We often don’t hear very much about the significance of Jesus being buried after his death. Yet the gospel proclaims that a lot happened that day, changing us dramatically. Let’s dive in!
As a believer in Jesus, your former identity – sinner – died with Christ on the cross at a place called Golgotha. Whether you feel it or not, it is true. It is so true that if you ever go to Israel and stop at that spot, your tour guide may ask the audience, “Has anyone ever been here before?” Even if you have not, be sure to raise your hand and say, “I have!” Why, because you, the sinner, died on the cross on that spot 2000 years ago!
Then, when Jesus was taken off the cross, wrapped in a linen cloth, and placed in Joseph of Arimathea’s tomb, so were you. I mean you, the sinner who had died with Him on the cross, went into that grave with Him. God no longer calls you a sinner because that person is still in the grave. Here is why this is so important.
The sinner you once were is never going to come back to control you. You are a different person from the one you were born. If you are having difficulty believing this, take a look at these Scriptures. Please note that these are all past tense, meaning they have already happened.
“For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives. Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was.” Romans 6:4-5 NLT
“And in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision performed without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ, 12 having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.” Colossians 2:11-12 NASB
No one who is in Christ should call themselves a sinner! You may be thinking, “But I still sin, doesn’t that make me a sinner?” Not at all. In God’s Kingdom, He does not define His children by what they do. That is how this world works. He defines you by what He did to you in Christ. He crucified you and buried you, never to be called a sinner by Him again! So, don’t ever say, “I’m just a sinner saved by grace.” Instead, you can say, “I am a saint in Christ who sins!
