Great Saturday: Waiting the Coming Day

God’s people never dreamed

that He would destroy the temple

that bore the honor of His name.

Yet, He did.

God had no use for the house
with its beautiful and regal curtain

if He could not have people’s hearts.

So, He died.

His death, however, did not end His story.
Oh no, siree.

Through it, Christ wrought a wondrous miracle:

He opened the door for fallen mankind to rise again and dream bigger dreams—

to offer pure praise, sincere sacrifice,

relational religion, love-filled liturgy,

wondrous worship, and heartfelt humility.

What has He done?
He has done great things for us
and we are filled with joy.

Yes, great things He has done!

Fellow traveler, today is Great Saturday.

You may not be familiar with that nomenclature but it is a most suitable designation for the day that commemorates Christ's stay in the shadow of the grave.

On a day like today over two thousand (2,000) years ago, eleven disciples and a host of other Christ-followers felt utterly confused, lost, and abandoned. Gone was the Messiah in whom they believed -- Jesus was laid in the tomb the evening before. Crushed, it seemed, was the hope that they had been nursing for three years walking down the lanes of Galilee and Judea -- it was shattered when the Roman spear punctured the side of Jesus on the cursed tree. Fearing for their own lives, they barely slept on Friday night and woke up on that long ago Saturday with unspeakable sorrow, anxiety, and disappointment. 

Their situation was so dire that they forgot Immanuel means "God with us."
The crucifixion was so real that they mistook Christ's death for the extinction of faith.
The entombment of Jesus' body was so palpable that they could not see any good for the future.

Can you and I relate?

Have you and I ever felt abandoned?
Have you and I ever experienced such despondency?
Have you and I ever felt destined to live on a perpetual "Saturday" of mourning?

Allow me to say that there is no circumstance so bleak that God cannot transform into blissful joy. He performed a miracle when the first Adam died. He did it again when the second Adam died on Calvary tree. He did it by transforming Saul’s mission of death into a glorious encounter that brought life to the church. He continues to do it still in our day, leading us to die to the self and live anew in Christ.

One miracle the Father has performed in my mind and heart is my approach to the Saturday between Good Friday and Easter Sunday on my lenten journey. After years of church attendance, thoughts of sadness and grief long held my spirit captive as I kept God in my own box—a Christ sentimentally pitied for enduring the atrocities associated with His passion.

Graciously, I felt a tug in my heart and, for quite a while, I have been wondering about what specifically occurred between the burial of Jesus and His resurrection three days later. To be sure, Good Friday and Easter Sunday have had their share of detailed accounts. Saturday, being the Sabbath, is bereft of all the pomp and circumstance.

In fact, three of the Gospel writers—Mark, Luke, and John—skip that day entirely, ending one chapter on the burial and beginning the next by covering events that transpired at dawn on the day of Christ’s resurrection. Of the four, only Matthew addresses an unusual visit and a bold plea made by the chief priests and the Pharisees—imploring Pontius Pilate to “give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day” (27:64). In doing so, they hoped to prevent Christ’s claim (“After three days I will rise again”) from materializing.

Their visit to Pilate was atypical because it happened on “the next day, the one after Preparation Day”—namely, the Sabbath (27:62). For the religious leaders to violate the commandment of resting on the Sabbath meant that they were severely concerned, and understandably so, considering the remarkable happenings of the previous day:

     -  from the sixth to the ninth hour creation held its breath and the sun suppressed its light (27:45) 
     -  the curtain of the temple was rent in two by an invisible force (27:51) 
     -  the earth shook in a frightening roar causing the tombs to break open and leading many holy
     people who had died to raise to life again, to enter the holy city, and to appear to a great number of 
     people (27:52-53)

They were not alone in their fear—the centurion and the other guards saw all that had happened and were terrified (27:54), the disciples had already deserted Him and fled in their fright (26:56), and many of His followers wavered in their faith (Luke 24:21).

It takes little imagination to draw a mental picture of the dark and downcast spirit that shrouded the hearts of so many witnesses. In their mixture of grief and fear, they stayed away and stopped hoping.

Yet, there is grace. 

Just like God had told Elijah centuries earlier, He had a remnant that still held on to hope. Interestingly, the women who had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for His needs courageously followed Joseph of Arimathea to the tomb after Pilate decided to let Joseph have the body. Consequently, they "saw the tomb and how His [Christ’s] body was laid in it . . . went home and prepared spices and perfumes but they rested on the Sabbath" (Luke 23:55-56).

While the women were resting, the religious leaders fearing, others fretting, and the evil hordes rejoicing, God’s gracious patience—imperceptible to the naked eye—was hard at work under the ground. 

"Low in the grave He lay,

Jesus, my Savior!

Waiting the coming day,

Jesus, my Lord!"

Extracted from Low in the Grave He Lay, Robert Lowry (1826-1899)

Jesus, the glorious Seed of Heaven was planted in the depth of earth as a soaked bulb—namely, His anointed body. Slowly gaining strength and maturity, the Root of David lay low in a borrowed grave and waited contentedly for the time of His sprouting.

Waiting . . . 
. . . while the clock kept ticking . . .

Waiting . . .
. . . for the Father's perfect timing . . .

Yes, the story of Great Saturday is all about waiting. Every character in this most important account was waiting—Pilate, the guards, the people, the religious leaders, the disciples, the women, and . . . especially Jesus. They were all waiting to see what was about to take place next. 

And, like a sleeping giant, even the Saturday of grief itself was patiently awakened and transformed into a Great Saturday—the Sabbath rest when the Seed of Heaven germinated into a Living Plant containing the eternal nutrients for all who receive Christ as the One whom the Father sent to earth. Having been made one with Him, our loving Master buried the poor choices we have made, called us to surrender the problems we have created, moved us past the guilt of sins we have generated, and has remade us into new creatures that are alive, growing, and bearing fruit.

Would you and I thank the Savior for the blessedness of waiting?

Lord, 

Your patient grace touches us. 

Jesus, 

Your persevering compassion moves us. 

Lamb of God, 

Your enduring love empowers us. 

Precious Seed of Heaven, 

Your unending empathy, continual concern, tenderness, mercy, and sacrifice 

fold us in Your death, rest, resurrection, and eternal life. 

You are worthy to be revered! 

We are awaiting Your return with bated breath! 

In Jesus’ name, we pray. 

Amen.