Ressurection Report

Matthew 28:1-7 ESV

1 Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2 And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. 4 And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men. 5 But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you.”

As we continue our journey this year closely examining different narratives in the Bible, we come to an even numbered month, which means that this month we will be examining a narrative from the New Testament.

Now, this month is not only an even numbered month, but it’s also the month of April, and this year a very special day falls in the month of April, and that day is Easter.

And what is it about Easter that is so special? The resurrection of the Lord Jesus of course. And the resurrection in general, but especially the resurrection of Jesus is such an important doctrine in the Christian faith.

The resurrection of Jesus is the doctrine upon which Christianity stands. If Jesus rose from the dead then Christianity is everything that it claims to be, for if the resurrection of Jesus did indeed occur, then that means that the One Who rose Himself from the dead has power over life and death. And there is only One Who has that power, and that One is God.

Therefore, if Jesus really did raise Himself from the dead, then that means that Jesus is God, and if Jesus is God, then that means that He has the power to save those who will trust in Him.

But if Jesus did not raise Himself from the dead, then that means that Jesus is not Who He said He is. And if Jesus is not Who He says He is, then He has no power to save us. And so, to sum it up, if Jesus did not raise Himself from the dead, then that means that we are not saved.

This is why theologians from every generation have said that the resurrection is the doctrine by which the Christian faith either stands or falls.

If Jesus did raise Himself from the dead, then that means that He is indeed the way, the truth, the life, the ONLY way to get to the Father in Heaven. If Jesus did raise Himself from the dead, then that means that there is no use disputing His claims, for His resurrection is proof that He is God the Son and therefore everything that He says is true.

So, friends, for the next three weeks, today, Palm Sunday, and eventually ending on Easter, we are going to be examining a narrative that literally has eternal consequences attached to it, as we examine the account of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

But before the resurrection took place, before Jesus could rise from the dead, He had to first die. And this, Jesus done, as He writhed in pain and endured the humiliation of the cross. Jesus hung upon the cross, freely shedding His life-giving blood so that it may be applied to all those who will trust in Him and be saved.

This was the will of the Father, that the Son be crushed for the sake of His people. And the Son obediently accomplished all that which the Father commanded of Him, as the wrath of God for the sins of His people was expended and satisfied through the death of the Son.

And after the Lord Jesus had breathed His last breath, His body was removed from the cross that He hung upon and was placed in the new tomb belonging to Joseph of Arimathea.

Then after He was laid in the tomb, a large stone was rolled at the entrance of the tomb to keep animals and other pests from entering.

But the chief priests and Pharisees weren’t satisfied with just having Jesus dead, they weren’t even satisfied with the stone blocking the entrance of the tomb, they wanted to be sure that no one could enter the tomb and steal the Lord’s body and thus say that He was risen from the dead.

So, they approached Pontius Pilate, the governor of that region, and asked that he permit soldiers guard the stone and the entrance to the tomb; a request which Pilate granted.

And so, here the tomb was completely guarded and secure, and there was no way that anyone was going to get past these guards even if they wanted to.

Rome may have provided the Jews with the best security on hand to guard the tomb… but they weren’t expecting God Himself to come on the scene! Because that’s exactly what happened!

The first verse of our reading says:

*Matthew 28:1 ESV

1 Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb.

Our reading starts out by telling us when the following event takes place. It says, “After the Sabbath”. The Jewish Sabbath runs from Friday evening to Saturday evening, so when our reading says after the Sabbath and toward the dawn of the first day, it signifies what we consider early Sunday morning.

So, very early Sunday morning, just as the sun is rising, Mary Magdalene, another woman named Mary, and the Gospel of Mark also tells us that Salome, the mother of John and James all went to see the tomb where Jesus was laid.

Now, these women had already seen the tomb, for they had seen it when the Lord’s body was first laid there. What they wanted to do here was to see if the guards would let them enter the tomb so that they could anoint the Lord’s body with spices and ointments.

But as these women arrived at the tomb, something totally unexpected happened, as we see in verses 2-4 where we read:

*Matthew 28:2-4 ESV

2 And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. 4 And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men.

The three days and three nights in which the Lord Jesus would be in the heart of the earth were now complete, and through His own power, the Lord Jesus had risen from the dead!

All He had to do now was move the stone out of the way that guarded the tomb and step forth… but you know God, many times when He does something, He does it big!

This was going to be the greatest event to ever occur in the history of our world, the Lord’s resurrection, and the proof of His people’s redemption. So, this event most certainly deserved a dramatic entrance.

Suddenly the earth shook as there was a great earthquake. But the source of that great earthquake was God Himself as an angel of the Lord descended from Heaven and came and rolled back the stone.

So, yes, the fears of the Jews were now being realized, the seal placed on the tomb had been broken and the stone was rolled away, but not by a disciple, not by a graverobber, but by a terrifying supernatural being!

Then almost as if to say, “I dare you to try to close it!” to the guards who were standing there, the angel sat upon the stone that he had just rolled away.

When these guards looked upon this heavenly being, they saw that his appearance, or as the King James says, his countenance, or his face, was as bright as lightning that flashes in your face which showed that he was typically in the direct presence of God.

And his clothes were as white as snow which showed his supernatural purity and innocence.

Roman soldiers were tough… but not that tough! So, at witnessing this amazing sight, they trembled in such great fear that they fell down and became essentially paralyzed, unable to do anything, as though they were dead.

So, the message that this angel had for the guards was, “Jesus is coming out whether you like it or not! So, try and stop Him and see what happens!” but the angel also had a message for the women whom we had mentioned in the first verse who are now also standing by the tomb, when he told them:

*Matthew 28:5b-7 ESV

5b “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you.”

The guards trembled with fear and became as dead men, and this angel was just fine with that, in fact, that was the effect that he was going for there. But when it came to the women who had come to visit the Lord’s tomb, the effect was different. The angel told them, “Do not be afraid…”

The guards were fearful, and for good reason, but when it came to these three faithful women, the angel lovingly told them, “Do not be afraid…”

And he tells them why they don’t need to be afraid; for he knows that they were seeking Jesus. The message that the angel was trying to relay to the women is that he himself came from Jesus and he knows that they too seek Jesus, so, they’re all on the same team here, and for that reason they don’t need to be afraid.

But he doesn’t just tell them that he knows that they seek Jesus, he tells them that he knows that they seek Jesus, Who was crucified, Who had been put to death… that’s what had happened to the Lord.

And because that is what had happened to the Lord, the next thing that the angel said must have totally taken them by surprise when he said, “He is not here…” what do you mean He’s not here? What happened to Him? Did someone steal His body? Did we go to the wrong tomb?

The angel says, “No, He’s not here because He has risen from the dead by His own power! He has risen from the dead, just as He had told you many times that He would.”

Then the angel said, “Come, take a look in the tomb where He was laid if you want to see for yourself.”

But that wasn’t all, the angel had just reported the resurrection to these women, but now he commands them concerning the resurrection.

He tells them: “Go to the disciples, go quickly and tell them that Jesus has risen from the dead!”

This was most certainly huge news! Huge news that needed to be shared right away. And if that wasn’t exciting enough, the angel also told them that the resurrected Lord Jesus was going before them to Galilee, and that they will actually be able to see Him!

What great news! What exciting news! And furthermore, what a privilege and an honor to be able to share that great and exciting news!

Now, imagine for a moment that you were one of these women, that you saw this miraculous event, imagine that like these women, you heard this amazing news from the lips of an angel. Wouldn’t you be excited to tell someone about it?!

Well, my beloved Christian friends, if you are a saved man or woman, you may not have visibly seen what these women saw, but you do know and believe and have been convinced that what we described here this morning in our reading did indeed happen.

And you heard this news and believed, you heard it not from an angel, not from a prophet, not even from a preacher, no, when you heard and you believed, it was God Who spoke to you, Who declared the resurrection to you.

And just as the angel commanded these women to go and report the news of the resurrection, so does God command us who are Christians today to report the same thing. The report that Jesus died, suffering the penalty for the sins of God’s people, but that Jesus also rose and now grants eternal life to whoever will believe and trust in Him.

Beloved, this is not my command, this is God’s command! Therefore, let us sing out this good news to a lost world today!