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good evening everyone just a reminder for those who weren't here this morning or I guess it wouldn't be a reminder then but a reminder that Don Lindblad is here preaching with us morning and evening it was a joy to have him present the information regarding Cuba and the the churches down there the ministry work down there as well he preached for us this morning a good word from Hebrews 1 so he's preaching for us again this evening and it's always a joy to have him here with us as well tonight after the evening service if you would like to stick around and sing more hymns the Michael and the gang will be up in the fellowship hall ready to sing some hymns with you so if you would like to stick around at usually around a half hour or something like that to sing more hymns then please do so again that's up in the fellowship hall within a few minutes after the the clothes of evening worship well it actually one other thing for anyone I'll send an email out as well but for anyone with children or any adults who like to prance upon Long's if if we could try to stay off the the lawn just outside to the left here it's new it's it's it's nice the grass is good but there's a hoof marks in the in the grass there from from little shoes so if we could try to get the kids to stay off the grass so we could let that grass look nice and stay nice that would be great and Eddie adults that tend to play on the grass out there as well if you could stop doing so that would be helpful ok well let's begin worship then let's turn in our Bibles if you'll turn with me to Psalm 16 Psalm 16 will be our call to worship this evening so I'm 16 the word of the living and true god preserve me Oh God for in you I put my trust oh my soul you have said to the Lord you are my lord my goodness is nothing apart from you as for the Saints who are on the earth they are the excellent ones in whom is all my delight their sorrows shall be multiplied who hastened after another God their drink offerings of blood I will not offer nor take up their names on my lips o Lord you are the portion of my inheritance and my cup you maintain my law the lines have fallen to me in Pleasant places yes I have a good inheritance I will bless the Lord who has given me counsel my heart also instructs me in the night seasons I have set the Lord always before me because he is at my right hand i shall not be moved therefore my heart is glad and my glory rejoices my flesh also will rest in hope for you will not leave my soul in Sheol nor will you allow your Holy One to see corruption you will show me the path of life in your presence is fullness of joy at your right hand are pleasures forevermore amen well let's stand and sing our first him this evening is going to be 5 99 and your Trinity hymnals let's stand and sing 599 together as a church let's ask God in prayer his blessing upon our gathering this evening and upon the preaching of the word let us go to our God in prayer Heavenly Father we rejoice again that we can gather now a second time on your lord's day Sabbath we thank you that we can come in to worship You Father Son and Holy Spirit we do pray again that you would help us to do so in spirit and in truth might we come to you now and give you those proper appraises and honors might you be the recipient of of all the rightful worship of the gathered Saints in this place tonight might our worshipping come to you except ibly through Jesus Christ our blessed Savior we do pray that you would help us now to glory in you to glory in the gospel and to glory in the Christ of the gospel we rejoice in the forgiveness of sins and we would ask you a 24 give us a fresh in the blood of the Savior the Lord Jesus Christ we know that in him we do have the forgiveness of sins and we rejoice in that truth and we do pray that you would help us in this lower world by your grace and for your glory to be daily conformed unto the image of our Savior the Lord Jesus Christ might you help us by your spirit to daily puts into death and to live unto righteousness and knowing that we have salvation not by virtue of deeds of holiness which we have done but solely and alone by virtue of the perfect saving work of the Lord Jesus Christ we thank you for his perfect life or his perfect death for his glorious resurrection for the salvation of all those who believe in him and we do rejoice in the fact again that he is seated at your right hand where he ever lives to intercede before his people and we do just pray that you would cause us daily to rejoice in our Christ and that now in a peculiar way is we gather a second time for worship that your saints gathered here would be rejoicing in the Savior and singing the praises of amazing and victorious grace we do pray God that you would be again with all those who are unwell we pray that you be with Don neufeld now in the hospital is he is suffering these severe headaches and has seemed to Los have lost his speech again we do just pray that you'd watch over him and help him in the midst of his physical trials we do just pray that you attend to the inner man as well help him to be resigned holy unto your will and the fact that the judge of all the earth does right and strengthens his Saints in the midst of their sufferings and we do just pray as well that you would cause Karen and the family to have comfort in you and in the promises of the gospel we do pray that you'd be again with all of those who are suffering physically blessed them and strengthen them physically help their bodies to heal and we do pray again that in the midst of recovery and suffering and injury you would cause them to rejoice in our God we think of those who govern over us God and we would pray as we're instructed by the apostle we pray now for those who are in authority those who do rule over us we pray God that you would cause them to do so in righteousness equity and justice that they would no longer seek to propagate wickedness and the land and to sanction those things that are abominations in your sight but rather that you would cause those who rule over us to do so rightly according to your will and according to proper equity we pray anyone who would seek to oppose you that you would cause them to be taken out of the way that you would cause them to stumble like drunken men and raise up those who would seek to rule in righteousness we do pray that you would watch over your persecuted Church watch over those who are yours around the world who suffer in the face of such tyranny and opposition we do pray that you would just gird them up and strengthen them in their walk in the face of that opposition help them to lay hold of the confession of their hope without wavering unto the end that they might have all hope and all courage and all things in Christ Jesus the Lord and we do pray that you would deal with those who do persecute your people we pray that you would save many who are presently your enemies that by your grace and for your glory you would conquer the hearts of idolaters and those who persecute your people that they would turn from their madness and turn unto the living and true God we do pray again for those who would remain in opposition to you those who would remain in the rebellion against you who do bring violence against your Saints we would ask that you would take them out of the way that they may no longer do so we do pray that you would just vindicate your name in all the earth that your gospel would go forth and that many newly redeemed tongues each and every day would sing the praises of Christ by the gospel proclamation by ministers of yours and we do just pray that the gospel would go throughout throughout the earth and that it would be victorious we pray now then for the preacher as he will be coming up here in a few moments time blessed dawn again as he opens up the word the strengthen your minister and this pulpit Lord God that he might proclaim with a great comfort and courage and with great clarity the things of your revelation and that us gathered here tonight that we would all know the glory of Christ that we would all leave this place singing the praises of the one who came and who died for sinners and rose again so be with us now and this second time Lord God made all of these aspects of worship be brought to you through the Lord Jesus Christ our Savior it might be it might you be exalted upon the praises of this year gathered assembly and it's in Christ's name that we pray amen well let's stand and sing again then we're going to sing now from the hymnal him to 12 that's the larger Trinity him to let stand and sing to 12 together please be seated can turn in your Bibles to the book of ezekiel chapter three it's our old testament reading this evening as e kial chapter 3 ezekiel 3 beginning in verse 1 as psalm 16 this is the word of the living and true God moreover he said to me son of man eat what you find eat this scroll and go speak to the house of Israel so I opened my mouth and he caused me to eat that scroll and he said to me son of man feed your belly and fill your stomach with this scroll that I give you so I ate and it was in my mouth like honey and sweetness then he said to me son of man go to the house of Israel and speak with my words to them for you are not sent to a people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language but to the house of Israel not too many people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language whose words you cannot understand surely had I sent you to them they would have listened to you but the house of Israel will not listen to you because they will not listen to me for all the house of Israel are impudent and hard-hearted behold I have made your face strong against their faces and your forehead strong against their foreheads like adamant stone harder than Flint I have made your forehead do not be afraid of them nor be dismayed at their looks though they are a rebellious house moreover he said to me son of man receive into your heart all my words that I speak to you and hear with your ears and go get to the captives to the children of your people and speak to them and tell them thus says the Lord God whether they hear or whether they refuse then the spirit lifted me up and I heard behind me a great thunderous voice blessed is the glory of the Lord from his place I also heard the noise of the wings of the living creatures that touched one another and the noise of the wheels beside them and a great thunderous noise so the spirit lifted me up and took me away and I went in bitterness in the heat of my spirit but the hand of the Lord was strong upon me then I came to the captives at Tel Aviv and who dwelt by the river khabar and I and I SAT where they SAT and remained there astonished among them seven days now it came to pass at the end of seven days that word of the Lord came to me saying son of man I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel therefore hear a word from my mouth and give them warning from me when I say to the wicked you shall surely die and you give him no warning nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way to save his life that same wicked man shall die in his iniquity but his blood I will require at your hand yet if you warn the wicked and he does not turn from his wickedness nor from his wicked way he shall die in his iniquity but you have delivered your soul again when a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity and I lay a stumbling block before him he shall die because you did not give him warning he shall die in his sin and his righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered but his blood I will require at your hand nevertheless if you warn the righteous man that the righteous should not sin and he does not sin he shall surely live because he took warning also you will have delivered your soul then the hand of the Lord was upon me there and he said to me arise go out into the plane and there I shall talk with you so I arose and went out into the plane and behold the glory of the Lord stood there like the glory which I saw by the river k bar and I fell on my face then the spirit entered me and said set me on my feet and spoke with me and said to me go shut yourself inside your house and you O son of man surely they will put ropes on you and bind you with them so that you cannot go out among them I will make your tongue cling to the roof of your mouth so that you shall be mute and not be one to rebuke them for they are excuse me for they are a rebellious house but when I speak with you I will open your mouth and you shall say to them thus says the Lord God he who hears let him here and he who refuses let him refuse for they are a rebellious house amen well the preacher is always one who hopefully likes to make much of the word of God and the Word of God preached and the preacher does so not without warrant from the Word of God because the Word of God makes much of the Word of God and the Word of God preached and here I think we have that clearly brought out among among many other things to be sure but the importance of the proclamation of the truth of God is brought out clearly no doubt prior to verse 16 but at verse 16 and following the warnings the preacher is to bring proper warnings concerning God and His truth the sinfulness of man and the judgment that is do that sinfulness but of course the blessing and the sweetness of the gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord we have the absolute importance of the word preached and it is the case that the preacher is tasked with a heavy burden in a sense because if he does not not in a sense but if he does not bring the proper verities of the living and true God then he has brought before the Lord as one who is to be required whose blood is to be required before him it is an absolute heavy high and heavy charge that the preacher has to bring the truth of the living and true God as of preaching through or as I'm reading through Ezekiel 3 i'm reminded of that statement and Colossians 1 I believe its Colossians 129 Paul writing concerning the Christ that he has just opened up in the previous verses he says him we preach warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom we have a task and i want to say not solely as preachers preachers in a peculiar way but whenever you as a christian is whenever you have a blessed opportunity to bring the truth of god the truth of Christ and gospel before unbelievers remember that it is a high and it's a heavy charge and do not speak peace when there is no peace to them but rather tell them what their lawd is outside of Christ and tell them with great joy what blessing it is to be found safely in him not having our own righteousness which is by the law but having that righteousness which is from God through faith that righteousness which is Christ's imputed to us consider your Christianity and out salute blessing whenever you get to open your mouths about Christ Jesus the Lord bring bring that opportunity before you and consider the weightiness and the heaviness but also the sweetness of that exercise in proclaiming a Christ whose riches and excellencies are above measure let us pray Heavenly Father we thank you so much for this time together in worship we thank you for what your word discloses to us concerning your truth concerning our own state before you and sin in sin and condemnation and concerning the blessing of Jesus Christ and salvation by him and we pray that you would always help us to count at a high end heavy honor to open up the scriptures to read from them and to be able to buy your spirit and and by renewed hearts understand your revelation to us might you always give us that understanding and might you give that to us now as we look forward to the act of worship the preaching of the word might you give us your holy spirit that our minds might be illumined by the the word preached and again might you be with Pastor Lindblad as he opens up his Bible to preach to us give him what he needs in this pulpit to proclaim rightly the things of the living and true God be with us now and again might this exercise of worship be done on to the praise of your most glorious name we pray in the name of our Savior the Lord Jesus Christ amen well let's stand and sing that are him prior to the preaching will be 216 that's 216 let's stand and sing that final him together you please be seated once again at dawn Lindblad from Trinity a reformed baptist church in Kirkland Washington dawn turn in your Bibles please to the Gospel of Luke chapter 23 Luke chapter 23 you want to read verses 50 through 56 the Lord Jesus is undergone a trial two trials really has been condemned to death has died upon the cross and we pick up the context having noted his death what then vs 50 through 56 and as I read these verses i want you to notice with me in the context of the sermon this evening the burial of the Lord Jesus Christ or perhaps a title a little more clever perhaps than just the burial a tomb for a testimony the point of all of this is why was Jesus buried we know that he died what's the significance if any of the burial of Jesus Christ here then this word of the Lord and behold a man named Joseph who was a counselor a good and righteous man he had not consented to their counsel indeed a man of Arimathea city of the Jews who was looking for the kingdom of God this man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus he took it down and wrapped it in a linen cloth and laid him in a tomb that was hewn in stone we're never man had yet Lane and it was the day of the preparation and the Sabbath grew on drew and the women who had come with him out of Galilee followed after and beheld the tomb and how his body was laid and they returned and prepared spices and ointments thus far the reading of God's Word well again why was Jesus buried all four Gospel writers record something along the lines of what we read here that subsequent to the death of the Lord Jesus that there were these attempts and successful attempts to actually bury him you read a text like this and it almost looks like it's a throwaway comment it's filler it needs to be there mean what do you do with a dead body you put it in the grave we know something of the importance and the significance of the death of Jesus Christ the death of Christ for sinners the life and the death of Jesus Christ his mediation for us and we certainly know something of the resurrection of Jesus Christ and the significance of the resurrection of Jesus Christ and even as we sang one of the hymns that we did tonight even subsequently the Ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ all of these events all of these activities if you will all of these things that occurred with regard to the Lord Jesus have significance and have eternal weighty and saving meaning but what about the burial of Jesus Christ well again we might think of it as just a throwaway kind of statement mean after all what do you do with a dead body well you placed it in grave and we might be inclined to think that that's the case rather obvious isn't it he's died he has to be buried and of course the real significance is attached to the death of Christ and then to the resurrection of Christ and of course even beyond that needy and yet again it's important to notice that all four of the Gospel writers make mention of the burial of Jesus Christ Paul also in his sermon at Antioch oppa Cydia makes mention of the burial of Jesus Christ and in first Corinthians chapter 15 and verse 4 where Paul says I make known unto you the gospel which I also receive also includes a reference to the burial of Jesus Christ so biblically it would seem that this is important and some significance is attached to it and it's not just or far more than a kind of frawl way statement a kind of completed statement well after all what do you do with a dead body but it's interesting to notice well that the Apostles Creed also makes reference to the burial of Jesus Christ and the Apostles Creed as you know as Creed's go is an economy of words it's very brief every word counts in that Trinitarian creed that we know as the Apostles Creed we are told in the Apostles Creed that he was crucified dead and buried and the third day he rose again isn't it enough to say that he was crucified dead and he rose again on the third day well we might also be inclined to think well here it is it's in the text and therefore it's important at some level we we don't really know why it's important but it's it's possible that we look at a text like this and we might draw the wrong conclusion that is that we might look at it and see it little more than a marked by by sentimentality the burial of Jesus Christ is all about grief the disciples are grief stricken the women who had followed Jesus for galili are filled with grief here's a statement it's all about personal loss and so there might be a tendency for us to to focus I think wrongly on those sorts of things it is true that it represents and reflects loss but it must mean something more than that or we might look at this particular text and say well it's all about joseph of arimathea it's all about human personality it's all about believing personality here is a man who's brave and along with Nicodemus who was a wealthy man and had resources were able to do something for the dead Jesus everything is in disarray the disciples are all about to about to be dispersed their leader their teacher their Lord is gone will someone do something well Joseph of Arimathea steps up to the plate and he does something we might be inclined to look at it that way or thirdly we might say well this is this is something about testimony it's testimony about those disciples who were hidden disciples it never really came forward during the life and especially during the last moments of our Lord's earthly life and so once again it's about people and especially about the disciples those hidden disciples and then there are those of course who might place a feminist spin about on this and draw attention to the importance of the women it's all about the women and certainly there to be commended and yet in chapter 23 and verse 49 there's little to commend them as they stand far removed at some distance from the cross as well so gender isn't the issue and I would submit to you that none of those things are really what this text is all about the orientation I submit to you is still about Jesus it's not about Joseph though he figures prominently it's not about the women though they certainly figure prominently it's not about Nicodemus it's not about anyone else really and at the end of the day we still continue with the Incarnation ille narrative Jesus is dead buried and physically will rise from the dead I submit to you as well that the burial of Jesus Christ is then a realistic and historic apologetic for the Christian faith a realistic and historic apologetic for the Christian faith how so well let's look at it this text under a number of headings first of all notice the matter of conviction and the burial of Jesus or to put it differently who was it that Barry Jesus again keeping in mind that at the end of the day this is still really about the Lord Jesus Christ you'll notice that the text begins with this word behold or pay attention it translated differently depending upon our translations but the idea is pay attention to this even this is important even this is significant that even the burial of Jesus Christ has real meaning at the eleventh hour Joseph was not afraid to show himself a friend of the Lord Jesus when the disciple stood at a distance and the women too he stepped forward to do something it's Joseph who goes to pilot and asks for the body of Jesus now we don't know anything about him that's all we know we know his name and he knows that we know that he was from a particular place called Arimathea but we don't even know where that was traditionally the places is Rama the birthplace of Sam but there's even some question as to whether it might not be some other place but he'd come to live in Jerusalem and had come to be a disciple of the Lord Jesus he's a member of the Sanhedrin he's he's a member of the Council of Bishops if you will to make it a bit more contemporary he was a good man we're told he was a righteous man he had not participated in the decision to put Jesus to death which means that he probably wasn't present for that meeting since the decision to put into death was unanimous by the by the Sanhedrin or the religious leaders he is marked by opposition then at least finally and he's also marked by anticipation this language that is used here to describe him looking for the kingdom of God is code for the Ministry of Jesus again he was a disciple of the Lord Jesus Matthew records that as such John chapter 19 as well a secret disciple for fear of the Jews the point is that he continued to hope despite the disorder despite the disappointment despite now the death of Jesus fly of Jesus Christ this had not rocked his faith to the extent that he now abandoned Jesus or abandoned faith in him so he see the focus remains upon Christ Christ is at the centre and here is a man who though a secret disciple for a time comes forward and registers himself as one who truly follows christ because his hopes remained upon him in him he hoped for and was looking for the kingdom of God Calvin says he is likewise praised no doubt for a righteousness but this waiting for the kingdom of God was the root and the source of his righteousness so again even though there is this focus upon a particular individual who acts in a particular way the focus remains not so much upon this man's individuality or his character except that it's rooted in waiting for the kingdom of God Jesus is dead but he still continues to hope secondly notice what we might call confrontation and the burial of Jesus what did this man do verse 52 it was a brave strategy pilot was the one who had killed Jesus or at least he was the one who had condemned him to the cross was rather dangerous here was a man who would condemn Jesus now here is a man who goes to the very man who did that and requests the body of Jesus he'd been a secret disciple as I mentioned but now the time arrived when he needed to do something and isn't that it isn't that the way it is with you and with me we may be secret disciples in the sense that were fearful to to to do something perhaps even as a pastor cam was talking about talking to others about Christ and about the their end if they died outside of Christ perhaps were hesitant and were reticent to do that but the day comes and we have to do something and the day may come and we have to do that very thing and talk to perhaps a family member who's been rather antagonistic to the gospel or someone that we work with or someone else there comes a time in all of our lives and we have to stand up and do something can't be secret disciples forever we can't just set back and do nothing and here is a man who because of his hope because of his belief because of his conviction he would not remain silent forever he'd do something and it was a very dangerous thing to do pilot responds with amazement it often took days for someone to die and here is a man that has died within a matter of hours and according to mark chapter 15 he actually sends a Centurion to go back and to check to see if Jesus is really dead can this possibly be true that he's already dead pilot had Authority pilot had authority to turn Joseph away Paul pilot had authority to comply with that request in fact it's interesting that those who were guilty of treason were denied a burial by their family it was customary to just let them rot upon the cross and the birds of the air come to feed upon their flesh but he asked for the body of Jesus and how can you ask for the body of Jesus unless Jesus is actually dead now I'm leading up to something but do you see this you cannot ask for the body of Jesus unless he's dead and Pilate certifies that Jesus is actually dead by sending an official a Centurion and pilot is satisfied again coming back to the to the strategy and the bravery of Joseph Luther said but what moved Joseph to risk this so openly quite simply that he was waiting for the kingdom of God you see how we come back to that again he's waiting for the kingdom of God that is he still had hope that although Christ had been hung it had died so miserably on the cross the kingdom of God would not fail to appear but would indeed come he still hoped that God would accomplish and fulfill everything through this Christ even though he was dead that promise or that which had been promised through the prophets about the Messiah and his kingdom how strong was his faith well it's interesting thirdly then to notice this man's contribution and the burial of Jesus Christ how did he go about it or perhaps differently what did it cost him to ask for the body of Jesus notice several things that he sacrificed first of all he sacrificed his standing his reputation he took the body down here's someone like Nicodemus who is a man of some significance a man of some authority he's a member of the council he's a member of the Sanhedrin he's he's highly respected and yet he gets his hands dirty literally by removing a dead body from the cross perhaps he had help nevertheless this was something truly humbling and reflects his faith in the one whom he still believed would bring about the kingdom of God secondly he sacrificed his safety consider the hostility and the opposition of the Jews let alone pilot the ones who would cried out for the death of Jesus he sacrificed his resources his money he's the one who purchased the particular things that were needed and gave up his own tomb he sacrificed his perspective he was waiting for the kingdom of God still hope that Jesus would fulfill those promises yet he purchased the strips of cloth by which they would wrap the body of Jesus wrap his body with spices it was his purchase that the women would have used to apply these extra spices he sacrificed his solitude everyone would know this he became a very public person no more secrecy no more being a secret disciple he sacrificed his own burial place his own grave one in which never a man had ever lain in it was an expensive piece of real estate because usually in that day tombs were used and reused again and again and he sacrificed his own schedule this had to be done now it had to be done now because of the laws of the Jews burial had to take place between a certain period of time this involves a tremendous amount of sacrifice we see it in the life of this man fourthly what influence did it have notice the kind of influence that his action actually had we need to consider the influence that all of this had upon both the women and upon Joseph of Arimathea notice the women who followed Jesus had a regard for and respected the place of the tomb and the placement of Jesus they recognized where he was to be buried and they made plans to come back again they did just that the women who followed Jesus returned to the tune the very tomb that Joseph had purchased after preparing spices for burial and notice also interestingly enough as a kind of an aside the women who followed Jesus reverence the Sabbath day know that men and women would and young people would reverence the Sabbath day they kept it holy it was not more important to anoint the body of Jesus than it was to observe the Sabbath find that interesting they waited a day and of course the reason for applying the spices was because of the decay of the body and the smell that would result from all of that but they waited a day and they waited today their reverence for the Old Covenant Sabbath good intention and sympathy do not cancel out the law of God how rare today that women or men for that matter have convictions regarding the lord's day Sabbath what we do for Jesus must like them what we do for Jesus must conform to the law of God well all of that prepares us for the fifth and the final point in the outline that is why was Jesus buried we began the sermon that way they're all of these particulars about Joseph's faith faith despite what had occurred what is it that the burial actually confesses or asserts or acknowledges I think they're at least four things first of all notice with me that the burial of Jesus Christ is important and significant because it is a proof of the incarnation of Jesus Christ he could die because he was born rather obvious is it not he could die because he was born here was a real man now we often focus upon the deity of Jesus Christ because the deity of Jesus Christ in the last maybe two hundred years or so has has been largely assailed but we need to remember that Jesus was also a man he was a real man with a true human body and a reasonable soul as the confession says he was a real man he was God yes and he was man god cannot die Jesus died and you read to remember that this was a very real death and we know that it was a real death because only dead men are placed in the ground and Jesus was placed in a tomb I think the burial of Jesus Christ also testifies to the humiliation and to the depth of humiliation of Jesus Christ it illustrates the depth of our Lord's humiliation here is the lowest point of the sons humiliation he dies as a real man he takes upon himself the wrath of his own father and he's placed in a tomb and he remains in the tomb for three days how much lower can he go the last part of his humiliation was attained in the burial of Jesus Christ Genesis chapter 3 and verse 19 reminds us of the curse that out of the ground out of the dust of the earth we came and to the dust we will return thirdly the burial of Jesus Christ is the necessary prerequisite for the resurrection the resurrection was physical it was bodily it was a real body that returned to life not just spiritual in other words it isn't a ghost that came back to life the resurrection is not a metaphor for something but it's real the resurrection was no apparition and in anticipation of the resurrection Jesus was buried it proved that he had overcome death the hope of the Resurrection depends upon this gospel fact that he actually died and was buried and it is certified in the burial that he actually died and therefore it's a real body that returns from the gate and from the grave Calvin rights although at that time the weakness of the flesh was still visible and the divine power of the Spirit was not clearly seen before his resurrection yet God determined by this as a sort of preparation to shadow out what he was shortly afterwards to do that he might exalt gloriously above the heavens his son the conqueror of death proof of the Incarnation picture of his humiliation a prerequisite for the resurrection then fourthly and finally the burial of Jesus Christ testifies to the fact that it was a real death it exists or it occurred for the purpose of attestation it was a proof that he really did die Jesus died and how do we know he does he was buried and what's the significance of his death his mediation for us is dependent upon a very real death the details here of Joseph and the women and all of the rest show the reality of his death the sepulchre the linen the request from Pilate all of it points in the direction of Jesus and of a real death that he died it is a fact beyond dispute it is a matter of historic record or sinus in Heidelberg Catechism says he would be buried for the confirmation of his death the promise to Adam was that if he ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil if he transgressed God's commandment if he's sinned in that day he would die but Jesus committed no sin and yet he died did not die for himself but he died for us he died in full payment for our sins to satisfy the just demands of a holy God and how do we know that happen he was buried as JC ryle wrote the great sacrifice was really offered on how do we know that because he was buried again then and now the death of Jesus Christ has been denied but if he did not die there is no forgiveness of sin they're all of these suggestions someone else was crucified by mistake he merely swooned upon the cross he was given a calm ative a sedative to tranquilize him he was drugged and really didn't die and then of course there are those who say the body of Jesus was stolen how do we know that all of that is false the gospel record all four of them the book of Acts and first Corinthians he was buried he was buried in a tomb a tomb belonging to a particular individual again the Heidelberg catechism why was he also buried and the answer there by to prove that he was really dead Calvin again says true indeed God determined for another reason that Christ should be buried that it might be more fully attested that he suffered real death on our account JC ryle wrote the penalty threatened to the first Adam was eternal death in hell if the second Adam had not really an actually died in our stead as well as taught us truth the original penalty would have continued in full force against Adam and all his children it was the life blood of Christ which was to save our souls I think that's the real emphasis in the scriptures in the New Testament while all of the other things are true here is the real focus to attest to the fact that Jesus really died and therefore it is a means to us who believe a means of assurance of the assurance of our salvation how do you know that you may have life eternal Jesus died and how do you know that Jesus died because he was placed in a tomb and he remained in the tomb for three days and what does that do for us but it certifies beyond any shadow of a doubt that here was a real death now I think by extension that does something that is truly encouraging at another level and that is the death or rather the burial of Jesus Christ is mentioned in the scriptures for the principle of sanctification what do I mean by that his burial sanctifies our graves as well lest we be terrified of death we have the promise of resurrection the resurrection related and as a result of Christ's resurrection and so he died and he died uniquely and he was buried and he remained in the grave and then he was raised from the dead and as a result of our union with Jesus Christ though we will die we too will be buried but that burial our burial is not the last chapter we too will be raised from the dead and so your grave and my grave is but a resting place until the resurrection our resurrection as one writer said that they may be chambers and resting places until the resurrection Jesus Christ identifies with us in all of the experiences of life even death and burial brothers and sisters in the Lord Jesus Christ you have no reason to fear the gray no reason at all to fear the grave follow Jesus as it were boldly into death and even into the tomb it's not the last chapter it certifies for us principally his death and it sanctifies for us our own grave so two things I would leave you with this evening first of all and once again you and I as believers in Jesus Christ may have full assurance and be not afraid for our salvation is rooted in the death of Jesus Christ and again how do we know that he really did die he was buried and again there's the significance there's the significance of his been of his death the penalty due to sin has been discharged we have hope he died and he remained dead for three days as an apologetic for the satisfaction for our sins you have no reason to doubt you have no reason to be afraid you can face life and death with full assurance that your sins have been paid for through the merits of Jesus Christ even the burial which seems on the surface to be a throwaway barely worth mentioning well what else do you do with the body you put it in the grade all brothers and sisters it's far more than that it certifies to us the reality of his death and therefore the fact that the penalty for our sins have been taken away and then secondly as I said moments ago Jesus sanctifies the grave for us burial is important because it honors the body the body is significant the body is important and this really could very well introduce another sermon and we obviously aren't going to do that this evening but the body is important and we need to reject every form of asceticism your future is not a disembodied future your final future is not sitting on a clown cloud with angelic wings and a kind of spiritual body in the sense that it's it's something like a ghost you resurrection is in your future and just as Jesus body was raised from the dead so your body will be raised from the dead and our salvation includes the body let us not demonize what God has made good let us not deify the body and yet at the same time let us not demonize the body we don't deify it neither must we despise it our future is not that of disembodied spirits but a reunion of body and soul in the new heaven and a new birth that new earth all of that is to say that just as Jesus body was respected and it was laid in the tomb so the bodies of dear loved ones ought to be respected as well as they too are laid in the ground laying it to rest until the resurrection even as Jesus rose from the grave another way of saying all of that is that you and I never need to be afraid to go where Jesus went you see the point that I'm trying to make you don't need to be afraid Jesus died died uniquely Jesus was buried you and I will endow undoubtedly die unless the Lord Jesus returns and our bodies will be placed in the tomb and we need not fear that we need not fear to go anywhere that Jesus himself went well there's something to the burial of Jesus Christ far more than a throwaway comment far more than just to sort of interlude between the death and the resurrection but it has real significance real significance for our salvation real significance for the human frame and for the human body and while it may sound strange to say this we ought to rejoice in this in the knowledge that Jesus was actually placed in the tomb in the ground for us and for our salvation beyond a shadow of a doubt it certifies an attest to the fact that Jesus really did die and really did die for us and for our salvation and if you're here this evening and you question this and you have reservations and you wonder about this whole matter of salvation and how do we know and how can you be certain here is an element of certitude here is one and it's a matter of history its historic Jesus did die and he was buried and he remained in the tomb for three days certifying that you and I might truly know that his death was real and if his death was real then we can come to appreciate that promise the promise of salvation through the death of Jesus Christ father in heaven we do thank you for the word of truth and for this particular portion of your word that seems on the surface to have so little relevance and what relevance it does have perhaps as relevance has something to do with Joseph or with pilot or with the women and yet as we've come to see the relevance is all about Jesus and all about his work and all about the certainty of that work we thank you for even this element this portion of your word which gives to us sure and certain hope of our salvation satisfaction for all of our sins pardon for all that we have committed against your holy law perfect righteousness imputed to us through the life and the death of Jesus Christ we pray these things in Jesus name asking once again that you might work in the hearts those in particular who may still be outside of gospel promised bless then we pray with saving faith in Jesus name Amen together and turn in our hymnbooks as a doxology we can sing him 35 stanza one that's him 35 stanza one let's stand and sing that together you now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead that great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the everlasting covenant make you complete in every good work to do his will working in you what is well pleasing in his sight through Jesus Christ to whom be glory forever and ever amen Heavenly Father we rejoice in this lord's day Sabbath we thank you that we were able to come into this place to worship you the Father Son and Holy Spirit we do pray that you would go with us now help us to rejoice in Christ and in the blessèd Gospel we do pray that you would help us in this upcoming week to live in a manner worthy of the gospel of Jesus Christ so do go with us now and help us to bring glory to you and good to men in this lower world you go with us now and help us to leave this place rejoicing in Christ Jesus the Lord and it is in his name that we pray amen you