Disciples - John 19:38-42

Anonymous Disciples John 19:38-42 I. Introduction – Anonymity a. Anonymity, adjective "anonymous", is derived from the Greek word ἀνωνυμία, anonymia, meaning "without a name" or "namelessness". In colloquial use, "anonymous" is used to describe situations where the acting person's name is unknown. It can be said as not using your own name, simply. b. What is the appeal i. Safe ii. Unaccountable iii. Can be a hypocrit c. In being disciples we will put off any possibility of continued anonymity i. God wants bold witnesses not hidden faith II. Undercover/Secret/Anonymous Disciples a. Joseph of Arimathea i. Rich man – Matthew 27:57 ii. Disciple of Jesus – verse 38 1. Matthew 27:57 Now when evening had come, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus. iii. Prominent Council member 1. Pharisee 2. Mark 15:43 Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent council member, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, coming and taking courage, went in to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. iv. Good and Just 1. He did not consent to the killing of Jesus a. Luke 23:51 He had not consented to their decision and deed. He was from Arimathea, a city of the Jews, who himself was also waiting for the kingdom of God. v. Mentioned in all four Gospels. b. Nicodemus i. Mentioned only in the Gospel of John ii. Every time he is mentioned, it is also mentioned how he came at night 1. Out of fear 2. Or out of convenience a. Pharisees and Rabbis busy during day c. Anonymous Disiple i. Human standpoint –for fear of the Jews ii. Divine standpoint – protected to be available to give Jesus a rich burial III. Progressive Growth a. John 12:42–43 Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; 43 for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God. b. Joseph and Nicodemus request the body i. Stood for Jesus ii. Place self in danger iii. With friends iv. With Pilate: rival King 1. "But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 3:18) 2. "Fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God" (Colossians 1:10) c. Remarkably at a time when the professed disciples of Jesus abandoned Him, here were two standing for Him d. Starts with salvation i. When we confess the name of Jesus as Lord and Savior ii. Born-again iii. Begin the process of sanctification e. Continues on with a process of growth known as sanctification i. Sanctification is a work of the Holy Spirit who indwells those who are in Christ. 1. John 14:17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. 2. John 16:13 However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. 3. 1 Peter 1:2 elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ:Grace to you and peace be multiplied. 4. 2 Thessalonians 2:13 But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, f. Means we are always progressing and growing i. In our holiness ii. In our witness 1. Philippians 3:12–14 Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. 13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. IV. Has a cost a. These two feared the Jews i. For their very lives ii. For being excommunicated 1. Social suicide b. Could cost us things and relationships most dear i. Luke 14:26–27 “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. 27 And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. ii. Luke 14:33 So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple. c. Will definitely cost us the world i. James 4:4 Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. d. We must consider the cost of not being a disciple as well i. Luke 14:28–32 For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it—29 lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, 30 saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ 31 Or what king, going to make war against another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? 32 Or else, while the other is still a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks conditions of peace. An old, low-caste woman in India was once asked the cost of a temple being built. She turned to the missionary in surprise and said, “Why, we do not know! It is for our god. We do not count the cost!” She could certainly have put many followers of Christ to shame. Before we take the step of faith we want to know the cost. V. Requires sacrifice a. Joseph and Nicodemus give of their resources, time, and even religious practice to minister to Jesus i. Joseph 1. gave his anonymity – possibly his place in the Sanhedrin 2. He gave his life as a risk going before Pilate 3. He gave of his tomb 4. He provided the linen to wrap the body of Jesus 5. He defiled himself ii. Nicodemus 1. Gave of his anonymity – place in the Sanhedrin 2. 100 lbs (12oz to a lb, maybe 75 lbs) of myrrh and aloes – costly 3. He also defiled himself b. First we give of our life i. Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. ii. 1 Corinthians 6:19–20 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s. iii. It is interesting to note this sacrifice for Jesus was also prophesied. 1. Isaiah 53:9 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. c. Then we constantly give of ourselves i. Matthew 16:24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. When Cortez disembarked his five-hundred men upon the eastern coast of Mexico, he set fire to the ships. As his warriors watched their means of retreat burn, they knew they were committed with their lives to conquer the new world for Spain. Similarly, everyone who sets foot on the shore of discipleship is called upon to burn his own ships in the harbor. We Christians cannot spend our days looking back. We must move forward. Jesus said: “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God” (Luke 9:62). There is no compromising center, no relaxed position. The Christian life is one of tension and triumph. When the great Quaker, George Fox, was put in prison because of his activity against war and slavery, he immediately launched a crusade for prison reform. Christian discipline results in a dedicated, determined life and when one door closes, God causes another to open. d. We must become living sacrifices i. Romans 12:1–2 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. ii. 2 Corinthians 8:1–5 Moreover, brethren, we make known to you the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia: 2 that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded in the riches of their liberality. 3 For I bear witness that according to their ability, yes, and beyond their ability, they were freely willing, 4 imploring us with much urgency that we would receive the gift and the fellowship of the ministering to the saints. 5 And not only as we had hoped, but they first gave themselves to the Lord, and then to us by the will of God. iii. 2 Corinthians 8:8–14 I speak not by commandment, but I am testing the sincerity of your love by the diligence of others. 9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.10 And in this I give advice: It is to your advantage not only to be doing what you began and were desiring to do a year ago; 11 but now you also must complete the doing of it; that as there was a readiness to desire it, so there also may be a completion out of what you have. 12 For if there is first a willing mind, it is accepted according to what one has, and not according to what he does not have.13 For I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened; 14 but by an equality, that now at this time your abundance may supply their lack, that their abundance also may supply your lack—that there may be equality. VI. Is all inclusive a. Jesus calls all to be disciples i. Sometimes public disciples are poor examples ii. Sometimes unknown disciples are used wonderfully by God 1. Though Jesus died the death of a criminal and poor man 2. Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus used by God to give Jesus the burial of a rich man, one that He was deserving of. b. It remains our choice to be used c. As disciples we follow the example of whom we are a disciple of. i. Jesus example ii. Even if we are by ourselves God’s plan took priority in eighteen-year-old Jonathon Edwards’s life. He wrote in his journal, “Resolved that all men should live to the glory of God. Resolved secondly that, whether or not anyone else does, I will.” VII. Closing a. It is better to be a timid disciple rather than not be one at all i. "There can be no such thing as secret discipleship, for either the secrecy destroys the discipleship, or the discipleship destroys the secrecy"—William Barclay b. In avoiding association as a disciple how much we can miss out on what Christ wants to do in us i. 1. Joseph and Nicodemus waited until Jesus was dead before they did anything for the kingdom of God. ii. 2. What could they have done if they had come forward sooner? 1. (Ben Franklin) - "Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that is the stuff life is made of." c. There is no competition in God’s kingdom i. No one more holy than the next ii. God only looks for someone whom He can use 1. Someone willing to give of all that he has d. Discipleship is costly/painful Let’s ask ourselves this question: “Am I concerned about the sacrifices I may be called upon to make in serving Christ?” Two young men were talking about this very thing. One of them said, “I cannot tell you all that the Lord Jesus is to me, or what He has done for me. I do wish you would enlist in His army.” “I’m thinking about it,” answered the other young man, “but it means giving up several things—in fact, I am counting the cost.” A Christian officer, just passing, heard the last remark, and laying his hand on the shoulder of the young soldier said, “Young man, you talk of counting the cost of following Christ, but have you ever counted the cost of not following Him?”