Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jews. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds. Taking Jesus’ body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs. At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid. Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there. John 19:38-42

There are two places in the old city of Jerusalem that people traditionally believe Jesus was buried then resurrected. One is called the Holy Sepulcher (or grave), which today is a huge church. The other is the Garden Tomb, which was an actual tomb, carved in bedrock and sits today in a very natural setting. Both reveal convincing evidence to be the “actual” place, but no one really knows.

If we did know for the sure the actual place, human nature causes us to worship what we can see instead rather than what we can’t see. The place would become more important the significance of the place. People would die, fighting for the place where Jesus rose again for the dead. Twisted, right? I think it’s for that reason God has kept the location a mystery.

While it’s best we don’t know for sure, it’s safe to say that if you travel to Jerusalem you can find yourself within one mile of the place where Jesus proved His victory over death.