Holy Saturday Feelings
Put yourself in the place that the first disciples and followers were in. Jesus, the long-expected Messiah was dead and placed in a tomb. Jesus had said that this was going to happen, but they had hoped that it wouldn’t. He had said that he would be raised on the third day, but that was too difficult for them to grasp at the time. Not only that, but they had all fled the scene for fear of the Jewish authorities. They were probably disappointed in themselves and perhaps disappointed in God! They still had no Messiah…
I believe that their hope was shaken and that their future was uncertain. Without much of a concept of resurrection, and their expectations crushed, that Holy Saturday was a dark time for them.
I don’t believe that we can really understand their struggle unless we can remember when our hope and future had suddenly been crushed and we had no, or little, hope in God. There was no resurrection that they could see. That was their Holy Saturday.
For us, we experience times when God seems far away; sometimes, God even seems disconnected to our lives and our needs. But, we know Easter is “tomorrow” and resurrection is coming! When we think on these things, we respond in thanksgiving and praise. Let us remember that there are many people living without Easter as a personal reality. That is our mission…
Holy Saturday blessings,
Doug