MATTHEW 28:1-10, JOHN 20:1-17
AT THE TOMB
Life of Christ #57
THE REMAINS OF JESUS
UNCOVERED
By Regis
Nicoll.
“That’s right! At least according to award-winning filmmakers James Cameron
and Simcha Jacobovici,
whose documentary to that effect will be shown later this year on the Discovery
Channel, among other places.
“How did they come across
such a sensational find? It all goes back to the 1980 discovery of a cave in a
backwater neighborhood in Jerusalem in which six coffins were scribbled with
the names: “Jesua son of Joseph, Mary, Mary, Matthew,
Jofa (Joseph, identified as Jesus’ brother), Judah
son of Jesua (Jesus’ son -- the filmmakers claim).”
Then after DNA analysis and “close work with world-famous scientists,” Cameron
and company concluded that the cave contained Jesus’ remains.
“But there are several things
quite odd about this. First off, the names Mary, Joseph and Jesus are some of
the most common names in early
“In fact, if this cave did
contain the remains of Jesus it would be nigh impossible to verify 2000 years
later…
“Both the Jewish leadership
and the Roman authorities were not only highly motivated to quash any
resurrection ruse, but had the political muscle and wherewithal to extract
confessions and find the body, if indeed it existed. That no body was ever
found is reflected in the extra-biblical account by the Jewish historian, Josephus,
in the late first century…” http://thepoint.breakpoint.org/2007/02/the_remains_of_.html
The physical evidence against
these findings being the remains of Jesus is very good. The Biblical evidence against these being the
remains of Jesus are excellent!
The Bible tells us that there
are no remains of Jesus. He is risen!
We continue our study of the
life of Christ. Last week we saw His
wonderful sacrificial death for us on the cross. This week we begin to study the events of His
resurrection.
We are going to go to the
tomb of Jesus on that first Easter Sunday Morning to look at the events that
transpired.
It is the third day after the
death of Jesus. It is early morning, and
dark as a group of women proceed towards the tomb, hoping to anoint the body of
Jesus. By the time they get there the sun is beginning to rise.
A PERPLEXING PROBLEM – Matthew 28:1-4
Vs. 1 – Matthew mentions two women who have come to the
tomb. But, according to the other Gospels, there were others.
Mark 16:1 - And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother
of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint
him.
Luke 24:1 - Now upon the first day of the week, very
early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre,
bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them.
A great stone had been rolled
in front of the sepulcher, and there was a Roman guard contingent posted.
Matthew 27:59-60 - And when Joseph had taken the body, he
wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, [60] And laid it in
his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock: and he rolled a great
stone to the door of the sepulchre, and departed.
Matthew 27:62-66 - Now the next day, that followed the day of
the preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees came together unto Pilate,
[63] Saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver said, while he was yet alive,
After three days I will rise again. [64] Command therefore that the sepulchre be made sure until the third day, lest his
disciples come by night, and steal him away, and say unto the people, He is
risen from the dead: so the last error shall be worse than the first. [65]
Pilate said unto them, Ye have a watch: go your way,
make it as sure as ye can. [66] So they went, and made the sepulchre
sure, sealing the stone, and setting a watch.
The women were concerned as
to the accessibility of the body.
Mark 16:3 - And they said among themselves, Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulchre?
When they arrived the women
discovered an even more perplexing problem.
The stone was rolled away from the tomb.
Evidently, Mary Magdalene saw the stone rolled away, and ran for
help.
She did not stay, as the
other women did, to hear the message of the angels concerning the
resurrection. She went to find Peter and
John. We’ll talk more about this in a
few minutes.
Vs. 2 – There had been a huge earthquake when an Angel from
Heaven rolled away the stone.
Why did the Angel roll away
the stone?
Was it to let Jesus out? No!
Jesus’ resurrection body is
capable of going through walls.
The angel rolled away the
stone to show Jesus’ followers that the tomb was empty!
The angel sat on the stone
that he had rolled away.
Vs. 3 – The angel’s appearance reflected the glory of the
God he served. He evidently glowed with
brilliance like lightening. His clothing
was as white as snow.
Vs. 4 – The guards were terrified and became like dead
men. They were decommissioned, so to
speak.
As we’ll see in the next
verse, the women were terribly frightened as well.
Their perplexing problem was
what to do with an empty tomb? Although
Jesus had promised that he would rise from the dead, his followers didn’t
understand it or believe it.
There were three possible
solutions to the problem:
1.
Somebody stole
the body.
2.
Jesus never died,
but just swooned, and then in the tomb He revived.
3.
Jesus rose from
the dead.
Obviously this is the solution to the
problem.
What to do with the empty
tomb is still a problem that needs to be addressed by every individual. And
there are at least three ways people can view the empty tomb today:
1.
Somebody stole
the body.
2.
Jesus was a
deceiver and the resurrection is a hoax because He never died.
3.
Jesus indeed rose
from the dead.
The authorities did not steal
the body. They wanted evidence that
Jesus was indeed dead!
The disciples did not steal
the body to carry out a hoax. They
didn’t believe that he was going to rise from the dead.
Jesus didn’t carry out a
hoax. All indications are that Jesus was
dead when he was buried. And even if he
had only swooned, as some think, he would have never had the strength to break
out of the tomb.
The only logical solution to
the problem is the miraculous resurrection of Jesus, God the Son, from the
dead!
1 Corinthians 15:3-4 - For I delivered unto you first of all that
which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the
scriptures; [4] And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day
according to the scriptures:
A PERPLEXING PROBLEM – Matthew 28:1-4
A PROFOUND ANNOUNCEMENT – Matthew 28:5-7
Vs. 5 – The great announcement to those who believe on
Jesus as their Savior is always “fear not!”
The Roman guards should have
feared.
Those that crucified Jesus
should have feared.
Anyone who is not trusting
Jesus as Savior should fear.
But those of us who know
Jesus as Savior should not fear!
Psalm 27:1 - The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom
shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of
whom shall I be afraid?
Isaiah 41:10 - Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not
dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea,
I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.
Luke 12:4-7 - And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that
have no more that they can do. [5] But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear:
Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say
unto you, Fear him. [6] Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not
one of them is forgotten before God? [7] But even the very hairs of your head
are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows.
“Fear. His modus operandi is to manipulate you with the
mysterious, to taunt you with the unknown. Fear of death, fear of failure, fear
of God, fear of tomorrow-his arsenal is vast. His goal?
To create cowardly, joyless souls. He doesn't want you
to make the journey to the mountain. He figures if he can rattle you enough,
you will take your eyes off the peaks and settle for a dull existence in the
flatlands.” Max L.
Lucado (1955- ) Edythe Draper, Draper's Book of
Quotations for the Christian World (Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.,
1992). Entry 9371, Bible Illustrator 3.0
Jesus’ message to His
followers is still the same, “Fear Not!”
Vs. 5-6 – The angel continued in his message. The women were
not to fear because Jesus wasn’t there. That was great news!
He had risen from the dead as
He said. Jesus proved himself to be reputable. He did what He said that He
would do!
John 2:20-22 - Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was
this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days? [21] But he
spake of the temple of his body. [22] When therefore he was risen
from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this unto them; and
they believed the scripture, and the word which Jesus had said.
Matthew 16:21 - From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto
Vss. 6-7 – The message of the angel is very encouraging. There are four words that summarize what we
should do in reaction to the resurrection.
“COME AND SEE” – We need to
come and see for ourselves that Jesus is indeed risen
from the dead. We need to believe in the death burial
and resurrection of Christ for forgiveness and everlasting life.
“GO AND TELL” – After seeing
and believing for ourselves, we need to go and tell others the wonderful news. We need to “REACH OUR WORLD” as our theme for
this month says.
Romans 10:9-10 - That
if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine
heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. [10] For
with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession
is made unto salvation.
A PERPLEXING PROBLEM – Matthew 28:1-4
A PROFOUND ANNOUNCEMENT – Matthew 28:5-7
A PERSONAL APPEARANCE – Matthew 28:8-10
Vs. 8 – The women obeyed the angel.
You can understand how they
would still have an element of fear. It
was probably fear of the unknown, fear of the new, and fear of the
unexplainable.
But there was also great
joy! Jesus was alive! Jesus was
victorious over the grave. Jesus was who He said He was!
You and I should also have
great joy at the resurrection.
John 14:19 -Yet a little while, and the world seeth me
no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also.
Vs. 9 – The logical response to seeing Jesus alive is to
worship Him!
Christian, if you see Jesus alive worship and adore Him with all your heart, soul, mind,
and body!
Vs. 10 - Like the angel a few short minutes before, Jesus
sent the women to share the good news of His resurrection!
Jesus sends us to our world
with the same message:
Mark 16:15 - And
he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and
preach the gospel to every creature.
We should practice what we
sing!
I love to tell the story of
unseen things above,
Of Jesus and His glory, of Jesus and His love.
I love to tell the story, because I know ’tis true;
It satisfies my longings as nothing else can do.
I love to tell the story;
more wonderful it seems
Than all the golden fancies of all our golden dreams.
I love to tell the story, it did so much for me;
And that is just the reason I tell it now to thee.
I love to tell the story,
’twill be my theme in glory,
To tell the old, old story of Jesus and His love. A. Katherine Hankey
A PERPLEXING PROBLEM – Matthew 28:1-4
A PROFOUND ANNOUNCEMENT – Matthew 28:5-7
A PERSONAL APPEARANCE – Matthew 28:8-10
A PENETRATING INVESTIGATION – John 20:1-9
Vss. 1-2 – As we said earlier, Mary Magdalene evidently saw
the empty tomb and left to tell John and Peter the news.
Her understanding was foggy
at best. She was convinced that someone had stolen the body.
Vss. 3-5 – John, who was probably younger, outran Peter. He looked in and saw the evidence of the
resurrection. But He did not go in.
Vss. 6-7 – Peter went in and saw the evidence himself.
Everything was orderly in the
tomb.
The grave clothes were there.
The napkin,
or sweat band for his head were there.
These were proof that Jesus
had been raised.
Vss. 8-9 – Although Jesus had said that He would rise from the
dead, the disciples never “got it!” And
they did not know the scriptures that told of His resurrection.
John saw the evidence and
believed.
You have been given evidence
of the resurrection.
Do you believe?
Vs. 10 – Peter may have walked away still perplexed by the
empty tomb. John walked away convinced.
What is your reaction to the
empty tomb?
A PERPLEXING PROBLEM – Matthew 28:1-4
A PROFOUND ANNOUNCEMENT – Matthew 28:5-7
A PERSONAL APPEARANCE – Matthew 28:8-10
A PENETRATING INVESTIGATION – John 20:1-9
A PRIVATE INTERVIEW – John 20:10-15
Vss. 11-12 – Mary returns to the sepulcher. She remains outside
weeping. Peter and John are gone. Angels
appear.
Vs. 13 – Here was a very good question. “Why are you
weeping?”
The angels knew why she was
weeping, but I believe that they were intimating that she had no reason to weep!
The angels knew that Mary had
no reason to weep, but every reason to rejoice.
There are times in our lives
when sorrow overwhelms us and we weep.
This is okay to a point. It’s normal.
Eventually there is a time to
go beyond the weeping to rejoicing.
The Lord Jesus is risen from the dead.
The Lord Jesus never leaves
or forsakes us.
The Lord Jesus has a place
for us in Heaven.
All sorrow and trials here on
earth are temporary. Our lives, as
Christians, are eternal!
Psalm 30:5 - …weeping may endure for a night, but joy
cometh in the morning.
Vss. 14-15 – Jesus came to Mary in her sorrow, as He will come
to you in you sorrow.
Again, He asks why she is
weeping.
Mary still doesn’t get it.
She does not know that she is talking to Jesus, and very bravely, thinking
Jesus to be the gardener, offers to move the body herself.
Vs. 16 – Jesus turns Mary’s tears to joy with the mention of
her name.
In your times of sorrow,
listen for the voice of the Lord Jesus bringing you comfort in your soul by His
Spirit and through His Word.
Vs. 17 – Mary was clinging to Jesus. She was not to cling.
The plan was for Jesus to
ascend to Heaven.
From there He would indwell
each believer with His Holy Spirit.
It was a time for Good News
and Mary was to share it!
Christian, this is a time for
Good News.
Jesus is risen
from the dead.
It is time for us to share it
with others who need to hear the message.
“Christianity spread rapidly
during the first century because all Christians saw themselves as responsible
for disseminating the gospel.” Erwin W. Lutzer (1941- ) Edythe Draper, Draper's Book of Quotations
for the Christian World (Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 1992). Entry
3302 Bible Illustrator 3.0
My friend, nobody has found
the remains of Jesus. There is no such thing. He is alive!
A PERPLEXING PROBLEM – Matthew 28:1-4
A PROFOUND ANNOUNCEMENT – Matthew 28:5-7
A PERSONAL APPEARANCE – Matthew 28:8-10
A PENETRATING INVESTIGATION – John 20:1-9
A PRIVATE INTERVIEW – John 20:10-15