- There were some secret acquaintance of Master Jesus during his earthly ministry. Among these include Elders Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathaea. These were Jewish high class aristocrats and men of honour in the society. Let us learn from these secret disciples of Jesus Christ.
- John 3:1-2
“There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews:
The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.” - Nicodemus was a Pharisee, a member of the ruling council, called the high council or the Sanhedrin. The authority of this group of religious leaders was constantly undermined and their views challenged by Jesus, this explained their hatred for Jesus. But Nicodemus had an unrelented desire to search for knowledge, therefore he came when it was dark to inquire who Jesus was. From his inquiry he understood that Jesus was the Messiah. Equipped with this knowledge he boldly defended Jesus before the religious leaders at his arrest.
- The holy angels of God described Nicodemus like this:
“He was a wealthy Jewish Sanhedrin who visits Jesus at night, not as an act of cowardice as some may think, but because he was a prominent man of his time and did not want to cause a stir by publicly seeking audience with Jesus.” Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Anael. - Many times we Christians condemn Nicodemus as a coward who came in search of Jesus during the night hours, because he was not bold enough to associate with Jesus at day time.
Hear the explanation of the hosts of heaven on this:
“Nicodemus was a sincere, cautious, earnest, intelligent and influential member of the Jewish ruling council, this shows that he was a religious man, morally upright, yet, he sought for Jesus. His inquiring mind made him to seek for Jesus at nights and when he did so, he got more than what he bargained for; for a man of his kind who thought that he had what it takes in divine knowledge. This act gave him concern for the salvation of his soul and he secretly became a secret disciple of Jesus.” Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Anael. - I ask all those who carry bibles about, all those who frequent the places of worship of God, all those who are placed in the position of authority and power, how many of us are inclined to seeking true knowledge of God? How many are patient enough to learn the truth and not clinging to old ideas and half-truths?
Most of us enjoy, savour and glorify in the grandeur of our offices and graced positions, to the detriment of our souls’ redemption. - It is true that Nicodemus was a secret follower of Jesus Christ, due to his position as member of the Jewish Religious Body. However, when it was ripe for him to associate with Jesus Christ, he openly did this. He opposed to the judgement passed on Jesus without following the laid down rules of fair hearing.
The Bible gave account of this and the holy angels of God explained further:
“As earlier said, he was a member of the Jewish ruling council, and when decision was taken at council level to arrest Jesus, he stood in defence of Jesus, stating that he should not be condemned without hearing his own side of the story first hand (John 7:51). He was however overruled by the council, having made up their minds on what to do.” Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Anael. - The second secret follower of Christ is Joseph of Arimathaea.
Mark 15:42-43: “And now when the even was come, because it was the preparation, that is, the day before the Sabbath, Joseph of Arimathaea, an honourable counsellor, which also waited for the kingdom of God, came, and went in boldly unto Pilate, and craved the body of Jesus.” - The sabbath began at sunset on Friday and ended at sunset on Saturday, Jesus died just some few hours to sunset on Friday. It is against the Jewish law to expose a dead body overnight, and also to work on the sabbath. Therefore, it was very important to bury Jesus before the sabbath, Joseph Arimathaea a wealthy member of the Jewish high council, secret disciple of Jesus risked his reputation and without fear volunteered to bury the dead body of Jesus.
While the disciples who publicly followed Jesus fled in fear of arrest and persecution, this Jewish leader who followed Jesus in secret, came forward and requested for the body of the crucified Jesus for funeral. - The account of Joseph Arimathaea in the Bible is very insignificant. The Holy Spirit through the holy angels submitted as follows:
“A member of the council of Jewish religious leaders – the Sanhedrin.
He was also a secret follower of Jesus and his teachings; therefore, he opposed the council decision to crucify him. Joseph was a wealthy man, a good man, very religious.
When Jesus was crucified, he felt sad, and at the risk to his life, he and Nicodemus went to Pontius Pilate and requested for the body of Jesus for burial. However, unknown to the duo that this action of theirs was to fulfil the prophesy of Isaiah several years before the death of Jesus. (Isaiah 53:9)” Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Anael. - The lessons to learn from this duo by true followers of Christ were enumerated by the holy angels of God thus:
“God, the Creator of all things can use anything or anyone for His desired purpose – no matter the disposition opinion, or position held by such person, be he influential, wealthy, rich, poor, wicked or even diabolic. Once He has determined in His mind to use such a person, surely, the task given to such one shall be carried out successfully.
This is the case with the persons you have presented to know about. Given their normal disposition, they would not ordinarily be celebrated today, despite their fame, but God turned that around, used them for His glory and today, they are recognised as heroes in the scheme of God’s plan for the salvation of mankind.” Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Anael. - Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathaea by this act of standing by the truth in the face of opposition and by giving Jesus a befitting burial to fulfil the prophesy of old, found God’s favour. Listen to what happened to them:
“The account of these two men would not be complete without stating the rewards of their labours in their effort to bring to pass the will of God. These men did not live long after Jesus. This was God’s plan so that their good works would not be corrupted by the influence of those around them, thereby making them lose the expected reward of their work.” Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Anael - Elders Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathaea as Pharisees and members of the Sanhedrin were enclosed in a group of extremists, still they were able to reason and thirst for the knowledge of God in humility. While so many of their colleagues failed to enter the kingdom of Christ, these ones succeeded because they sought for Jesus.
- Brethren in Christ, you and I have more grace and greater opportunity than these two elders of old. More than ever before, we are better informed by the Holy Spirit through the holy angels of God and the sages of old.
Are you still doubting the knowledge of God freely given, when you should make the best use of this? Are you pointing accusing fingers of wrongdoing to others, when you should remove the log in your eyes? Time is of essence, make the best use of what you have now. - Let us pray: God the Omnipotent, unto your will and command I commit all Thy children. You are the Ultimate and the Source of our existence, grant us the grace to live our lives to the fullest. Assist us to recognise and do Thy will in this our short sojourn on earth. Remove from us all evil vails and negative influences, that we may uphold Thy love and accomplish our destinies in this incarnation, in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
