Holy Week | Saturday

INTRODUCTION

Holy Week (or Passion Week) begins on Palm Sunday and ends on Resurrection Sunday (Easter Sunday). These are some of the most sacred days on the Christian calendar. I will release a blog post each day this week for you to use as a devotional guide. These posts will contain Bible readings, critical explanations of the text, devotional thoughts, and a prayer. So, please join me as we examine what Jesus was up to during Holy Week.

View previous posts in this series: Palm Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday

SATURDAY

You can read about Saturday of Holy Week in the following passage: Matthew 27:62-66.

After Christ died on Friday afternoon, his friends remove his body from the cross and lay it into a tomb near Golgotha. We don’t know much about Saturday. But we can rightly assume his disciples and many others were mourning their loss. We also know this is the only full day that Jesus was in the tomb.

The Chief Priests and Pharisees remembered that Jesus said he would rise again. So, they go to Pilate and ask for help, saying, “Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise.’ Therefore order the tomb to be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples go and steal him away and tell the people, ‘He has risen from the dead,’ and the last fraud will be worse than the first.” Pilate agrees to their request: “You have a guard of soldiers. Go, make it as secure as you can.”

The Chief Priests act like they don’t believe the resurrection could happen. It’s too bad they didn’t understand it. Had they truly understood what Jesus said, they would have known that no Roman guard or heavy stone was going to stop the work of God for the redemption of his people, which could have been them.

However, stealing the body of Jesus was far from the minds of his followers. They were probably wondering what would become of their lives. Do we go back to our jobs? Do we sit around and wait? What just happened? Heads spinning and hearts reeling, the disciples wished for more time with Jesus.

Hold on, friends, because Sunday is coming.

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHTS AND A PRAYER

Where does your mind and heart go when you are troubled? You know those moments of deep pain where you feel most alone and everything around you has gone quiet. It is easy for our hearts and minds to wander into unhealthy places. 

But what if you began to speak to your heart and mind during those moments? What if , rather than allowing them to speak to you, you reminded yourself that, though he was buried, Christ rose from the dead? Rehearse the gospel story in your heart and mind. The victory of Christ over sin and the brokenness of life is your victory also, as a believer.

Trust God, in the silence of pain. Remember his Word. Go to him who defeated death, hell, and sin. You will not regret going to him. He will meet all of your needs.

PRAYER
Heavenly Father, thank you for the silence of Saturday, which reminds me that Christ truly died. Help me to trust him in my life, especially in my darkest hours. Help me recall your Word during difficult days, so that I may know your comfort, peace, and joy. I love you, Lord. Amen.

For further learning, check out this video on Saturday of Holy Week by The Gospel Coalition.