God Rested
Read John 19:38-42.
At the beginning of this Gospel, John took us back to the start of things. His book begins just as the Bible begins: "In the beginning..." In Genesis, God is creating the world and he takes six days to do so. (Let's not debate here whether it was a literal six days or not—that's not the point. The point is: God created and he can do it any way he wants to!) On the seventh day, we're told, God rested. He initiated the custom of sabbath, of taking a break. Taking one day out of seven and giving it back to God as a day of rest is rooted in creation, Genesis tells us. Taking one day and acknowledging (by our rest) that God can handle the world without us is an act of worship. (I remember Will Willimon saying that our refusal to take time to rest is really us telling God that we think we're more important and necessary than he is!)
In the Gospel of John, Jesus is bringing new creation. The old is passing away, and the new is coming. He takes three years (give or take) to point creation in that direction, then he gives his life. On Thursday, he feasts. On Friday, he dies. On Sunday, he is raised to new life. What is he doing on Saturday?
Saturday is the Sabbath. Jesus is still following the pattern set by the Father in creation. On Saturday, God rested. Jesus is in the tomb. There's no reason he couldn't have been raised the very next day after his crucifixion, except that it was a Sabbath, a day of rest. God rested, just as he expects us to do.
And do you know what that makes Sunday? It's the "first day of the week" according to John, but more than that, it's also the eighth day, the day after the Sabbath, the day when creation begins anew. God rested and then the new creation began with resurrection. Saturday is not a wasted day. Saturday is a day of rest to prepare us for all that is to come. Because from this moment on, the story only gets better.
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| Edicule, Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Jerusalem - traditional location of Jesus' tomb - 2017 |
In the Gospel of John, Jesus is bringing new creation. The old is passing away, and the new is coming. He takes three years (give or take) to point creation in that direction, then he gives his life. On Thursday, he feasts. On Friday, he dies. On Sunday, he is raised to new life. What is he doing on Saturday?
Saturday is the Sabbath. Jesus is still following the pattern set by the Father in creation. On Saturday, God rested. Jesus is in the tomb. There's no reason he couldn't have been raised the very next day after his crucifixion, except that it was a Sabbath, a day of rest. God rested, just as he expects us to do.
And do you know what that makes Sunday? It's the "first day of the week" according to John, but more than that, it's also the eighth day, the day after the Sabbath, the day when creation begins anew. God rested and then the new creation began with resurrection. Saturday is not a wasted day. Saturday is a day of rest to prepare us for all that is to come. Because from this moment on, the story only gets better.
Very interesting!
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