Matthew 28:1-20: “The Events That Occurred When Jesus Was
Resurrected”
by
Jim Bomkamp
1.
INTRO
1.1.
In our last study we looked at the burial of Jesus and
we observed some very interesting things
1.1.1.
We saw that God was making it as apparent as He could
that He was doing miraculous things in the events that were occurring
1.1.2.
We defined what is called the “providence of God”,
which is God’s having predetermined circumstances that would occur in order to
bring about His will, and we saw how in numerous things that occurred that day
God was aligning circumstances in order to bring about His will
1.1.2.1.We looked at
a couple of Old Testament examples of how God aligned circumstances and through
circumstances placed people in strategic positions in order to bring about His
will
1.1.2.2.We saw
numerous Old Testament prophesies that were fulfilled
1.1.2.3.We saw God
putting people into place in order for things to occur that were out of the
ordinary (remember there is no such thing as an coincidence in this world)
1.1.2.4.We saw how
that in our own lives that God works in all of the circumstances that we find
ourselves in
1.1.2.4.1.We saw how
that God causes all things in His people’s lives to work together for good
(Rom. 8:28)
1.2.
In our study today we are going to look at the
resurrection of Jesus
1.2.1.
We will look not only at the accounts as given by
Matthew but also several of the other gospel writer’s accounts of those events
1.2.2.
The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the most important
doctrine in the New Testament church, for if Jesus did not raise from the dead
then we are still in our sins and without hope or God in this world
1.2.3.
God has provided ample proof for any who are open
minded to see that there is more than sufficient evidence to prove that Jesus
Christ really did raise from the dead three days after being crucified for the
sins of the world
2.
VS 28:1-4 - “1 Now
after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, Mary
Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave.2 And behold, a severe
earthquake had occurred, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and
came and rolled away the stone and sat upon it.3 And his appearance was like
lightning, and his garment as white as snow;4 and the guards shook for fear of
him, and became like dead men.” -
Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, both of whom were with Jesus at the
cross, came on Sunday morning to find an empty tomb
2.1.
We saw in our last study that Jesus body had been covered with 100 lbs.
of spices by Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea, both of whom were religious
leaders of the Jews and secret disciples of Jesus, and that they had then
wrapped his body in the Jewish mummification form of burial. However, because of their great devotion to
Jesus, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary had gone off to prepare a more
expensive and appropriate mix of spices so that on Sunday morning, after the Sabbath,
they could come and give Jesus body more of an appropriate treatment for
burial.
2.2.
Now, on Sunday morning Mary Magdalene and the other Mary are said here to
have come ‘to look at the grave’.
2.3.
Upon arriving at Jesus’ tomb, we read here that these two women do not
find Jesus there at all, for an open tomb awaits them along with the angel who
had rolled away the stone in front of the tomb, plus the Roman guards who are
so filled with fear that they are laying there like dead men.
2.4.
Angels are awesome creatures as we see here that the angel is described
as having an appearance that was like flashing lightning and garments that were
the purest of all whites, pure as snow.
2.4.1.
Garments being white as snow speaks of purity for in Isaiah 1:18, we read that the Lord promises
that when His people turn to Him in repentence and faith that He will cause
their sins which now are scarlet to become white as snow, “18 “Come
now, and let us reason together,” Says the Lord, “Though your sins are as
scarlet, They will be as white as snow;
Though they are red like crimson, They will be like wool.”
2.5.
Before we look at the accounts of the other gospels of Jesus’
resurrection I want to make a point.
Regarding differences in the accounts given by the four gospels, the
fact that there are some details that vary between the accounts lends
credibility to the accuracy of the accounts, and not visa versa. When everyone’s account agrees in every
detail regarding an incident which they have witnessed then we would expect
that a conspiracy had occurred and that all of the accounts came from a common
source. In any testimony in a court of
law there will be varying details that are reported, and as long as the
accounts do not directly contradict what another witness testified then the
account may still be considered valid and believable.
2.6.
In Mark’s gospel account, Mark 16:1-8, we notice that the details of his account vary
some from Matthew’s account, “1 And when the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene,
and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, bought spices, that they might come
and anoint Him.2 And very early on the first day of the week, they *came to the
tomb when the sun had risen.3 And they were saying to one another, “Who will
roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?”4 And looking up,
they *saw that the stone had been rolled away, although it was extremely
large.5 And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting at the right,
wearing a white robe; and they were amazed.6 And he *said to them, “Do not be
amazed; you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has
risen; He is not here; behold, here is the place where they laid Him.7 “But go,
tell His disciples and Peter, ‘He is going before you into
2.6.1.
Mark notes that Salome had also gone with the two Mary’s to the tomb.
2.6.2.
Mark notes that the other Mary with Mary Magdalene was the mother of
James, who is believed to be the apostle named, “James the less”.
2.6.3.
Mark also states that the women saw the angel in the tomb, and if we did
not have Matthew’s account we might believe that the first time that the angel
was visible to the women was once they had gone into the tomb. Matthew tells us however that the angel
invited the women into the tomb (Matt. 28:6).
2.6.4.
Mark describes the angel as being a young man wearing a white robe,
whereas Matthew states that the angel’s appearance was a lightning and that his
garments were as white as wool.
2.6.5.
Mark tells us that the women were so fearful and amazed at the events
that were occurring that they did not even say a word.
2.7.
In Luke’s account, Luke 28:1-10, of the resurrection we learn other details that
are not included in Matthew, “1 But on the first day of the week, at early dawn,
they came to the tomb, bringing the spices which they had prepared.2 And they
found the stone rolled away from the tomb,3 but when they entered, they did not
find the body of the Lord Jesus.4 And it happened that while they were
perplexed about this, behold, two men suddenly stood near them in dazzling
apparel;5 and as the women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground,
the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living One among the dead?6 “He is
not here, but He has risen. Remember how He spoke to you while He was still in
2.7.1.
Luke notes that there were actually two angels which appeared to the
women inside the tomb, Matthew and Mark felt that it was only important to
include the main angel in their accounts.
2.7.2.
Luke notes that the angels ‘suddenly stood near them’, so evidently even
though as Matt. 28:6 notes, the angel invited them into the tomb, he also along
with another angel, suddenly appeared out of nowhere to them once they were
inside of the tomb. Alternately, it could
be that there was one angel on top of the tomb, and two others appeared to the
women once they were on the inside of the tomb.
2.7.3.
Luke notes that besides Mary Magdalene, the other Mary, and Salome, there
was also Joanna and some other ‘women’ with them at Jesus tomb on this Sunday
morning. So, evidently more than just
Salome had come there with these two Mary’s.
3.
VS 28:5-10 - “5
And the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid; for I know
that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified.6 “He is not here, for He
has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying.7 “And go
quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead; and behold, He
is going before you into
3.1.
The angel tells the women that Jesus has risen ‘just as He said’, and
then he tells them to come and look at the place where Jesus was lying.
3.2.
The angel next tells the women to go quickly to the disciples and tell
them that Jesus has risen from the dead.
3.3.
The angel also tells the women that the disciples are to go to Galilee
and that in
3.3.1.
It was much to volatile and dangerous for the disciples to hang out in
Jerusalem at this point in time because of the anger and rage of the Jewish
religious leaders who knew that they had failed to stop Jesus and His
movement. The disciples needed peace and
quiet and to meet Jesus there in
3.4.
We see here that Matthew tells us that the women departed from Jesus with
‘fear and great joy’ as they went to report the news to Jesus’ disciples.
3.4.1.
We can only imagine the emotions of Jesus’ followers on this day. They will go from all time lows of depression
to all time highs of exhilaration.
3.5.
I love the description that Matthew gives here of the women meeting Jesus
as they are running on their way to tell His disciples that He has risen from
the dead. These women fell at His feet
and held onto them as they worshipped Him.
They weren’t going to let Jesus out of their grip until Jesus told them
to stop holding on to Him.
3.5.1.
These women did not want to let go of Jesus and somehow lose Him.
3.6.
In Mark’s account, Mark 16:9-11, we read some other details that occurred in this
story, “9 [Now after He had risen early on the first day of the week, He
first appeared to Mary Magdalene, from whom He had cast out seven demons.10 She
went and reported to those who had been with Him, while they were mourning and
weeping.11 And when they heard that He was alive, and had been seen by her,
they refused to believe it.”
3.6.1.
Mark tells us that of these women who were running to tell Jesus’
disciples that He had risen from the dead that Jesus first appeared to Mary
Magdalene.
3.6.1.1.To her who had been forgiven
much, and thus loved much, Jesus appeared first.
3.6.2.
Mark tells us that the disciples were together and still mourning and
weeping at this point of time.
3.6.3.
Mark tells us that the disciples did not believe the women’s account.
3.6.3.1.We might expect men to do
this, right women?!
3.7.
In John’s gospel account, John 20:1-18, we read of several details that also occurred, “1 Now on
the first day of the week Mary Magdalene *came early to the tomb, while it *was
still dark, and *saw the stone already taken away from the tomb.2 And so she
*ran and *came to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and
*said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not
know where they have laid Him.”3 Peter therefore went forth, and the other
disciple, and they were going to the tomb.4 And the two were running together;
and the other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter, and came to the tomb
first;5 and stooping and looking in, he *saw the linen wrappings lying there;
but he did not go in.6 Simon Peter therefore also *came, following him, and
entered the tomb; and he *beheld the linen wrappings lying there,7 and the
face-cloth, which had been on His head, not lying with the linen wrappings, but
rolled up in a place by itself.8 So the other disciple who had first come to
the tomb entered then also, and he saw and believed.9 For as yet they did not
understand the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead.10 So the
disciples went away again to their own homes.
11 But Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping; and so, as she wept,
she stooped and looked into the tomb;12 and she *beheld two angels in white
sitting, one at the head, and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been
lying.13 And they *said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She *said to
them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have
laid Him.”14 When she had said this, she turned around, and *beheld Jesus
standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus.15 Jesus *said to her,
“Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing Him to be the
gardener, she *said to Him, “Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where
you have laid Him, and I will take Him away.”16 Jesus *said to her, “Mary!” She
*turned and *said to Him in Hebrew, “Rabboni!” (which means, Teacher).17 Jesus
*said to her, “Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father;
but go to My brethren, and say to them, ‘I ascend to My Father and your Father,
and My God and your God.’”18 Mary Magdalene *came, announcing to the disciples,
“I have seen the Lord,” and that He had said these things to her.”
3.7.1.
John tells us that Peter and John ran to the tomb, John out ran Peter,
and when they got to the tomb they saw that it was empty and that the wrappings
that had been around Jesus’ body were lying there. The face cloth was by itself, and the rest by
itself. The language here I am told
tells us clearly in the Greek that none of the wrappings had been unwrapped,
but that they were still coiled as they had been when placed around Jesus’ head
and torso. Jesus had vaporized through
the wrappings, they were not unwound from Him.
3.7.2.
John tells us that Jesus did not actually appear to Mary Magdalene (and
hence the other women) on the way to tell the disciples that Jesus had risen from
the dead, but rather after Peter and John had left her alone at the tomb.
3.7.3.
John tells us that when Jesus finally appeared to Mary that she was still
weeping and in such a confused and emotional state of mind that she didn’t even
recognize Jesus but rather thought that He was the gardener.
3.7.4.
John tells us that as Mary is clinging to Jesus’ feet after He has
appeared to her that He tells her to ‘stop clinging’ to Him for He had not as
yet ascended to the Father.
3.7.5.
John tells us then that Mary once again came to the disciples and told
them that she had seen the Lord, and of the things that Jesus had said to her.
3.8.
In John 16:12 and also in Luke 24:13ff, we read of Jesus appearing to two
of the disciples as they were on the road to Emmaus. They did not at first recognize Jesus. He opened up to them the Old Testament
scriptures which foretold of Jesus first coming to earth and dying upon the
cross, and then raising from the dead.
Then when they sat down to eat Jesus suddenly disappeared in their midst
and they suddenly recognized Him and realized what the scriptures had foretold
about the Messiah coming in this way was true.
4.
VS 28:11-15 -
“11 Now while they were on their way, behold, some of the guard came into
the city and reported to the chief priests all that had happened.12 And when
they had assembled with the elders and counseled together, they gave a large
sum of money to the soldiers,13 and said, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came
by night and stole Him away while we were asleep.’14 “And if this should come
to the governor’s ears, we will win him over and keep you out of trouble.”15
And they took the money and did as they had been instructed; and this story was
widely spread among the Jews, and is to this day.” - The chief priests bribe the guards who were
at Jesus’ tomb when the angel rolled away the stone to tell everyone that
Jesus’ disciples came and stole His body
4.1.
Matthew tells us here that this was the official story concerning Jesus’
empty tomb which the Jewish leaders told even in his day as he was writing his
gospel account (at least 10 years after Jesus had raised from the dead).
4.2.
One of the things that lends tremendous credibility to the New
Testament’s accounts that Jesus raised from the dead is the fact that if the
Jewish leaders could have gotten a hold of the body of Jesus by any means, they
would have done so and carted it all through the streets of
4.3.
Josephus was a Jew (not a Christian) who lived during the
time of Christ, and he was under employ of
4.3.1.
This historical account is the more remarkable when you consider the fact
that the man who wrote it was not a Christian and writing under the employ of
Rome, who just a few years later sought to destroy all evidence of Christianity
from the earth.
4.4.
I want us again to think of how ridiculous of a story it really is that
Jesus’ band of disciples might have had the wherewithal to come and overpower
this Roman guard, tear the Roman seal off of the stone covering Jesus’ tomb,
and steal away His body.
4.4.1.
Don’t forget the fact that they somehow would have to have gotten all of
the grave cloths off of Jesus without unwrapping them, as the gospels tells us
those were found coiled up and undisturbed inside the tomb by Peter and John.
5.
VS 28:16-20 -
“16 But the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which
Jesus had designated.17 And when they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some
were doubtful.18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority
has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.19 “Go therefore and make disciples
of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and
the Holy Spirit,20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I
am with you always, even to the end of the age.”” - Jesus gives His disciples their “Great
Commission”
5.1.
The angels had told the women to tell Jesus’ disciples to go to
5.2.
In 1 Cor. 15:1-11, Paul wrote to us about other events that occurred after Jesus was
raised from the dead, “1 Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel
which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand,2 by
which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you,
unless you believed in vain.3 For I delivered to you as of first importance
what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the
Scriptures,4 and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day
according to the Scriptures,5 and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the
twelve.6 After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time,
most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep;7 then He appeared
to James, then to all the apostles;8 and last of all, as it were to one
untimely born, He appeared to me also.9 For I am the least of the apostles, who
am not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.10
But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove
vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God
with me.11 Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.”
5.2.1.
Jesus also appeared after His resurrection to Peter, the twelve, more
than 500 brethren at one time, James, all of the apostles, and finally to Paul
(much later since he was untimely born).
5.3.
Luke tells us in Acts 1:3 that Jesus was appearing to His disciples for a
period of 40 days before He finally ascended up to heaven upon a cloud, “3 To
these He also presented Himself alive, after His suffering, by many convincing
proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days, and speaking of the
things concerning the kingdom of God.”
5.4.
The “Great Commission” of Jesus given here (recorded also by John in John
16:15) is the purpose for why the church is here on earth.
5.4.1.
The “Great Commission” given by Jesus here explains the reason why the
Lord did not immediately take each of His disciples to heaven with Him upon His
ascension, and why Jesus does not also take each Christian to be with Him in
heaven upon their conversion. God has
chosen to use man for His purposes in the preaching of the gospel and making of
disciples.
5.4.2.
The “Great Commission” consists of two things, winning people to Christ
and training them up in their faith by teaching them all that Jesus Has taught
us in His Word.
5.4.3.
In Eph. 4:11-13, we read that the Lord has given apostles,
prophets, and teachers to the church in order that the saints might be equipped
for ministry, “11 And He gave some as apostles, and some as
prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers,12 for the
equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body
of Christ;13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the
knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature
which belongs to the fulness of Christ.”
5.4.3.1.Each of us in the body of
Christ has been called by God to minister in some way according to our
spiritual gifts and as the Lord works in our life and matures us in our faith.
5.4.3.2.Contrary to how many
churches today function, the work of the ministry is not relegated to the
religious professionals while all or most of the rest of us are merely
spectators sitting in the stands. We all
have spiritual gifts and ministries which we have been called to fulfill in
this world and according to God’s perfect timing.