Daily Lent Devotions from Church Street UMC
Saturday, April 3, Morning
By Helen Smithson, April 14, 1979
Between Calvary and the Resurrection
Read Matthew 27:57-60
“And when it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus. This man came to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given over to him. And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock; and he rolled in a large stone against the entrance of the tomb and went away.”
Yesterday we thought of the darkness of Calvary – the jeering crowds, the taunts. Mary’s broken heart as she stood with John at the foot of the cross looking at the suffering of her Son, the desolate cry “My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken me?” The Lord’s triumphant “It is finished,” and then His last words, “Father, into Thy hands I commit my Spirit.” Now there is silence and a feeling of hopelessness. Yesterday was Calvary – tomorrow is glorious resurrection, but in between these two days there is gloom and despair. Many times this is where we find ourselves in life. We have experienced a great disappointment, a personal rejection, financial reverses, the sudden loss of a loved one, and we all become numb with unbelief at what has transpired. Here is where the Scriptures can hold us steady while our Lord puts together the broken pieces of our lives. He tells us that “… those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary” (Isaiah 40: 31). As we wait on Him the glory of His resurrection breaks through, our hearts are comforted, and we move forward with greater strength than before. Truly, we serve a risen Saviour who comes into our lives when we allow Him to do so with the light we need for any darkness that comes to us.
Prayer
Eternal God, our Heavenly Father, as we travel the road of life, many times we find ourselves numb with grief or disappointment. Although we know that in You there is grace sufficient for every circumstance in life, sometimes there is a period of darkness and near despair, as there must have been the day after Calvary and the day before Easter, when we need You in a special way to calm our troubled hearts and to assure us that You are the Lord of our circumstances. Thank You at these times You are near and faithful, and thank you for the blessed way You take the pieces of our broken hearts, as we give them to You, and put them back together in such a way that they are even stronger than before. Thank You that You are the Risen Lord and to those who receive You, a personal Saviour. Amen.
