Then Simon Peter, who was behind him, arrived and went into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus' head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen.
JOHN 20:6, 7

DURING JESUS' TIME THERE WAS ONE WAY A CARPENTER LET THE contractor know a job was finished. A signature, so to speak.

Imagine a hot afternoon in Galilee. Jesus has completed the final pieces of a job he has worked on for several days. The hair of his strong forearms is matted with sawdust and sweat. His face is shiny with heat. He takes a final—and welcome—drink of cool water from a leather bag.

Then standing to the side of his work, he pours water over his face and chest, splashing it over his arms to clean himself before his journey home. With a nearby towel, he pats his face and arms dry.

Finally, Jesus folds the towel neatly in half, and then folds it in half again. He sets it on the finished work and walks away. Later, whoever arrives to inspect the work will see the towel and understand its simple message. The work is finished.

Christ's disciples, of course, knew this carpenter's tradition. On a Sunday of sorrow, three years after Jesus had set aside his carpenter tools, Peter will crouch to look into an empty tomb and see only the linens that the risen Lord has left behind.

A smile will cross Peter's face as his sorrow is replaced by hope, for he will see the wrap that had covered Jesus' face. It has been folded in half, then folded in half again and left neatly on the floor of the tomb.

Peter understands. The carpenter has left behind a simple message.

It is finished.

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    SUNDAY: Palm Sunday

    MONDAY: By Whose Authority?

    TUESDAY: What Jesus Stood For

    WEDNESDAY: The Price of Silver

    THURSDAY: Drops of Blood

    FRIDAY: Crucifixion

    SUNDAY: The Carpenter's Cloth

Copyright(c) 1997. Published by Word Publishing, a division of Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, Tennessee.
Excerpted from The Carpenter's Cloth by Sigmund Brouwer.
Copyright(c) 1997 by Sigmund Brouwer. Page 125.
Used by permission of J. Countryman.