See What a Morning!

Introduction:

Matthew 28:1–15 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.” 8 So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 And behold, Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.” 11 While they were going, behold, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests all that had taken place. 12 And when they had assembled with the elders and taken counsel, they gave a sufficient sum of money to the soldiers 13 and said, “Tell people, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ 14 And if this comes to the governor’s ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story has been spread among the Jews to this day.

Pray

1. The Miraculous Revelation (vv.1-4)

Matthew 28:1–4 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.

The women were going back to the tomb as early as they could to finish preparing the body of Jesus for it’s final resting place

They were not going with anticipation of a resurrection

Even the mention of the women as the first witnesses helps validate the authenticity of the gospels because women were not regarded as trustworthy witnesses.

The gospels don’t make up what happened, but record how things actually took place.

They saw miraculous events take place

Another earthquake - probably localized to the site of the tomb

They saw angles

They saw the stone rolled away from the opening to the tomb

Application

God reveals to us the truth of His Word

We have the sure revelation of God in the Scriptures and the testimony that we can look to and believe

We have to ask ourselves, what do we want to believe is true?

Have I already determined what I am going to believe already, despite the facts that might be laid before me?

Will I listen to any evidence?

2. The Angelic Invitation (v.5-7)

Matthew 28:5–7 ESV

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.”

Next, the ladies are invited to look into the tomb

They are not just to see but to verify for themselves

Application

We also are invited to look into the facts

We are invited to see the one who was crucified, but who has risen again

Notice that the angels did not say to the guards not to be afraid

They never believed, though they knew what had taken place

They chose to believe a lie instead of the obvious truth

3. The Worshipful Reception (vv. 8-10)

Matthew 28:8–10 ESV

8 So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 And behold, Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.”

Once the women had seen and believed, they saw Jesus

They were on their way to tell the other disciples what they had seen when Jesus appeared to them

Jesus reveals Himself to them and they worship at His feet

Clinging to Jesus feet is a detail that confirms that this is a physical resurrection and not a spiritual apparition

They worship and are not rebuked

If Jesus were anything other than God in the 2nd Person of the Trinity, then He could not receive worship.

Jesus doesn’t rebuke them because He is God the Son.

Jesus comforts them and rallies them - “Do not be afraid.”

He commissions the women to go inform “his brothers” that He will go before them and meet them in Galilee

Galilee was where Jesus did most of His ministry and commissioned His disciples

He would recommission them and send them out

He was not holding their betrayal and abandonment against them and gives a word of encouragement calling them His brothers

Application

We, too, are invited to worship the risen Savior and find strength to go out into the world

Each week we get to remember this event on Sunday and we get to gain strength and courage to challenge a fallen world and fight sin in our lives and tell others about Christ

Isn’t it great that Jesus finds us and meets us where we are?

4. The Fraudulent Explanation (vv.11-15)

Matthew 28:11–15 ESV

11 While they were going, behold, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests all that had taken place. 12 And when they had assembled with the elders and taken counsel, they gave a sufficient sum of money to the soldiers 13 and said, “Tell people, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ 14 And if this comes to the governor’s ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story has been spread among the Jews to this day.

The guards report what they saw

They could be charged with dereliction of duty for what happened

They are bribed

They are told to lie

They willingly reported what they knew as not true for temporary worldly gain

The story had been spread to this day

How could they have known who stole the body if their story had been true?

Application

The empty tomb cannot be denied, so people try to make up reasons not to believe

What reasons have you made up for yourself?

What lies have you believed?

What would you rather believe than the truth?

Conclusion

There is only one truth we can cling to today and that is that Jesus, the crucified Savior, has risen from the dead.

He invites us to look into the facts.

He gives us plenty of evidence to base our faith on.

He calls us to believe and worship Him.

He sends us out into the world to declare Him to others.

Will you come to Him? Will you worship Him?

Will you follow Him?