Signed, Sealed, and Fulfilled

He shouted, "Hallelujah! Plant Corn!" He sold everything he had, bought corn seed, and planted thousands of acres. But a severe drought hit, and he lost every single crop.

Devastated, he prayed again: "Lord, I don't get it! You gave me a sign—P.C. for Plant Corn!"

And a quiet voice inside him said, "Son... P.C. stood for Preach Christ."

(Transition) Sometimes we get so distracted looking for signs in all the wrong places that we miss the clear, undeniable blueprint God has already laid out right in front of us in Scripture.

Historical/Cultural Context -

This Gospel is written by Matthew, also known as Levi who was a former tax collector. It was most likely written between AD 50-60. Matthew left everything behind to follow Jesus. Matthew wrote primarily to Jewish believers—people who knew the Old Testament well. Matthew had one goal: to prove that Jesus is the long-awaited Messiah, the King of Kings, and the fulfillment of God’s promises. Connecting the Old Testament prophecies to the life of Christ, proving that every word God spoke was coming true in Jesus. The key themes of the Gospel include Jesus as King, The Kingdom of Heaven, Fulfillment of Prophecy and discipleship.

Biblical Text -

Matthew 27:45–66 NKJV

Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” Some of those who stood there, when they heard that, said, “This Man is calling for Elijah!” Immediately one of them ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink. The rest said, “Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to save Him.” And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split, and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many. So when the centurion and those with him, who were guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake and the things that had happened, they feared greatly, saying, “Truly this was the Son of God!” And many women who followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering to Him, were there looking on from afar, among whom were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s sons. Now when evening had come, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be given to him. When Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in his new tomb which he had hewn out of the rock; and he rolled a large stone against the door of the tomb, and departed. And Mary Magdalene was there, and the other Mary, sitting opposite the tomb. On the next day, which followed the Day of Preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees gathered together to Pilate, saying, “Sir, we remember, while He was still alive, how that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise.’ Therefore command that the tomb be made secure until the third day, lest His disciples come by night and steal Him away, and say to the people, ‘He has risen from the dead.’ So the last deception will be worse than the first.” Pilate said to them, “You have a guard; go your way, make it as secure as you know how.” So they went and made the tomb secure, sealing the stone and setting the guard.

-[Prayer]-

Life Principle - The Cross Demands Certainty, Access, and Absolute Trust in God's Unstoppable Sovereign Plan.

Life Point- Fulfilled Prophecy Gives Us Unshakable Faith in Times of Doubt.

Exegetical -

Matthew 27:45–50 BSB

From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land. About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “He is calling Elijah.” One of them quickly ran and brought a sponge. He filled it with sour wine, put it on a reed, and held it up for Jesus to drink. But the others said, “Leave Him alone. Let us see if Elijah comes to save Him.” When Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, He yielded up His spirit.

Homiletical -

To understand what is going on here we have to understand what this section would mean to the 1st century Jewish mind.

For three hours the sun was blotted out and darkness was all over the land.

Think about this, Jesus was born and a star, light was shown in the darkness. At His death darkness covered the land. Why? because men love the darkness more than the light. When someone rejects Jesus, the light of the world, he knows only darkness as it has covered his world.

Keep in mind Jesus is suffering, he is physically weak, and it is a chore for him to speak. To even catch a breath to breathe he would have had to push up to open up his lungs for a brief instance of breath.

My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me.

This does not mean that God turned His back on the son. Jesus is quoting Psalm 22 leaving behind clues of what was happening there. Showing that He is fulfilling prophecy.

Psalm 22:13–19 BSB

They open their jaws against me like lions that roar and maul. I am poured out like water, and all my bones are disjointed. My heart is like wax; it melts away within me. My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth. You lay me in the dust of death. For dogs surround me; a band of evil men encircles me; they have pierced my hands and feet. I can count all my bones; they stare and gloat over me. They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing. But You, O LORD, be not far off; O my Strength, come quickly to help me.

The term dogs in this prophecy has been interpreted to mean gentiles. Jesus was surrounded by Romans during this time, the gentiles.

We know that when Jesus died his heart could have been said to melt away as it literally exploded.

We know He was thirsty but refused to drink and was dehydrated. So it could be said His strength was dried up and His tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth

Just as Psalm 22 says they pierced His hands and feet

Not a single bone was broken and they did stare and gloat over Him.

They did divide His garments and cast lots for His clothing.

This Psalm would have been known by the first century Jew. They would have grown up singing it. So all Jesus had to do was what He did. He just started it and they would fill it in.

This was written hundreds of years before Jesus came. Yet here He is fulfilling it even in His death.

This is all fulfilled as someone bring him the sour wine to numb the pain a bit yet they are told to leave Him alone. Mocking Him even to the end.

He cries out and yields up His spirit.

As we have looked through this book, Matthew has pointed back to scripture. The Old Testament to say to those whom he was writing to, “see how Jesus fulfills all the prophecies of the divine Scriptures?” and indeed He did fulfill them. This is how we can be certain about Jesus. He fulfilled the scripture and did miracles in front of hundreds of witnesses.

When doubt creeps in, and it will. You can look to this account of the crucifixion and gain strength knowing that what you believe and what you hold to is true. Not only that, but Jesus is not dead and we will get to the resurrection next week, you can look and see what God has done for you and through you personally. Why do we have personal testimonies of God’s goodness? Because our God didn’t stay in the grave. He rose again.

Illustration -

If an architect hands you a detailed blueprint for a skyscraper—specifying every beam, every bolt, and every measurement—and decades later a building goes up that matches every single line of that blueprint down to the millimeter, you know without a doubt that the architect knew the future of that site.

Psalm 22 was written by King David roughly 1,000 years before Christ, during a time when crucifixion hadn't even been invented as a form of execution. Yet, it laid out the exact blueprint of the cross: the thirst, the pierced hands and feet, the gambling for clothes, and the mockery.

When doubt whispers in your ear and tries to shake your faith, you don't have to rely on blind hope. You can hold up the blueprint of Psalm 22 right next to the cross of Jesus and see that God designed your salvation centuries in advance.

Life Point - The Torn Veil Gives Us Direct Access, but We Must Tune Out the Noise to See God at Work.

Exegetical -

Matthew 27:51–56 BSB

At that moment the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth quaked, and the rocks were split. The tombs broke open, and the bodies of many saints who had fallen asleep were raised. After Jesus’ resurrection, when they had come out of the tombs, they entered the holy city and appeared to many people. When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified and said, “Truly this was the Son of God.” And many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to minister to Him. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.

Homiletical -

At the very moment of Jesus’ death, the giving up of His spirit. The veil in the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.

This veil separated the holy of holies and the rest of temple. This was not some flimsy veil like in a wedding. This was the thickest of materials you have ever witnessed. It was heavy and could not have been torn top to bottom without supernatural means. It could not have just ripped.

No it was torn as a symbol of what God had done. He had torn the veil that separates the people from His presence through Jesus Christ. The Old Testament covenant had now been completed and the New Covenant in Jesus’ blood had now started.

Now at the same time of this veil being ripped there was a great earthquake. Because of this many tombs broke open and many saints bodies were released. Then when Jesus was resurrected so were these people and they went into Jerusalem and appeared to many people.

We often forget about this happening but this also fulfills prophecy and calls to the fact that something miraculous has happened, that Jesus was raised from the dead.

Now Jesus’ body is still on the cross and the centurion who was guarding Jesus saw the darkness, and the great earthquake and he was absolutely terrified. All this happened at the moment of Jesus’ death. Then He believed. This was probably a man who was going about his business, doing what soldiers do. Just another man being mocked and crucified, yet when these signs happened he said, “truly this was the Son of God.” For him to believe this would mean he was truly terrified. This is a career soldier who has seen the worst atrocities known to man, yet when the signs came he became a believer all of a sudden. He must have been truly terrified.

It says many women watched all of this from a distance. They were their to minister to Jesus for they had followed Him from Galilee. With them was Mary Magdalene who had 7 demons cast out of her, and Mary the mother of the sons of thunder

You know people seek signs. But what the average Christian today doesn’t know, because they are too distracted by the world, is that if you would draw near to God through Scripture and especially prayer you would see how God’s hand is working in your life.

Illustration -

If you drive through a mountain pass with your car radio on, all you might hear is loud, harsh static. You could easily assume there are no music stations broadcasting out there in the wilderness. But the music is actually filling the air all around you; your tuner is just set to the wrong frequency, buried under the interference of the mountains.

We live in a world filled with constant noise, social media, and endless distractions. We look around our daily lives and complain, "God isn't moving anymore. Why don't I see His power like they did in Matthew 27?"

The truth is, God hasn't stopped working; we've just allowed the static of the world to drown Him out. When you turn off the noise, open the Scriptures, and kneel in silent prayer, the static clears. Suddenly, you begin to see His hand at work in your circumstances, His providence in your daily path, and His quiet miracles happening all around you.

Life Point - No Human Security or Opposition Can Ever Block the Power of God.

Exegetical -

Matthew 27:57–66 BSB

When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea named Joseph, who himself was a disciple of Jesus. He went to Pilate to ask for the body of Jesus, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him. So Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut into the rock. Then he rolled a great stone across the entrance to the tomb and went away. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb. The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and Pharisees assembled before Pilate. “Sir,” they said, “we remember that while He was alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ So give the order that the tomb be secured until the third day. Otherwise, His disciples may come and steal Him away and tell the people He has risen from the dead. And this last deception would be worse than the first.” “You have a guard,” Pilate said. “Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.” So they went and secured the tomb by sealing the stone and posting the guard.

Homiletical -

After all of this, a rich man named Joseph of Arimathea asks and receives the body of Jesus.

Joseph was a disciple of Christ, a believer and Joseph was rich. If he hadn’t been then it is doubtful that he could have gotten an audience with Pilate much less the body of Jesus.

Joseph now takes a linen and wraps His body in it. Now this linen purportedly is what we know as the shroud of Turine, which is hotly debated as to it’s authenticity.

He lays the body of Christ down, rolls a large rock in front and walks away. This was not some dainty rock this thing was large and heavy needing more than one man to move.

So the next day the Jewish priests and Pharisees gather before Pilate to ask for a guard be placed at the tomb because they feared that the disciples would come and steal the body. Which would give the new movement a push to spreading amongst the people. They wanted to avoid that.

They had no idea Jesus was about to be raised from the dead, proving everything he said and did. No they went out of their way to stop it, but much to their chagrin that is exactly what happened anyway. Not that the disciples stole the body, but that He raised from the grave.

With the Roman guard being placed there was absolutely no way that anyone was going to steal a body. These were hardened men, no one got in without there express help to move the stone and under their watchful eyes no one was taking Jesus’ body.

Now next week we will start with the hope of our salvation, the resurrection.

Illustration -

Imagine a group of men trying to stop the tide from coming in. They bring out heavy wooden planks, massive steel barriers, and stand guard at the shoreline, shouting commands at the ocean. They think that with enough muscle, enough official seals, and enough authority, they can order the waves to stop moving.

That is precisely what the chief priests and Romans were doing at the tomb. They rolled a multi-ton stone, stamped it with the official seal of Rome—the greatest empire on earth—and posted elite, trained soldiers to guard a dead body. They thought they were locking a prisoner in a cell. They thought they had the final say.

But you cannot lock the grave when the Sovereign God has declared resurrection. Man built a fortress around the tomb, but God was about to turn their "impenetrable security" into the very proof that Jesus didn't stay dead. No Roman seal, no heavy stone, and no armed guard can ever stop the hand of God when He decides to work.

You know,If an accused person wants to prove they were framed, the best witness they can bring into a courtroom isn't their best friend—it's the police officer who tried to arrest them.

The religious leaders thought they were being clever. They didn't trust the disciples, so they secured the tomb with Roman guards—men who faced execution if they failed their post—and sealed the stone so any tampering would be instantly obvious. They wanted to make sure there was zero chance of a fraud.

In their desperation to silence Jesus, they accidentally set up the ultimate security system. By posting those guards, they guaranteed that when Sunday morning came and the tomb was empty, no one could reasonably claim it was a cheap grave-robbing heist. God used the very security measures of His enemies to provide indisputable proof that Jesus rose under the watchful eyes of Rome.

Life Principle– The Cross Demands Certainty, Access, and Absolute Trust in God's Unstoppable Sovereign Plan.

Call to Action – altar call….

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