Matthew 28:6 - Jesus Is Risen ! ! ! ! ! ! !
Matthew 28:6 - Jesus Is Risen ! ! ! ! ! ! !
Mat 28:6a (KJV) He is not here: for he is risen,
This simply stated fact is the basis of the Christian faith.
[Ryrie SB]
Christianity is the only religion whose founder has an empty
tomb. [unknown]
The best news the world ever had came from a graveyard. [Daily
Walk Bible]
Ten distinct resurrection appearances of Christ prior to His
ascension can be documented in Scripture (cf. also Mark 15:24; 1 Cor.
15:4). The order of those appearances follows: (1) to Mary Magdalene
near the tomb (John 20:11-18); (2) to the women returning from the
tomb (28:9, 10); (3) to Peter (Luke 24:34); (4) to the disciples
approaching Emmaus in the evening (Luke 24:13-32); (5) to all the disciples
except Thomas, who was absent (Luke 24:36-43); (6) to the disciples,
including Thomas, on Sunday night one week later (John 20:26-31); (7) to
seven disciples beside the Sea of Galilee (John 21:1-25); (8) to more
than 500 people possibly on an appointed mountain in Galilee
(28:16-20; possibly parallels 1 Cor. 15:6); (9) to James the half brother
of Jesus (1 Cor. 15:7); and (10) to the apostles at the ascension
(Acts 1:3-11). [Believer's SB]
All four Gospels give an account of Jesus' resurrection (vv.
1-10; Mark 16:1-18; Luke 24:1-12; John 20:1-29). Moreover the rest of
the New Testament speaks with a tremendous sense of confidence about
an empty tomb and the triumph of Christ over death.
And no wonder. If true, the resurrection is the most amazing
news the world has ever heard. It means there is a God after all. It
means that Jesus really is Gods Son. It means that Christ is
alive--today--and we can know Him and be touched by His life and power. It means
that we need not fear death the way we once did; we are not destined
to oblivion but to spend eternity with God. It also means that
knowing God is of the utmost importance right now,...
These are important implications, so the question of whether
Jesus actually rose from the dead is crucial. At least four lines of
evidence indicate that He did:
(1) Jesus really was dead. Every source we have indicates
that Jesus was publicly executed before large crowds. He was
certified as dead by both a centurion in charge of the execution--a
professional whose job it was to determine that death had taken place--and by
the regional governor, Pilate, who sent to have the matter checked.
(2) The tomb was found empty. Jesus' enemies would have been
the least likely to have stolen the body. Even if they had, they
would certainly have produced it later to refute the claims of the
disciples that Jesus was alive. What about Jesus' friends? Unlikely, since
the accounts show them to have been very demoralized after the
crucifixion. Nor would they have willingly suffered persecution and death for
what they knew to be a lie.
(3) Jesus appeared after His death to many witnesses. In a
garden, on a road, in an upstairs room, by a lake--over a period of forty
days.
(4) Countless people have encountered the living Jesus and
been changed by Him. The resurrection is not simply a matter of
intellectual curiosity or theological argument, but of personal experience.
From the first century to today there have been innumerable people
who have turned from being totally opposed or indifferent to
Christianity to being utterly convinced that it is true. What changed them?
They met the living Jesus. He has invited them to respond to Him in
faith and challenged them to live according to His way. Jesus is as
alive now as He was that first Easter morning. He still invites people
to know Him today. [Word In Life SB mod]
A variety of lines of evidence make it very clear that Jesus did
rise from the dead.
1. The Old Testament predicts Christ's resurrection: Ps.
16:10 says, "You will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let
your Holy One see decay."
2. Jesus predicted the Resurrection: In Deut. 18 the OT
establishes a principle: prophets are authenticated as God's messengers when
the things they predict actually--and always--happen.... when prediction
and fulfillment are linked, there is no mistaking the hand of God.
True prophets never erred. Thus the fact that the Gospels record
frequent statements by Jesus that He would be killed by His enemies and
would rise again after the third day is significant. In fact, each
time Christ spoke of His death He also promised that He would rise
again. Thus the Resurrection is a foretold event, and a clear link
between prediction and fulfillment is established, giving added
credibility to the resurrection report.
3. The reaction of Jesus' enemies: Clearly, if the members of
the Sanhedrin who had arranged Christ's death could have disproved
the Resurrection, they surely would have. How? Simply produce the
body! If the Sanhedrin really thought the disciples had "stolen"
Christ's corpse, as the rumor they started suggests, they were fully
empowered to arrest the disciples and to force them to reveal where the
body lay. Yet there was no attempt to do anything of the sort! The
utter failure of the Jewish leaders to stifle the resurrection
report--In view of the eagerness of the Jewish leaders to squelch the Jesus
movement, we must take their failure to show the Resurrection to be a hoax
as strong evidence that it was not a hoax at all, but actually
happened.
4. The transformation of the disciples: One of the most
powerful reasons for accepting the Resurrection as a fact of history is
the reaction of Jesus' disciples to Christ's death and resurrection.
Jesus' death stunned His followers, dashed their hopes, and left them
in despair...Then, suddenly, we see a group of men who with great
enthusiasm and conviction announce that Christ is risen, and who dedicate
their lives to bringing this message to the world. If these men became
rich or famous by proclaiming Christ, as some who have invented
religions, we might question their motives. But instead of fame the
apostles of Jesus gave up hope of worldly wealth, suffered rejection and
persecution, and despite the most terrible hardships felt only delight in
their privilege of serving Jesus. It is simply unimaginable that this
could have taken place unless the disciple were totally convinced that
Jesus was truly the Son of God, and was truly risen from the dead.
5. The Gospels: There is unmistakable evidence that the
Gospels were written within a few decades of the events the authors
describe, well within the lifetimes of those who claim to have been
eyewitnesses. And well within the lifetimes of others, both friend and foe,
who would surely have known if the reports of Jesus' activities were
false! The notion that the story of Jesus and His resurrection could be
a fable is absurd on its face, for without a basis in fact, the
stories would have been immediately contradicted within Palestine, no
vital church would have been formed. [Victor Bible Background
Commentary mod]
If His body were stolen, it was stolen by either friends or
enemies. If by enemies, they would have produced it and silenced the
disciples. If by friends, they would not have willingly given their lives
for a lie, and His friends did not even believe that He would rise
from the dead! [Wiersbe Expository Outlines]
Jesus only went into the tomb to prove He could come out.
[Inspirational SB]
Jesus rose revealing for the first time God's power over death
and the certainty of eternal life. [Disciple SB]
The stone was not rolled away to allow Christ to come out; it
was rolled away to allow men to look in and see that He was gone!
[Wiersbe Expository Outlines]
There is something peculiarly fitting in that Mary Magdalene and
the other Mary should be the first to receive the news of the Risen
Lord and to encounter him. They had been there at the Cross; they had
been there when he was laid in the tomb; and now they were receiving
love's reward; they were the first to know the joy of the Resurrection.
[Barclay Commentary]
We must admire these women for their devotion to Christ. God
rewarded their love by allowing them to see the empty tomb and hear the
message of the Resurrection from the angel. [Wiersbe Expository
Outlines]
I will never forget the day that I looked into the tomb. It
changed my whole ministry. It came to me that my Savior was really
alive, that His work on the cross for sinners so satisfied divine
justice and divine character and divine righteousness, that I would
never see my sins again. God raised Him from the dead as a guarantee
to me personally that death has no more authority over the man in
Christ. It has been shorn of its power.... At the cross we see His
love, but in resurrection we see His power. We've been joined to a
risen Savior. That is why the apostles gave witness with such great
power in the book of Acts. Paul stood before Felix, before Festus,
before Agrippa, before the Sanhedrin, before the philosophers of
Athens, and before the corrupt Corinthians with only one message. He
preached the risen Christ.... The cross is a tragedy if there is no
resurrection Would to God that His people would continually rejoice that our
Savior is alive forevermore. John G. Mitchell [Time with God SB]
"The King is dead; long live the King."
With those words, many a monarch has passed from the scene,
only to be succeeded by another. But in the case of Christ, the King
of the Jews, the phrase takes on added significance.
Never before had a king died only to succeed himself to the
throne. But Christ did. Never before had a man been crucified and buried
only to emerge bodily three days later. But Christ did. Never before
had a man endured such human hatred in order to demonstrate such
divine love. But the Son of Man did.
No other event in human history could be so aptly described
as "old, yet ever new." No other single piece of good news has
brought more comfort, more encouragement, more peace to more people than
the ringing declaration, "He is risen!" From memory, or with the aid
of a hymnal, sing a few of the grand songs of Easter ("He Lives,"
"Christ the Lord Is Risen Today," "He Arose"). You'll find that in
October--or any time of the year--Easter is only a song away when you know
the One whom death could not keep in the tomb! [Daily Walk Bible]
The power of the resurrection is the power of personal
regeneration.... Resurrection is not just a passport to heaven, but a power to
change us now. Paul says he wants to know Christ and the power of his
resurrection. The two are the same. To know Christ today is to come under the
influence of the same power that raised Him from the dead. What a cruel
thing an example is without the power to live it. Christ is the best
of all examples, but more than that, He can come within us and give
us His own Spirit to fulfill the example. The result is we actually
become like Him, we are able to do the things He did, and most of all,
we are able to love as He loved. Lloyd Ogilvie [Time with God SB]
LINKS TO SOME SPECIAL EASTER SONGS:
Hallelujah, Jesus is alive! By Keith Green.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Q7s0VJG7ts
He's Alive by David Phelps & Gaither Vocal Band
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYoZY9AEras
Christ the Lord Is Risen Today by The Brookwood Praise Choir
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XveIGmAUdkQ
I've Just Seen Jesus by Sandi Patti & Larnelle Harris
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yLgtd_kkxw
Because He Lives by Gaithers
http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=0J910CNU
More Than Wonderful, Lyrics By Sandi Patti & Larnelle Harris
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=di3Ilv_6SXQ
How Great thou Art by Carrie Underwood
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLLMzr3PFgk
