Easter 2020
Matthew 27:57-66 LB
“When evening came, a rich man from Arimathea named Joseph, one of Jesus’ followers, 58 went to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. And Pilate issued an order to release it to him. 59 Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, 60 and placed it in his own new rock-hewn tomb, and rolled a great stone across the entrance as he left. 61 Both Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting nearby watching.
62 The next day—at the close of the first day of the Passover ceremonies—the chief priests and Pharisees went to Pilate, 63 and told him, “Sir, that liar once said, ‘After three days I will come back to life again.’ 64 So we request an order from you sealing the tomb until the third day, to prevent his disciples from coming and stealing his body and then telling everyone he came back to life! If that happens, we’ll be worse off than we were at first. 65 Pilate said to them, “You have a guard; go your way, make it as secure as you know how.” 66 So they went and made the tomb secure, sealing the stone and setting the guard.“
Notes
Matthew 27:64 NKJV
“Command that the tomb be made secure until the third day, lest His disciples come by night and steal Him away…”
Matthew 27:65 NKJV
“Pilate said to them, ‘You have a guard; go your way, make it as secure as you know how.’”
Notes
Mark 8:31 LB
“Then he began to tell them (the disciples) about the terrible things he would suffer, and that he would be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the other Jewish leaders—and be killed, and that he would rise again three days afterwards.”
Mark 10:34 LB
“They will mock me and spit on me and flog me with their whips and kill me; but after three days I will come back to life again.”
Notes
That said, it is ridiculous to imagine the disciples, who had ALL FLED in fear and gone into hiding when Jesus was arrested…
- approaching the tomb in the dead of night
- getting past 4 Roman soldiers guarding it for their life,
- breaking the seal,
- rolling back the huge boulder,
- and kidnapping the dead body of Jesus while the soldiers looked on!
Matthew 28:2-6 LB
“Suddenly there was a great earthquake! For an angel of the Lord came down from heaven, rolled aside the stone, and sat on it. 3 His face shone like lightning, and his clothing was as white as snow. 4 The guards shook with fear when they saw him, and they fell into a dead faint.
5 Then the angel spoke to the women. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen. Come, see where his body was lying.”
Notes
Now, some have asked, “What’s the big deal? How does this story from over 2,000 years ago that happened on the other side of the world matter to me today?”
- I mean, we’re in the middle of a terrible plague.
- The economy is in deep trouble.
- Manu have lost their jobs.
- Many more are about to be evicted from their house or apartment.
- On top of that, violent storms and earthquakes are striking different parts of the country.
Notes
Let me tell you the number one reason why the resurrection of Jesus matters to us all…
The resurrection proved Jesus was who He said He was!
John 11:25 NASB
“I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies.”
Notes
John 14:6 NASB
“I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”
Notes
John 3:16 NKJV
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
The word “begotten” that Jesus uses here means “one-and-only, or one of a kind—or, the only one of its kind.”
In other words, Jesus is saying…
- There’s no one like Me.
- My immaculate conception in Mary’s womb through the power of the Holy Spirit was the only conception of it’s kind…
- It never happened before and will never happen like that again!
Notes
1 Corinthians 15:20 NKJV
“But now Christ is risen from the dead!”
1 Corinthians 15:3-8 LB
“I passed on to you right from the first what had been told to me, that Christ died for our sins just as the Scriptures said he would, 4 and that he was buried, and that three days afterwards he arose from the grave just as the prophets foretold. 5 He was seen by Peter and later by the rest of “the Twelve.” 6 After that he was seen by more than five hundred Christian brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died by now. 7 Then James saw him, and later all the apostles. 8 Last of all I saw him too, long after the others…”
Notes
And until then, we can say along with the famous song:
Because He lives, I can face tomorrow
Because He lives, all fear is gone
Because I know He holds the future
And life is worth the living just because He lives!
Notes
I. Because He lives, Dark days won’t last!
Notes
II. And because He lives, nothing is impossible with God!
Notes
III. And because He lives, better days are coming!
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