Have you ever wondered what a secret
disciple looks, thinks, and acts like? Meet such a man
and his friend who “because of the fear of the Jews” had a choice: will they
remain a secret disciple or one that will stand out from the shadows and reveal
their heart and beliefs.
Put yourself into the place of this man,
a member of the elite of the elite, schooled in the Torah, a wealthy landowner
but an outsider in Jerusalem, one
who was earnestly looking for the
kingdom of God. Yet for all of that he was a secret disciple due to his fear of
the leaders in the Sanhedrin (see John 12: 42-43) and in particular Caiaphas.
In the heat of the moment he and his friend refused to consent to the death
sentence that Caiaphas had sought. This was his first but not the last time he
will stand for his convictions because it was just not the right thing to do.
Why? Because in his heart he just “knew” that he “knew” that this man was
indeed the Son of God. Perhaps it was when Jesus was asked that very question
that his heart was quickened. As he sat
and listened to the false witnesses he cringed and in his heart he rebelled but
the 68 others who joined Caiaphas were stronger than the voice of himself and
his friend. But…
After
the crucifixion this man gathered courage and boldly went to the Roman Governor
and begged that he might have the body of this Jesus. The Romans had a rule
that these that were crucified were to be left to the birds, no family burials,
no burials in the pauper’s grave. Perhaps Pilate saw in the eyes of this man a
heart that he had not seen in the eyes of the other religious leaders. He saw
compassion and because he had been manipulated by Caiaphas and the others he
chose to see a way to humiliate them as they had done to him. Thus Pilate,
seeking corroboration from the Centurion on duty, was once again amazed that
death had come so quickly and gave the order to release the body to this
disciple. And where were the followers of this Messiah? They, unlike this man,
were fearfully secluded themselves. They the public followers now became the
secret followers. They did not go and seek the body of Jesus so that the words
of the prophet Isaiah may be fulfilled: 53:9 “They intended to bury him with
criminals, but he ended up in a rich man’s tomb,”
And
so this secret disciple and his friend purchased linen and 75 pounds of spices
and wrapped the body and lovingly placed it in the tomb. You won’t read about
his deed in the Jerusalem Times and in fact Caiaphas was probably so incensed
at this that he put aside his Sabbath rules and sought that this the tomb be
sealed with the Roman seal. We never hear of this man or his friend from this
point on but their legacy remains strong and firm. Who are these men we read
about in Mark 15 and 16? Joseph of
Arimathea and Nicodemus.
What
can we learn from this? We will find secret disciples in the most unlikely
places, God can and will use them to fulfill His will and scripture that the
others may be without excuse when they meet God. Sometimes they are those who
are surrounded by mystery as Joseph of Arimathea was. Check a map. Where is
Arimathea? Not to be found. Sometimes they, like us, progress one step at a time
to come to the point that there is no turning back. Joseph and Nicodemus lived
out the verse of being unashamed when the right time came. Secret disciples
often have much to lose yet they choose to step out of the shadows into the
light for others to see their heart. Their legacy shows that even in the worst
of times they are the ones that will rise up and call evil evil not by words
but by actions.
Are you a secret disciple? Are you fearful of those who are in authority over you? Take heart from these two men. If they could come and talk to you they would say that being a secret disciple is not what Jesus would want ...Instead they would give you this verse out of 2Tim to encourage you: "1:7 For God did not give us a Spirit of fear but of power and love and self-control." Go forth and be used of the Lord this day.
