Mt. 28.1-8.The Resurrection

The Resurrection

Matthew 28:1-8

David G. Shackelford

­Take your Bibles, please, and turn with

      me to Matt. 28 and verse 1.

The theme for these Founders' Days is "Beliefs That Matter."

And I'm excited that my topic is that of  the Resurrection. 

That is indeed a belief that matters.

In fact, there are few things that make me want to march around Zion and count the towers quite as much as the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.               

So, I'm going to try to restrain myself (some), but I may just clear off a place up here and have a spell.

READ TEXT

The time is the Sunday after Jesus' crucifixion on Friday.

It was the first Easter sunrise service, only the disciples didn't know it.

And if it had not been for Mary they would have missed it.

But brother, if it had not been for Jes­us, we'd have all missed it, amen?

In these few minutes we have this even­ing, I want you to notice, first of all,

I.  THE PROPHECY OF THE RESURRECTION

Notice v. 6--the angel is speaking to   Mary and he tells her in v. 5:

          "5 And the angel answered and said to the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified.

          "6 He is not here for he is risen AS HE SAID..."

As He said--who said?  Jesus said.

You see, the resurrection should not have taken the disciples by surprise, for two reasons:

      1.  Jesus told them.

He told them twice in Mark 9.

In 9:9, After the transfiguration experience, Jesus told them not to tell anyone what they had seen "till the Son of Man were risen from the dead."

And in 9:31, Jesus said,

      "The son of man is delivered unto the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and after that he is killed, he shall rise the third day."

He did it again in Luke 9 and in Matt. 17.

Jesus had told them.

But the second reason that the resurrection should not have taken them by surprise is because of the OT pic­tures and Scriptures.

What about these pictures and Scriptures?

Let's think about the pictures in the Bible for a moment.

One of the earliest and most clear pictures of the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is found in the story of Abraham's            sacrifice of his son, Isaac.

You remember there in Gen. 22 where Abraham was told to go up into a mountain and offer Isaac. 

And exactly three days after the command was given by God, the Bible in the book of Hebrews says that Abraham received Isaac back from the dead in a figure.

You see, just as the rapture of the saints is pictured in the transla­tion of Elijah, so is the story of the resurrection pictured in Abr­aham's offer of Isaac.

The OT is replete with references to the resurrection of Christ.

Ps. 16:10 says,

      "For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption."

In Isaiah 53 God is speaking of the cru­cifixion of His Son and says that after Jesus death that God will see His seed--how can you have seed af­ter you're dead? 

      Only if you're resurrected.

Then Isaiah says that God will prolong his days.

Friend, how can your days be prolonged after you're dead? 

Only after you're resurrected.

And then Isaiah says,

      "And the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand."

In other words, Jesus is going to do God's will after his crucifixion.

How can that be?  Well, it can only be if you've been resurrected.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ was prophesied in the Scriptures.

You see, in actuality, when Jesus told them of His own resurrection, He was simply telling them of something that had already been arranged and prophesied beforehand--in fact, before He was born. 

Many have observed that Jesus arranged, before he was born, to be born in a certain place.

Also before He was born, He             arranged to die in a certain place.

And finally, before he was born, he arranged to be raised from the  dead.

Now, all these things were arranged be­fore He was born.

If I may be so bold, what did you arrange before you were born?

Amen?

I'm telling you, ladies and gentlemen, the resurrection of Jesus Christ was   prophesied in the Scriptures.

But not only do I want you to see the            prophecy of the resurrection, but I     also want you to see

 II.  THE PATTERN OF THE RESURRECTION.

Folks, it grieves me to think that some reject the idea of a literal, bodily resurrection.

Some, because they have trouble with the miraculous, try to get around the clear teaching of Scripture by say­ing things like,

      "Yes, Jesus was raised, but he was raised not in a literal body but in a spirit-body."

Friends, there is no such thing as a spirit body. 

Now, we're going to get a spiritual body one of these days, but you can't have a spirit-body.

The two are mutually exclusive.

From the OT on the Bible clearly teaches a bodily resurrection.

Let me mention a few more Scriptures. 

I could have included them when I was speaking of the prophecy of the resurrection, but I deliberately saved them for now because they so plainly declare a literal bodily

      resurrection.

Make a note of Is. 26:19 and just listen to it:

Is. 26:19--

      "Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise..."

Rom. 8:11 says,

      "But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bod­ies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you."

How about Job 19:25-26--

      "For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth:

      "And though after my skin worms des­troy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God."

Now beloved, I don't want to sound disrespectful, but let's be honest--       you have to work real hard to misunderstand that verse.

Anyone who can read black print on white paper can get that.  Amen?

"Yet in my flesh shall I see God???":

What's that talking about if it's not talking about a bodily resurrection?

I mean, if it is not the body that is raised from the dead what is?

The spirit doesn't die and cease to exist, the body does.

And it's the body that needs to be raised.

But let me ask you another question:

When Mary went to the sepulchre that first Easter morning, what did she go looking for?

She went looking for a body.

She didn't go hoping to find some hazy fuzzy-wuzzy spirit-body hovering among the bushes.

She didn't call ghostbusters.

Friend, the Bible tells us that she took spices.

You don't take spices to anoint a ghost, you take spices to anoint a body.

She went looking for a body.

But what did she find?

Well, she found several things:

1. An open tomb--that was probably a relief: she wouldn't have

      to roll it away.

2. She found the empty grave clothes--that was probably a little

      disconcerting.

3. She found an angel--that was probably neato-freeto.

BUT SHE DID NOT FIND WHAT SHE WENT

      LOOKING FOR---SHE DID NOT FIND A BODY.

And brother, I'm glad she didn't.  Amen?

We are talking about a literal resurrec­tion;

We are talking about a real resurrection.

But let's go on and speak of

 III.  THE PRIORITY OF THE RESURRECTION.

Just how important is the resurrection?

Friend, the resurrection is the capstone of Jesus' ministry.

The most important thing Jesus ever did was raise from the dead.

And the priority of the Resurrection is revealed to us in several ways.

First, it is revealed

A.  In the Participants We Find.

Let me ask you, 

      Who raised Jesus?

Who was actually involved in raising Jesus from the dead?

1. Well, we know that God the Father was involved.

Acts 2:24 says, speaking of Jesus,

      "Whom God hath raised up."

2. We also know that the Spirit raised Jes­us.

Rom. 8:11 that we read a moment ago speaks of the Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead.

3. And we know that Jesus raised Himself.

In John 10:18, Jesus was speaking of His own death and he said,

      "No man taketh it (my life) from me, but I lay it down of myself.  I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again."

So we know that Every Person of the Tri­une Godhead had a part in raising Jesus from the dead.

Was any one else involved?  No.

This tells me that the resurrection is exclusively a work of God.

That's one reason I have no trouble believing it. 

Friend, my God can do anything.

I would not worship Him otherwise.

The resurrection is uniquely and exclus­ively a Divine work.

Only God can raise the dead.

But the priority and importance of the resurrection is revealed not only in the participants we find, but in

B.  The Persecution they faced.

Ladies and gentlemen, it is interesting that the very first persecution the early church faced was over this              matter of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Look in Acts 4.

READ Acts 4:1-2--

      "1 And as they spake unto the people, the priests, and the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees, came upon them,

      "2 Being grieved that they taught the people, and preached through Jesus the resurrection from the dead."

And from there they put them in prison.

What did Christianity matter to the Ro­man government if Jesus was dead and gone?

What did it matter to the Pharisees and the Sadducees?

You see, ladies and gentlemen, we are not in search of a historical Jesus and we do not preach just a historical Jesus.

We proclaim a living Lord reigning from His royal throne.

We proclaim a sovereign before whom every knee shall bow and every tongue confess.

And that message dear people is threatening to every person outside           the household of faith.

And it brought persecution.

Now, one last thing, and I'll be finished.

I would be amiss if I did not address

 IV. THE POWER OF THE RESURRECTION.

Paul's great desire was,

      "That I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings."[1] (Phil. 3:10)

What is the power of the resurrection?

      What does it do for us?

What does all this mean to us?

Well, and quickly, now, the resurrection, first of all,

A.  Validates the life of Christ for Us.

This is why I said that the resurrection is the most powerful and most important miracle ever performed.

The Sadducees knew that the resurrection of Jesus Christ was a bigger threat to them than the entire earthly ministry of our Lord.

Because if there is no resurrection, then it doesn't matter what Jesus did on earth.

But if there is a resurrection, then everything Jesus did is validated.

It proves that Jesus is the God He clai­med to be and that He has power over death.

What good is it to know that Jesus died if He didn't conquer death?

That's why Paul said, "If Christ be not raised, you are yet in your sins."

But not only does the resurrection validate the life of Christ for us, but it

B. Vitalizes the Life of Christ In Us.

Paul said that his great desire was what? (Phil. 3:10)

      "That I may know him, and the power of His resurrection."

He goes on to say in Colossians that it is Christ in us that is our hope of glory.

In other words, the only hope you have of ever being all that God wants you to be is Christ in you.

And if Christ is not raised, then He isn't in you.

Now how does that work?

Turn quickly to Ephesians 6 and I'll   show you.

READ Eph. 6:10-18.

God is speaking about victory and standing against the wiles of the devil.

And he says in v. 14 that we are to have our loins girt about with truth.

      What truth if there is no resurrection?

He says we are to have on the breastplate of righteousness.

What righteousness?

The Bible says that the only righteousness we have is that which Jesus gives us and we don't have that if He's still in the grave.

Then in v. 15 we are to have our feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace.

Do I have to say it?

      What gospel without the resurrection?

In v. 16 he says, above all, taking the shield of faith.

What faith w/o the resurrection.

V. 17--the helmet of salvation.

The apostle said, "If Christ be not raised ye are dead and yet in

      your sins.

Then he said take the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.

Friend, if there is no resurrection, then the Word of God is wrong!

In v. 18 he says,

      "Praying with all prayer..."

Who you gonna pray to if there is no resurrection?

Who you gonna call?

And finally he says in v. 18,

      "And watching thereunto with all perseverance..."

Watching for what?

For the return of our Lord and Savior--I mean He is raised.

He has to be somewhere. 

And he promised to return and take me with him.

And that means I'm going to be raised too.

Because it is the resurrection of Jesus Christ that guarantees the resurrection of His children.

And I'm His child.

That means I'm going to get some stuff.

I'm looking forward to that.

I'm going to get a new body.

Maybe some hair--

      Once I thought that if my hair gets any thinner I'd grow a beard, but then I figured some folks might think I had my head on upside down.

Maybe I won't look like a celestial Pillsbury Doughboy.

I'm not only going to get some stuff,             but I'm going to lose some stuff.

I'm going to lose this old nature.

Bless God, there won't be anything in me that's displeasing to my Lord.

"No more sorrow;

      No more pain.

All through my Lord in me will be gain."

      "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is." (1 J. 3:2)

      For "When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory."

Amen and Amen!

----

                [1] τοῦ γνῶναι αὐτὸν καὶ τὴν δύναμιν τῆς ἀναστάσεως αὐτοῦ καὶ [τὴν] κοινωνίαν [τῶν] παθημάτων αὐτοῦ…