Resurrection Realities (2)

Mark 16:1-8 New King James Version

Mark 16:1 Now when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, that they might come and anoint Him.

· Mark 15:40 There were also women looking on from afar, among whom were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the Less and of Joses, and Salome,

· Mark 15:46 Then he bought fine linen, took Him down, and wrapped Him in the linen. And he laid Him in a tomb which had been hewn out of the rock, and rolled a stone against the door of the tomb.

· Mark 15:47 And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses observed where He was laid.

Mark 16:2 Very early in the morning, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen.

Mark 16:3 And they said among themselves, “Who will roll away the stone from the door of the tomb for us?”

Mark 16:4 But when they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away—for it was very large.

Mark 16:5 And entering the tomb, they saw a young man clothed in a long white robe sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed.

· Matthew 28:2 And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it.

Mark 16:6 But he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid Him.

Mark 16:7 But go, tell His disciples—and Peter—that He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him, as He said to you.”

Mark 16:8 So they went out quickly and fled from the tomb, for they trembled and were amazed. And they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.

Six Realities of the Resurrection of Jesus:

1. The Resurrection is Historically Reliable because of Her Story.

a. Women as witnesses; testimony not accepted in a court of law.

b. The failure of disciples – why didn’t they come to the tomb.

c. The failure of the women to go and tell.

i. Mark 16:8 So they went out quickly and fled from the tomb, for they trembled and were amazed. And they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.

d. The change in the day of worship: Saturday (Sabbath) versus Sunday (the Lord’s Day).

i. Mark 16:2 Very early in the morning, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen.

2. The Resurrection Breaks the BarriersBetween God and Us.

a. Mark 16:3 And they said among themselves, “Who will roll away the stone from the door of the tomb for us?”

b. Mark 16:4 But when they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away—for it was very large.

3. The Resurrection is the Basisof the Good News.

a. Mark 16:6 But he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid Him.

b. 1 Corinthians 15:1 Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand,

c. 1 Corinthians 15:2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.

d. 1 Corinthians 15:3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,

e. 1 Corinthians 15:4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,

f. 1 Corinthians 15:5 and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve.

g. 1 Corinthians 15:6 After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep.

h. 1 Corinthians 15:7 After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles.

i. Romans 4:25 who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.

4. The Resurrection Offers Hope for the Hopeless.

a. Mark 16:7 But go, tell His disciples—and Peter—that He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him, as He said to you.”

b. Mark 14:27 Then Jesus said to them, “All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for it is written: ‘I will strike the Shepherd, And the sheep will be scattered.’

c. Mark 14:28 “But after I have been raised, I will go before you to Galilee.”

d. Mark 14:29 Peter said to Him, “Even if all are made to stumble, yet I will not be.”

e. Mark 14:30 Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you that today, even this night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times.”

f. Mark 14:31 But he spoke more vehemently, “If I have to die with You, I will not deny You!” And they all said likewise.

g. Mark 14:66 Now as Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came.

h. Mark 14:67 And when she saw Peter warming himself, she looked at him and said, “You also were with Jesus of Nazareth.”

i. Mark 14:68 But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you are saying.” And he went out on the porch, and a rooster crowed.

j. Mark 14:69 And the servant girl saw him again, and began to say to those who stood by, “This is one of them.”

k. Mark 14:70 But he denied it again. And a little later those who stood by said to Peter again, “Surely you are one of them; for you are a Galilean, and your speech shows it.”

l. Mark 14:71 Then he began to curse and swear, “I do not know this Man of whom you speak!”

m. Mark 14:72 A second time the rooster crowed. Then Peter called to mind the word that Jesus had said to him, “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times.” And when he thought about it, he wept.

n. Mark 16:7 But go, tell His disciples—and Peter—that He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him, as He said to you.”

5. The Resurrection Proves that Jesus KeepsHis Word.

a. Mark 16:7 But go, tell His disciples—and Peter—that He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him, as He said to you.”

b. Mark 14:28 “But after I have been raised, I will go before you to Galilee.”

c. In accordance with Jesus’ predictions (Mark 8:31; 9:31; 10:34), He was buried for three calendars days: the end of 15 Nisan, the entirety of 16 Nisan, and the beginning of 17 Nisan.[1]

i. Mark 8:31 And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.

ii. Mark 9:31 For He taught His disciples and said to them, “The Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of men, and they will kill Him. And after He is killed, He will rise the third day.”

iii. Mark 10:33 “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and to the scribes; and they will condemn Him to death and deliver Him to the Gentiles;

iv. Mark 10:34 and they will mock Him, and scourge Him, and spit on Him, and kill Him. And the third day He will rise again.”

6. The Resurrection Invites Us to Into the Story.

a. Mark 16:8 So they went out quickly and fled from the tomb, for they trembled and were amazed. And they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.

i. First an ending with references to trembling, bewilderment, flight, and fear is not surprising or out of place as many have thought because Mark previously recorded similar reactions when people observed the power of God being manifested in Jesus. In 1:22 the people were “amazed” at Jesus’ teaching, in 1:27 because of an exorcism, and in 2:12 because of the healing of the paralytic. In 4:41 the disciples were “terrified” as a result of Jesus’ calming of the storm. In 5:15 the people “were afraid” because Jesus had expelled the legion of demons from the wild man of Gerasa and had let them go into the pigs. In 5:33 the woman who had been healed of the hemorrhage confessed with trembling and fear. In 5:42 the disciples and the girl’s parents were “astonished” at her resurrection. In 6:51 the disciples were “completely amazed” when Jesus walked on the water. In 9:15 the people “where overwhelmed with wonder” when they saw Jesus. In 9:32 the disciples “were afraid” to ask Jesus about his prediction of death and resurrection. In 10:32 they “were astonished” and “afraid” because he was determined to go to Jerusalem. In 11:18 the chief priests and scribes “feared” Jesus because the crowd “was amazed” at his teaching. In 12:17 the Pharisees and Herodians “were amazed” at his teaching about giving to Caesar and God what is theirs. In 14:50, 52 the disciples “deserted him and fled,” and the young man “fled naked.” In 15:5–6 Pilate “was amazed” that Jesus made no reply. And in 16:5–6 the same women as in v. 8 “were alarmed.” (In ten of the preceding instances he used a verb that is cognate to one of the nouns in 16:8; in the other instances he used synonyms.)[2]

1. Mark 9:6 because he did not know what to say, for they were greatly afraid.

b. Mark had a definite purpose in his ending. He apparently wanted an open ending to indicate that the story was not complete but was continuing beyond the time he wrote. He wanted his readers/hearers to continue the story in their own lives. By stating that the women told no one, he challenged his readers/hearers to assume the responsibility of telling the good news to everyone.[3]

c. Mark 16:15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.

d. Mark 16:16 He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.

Romans 10:9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

[1] John D. Barry et al., Faithlife Study Bible (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012, 2016), Mk 16:2. [2]James A. Brooks, Mark, vol. 23, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1991), 274. [3]James A. Brooks, Mark, vol. 23, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1991), 275.