Saturday before "Sunday" Comes

             One final day in the last week of Christ’s life on earth:  Saturday.  It was the Sabbath, so there was little activity that day.  Christ’s body had been removed from the cross and placed in the tomb before the Sabbath began on Friday evening.  Then, everyone scattered.  We don’t know if they sought solitude to mourn in private or if they gathered to give comfort to each other.  We do know that the Disciples had all fled when Jesus was arrested (Mark 14: 50) and later they were in hiding for fear of the Jews (John 20:19).   We also know that even though Jesus had told them several times that He would be put to death but that He would rise on the third day (Matt. 16: 21, Mark 8:31 & Luke 9:32), they never fully understood that.

So, on that fateful Saturday, all of Jesus’ followers were in mourning.  They experienced the grief of losing their teacher, their leader, and their friend.  How deep their sorrow must have been! They had been with Him for three years, and now it seemed that all was lost.  It had all happened so quickly, there was no time to prepare.  Their hearts must have been broken.  Their despair must have been imaginable.

I know what it is like to suddenly lose someone you love.  My father suffered a brain bleed and was dead within 24 hours.  It was totally unexpected, and I was devastated.  He was the healthy one, caring for my wheelchair-bound mother who also suffered from the early stages of Alzheimer’s.  Dad had been the rock that held it all together since Mom became ill, so, much like the Disciples must have felt, I was lost.  I didn’t know what to do or how we would ever take care of my Mom.  Fortunately, I have a nephew who can keep a cool head during the storm, so he became my rock. 

However, he was not the only answer to my dilemma.  Unlike the Disciples who didn’t have a clue as to what Sunday would bring, I knew that Sunday had already come, and my Savior lives! 

We will all have “Saturdays” in our lives.  Those are the times when everything is turned upside down.  It may be a death, or maybe the loss of a job, or maybe a failing marriage.  Whatever the “Saturday” we have a Savior who walks beside us, who strengthens us, and who carries us through every “Saturday” storm.  On that Saturday, the Disciples didn’t have that assurance.  Even though most of them were ultimately martyred for their faith, I’m sure they would each say that day was the worst 24 hours of their life. 

We are blessed to know that our Savior lives, and we can join Job and say with confidence “I know that my Redeemer lives and that in the end, he will stand upon the earth” (Job 19:25 NIV84).

I Peter 1: 3 - 7