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Holy Saturday
Brian Mashburn
March 28, 2010
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Holy Saturday
One of the common definitions of the word “holy” is “set apart” or “made sacred”.
If this has any accuracy, then it is definitely appropriate as a description for the Saturday following the death of Jesus.
If you could contemplate yourself into the position of the disciples of Christ on that Saturday, and really feel what they might have been feeling, you would agree that this scarcely mentioned day of the mightiest week of history is “set apart”.
If you have ever wondered if your belief in this whole Jesus thing might be a big fraud, or waste of time, or just a belief system that you attached yourself to because you just couldn’t handle reality on its own terms, then you understand the sacredness of Saturday.
If you have ever felt abandoned, left alone, or betrayed by God, ever cried the words of Christ “My God, My God, why have You forsaken me?” then you understand the sacredness of this Saturday.
If you have ever had to decide whether or not to make a decision to follow the life and teachings of Jesus when there was no visible positive consequence, no reward in it for you at all, then you can appreciate the unique dilemma of this Saturday.
Ultimately all of these things point to the deep message that is ours to consider because of Holy Saturday. Let me give it to you in the form of a question…
Is the life of love that Jesus lived and taught worth imitating in this life even if it didn’t lead to Heaven?
Is love its own reward? Or do we love only for the payoff we will receive after death?
The fact is, and we will celebrate this next week on Resurrection Sunday, that there is a reward after death for the life of love (which is the life of Christ, the life of God, the Kingdom life, the baptized life, etc). But if for that reward alone we follow Christ, we miss out on all of Christ that is available to us in the here and now.
I don’t want any one to miss it. Knowing that love is its own reward is the key to the unselfish spiritual life.
Let’s dwell in this holy space today.