Day 7 (Saturday, April 19th)
Day 7 (Saturday, April 19th)
THE WAITING PLACE
Matthew 27:62-66
New International Version
The Guard at the Tomb
62 The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. 63 “Sir,” they said, “we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ 64 So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first.”
65 “Take a guard,” Pilate answered. “Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.” 66 So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.
The Guard at the Tomb
62 The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. 63 “Sir,” they said, “we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ 64 So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first.”
65 “Take a guard,” Pilate answered. “Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.” 66 So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.
Devotional:
Saturday of Holy Week represents the time of waiting in the dark. Jesus' body lay in the tomb, and His followers experienced profound grief, confusion, and shattered hopes. They didn't know Sunday was coming. This "in-between" day reminds us that in our own lives, we often experience periods of waiting and uncertainty when God seems silent. Yet even in this silence, God was working unseen, preparing for the greatest miracle of all. Saturday teaches us that apparent defeat is never the end of God's story.
Application:
Consider the waiting periods in your own life—times when you feel stuck between death and resurrection, between what was and what will be. Are you currently in a Saturday season, waiting for God to move or reveal His purpose? Rather than rushing through this uncomfortable space, allow yourself to be present in it. Use this time to rest in God's faithfulness, remembering that His silence doesn't mean His absence. Write down promises from Scripture that affirm God's ongoing work even when you can't see it. Remember that Sunday is always coming, even in your darkest Saturday moments.
Declaration/Confession:
Today, I acknowledge the reality of waiting seasons in my spiritual journey. Even when God seems silent, I declare that He is still working powerfully behind the scenes. In my own Saturday moments of confusion, grief, or disappointment, I choose to trust the God who never abandons His purposes. I rest in the promises of His Word rather than in my changing emotions or circumstances. I declare that no tomb is too sealed, no stone too heavy, and no situation too hopeless for God to transform. Though I may not understand His timing, I trust His heart. I wait with confident hope, knowing that resurrection power is already at work and that my Sunday of breakthrough is coming.
Sunday is coming...
Saturday of Holy Week represents the time of waiting in the dark. Jesus' body lay in the tomb, and His followers experienced profound grief, confusion, and shattered hopes. They didn't know Sunday was coming. This "in-between" day reminds us that in our own lives, we often experience periods of waiting and uncertainty when God seems silent. Yet even in this silence, God was working unseen, preparing for the greatest miracle of all. Saturday teaches us that apparent defeat is never the end of God's story.
Application:
Consider the waiting periods in your own life—times when you feel stuck between death and resurrection, between what was and what will be. Are you currently in a Saturday season, waiting for God to move or reveal His purpose? Rather than rushing through this uncomfortable space, allow yourself to be present in it. Use this time to rest in God's faithfulness, remembering that His silence doesn't mean His absence. Write down promises from Scripture that affirm God's ongoing work even when you can't see it. Remember that Sunday is always coming, even in your darkest Saturday moments.
Declaration/Confession:
Today, I acknowledge the reality of waiting seasons in my spiritual journey. Even when God seems silent, I declare that He is still working powerfully behind the scenes. In my own Saturday moments of confusion, grief, or disappointment, I choose to trust the God who never abandons His purposes. I rest in the promises of His Word rather than in my changing emotions or circumstances. I declare that no tomb is too sealed, no stone too heavy, and no situation too hopeless for God to transform. Though I may not understand His timing, I trust His heart. I wait with confident hope, knowing that resurrection power is already at work and that my Sunday of breakthrough is coming.
Sunday is coming...
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