Can you believe tomorrow will be 20 years since 9/11? Remember where you were when you heard about planes crashing into buildings? September 11, 2021 is a sober anniversary for all of us. I remember the prayer meeting and the helpful voice of our pastor emeritus Lester Collins. We stared into an uncertain future with confidence that God was still on his throne. This year 9/11 falls on a Saturday.
Our situation 20 years ago was not unlike the disciples’ situation after the crucifixion. People had run for their lives. The future suddenly seemed uncertain. Many wondered whether another “shoe” might fall. But sometimes in the worst of times God brings out the best in people. Out of the shadows came Joseph and Nicodemus, crypto-Christians, secret disciples of Jesus. Jesus had invited Nicodemus out of the darkness into the clear light of declared discipleship. Out he came.
Guilt exacerbates our grief. Nicodemus may have felt it was too late to let Jesus know how he felt about him. So he bought and brought a burial package fit for a King. Joseph couldn’t have known when he shared his tomb that Jesus would only need it for a short time. Sabbath came and everyone rested and waited to complete the preparation of Jesus’ body.
Again, Andrew Peterson’s words speak to me about our season of waiting for a dark season to end in our world. Peterson titled his song, “God rested.” He remembered how God rested on the seventh day, the Saturday, the Sabbath. Similarly Jesus’ body rested in the tomb on that Saturday. “God rested. And all creation waited.”
Peterson continues his description of that holy Saturday after the crucifixion., “But the Pharisees were restless. Pilate had no peace. Peter’s heart was reckless. Mary couldn’t sleep. The sun went down. The sabbath faded. The holy day was done and all creation waited.” After the darkness, light always dawns. A new day begins. The resurrection changes everything. It is time to hope again.
