What Does the Resurrection Mean? (Matt 28:1–10)
Notes
Transcript
CPT: Two women hear the message of Jesus' resurrection from an angel, see Jesus, and worship him.
Purpose: To evangelize and proclaim the resurrection to God's people.
CPS: The resurrection is our call to worship the Lord.
The resurrection is the Lord's display of his power. (1-4)
The resurrection is the Lord's fulfillment of his promise. (5-7)
The resurrection is the Lord's call to his people. (8-10)
Introduction
Attention
He is risen! Happy Easter. This is the greatest day in the Christian calendar. Without the resurrection of Jesus, nothing else matters. But with the resurrection of Jesus, there is hope, and there is freedom. He is risen indeed.
I grew up in the Bronx, New York. I grew up going to church. I remember being in the church, it was kind of a loud church. We would be there for hours on a Sunday. It would be morning when we got there, and it was night time when we left. All I remember about the preacher is that he was really loud and he would yell for a long time feel, like for hours straight. I don't know exactly how long he preached.
I learned to draw at church because my mom would give me a paper and pens and crayons, and I would sit there all day on Sunday just drawing on this paper. I got kind of good at it.
But one day in Sunday school, this is what we call the church for the kids, Sunday school had a cross. Something hit me one day as I was staring at the cross. I started sobbing. I was crying because I knew that God had done something special for me on that cross.
If you notice in our churches that the cross is empty. We do that on purpose. Why is that cross empty? Because Jesus is no longer there. Yes, Jesus died on the cross but he didn't stay dead. He's risen. He is alive and lives forevermore.
What does the resurrection mean for Christians? What does the resurrection mean? We will be taking a look at that in the gospel of Matthew 28.
CONTEXT OF WHAT HAPPENS FROM THE CROSS TO MATTHEW 28
PHENOMENA AROUND THE DEATH OF JESUS
To give us context of what happens in Matthew 28: Jesus died on a cross on a Friday. His death, as he said “It is finished,” breathed his last breath, and gave up his spirit, brought with it a lot of supernatural phenomena.
There was darkness over the land while he was on the cross from noon to 3 PM.
The earth shook (an earthquake).
The curtain in the temple, a heavy curtain that separated the Holy of Holies from the rest of the temple, split in two.
In fact, Matt. 27:54 speaks of a Roman centurion who saw the earthquake and everything that happened and said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!”
BURIED IN THE TOMB OF JOSEPH OF ARIMATHEA, STONE ROLLED
A prominent man in Jewish society, Joseph of Arimathea, who Matt 27:57 says became a disciple of Jesus, asks Pilate for the body of Jesus. The Romans go out to the cross, examine the body of Jesus, and confirm that he has died.
Pilate orders the body of Jesus released and given to Joseph of Arimethea. So Joseph, along with Nicodemus (John 19:39), brought the body of Jesus to a new tomb that was cut out of the rock. They laid the body in the tomb and rolled a large stone in front of the tomb.
WOMEN WATCHED WHERE HE WAS LAID, SOLDIERS SENT TO GUARD THE TOMB
Some female followers watch from a distance, seeing the tomb where Jesus was laid. That will be important as we look at Matthew 28 today.
Meanwhile, the Pharisees acknowledge that Jesus predicted he would rise again from the grave. To prevent someone stealing the body from the grave, they go to Pilate and ask him to make the tomb secure for three days. He tells them to take a guard of soldiers and place them at the tomb.
THE SABBATH, THE LORD IN THE TOMB UNTIL THE THIRD DAY
All of this had to happen before the Sabbath. Jesus was in the tomb and the stone was rolled in front of the tomb before the Sabbath. Three Gospel accounts tell us that the body was in the tomb on the Day of Preparation, which would be the day before the Sabbath. The Sabbath began at sunset on Friday and went to sunset on Saturday.
The Lord was in the tomb on Friday, all day Saturday, and part of the day of Sunday.
That brings us to Matthew 28, starting in verse 1.
1 After the Sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to view the tomb.
2 There was a violent earthquake, because an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and approached the tomb. He rolled back the stone and was sitting on it.
3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing was as white as snow.
4 The guards were so shaken by fear of him that they became like dead men.
5 The angel told the women, “Don’t be afraid, because I know you are looking for Jesus who was crucified.
6 He is not here. For he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.
7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has risen from the dead and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; you will see him there.’ Listen, I have told you.”
8 So, departing quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, they ran to tell his disciples the news.
9 Just then Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” They came up, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him.
10 Then Jesus told them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to leave for Galilee, and they will see me there.”
Pray
The resurrection of Jesus is the most important event in the history of the world. It literally changed all of human history, as the message of his resurrection spread from a tiny middle-east nation to all over the globe.
There are a few things I want you to see about the resurrection from Matthew 28:1-10.
First,
The resurrection is the Lord's display of his power. (1-4)
The resurrection is the Lord's display of his power. (1-4)
We open up to a description of an angel at the tomb.
2 There was a violent earthquake, because an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and approached the tomb. He rolled back the stone and was sitting on it.
3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing was as white as snow.
4 The guards were so shaken by fear of him that they became like dead men.
What do we see here?
There is a violent earthquake.
The angel rolls back the stone.
His appearance is like lightning, his clothing as white as snow.
These guards at the tomb are so afraid, they are like dead men.
THE LORD’S POWER FOR FREEDOM FROM THE IMPOSSIBLE
The Jewish leaders, they had thrown everything they had at him. If you read in his ministry, they were afraid of all the people that were coming to him. They finally cook up a scheme to bring the death penalty on him, and they conspire to get him crucified on the cross.
Even in his death, they were afraid. They manage to get a guard of soldiers to guard his tomb. Surely, they were certain that they had done it. They used all of their power and the power of Rome! They felt, “That’s it. He’s dead! It would be impossible for something to happen now.”
But God specializes in the impossible. When we think, “That’s it. There’s no way!” That’s when God says, “Okay, now you’re ready to know who I am.”
The resurrection makes us face the reality of who Jesus is.
THE LORD’S POWER OVER DEATH AND THE GRAVE
Jesus has power over death and the grave.
The apostle John, someone who followed Jesus in his ministry, was close with him, and saw him resurrected, had a vision as an older man. It’s in the book of Revelation.
Jesus speaks to him. He describes the vision that he has of Jesus. I want you to see this. He’s describing Jesus Christ.
14 The hair of his head was white as wool—white as snow—and his eyes like a fiery flame.
15 His feet were like fine bronze as it is fired in a furnace, and his voice like the sound of cascading waters.
16 He had seven stars in his right hand; a sharp double-edged sword came from his mouth, and his face was shining like the sun at full strength.
17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet like a dead man. He laid his right hand on me and said, “Don’t be afraid. I am the First and the Last,
18 and the Living One. I was dead, but look—I am alive forever and ever, and I hold the keys of death and Hades.
What’s interesting is that, when you as a human are confronted with who God is, it can be fearful.
But when you are in Christ, the Lord says, “Don’t be afraid. Don’t fear.”
Why wouldn’t I be afraid? When you are confronted with the power of God, all of a sudden you remember all of those times you turned your back on God. All of sudden, you realize that you are not the most powerful one in the room.
Just like that, in a moment, God is in your midst. That fear might be so strong, it will make you fall like a dead man.
But why does Christ say, “Don’t be afraid?” Why shouldn’t I fear?
JESUS POINTS TO THE RESURRECTION! Look at what he says: “I WAS DEAD, BUT LOOK - I AM ALIVE FOREVER AND EVER, AND I HOLD THE KEYS OF DEATH AND HADES.”
The resurrection is the Lord’s display of his power, that Jesus has power over death and the grave. When you are in Christ, you are in the one who has defeated death and has all power.
We want to be on the side of the one who has the power. Suppose you walk into a store, and you have a customer service issue with the with the employee at the counter. The employee doesn’t seem to be on your side. Who do you call? You call for the manager. Why do you call for the manager? Because the manager is the one has the power over the employee. He has the power to make decisions. You want the manager to be on your side.
But if the manager is not on your side, suppose you know someone on the higher-ups? Maybe you know someone in the administration. This manager is not good enough now. I know someone higher up the chain. Maybe I know a vice president. I'll call that vice president, and he or she will make something happen. Maybe I know the CEO! If I know the CEO, I can get whatever I want to get done. Why? Because I appeal to the one who has the power and I want the one who has the power to be on my side.
In the same way when you see the resurrection and you see who Jesus is... I don't know about you but I want Jesus to be on my side. I want to be on the right side of the power, and being in Christ is being in the one who has the power over death and Hades.
The resurrection is the Lord's display of his power.
Second,
The resurrection is the Lord's fulfillment of his promise. (5-7)
The resurrection is the Lord's fulfillment of his promise. (5-7)
Take a look at how the angel describes the resurrected Jesus to the women in verses 5-6.
5 The angel told the women, “Don’t be afraid, because I know you are looking for Jesus who was crucified.
6 He is not here. For he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.
"He is not here. For he has risen, just as he said.”
THE LORD PROMISED HIS DISCIPLES HE WOULD DIE AND RISE AGAIN
The Lord keeps his promises.
I counted at least six times in the Gospel of Matthew alone where Jesus predicts his resurrection to those around him.
Jesus’ Promises in Matthew: Matt. 12:40; 16:21; 17:9; 17:23; 20:19; 26:31-32.
If you listen to this on the podcast, you can pause, write those down, and look at them later.
In Matthew 16:21, Matthew gives a catch-all just to say that this was a common theme in his teaching. Take a look at this:
21 From then on Jesus began to point out to his disciples that it was necessary for him to go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and scribes, be killed, and be raised the third day.
This was a point of his ministry where Jesus is acknowledged by his disciple Peter as the Messiah. Then Matthew just says that after this, Jesus would point out regularly that he would be killed and resurrected from the dead three days later.
But if you want to know if something is true, look at what someone’s enemies say about them. Because even the enemies of Jesus acknowledge that he promised that he would rise again from the dead. In Matthew 27:63, the chief priests and Pharisees says this to Pilate:
63 and said, “Sir, we remember that while this deceiver was still alive he said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’
You know he said this a lot if even his enemies acknowledge and remember that Jesus promised that he would rise again from the grave.
THE SCRIPTURES PROPHESIED THAT THE MESSIAH WOULD NOT SEE DECAY
Prophecies: Psalm 16:10; Isaiah 53:10-11
Not only did Jesus promise his resurrection during his ministry, but God promised in the Scriptures that the Messiah would resurrect from the grave. It says in Psalm 16:10:
10 For you will not abandon me to Sheol; you will not allow your faithful one to see decay.
The Apostle Paul, in a sermon he gave in Antioch in Acts 13, pointed to this verse as a promise from God to David. He says that this promise wasn’t speaking about David, because David died and his body decayed. But there would be someone in the future who would come from the line of David.
Jesus was called the Son of David because he came from the line of David. This promise spoke about him, that his body would not see decay. The Messiah would rise again.
The Lord fulfills his promises.
We understand the importance of being trustworthy.
We're coming up on tax season. Suppose you got a notice from the government. They say we've taken out too many taxes out of you. You've overpaid taxes for a number of years. This year, you should be receiving a big check. You are owed a check of about $20,000 from the government. You should receive this check direct deposited into your account in about 2 to 4 weeks.
This is a legit notification. It is not one of these scam things that come from a prince in Zimbabwe somewhere. No, this is a real notification from from the government.
You start looking into a vacation, you're looking at flights, we're going on vacation this year, honey. We're going to Hawaii! You've got plans.
You start waiting for that check to show up in your bank account. Two weeks pass by, you say, "Okay, they said 2 to 4 weeks. Three weeks pass by. It's still not there. Four weeks pass by, what are you starting to do? Four weeks and a day, you don't even wait until five weeks! You're making phone calls.
Why? Because you trusted that those funds would be in the bank. Being trustworthy is important.
If someone is good, they will keep their word. Isn't it good to know that God keeps his word? God is good and he keeps his word. When he says that you are a new person in Christ, when he says that the old is gone, the new has come, God keeps his word. God is faithful to his promises. The resurrection shows that the Lord fulfills his promises.
The resurrection is the Lord's display of his power.
The resurrection is the Lord's fulfillment of his promise.
Last,
The resurrection is the Lord's call to his people. (8-10)
The resurrection is the Lord's call to his people. (8-10)
When you look at this story in Matthew 28, the resurrection is first proclaimed to two women who come to the tomb. The angel tells them that Jesus is risen, just as he said. They get this news, and they are overjoyed! They're in fear but also overjoyed. They're running, they are going to go tell the disciples that Jesus is resurrected from the dead and, on their way, the Lord stops them. This is what the Lord says to them in verse 9.
9 Just then Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” They came up, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him.
10 Then Jesus told them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to leave for Galilee, and they will see me there.”
THE LORD’S CALL TO WORSHIP HIM
The first thing that jumps out to me here is the reaction of the women to the resurrected Christ. They stop, take hold of his feet, and worship him.
God in the flesh is worthy of our worship.
What is worship? The word “worship” literally means to “bow down.” It is to lay down in reverence, awe, and humility before God.
The resurrected Christ, he is worthy of our worship.
The apostle John, in his vision in the book of Revelation, saw a future day of worship to the resurrected Christ.
The scene is in heaven, a place called a holy city, a new Jerusalem. In this city, he sees the a river of life coming from the throne of the Lord Jesus. Look at Revelation 22.
1 Then he showed me the river of the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb
2 down the middle of the city’s main street. The tree of life was on each side of the river, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree are for healing the nations,
3 and there will no longer be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will worship him.
The one who has the power of death has the power of life. Jesus said that if you believe in him, it will be like rivers of living water inside of you, that will well up to eternal life. His servants will worship him. Jesus is worthy of your worship.
THE LORD’S CALL TO HIS FAMILY
Family: Mark 3:33-35; Eph. 1:5; Gal. 4:4-6.
But you know what’s really interesting about Matthew 28? It’s how Jesus refers to his disciples. It looks like a small detail, but it is huge. In Matthew 28:10, he says, “DO NOT BE AFRAID. GO AND TELL MY BROTHERS.”
There's something amazing that happens when you become a follower of Jesus Christ. There is a spiritual transformation that happens where you move from spiritual death to spiritual life, where you move from being a stranger to God to being a member of God's household, a member of God's family.
The Lord doesn't want you to be a stranger anymore. God sent his son to die in your place so that you can be free and be part of his family. You say, “Well, Jason, aren't we all part of God's family?” What the Bible says to that answer is no. In fact, we've rebelled against God ,we've sinned against God, we've turned our back on him. We've made ourselves enemies, but God is calling you to come to his family through faith in Jesus Christ.
It says this in Galatians 4:4:
4 When the time came to completion, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law,
5 to redeem those under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.
6 And because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba, Father!”
God sent Jesus into the world to redeem people under the law,. under judgment, so that they might receive adoption as sons. In other words, God loves you so much, he wants you to be his son. He wants you to be his daughter. He loves you so much that he sent his Son, so that through faith in Jesus, you could be part of God’s family.
And when the Spirit of his Son is in your heart, you will cry out, “ Father, I worship you.”
I don't know what your picture of a father is. The state of fatherhood in our society is sad. Some of us have a picture of a father who is cold, distant, not around, or not existing. Maybe a father is someone who turned their back on you. Maybe he was someone angry, upset, frustrated, or stressed.
I don't know what your father was like. But whoever he was, that is not the picture of our Father in heaven. See whatever your father was like, whether he was in the picture or whether he wasn't in the picture, like all of us your father had the problem of sin.
But our father in Heaven, there is no sin in him. He's perfect. He's Mighty. He is just. He loves you so much that he was willing to send his son in your place so that you could come to faith in Jesus Christ and become part of his family.
You had a family that was sinful, because we all have sin. But God wants to show you a family that is perfect. Would you believe in him? Would you believe in Jesus Christ today and become part of God's family? He wants that for you.
Conclusion
The resurrection is the Lord's display of his power.
The resurrection is the Lord's fulfillment of his promise.
The resurrection is the Lord's call to his people.
Conclude
Prayer
Last Song
Doxology
24 “May the Lord bless you and protect you;
25 may the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you;
26 may the Lord look with favor on you and give you peace.” ’
24 Now to him who is able to protect you from stumbling and to make you stand in the presence of his glory, without blemish and with great joy,
25 to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority before all time, now and forever. Amen.
You are dismissed. Have a great week in the Lord!
