Mark 15:40-47 Waiting for the Kingdom of God

Mark 15:40-47 Waiting for the Kingdom of God

Joseph of Arimathea is not one of the central figures in the Gospel accounts. He is more of a minor figure. But that classification is derived by counting mentions, or words. I am not at all sure that God regards Joseph, or you, or me, as minor figures. He probably does not think in those terms at all. God may, though, notice who is “waiting for the kingdom of God.”

⁴³ Joseph of Arimathea came, a prominent member of the Council, who himself was waiting for the kingdom of God; and he gathered up courage and went in before Pilate, and asked for the body of Jesus. 

The same phrase is found in Luke 23:51. In Matthew 27:57, and also John 19:38, he is referred to as a disciple of Jesus. The Gospel accounts also designate him as a member of the Council, a member of the ruler of the Jews. Yet he secretly followed Jesus, if not physically, then spiritually.

The cross-references in NASB point me to two other references similar to “waiting for the kingdom of God,” found in the infancy narratives of the Gospel of Luke. Regarding Simeon in 2:25, he was “waiting for the consolation of Israel.” Regarding Anna in 2:38, she was one of those “looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.” 

We are currently involved in a period of waiting during this Springtime, 2020. We and others, whether believers or not, are waiting for restrictions to be lifted in tandem with relief from a virus. Though this present time may be an illustration, it is certainly not what is commended in these phrases, primarily, “waiting for the Kingdom of God.” What the world is waiting for is a resumption of activity in the kingdom of man. And we understand those concerns - jobs, schools, family and church gatherings. But what is “waiting for the kingdom of God?”

It is the realization that our eggs are not to be placed in this particular basket. It is a conviction that there is another world for which we were created, and that becoming comfortable and fitting in to this world is not our priority or goal. It is investing in “things above” as opposed to things “here below.” It means that I think more about my participation in the kingdom age than in the kind of life that I will have at retirement age. It is working harder to prepare my kids to walk with God than to “make it” in this world. It has to do with a concern of how I can contribute value to the kingdom rather than how much I can accumulate for my own nest egg.

Joseph, secretly, did not fit in with other Jewish leaders. If he had been more public, he would have probably been kicked off the Council. And perhaps that would have been the better course. But nonetheless, he was walking a different path. And at this point of time, at the death of Jesus, his “waiting for the Kingdom of God” could no longer remain secret and merely spiritual. It had to become physical as well. He had to go to Pilate and ask permission for the body of Jesus. He had to physically handle the body of Jesus, publicly, and give up the use of his own tomb for its use by Jesus. And it seems, I hope, that Joseph knew this was not the end. That though Jesus was dead, he was still waiting - waiting for the Kingdom of God. 

And so the question is, how am I waiting for the Kingdom of God? How are you waiting for the Kingdom of God?