Luke 23:50-56 — "Real" Disciples

READ THIS: Luke 23:50-56

50 Now there was a man named Joseph, a member of the Council, a good and upright man, 51 who had not consented to their decision and action. He came from the Judean town of Arimathea, and he himself was waiting for the kingdom of God. 52 Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body. 53 Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen cloth and placed it in a tomb cut in the rock, one in which no one had yet been laid. 

54 It was Preparation Day, and the Sabbath was about to begin. 55 The women who had come with Jesus from Galilee followed Joseph and saw the tomb and how his body was laid in it. 56 Then they went home and prepared spices and perfumes. But they rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment.

WHAT’S THIS MEAN, ANYWAY?

These verses show us the level of dedication and faith that some people had toward Jesus. It can be easy to think that the only real followers of Jesus were people like the disciples, who gave their entire lives up to follow Jesus wherever He went, but that's simply not true! The first person we learn about is Joseph, who was actually a member of the Sanhedrin. If you remember, some of the Sanhedrin were plotting to kill Jesus and were ultimately responsible for it, but Joseph is described simply as someone who was waiting for the kingdom of God. He really knew who Jesus was, and upon seeing His death, Joseph took the body of Jesus and prepared it for burial. We also see a group of women who prepared spices and perfumes for Jesus's body as well, and despite this awful time, they still obey God's Sabbath commandment.

These people weren't the ones you'd normally think of when you hear the word "disciple," but they were risking their lives and reputations to honor Jesus while the disciples were in hiding! It can be easy for us to think that we need special titles, gifts, or knowledge to be disciples of Jesus, but that isn't true. Jesus has called all of us to go out and make disciples, and anyone who believes in Him has the Holy Spirit and the ability to love others like Jesus does. Those two things (the Spirit and love) are what make us followers of Jesus... that's it! So it is up to us to take those two things and live our lives to honor Jesus, just as the people above did!

THINK ABOUT IT:

1. What is a common thing that people think Christians need to have to be a "real" Christian?
 
2. Do you believe that you are really a disciple of Jesus? Why or why not?

TRY THIS:

Wanna know what is required to be a disciple? Read what Jesus says in John 13:35...

35 "By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Galatians 2:1-5 — Marathon Training

R EAD THIS:  Galatians 2:1-5 1 Then after fourteen years, I went up again to Jerusalem, this time with Barnabas. I took Titus along also. 2 I went in response to a revelation and, meeting privately with those esteemed as leaders, I presented to them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles. I wanted to be sure I was not running and had not been running my race in vain. 3 Yet not even Titus, who was with me, was compelled to be circumcised, even though he was a Greek. 4 This matter arose because some false believers had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus and to make us slaves. 5 We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you.   WHAT’S THIS MEAN, ANYWAY? Yesterday, we learned about how Paul went to Jerusalem and shared the incredible things Jesus did, but today, we are hearing about Paul's second time visiting Jerusalem... 14 years later. Paul talks about a bunch of things that happened ...
Read more

Luke 8:19-21 — Jesus's Fam!

R EAD THIS:  Luke 8:19-21 19 Now Jesus’ mother and brothers came to see him, but they were not able to get near him because of the crowd. 20 Someone told him, “Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you.” 21 He replied, “My mother and brothers are those who hear God’s word and put it into practice.” WHAT’S THIS MEAN, ANYWAY? Ummmm, hold up, is Jesus dissing on His family here? I mean, I know He is God's Son and all, but at first glance, this passage makes it seem like He is kind of hating on His family! However, if we really look into this passage, it's actually a lot more about us than it is about the family of Jesus.  In case you forgot, the last few passages have features Jesus telling and explaining different parables to a large crowd as well as His disciples. Clearly, the crowd has gotten so large that Mary and Jesus's brothers (yes... Jesus had brothers!) couldn't even reach Him. When someone told Jesus "hey dude, your fam is here an...
Read more

WELCOME BACK! Hebrews Introduction

WELCOME BACK TO DEEPLY ROOTED!!! Greetings fellow Bible readers and Jesus journey-ers! We're stoked to get back in the swing of things with y'all. For any new readers, this section would usually be where our handful of Bible verses will be. The section below would break down what in the world the verses mean. Then, there are some debrief questions for you to dive deeper and an application point. A new addition this year is the Song of the Week! We'll share a song that ties into the theme of the next few verses...if you gaze ahead and have song suggestions, comment below or text! HEBREWS INTRODUCTION: As with any book of the Bible, different Biblical scholars say different things about this letter, but we'll tell you the most probable take. So here it is: Hebrews is a letter written to a group of Jews who were being persecuted for deciding to follow Jesus. It is a letter to encourage them and to show that Jesus truly is the best person to follow despite how hard it was g...
Read more