Mark 15:42-47 The Burial of Jesus; The Cost of Following Christ

Intro |

Jesus declared it is finished and he breathed his last breath, and Jesus died.

He was mocked, betrayed, beaten, and condemned to die a criminals death.

And, in all of this he obediently carried out the mission God gave him.

Now, Mark’s gospel is unique. He gives a time frame for Jesus’ burial, and we can better understand its importance by looking to what Paul shares with the church at Corinth.

1 Corinthians 15:3–4 (ESV)

“For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures...”

In my life I have given a lot of time considering the cross and the resurrection. Which I think we should, but in doing so the burial of Jesus becomes a comma in this eternal drama.

Paul saw the burial of Jesus so important that he names it as one of the three main components of the Gospel.

If he truly died, he must be truly buried, and for him to be truly raised he must have truly died - which was confirmed through his burial.

The gospel contains this progression death, burial, and resurrection, so we should look to understand and learn from these verses to understand Christ and what we as his followers have been called to.

1. Perfect Timing (vv. 42, & 44-46)

Mk. 15:42 “And when evening had come, since it was the day of Preparation, that is, the day before the Sabbath,”

Evening had come. This would be considered late afternoon for us.

After 3 o’clock and before sun down.

We know this because the day of Preparation would have been the day before the Sabbath.

The Sabbath ran from sun down on Friday to sun down on Saturday.

On Friday that a family would have prepared themselves for Sabbath rest, and specifically here they would have been preparing themselves for Passover.

Preparations were made, food was cooked, animals were slaughtered, houses were cleaned.

Many have argued the timing of Jesus death, burial, and resurrection, but I believe here we have a solid timeline that is in keeping with OT law and Sabbath observance. .

Deuteronomy 21:22–23 (ESV)

“And if a man has committed a crime punishable by death and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, his body shall not remain all night on the tree, but you shall bury him the same day, for a hanged man is cursed by God. You shall not defile your land that the Lord your God is giving you for an inheritance.

The discipline of preparation is beneficial for us today too.

We do it weekly when we prepare our hearts for worship, we are called to do it before we come to the Lord’s Table, and I think we should prepare our hearts weekly before we come to worship.

The timing of God is perfect...

Mk. 15:44 Pilate was surprised to hear that Jesus would have already died. “And summoning the centurion, he asked him whether he was already dead.”

To curb his curiosity, Pilate summoned the Centurion.

v.44 - This is the Centurion we talked about last week from v. 39.

Pilate brought this Romans soldier who had witnessed the crucifixion, and proclaimed that he was the Son of God to confirm his death.

Why was Pilate so surprised to hear that Jesus had died?

Mark: An Introduction and Commentary (v. The Burial (15:42–47))

“Pilate’s surprise at the news of the death was genuine; men might, and often did, linger for days under the torture of crucifixion, before dying of exposure and thirst under the pitiless sun, or of asphyxiation from the strained hanging position.”

Yes, we must remember the humanity of Jesus, but we can’t lose sight that he was still in control as the Son of God.

Humanly speaking, he had endured multiple false trials throughout the night, been beaten, bruised, and betrayed.

Divinely, he bore the eternal infinite weight of God’s wrath for sinners, he declared it is finished, he breathed his last, and embraced hell for all who believe.

This was all within God’s perfect timeline.

Ecc. 3:2 “a time to be born, and a time to die.”

Heb. 9:27 “ it is appointed for man to die once…”

Eph. 1:11 “ He works all things according to the counsel of his will,”

Jesus death was not untimely, it was preordained, it was exactly when it was supposed to be within the counsel of God’s will and the Sabbath/Passover requirements.

God’s perfect timing gave an opportunity for Jesus to be buried before the Sabbath started so that he would be raised on the third day.

Mk. 15:46 “And Joseph bought a linen shroud, and taking him down, wrapped him in the linen shroud and laid him in a tomb that had been cut out of the rock. And he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb.”

Acts 13:29 “And when they had carried out all that was written of him, they took him down from the tree and laid him in a tomb.”

As explained in Ps. 22, Deut. 21, Isa. 53

Further, Jesus himself said in Luke 24 that he would be raised on the third day as it was written.

The perfect timing of Jesus death, of the Centurion’s declaration, and of Joseph’s care for the body and burial were within God’s divine timeline.

Application | Even with proof like this, that God is working every moment of time within his perfect plan, we casually believe that things just happen.

I read just this week of a high school classmate who died. Several people casually wrote “Another one gone too soon.”

What we see here in the burial of Jesus is that there is nothing that happens outside of the timetable of God.

Nothing comes to pass too soon or too late.

This should give us great comfort, security, and boldness in our everyday lives - nothing happens, not even death at the wrong time.

2. A Compelling Testimony (vv. 43,45-46)

Another key point in our text today is the testimony of Joseph of Arimathea.

First, we need to understand that Joseph’s testimony means nothing without the life of Christ.

What we will admire in Joseph’s life is only possible because of Christ and the life of perfect courage, obedience, devotion, and dependance on the Father.

You see obedience without dependance is moralism, and that is not honoring to God.

But, Joseph is a man we can learn from. Not that he is perfect, we will see that he is not, but he decided to trust in Jesus regardless of the cost.

Mk. 15:43 “Joseph of Arimathea, a respected member of the council, who was also himself looking for the kingdom of God, took courage and went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.”

Joseph was from Arimathea, also known as Raman, the birthplace of the prophet Samuel.

Joseph was a respected member of the council.

This was another way to refer to the Sanhedrin. The very people who were involved in condemning Jeuss to death.

He was not just a member of the Sanhedrin, he was a respected member.

People within the religious elite would have looked to him for direction and influence.

“respected” - rich, respected, admired, influential.

However, something interesting to note about Joseph is he “was himself looking for the kingdom of God.”

The other gospel writers help us understand what this really means.

Matt - “a disciple of Jesus”

Lk - “a good and righteous man”

Jn. describes him as a secret disciple.

He was a man who had been convinced that Jesus was the Son of God.

Mk. 1:15 “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.””

Joseph had come to believe this.

We can also learn the fate of Nicodemus from John’s gospel.

John 3 - A Pharisee named Nicodemus came to Jesus by night asking questions .

Jesus responded that “no one can see or enter the kingdom of God without being born again.”

Joseph and Nicodemus were part of the religious elite who the Spirit of God moved upon and they believed.

Jn. 12:42 “many even of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue;”

Joseph and Nicodemus believed in Jesus, but because of the fear of losing their influence and livelihood they remained in secret, they did not confess it, but they could do so no longer.

But now there was a crisis of faith for Joseph. Upon witnessing Jesus death he counted the cost and courageously followed Christ.

v.43b & 45b - He “took courage and went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus…and Pilate granted the corpse to Joseph.”

Mk. 8:34 Earlier Jesus explained, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”

Joseph’s actions show that he had considered the death of Jesus and determined that he would follow him, that he would lose everything to follow him.

Joseph courageously laid down his life to follow Jesus because he witnessed Jesus lay down his life to follow the Father.

Listen to what Joseph does…

Mk. 15:46 “And Joseph bought a linen shroud, and taking him down, wrapped him in the linen shroud and laid him in a tomb that had been cut out of the rock. And he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb.”

Is.53:9 “And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth.”

Joesph, was granted the body of Jesus, and he goes and takes him down from the cross.

This would have been done in the presence of onlookers and passer-bys - those who mocked Jesus.

It would have been a difficult job, an expensive job.John says that Nicodemus brought nearly 75 pounds of spices to preserve Jesus.

Friends, Joseph’s example here follows the example of Christ and should be an example to us.

Christ knows those of you who are in the shadows.

Jn. 12:42 “many even of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue;”

Christ is calling you to courageously follow him.

Joseph was a rich man.

Mark 10:25 “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.””

Joseph was a courageous man.

Jn. 14:1-6 ““Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going.” Thomas said to him, “Lord,... How can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

Joseph had counted the cost and realized - His kingdom is greater, His love is greater, His acceptance is greater....

Jesus is inviting you to see the same...

Are you ready to courageously follow him?