I know it has been almost a month since Easter. It seems like we just move from celebrating one holiday and move on to the next without giving any thought to the last. Holidays are just a one day and done deal. It is like we have A.D.D. with our holidays…Yay… Easter…ohhhh, Mothers’ Day! Boom, like that, and our attention is gone and redirected to the next holiday.

I blame Wal-Mart for this. They can’t focus on a holiday for long either. The merchandise is out for one holiday and before it is over out comes the merchandise for the next holiday. But lest I digress down that rabbit hole too far, I want to share one last thought on Easter.

That thought is on Borrowing. I know, borrowing….what is up with that?

Actually, I hate to borrow anything.

Whenever I borrow something there is always the risk that I will damage or break it. You know, borrowing things like tools…drills, saws, a hammer, a wrench, screw drivers, and the likes. Maybe it is a vehicle…car, truck, tractor, or side-by-side. I have even borrowed a trailer to haul stuff from one location to another. When I do borrow I am sweating bullets for fear I will lose or break whatever I borrowed.

Then there is the borrowing of neighborly things. Those things are like a cup of milk, flour, sugar, or some other spice. Maybe it is a pan or dish that I need to cook with and do not have. On a rare occasion I have even borrowed the use of a washer and/ or dryer to do laundry as my machines were broke.

The most extreme would probably be a vehicle to travel somewhere or a bed for a friend or relative to sleep in. Or maybe once I had to borrow a shower as our water was off due to a water main break.

It is not that borrowing is bad. As a matter of fact I have been quite grateful to those who have made loan of items to me. But when you borrow something there is one big rule you have to remember…Return it! Yep, it is being a good neighbor or friend if you remember to return whatever you borrowed.

Tools seem to be a biggie to return. A car or vehicle is pretty easy to remember to return. But a screwdriver, wrench, or shovel seem to sit in the garage or shed with good intentions to return but often get forgotten. A cup of sugar, milk, flour, or spice can be a little hard to return and often the expectancy to return is not there. However, there might be an expectancy if the person borrowed from ever needs one of the items. You would be more than willing to return the favor.

When we return whatever we borrowed it shows we are a good friend and can be trusted. And my daddy always said that you return something better than you received it. Make sure it is extraclean, the cup extrafull, and if a vehicle, clean and full of fuel. If you damaged or broke the item borrowed, you fixed or completely replaced it. Again, that is just being a good neighbor or friend.

If I am the one loaning out, I try to be gracious and helpful, not obligatory or demanding. If I am not using or needing it, I tell them to take time and return when they can.

Now what in the world does this have to do with Easter? Well, since you asked… After Jesus was crucified and died, his body could not be left hanging on the cross over night (Mosaic Law, Deut. 21:23-23). So Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus came to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus (John 19:38-42). They prepared the body for burial and placed it in a tomb. But not just any tomb, a BORROWED tomb. It belonged to Joseph.

I was thinking of this and wondered why Jesus did not have a tomb already? He made provisions for so many things, even His mother after His death…John would take care of her (John 19:26-27). But then it occurred to me that Jesus did not need a tomb to hold His body. He was only there for three days, and they were not even full days…Friday night, all day Saturday, and Sunday morning!

Jesus just needed to borrow the tomb to fulfill prophecy (Matt. 12:40, Matt. 16:21, Luke 9:22 & Hosea 6:2). He was not going to be there long, only three days. He will come back, but not until the resurrection (which He will lead), so He needed to only borrow the tomb.

And as I have mentioned that anything borrowed needed to be returned, that is exactly what Jesus did. He vacated the tomb, leaving it in the same shape it was when He borrowed it. He even left the grave clothes at the foot of the burial stone where he was placed, and He neatly folded the facecloth lying by itself. Jesus was being the good friend/neighbor returning that which was borrowed.

Jesus made sure the tomb would be ready for use for someone else at some other time. He did not need a grave for eternity but only for a few days. Joseph was a good friend and disciple who willingly (but unknowingly) gave the grave to Jesus. After three days, Joseph could use it however he wished.

I just wanted to share this one last Easter thought with you. So as you go to borrow something, maybe this will be in your mind and encourage you as you borrow things to be a good neighbor and return them…in as good or as better than you received.

Now I have to go borrow a 4×4 truck to get a BBQ-grill out of my backyard.

Bro. Tim