John 19:38-42

Common English Bible (CEB)

 ³⁸ After this Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate if he could take away the body of Jesus. Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but a secret one because he feared the Jewish authorities. Pilate gave him permission, so he came and took the body away. ³⁹ Nicodemus, the one who at first had come to Jesus at night, was there too. He brought a mixture of myrrh and aloe, nearly seventy-five pounds in all.^[a] 40 Following Jewish burial customs, they took Jesus’ body and wrapped it, with the spices, in linen cloths. ⁴¹ There was a garden in the place where Jesus was crucified, and in the garden was a new tomb in which no one had ever been laid. ⁴² Because it was the Jewish Preparation Day and the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus in it.

The deed is done. That chapter is over, and the time is now to take a look back at the journey we have made in Lent. Tomorrow, we will have resurrection, and new life. There will be a new chapter, a new kind of hope, one that does not lead to a cross but to the coming glory of God.

These past 40 days have been quite an adventure for me. I honestly had no idea what I was getting myself into when I made the decision to blog for Lent. There are a few things that I have received from it, and I am grateful for them.

1) I have learned that there’s always something else to say. There’s no such thing as “the last word.” One of my major hurdles that I had to overcome was the idea that I would run out of ideas. Honestly, I thought around the 10th day or so, I’m going to to have nothing left to say. But sure enough, each day there was a new idea to explore. Each day, a little part of my mind and soul was revealed to me through the scriptures. I love writing, but I don’t think I’ve ever written this much for this long for this many weeks in a row. So that was something.

2) I’ve learned to own my voice. I had to get over my inhibitions and go with whatever was on my mind. I had to let the spirit work through me so I could better and more accurately explore my own theology, and the story of Christ as handed down through the generations. It’s a humbling experience to say the least.

3) Jesus is relentless. In bearing my soul on the blog, I exposed myself to the full power of the gospel for 40 days straight. In that time, I’ve had to come to grips with the weirdness and the intensity of Jesus. I’ve also come to a better realization of the depths of love that are revealed in the gospel.

I’m glad I could share my thoughts with you all. I’m glad I took this journey. I hope to continue like this, perhaps not daily, but regularly. I’m sure there’s more that the bible has to say to us, and I know that God will reveal that in God’s time.

So again, thank you all for your patience and your support. I’ll see you at the resurrection, and in two weeks, Nerdcore Theology will resume. Happy Easter, everybody!