When Fear Can't Help But Give Way

Easter is the most important day in history, the pinnacle of God’s plan to redeem people from sin through Jesus Christ. In this session, we will explore the resurrection of Jesus from Matthew’s account. Jesus’ arrest, crucifixion, and death prompted great fear in His disciples, but we will see that when they encountered the risen Christ, that fear gave way to belief, joy, and obedience. The resurrection of Jesus offers the same to us today.

Session Outline

++1. Fear gives way to belief because of the empty tomb (Matt. 28:1-6).

++2. Fear gives way to joy because of the empty tomb (Matt. 28:7-8).

++3. Fear gives way to obedience because of the empty tomb (Matt. 28:9-10).

Session in a Sentence

The resurrection of Jesus Christ enables us to put fear behind us as we believe in and respond to Him.

++Trusting God’s promise will always show itself worthy of our trust.

Christ Connection

Jesus rose from the dead just as He said He would, proving that He is the Son of God and worthy of our worship. When we believe that Jesus died and rose again, we are brought into God’s family and can joyfully serve Him.

Missional Application

Because we can see and believe in God’s fulfilled promise for Israel and the world through Jesus Christ, we can put fear to rest through faith as we see Him fulfill His promise to us.

Ask this question:

If your faith puts your fear to rest, why do we struggle with wanting to share that with others who still live in fear of their present lives, or even fear of their future?

Because we trust Jesus rose from the dead to provide salvation, we should put fear behind us and joyfully obey our calling to tell others about the resurrected Savior.

DDG (p. 75)

For many of us, the story of the resurrection of Jesus is quite familiar, perhaps even too familiar. However, our goal is not merely to understand the details of this story; it is for this story to change us. The resurrection of Jesus is at the heart of the gospel, a gospel that is designed to move us from death to life. The problem, then, is not that we have heard this story too much; if anything, this is a story we need to hear and share more often.

· Jesus was betrayed and wrongly convicted as a criminal in a mockery of a trial. He was beaten, whipped, and disrobed. Thorns were twisted together into a crown for Jesus’ head, piercing His forehead and mocking His claims to be the King of kings. Iron spikes were driven through His hands and feet, fixing Him to a cross, and then He was lifted up, a spectacle for all to see.

· After Jesus gave up His last breath, He dangled lifeless on the cross. As evening approached and the Sabbath loomed, a secret disciple named Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for Jesus’ body and was given permission to place the Messiah’s corpse in his own tomb. A large stone was rolled in front of the opening, and the next day a seal was placed upon it and Roman soldiers assigned to guard it. This was one of the darkest moments the world had ever seen. But the sun still rose on Sunday morning, and so did the Son.

Christ’s resurrection is one of the most important days in history, the pinnacle of God’s plan to redeem people from sin in fulfillment of His millennia-old promise to Abraham and even as far back as Adam and Eve.

From Matthew’s account, Jesus’ arrest, crucifixion, and death prompted great fear in His disciples, but when they encountered the risen Christ, that fear gave way to belief, joy, and obedience. The resurrection of Jesus offers the same to us today because God wants every generation of humanity to know that trusting God’s promise will always show itself worthy of our trust.

Point 1: Fear gives way to belief because of the empty tomb (Matt. 28:1-6).

Ask DDG (p. 76).

What are things people are afraid of?

Common fears or phobias include the dark, tight spaces, heights, spiders, public speaking, and needles. Others might be letting other people down, failing, being alone, financial issues, relationship issues and so on. But there is one fear that is unavoidable, one that everyone must face: the fear of death, that of ourselves and of others. This is why the gospel is good news: Jesus is removing the sting of death for all who believe in Him.

Read: Ask a volunteer to read Matthew 28:1-6 (DDG p. 76).

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.

DDG (p. 76)

Imagine yourself in an earthquake; that would be frightening enough. But then picture an angel coming down from heaven before your very eyes. The elite Roman soldiers did not attack, run back to Pilate, or call for backup. Instead, they were overcome by fear—angel-phobia—and they collapsed. The women likely would have collapsed as well but for the angel’s glorious message of victory, a message to calm their fears—Jesus is alive!

When we say, “Jesus is alive,” we aren’t being metaphorical. The Son of God humbled Himself and took on flesh so He could die in the body to atone for the sins in our bodies, and He had to rise again in the body in order to be our justification before God (Rom. 4:25). Therefore, “Jesus is alive” means Jesus right now is living and breathing in a physical, resurrection body, securing forever our eternal life in our future resurrection bodies.

Fill in the blanks: DDG (p. 76)

Christ’s Humiliation: God the Son came in the likeness of sinful flesh, and He experienced a humiliating death on a cross by becoming sin for us so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.

Essential Doctrine “Christ’s Humiliation”: Although God the Son was equal with God and worthy of all the glory God receives, He chose to humble Himself by taking on human flesh. He left His glorious state and came in the likeness of sinful flesh (Rom. 8:3), and He experienced a humiliating death on a cross (Phil. 2:6-8) by becoming sin for us so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Cor. 5:21).

DDG (p. 76)

The depth of Christ’s humiliation followed by the emptiness of the tomb reminds us of the fullness of God’s power and the unstoppable nature of His plan’s promises.

Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection is evidence enough to see God’s unflinching devotion to His glory and our good.

So we believe, and it’s God’s faithful character that gives our faith its power.

The object, not the caliber, of our faith casts aside our fears.

· If Jesus didn’t rise from the dead, we should stop this study immediately.

A still-dead Jesus doesn’t change anyone or anything. If Jesus is a pile of bone dust somewhere in Jerusalem, then He was a sham, a crook, and His name should be scrubbed from history.

· In the Gospels, Jesus said He is God, He’s the only way to be saved, the Old Testament is about Him, and He would rise from the dead on the third day—His resurrection validates all of these claims. So how will we respond to the resurrected Savior?

Ask the following question.

How should the resurrection of Jesus affect the way we live?

(we should look at our good deeds not as earning our salvation but as the overflow of a grateful heart for our salvation bought by Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection; our actions should mirror those of Christ, who lived to please God the Father; we should cherish the Word of God more and more; our fears should diminish because even the fear of death is losing its sting for those who believe)

Diminished fear is a reason to cause great joy.

Point 2: Fear gives way to joy because of the empty tomb (Matt. 28:7-8).

Read Matthew 28:7-8 (DDG p. 77).

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.

DDG (p. 77)

Moments before this encounter with the angel, the women had been heading to the tomb expecting to anoint a dead body and continue their grieving process. But their grief was short-circuited. The Lord was living again and moving. In an instant, their sorrow had turned into great joy.

Joy is and should be the only right response to Jesus’ resurrection.

· Disbelief: You don’t have to fear that God will not accept you. The cross and the empty tomb bear witness to God’s heart for all sinners to come to repentance (2 Pet. 3:9). The cross shows Jesus’ love for us. The empty tomb shows the power of that love.

· Apathy and Curiosity: Everything hinges on the empty tomb. In 1 Corinthians 15:17, the apostle Paul was clear: If Jesus is still dead, then we are still dead in our sins. But since there isn’t a corpse of Christ, those who believe are alive in Him, forgiven of their sins, and condemnation no longer remains because Christ undid death. This is curious to consider, but curiosity is only appropriate as it leads to the joy of belief.

· Joy: The blessings of the gospel—forgiveness of sin, new life, no condemnation, adoption, righteousness, and so much more—are all bundled together in the resurrected Christ to those who believe. But above all, our salvation is about being with Christ, who loves us, and just as His death was not the end for Him, nor will our death be the end for us. This is our source of unending joy.

The second paragraph in the DDG (p. 77)

The angel told the women not to fear, but then the women left with joy and fear. It seems they were not able to rid themselves of all their fear, although joy was beginning to overshadow it. The proper fear of God is not a fear of what God could do to us to judge our sin but respect and honor for what He has done for us to forgive our sin in Christ Jesus. This joy and fear leads to faithful obedience.

· A Literal Fear of Something or Someone: This is likely what we think of with respect to fear. In this account, the Roman soldiers and the women were afraid of the angel—of his appearance, at least, and likely an intuitive awareness of the power and authority given to him by God.

Likewise, there is a sense in which we fear God in this way: we fear His holiness, His judgment, His power. We can see this throughout Scripture, notably when someone was in the presence of God, such as Isaiah (see Isa. 6:1-7). This fear is right and proper when apart from Christ. But in Christ, we no longer need to fear God in this way (see Heb. 4:14-16; Rom. 8:1-2).

· A Healthy Fear of God Himself: The second type of fear the Bible speaks of takes the place of a literal fear as it leaves. The “fear of the Lord,” as it is often called, is a keen awareness of His character that forces us to take Him seriously, to give Him the glory due Him, to love and respect Him.

We also see this fear spoken of throughout Scripture: The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge (Prov. 1:7); God gives mercy to those who fear Him (Luke 1:50); we are to work out our salvation with fear and trembling (Phil. 2:12-13); we are commanded to fear God (1 Pet. 2:17); the early church was built up as it lived in the fear of the Lord and was encouraged by the Holy Spirit (Acts 9:31).

Ask the following question.

How can we grow in our joy and fear of the Lord?

(first, we must believe in the resurrected Savior; we dwell upon the Word of God; we must constantly reflect upon the good news of the gospel; we can share the gospel with others to see them saved)j

As we grow in our joy and healthy fear of the Lord, we should and do experience greater motivation to live in obedience to Him.

Point 3: Fear gives way to obedience because of the empty tomb (Matt. 28:9-10).

Though the women had a mix of fear and joy in their hearts, joy won the day, and so they went. Their joy in the report about the risen Jesus propelled them forward in obedience, but this was just the beginning. Before they could tell anyone, they met someone else along the way.

Read Matthew 28:9-10 (DDG p. 78).

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.”

DDG (p. 78)

The two women didn’t get far before their meeting with the angel was eclipsed in wonder and splendor. The two women came face-to-face, which became face-to-foot, with the risen Christ. The empty tomb announced by the angel had been compelling evidence of the resurrection, but this brief encounter with Jesus was undeniable proof. Jesus was alive! But they weren’t to linger, so He repeated their mission to go and tell. We have been given the same orders: “Don’t be afraid. Go tell others about Me.”

· Notice that Jesus did not tell the two women anything the angel had not told them already. Jesus’ words clarified that the angel had spoken on His behalf with His authority; in other words, the command the angel uttered—go and tell—was not his own but Christ’s.

· The two women couldn’t have been the same after what they saw and heard that early morning. Not only did their Sunday plans change, their lives changed. When we encounter the risen Christ in faith, when we trust in Him for salvation, we cannot go back to who we used to be. Through the gift of the Holy Spirit, the risen Christ has taken up residence within believers, and nothing can be the same (Gal. 2:20). We are a new creation, the old is gone and the new has come (2 Cor. 5:17).

· Because Jesus is alive, He has not only changed us, He has also given us a mission, part of the reason we are changed. We now live as His disciples, making much of Him, spreading His name to the ends of the earth. The no-longer-dead Jesus isn’t just good news for one people in one place at one time; it is for all people in all places for all of time.

Ask the following rhetorical question.

Where is the risen Jesus calling you to obedience to tell someone else about Him?

(be prepared to give an answer of your own to jump-start the conversation)

DDG (p. 78)

When the two women left the empty tomb and encountered the resurrected Jesus, they couldn’t help but worship Him. It seems that instinctively, spurred on by something deep within themselves, they fell at the nail-scarred feet of Jesus and exalted Him. Worship is the only reasonable response when the risen Savior calls out to us. However, this worship did not cease the moment they rose from the ground and continued on their way to find the disciples. Completing the mission given to them by Christ was, in itself, an act of worship as well.

Voices from the Church

“To magnify Jesus Christ is not literally to make Him bigger. His influence is already felt in three worlds: heaven, earth, and hell. Heaven is His throne, and the earth is His footstool. He fills the universe with His power. Rather, to magnify Christ … is to present Him in such a way that the hearers see Him in a more glorious, majestic, holy, sovereign, just, faithful, and mighty manner than they have ever seen Him before.” 1 –Robert Smith Jr.

(Robert Smith, Jr., Ph. D., The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, serves as Professor of Christian Preaching at Beeson Divinity School. Previously he served as the Carl E. Bates Associate Professor of Christian Preaching at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky).

Fill in the blanks: DDG (p. 78)

Obedience fueled by love and gratitude for who Christ is and what He has done is worship. It declares the majesty of the resurrected Christ and glorifies His name.

Ask the following question.

What is the relationship between worship and obedience?

(worship should fuel obedience; obedience should reinforce the proper motivation of worship; worship without obedience may not be worship at all; obedience without worship is most likely a self-glorifying act)

My Mission

On Good Friday, Jesus laid down His life and breathed His last to pay the penalty for sin—a penalty He did not owe but one He paid as a substitute for sinners. But then, on that blessed third day, He breathed again once more. Because of His cross and the empty tomb, our fears are conquered. Sin and death have been defeated, so our joy swells. And now we live by faith in the Son of God, obeying as an act of worship of our risen Savior, on mission to make much of Jesus by making disciples who make much of Jesus.

DDG (p. 79),

Because we trust Jesus rose from the dead to provide salvation, we put fear behind us and joyfully obey our calling to tell others about the resurrected Savior.

· How will you respond in faith to the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ?

· What are some ways your group can help one another turn your fears into belief, joy, and obedience because of Jesus’ empty tomb?

· What are some opportunities you have this week to address the fear of death in the world with the good news of our resurrected Savior, and how will you do so?

Close in prayer:

References

1. Robert Smith Jr., Doctrine That Dances (Nashville, TN: B&H, 2008), 25.

2. Charles L. Quarles, “Matthew,” in CSB Study Bible (Nashville, TN: B&H, 2017), 1553, n. 28:1.

3. “Matthew,” in Africa Study Bible (Oasis International, 2016), 1426.

4. Tom Wright, Simply Good News: Why the Gospel Is News and What Makes It Good (London: Society of Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2015) [eBook].

5. David Platt, Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary: Exalting Jesus in Matthew (Nashville: B&H, 2014) [Wordsearch].

6. Brian Wintle, “Matthew,” in South Asia Bible Commentary, gen. ed. Brian Wintle (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2015), 1284.

7. Michael J. Wilkins, “Matthew,” in ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2008), 1888, n. 28:9.