Station 14: Jesus Placed in the Tomb

Used with Creative Commons from French Church

Jesus’s body was taken down from the cross and a man named Joseph asked Pilate if he could have the body. Pilate, perhaps surprised that anyone want the body, agreed to let him have it.

Joseph, acting with great compassion and care, gave Jesus a proper burial. He wrapped Jesus’s body in cloth and placed him in a tomb. When he was finished he rolled a large stone in front of the tomb and left.

As you read today’s scripture think about the compassion that Joseph showed. He spoke up and made sure that the body of Jesus was treated with dignity. It was an act of courage and compassion.

When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea named Joseph, who was himself a disciple of Jesus. He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus; then Pilate ordered it to be handed over. Taking the body, Joseph wrapped it [in] clean linen and laid it in his new tomb that he had hewn in the rock. Then he rolled a huge stone across the entrance to the tomb and departed.

(Matthew 27: 57-60)

Close out today with your own prayer. Invite God to give you compassion like that of Joseph. Then, as you prepare for Easter in just a few days, ask God to move in your heart. Asked him to show you the depth of his love for you this weekend. I believe that he will.