The Body of Jesus

The body of Jesus was taken down from the cross. It was cold; lifeless; heavy.

They washed his body clean with water and anointed it with spices, wrapping it in a shroud from head to toe.

They laid his body in the cold, dark tomb and rolled the stone over the door. In the silence that followed, the body of Jesus did not stir. 

Outside of the tomb, life went on as usual. Most people celebrated the Passover feast with their families, laughed with their friends, played with their children, argued with their neighbors, went through their normal, everyday lives, oblivious to the significance of the cross.

As the lifeless body of Jesus rested in the tomb, people wept for lack of hope.

As Jesus lay motionless, they suffered the unbearable pain of loneliness. 
As Jesus’ body did nothing, they fainted from hunger. 
As the body was unmoved, they cried out for mercy but no one answered them. 

Later, people would claim that Jesus was alive. But when those in pain looked, the body of Christ was motionless.

Some shouted that Jesus had risen from the dead. But then some of those who were hungry noticed that the body of Jesus wasn’t concerned with their needs.

Others waved banners and sang songs about the resurrection of Jesus. But then those in prison wondered why the body of Jesus was still wrapped up and hiding behind a large stone wall.

Is the body of Jesus alive today? Or is the body of Jesus still nestled in the dark of the cold tomb?

We are the body of Jesus. If we want the world to know that Jesus is alive today, we are the physical evidence of his resurrection. If Jesus lives in us, then He must live through us.

If Jesus was truly alive today, where would He be found? In the houses of the poor; beside the beds of the HIV infected; holding the hands of the homeless; comforting the lonely; visiting the prisoner.

And if Jesus is there, wouldn’t it be strange for His body not to be there, too?

**

Join me at one of these upcoming events:

Organic Church Conference with Neil Cole, Ross Rohde, Dan Notti and Keith Giles on Saturday, May 12 in Long Beach, CA. Register here>

The Nonviolent Love of Christ: How Loving Our Enemies Saves The World, with Joshua Lawson and Keith Giles on Saturday, June 16 in Portsmouth Ohio. Register here>

**

Keith Giles is the author of several books, including “Jesus Untangled: Crucifying Our Politics To Pledge Allegiance To The Lamb”. He is also the co-host of the Heretic Happy Hour Podcast on iTunes and Podbean. He and his wife live in Orange, CA with their two sons.

Unlock exclusive content including blog articles, short stories, music, podcasts, videos and more on my Patreon page.