Three dark and despairing days…
from the time of Jesus’ death until He appeared to those who loved Him.
At the moment of His death, Jesus’ soul went into the heart of the earth for three days and three nights.
Matthew 12:40 “For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.”
A few hours after His death, and before nightfall, Jesus’ body was laid in a tomb
Matthew 27:57 -60 Now when evening had come, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be given to him. When Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in his new tomb which he had hewn out of the rock; and he rolled a large stone against the door of the tomb, and departed.
Jesus is Dead
Take time to consider how the disciples felt during this time. Jesus had been crucified and He died on that Roman cross. Some had witnessed it. Others had fled, but they heard of it. All the followers of Jesus knew it was true that Jesus lay dead in the grave.
Think of the sadness that would have overwhelmed all who knew and loved Jesus, especially His faithful 11 apostles. They must have been exceedingly sad with overwhelming sorrow. Despair and disillusionment must have filled their hearts and minds. Their Lord was gone. He had left them. And they felt alone and confused.
What was to become of them? What was to become of the mission that Jesus had given them? Jesus had commissioned them to preach and to heal (Matthew 10), but they must have wondered, could they carry on without His presence? The questions were likely overwhelming for them and without Jesus’ words of comfort, their grief likely disabled them. Those days until Sunday must have been the darkest days they had ever experienced.
But everything was about to change. Just as Jesus had told them that He would be “three days and three nights in the heart of the earth,” He also said that on the third day he would rise from death:
Matthew 16:21 From that time Jesus began to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.
On Sunday morning, the darkness gave way to the dawning of a new day and with it a new hope and new life. Death was defeated and Jesus opened the way to eternal life with Him.
Remember and Reflect
May the day before Easter Sunday be a day of somber reflection on what it cost God to redeem you from your sins. The cost was His Son.
When God created the world, He spoke it into existence. But, when He redeemed the world, it was with the shedding of blood– the precious blood of Jesus.
The whole of the Bible is about Jesus. From “in the beginning” to “I make all things new,” Jesus is there (read: Jesus on Every Page). Jesus is the only One who can redeem and restore man to right relationship with God.
- It was by the Father’s will that Jesus came to earth, to live among us.
- It was by the Father’s will that Jesus offered Himself on a Roman cross to pay for our sins.
- It was by the power of God that Jesus was raised from death in victory.
- And it is according to the will of the Lord that all should come to repentance and be saved (2 Peter 3:9).
Roman 10:9-10 …if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
Take time today to give thanks to the Father for His great sacrifice of sending Jesus to rescue us, and give thanks to Jesus for His sacrificial death, His forgiveness of your sins and the gift of eternal life that He has given you.
The disciples experienced three days of darkness and despair. We reflect on those days with the remembrance that it was all according to God’s purpose and plan. We see them through the light of Jesus as days of thanksgiving.
Let Easter Sunday be a day of jubilant celebration…because He lives. And rejoice, remembering:
For in him we live, and move, and have our being… (Acts 17:28)
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About Lent
***Lent: 40 Titles for 40 Days (Download NOW: 40 Titles for Lenten Devotions)
What is Lent? Should I Give Up Something? (Article and Video)
This Time Called Lent (Video)
Prepare for Lent (Video)
Lent Reflections (Video)
How Should You Observe Lent? (Article)
How Should You Observe Lent? (Reflect and Prepare short video)
Have You Sat At The Master’s Table? (John 13-17)
What's Wrong with This FB Lenten Fast?
About Holy Week
Jesus’ Last Days Timeline: the Cross and the Resurrection
Palm Sunday
Blessed is the King -- A Palm Sunday video
Hosanna -- Palm Sunday (Jesus Wept) (video)
Walking with Jesus – Tested by the Chief Priests and Elders
The Last Supper
What is Maundy Thursday? The Basin & The Towel
What Was the Seating Arrangement at the Last Supper?
Maundy Thursday until Easter Sunday (video)
What’s your Judas experience? The Pain of Betrayal
What Do We Know about Judas? This Might Surprise You.
The Last Supper was NOT a Passover Seder?
A Maundy Thursday Devotion
Crucifixion Day
Was Jesus crucified on Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday?
Thursday Crucifixion? Do these two reasons “nail” it?
Why do we call it good [Friday]?
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
How is Jesus Like a Worm? What’s the Crimson Worm? A Remez In Psalm 22?
Who do you need to reconcile with today?
Who Killed Jesus?
Since Jesus was the Passover LAMB, Why Didn't God Provide a Lamb in Genesis 22?
Did Pilate Proclaim Jesus to be God?
Was Jesus Forsaken by His Father?
The centurion's song from the foot of the cross: “Surely This Was a Righteous Man”
Journey to the Cross: Maundy Thursday and Good Friday
How Do We Know Psalm 22 Is About The Cross?
Q & A: Thursday Crucifixion Discussion
Three Days in the Heart of the Earth
The Days of Darkness
Sadness and Despair: The Darkest Days of All Time
Obituary of Jesus: Body Stolen or Risen? What do you say?
About Easter and Resurrection Life
The Father's, Son's and Believer's Perspectives of the Cross
Because He Lives, I Can Face Tomorrow (video)
Christ the Lord is Risen Today, Alleluia (video)
A Place in the Sun (Son) (video)
You'll Never Walk Alone (video)
How to Close Your Eyes and Really SEE Jesus!
Open Your Eyes to The Full Gospel
Are you glad to see Jesus?
Ponder the Prophecies of Jesus’ Mission (video and downloadable file)
What If We Skipped Easter This Year?
He’s back….and it changed everything!
The Lord is Risen Indeed! Hallelujah!
Because He Rose: The resurrection changed everything! (video)
What’s the Meaning of the Folded Napkin in the tomb?
Keep Easter Alive in Your Heart: He Came Back (video)
The Only Soul-Saver, Sin-Forgiver, Chain-Breaker, Pain-Taker, Way-Maker, Hope-Giver: Jesus
Keep Looking Up
Praise God, He’s Alive
Christian Internet Forwards? The Rest of “The Birdcage” Story? (video)
Ways to Glorify God - Bookmark
Watch NOW...You will be blessed.
Read: Is Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” a Christian Song?*******
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***A Hidden Message in Psalm 23?***
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A Room with a View of Eternity—The Last Will & Testament of Jesus Christ Take a seat at the Master's table. Learn about the riches He gives to all who are His. This book will bless and encourage you, give you hope, and help you live in the joy of your salvation and the riches of Christ that are yours.
The Top Ten Got Questions? in 2023
- The Meaning of NUMBERS in the Bible?
- Was Jesus CRUCIFIED on Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday?
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- How long did JOB SUFFER?
- What is the Significance of the Wise Men's THREE GIFTS? And were they kings?
- Did The Wise Men Arrive 12 DAYS AFTER JESUS’ BIRTH? Or Was It Much Later?
- Jesus’ Last Days TIMELINE: the Cross and the Resurrection
- The Meaning of COLORS in the Bible?
- Did Jesus Fight Satan to Take Back the KEYS of Death and Hell?
There is much to be learned from those who have gone before us in the faith. Check out our Cloud of Witnesses category that features the words of departed saints who are now with the Lord in glory. Their words equip and encourage us even to this day. Take a few minutes to hear...
- ONLY ONE LIFE, Twill Soon Be Past – by C.T. Studd (1860 – 1931)
- “The Love of God is Greater Far” by Frederick M. Lehman (1917)
- Prayers from Billy Graham
- Who Was Robert Robinson? What’s the Story Behind “Come Thou Fount”
- “Immanuel” — A Poem by Charles Spurgeon (1834-1892)
- Who Am I? A Poem by Deitrich Bonhoeffer (1905-1945)
- Understanding the Everlasting Arms of God, by J.R. Miller (1840–1912)
- 24 Reasons Why I Love America, by John Wayne (1907-1979)
- Give Me Perpetual Broken-heartedness (from The Valley of Vision)
- Abide with Me, by James Smith, 1859
This remains one of our most popular pages viewed.
TOP TEN Videos from Reasons for Hope* Jesus
- Memorial Day BAGPIPES TRIBUTE: Amazing Grace
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