The Entrusting of His Body

Pastor Rex Deckard

Calvary Apostolic Church

Mark 15:42 And now when the even was come, because it was the preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath,

 43 Joseph of Arimathaea, an honourable counsellor, which also waited for the kingdom of God, came, and went in boldly unto Pilate, and craved the body of Jesus.  

44 And Pilate marvelled if he were already dead: and calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead.

 45 And when he knew it of the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph.

 46 And he bought fine linen, and took him down, and wrapped him in the linen, and laid him in a sepulchre which was hewn out of a rock, and rolled a stone unto the door of the sepulchre.

When Jesus died, the divine nature left the human body and He “gave up the ghost (spirit)”

During the three days between His death and resurrection, He did not rest. Ephesians 4:8-10 reveals that,

8 Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.

 9 (Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth?  10 He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.)

As God, Jesus departed from His body when He died on the Cross. He returned to it, when He raised up His body on the third day.

John 2:19 Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.

The amazing thing, is that He entrusted His body to His disciples.

This was the body that God took on at Bethlehem, the body that represented God’s presence among man, the body that shed blood to wash away our sins-

And He entrusted His body to His disciples

Paul later on draws a specific analogy between this body of Christ, and the Church

Romans 12:5 5So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.

I Corinthians 12:27 Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.

But the body is entrusted to the disciples!

Pilate gave the body to Joseph of Aramathea, because he was an honorable (faithful) man.

Luke 23:50 says, Luke 23:50 says,

and he was a good man, and he was a good man, and a justand a just: :

The Church is not given to the most talented, educated or well placed. It is entrusted to good and faithful men and women.

The definition of The definition of success, in this body, is success, in this body, is faithfulness.faithfulness.

Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful. I Corinthians 4:2

The next thing we see, is that Joseph of Aramithea craved the body. He longed for the body, as a priceless treasure. Another Gospel says he begged for the body.

The Lord wants us to love and desire this body of the Church. The church is not fortunate to have us, we are fortunate to have the church. The Church is not something to abuse, or treat carelessly.

The Bible tells us that they tenderly wrapped the body, and prepared spices.

The body cost both Joseph and Nicodemus, something.

Mark 15:46 And he bought fine linen, and took him down, and wrapped him in the linen.

They bought linen, spices and a tomb. They also gave their reputations as members of the Sanhedrin. The body cost them a great deal.

Joseph and Nicodemus anointed the body.

 John 19:39 And there came also Nicodemus, which at the first came to Jesus by night, and brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes,

Without proper care, a dead body would began to decay and decompose.

When the body of Christ- the Church- is not anointed, then the process of decay begins.There is nothing deader, than when a Church is dead.

They also carried the body, (and in the process of carrying the body, there was blood that covered them.)

God wants us to be responsible to carry His body.

Joseph placed the body in his own tomb, that he had hewn from a rock.

Matthew 27:60 And Matthew 27:60 And laid it in his own new laid it in his own new tomb, which he had tomb, which he had hewn out in the rockhewn out in the rock

He did this because either He wanted the body to be in the He wanted the body to be in the

place where he planned to stay place where he planned to stay forever, among his loved ones orforever, among his loved ones or

He knew that this was just a He knew that this was just a temporary arrangement, because temporary arrangement, because Jesus only needed a tomb for 3 Jesus only needed a tomb for 3 daysdays

Joseph and Nicodemus knew that the body was to be reunited with the Spirit.

We have been entrusted with His body for now, but He is soon to return, and His body will be united with Him!