Because Jesus was truly God, many supernatural things happened when He died. Matthew gives us an account of several of those things. First, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom (27:51). This curtain blocked off the entrance into the Most Holy Place within the temple and Exodus 26:33 informs us that the ark of the covenant, which symbolized God’s presence, was behind that curtain. Furthermore, Hebrews 9:2-10 tells us that the priests only went behind the curtain once a year in order to offer a blood sacrifice for his sins as well as the sins of the people. Of course this sacrifice did not remove the sin but was symbolic of the sacrifice Jesus Christ would make to take away our sins. When Jesus died on the cross, the temple’s veil was torn from top to bottom symbolizing that sacrifices no longer had to be made by the priests because God accepted the payment of Jesus’ death. Hebrews 10 also reveals that the curtain being torn also opened the presence of God to any who would come in the name of Jesus Christ (Hebrews 10:19-22). Another result of Jesus’ death was that the graves were opened and many bodies of saints who had died were raised. Matthew alone mentions this miracle and adds that after Jesus’ resurrection the righteous dead appeared to many people. We probably would also be safe in assuming that those who were raised ascended into heaven giving us a glimpse of the rapture spoken of in 1 Thessalonians 4. An earthquake had also taken place as a result of Jesus’ death causing many people to think Jesus was the Son of God (27:54). When evening had come (following Jesus’ death), Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus (27:57-60). Pilate commanded that Jesus’ body be given to Joseph and he took Jesus and buried Him in a new tomb (27:60). The tomb was made of rock and after Jesus was placed inside the tomb, Joseph rolled a large stone against the door and left. On the next day the chief priests and Pharisees gathered to Pilate asking him to secure the tomb because they feared Jesus’ disciples may try to steal the body to make it look like He had resurrected (27:62-64). Pilate agrees to their request so they go, seal the tomb, and place guards by it (27:65-66). I wonder how the believers must have felt while Jesus was in the tomb…confused, defeated, and disappointed. We can definitely identify with these feelings in our daily life as we experience pain, loss, and confusion; however, we must remember that we worship God and He will always prevail!
Dear God, help me to look past my confusion and doubt realizing You possess all power to change that which was meant for evil into good!
