December 14

Joseph of Arimathea

Joseph of Arimathaea ... went in boldly unto Pilate, and craved the body of Jesus. — Mark 15:43

Joseph had been a disciple of Christ for some time before, but had lacked the courage to come out boldly. He was rich and influential, and had feared the consequences of a public identification with Jesus. But now he throws away his timidity, and comes out boldly as a friend of Jesus. He did it at a time when all the other disciples, even the apostles, were paralyzed with fear and afraid to speak. He did it, too, at a time of greatest peril, when shame covered the name of Jesus, and the bitterness against him was intensest. He did it also at a time when faith had died in the hearts of all Christ’s friends, and when there could be no hope of personal preference or gain as a reward for his act.

There were several reasons why Joseph made this bold confession at this time. One was because he was a true disciple; and true love for Christ cannot always hide itself. Then, when he saw Christ suffering so at the hands of His enemies, the loyalty of his own heart was strengthened, and he felt that he must avow it. When he saw Jesus dead, all the warm and long pent-up affection in his soul awoke. Then he saw how unworthy his conduct had been in hiding his friendship for Christ at a time when confession would have done him good. It looks as if his act were an effort to atone for the inperfectness of his former discipleship.

We must ever be grateful that Joseph gave Jesus such noble burial. Yet we cannot but remember that his love blossomed out too late. It is evident that his discipleship was incomplete, that it missed much of the blessing of open discipleship, and that even to himself it was far from satisfactory when the great crisis came. Secret discipleship cannot always remain secret; it must at some time and in some way confess itself, regardless of what it may cost.