The Evidence of the Empty Tomb

The Three possible Outcomes of the Tomb Being Empty

No one disputes that the tomb is empty.

The easiest way to stop the spread of Christianity would be to simply show the tomb as being occupied.

Even the Jews don’t dispute the fact that the tomb is empty.

Theory Number 1: The Jews or Romans Stole the Body.

The Jews did not want the body of Jesus to be stollen by the Disciples so that they can hide it and say that Christ did in fact rise from the dead.

Many of the sects of Judaism did not believe in a physical resurrection of the body.

Just to be 100% sure that the movement would end here and not go any further they wanted to be in complete control of the body and the situation.

As soon as the word about Jesus being raised from the dead started to spread all they would have to do would be to present the body and say no we have the body.

Theory Number 2: The Disciples Stole the Body.

This would be the easiest explanation as to what happened to the body of Jesus.

But this can be simple to explain why this did not happen.

12 of the 13 Apostles (counting Paul) died as a martyr for Christ.

These were not easy or in most cases quick deaths.

Most suffered horribly and took a long time to die.

The simple fact is that no one no matter how committed they are to a cause will die that horrible of a death for a lie.

Someone would have given up the truth and location of the body at some point.

Theory Number 3: Jesus Actually Rose from the Dead.

This is the only theory that makes sense.

If the Romans or the Jews had the body they would have produced it to stop the spread of Christianity.

If the disciples had taken it someone would have gave up the body instead of dying.

Or it actually happened.

The Reactions of the People who Came to the Tomb.

John and Peter

Neither John nor Peter expected the tomb to be empty.

How could these guys of traveled with Jesus for 3 years and not understand the main reason that He (Jesus) had come to earth?

They even saw Him raise someone else from the dead.

This is how radical the Resurrection was.

It was the full power of God the Father on display for everyone to see.

Peter

Was the the second to arrive at the tomb but the first to go in.

This is not surprising as Peter often jumped into situations without looking.

It does not say what Peter actually thought had happened at this time.

John

John was the first to arrive at the tomb.

He did not go in as Peter did right away.

When he did go in he found evidence that made him believe.

It was the fact that the head covering was folded laying away from the rest of the linen.

(speak on the prep of the body for burial)

Mary Magdalene

Mary also had no thought of a resurrection.

She thought someone moved the body.

The testimony of a women was not highly regarded in this time in history.

If someone were making up this story it would have been a man that made the discovery.

After the 2 disciples went back to where the others were gathered up Mary was left at the tomb by herself and as she looked into the tomb she saw 2 angels sitting where the body had been laying.

(speak on the symbolism of this as it relates to the ark of the covenant)

When Mary sees Jesus for the first time she does not know that she is talking to Jesus she thinks he is a gardener.

But when He says her name she knows who He is.

This goes back to His teachings where He says “my sheep know my name”

This was the first moment of understanding about what was truly going on and the power of the cross.

The most significant part of this story is that Jesus showed Himself for the first time after the Resurrection was to Mary a women.

It was by a women that sin entered the world and it was a women that saw the solution for sin.

Conclusion

Some of our longings go deeper than our ability to put them into words.

We have pre-reflective desires, pre-conceptual yearnings, things that we love and long for at the gut level, before we ever start thinking about them.

These longings and yearnings are usually connected to our ideas about the good life, about the way we would like things to be.

To have the standing before God the Father that Jesus himself has is precisely one of these pre-reflective desires, an ultimate one.

For the risen Lord Jesus to say these words—that those who turn from their sin and trust him are his brothers, that they have the standing before the Father that he himself has, and that the Father is his Father and their Father—operates at a level that arguments cannot penetrate.

These statements are meant to grab us by the gut, to connect with us at a visceral level, to show us that we are accepted, that we are family

Benedictions 003 Benediction

003 BENEDICTION

May the God who shouted, Moab is my washbasin,

Upon Edom I toss my sandal,

Over Philistia I shout in triumph.

Lead you to always triumph in Christ

And spread through you everywhere,

The fragrance of the knowledge of Him.