We know from our previous study of Matt. 27 that Jesus was dead and Joseph buried His body. Now in chapter 28 we learn that the grave was empty and the Lord Jesus is Aliv
Matthew 28:1-15 – The Truth of the Resurrection
On the first day of the week following His crucifixion the two Marys, Magdalene
and Mary of Bethany went to the tomb of Jesus. They went there to finish
the preparation of Jesus' body. They would have been very sad and
mourning His death. There was a violent earthquake and an angel of the
Lord came down, rolled back the stone, and sat on it. The stone wasn’t
rolled away to let Jesus out. He had
already risen before the angel came. The angel came only to open the tomb
so they could see that He was not there.
When the women arrived at the tomb, they saw an angel of the Lord and the stone
was rolled away. "His appearance was like
lightning, and his clothes were white as snow." - Matt. 28:3. Light is a sign of holiness and power that
comes from being in the presence of God. This may have given
comfort to the women, because it showed that something from God was
happening. The guards on the other hand were afraid and shook and became
like dead men (Matt. 28:4).
The angel told the women "He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples; 'He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.'" - Matt. 28:5-7. They should have expected this. This is what He promised.
We see God didn’t forsake Jesus,
death was conquered, and we have a living friend and High Priest in
Jesus. God remembered Him and gave Him the authority to raise Himself
from the dead. Jesus is the only person in history that physically arose
from the dead. The resurrection is the foundation and the center of our
Christian faith. Jesus is still risen
and has ascended into heaven and continues to reign as fully man and fully
God.
The women were the first witnesses of His resurrection. They were to go tell the good news quickly. God wants His people to be witnesses in actions and in words. He wanted to comfort His disciples and to know of His resurrection. The resurrection has to be accepted personally. The women hurried and obeyed the angel. They were afraid yet filled with joy. Then Jesus appeared to them as they were on their way. "They came to him, clasped his feet and worshipped Him." - Matt. 28:9.
Can you relate to their joy?
Do you see an urgency in telling others the good news?
Jesus repeated what the angel had
told them. They should not be afraid and to go tell the disciples to meet
Him in Galilee. Jesus wanted to meet them personally.
He wanted a one-to-one so He could lift their spirits and strengthen them.
The guards saw the angel and the miracle, but did not believe. Seeing
isn't always believing. Faith comes from God alone. Jesus'
resurrection is good news to some, but bad news to others. The guards
reported to the chief priests and elders what had happened. When they
heard this, they again were deceitful and devised a plan, a plan to cover it
up. They bribed the soldiers to say that the disciples stole the
body. They did as they were instructed. "And
this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day."
- Matt. 28:15.
The priests knew the truth of the resurrection, yet they rejected that
truth. Their cover-up showed their foolish pride and the darkness of
their souls. This lie is spread even today with people ignoring the
facts. Jesus rose from the dead. You can choose to believe it or
you can believe it’s a lie. By believing the resurrection there is
hope. By believing the lie leads to the end - death and eternal
suffering.
Resurrection is a huge thing to believe. Maybe you are not really sure
about it. Continue to read and study the Bible and God will reveal
Himself and the truth to you. Ask God to show you the truth and
strengthen your faith. We all fear death and we all will die
someday. The morality rate is 100%. We don't have to fear death, because
of what Jesus did. We try to eat right, exercise, wear seat belts and
helmets. But all this will not help, we will still die and we need to be
prepared for death. Jesus is the only one with a plan for death. We
need to listen to what He has to say. "If
you confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God
raised him from the dead, you will be saved." - Rom. 10:9.
What is the purpose of the
resurrection? Jesus
resurrection resulted in our justification.
Justification means that God now sees us as “not guilty”. He sees us as if we never sinned. His resurrection means that someday we will
be glorified meaning that we will live forever and receive the same
resurrection body that Christ received.
As Christians our faith is based on Scriptures and is our foundation. The
resurrection is the most excited event in life.
All the events in the Bible move toward God's relationship with humanity
that had been broken. Unlike any other religions of the world, it is
based on sacrificial atonement. All other religions’ founders lived,
died, and were buried. They did not rise to life again and are buried to
this day.
Joseph Smith, founder of the
Mormon faith was killed in 1844 and is buried in Illinois, Charles Russell,
founder of Jehovah Witness had a heart attack in 1916 and is buried in
Pittsburg; Mohammed, founder of Islam died in 632 and is buried in Saudi
Arabia; Ron Hubbard, founder of Scientology had a stroke in 1986 and was
cremated and his ashes scattered in the Pacific Ocean in California; Buddha
died at age 83 and was cremated and buried in Nepal. Only Jesus rose
from the dead and lives again.
Why should we believe Jesus came back to life? God planned for many people to witness that He was
alive. After His resurrection, the
soldiers saw the empty tomb. He appeared
to the two Marys. He appeared to the disciples several times. He talked
with them, ate food and some even touched Him. He appeared to
Peter. He appeared to 500 people at one time, believers and
unbelievers. He appeared to His half-brother, James who did not believe
Jesus was the Son of God until after the resurrection. He appeared to
Paul who hated and persecuted Christians (1 Cor.
15).
Many unbelievers have tried to disprove the resurrection. It is the most examined event in history. People like C. S. Lewis have written books trying to disprove it, but now believe. It cannot be disproved! Jesus is Alive! We must believe the evidence!
Do you believe the resurrection of Jesus?
Principle: The resurrection of Jesus gives us hope for
eternity.
Matthew 28:16-20 - The Great Commission
When the disciples met Jesus in Galilee, they worshipped Him. Some
doubted. He charged them to go and make disciples of all the
nations. "All authority in heaven and on
earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all
nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the
Holy Spirit, and teaching then to obey everything I have commanded you.
And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." - Matt. 28:18-20. No matter
what happens Jesus is in full control and they needed to trust Him and
obey. This is our great commission, too. We are to share the
gospel. We are to share it with all people no matter what the cultural,
racial, social, gender, or political barriers. They are to be baptized
with spiritual and physical baptism. Our action is proof of our
faith. He promises to always to be with us.
"What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who
can be against us?" - Rom.
8:31.
We can start with our friends and neighbors. A good place to start is
with the people we work with and see each day. God may even call you to
be a missionary to another country or He may call you to give financially so
others can go. We must decide what is the best way to tell others the
Good News. Jesus doesn't promise constant success, but He does encourage
us to expect results. But remember the results will be in His timing, not
ours. Jesus has the authority in heaven, on earth, over all people, over
us, and over our temptations. Now use that power and go tell
others. It may be hard, but we must go even if fearful. He promises
to always be with us. He will equip
you. Don't wait till you know all the answers. You never
will. You will be dead before that happens.
The disciples took the Lord’s command seriously. They went into the world and shared the Gospel and many were saved. Today there are 2.4 billion Christians in the world. 95% have never won a soul to Christ. 80% don’t consistently witness for Christ. Less than 2% are involved in the ministry of evangelism. 71% don’t give toward the financing of The Great Commission. There are those who have all kinds of excuse for not living up to their Christian responsibilities. Are you one of these people?
Principle: Jesus want every believer to tell the good news of salvation to all people.
The book of Matthew started with a baby. He was called
"Immanuel", meaning "God with us". Matthew
ends with Jesus' promise that He will always be with us.
This is a happy and joyous end to the study of Matthew. We have hope in
the life to come. Since this study is over, I will be posting my other
spiritual insights throughout the summer. I hope you will continue
following my blog. Then next fall BSF will begin with the study of The People
of the Promise Land 2. I will post on that starting in September.
May God continue to bless and keep you until He comes again. Have a great
summer and keep the faith, stay strong, and stand firm.
-- I encourage you to trust in Jesus.
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