The Resurrection of Jesus Christ    

Jim Thomas, Senior Pastor

Matthew 28:1-15

  • v. 1-10:  The trembling joy of the first eyewitnesses to the resurrection of Jesus Christ
  • v. 11-15:  The fearful coverup of the resurrection of Jesus by the unbelieving religious leaders

A contrast of fears:

  • “And the guards shook for fear of him [the angel], and became like dead men.” (Matthew 28:4)
  • “And they [the women] departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy and ran to report it to His disciples.” (Matthew 28:8)

Notice the three commands of the angel (v. 5-7) sitting on the stone at the site of the resurrection of Jesus:

  • “Do not fear.”
  • “Come and see.”
  • “Go and tell.”

As we learn to tremble at the right things, we may also learn to rejoice in the right things.

We need to believe the Lord when He says, “Do not be afraid.”

We need to “come and see” by reminding ourselves over and over again of God’s faithfulness.

We need to “go and tell” others about the power of Christ at work in our midst.

Why is the resurrection important? 

Memorial acclamation:

Christ has died.
Christ is risen.
Christ will come again.

“The New Testament without the miracles would be far easier to believe. But the trouble is, it would not be worth believing.” 
– J. Gresham Machen, Christianity and Liberalism

“Never was there a fact which the friends of God were so slow to believe as the resurrection of Christ; never was there a fact which the enemies of God were so anxious to disprove. Yet, in spite of the unbelief of friends and the enmity of foes, the fact was thoroughly established. Its evidences will always appear to a fair and impartial mind unanswerable.” 
– J.C. Ryle

Evidence for the resurrection:

  1. The medical evidence 
  2. The empty tomb 
  3. The hundreds of eyewitnesses 
  4. The transformation of the disciples
  5. The wildfire-like spread of Christianity

The Post-Resurrection Appearances:

  1. Mary Magdalene  (John 20:11)
  2. The other women  (Matthew 28:9-10)
  3. Peter  (Luke 24:34)
  4. Disciples on the road to Emmaus  (Luke 24:13-32)
  5. Ten apostles  (Luke 24:33-49)
  6. Thomas and the other apostles  (John 20:26-30)
  7. Seven apostles  (John 21)
  8. All the apostles  (Matthew 28:16-20)
  9. All the apostles  (Acts 1:4-9)
  10. 500 people  (1 Corinthians 15:6)
  11. James   (1 Corinthians 15:7)
  12. Paul   (1 Corinthians 15:7)

What difference does the resurrection of Jesus make for us?

“Science is the description of how God chooses to work most of the time. But He is sovereign, and He can choose to work in any way He likes. And there are special times and places where He will behave differently — the most important one being the resurrection of Jesus. We know that dead bodies don’t come back to life according to science. And yet Christianity is built on the observation that Jesus came back to life. And I’m very happy to say that at that special moment, God was acting differently.”
– Russell Cowburn, Professor of Experimental Physics, Cambridge

“The message of the resurrection is that this world matters! That the injustices and pains of this present world must now be addressed with the news that healing, justice and love have won… If Jesus Christ is truly risen from the dead, Christianity becomes good news for the whole world – news which warms our hearts precisely because it isn’t just about warming hearts. Easter means that in a world where injustice, violence and degradation are endemic, God is not prepared to tolerate such things.” 
– N.T. Wright

“Resurrection means that the worst thing is never the last thing.”
– Frederick Buechner

“The resurrection, the Great Reversal, brings us both the power and the pattern for living life now connected to God’s future new creation.” 
– Timothy Keller, Hope in Times of Fear

“The Cross, His cross and ours, is not the end of the story! The kingdom is coming and one day His Easter, His glorious resurrection will also be ours!” 
– Malcolm Guite, Parable and Paradox

The transforming power of the resurrection and of the Gospel is all wrapped up in the person and work of Jesus Christ. 

Who will roll away your stone?

Who will you trust in life and in death?

Who will you trust with your eternal destiny?

How do you respond to Jesus Christ?

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