"They took the body of Jesus and bound it with burial cloths along with the spices, according to the Jewish burial custom." - John 19:40Jesus is dead. He's been taken off the cross, and is now buried. And for those who hated him, they considered this matter closed. The man spreading such a revolutionary doctrine has been silenced, and they can go back to business as usual.
Except... not really. The world has changed - they just haven't realized it yet. Jesus will eventually appear to (most) of his disciples, and this will strengthen and embolden them so much that they'll be willing to lay their own lives on the line to bring his message to the world. They will no longer be scared, and deny their allegiance to Jesus, but declare it from every mountaintop. From this point on, people who believe will be called "Christians", they will develop their own rites and rituals to celebrate their belief, and they may even start Internet blogs to talk about their faith.
But in order for all this to happen, Jesus had to die. His ministry, his message and his example were all amplified by this. And while this horrible event had to happen, we're reminded that, no matter what happens to us down here, we have His Kingdom awaiting us when we're through.
Just like Jesus knew.
Note: This is the last of the 14 "Stations of the Cross". Thank you for keeping up and reading them. I hope you found new words in these familiar passages. Have a very Happy Easter!
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