JOSEPH OF ARIMATHEA

According to details given in the Bible,(Please read Mathew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23, John 19)


1. Joseph of Arimathea was a disciple of Jesus, but not the one in the group of twelve well known disciples. He was a secret disciple. He firmly believed in the establishment of kingdom of God in this world.

2. He was a honest and upright person. He was respected by every one. He was a richman too.

3. He was a member of the Jewish Council, called Sanhadrein along with the top people of the country.

Though we read a very little about him, he leaves a lasting impression about him. When Jesus was arrested, all his disciples simply ran away. Subsequently, Jesus was awarded death sentence on cross. When Jesus died, there was no one to claim his body & bury as per the Jewish traditions. At this stage, Joseph of Arimathea entered the scene. He goes to Pilate & boldly asked him to hand over the body. Then he buried the body in a new tomb which was built for him.

Joseph's story is short yet we learn lot of things which are beneficial to our spiritual growth. I would like to mention 3 points for our meditation.

Thought 1:

Though he believed in Jesus's teachings, willing to obey his commandments, he was not willing to manifest his faith by openly acknowledging Jesus as his saviour. Whereas, the 12 disciples were always with him & confessed their faith openly. Peter said that he would follow Jesus, even if he happens to die for the sake of him. This sort of open faith or outward manifestation by the 12 disciples continued only till they did not encounter any problem. But once Jesus was wanted by authorities for certain alleged misconduct & arrested, these disciples ran away. When Peter met some people after Jesus' arrest, he said without any hesitation that he did not know Jesus. He even cursed Jesus. There was no one to take care of his body and bury him. At this stage, this secret disciple, Joseph went to Pilate & asked boldly to hand over the body to him. He helped Jesus's family at a very crucial time. Those big disciples enjoyed fame & patronage of the masses by associating themselves with Jesus. Once they sensed problems they left Jesus all alone. But Joseph, a honest man, shaking away his fear, displayed courage at the right time. When public disciples went hiding, the hiding disciple come public. No doubt, he would have earned the wrath of Jews all his life. Yet he did not mind that. He showed that he was a true disciple.

Thought 2:

Secondly, the Bible says that he was a member of the Jewish council Sanhedrin, a top level judicial body to deal with religious matters. When this council decided to do away with Jesus, Joseph opposed that move. Normally, people tend to go along with the majority view, even if such view is wrong. They do not want to incur the displeasure of others. Pilate did like that. He had no courage to reject the majority view. Exodus 23/2 says "Do not follow the majority when they do wrong" .God want us to lead a separate life not conforming to the standards of this world.

Thought 3:

Thirdly, Joseph believed in the establishment of God's kingdom in the earth in the future. This has been specially mentioned in two Gospels. While most of his 12 disciples and followers did not believe in his second coming or establishment of God's direct rule on the earth. Joseph believed. Even today many Christian do not believe this. But Joseph's understanding of the God's words & belief is remarkable.

Thought 4:

As you know, not all activities of Jesus are recorded in all gospels. John alone refers to first miracle of Jesus at Cana. Even not all reported Jesus's 7 words on the cross. But all wrote about Joseph. The simple reason is that they were impressed by Joseph's powerful witness.

We are also called upon to live  like Joseph of Arimathea. May god grant us courage like this little known man.