“After this, Joseph of Arimathea, a disciple of Jesus (but secretly, because he feared the Jewish leaders), asked Pilate if he could remove the body of Jesus. Pilate gave him permission, so he went and took the body away. Nicodemus, the man who had previously come to Jesus at night, accompanied Joseph, carrying a mixture of myrrh and aloes weighing about seventy-five pounds.” John 19:38-39 NET https://bible.com/bible/107/jhn.19.38-39.NET
Two men, both followers of Jesus, though secretly because they feared men, were bolder and more courageous together. Joseph did take the initiative to identify with Jesus. He most likely told Nicodemus, whom he knew likewise to be sympathetic to the teaching of Jesus, who agreed to accompany him so that they could give Jesus a decent burial. Hatred, distrust, malice, and bias are increasing toward Christianity in the marketplace, leading to persecution. Already Christians are hiding, fearful of speaking with co-workers about their faith in Jesus or the commands God gives Christians that conflict with the advocacies of the world’s immoralities. The critical need for Christians is to bind together and not isolate. Covid has allowed many Christians to work from home, isolating them and making them ineffective and irrelevant to reaching the lost in their work environment. This isolation is destructive because it separates Christians by keeping them from obedience to the Great Commission and joining other Christians in the workplace to strengthen each other and build each other up in our most holy faith. Christians should gather weekly before work, during lunch hour, or after work to pray for one another, their co-workers, and the leaders of their companies. These prayers will lead to action by God and men to change the climate in our culture, bringing back the days of freedom and boldness to acknowledge and follow Jesus as Savior when we lead more and more people to saving faith and teach them to obey everything Jesus has commanded. Until then, we will suffer more if we continue to deny His Name by keeping silent about our faith and isolated from our brothers.
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