John 19:38-39 “Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jews. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body. He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night.”

All four gospels tell us about Joseph of Arimathea. Here was an influential man. He was wealthy enough for Matthew to note for us that he was rich. He was also a prominent member of the Jewish ruling council, or Sanhedrin. His words were sought by others, and his opinion respected. In Jewish society, there was not much higher he could climb.

None of this made it easier for Joseph to follow Jesus. If anything, it made it even harder. Joseph recognized in Jesus’ words the very voice of God. He knew that Jesus was right. But in this, Joseph was almost alone. Almost every other member of the Council had decided that Jesus was a dangerous heretic. Openly declaring himself in favor of Jesus could have cost Joseph everything: his respect, his position on the Council, perhaps some of the partners with whom he did business and had made his wealth. As he carried the body to the grave, perhaps he thought to himself, “Could this have been me?” The hatred of Jesus had been that intense.

So Joseph kept his faith a secret, not unlike Nicodemus who was helping him. Nicodemus had also kept his opinion about Jesus a secret. Remember how he secretly visited him in the middle of the night? Both of these men fit the description the Apostle John offered earlier in chapter 12. “They would not confess their faith for fear they would be put out of the synagogue; for they loved praise from men more than praise from God.”

This was no small sin. The other members of the Council had Jesus’ blood on their hands by calling for his execution. Joseph and Nicodemus had Jesus’ blood on their hands by keeping their mouths shut. These two prominent men had done nothing to save him. Now they carried his dead body to its tomb.

Isn’t Jesus still so difficult for us to follow at times? It’s an easy thing for me to stand in this pulpit and speak warmly about him to my church. Who is going to disagree? But to risk the resentment of neighbors who belong to a non-Christian religion, or of my unchurched relatives, by telling them that they need Jesus–that wants to drive my faith underground. It’s an easy thing for us to talk about the beliefs we share with each other. All that we will find is support. But to risk being considered an intolerant bigot or idiotic half-wit by employers or co-workers, or peers or friends, for standing up for the tenets of our faith–that quickly cools our zeal.

Fear still paralyzes our witness, and ours is no small sin either, is it. Jesus himself has warned, “Whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.” When we have closed our lips, and bit our tongue in the presence of those who needed to hear our witness, we have given God reason to require their blood of us.

And yet, there is a glimmer of light in John’s description of Joseph. He does not refer to Joseph as an admirer, or observer, or interested researcher. He calls him a disciple. For all his weakness and fear, Joseph still had a sincere faith in Jesus’ words. He still clung to Jesus’ promises. The Lord still considered him one of his very own.

For all of our weaknesses, God still wants us to cling to his promises by faith. In fact, Jesus lay lifeless here for that very purpose, that we might know him as our Savior who forgives our weaknesses and holds us close to himself in faith. As Joseph and Nicodemus lay his body to wrest, we can say with conviction and love, “Sleep well, sweet Savior, who died for a coward like me.”