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The Power of the Resurrection (Matthew 27:62 – 28:15)

First Baptist Church https://fbcbartow.org

“The Power of the Resurrection”

(Matthew 27:62 – 28:15)

Series: God’s Fulfilled Promise [on screen]

Rev. Matthew C. McCraw, EdD

First Baptist Church, Bartow, Florida

December 13, 2020

The Passage

Matthew 27:62 – 28:15

27:62 The next day, which followed the preparation day, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate 63 and said, “Sir, we remember that while this deceiver was still alive he said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ 64 So give orders that the tomb be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come, steal him, and tell the people, ‘He has been raised from the dead,’ and the last deception will be worse than the first.”

65 “Take guards,” Pilate told them. “Go and make it as secure as you know how.” 66 They went and secured the tomb by setting a seal on the stone and placing the guards.

28:1 After the Sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to view the tomb. 2 There was a violent earthquake, because an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and approached the tomb. He rolled back the stone and was sitting on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing was as white as snow. 4 The guards were so shaken by fear of him that they became like dead men.

5 The angel told the women, “Don’t be afraid, because I know you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here. For he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has risen from the dead and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; you will see him there.’ Listen, I have told you.”

8 So, departing quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, they ran to tell his disciples the news. 9 Just then Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” They came up, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus told them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to leave for Galilee, and they will see me there.”

11 As they were on their way, some of the guards came into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. 12 After the priests had assembled with the elders and agreed on a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money 13 and told them, “Say this, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole him while we were sleeping.’ 14 If this reaches the governor’s ears, we will deal with him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 They took the money and did as they were instructed, and this story has been spread among Jewish people to this day.

Introductory Comments:

Can you think of any really pathetic lies? Perhaps the most famous is, “The dog ate my homework!” My four-year-old likes to tell me that he is full, but he has a different part of his stomach that can fit desserts. As pastors, we hear a lot of lies. That’s sad, but true. Perhaps you’ve heard some terrible lies as well. 

Well, today we’re going to hear about the most amazing event in the history of our world and then we’re going to hear a terribly pathetic lie that is an attempt to cover it up. Above all else, we’re going to learn that the power of the resurrection can stand against anything this world has to offer. 

Join me in prayer as we begin this study of Matthew’s retelling of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Let’s pray.

(prayer)

Without the resurrection of Jesus Christ, there is no Christianity, there is no First Baptist Church Bartow, there is no Christmas, there is no cure for the curse of sin, there is no promise of a new heaven and new earth, and there is forgiveness for you and me. 

However, Jesus did rise, so there is great hope! In today’s passage, Matthew tells us about the resurrection and the moments surrounding it.


Let us now look at three aspects of Matthew’s retelling of the greatest moment in human history. 

First, let us look at . . . 

I. The empty plan (27:62-66) [on screen]

Don’t forget, in this part of the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus has been crucified, He has died, and He has been buried in a borrowed tomb. The religious leaders believe that they have succeeded in putting an end to Jesus, but they want to be sure. 

Concerning the Jewish religious leaders and their efforts to stop Jesus, the InterVarsity Press commentary on this passage says, “They want the whole Jesus movement to stay buried in the tomb.”

So, the religious leaders devise a plan to be sure that this Jesus thing is over. Let’s read about it. Look at chapter 27, verses 62-66. 

27:62 The next day, which followed the preparation day, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate 63 and said, “Sir, we remember that while this deceiver was still alive he said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ 64 So give orders that the tomb be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come, steal him, and tell the people, ‘He has been raised from the dead,’ and the last deception will be worse than the first.”

65 “Take guards,” Pilate told them. “Go and make it as secure as you know how.” 66 They went and secured the tomb by setting a seal on the stone and placing the guards.

The chief priests and guards want to see this thing end. They know that at times Jesus (whom they refer to as “this deceiver”) claimed that He would rise from the dead. They want to be sure that this doesn’t happen and that someone doesn’t devise a plan to make it look like this happened. They are worried that if word gets out that Jesus rose from the dead that knowledge would be more powerful than Jesus’ time on the earth. The irony is, they were absolutely correct about that. 

Since they are so concerned with the disciples devising a plan, they devise their own plan. They easily win over Pilate and he grants them some guards and authority to seal the tomb. 

These guards are stationed near the tomb and the stone that covered the door of the tomb was sealed. This seal was probably some sort of wax or clay that was pressed with a seal signifying the authority of Rome. 

If someone without permission disturbed the tomb they would face the guards, which would not be fun. If they were to somehow make it past the guards, they would have to break the seal on the stone, which would be punished with a terrible penalty. 

This plan seemed substantial and solid to the chief priests and elders of Israel. They thought it was foolproof. However, this plan was foolish! This plan was empty!

All the plans of man, all the schemes of the devil, all the best leaders in Israel, all the finest soldiers in Rome could not stop the power of God! They could not stop the power of the resurrection of Jesus!

The Pharisees tried to prevent a resurrection story, but they ended up just making it a better story! This plan was empty!


You know what else was empty? The tomb was empty! That’s our second point:

II. The empty tomb (28:1-10) [on screen]

We know about the empty tomb, don’t we? We know that Jesus didn’t stay dead, He didn’t stay in the grave, and He didn’t continue to suffer at the hands of the local authorities! Jesus miraculously and fully rose to new life! The grave was empty!

Let’s read about it. Look at verses 1-10 of chapter 28:

28:1 After the Sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to view the tomb. 2 There was a violent earthquake, because an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and approached the tomb. He rolled back the stone and was sitting on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing was as white as snow. 4 The guards were so shaken by fear of him that they became like dead men.

5 The angel told the women, “Don’t be afraid, because I know you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here. For he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has risen from the dead and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; you will see him there.’ Listen, I have told you.”

8 So, departing quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, they ran to tell his disciples the news. 9 Just then Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” They came up, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus told them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to leave for Galilee, and they will see me there.”

First of all, let’s get our timeline right. This is now Sunday in the story. It is the day after the Sabbath; Sabbath is a Saturday, the next day is Sunday. 

These women, who were sitting outside the tomb just a bit earlier have come back to the tomb, perhaps to anoint the body of Jesus more. As they returned to the tomb things are not how they left them. 

Another earthquake hit the area and we see that it was caused by a supernatural appearance of an angel of the Lord. This angel rolled back the stone and was sitting on the stone. 

We learn that the guards were shaken with fear. Add up the fact that a crazy earthquake happened when this angel appeared, the angel rolled away the huge stone by himself, and that his was appearance was brilliant like lightning and snow, the guards were shaken. In fact, Matthew says they were shaken by fear and became like dead men. Perhaps they fainted or were virtually petrified because of their great fear. Nevertheless, these guards were powerless against this angel. 

I love this also: the angel doesn’t even bother with the guards. He just starts speaking to the women. He tells them not to be afraid, because, surely they are afraid as well. 

The angel then says that Jesus has risen, just as He said He would. The angel is basically saying, “He told you He would rise, didn’t He? Well, He rose! He is risen!”

Indeed, Jesus did say that He would rise. Let’s reflect back:

In Matthew 16:21, we learn, “From then on Jesus began to point out to his disciples that it was necessary for him to go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and scribes, be killed, and be raised the third day.” [on screen]

Matthew tells us in Matthew 17:22-23, “22 As they were gathering together in Galilee, Jesus told them, ‘The Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men. 23 They will kill him, and on the third day he will be raised up.’ And they were deeply distressed.” [on screen]

Jesus said in Matthew 20:18-19, “18 See, we are going up to Jerusalem. The Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death. 19 They will hand him over to the Gentiles to be mocked, flogged, and crucified, and on the third day he will be raised.” [on screen]

Jesus predicted this moment and He backed it up! He is risen!

The angel then invited the women to see the place where Jesus lay. He’s basically saying, “See it yourselves!” He then instructs them to carry this news to the disciples and to tell them that He will meet them again in Galilee. Remember, Galilee was home for them. Galilee is where Jesus called them. Galilee is where most of their ministry took place. Jesus wants to meet them there once again. It’s beautiful how Jesus shows so much grace to the disciples. They were unfaithful to Him in His death, but He was faithful to them in His resurrection. 

I love how Matthew tells us that the women went, “ . . . with fear and great joy.” They were both frightened and ecstatic. After all, it’s not every day that you hear from an angel that someone rose from the dead! 

This reminds me of my son, Samuel. He loves to be startled by me. Although it scares him tremendously, he also laughs joyfully. He is filled with fear and great joy!

However, things get even better for these women. They have an up-close and personal encounter with Jesus on the road; the One whom they just witnessed being crucified! Jesus said, “Greetings!” I can imagine what they were thinking, “Greetings? You were just dead!”

Realizing that it was Jesus, they bowed before Him and worshiped Him!

Jesus then echoed the instructions of the angel and told them to go ahead to the disciples and meet up with Him again in Galilee. Jesus would see them soon because He was no longer dead, He was alive! 

The tomb was empty. 

Finally, notice . . .

III. The empty lie (28:11-15) [on screen]

The Jewish leaders did everything they could to stop reports of a resurrection, but alas, they could not stand up to the power of God! So, they tried to cover up the resurrection. However, their lies were illogical, easily disproven, and empty!

Let’s read about it. Look in your Bibles at verses 11-15:

11 As they were on their way, some of the guards came into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. 12 After the priests had assembled with the elders and agreed on a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money 13 and told them, “Say this, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole him while we were sleeping.’ 14 If this reaches the governor’s ears, we will deal with him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 They took the money and did as they were instructed, and this story has been spread among Jewish people to this day.

Well, as you might imagine, the news of what happened at the tomb of Jesus spread. The guards started talking and some of them came to tell the chief priests everything that had happened. 

It was at this point that the priests and elders had to come up with a plan. The very thing that they tried to prevent from happening had happened. Not only that, because they put a station of guards there it made the miracle look even more miraculous! They had dug themselves into a hole!

Now, the best they can come up with is to create this empty lie to cover up the truth. However, as with all empty lies, it doesn’t stand up. The history of the world would be changed forever because of the belief in the truth of the resurrection! Millions and millions of people would give their lives to Jesus and become followers of God because there was an empty tomb! The empty lie would not prevail; Jesus would prevail!

This empty lie is based on the idea that professional guards fell asleep on the job. This would have required the guards to put their own lives at risk by sleeping on the job or to ignore common sense by taking turns sleeping. It just doesn’t make any sense!

The guards know that this doesn’t make any sense and that they risk trouble if they tell this story, but the Jewish leaders said that they would take care of this as well. Surely, this required the Jewish leaders not only to pay off the guards but also to pay off their supervisors. This empty lie and these empty plans to stop the power of Jesus were now getting quite expensive for the Jewish leaders. They paid off Judas, they paid off the guards, they probably paid off some other officials to cover up their lies, and there’s no telling who else they paid off. Worst of all, this was a vain and empty attempt to stop the power of God! They would not win!

Matthew said that their lie did take root among some people and it was even believed among many Jewish people at the time Matthew wrote his Gospel. Indeed, this is still one of the theories that survive today as to what happened at Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection. However, it is an empty lie. 

The irony of this passage is that the Jewish leaders called Jesus “this deceiver,” yet they are the ones who continued to breed deception. 

This is the empty lie. 

Concluding Thoughts:

The empty plan and the empty lie would not prevail because of the empty grave. That takes us to our bottom line for today:

Bottom Line: The result of the empty grave is that the Risen Savior is mighty to save[on screen]

(repeat)

It’s not just the empty grave that matters. It’s not like Jesus went missing. Jesus rose from the dead! Because Jesus is the Risen Savior He has mighty power to offer us forgiveness from sin and to offer us new life! He is mighty to save!

The power of the resurrection of Jesus changes everything! 

Challenge yourself to live changed lives in the following ways:

Weekly Challenge: [on screen]

1. Embrace the truth of the resurrection. [on screen]

There are so many out there who embrace empty lies regarding the resurrection of Jesus. They will believe lies that are more far-fetched than the actual resurrection. 

They will believe that a group of ragtag disciples could outwit and overpower professional soldiers, rather than believe that a supernatural deity could raise someone to life. 


They will believe that a beaten and tortured man could somehow garner up the strength to roll away a giant stone, rather than believe that the power of God could roll away a stone.

They will believe that men would be willing to make up lies about Jesus, record them in the Gospel accounts, and then be willing to die for those lies; rather than believe that these men wrote down what they actually saw and heard and were moved to the point of total commitment to Jesus, even to the point of death. 

Church, rather than embrace these empty lies, let us embrace the realities of the empty tomb! Let us embrace the truth of the resurrection!

2. Embrace the power of the resurrection[on screen]

If the resurrection is true, and it is, it changes everything about us!


There is power in the resurrection! The resurrection can break the curse of sin! The resurrection can heal generational brokenness! The resurrection can heal broken homes! The resurrection can heal broken marriages! The resurrection can heal broken hearts! The resurrection can heal broken attitudes! The resurrection can heal broken churches! The resurrection can heal broken politicians! The resurrection can heal broken communities! The resurrection has power!

Embrace that power! Live by that power! 

3. Share the power of the resurrection[on screen]

When’s the last time that you shared about the power of the resurrection? If the resurrection is true, if the resurrection is powerful, then we share that power with others. 

Will you challenge yourself to do so this week?

Closing:

So often we have empty plans for our lives and we are led astray by empty lies. May we all reject that emptiness and experience the fullness of God which was made possible by the empty grave!

(Gospel presentation)

(closing prayer)

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